I'm on board with the idea that a language needs to evolve. Usage is fluid. That doesn't mean there shouldn't be rules or guidelines (see this David Foster Wallace piece for a heroically thorough discussion of this topic), but I'm no fan of language pedantry.
All that being said, I'm a little puzzled by the way the word "around" is being used these days as a weirdly vague substitute for "about", "on", or "concerning", often from guest "experts" on TV news shows. It's almost as if the new usage was rolled out a few years ago at some kind of academic or corporate-speak seminar. I'm not sure why this bothers me, but when I hear "around" used in this way, it sounds like a clanging, out-of-tune note in an otherwise innocuous sentence.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, I couldn't find anything on the web about this, with the exception of these two posts on a New Zealand-based professional writing/editing site. The examples they give ("new legislation around", etc) are exactly the kind of thing I'm thinking of, so if you're trying to figure out what in God's name I'm talking about, just follow the links.
Showing posts with label pedantry. Show all posts
Showing posts with label pedantry. Show all posts
Friday, April 9, 2010
Wednesday, April 8, 2009
Pedantry on Parade
Wikipedia gives this definition for "pedant":
"a person who is overly concerned with formalism and precision, or who 'makes a show of learning'."
To see this tendency in full flower, take a look at the comments section here.
This is my favorite:
"This grammar error has been a pet peeve of mine for a long time, as it is committed by many grocers both in my home community and in the places to which I routinely travel. Most of the time it does no good to point it out, as few clerks grasp the distinction."
I understand now why I encounter so many surly grocery clerks. It's not the crappy wages and long hours, it's people complaining to them about the wording of the "10 items or less" sign. This is one reason I can respect the way Kenny Shopsin runs his restaurant. You know what would happen if one of these guardians of the English language came into his place and pointed out a grammar or syntax error on the menu? He would tell them to GET THE F*** OUT. Too bad the average grocery clerk doesn't have the power to tell somebody to take their pedantic a** down the road to Trader Joe's.
I'll admit that unnecessary apostrophes on signs bug me, but I can't imagine actually complaining to an employee or a business owner about the "incorrectness" of their sign. But obviously, that's just me.
"a person who is overly concerned with formalism and precision, or who 'makes a show of learning'."
To see this tendency in full flower, take a look at the comments section here.
This is my favorite:
"This grammar error has been a pet peeve of mine for a long time, as it is committed by many grocers both in my home community and in the places to which I routinely travel. Most of the time it does no good to point it out, as few clerks grasp the distinction."
I understand now why I encounter so many surly grocery clerks. It's not the crappy wages and long hours, it's people complaining to them about the wording of the "10 items or less" sign. This is one reason I can respect the way Kenny Shopsin runs his restaurant. You know what would happen if one of these guardians of the English language came into his place and pointed out a grammar or syntax error on the menu? He would tell them to GET THE F*** OUT. Too bad the average grocery clerk doesn't have the power to tell somebody to take their pedantic a** down the road to Trader Joe's.
I'll admit that unnecessary apostrophes on signs bug me, but I can't imagine actually complaining to an employee or a business owner about the "incorrectness" of their sign. But obviously, that's just me.
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