Viewing details of messages, sorted by time of creation ("sticky messages" first)
Hello
Well, I see that people are not breaking down the door to join this group!
I was attracted by the reference to "the murder of the English Language".
My mother, who was a physician, did not earn an undergraduate degree. When she set out to become a doctor, there were only minimal academic requirements for entering medical school, so she obtained what she needed in a semester plus summer school. I point this out because she was a lifelong student and a strict grammarian. When I was a young adult with a family she would return my letters with spelling and grammar errors marked in red. This was a painful legacy because the present casual attitude towards "the rules" causes me much distress. I live in a southern rural area, and am not bothered by the mistakes average people make in their daily speech. One of my former hairdressers used double and even triple negatives, but she was speaking the language she heard at home. No, it is the broadcasters and published authors with degrees in journalism and language who set my teeth on edge. I only completed two and a half years of college before I went on a different life path, but English 101 was taught by a sharp lady who assumed that her students had learned nothing in high school. This reinforced the correction I had received at home and contributed to my misery. I cannot help it but cringe when my husband with a BA says he is going to lay down, or supposedly educated people say things like "the gift is from Joe and I." I know in my heart that this does not make a difference in the larger scheme of things. I know what they mean, but it seems that our beautiful language slips a little every year. My daughter-in-law, with a masters degree in English tells me that there are two standards: Formal and daily usage. I do not understand this. Most people use the language they hear and they certainly don't hear correct grammar on television or in popular literature. I am not perfect. I misspell and occasionally slip up on those old rules, but I do make a conscious effort to speak and write as I was taught. My mother and Professor Smith are long gone, and I do not go around correcting people. My grandchildren tell their dog to "Lay down." and a person who worked for years in county government says things like, " He don't never do nothing no way..." ( I still haven't figured that one out!) There may not be anyone out there who feels to way I do, but someone brought up the subject so I thought I would get it off my chest.
Thanks!
I was attracted by the reference to "the murder of the English Language".
My mother, who was a physician, did not earn an undergraduate degree. When she set out to become a doctor, there were only minimal academic requirements for entering medical school, so she obtained what she needed in a semester plus summer school. I point this out because she was a lifelong student and a strict grammarian. When I was a young adult with a family she would return my letters with spelling and grammar errors marked in red. This was a painful legacy because the present casual attitude towards "the rules" causes me much distress. I live in a southern rural area, and am not bothered by the mistakes average people make in their daily speech. One of my former hairdressers used double and even triple negatives, but she was speaking the language she heard at home. No, it is the broadcasters and published authors with degrees in journalism and language who set my teeth on edge. I only completed two and a half years of college before I went on a different life path, but English 101 was taught by a sharp lady who assumed that her students had learned nothing in high school. This reinforced the correction I had received at home and contributed to my misery. I cannot help it but cringe when my husband with a BA says he is going to lay down, or supposedly educated people say things like "the gift is from Joe and I." I know in my heart that this does not make a difference in the larger scheme of things. I know what they mean, but it seems that our beautiful language slips a little every year. My daughter-in-law, with a masters degree in English tells me that there are two standards: Formal and daily usage. I do not understand this. Most people use the language they hear and they certainly don't hear correct grammar on television or in popular literature. I am not perfect. I misspell and occasionally slip up on those old rules, but I do make a conscious effort to speak and write as I was taught. My mother and Professor Smith are long gone, and I do not go around correcting people. My grandchildren tell their dog to "Lay down." and a person who worked for years in county government says things like, " He don't never do nothing no way..." ( I still haven't figured that one out!) There may not be anyone out there who feels to way I do, but someone brought up the subject so I thought I would get it off my chest.
Thanks!
