Correctness

Lesson 2 in “Part One: Style as Choice” of Style: Lessons in Clarity and Grace by Joseph M. Williams & Joseph Bizup

Presentation by Amanda Asimakopoulos

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What is Correctness?

• The rules in Standard English (spoken and written)• The correct ways of speaking and writing• Following basic grammatical and syntactical rules • While there are many rules that can be disregarded or have

exceptions, there are some basic rules that we cannot ignore

• The difference between a more formal view of Correctness and a more “straightforward” (25) view is the result of STYLE

• What’s Correctness for Williams & Bizup? “Clarity and grace” (25) NOT perfect grammar

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“No grammatical rules have sufficient authority to control the firm and established usage of language. Established custom, in speaking and writing, is the standard to which we must at last resort for determining every controverted point in language and style.” – Hugh Blair (9)

What’s your opinion? Think about

words, such as selfie, sick, like

or even expressions we use,

for example, “Are you down…?”

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“God does not much mind bad grammar, but He does not take any particular pleasure in it.”

– Erasmus (9)

“English usage is sometimes more than mere taste, judgment, and education—sometimes it’s sheer luck, like getting across the street.”

- E.B. White (9)

How do we develop our ideas of “Correctness”?

• From people with social, political and academic influence • “When a language has different regional dialects, that of the

most powerful speakers usually becomes the most prestigious and the basis for a nation’s ‘correct’ writing” (10).

• Social convention – what we say and how we write in our everyday lives that through habit and frequency become standards

• From frequently used expressions – I’m here, aren’t I? vs. I am here, am I not?– Aren’t vs. amn’t (am I not) – “The violation of a rule of Standard English reflects a logical mind

making English grammar more consistent” (11).

The Problem with the Concept of Correctness

• Some rules that we teach or practice by are not even real rules

• Some rules are less important than others and therefore can be bent

• At times, people become too focused on correctness when writing: “If you obsess over them all, you prevent yourself from writing quickly and clearly” (10).

• The concept of correctness was used by some for discriminating against others and identify “inferior” people based on “grammatical errors” (12).

The Myth of Correctness

• There are rules by which we must always follow

• “ ‘Correctness’ requires not sound judgment but a good memory” (10).

• There are no choices in writing

- “obedience” (10) > choice

Examples of Mythical Rules in Correctness

• Never begin a sentence with and or but• Never use double negatives • Never split infinitives (A verb that cannot be

made past or present, often preceded by the word to)

Three Kinds of Rules

1. Real Rules• “What makes English English”• Anglophones don’t think about these rules

when they write • These rules are broken only when the writer is

tired or distracted • Ex: Articles must precede nouns– The book NOT Book the

Three Kinds of Rules

2. Social Rules• The distinction of Standard English from

nonstandard • He doesn’t have any money vs. He don’t

have no money• What’s acceptable to say but not write…

formally• These rules, like Real Rules, are observed

naturally by Anglophones • We only notice Social Rules when others

break them • People who speak English as a second

language are more conscious of these rules

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Three Kinds of Rules

3. Invented Rules• Invented by grammarians who think everyone should follow these

rules • The grammar police love to enforce and obsess over these rules • Some of the best writers ignore these rules and are still considered

great writers • Does not effect Standard English Don’t feel bad if you don’t

follow Invented Rules• Examples:

– Don’t split infinitives – Don’t end a sentence with a preposition (ex: at, with)– Don’t use hopefully for I hope– Don’t use which for that

How do I ignore Invented Rules?

• Know the Real Rules and Invented Rules better than the grammar police do to show that there are numerous correct ways to write

• Be able to distinguish a Real Rule from an Invented Rule

Two Kinds of Invented Rules

1. Folklore • Rules that most careful readers and writers ignore • These rules don’t appear in handbooks but have gained popularity

• Ex: Do not begin sentences with a conjunction - Leads to more stylistic errors rather than grammatical errors - Probably became a rule as a way of avoiding fragments

• Ex: that before a restrictive clause, and which before a nonrestrictive clause– Invented because some writers found the variations between that and

which were messy • Ex: Use fewer with nouns you count, less with nouns you cannot

– Writers often use less with countable plural nouns • Ex: Use since and while to refer only to time, not to mean because or

although

2. Elegant Options• Readers will notice the formality of it • Experienced writers ignore these rules most of the time • These are stylistic choices rather than concrete rules

• Ex: Don’t split infinitives. However, split infinitives are used more frequently than non-split infinitives

• Ex: Use whom as the object of a verb or preposition – Grammarians would prefer you write, “For whom am I writing?” rather

than, “Who am I writing for?” – Tips on how to use who/whom on pg. 18

• Ex: Don’t end a sentence with a preposition – Ending a sentence with a prep. can sometimes make the sentence weak,

but it’s not entirely wrong. The man I met with was the man I had written to. The man with whom I met was the man to whom I had written.

• Ex: Use the singular with none and any – Nowadays, the plural is used with none and any

Using Words Correctly

• Using words according to their actual definition help you be more precise in your writing

• Example of some rules that you can’t just know, you need to learn and study them! • The following are words that are often misused • Aggravate

– Definition: to make worse– Used: to annoy

• Continuous – Definition: without interruption – Used: synonymous with continual

• Disinterested– Definition: neutral– Used: uninterested

Can you think of other words that are commonly misused that bother you? Tweet them using #eatingcrows

Test Your Word-Knowledge!

Tweet your answers using #eatingcrows

What is correct definition of the following commonly misused words:

1. Comprise:

a. To include all parts in a single unit

b. A part of a whole (syn. Constitute)

2. Anxious:

a. Eager

b. Uneasy

3. Fortuitous:

a. Fortunate

b. By chance

True or False: Tweet Your Answers!

1. Hopefully means to be full of hope, but is used as “I hope”. According to Lesson 2, the sentence, “Hopefully, it will not rain” is correct.

2. According to Lesson 2, the rule to “never use like for as or as if” should always be followed.

#eatingcrows

The Moral of the Lesson

If esteemed writers are violating these “rules” and readers never notice, then these “rules” have no force.

According to the authors of this book, the grammarians should change their Folklore Rules and Invented Rules.

Correctness in Pronouns

• Basic rules:

- verbs must agree with subjects

- pronouns must agree with antecedents/their referents • Problems?

- Do we use a singular or plural pronoun when referring to a noun that is singular in grammar but plural in meaning? Ex: a committee

- What pronouns do we use, it or they, to refer to someone, everyone, no one and to singular common nouns with no gender (teacher, student, etc)?

Informally, we use they

Formally, we use a singular pronoun like he.

The Issue with Rules About Pronouns

• Lesson 2 is trying to show how sometimes it is hard to follow a supposed agreed upon rule

• The correct way of writing is not black and white • There are exceptions, and even situations that the rules

cannot be applied to (singular vs. plural)

• The book is also trying to show how some rules need to adapt to our current society and its values (i.e. biased language)

Gender and Biased Language

• The issue of not wanting to offend readers• The war between he and they

– The use of he as a generic pronoun– They as a solution to biased language (replace he with they in generic

situations)• Other sloppy and lengthy solutions:

- He or she - He/she- S/he - Alternating he and she throughout the text - The royal “we”

• The problem with they as a generic replacement for he? Many plural pronouns in a sentence can seem confusing, whereas singular pronouns seem more precise

Everyone realizes that she must answer for her actions.

Does this sentence make use of singular generic pronouns or plural generic pronouns? Does this sentence contain biased language?

Tweet your answers…and your own opinions on biased language, if you like!

Q & TWEET #eatingcrows

The Issue with Biased Language

• Right now, there are no accepted solutions in the war between plural and singular generic pronouns

• Some solutions can be considered “patronizing” (24) to one of the sexes

• Can offend readers • Some of the solutions can make the reading

“awkward” (24). • The Moral of the Lesson: We must THINK about

our choice of words and sentence structure

“Some claim that such compromises lead to lazy imprecision. Whatever the future, we have a choice now, and that’s not a bad thing, because our choices define who we are” (25).

- Williams and Bizup believe that even in Correctness, we have choices in what is correct in Standard English; we do not have to be obedient to rules

- How we write, speak, and the terms we use (even decisions in generic pronouns) reflects the current society and their values

Photos

(1) http://izismile.com/2013/09/04/grammar_geeks_will_totally_get_these_jokes_14_pics_3_gifs.html

(2) http://www.pinterest.com/kimdamon/grammar-jokes/

(3) http://arfeldcomm232.wordpress.com/(4) http://english7withmrsthomas.wordpress.co

m/grammar-short-i/