The passage starts out talking about how "the study of grammar helps us to understand the great literature of the past and to speak and write eloquently." Mulroy moves on to give us the reader a look at how he gathers his information, or the sources he uses on the internet, rather, and how such wide distances for intelligible information would not have been commonplace in Medieval Europe. Later, when we get to the real meat of the passage, his take on Pinker, he begins by saying that Pinker is "generally unimpressed by the phenomenon of standardized languages." Uh-oh, I smell a debate a-brewing!
After this, Mulroy says where he disagrees with Pinker, and utilizes other thinkers like Lowth to back him up in his assertions. Overall, I finally am beginning to see how wide the schism truly is between all the great minds when it comes to an issue like this.
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15 comments:
When writing a paper have you ever used a thesaurus? Why or why not?
I have indeed used a thesaurus. I use one because it becomes extremely boring when a writer only uses one word over and over again. Think how great books are that have "fights," "battles," and "skirmishes."
do you think that the technology will have an impact on language in the future, or that it already has?
Good summary.
And katie- I think technology has definitely had an impact on our language...lol idk blogging = gr8. See?
You make a good point about how big the difference is between the prescriptivists and descriptivists. I have to say that I really thought this big controversy between them was a load of crap, but I have seen the light! lol
I find it interesting that you point out that grammar instruction helps one appreciate literature. I don't really know how I feel about this. I think a deep appreciation of literature forms within a person for reasons outside of grammar, but grammar can aid in appreciation.
Since this class have you been appreciating your lit. more? And you can't say you like lit. more just because it's not grammar.
Interesting question Adam...
Do you think an understanding of grammar (and/or literal meaning) makes it EASIER to understand/appreciate lit.?
Whew! SEVERAL good comments and questions. I think technology is something we have to deal with and adapt to in this day and age. It is equal parts helpful and harmful. I guess I have been appreciating the literature a bit more these days. I have not given a lot of thought to whether literal meaning has anything to do with it, I just find myself looking at it differently, if not in a vastly different way.
but in the end, it's all just theory about theory. sometimes. lol.
Don't you think that there is tons of great literature that bash all to hell SWE? Honestly, it's so funny that we still have to read the traditional texts of the great writers to understand their meaning.
I would agree there seems to be a great big canyon between prescriptivists and descriptivists, but really, how many of them can there be out there? I mean, we might talk about this in class, and we might have our own opinions about grammar, but how many of us would write a paper about the need to cram English rules down someone's throat or how we should just ride on the waves of change?
Where do you fall in this debate? What I thought I believe in the beginning I am now questioning.
With regard to the schism/canyon between prescriptivists and descriptivists, isn't it possible to be prescriptivist in some contexts and descriptivist in others? To be prescriptivist in comparison to some people and descriptivist in comparison to others?
It might be useful, for the purposes of this class, to ditch the whole prescriptivist/descriptivist paradigm and start talking about how and why one should teach SWE.
I agree with Doctor B. on this one. I think that it is possible to be a pleasant mix, but perhaps we need to focus more on understanding the rules, and not necessarily which camp we fall more in with.
He is an intelligent man but, why on earth could he not just skip straight to the debate? I wa reading it carefully and the mood changed quickly. I know that's a characteristic of good writing, but I'm just trying to follow. Grammar is over my head. I think I made that evident in the last class though. Wad anyone else lost or a little confused about sentence patterns or was it just me?
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