World of English

Quick tip on writing English essays with gender neutral language

One way to implement gender neutral language in English is by avoiding the use of gender specific terms like “man,” to refer to everyone of the human species. Likewise, avoid the use of “he” as a generic pronoun, the use of “mankind” when a word like “humanity” may be just as appropriate, and supply more inclusive words, avoiding gender-specific language when you are actually talking about all genders of people.  These measures will help make both male and female audiences more receptive to your prose.

English Grammar: Pronouns and Antecedents for Effective Communication

When using "I," "I" refers to the speaker or the author. Therefore, we do not always find an antecedent before “I,” because you can assume it is the speaker/author.  This is similar to Japanese, which after stating a subject does not require repetition of the subject before each predicate, which can form a independent clause without stating the implied subject.  You can almost always imply who "I" refers to by assuming it is the author or the speaker, and can determine the speaker by analyzing the dialog, if between two or more speakers.  In that case, I should have an antecedent, also.

With more ambiguous pronouns like “we,” you should first supply the antecedent—the noun the pronoun is standing for in the sentence. An antecedent should always proceed each pronoun except the pronoun “I.” The reader has to know who “we” is referring to--”you and them” or “you and me,” and who is the “them” if you are referring to yourself and other people. After you have made it clear to the reader who or what the pronoun stands for, you could continue to use “we” to stand for “our organization,” assuming it is made up of people!

A great site for English usage

This is a very good and very extensive site covering English usage and common errors.  I will discuss some of these errors in detail in later postings, but this Web site is a handy reference.  Because it is so overwhelming, it does not make a good study tool.  Some of the explanations are not the clearest, but it makes an excellent "reference tool" to turn to when you have a specific question concerning the usage of an English word.

http://www.wsu.edu/~brians/errors/index.html

Knowledge and Language

It is interesting that we bifurcate knowledge in certain ways. We have knowledge that is experiential, and knowledge that is not. Knowledge that is experiential we experience firsthand--”I didn't like LA.” There is no other way to get at that truth other than going there and discovering it for yourself. Knowledge which I said wasn't experiential really is—it is just not first-hand, so we take it on grounds that someone else's testimony about their experiences are true, and that it is consistent with what we believe to be possible. “L.A. Has a lot of smog,” is one example. I can maybe know this without ever going there (to be true or not), but I can never know about what I would have experienced or felt. A lot of Nyaya philosophy deals with the question of testimony, as do many philosophers in the world today. One thing that is important then is what words mean, and how they attach themselves to objects in such a way as to be “true about them,” that is, for someone's testimony to be counted as evidence for something being the case. For after all—how can I know anything if I didn't experience it or if someone else didn't tell me about it?

Grammar and Social Judgement

I just read a dirty grammar joke about two co-eds, one a “Yankee” and the other a “Southern Belle.” I am not sure if people are aware of all the sociolinguistic implications of grammar, and the assumptions that we make about people depending on their use of grammar, whether we are aware of the assumptions we are making or not. People judge us by the way we speak regardless if they mean to or not, and that is one of the important reasons for mastering good grammar.

I have been a frequent lecturer for business classes, and have run intensive workshops on business writing and communication skills, written and oral. I often tell students, “Grammar is like a business suit for your words.” If you've been in the halls of any business college when it is presentation time, you will see rows of finely clad gentleman and ladies, wearing black suits and immaculate ties, ready to put their best face forward. I think grammar is a lot like a business suit—good grammar is effective at presenting an image, and it is something you can take on and off, just like a suit. You wouldn't put on a suit to go shoot some hoops with the boys, or go to the movies with the girls. Also, you don't have to worry about ending your sentences with a preposition on the ball court or concern yourself with that dangling modifier while you are watching The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. If you are getting ready to go to a job interview or make a business presentation, then that suit is important to have on, because it projects a certain image of you. In the same way, that is the time to be sure that you are speaking in standard, grammatically correct English. You wouldn't forget to wear your suit—don't forget the suit for your words.

I am not saying this is a good thing, or a bad thing. I do think we shouldn't make assumptions about someone's ability or intelligence based solely on the way they speak, and certainly not on an accent. The world is, however, the way it is, and the fact we are judged on our ability to verbally form grammatically correct sentences is just a fact in the same way we are judged by what we wear (see how comfortable you are handing money to the bank teller who is wearing short athletic shorts, a soiled jersey, and no shoes). Just like you'd dress for success, be sure that you SPEAK FOR SUCCESS as well.

Drop back by and continue to get hints, tips, and the knowhow to do just that.

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