Comments on: Do it Real Quick, Or The Death of the Adverb http://blog.oup.com/2007/08/adverb/ Introducing brilliant authors to the blogosphere. Sat, 21 Nov 2009 22:43:07 -0600 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.4 hourly 1 By: Eb http://blog.oup.com/2007/08/adverb/comment-page-1/#comment-153721 Eb Wed, 30 Sep 2009 16:12:05 +0000 http://blog.oup.com/2007/08/adverb/#comment-153721 "A man looks stupid when he puts his foot in his mouth and looks stupidly at the mess he has created." Surely 'stupid' is a complement... “A man looks stupid when he puts his foot in his mouth and looks stupidly at the mess he has created.”

Surely ’stupid’ is a complement…

]]> By: Russell http://blog.oup.com/2007/08/adverb/comment-page-1/#comment-152355 Russell Thu, 11 Jun 2009 16:47:26 +0000 http://blog.oup.com/2007/08/adverb/#comment-152355 'real quick' is a pervasive cancer upon the English language; as is the extreme overuse of the word 'like' and the phrase 'or whatever,' as filler. Please teach your children proper vocabulary and speech techniques. ‘real quick’ is a pervasive cancer upon the English language; as is the extreme overuse of the word ‘like’ and the phrase ‘or whatever,’ as filler.

Please teach your children proper vocabulary and speech techniques.

]]> By: JJ http://blog.oup.com/2007/08/adverb/comment-page-1/#comment-150219 JJ Fri, 17 Apr 2009 13:29:52 +0000 http://blog.oup.com/2007/08/adverb/#comment-150219 I have to agree with Karen Madoc, that this is a difficult area for English teachers. What are we supposed to teach our students? If somebody writes, "I smiled sarcastic", or, "I laughed guilty", do we correct them, or do we just let it slide? It seems to me that most of the adjectives which have become de facto adverbs are the most common words like, "slow", "quick", "good", "bad". I'm not a precriptivist by any means, but if we applied the laissez-faire attitude which seems to prevail with adverbs to every other area of the language - then in a few decades there would not be a comprehensible language worth saving. Forget plural and singular. Forget tense - past participles are increasingly being replaced by simple forms in present perfect constructions. It's all very well saying that the adverb is dead, but just make sure that every dictionary recognises that every adjective is also an acceptable adverb - otherwise the teacher is floundering in a grammar no man's land. I have to agree with Karen Madoc, that this is a difficult area for English teachers. What are we supposed to teach our students? If somebody writes, “I smiled sarcastic”, or, “I laughed guilty”, do we correct them, or do we just let it slide?
It seems to me that most of the adjectives which have become de facto adverbs are the most common words like, “slow”, “quick”, “good”, “bad”.
I’m not a precriptivist by any means, but if we applied the laissez-faire attitude which seems to prevail with adverbs to every other area of the language – then in a few decades there would not be a comprehensible language worth saving.
Forget plural and singular. Forget tense – past participles are increasingly being replaced by simple forms in present perfect constructions.
It’s all very well saying that the adverb is dead, but just make sure that every dictionary recognises that every adjective is also an acceptable adverb – otherwise the teacher is floundering in a grammar no man’s land.

]]> By: Goodbye Blue Monday » Blog Archive » so i asked her, what’s with that “john thain” guy? http://blog.oup.com/2007/08/adverb/comment-page-1/#comment-149142 Goodbye Blue Monday » Blog Archive » so i asked her, what’s with that “john thain” guy? Sun, 01 Feb 2009 08:40:22 +0000 http://blog.oup.com/2007/08/adverb/#comment-149142 [...] i posted a “glossary” word and used it in a sentence. i got that out of the way “real quick.” i posted a link about that phrase above. it’s interesting. i bastardize the english [...] [...] i posted a “glossary” word and used it in a sentence. i got that out of the way “real quick.” i posted a link about that phrase above. it’s interesting. i bastardize the english [...]

]]> By: An Obscure College Professor Visits a Small Animal Farm : OUPblog http://blog.oup.com/2007/08/adverb/comment-page-1/#comment-147684 An Obscure College Professor Visits a Small Animal Farm : OUPblog Wed, 22 Oct 2008 12:51:37 +0000 http://blog.oup.com/2007/08/adverb/#comment-147684 [...] we hardly ever notice is the wiping out of the line between nouns and adjectives. I have once written about the collapse of the distinction between adjectives and adverbs (do it real quick and the [...] [...] we hardly ever notice is the wiping out of the line between nouns and adjectives. I have once written about the collapse of the distinction between adjectives and adverbs (do it real quick and the [...]

]]> By: Karen Madoc http://blog.oup.com/2007/08/adverb/comment-page-1/#comment-146992 Karen Madoc Sun, 20 Jul 2008 08:44:23 +0000 http://blog.oup.com/2007/08/adverb/#comment-146992 The slow demise of the use of adverbs becomes a difficult area for English teachers, because, although I know it will die a gradual death, I want to give it some respect while it is still around. I want my students to know that adverbs still have a function and that the lack of them in speech and writing still surprises and sometimes shocks me. I am a colonial British English speaker, middle aged, old fashioned and slow to accept the inevitable. My observation is that this is almost exclusively a North American phenomenon. The slow demise of the use of adverbs becomes a difficult area for English teachers, because, although I know it will die a gradual death, I want to give it some respect while it is still around. I want my students to know that adverbs still have a function and that the lack of them in speech and writing still surprises and sometimes shocks me. I am a colonial British English speaker, middle aged, old fashioned and slow to accept the inevitable. My observation is that this is almost exclusively a North American phenomenon.

]]> By: Pier Johnson http://blog.oup.com/2007/08/adverb/comment-page-1/#comment-139119 Pier Johnson Tue, 26 Feb 2008 10:06:43 +0000 http://blog.oup.com/2007/08/adverb/#comment-139119 Tongues do not evolve -- no evolution process happens. Fops parrot this dunce-riddled mantra chanted by the High Priests of the Church of Academia. The same set of sounds exist today as have for 100,000 years. Only beliefs of folks change through time. With changed beliefs comes a willingness to take on a new protocol -- same words, new meaning; new word links, new meaning. Folks become beguiled by adverbs in the Pidgin Latinate (Contemporary English aka ModE) since most adverbs have come from Latinate Old French. Few come from Frankish Old French, Norman Old French, Anglo-Saxon, Old Norse, Middle Dutch. Since most adverbs of the Pidgin Latinate get built from sounds not used often by speakers of North Sea English, these words fall upon deaf ears or worse, muddle listeners. These Latinate words carry less meaning for folks born as North Sea English speakers (folks from forefathers of 17th c. Britain). High Priests of the Church of Academia and their toady followers fail to see that written words are not spoken words; spoken words are sound phrases; sound phrases become electromagnetic radiation to which brains respond. Just as a clever guitarist picks runs of sounds (note phrases) that make our brains sing, so does the clever speaker who says the right words one after another. Word order is important only because sound order is important. Speakers of Pidgin Latinate with their adverbs from Latinate Old French and other sources have a nasty habit of shoving their adverbs wildly within their speech. They do so because they lack a rich wordhoard of name words, doing words and phrases. Most adverbs give nothing to their speakers and do nothing for their listeners. Why say "He ran quickly [to his next class]." when you can say "He dashed [head down]."? Tongues do not evolve — no evolution process happens.

Fops parrot this dunce-riddled mantra chanted by the High Priests of the Church of Academia.

The same set of sounds exist today as have for 100,000 years.

Only beliefs of folks change through time.

With changed beliefs comes a willingness to take on a new protocol — same words, new meaning; new word links, new meaning.

Folks become beguiled by adverbs in the Pidgin Latinate (Contemporary English aka ModE) since most adverbs have come from Latinate Old French.

Few come from Frankish Old French, Norman Old French, Anglo-Saxon, Old Norse, Middle Dutch.

Since most adverbs of the Pidgin Latinate get built from sounds not used often by speakers of North Sea English, these words fall upon deaf ears or worse, muddle listeners.

These Latinate words carry less meaning for folks born as North Sea English speakers (folks from forefathers of 17th c. Britain).

High Priests of the Church of Academia and their toady followers fail to see that written words are not spoken words; spoken words are sound phrases; sound phrases become electromagnetic radiation to which brains respond.

Just as a clever guitarist picks runs of sounds (note phrases) that make our brains sing, so does the clever speaker who says the right words one after another.

Word order is important only because sound order is important.

Speakers of Pidgin Latinate with their adverbs from Latinate Old French and other sources have a nasty habit of shoving their adverbs wildly within their speech.

They do so because they lack a rich wordhoard of name words, doing words and phrases.

Most adverbs give nothing to their speakers and do nothing for their listeners.

Why say “He ran quickly [to his next class].” when you can say “He dashed [head down].”?

]]> By: The adverb is dying real slow (Oxford University Press) : LiveWires http://blog.oup.com/2007/08/adverb/comment-page-1/#comment-48896 The adverb is dying real slow (Oxford University Press) : LiveWires Mon, 24 Sep 2007 20:55:18 +0000 http://blog.oup.com/2007/08/adverb/#comment-48896 [...] Read more about the adverb’s demise in this article from the Oxford University Press [...] [...] Read more about the adverb’s demise in this article from the Oxford University Press [...]

]]> By: ferrousoxide http://blog.oup.com/2007/08/adverb/comment-page-1/#comment-41832 ferrousoxide Sat, 08 Sep 2007 03:56:51 +0000 http://blog.oup.com/2007/08/adverb/#comment-41832 The adverb has been removed from its proper place and found a new home at the beginning of sentences and dialogue tags written by first-year creative writing students: "Happily, she met her boyfriend at the mall," "'Let's do this right now!' she said quickly." Just as grating. The adverb has been removed from its proper place and found a new home at the beginning of sentences and dialogue tags written by first-year creative writing students: “Happily, she met her boyfriend at the mall,” “‘Let’s do this right now!’ she said quickly.” Just as grating.

]]> By: Photophores: August 31, 2007 « Kinetic Loop http://blog.oup.com/2007/08/adverb/comment-page-1/#comment-36997 Photophores: August 31, 2007 « Kinetic Loop Fri, 31 Aug 2007 17:44:05 +0000 http://blog.oup.com/2007/08/adverb/#comment-36997 [...] Adverbs are on the retreat in Modern English. The band has been swearing off adverbs for almost two months now, and intend to use gerunds as frequently as possible until they can get another gig. A hotel alarm clock that works? What a concept Wherein the article writer and her husband are flummoxed by the alarm clock in their room at the Palmer House Hilton. [...] [...] Adverbs are on the retreat in Modern English. The band has been swearing off adverbs for almost two months now, and intend to use gerunds as frequently as possible until they can get another gig. A hotel alarm clock that works? What a concept Wherein the article writer and her husband are flummoxed by the alarm clock in their room at the Palmer House Hilton. [...]

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