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L O W L A N D S - L - 19 May 2011 - Volume 01<br>
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<p class="MsoNormal">From: <span class="gI"><span class="gD" style="color:#5b1094">Isaac M. Davis</span> <span class="go"><a href="mailto:isaacmacdonalddavis@gmail.com">isaacmacdonalddavis@gmail.com</a></span></span><br>
Subject: <span class="gI">LL-L "Idiomatica" 2011.05.18 (04) [EN]</span>
</p><br><div class="gmail_quote"><div class="im">Piet Bult wrote:<blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="margin:0 0 0 .8ex;border-left:1px #ccc solid;padding-left:1ex"><div><div><div><div><div><div><div>
<div><div>Dear Lowlanders,<br>If you meet someone for the first time or also a good
friend, you can say something like (as I learned at school): Hi, how are you, or
something like that. Usually you get an answer like: I'm fine, thank you. If you
really feel fine or not, is not the issue. You always say something positive:
fine, nice, very well, etc. I call this a positive approach.<br>In our
Westlauwers Frysk, people many, many times - almost standard - give the answer:
"It koe minder" (it could be worse). This is somekind of a negative approach, in
my opinion. </div>
<div> </div>
<div>I'm just wondering...<br>Q: Are there (more) such negative
answers possible in English..?</div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></blockquote><div><br></div></div><div>Not
just possible, I've seen it done! It's not uncommon to hear '(I) can't
complain,' as a response to 'how are you?' When I'm in the mood to say
this sort of thing, I tend to say, 'I can't complain. Well, I could
complain, but no one would listen.'</div>
<div><br></div><div><br></div><div>Best,</div><div><br></div><div>Isaac M. Davis</div></div><br><font color="#888888">-- <br><br>"As I would not be a slave, so I would not be a master."<br>—Abraham Lincoln<br><br>
<span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">----------</span><br><br></font>From: <span class="gI"><span class="gD" style="color:#790619">Mike Morgan</span> <span class="go"><a href="mailto:mwmbombay@gmail.com">mwmbombay@gmail.com</a></span></span><br>
Subject: <span class="gI">LL-L "Idiomatica" 2011.05.18 (04) [EN]</span><br><br>Dear Piet (& all)<br><br><div class="gmail_quote"><br><blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="margin:0pt 0pt 0pt 0.8ex;border-left:1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204);padding-left:1ex">
<div>
<div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div>In our
Westlauwers Frysk, people many, many times - almost standard - give the answer:
"It koe minder" (it could be worse). I'm just wondering...<div class="im"><br>Q: Are there (more) such negative
answers possible in English..?</div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></blockquote><div><br><br>MOST definitely... though the likelihood of a such a double negative answer goes up with the closeness of the relationship.<br>
<br>And there are tremendous variation within this <br>In fact exactly parallel to your Frisian, we (or is it they??) also say "Could be worse" in American English.<br><br>"Not
bad." (which of course does NOT mean, everything we have been taught
about negatives cancelling each other out aside, "good"!) is a standard
(and is not uncommon even with people you have just met).<br>
<br>Of course, outside of the English-espeaking realm, there are plenty a
culture where you "must" (if you follow social norms at all) give a
positive answer; East Africa is such a place (Kiswahili: "Habari ya
leo?" - "Nzuri sana." "News of the day?" -- "Very good" ... even if your
cow just died and your mother-in-law moved in with you ;-)<br>
<br>(Ethiopia, possibly also part of the East Africa region, also works
that way: Is it peaceful? It is peaceful... even if I just heard you
havign a knock-down drag out with your husband!)<br><br></div></div>mwm || U C > || mike || мика || माईक || マイク || மாய்க் (aka Dr Michael W Morgan)<br>
<br>Senior Consultant<br>BA in Applied Sign Language Studies (BAASLS)<br><i>इन्दिरा</i> गांधी राष्ट्रीय मुक्त विश्वविद्यालय | Indira Gandhi National Open University, New Delhi, India<br>
<p>"<span>Too
often we honor swagger and bluster and wielders of force; too often we
excuse those who are willing to build their own lives on the shattered
dreams of others. ... [T]here is another kind of violence, slower but
just as deadly destructive as the shot or the bomb in the night. This is
the violence of institutions; indifference and inaction and slow
decay." (Bobby Kennedy, 5 April 1968)</span></p>----------<br><br>From: <span class="gI"><span class="gD" style="color:#cc0060">Paul Finlow-Bates</span> <span class="go"><a href="mailto:wolf_thunder51@yahoo.co.uk">wolf_thunder51@yahoo.co.uk</a></span></span><br>
Subject: <span class="gI">LL-L "Idiomatica" 2011.05.18 (04) [EN]</span><br>
<br>
<div>"I can't complain" is quite common (Afrikaans has the identical "Ek
kannie klaar nie!" - sometimes followed by "..of ek kan, maar niemand
sal luister nie!")</div>
<div> </div>
<div>"Mustn't grumble" is another. An outright "terrrible" might be used as a joke.</div>
<div> </div>
<div>Paul</div>
<div>Derby</div>
England<br><br>----------<br><br>From: <span class="gI"><span class="gD" style="color:#008391">Brooks, Mark</span> <span class="go"><a href="mailto:mark.brooks@twc.state.tx.us">mark.brooks@twc.state.tx.us</a></span></span><br>
Subject: <span class="gI">LL-L "Idiomatica" 2011.05.18 (04) [EN]<br><br></span><p class="MsoNormal">Piet asked: <span>Q: Are there (more) such negative answers possible in English..?</span></p><p class="MsoNormal">
<span> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span>Yes,
there are. I don’t know if it’s because I work for the government, but I
frequently hear things like “it could be worse.” I’ve also said, “I’ve
felt better,” when I’m not feeling very well. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span>I don’t like to answer “fine” because someone once told me that stands for “f*cked up, insecure, neurotic, and edgy.” </span>J<span>
So, I’ll often say something like “okay” or “pretty good.” Either one
of those is sort of like saying “so so.” They mean you’re okay, but just
middling. At least, that’s how I use them.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span>Mark Brooks <br></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><br><span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span>----------</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><br><span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal">From: <span class="gI"><span class="gD" style="color:#009486">Sandy Fleming</span> <span class="go"><a href="mailto:fleemin@live.co.uk">fleemin@live.co.uk</a></span></span><br>
Subject: <span class="gI">LL-L "Idiomatica" 2011.05.18 (04) [EN]<br>
</span>
</p><div class="im"><p>> From: "Stellingwerfs Eigen" <<a href="mailto:info@stellingwerfs-eigen.nl" target="_blank">info@stellingwerfs-eigen.nl</a>><br>
> Subject: <span>LL-L</span>
</p><div>> Dear Lowlanders,<br>> If you meet someone for the first time or also a good
friend, you can say something like (as I learned at school): Hi, how are you, or
something like that. Usually you get an answer like: I'm fine, thank you. If you
really feel fine or not, is not the issue. You always say something positive:
fine, nice, very well, etc. I call this a positive approach.<br>In our
Westlauwers Frysk, people many, many times - almost standard - give the answer:
"It koe minder" (it could be worse). This is somekind of a negative approach, in
my opinion. </div>
<div> </div>
<div>> I'm just wondering...<br>> Q: Are there (more) such negative
answers possible in English..?</div><br></div>A very typical negative answer in English is "Oh, don't ask!", meaning you've had enough of everything for now.<br><br>It's not unusual to hear things like:<br>
<br>"Not bad." (quite good)<br>"Not too bad." (could be worse)<br>"Could be worse." (a fairly miserable answer, which might raise some slight concern)<br>"I've had it up to here, since you ask!" (pretty bad).<br>
<br>Sandy Fleming<br><a href="http://scotstext.org/" target="_blank">http://scotstext.org/</a><br><font color="#888888"><br>----------<br><br></font>From: Hannelore Hinz <a href="mailto:hannehinz@t-online.de" target="_blank"><hannehinz@t-online.de></a><br>
Subject: LL-L "Idiomatica" 2011.05.18 (04) [EN]<br>
<br>
Leiw' Lowlanners,<br>
<br>
Piet Bult schreew: it could be worse (es könnte
schlimmer sein).<br>
<br>
Dat künn' leeger sien.<br>
<br>
Bedüden: (weder noch). Egentlich is all'ns normål. Liekers bi
normålen Taustand hard dat leeger sien künnt.<br>
<br>
Also nich Hüh noch Hott.<br>
<br>
Hartlich Hanne<br><p class="MsoNormal"> </p>
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