pardon my french

[Dennis R. Preston]

Whoa George! "Grammar" is in the brain of the utterer (and, of course, may
not match up with that in the brain of the receiver, where there must also
be a grammar for processing). "Offensiveness" is also in both brains,
sender and receiver. If I went around saying freely things which didn't
offend me, I would be in much deeper shit than I usually am. In the same
way that we adjust our grammars to a body of receivers (often uncosnciously
I suspect), we also should probably try to avoid items which will offend
others, and I assume, and I think rightfully, that those who belong to
classes which may be offended are the ones who get to say whether items are
offensvie or not (just like American Poles get to say how to pronounce
their names, and speakers of Polish like me who think we know better can go
sit on it).

dInIs (who reckons offensiveness is in the ear of the behearer)



Surely the Catledges can't be unfamiliar with the common -- in my
>experience -- expression "pardon my french", used as an apology for
>using an objectionable word in speech.  I heard it no doubt 35 years
>ago.  I don't suppose the idea is to blame our obscenities on loan
>words from the French, although we English-speakers have for
>centuries been inclined to credit the French for every form of folly
>and ignorance, and quite rightly, too.  But in this case I think the
>idea is: you perhaps thought I just said the taboo word "bullshit",
>but in fact I was using a perfectly acceptable French word which just
>happens to sound somewhat similar.
>
>In any event, as hardline descriptivists, we of course accept the
>proposition that just as no statement is ungrammatical if its utterer
>supposes it to be grammatical, so no statement is offensive unless
>its utterer intends it to be offensive.
>
>GAT

Dennis R. Preston
Professor of Linguistics
Department of Linguistics and Languages
Michigan State University
East Lansing MI 48824-1027 USA
preston at pilot.msu.edu
Office: (517)353-0740
Fax: (517)432-2736