Dialects: Rel. clause subj. in interr.?

[Wilson Gray]

I agree with Joel. I don't have the slightest problem interpreting
that sentence. I can imagine saying it, but I wouldn't write it. I've
had greater problems trying to uderstand sentences with the
recently-hip, Britwrite-style lack of the serial comma.

 As for Kuno's sentences, the second one is definitely easier to
understand than the first. But that one is no more difficult to
understand than a sentence missing the serial comma. I might write
such a sentence just to mess with people's minds.

-Wilson

On Fri, Jun 4, 2010 at 10:17 AM, Joel S. Berson <Berson at att.net> wrote:
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> Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> Poster:       "Joel S. Berson" <Berson at ATT.NET>
> Subject:      Re: Dialects: Rel. clause subj. in interr.?
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> Only when I'm careless.  But it must be grammatical in my dialect,
> since I can understand it:  "Was that "he was guilty" obvious?"
>
> Joel
>
> At 6/4/2010 03:32 AM, Randy Alexander wrote:
>
>>Is this grammatical in your dialect?:
>>
>>"Was that he was guilty obvious?"
>>
>>--
>>Randy Alexander
>>Jilin City, China
>>Blogs:
>>Manchu studies: http://www.sinoglot.com/manchu
>>Chinese characters: http://www.sinoglot.com/yuwen
>>Language in China (group blog): http://www.sinoglot.com/blog
>>
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--
-Wilson
–––
All say, "How hard it is that we have to die!"––a strange complaint to
come from the mouths of people who have had to live.
–Mark Twain

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