[Ads-l] French Prescriptive Grammarians strike again

[Laurence Horn]

> On Sep 4, 2018, at 4:59 PM, Andy Bach <afbach at GMAIL.COM> wrote:
> 
>> Another user says if the rule is dropped, why not also drop the offside
> rule in football? That way, he argues, schoolchildren will be able to spell
> phonetically and football players will be able to play with their hands.
> 
> But the offsides rule doesn't refer to hands usage, it's on-field
> positioning (at the time of the start of a pass).

Yes, but it’s a slippery slope.  

 

> 
> On Tue, Sep 4, 2018 at 3:56 PM victor steinbok <aardvark66 at gmail.com> wrote:
> 
>> Apparently, there's a new drive to simplify a minor rule in French grammar.
>> Of course, that triggers pedantic reactions.
>> 
>> =====
>> http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-45414751
>> ...
>> The rule was imported from Italy by pedants in the 16th Century and is
>> being dropped in everyday use, the pair argue.
>> 
>> The suggestion led to anger and derision on social media, with some arguing
>> the change would amount to ignoring the subtleties of the language.
>> 
>> One teacher and grammar expert said the change was akin to "wanting to raze
>> all the little streets in an old city".
>> ...
>> Another user says if the rule is dropped, why not also drop the offside
>> rule in football? That way, he argues, schoolchildren will be able to spell
>> phonetically and football players will be able to play with their hands.
>> ...
>> =====
>> 
>> So the invented rule protects the subtleties of language. Right...
>> 
>> VS-)
>> 
>> ------------------------------------------------------------
>> The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
>> 
> 
> 
> -- 
> 
> a
> 
> Andy Bach,
> afbach at gmail.com
> 608 658-1890 cell
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> 
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> The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org

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The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org