Recently commenters in this space scolded me for writing the phrase “smarter than me,” saying, in one case, “There is no reason to dumb down the language for conversation. When we speak correctly, we reinforce the proper use of the language.”
Readers of this blog may remember my rant against dumbing down. But the idea that we should use formal prose at all times is, not to mince words, absurd. Good writers have more than formal English at their command; they are able to convey personality and color and life in their prose; they use language that fits the venue, whether formal, informal, or slang. The whole point of formal prose is to remove the writer’s personality from text that is appropriately neutral and solemn: committee meeting minutes, laws, technical instructions, religious ceremonies. But to insist on the removal of personality from all writing?
In that case, we would speak and write like the voice that gives directions in my GPS, even when speaking to children: “Please do not put your finger into the electric socket.” Movie dialogue would have to be rewritten: “Badges? We do not have badges! We do not need any badges! I am not obliged to show you any malodorous badges!”
And anyway what’s “dumbing down” about “smarter than me”? In The Chicago Manual of Style (5.179 in the 16th edition), Bryan Garner says, “Than may function either as a conjunction {he’s taller than I (am)} or as a preposition {he’s taller than me}. Traditional grammarians prefer the nominative than I (am) over the objective than me, even though the latter represents common usage. In formal prose, treat than as a conjunction requiring a nominative pronoun {she is a more careful researcher than he}.”
Blogging, after all, is about as informal as it gets. We’re having a conversation here, not compiling a grammar textbook. I grew up in Peoria, lived for some years in England, and have been in Chicago now for a good long while. All that is bound to show in my odd mix of locutions. If you’re offended by the occasional ain’t or booger or go on now, git, you’ll have to get yourself another gal.
______
Image: The Treasure of the Sierra Madre (1947 poster). Copyright 1947 Warner Bros. Pictures Distributing Corporation. Scan via Heritage Auctions. Cropped from the original image. Courtesy Wikipedia.
Amen!
Posted by: Jessica | 08/12/2010 at 08:50 AM
Brava!!
Posted by: Laura Erickson | 08/12/2010 at 08:57 AM
First time at this blog, and I will make it a regular stop. Very well said! As a writer/editor, I seem to find a lot of people who either hold me to standards much higher than they hold themselves or they think I'm watching every single little word they utter aloud or write on Facebook, blogs, or emails, waiting to strike at the first use of "alright." Never mind that the former instance is hypocritical and the latter would make me look like a pretentious jerkoff.
I just want people to relax. Fashion models aren't always runway-ready, and writers and editors aren't always going to be in their grammatical Sunday best when conversing casually. The difference is, when we need to be, we are.
Posted by: Allison M. Dickson | 08/12/2010 at 08:59 AM
AMEN indeed! If I spoke as formally as I need to write for some nonfiction markets, my husband would cock his head to one side and ask "You feelin' ok?"
My family... we won't even go there. Let's just say the next reunion might be my last.
Rejoicing in the day,
-Mary
Posted by: Mary Schneider | 08/12/2010 at 09:00 AM
This is why I never fail to read your blog.
Posted by: elizabeth | 08/12/2010 at 09:14 AM
I have discussed with other writers many times: it is not about being right or wrong. Sometimes sentences seem to flow with a little room for stylistic personality.
Posted by: Larry | 08/12/2010 at 09:15 AM
You've added another new fan here! I'm constantly fighting to distinguish "proper English" from formal vs informal writing.
Now if only I could teach that to my 6th grader I'd be all set.
Posted by: PattiH | 08/12/2010 at 09:21 AM
Yes, yes, yes! Apart from my "day job" as a writer/editor, I have a personal blog, and frankly, it's FUN to simply write informally to convey thoughts or humor. It's not dumbing down; it's lightening up!
Posted by: Christine Hollinger | 08/12/2010 at 09:29 AM
The college teacher-writer is the bane of my existence. Never use first person. Never this. Never that. Now my students are not only illiterate. They are just plan boring, too
Posted by: Richard Salvucci | 08/12/2010 at 09:44 AM
You make an excellent point, Carol, and one I completely overlooked in my initial comment on the earlier article. I wasn't really trying to make a distinction between "formal" and "informal" (or less-formal) writing: I actually thought the use of "me" instead of "I" was incorrect.
As I followed up, though (with CMOS), I came to understand that I'd just tripped over something that was (not-quite-literally) beaten into me many decades ago—those rules that aren't really "rules."
As for "dumbing down"—glad that wasn't my comment, because I didn't think then (or now) that you were in any way simplifying the language.
If anyone's guilty of maintaining an informal tone in his writing, I'm that guy! Thus, I'm all for informality. If that's "dumbing down," well then, I guess I'll just keep on keepin' on. And I sincerely hope you do, as well!
Posted by: Steve Hall | 08/12/2010 at 10:16 AM
Go gal!
Posted by: Marie Burke | 08/12/2010 at 11:01 AM
Nicely put. As a writer of marketing gumph as well as an editor, I find the pressure to write in a formal style most painful when company executives are quoted in press releases.
A quotation that starts life sounding like a real person can end up as robot-speak by the time it's been through several layers of management revisions.
As a Brit, I recognise that American English has a long and wonderful tradition of straight talking -- yet the worst examples of robotic press releases seem to be from the US. A big-company combination of political correctness, lack of sense of humour, and too many lawyers?
Posted by: Charles Butcher | 08/12/2010 at 12:00 PM
I agree, completely.
Posted by: Angela Walters | 08/12/2010 at 12:11 PM
Perhaps the sentence would sound less formal if the verb "am" were inserted after "I," thus having the sentence read, “As for pesky punctuation with quotation marks, parentheses, and brackets, ask the editors at the Q&A—they are smarter than I am.”
Similarly, your later sentence could be written as, "She is a more careful researcher than he is," instead of "She is a more careful researcher than he."
Posted by: Michelle Hutchinson | 08/12/2010 at 01:07 PM
I always taught my TOEFL students that the issue about the pronoun after a comparison is an issue of controversy among grammar nerds, so the best course of action is to take Michelle Hutchinson's advice above and use "than I am" or "than he is" if they use it on a test.
I have never heard anyone use the subject pronoun alone after a comparison outside of the context of consciously attempting an air of formality or correcting another person who used the object pronoun.
Posted by: Meridian | 08/12/2010 at 01:18 PM
Thank you! I was reading those comments on your last post and couldn't help rolling my eyes at some of them.
Posted by: Maria | 08/12/2010 at 08:59 PM
"Smarter than I" sounds pretentious and pedantic. In blogging (which is a form of casual writing) we should write the way we speak.
And in answer to all those people who are sighing over "blogs where the so-called writer doesn't even proofread, and then they think they can call themselves writers" and so on, JUST DON'T READ THEM. Don't make me no nevermind.
Posted by: Jane Steen | 08/13/2010 at 12:11 PM
You go, girl! And please do continue to go on about these issues!
Posted by: Sharwirt | 08/13/2010 at 12:16 PM
So many good points here. I discussed the topic of pointing out other writers' mistakes in my latest blog post. Before we critique others, we need to consider the context of the conversation, the target audience and the tone that will engage them, and finally our own motives in pointing out others' flaws. And then, as one of my readers pointed out, we still need to be certain we know the rule and all its exceptions.
Thanks for explaining the "than" issue because it has bothered me for some time and now I feel I understand formal and informal usage fully.
Cheers!
Posted by: Tammi Kibler | 08/17/2010 at 09:21 AM