Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Hank Scorpio]

[some waygook]

Way back when, I was in my third year at university, and we had a stuffy professor from London, no less, who was teaching our Romantic prose and poetry class. That was way before I had a computer or any inkling of what a "spell check" could do for my life.
If I made an error, I had to whip out my bottle of white out, cover the offending mistake, wait for it to dry, and then painfully try and reposition the paper so that I could type in the correct spelling.
After a few attempts at this game, I decided it was just easier to rip out the page and start over.
But even after all that, I remember handing in an essay with the word "Engish" in one of the footnotes. I was so tired and frustrated that I decided to let that one slide. The prof never said a word. I got a B on the paper.
What has that got to do with all this ranting about spelling? Well, I thought it might lighten the mood a bit.
Sure, spelling is important, but so is common courtesy. The latter seemed to be somewhat lacking on the old forum.

By the way, I am Canadian and I have gotten more grief for spelling things the Canadian/British way than I care to remember. I once had a coordinator that insisted I spell practice with an "s" practise.
Anyway, if you have any questions, just refur to the site "common errors in English".
Cheers
Some waygook

[Circus Monkey]

Some people think that an argument is suddenly weakened if they can point out a couple grammatical errors or typos. There's a reason why it's called a nitpick.

CM

[matko]

I agree. People who are usually losing an arguement often point out, BTW____is spelt____! Stick to the facts of the arguement. Otherwise you are using an old but sad trick. It's called a red herring!
On the other hand, some posters's grammar and spelling are so attrocious that I think they post after hoisting a few too many! I've probably fallen into that category a few times!
By the way, do you prefer to be called Circus or Mr. Monkey?

[scott]

space

[desultude]

Oops! I have misspelt misspell! At least you now know that this didatic bitch is human.


No I would not correct William Faulkner. A writer or a poet usually knows the language and its correct usage better than us mere mortals, and uses artistic license with it to convey deeper meaning. To say that Faulkner was a sloppy writer because of his chosen style is like saying that Picasso could not paint because of his chosen style. Picasso was a rigorously trained artist in the classical tradition before he helped reinvent art in the cubist style. I admit to not knowing Faulkner's history enough to vouch for his training, but I would bet that it was good, and rigorous.

I think that what often passes for writing from many allegedly college educated people is a clear example of why a little education is a dangerous thing.

By the way, this is a pet peeve of mine because I have taught at U.S. universities, and I know what that system is sending out into the world as examples of our education system. We currently have a Yale educated leader who is a perfect example of what I am talking about. As soon as his words are not scripted and rehearsed, he falls into incomprehensibly "casual" speech. The problem is not so much the casualness, but the incomprehensibleness of it, and the sense of reckless disregard that it displays.

[Captain Obvious 2.0]

[Circus Monkey]

Matko,

Just call me by my handle.

Captain Obvious 2.0,

You seem to have a hatred towards "retarded monkeys". Did one beat you up when you were a kid?

[Captain Obvious 2.0]

[scott]

space

[agent86]

What many people (on this forum, at least) don't seem to realize is that grammatical/spelling mistakes deflate your credibility. It's one of the most basic things you learn about rhetoric. I think it's hilarious when someone is trying to put across a passionate argument using misspelled words and poor grammar. It's like listening to a drunk, and we all know how credible they are.

Cheers . . .

[jaderedux]

Hmmm? Interesting topic. One of the greatest writers of all time, in my lowly opinion, was Mark Twain. I suggest you look at his books. Especially Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn. Both these books are filled with slang and regional language. Mispellings abound because of it. So he is not credible because his books are written in this manner?

Second, I often use ROLF and IMHO and many others...well....because I do, and it saves time. Also, lets not be such snobs that we don't see language as ever changing. Remember Scuba isn't really a word either neither is fax or DOS for that matter of fact. Language is liquid. The language of computer jargon will be old hat soon. ROLF may just mean funny in 5 years and IMHO may be on the pen of every stodgy old column writer for the Washington Post.

The important thing is the message. Henry Miller's works are filled with imperfect grammar. Anais Nin undoubtably one of the great diariast of all time, did not edit for grammar. Does this make their writing less valuable? I don't think so. None of us here are perfect. We are teachers yes, but even teachers need to relax and write perhaps as they speak.

I find the different styles of writing interesting, amusing, funny, infuriating, annoying, refreshing and a multiple combinations of the above. But honestly I don't care about spelling or grammar. I care about the message. Again, in a professional situation it is different but here everyone should feel relaxed enough to "write" in a way that suits the message.

Thanks, I feel better now.

Jade

[scott]

space

[william beckerson]

[matko]

Captain obvious wrote

Quote:

No one cares what a retarded monkey thinks

I guess I have to start calling you Captain retarded monkey then!