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Grimalkin
Joined: 22 May 2005
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 Posted: Sat Mar 17, 2007 4:50 pm Post subject: Grammar question. |
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Can anyone help with this?
One of my students wanted to express the idea that a company was neglectful of the needs of it's customers.
He wrote: 'They didn't do anything in order to satisify their customers'.
I changed this to: 'They didn't do anything to satisify their customers', and explained that in his sentence it sounded as though he was saying that the purpose of not doing anything was to satisify the customers whereas what he meant was the result of not doing anything was that his customers were not satisified.
Another teacher disagreed with me and said that the student's original sentence carried both meanings.
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faster
Joined: 03 Sep 2006
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| Posted: Sat Mar 17, 2007 5:19 pm Post subject: |
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| You're both right - the original carries an ambiguity that is usefully alleviated by deleting "in order to." |
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Grimalkin
Joined: 22 May 2005
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| Posted: Sun Mar 18, 2007 1:46 am Post subject: |
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| faster wrote: |
| You're both right - the original carries an ambiguity that is usefully alleviated by deleting "in order to." |
Thanks faster.
(damn...I wanted to be the only one who was right...) |
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RACETRAITOR
Joined: 24 Oct 2005
Location: Seoul, South Korea
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| Posted: Sun Mar 18, 2007 2:02 am Post subject: |
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| Grimalkin wrote: |
| faster wrote: |
| You're both right - the original carries an ambiguity that is usefully alleviated by deleting "in order to." |
Thanks faster.
(damn...I wanted to be the only one who was right...) |
Actually, I think your answer is more right. The student's sentence is ambiguous, more wordy, and harder to comprehend, which means it's poor style.
Your analysis of the sentence is one possible interpretation that not everyone might agree with, but because you can make a case it has two meanings, your sentence is the winner. |
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cubanlord
Joined: 08 Jul 2005
Location: In Japan!
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| Posted: Sun Mar 18, 2007 3:32 am Post subject: |
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| ask Woland, he'll know the answer to this. |
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daskalos
Joined: 19 May 2006
Location: The Road to Ithaca
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| Posted: Sun Mar 18, 2007 4:21 am Post subject: |
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In this case, as with most, it's a matter of context. Standing alone, removing "in order to" makes the most sense and removes any ambiguity. In a context where the reader/hearer of this sentence knows where the speaker/writer stands, not editing "in order to" adds punch to the sentence. It says the company does not ever go out of its way to satisfy customers.
Making that disctinction clear to a non-native speaker is why we're here. |
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