In a world of increasingly shoddy speech and writing, even on what might reasonably be assumed to literate and critical writers such as journalists and judges, it's heartening to read a book like "You Don't Say," Douglas Arthur's new book about the finer points of speaking and writing English. The author has spent much of his life in broadcast journalism, no doubt wincing every time he heard a talking head say "Febuary" or "ampitheater." The author analyses several broad areas of linguistic mutilation: pronunciation, ...
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In a world of increasingly shoddy speech and writing, even on what might reasonably be assumed to literate and critical writers such as journalists and judges, it's heartening to read a book like "You Don't Say," Douglas Arthur's new book about the finer points of speaking and writing English. The author has spent much of his life in broadcast journalism, no doubt wincing every time he heard a talking head say "Febuary" or "ampitheater." The author analyses several broad areas of linguistic mutilation: pronunciation, spelling, and usage. His lists of words that commonly suffer misuse are fascinating, and the chances of even a well-educated reader approaching any of them in the hopes of getting a perfect score are dim. Pairs of related, or seemingly related words are especially problematic: "burglary/robbery," "complaisant/complacent," "gun/rifle," "credible/credulous," and "practicable/practical" will stump all but the most meticulous stylists and students of language. Mr. Arthur may well have been fighting a rear-guard action as an NCO on an aircraft in writing "You Don't Say," but by refusing to accept the lowest common denominator of written and spoken English, he helps reinforce standards which prevent, or at least retard, the decomposition of our language.
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