Is Correcting People's Grammar Rude?
Start writing a post
Education

Should We Correct People For Grammar Misusage Or Allow Words To Adapt?

So as much as I hate the changing grammar rules and word usage, giving into riff raff slang, sometimes it might be necessary to discover something great.

105
Books laid out side by side

"Your going to the party to right?"

"R u ready yet?"

If you are (see this is one way to avoid the your/you're problems) like me, those sentences probably made you cringe as you noticed the glaring grammatical error. The more I text and meet people, the more I see grammatical errors, some of worse and some of less magnitude.

I also see a great deal of redefining words and slang. Right now I'm having a problem grasping how the phrase "hot minute" means a long time. Isn't a minute generally a short amount of time? Wouldn't you associate hot with fast, speedy? But as I'm being increasingly told, it's supposedly a really long time.

As an English major, and someone who likes to stick to traditional meanings of words and grammatical rules, I really don't like agreeing with this usage. I'm quick to correct and slow to adapt.

And yet, I wonder, is it good to stick to the rules, the standards, grammar as the equalizer in language? Maybe this is too quick on my part. In not accepting the change in language, is that stepping in the way of progress?

Our language of English stems from Anglo-Saxon and Latin roots, which are cognates from the Indo-European ancestor language. Looking at the words such as mother, you can see how in Sanskrit, Greek, Latin, Anglo-Saxon, Old Irish, Lithuanian, and Russian, there is an obvious similarity (matar-, meter, mater, modor, mathir, mote, mat'). However, you can also see that language changes and evolves. It is not a stagnant standard of our world.

I can't help but remember a story about Max Perkins, one of the famous Scribner and Sons editors from the 20s. He was a young editor at that time and a manuscript was being passed around the office. So many older editors rejected it because it didn't fit into their idea of a classic literature like Henry James or Edith Wharton. However, Perkins kept pushing for it, even after it went through many rewrites. In the end, it became "This Side of Paradise" by F. Scott Fitzgerald, a modern classic writing by many standards.

If he didn't push for a more progressive, groundbreaking novel, we wouldn't have the Fitzgerald classics and the mouthpiece of the Jazz Age like we do now. So as much as I hate the changing grammar rules and word usage, giving into riff raff slang, sometimes it might be necessary to discover something great.

Report this Content
This article has not been reviewed by Odyssey HQ and solely reflects the ideas and opinions of the creator.
Student Life

Waitlisted for a College Class? Here's What to Do!

Dealing with the inevitable realities of college life.

58440
college students waiting in a long line in the hallway
StableDiffusion

Course registration at college can be a big hassle and is almost never talked about. Classes you want to take fill up before you get a chance to register. You might change your mind about a class you want to take and must struggle to find another class to fit in the same time period. You also have to make sure no classes clash by time. Like I said, it's a big hassle.

This semester, I was waitlisted for two classes. Most people in this situation, especially first years, freak out because they don't know what to do. Here is what you should do when this happens.

Keep Reading...Show less
a man and a woman sitting on the beach in front of the sunset

Whether you met your new love interest online, through mutual friends, or another way entirely, you'll definitely want to know what you're getting into. I mean, really, what's the point in entering a relationship with someone if you don't know whether or not you're compatible on a very basic level?

Consider these 21 questions to ask in the talking stage when getting to know that new guy or girl you just started talking to:

Keep Reading...Show less
Lifestyle

Challah vs. Easter Bread: A Delicious Dilemma

Is there really such a difference in Challah bread or Easter Bread?

37648
loaves of challah and easter bread stacked up aside each other, an abundance of food in baskets
StableDiffusion

Ever since I could remember, it was a treat to receive Easter Bread made by my grandmother. We would only have it once a year and the wait was excruciating. Now that my grandmother has gotten older, she has stopped baking a lot of her recipes that require a lot of hand usage--her traditional Italian baking means no machines. So for the past few years, I have missed enjoying my Easter Bread.

Keep Reading...Show less
Adulting

Unlocking Lake People's Secrets: 15 Must-Knows!

There's no other place you'd rather be in the summer.

959247
Group of joyful friends sitting in a boat
Haley Harvey

The people that spend their summers at the lake are a unique group of people.

Whether you grew up going to the lake, have only recently started going, or have only been once or twice, you know it takes a certain kind of person to be a lake person. To the long-time lake people, the lake holds a special place in your heart, no matter how dirty the water may look.

Keep Reading...Show less
Student Life

Top 10 Reasons My School Rocks!

Why I Chose a Small School Over a Big University.

193732
man in black long sleeve shirt and black pants walking on white concrete pathway

I was asked so many times why I wanted to go to a small school when a big university is so much better. Don't get me wrong, I'm sure a big university is great but I absolutely love going to a small school. I know that I miss out on big sporting events and having people actually know where it is. I can't even count how many times I've been asked where it is and I know they won't know so I just say "somewhere in the middle of Wisconsin." But, I get to know most people at my school and I know my professors very well. Not to mention, being able to walk to the other side of campus in 5 minutes at a casual walking pace. I am so happy I made the decision to go to school where I did. I love my school and these are just a few reasons why.

Keep Reading...Show less

Subscribe to Our Newsletter

Facebook Comments