I do insist on good grammar, both in the fiction I read for enjoyment and the material I plough through at work. I don't think that makes me an intellectual snob, just someone who loves our language and cherishes clarity and richness in the things I read. I'm not averse to the language being modified to meet everyday needs, and appropriate use in context. Dead languages don't change and I don't want English to die. Just don't mangle it.
If only it were genetic. One daughter gets it, the other mangles it (but she has the sense to ask me to proof anything 'official'). They both, however, poke fun when I insist on using 'real' words instead of text-speak!
At times the art is in breaking the rules. But I am all for having my work be the best it can be, taking into consideration the fallible human creating it.
Well said, Ali:) It's no good haphazardly breaking the rules by accident: there must be a purpose behind doing so, and for that to be the case you must understand what rule you are breaking and why.
I do insist on good grammar, both in the fiction I read for enjoyment and the material I plough through at work. I don't think that makes me an intellectual snob, just someone who loves our language and cherishes clarity and richness in the things I read. I'm not averse to the language being modified to meet everyday needs, and appropriate use in context. Dead languages don't change and I don't want English to die. Just don't mangle it.
What do you think?