Jack Smith was a beloved columnist for the Los Angeles Times; his column appeared in the Times for 37 years. His gently wry style was often called witty, literate, and genteel. Smith passed away in 1996.
Anyway, I have been rereading and enjoying Smith's 1982 book, "How to Win a Pullet Surprise". about the "pleasures and pitfalls" of our English language. And thinking about it in the context of today's bloggers and citizen journalists.
Consider this example phrase from "How to Win a Pullet Surprise":
A man chasing a cat with a broom in his underwear
(As a cat lover, I find it rather gross, but never mind.)
Which image does this phrase invoke for you?
1. A man is chasing a cat. The man is wearing only underwear, and inexplicably, there is a broom stuck in the man's underwear.
2. A man is chasing a cat. The cat is wearing underwear, and inexplicably, there is a broom stuck in the cat's underwear.
Or
3. A man wearing only underwear is chasing a cat. The man is holding a broom as he chases the cat.
Do you immeditely conclude that the author meant to invoke image number 3? Or do you consider image 1 and 2 as possibilities as well?
Something to think about before diving into a blogger's flame war. :-)
Ahhh, grammar and punctuation! So necessary, yet so often misused.
Check out the examples below to see how a comma can save Grandpa!!!
"Let's eat Grandpa."
"Let's eat, Grandpa."
LOL!
Cheryl: Funny one. It is a bit gross lol.The magic of words.Jack Smith must have been a great writer. " A man in his underwear, is chasing a cat with a broom." would work better.
"Let's change Susan"
"Let's change, Susan."
That could be confusing.
Cheryl...I see 3!! hmm LLoyd that is interesting haha :)
Lloyd, Now that I think about it, I can even see your sentence turned on its head. "A cat with a with broom" might indicate the cat has possession of the broom ....
Maybe the cat is a curling superstar, or maybe the cat uses the broom for transportation ala Harry Potter. :-)
Hi Carole!
Have you heard of the book entitled "Eats Shoots and Leaves"? Is was a runaway bestseller that discussed issues of grammar, just like the ones you are mentioning here.
Melissa, yes indeed. A copy sits on my shelf at the office. :-)
And an additional bit of trivia:
Smith's Title " How to Win a Pullet Surprise" was based on the 1969 book "Pullet Surprises" by a teacher who collected unintentional but marvelous misuses of the English language.