Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

To: quidnunc

Well unless you're into prose or poetry; language takes on a secondary importance of supplementing the main theme. In these cases; it is isn't the main thrust of your effort, but a tool to garnish your effort with.

This holds true for Science, Business, and to an extent even Law and philisophy; where your focus is on formulating an idea, hypothesis or proving a theory.

You use italics and capitalizations etc to emphasize words or points and you also construct sentences to make for easy reading and understanding.

If you have enough time, you could work on both the language and content; tut when time is scarce you focus on the content, hoping to come up with a draft, which you could sumbit the way it is or improve at a later time.

Another thing to pay attention to is that, people like change; you get tired of the same colors,the same fashions and the same seasons. Similarly at times you have to incorporate changes into your language to do away with boring cliches and make conversing or reading a fun or exciting experience. This has given rise to slang and the practice of using Latin and French terms in place of trite English terms.

But like I said, you can play around with language only if you have the time and only if you are willing to make it the main theme of your effort at the cost of content.

Unless i am writing prose or poetry; i'd say i'd rather focus on content than on garnishing bull with prose. If one has the time, one could do both; but then one hardly ever has one enough time for anything.


4 posted on 12/18/2004 11:25:27 AM PST by james beam
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies ]


To: james beam

You usually tailor your language to the group, you're conversing with. If you are conversing with the younger lot; then they are mostly into slang and other concoctions of their times and age. At times; i use don't in place 'does not'; ain't in place of 'is not'; and broke in place of 'broken'.

However, if i were commmunicating with someone older or working on a formal piece of writing; i wouldn't use these terms.


5 posted on 12/18/2004 11:32:13 AM PST by james beam
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 4 | View Replies ]

To: james beam

Since people think in language [and express their thoughts in language], culture of language is culture of thought, and sloppy language makes the quality of thoughts expressed in it rather suspect. Thus, while vocabulary, style, preferred usage, etc. can and do change, the requirements of clarity, rigor and precision do not, or should not.


7 posted on 12/18/2004 11:37:39 AM PST by GSlob
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 4 | View Replies ]

To: james beam


My name isn't Well. :)


8 posted on 12/18/2004 11:38:17 AM PST by phxaz (thank you for not using the word "implode".)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 4 | View Replies ]

To: james beam
In these cases; it is isn't the main thrust of your effort, but a tool to garnish your effort with.

Not really - it's more important than that. In scientific research, the work is not complete until it is written up as a scientific paper which is clear and concise. In business, you are always selling (to your bosses, as well as others), and good use of language is critical to making your point.

12 posted on 12/18/2004 11:45:52 AM PST by expatpat
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 4 | View Replies ]

Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article


FreeRepublic, LLC, PO BOX 9771, FRESNO, CA 93794
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson