And so another week has flown by……where went it? Today’s mental meanderings will encompass grammar, spelling and all things vaguely English. See how many awful errors you can spot.
One of my personal bête noirs is how “defeat” has been mangled by a generation of sports broadcasters to the extent that few people now seem to know what’s right and what isn’t. As a marginally younger chap, you were defeated BY somebody and lost TO the enemy. All too frequently now you hear “Manchester United’s defeat TO Liverpool 3-0 etc”, when it should either be “defeat by” or “loss to”. If you think I’m wrong, then you’ve already been subverted by the ignorant! When I worked in the BBC Sportsroom back in the 1980s we were constantly being upbraided if our grammar and use of English dropped below the perfectly correct. Sadly I fear that nowadays the people in charge don’t know what’s right and wrong so what hope is there for the up and coming youngsters with stars in their eyes?
Alison (my wife), who teaches English at Eastbourne College, in addition to running a girls’ Day House, is constantly battling ignorance of the basics and not just amongst the pupils. There is a generation of people who were “educated” in the 80’s and 90’s, who simply weren’t taught grammar. It is now a self-perpetuating slide into mediocrity, encouraged yet further by a steady stream of illiterate nonsense promulgated by broadcasters across the board. Does it matter? Language is supposed to be a constantly evolving art form which reflects the time we live in. With the inexorable rise of social media there is a whole new language and lexicon now of which I am, for the most part, blissfully unaware. Hardly a day goes by when I don’t hear a new word that has only recently been invented. I reckon I’m too long in the tooth now to keep up with that, but I do take pride in being able to speak and write properly. I also enjoy learning new words that have been around for aeons. I managed to get a Times Crossword clue right yesterday (rectitude) without really being sure what it means. I am now sure. Personally, I do think it matters and I think it’s important that our great institutes of learning continue to think that it matters. The ability to speak and write properly still matters to many employers and provides an instant guide to an individual’s education. In the same way that the reverse also applies. It certainly matters for first impressions and quite often that’s all the time you get.
I fear that all got rather heavy….unlike the gluten free brownie that I have very naughtily just consumed at Barley Sugar. It was sensationally delicious and almost demands further sampling………….
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