Linguistic question re IV

[Mark Kohut]

Learning me some historical linguistic change via reading Shakescene,
I have learned that most linguistic change, it seems is of a reducing kind....speech, which gets mirrored
in writing in time, regularly keeps words, phrases short..............

As if the stream of language finds the shortest way like a stream will. 

Wherefore meaning Why lost out to Why. Just one example.

Meanings can accrue though, like burial mounds.




----- Original Message -----
From: Ian Livingston <igrlivingston at gmail.com>
To: Paul Mackin <mackin.paul at verizon.net>
Cc: David Morris <fqmorris at gmail.com>; pynchon-l at waste.org
Sent: Tuesday, August 9, 2011 12:19 PM
Subject: Re: Linguistic question re IV

> Americans are lazy, which is why they use as few words as possible, which is
> getting worse, which we already knew.
>

You could say that with fewer words. For instance, "Americans  are
lazy, which we already knew."

The funniest part of this phenomenon in spoken and written American
English is that it is both prescribed and perpetuated in academic
writing. Rather than write for the greatest clarity and fullest
exposition, students are encouraged to "tighten up" their phraseology,
and they are rewarded for saying more with fewer words, rather than
for inquiring after the greatest possible understanding. Not that that
in particular affects street speakers and masters of slang, but surely
there must be some "trickle down" effect by way of primary school
teachers, etc.



On Tue, Aug 9, 2011 at 9:30 AM, Paul Mackin <mackin.paul at verizon.net> wrote:
> On 8/9/2011 9:02 AM, David Morris wrote:
>>
>> The police know he was there, but they need a witness, someone willing
>> to be on record.
>>
>> 2011/8/9 János Széky<miksaapja at gmail.com>:
>>>
>>> There is Jade apologizing on page 84: "...the cops told us they'd drop
>>> charges if we just put you at the scene, which they already knew you
>>> were so where was the harm..."
>>> The syntax seems to be elliptical here so please tell me what 'which
>>> they already knew you were' means exactly.
>>>
>>> Thanks,
>>> János
>>>
> This not very grammatical pattern of spoken American English is very common.
>  Well understood and requiring the fewest possible words.
>
> Americans are lazy, which is why they use as few words as possible, which is
> getting worse, which we already knew.
>
>
>
> P
>



-- 
"Less than any man have I  excuse for prejudice; and I feel for all
creeds the warm sympathy of one who has come to learn that even the
trust in reason is a precarious faith, and that we are all fragments
of darkness groping for the sun. I know no more about the ultimates
than the simplest urchin in the streets." -- Will Durant