tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9197605046685148376.post1250292172838916337..comments2023-08-16T09:32:47.213-05:00Comments on Professorial Musings: Grammar Police: Our Duty is to Serve...Not to Serve TimeEnglishProfhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13620105485783681467noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9197605046685148376.post-15454226982531541202009-07-06T00:12:12.799-05:002009-07-06T00:12:12.799-05:00While I am no grammatical expert, I have a college...While I am no grammatical expert, I have a college English professor drill into us that using the phrase "the reason why" is redundant and poor grammar. Since then, I almost cringe every time I hear someone saying it. <br /><br />Thought you might be interested in this picture. In it, I am sitting by a sign in the Arizona desert on a road trip with my sons. <br /><br />http://photos-b.ak.fbcdn.net/photos-ak-snc1/v2601/150/59/563485710/n563485710_6240865_5026457.jpg<br /><br />Enjoy.Jeremyhttp://blog.achievesimplicity.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9197605046685148376.post-36348053440047282942008-04-19T13:17:00.000-05:002008-04-19T13:17:00.000-05:00Hi, Steve,Actually, you're right, and believe it o...Hi, Steve,<BR/><BR/>Actually, you're right, and believe it or not, I MEANT to write the sentence to show that "The Smiths" is correct, but apparently my synapses failed me in the moment. I've corrected the blog sentence to show what I meant to say. So many of those house-plaque vendors burn "The Smith's" (even instead of "The Smiths'" into the wood; I want to give them an apostrophe lecture! But I restrain myself. :-)<BR/><BR/>I appreciate the feedback!<BR/><BR/>Cheers,<BR/>KrisEnglishProfhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13620105485783681467noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9197605046685148376.post-83574017883653860152008-04-19T12:51:00.000-05:002008-04-19T12:51:00.000-05:00Wait, I'm confused. In one of your archived posts ...Wait, I'm confused. In one of your archived posts from last April you endorsed <I>The Smiths</I> as the proper rendering. Perhaps your sentence just got mangled this time round...?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9197605046685148376.post-19641079402865367562008-04-19T07:30:00.000-05:002008-04-19T07:30:00.000-05:00/hartman's law/ Er, don't you mean The Smiths'? /h.../hartman's law/ Er, don't you mean <I>The Smiths'</I>? /hartman's law/<BR/><BR/>In any event, I don't think <I>The Smiths</I> is wrong. You assume that <I>The Smiths</I> has to be understood as a genitive (as in, "This is the Smith's house") whereas it could just as well be short for "The Smiths live here" -- an ordinary plural noun. Think of it this way: The plaque is like a nametag but, instead of being on your shirt, it's on the house. And it would clearly be wrong (not to mention bizarre) to write "Joe Smith's" on your nametag.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com