Important notice from the GRAMMAR POLICE. Plz read. This means you.
rufio:
Quote from: CheritaChen on 2009 July 24, 16:19:15
Quote from: rufio on 2009 July 24, 14:59:23
If you are trying to argue that it's illogical to put the cause clause first, I feel obligated to point out that for some languages that is the preferred order.
Now I feel obligated to point out that we are not communicating in some languages on this forum. We all, including Midwing, are using English.
Yes, which is why I started the sentence with "If you are trying to argue that it's illogical to..." Logic is not language-specific; just because the fact-reason order sounds better in your dialect of English does not mean that it is necessarily more logical than the cause-result order, which sounds better in other dialects (and in other languages).
rohina:
Quote from: rufio on 2009 July 24, 14:59:23
If you are trying to argue that it's illogical to put the cause clause first, I feel obligated to point out that for some languages that is the preferred order.
No, I was arguing that people who use "this being" or even better "this being that" think that "this being" is a phrase which explains something, as opposed to being completely useless, devoid of meaning, and often used purely to turn what follows it into a gobbledegook fragment.
Midwing's example is exactly why I have a problem: "This being the reason for asking in the first place" is a fragment. The verb is incorrect and it makes Midwing sound like a pretentious nard who wants to sound fancy but has no idea how to form a sentence.
I was also talking about English, which I know is a topic you can't stand. Because any comment anyone makes about any language must apply to all languages. Except French, apparently. rufio doesn't care about French.
But, do go on with your interminable argument about how everything I say is wrong.
rufio:
Since you were raging against people beginning sentences with "this being", I thought you were including sentences beginning with "this being the case,..." as well, but clearly you weren't. This is kind of like how people insist that starting a sentence with "Because" is wrong, despite the fact that there are plenty of prescriptively correct sentence structures that can begin with "because".
However, I wonder if you would still take issue with Midwing's sentence if it began with "hence" instead of "This being":
(quote)
"Hence my asking in the first place."
vs.
(quote)
"This being the reason for asking in the first place."
vs. the technically correct
(quote)
"is why I asked in the first place."
What say you? Is it only OK to use fragments for effect if you use ancient vocabulary? At what point does a fragment used for effect become "gobbledygook"? Would you say that "this being" is more pretentious than "hence"?
Midwing:
This needn't degenerate into a torrent of insults and personal arguments. I really couldn't care less about the execution of correction but this is becoming more about who is right and their authority in correcting me, even their motives behind correcting me, rather than just getting on with it. This was never a personal issue between rohina and me. My sentence was incorrect. Simple as.
This is wrong. This is why. This is correct. It's a simple protocol to follow. ::)
Roflganger:
Quote from: Midwing on 2009 July 24, 16:36:44
"That was my reason for asking" instead?
Am I any closer?
This one gets my vote. It's clear, concise and to the point.
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