Letters to Mister Language Person
Jym Dyer
latest "Year in Review" article, though . . . I got the truncated
version in _Comic_Relief_ . . . and I missed the last few years'
worth as well.)
Here's something good for this group, though. When Dave wrote his
original "Mister Language Person" column some time in late 1985,
it was printed in the _Chicago_Tribune_Magazine_. What follows
are (1) a batch of letters sent in from readers in response to
that article, and (2) a second batch of letters sent in
response to the first batch of letters.
The "editor's" comments are those of the editor of that magazine's
"Feedback" section.
<_Jym_>
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-< "Feedback" 12-Jan-1986 >-
As I read Dave Barry's column of Nov. 17 ["Feeling bad
(badly?) about grammar..."], I noticed an incorrect usage of
a word in his reply to the fourth "Dear Mister Language
Person" item. Mr. Barry spoke of a "pneumatic device."
According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, "pneumatic" is
something "relating to, or using air or wind," or "moved by
air." The correct word should be "mnemonic," defined by
Merriam-Webster as "assisting or designed to assist memory."
--Joyce Barna
Chicago
Surely Dave Barry jests throughout his "Dear Mister Language
Person" comments, especially in this sentence: "We do not
except personal check's." The correct word is "accept," and
the plural of check is checks, even when used in
"small-business signs."
--Ann Papastefan
Cudahy, Wis.
I was dumbfounded by Dave Barry's answer to the question,
"When is it all right to say 'between you and I'?" The
correct answer, of course, is never. "Between" is a
preposition, and the objects of prepositions must always be
in the objective case. The objective-case pronouns are me,
you, him, her, us and them. Consequently, one always says,
"between you and me" or "just between us" but *never* "just
between we."
Assuming that Mr. Barry knows the rules governing
prepositions and their objects well enough to set himself up
as "Mister Language Person," I can't understand why he passed
up the perfect opportunity to help his readers learn the
correct way to use the pronouns that come after prepositions
like "between."
--Susan S. Ellis, Ed.D.
Greenwich, Conn.
What is The Tribune's SUNDAY Magazine coming to? As I read
and reread Dave Barry's column of Nov. 17, I could not
believe that the editors approved it for publication.
I could go on at length about the errors in it, but the most
glaring was what it said about the purpose of the apostrophe.
The apostrophe is used in contracting words, as in "can't"
for "can not." It is also used to show possession, as in
"Bob's cap" or "Paul's books." Barry's example was "Try
'Our' Hot Dog's." It seems to me that here we simply have
the plural of "dog," and the word should be "dogs," not
"dog's."
If this section is supposed to be humorous, it should be so
labeled.
--Marjorie Hinshaw
Urbana
[Sometimes even labels don't help. --Ed.]
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-< "Feedback" ??-Feb-1986 >-
After reading the letters [Feedback, Jan. 12] correcting the
"errors" in Dave Barry's Nov. 17 column on grammar, I
realized that I am obviously missing the point.
And all this time, I had thought Dave Barry was writing
satire and that that particular column was funny. Honest--or
is it *honestly*?
Vicky Gehrt
Lombard
The letters criticizing Dave Barry's column about grammar
clearly showed that their writers are without a humor gland.
How could anyone not realize, for example, that when he
discussed the preposition "between," as in "between you and
I," he didn't mean "preposition" at all, he meant
"proposition." It's always a *proposition* between you and I.
Someone picked on his innocent "pneumatic device," assuming
he meant "mnemonic device." For heaven's sake, did that
reader really not know Barry was playing on the word
"device"? He obviously meant "advice," the "pneumatic"
indicating that most advice is full of hot air.
The poor apostrophe was also kicked around. Apparently no
one realized there was a word play on "apology," as in, "We
do not except personal check's," a statement that clearly
warrants an apology.
Robert N. Feinstein
Downers Grove
After reading the Feedback of Jan. 12, I have concluded with
great delight that Dave Barry the grammarian is now writing
letters to the editor about his own columns. I hope these
letters will be a regular feature in SUNDAY.
As a mental exercise, I tried to imagine that Dave didn't
really write all those letters himself, that they were all
written by actual people, people who are your readers, people
who are teachers, people who can *vote*. Imagine........
Naaaaaaaah. Couldn't be.
John Marovich
Oak Lawn
Apparently those who wrote in to castigate Dave Barry for his
"Mister Language Person" column do not read signs put up by
small businesses [or even by some larger ones, for that
matter]. About two months before that column on correct
language usage appeared, a law firm moved into the office
building I work in and had the name of the firm painted,
presumably by professional sign painters, on the door. It
read: "_____________ and Associates, Attorney's at Law."
Mary-Carol Riehs
Chicago
Dave Barry must be the funniest man alive, and in his "Dear
Mister Language Person" column he outdid himself. You would
have been hard pressed to top that great column--until you
published those letters in the Jan. 12 Feedback. Those
letters provided almost as much hilarity as the original article.
Carole Skor
Roswwell, Ga.
The irony of the attacks on Dave Barry's very funny article
about grammar was that he was making fun of precisely the
sort of people who wrote in to complain.
It hurt my feminist soul to note that all those humorless
pedants who complained were women, but I'm sure that for
every one who complained, there were 10 others who laughed so
hard their sides hurt so badly and their eyes watered so
profusely they couldn't write to compliment Dave Barry.
Kathy Sokorski
Chicago
Even I, a 17-year-old, recognized satire when I read Dave
Barry's "Mister Language Person." I suggest that those who
wrote to complain about it return to high school to learn
what satire is. I guess Barry was just too clever for them.
Meg Wurster
Mundelein
It is gratifying to know that on those rare occasions that
Dave Barry isn't in top form, I have a second sourc eof
hilarity in the letters about him in the Feedback column.
Thanks for printing both the column and the letters.
Christine E. Lull
Chicago
[Case closed. These are the very last words on "Mister
Language Person." --Ed.]
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Bug Hunter
>Here's something good for this group, though. When Dave wrote his
> original "Mister Language Person" column some time in late 1985,
> it was printed in the _Chicago_Tribune_Magazine_. What follows
> are (1) a batch of letters sent in from readers in response to
> that article, and (2) a second batch of letters sent in
> response to the first batch of letters.
>
>The "editor's" comments are those of the editor of that magazine's
> "Feedback" section.
> <_Jym_>
Now THAT's a good use for this newsfroup!
If only there were more things like this we could come up with.
Keith
--
Keith Hearn \
khe...@amdahl.com \ I haven't lost my mind,
Amdahl Corporation \ It's backed up on tape somewhere.
(408)737-5691(work) (408)984-6937(home)\