Wednesday, February 27, 2019

Bad Grammar Wicked to the Ears by Dee S. Knight #wicked #grammartips #romance

WICKED WEDNESDAY

There are all kinds of chills, and bad grammar can send a few up my spine! Dee tells how.

While I was trying to think of something wicked to write for this post, an example of one of the most wicked things fell into my lap—a feature on a morning news program in which a national politician used some horrendous grammar. He isn't a young guy, either, which tells me that our educational system in the U.S. has been going downhill for a very long time. Despite secondary languages used by necessity, English is our predominant language. It seems very wicked indeed that our schools don't do a good job of teaching it anymore. I scream at the TV nearly every day, listening to people like journalists, politicians, and program stars butcher the most basic rules of grammar.

So, some examples? Using me, myself, and I. Would you ever start a sentence with "myself"? I don't think so. Myself is not a sentence subject.
Bad: Bob and myself (or Myself and Bob) went to the movies.
Good: Bob and I went to the movies.

Bad: Sally gave the dog to Bob and myself.
Good: Sally gave the dog to Bob and me.

That last example brings up another pet peeve that you hear all the time: when to use I and me. If the term is after a preposition, almost always use me. In the case below, the preposition is to:
Bad: The prize was given to Jen and I.
Good: The prize was given to Jen and me.

This last example is what I heard this morning, and it has to do with verb tenses. I don't remember the names of all the various tenses, but I remember how to use most of them. When I hear someone who should know better use the wrong verb, I cringe.
Present: I run daily.
Past: I ran last week.
Perfect: I have run for months.
BAD!!!: I have ran for months.

Present: I see you.
Past: I saw you.
Perfect: I have seen you every day.
BAD!!!: I have saw you every day.

Present: I go to work each morning.
Past: I went to work each morning last week.
Perfect: I have gone to work each day.
BAD!!!: I have went to work each day. (This is the error the congressman made on national TV this morning.)

I'm not a grammar Nazi and I am definitely not perfect in grammar myself (correct use of myself), but knowing and using basic grammar is important. I was accepted for my last job because I was the first applicant in a dozen who could pass a basic test that included grammar and punctuation rules. Not using them shows a laziness and lack of pride in our language—something that helps bind us as a society. My main character in my latest book, Only a Good Man Will Do, is an English teacher. Daniel Goodman strives to instill in his students the knowledge they need to put themselves forward in the best possible light. For our real teachers and schools not to do the same with today's students is wicked indeed.

Daniel Goodman is a man on a mission. He aims to become headmaster of Westover Academy. For that he needs a particular, special woman to help him set high standards. Into his cut and dried life of moral and upright behavior, comes Eve Star, previously one of Europe's foremost exotic dancers. Her life is anything but cut and dried, black and white. Daniel is drawn to her like a kid to chocolate. Nothing good can come of this attraction. Or can it? He is after all, a good man.

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