Prescriptive vs. Descriptive

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Evaho88  #237698  Mon, 19 Jun 06 12:26 PM

The following 'diction' is wrong according to prescriptive, but why?
'existence' for life 
'novel' for new
'capture' for take
'inimical' for hostile
'demise' for death
'phenomental' for extraordinary

Also these sentences:
Ask whoever you see.
He works faster than me. (is it because it should use 'I' instead of me?)
I can't imagine it being him.
Nobody was killed, were they? (is it because 'singular they'?)
These kind of men are dangerous.
That's her at the door now. (is 'she' not 'her'?)
The data is now in.

Thanks very much.

  
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Anonymous  #237954  Tue, 20 Jun 06 02:40 AM
In the first set of words you see attempts to replace a simple word with a fancy word. The problem is that the meaning of the 'fancy word' is not really the same as the meaning of the word it replaces. For instance, 'existence' refers to the state of being, not the state of being alive. In the case of an individual human being, 'existence' may seem to be largely coterminous with 'life', but to use 'existence' as a fancy way of saying 'life' ignores the big differences between the two words. Similarly for the other words in the list. 'Novel' does not simply mean 'new'; it refers to a quality of being both new and different. 'Capture' does not simply mean 'take'; it refers to the taking of something that is difficult to catch. Capturing something requires some effort, thought, or speed. The same goes for the remaining words.

The second set of examples involves straightforward grammatical errors:

Ask WHOMEVER you see.
He works faster than I.
I can't imagine it being HE.
No PEOPLE were killed, were they? (perhaps there are other ways of rewriting this).
These KINDS of men are dangerous.
That is SHE at the door now. (This sentence is ridiculous; no one would speak like this).
The data ARE now in.

HTH



  
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