There are all kinds of pedants around with more time to…
““There are all kinds of pedants around with more time to read and imitate Lynne Truss and John Humphrys than to write poems, love-letters, novels and stories it seems. They whip out their Sharpies and take away and add apostrophes from public signs, shake their heads at prepositions which end sentences and mutter at split infinitives and misspellings, but do they bubble and froth and slobber and cream with joy at language? Do they ever let the tripping of the tips of their tongues against the tops of their teeth transport them to giddy euphoric bliss? Do they ever yoke impossible words together for the sound-sex of it? Do they use language to seduce, charm, excite, please, affirm and tickle those they talk to? Do they? I doubt it. They’re too farting busy sneering at a greengrocer’s less than perfect use of the apostrophe. Well sod them to Hades. They think they’re guardians of language. They’re no more guardians of language than the Kennel Club is the guardian of dogkind.””
About This Quote
This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.
Critiques pedants who obsess over grammar while missing the joy and sensuality of language.
In simple terms: Pedants focus on rules, not the pleasure of words.
Key Takeaway
Embrace language’s playfulness.
Themes
language
creativity
pedantry
Mood
reflective
playful
Type
essay
critique
When to use this quote
- writing workshops
- literary criticism
- public speaking
Key Concepts
aesthetic appreciation
linguistic freedom
Questions to Reflect On
- What would language be without rules?
- How can we celebrate both precision and play?
A Different Perspective
Some may argue rules preserve clarity.