Grammar correcters, where are we at with these atm, please?

It’s one of those - I imagine that poster thinks they look oh-so-upper and clever and better-than but in fact it just makes me think they have seriously poor reading comprehension, because a child of primary school age should be able to understand contextually that an ice-cream truck is a truck or vehicle which sells ice cream. So you clearly do know what it is. I see that type of snobbery on here constantly - people announcing ‘I’ve never heard of that reality star/TV show/etc. Have you tried reading Moby Dick instead?’ It was rife on the ‘worst celebs’ thread.

And quite often I’ve also not heard of the celeb being mentioned but I can understand easily from the post that it’s a TV star. I mean if a thread is called ‘worst celebrities you’ve met’ and someone says xyz celeb was rude to me it’s obviously a celebrity, isn’t it? And if you don’t know who it is surely if you have the competency to post on mumsnet you could look it up? But no, they have to announce it. They think it makes them look clever but it’s the exact opposite.

I wonder if there's something similar to code-switching going on. My grammar on mumsnet is awful. Commas all over the shop. I find that when I'm typing a message to a friend, on social media, or on a forum, my brain just automatically types stuff in the way I'd speak. I use commas and dashes to represent pauses instead of what they're actually meant for.

When I'm typing for work or for any more formal purpose, my grammar returns to it's usual respectable state. I have friends who write for a living and one who is an English teacher, and they all send messages with bad grammar even though I'm certain they wouldn't write that way in any other situation.

I'm interested to read people's points about assistive technology and people who don't speak English as a first language, so I will now strive to write properly on mumsnet

Thanks Fliss!

Oh god, yes.
Mind you, that one raises an eyebrow on every thread.
Though after TruckGate, there's probably been a namechange.

Because the super twatty ones get deleted. Even there.

Pedants' Corner was created with a tongue in cheek name, but was never intended to be somewhere people who don't know nearly as much about language as they think can whinge about Americanisms or Chester Draws. There used to be some brilliant posters on there who really knew what they were talking about (Prism springs to mind) when it comes to language.

Cunning Linguists came much later and was originally aimed at language learning in general. Didn't really take off.

God that one was infuriating.

It's the "YABU for saying gotten" ones that give me the rage.

Not so much grammar, but hate the faux naive ones like the woman who claimed not to know what an ice cream truck was.
Very satisfyingly, she was busted as an anti 'Americanism' pedant.
I think that is the answer - to prick their self important little bubbles.

But seriously... some of the 'grammar policing' of the type mentioned by the OP is really a form of low personal attack, isn't it? And therefore should be reported as such.

I think the two instances of "Pedant's" on this thread are exactly as intended. Pedant's Corner would be the ultimate echo chamber.

Not just me who's noticed an uptick in this lately then? Bad grammar annoys me but the correctors annoy me more, they come across as so smug when they're just declaring themselves to be complete twats.

Maybe pedants' corner shouldn't appear in Active, it must be so off putting to people to see those threads pop up.

@PAFMO I love your work in this area, and suspect I enjoyed it under at least one previous username as well. Keep fighting the good fight.

Pedants's
I absolutely won’t mention it. I know it’s a typo and I’m not the Grammar Police!

You wouldn't get much of a discussion in Pedants's Corner, would you?

I do remember there was a debate - a while ago now - as to whether it should be Pedants' Corner or Pedant's Corner.

Fair enough to be pedantic about Pedants' Corner!

I think you’ve ended up in the wrong corner! Is there a Linguists’ Corner, perhaps? The dictionary definition of pedantic is:

excessively concerned with minor details or rules; overscrupulous.

I never see much ‘mwahahaha’ing, either. Clumps of torn out hair, maybe!

I’m not a grammar-policer (evident from my posting mistakes!) but have learnt a fair amount over the years from them.

Let it stay, I actually think it IITS, some people are inwardly rolling their eyes at poor grammar and sometimes it’s worth knowing that.

This means the site can be more diverse, as so much more of the content is readily accessible to those with SpLD such as dyslexia, those for whom English is not a first language, and those who use assistive technology.

That's why replying in a way which models correct (or at least clearer) English, perhaps with a reiteration of what the poster meant can be helpful, I think.

The people who do this are being nasty and goady.

It's sod all to do with grammar and language, and doesn't need singling out.

Report posters whose level of twattishness in your opinion goes beyond the acceptable, whatever form that takes.

But please do remember that MN has a long reputation for posts being in standard English and with all those who can striving for accuracy.

This means the site can be more diverse, as so much more of the content is readily accessible to those with SpLD such as dyslexia, those for whom English is not a first language, and those who use assistive technology.

That's part of the spirit of MN that I think is wholly worth retaining

The only correcting posts that should be allowed ate ones which correct a mistake in a post of a grammar pedant. I've done that before and it is very satisfying!

I think people forget that the majority of users are typing on a phone screen, perhaps while doing other things. Even someone with the most impeccable spelling and grammar can make mistakes as we are not all sat at a desk typing on a keyboard anymore.

I take special pleasure in correcting them in my most nit picky fashion. It’s shocking how many people are eager to correct others while making mistakes themselves! But yes, they are arseholes of the highest grade. I’ve often said that correcting others doesn’t make you look clever but rather the opposite. It makes you look ignorant and smug.

Well, that's what it's become.

It used to be a nice, welcoming place where we talked about the nuances of language and sat around scratching our pedantic little heads saying "well, did you ever, who knew that that's the way L is pronounced in the middle of a word in Dublin"

These days it's mainly become a nasty little corner where posters think they can get away with their tiresome "I've just seen this on another thread mwahahaha".
(They get their grammar corrected as well, and if it's a TAAT, which it often is, deleted)

The one place where correcting grammar is de rigueur is, of course, Pedants' Corner. Elsewhere... just model correct spelling or usage if it seems appropriate to do so?

Pedants’ Corner is a great place to go and scream if you want!