How Good is Your Grammar by John Sutherland你的语法有多好 作者：约翰·萨瑟兰

Everyone who lives by the pen should have a grammar guide as well
每个靠笔生活的人也应该有语法指南
as a dictionary always within reach. The helpmate I would recommend is
作为一本词典，总是触手可及。我推荐的助手是
The Oxford Modern English Grammar by Bas Aarts; a distillation of UCL/
牛津现代英语语法；UCL的蒸馏/
SEU thinking and practice. Much of what is discussed here (Mr Gove’s
SEU思考与实践。这里讨论的大部分内容（戈夫先生的
views on grammar, for example) is dealt with, wittily and as quick response
例如，关于语法的观点）被巧妙地当作快速反应来处理
in Professor Aarts’s blog, Grammarianism.
在Aarts教授的博客中，语法主义。

‘Grammar Nerds’, as they call themselves, are a sharing community.
他们自称“语法书呆子”，是一个共享社区。
As is evident, I have gratefully borrowed from their blogged wit, wisdom
很明显，我很感激地借用了他们在博客上的智慧和智慧
and occasional crankiness. More details are in the Further Reading section.
以及偶尔的暴躁。更多细节见进一步阅读部分。
I thank Bas Aarts for looking over what I’ve written and Paul Bougourd for
我感谢巴斯·阿特斯翻阅了我写的东西，并感谢保罗·布戈德
his tactfully expert editorial supervision. Errors and other objectionable
他巧妙的专家编辑监督。错误和其他令人反感的
things are wholly mine.
一切都是我的。

PREFACE:
前言：
‘BRING BACK THE GRAMMAR!’
“把语法拿回来！”
had my early education at a grammar school (founded, as we
我早年在一所文法学校上学
were daily reminded, in the reign of Henry VIII). So did
在亨利八世统治时期，每天都有人提醒。我也是
Shakespeare. I like to think of that shared heritage between me and the Bard
莎士比亚。我喜欢想起我和吟游诗人之间的共同传统
whenever I reflect on how those Etonians, whose alma mater teaches much
每当我想起那些埃托尼亚人，他们的母校教得多
more important things in life than grammar, are taking over the world.
生活中比语法更重要的东西正在主宰世界。
The Germans call their equivalent institutions ‘gymnasiums’, the
德国人称他们的对等机构为“体育馆”
French, ‘lycées’ (from the Latin ‘lyceum’, a hall for lectures). These names
法语，lycé（来自拉丁语“lyceum”，一个演讲厅）。这些名字
tell us a lot about those countries. As does the epithet ‘grammar’ about
告诉我们很多关于那些国家的事。“grammar”这个修饰语是关于
ours. And – unloveliest word – ‘comprehensivisation’. The abolition of the
我们的。最不可爱的词是“全面性”。废除
‘grammar’ school, in the 1960s, and with it the ‘eleven plus’, has coincided
20世纪60年代的“语法”学校，以及与之相适应的“十一加”
with a general relaxation of the nation’s care about grammatical correctness.
随着国家对语法正确性的普遍放松。
Decline or linguistic democracy?
衰落还是民主？
One of our political parties (the one most pervaded with Etonism, as it
我们的一个政党（如它所说，是伊顿主义最盛行的政党）
happens) has pledged to ‘bring back the grammar’. Tory grammarians see
（碰巧）已经保证“恢复语法”。保守党语法学家看到
‘good English’ as no less necessary a defence of the nation than Trident
“好英语”作为保卫国家的必要条件不亚于三叉戟
submarines. Their hearts warm at the mention of the title of the Fowler
潜艇。一提到捕鸟人的头衔，他们的心就暖洋洋的
brothers’ book The King’s English (1906), and Kingsley Amis’s homage–
兄弟书《国王的英语》（1906）和《金斯利·艾米斯的敬意》—
treatise of the same name (1997). Flying the same banner is ‘zero tolerant’
同名论文（1997）。悬挂同一面旗帜是“零容忍”
Lynne Truss with her delightful defence of punctuational rectitude, Eats,
林恩·特鲁斯用她那令人愉快的对断断续续的正直的辩护，吃，
Shoots & Leaves.
嫩枝和叶子。

Opposing them are the grammatical sans-culottes – rebels, anarchists
反对他们的是语法无裙裤-叛乱分子，无政府主义者
and Guardian readers all – who see even the extreme alternative (so-called
《卫报》的读者都看到了极端的选择（所谓的
‘wankers’ grammar’) as a refreshing non serviam (or ‘up yours!’, as the
‘wankers’grammar’）作为一个令人耳目一新的非serviam（或‘up yours！’，作为
wanker would say). Grammar is, nowadays, hot politics.
旺克会说）。如今，语法是热门的政治话题。
I’m no linguist, although for several years I headed a distinguished
我不是语言学家，虽然几年来我领导了一个杰出的
department of ‘Language and Literature’. It was that way round. Language
语言文学系。就在那边。语言
precedes use of language.
在使用语言之前。

It was, for me, a happy neighbourhood. I liked the common sense that
对我来说，这是一个幸福的社区。我喜欢这样的常识
my ‘language’ colleagues brought to bear on that human skill which, above
我的“语言”同事带来了对人类技能的影响
all else, makes us human – our way with words, and their ways with us.
其他的一切，使我们成为人——我们用语言表达的方式，他们用语言表达的方式。
The Survey of English Usage, founded by Randolph Quirk, has for six
由伦道夫·奎克（randolphquirk）发起的英语用法调查已经进行了六年
decades surveyed, with a tolerantly clinical eye and ear, how we actually
经过几十年的调查，我们的眼睛和耳朵都有相当的临床症状
use language. The unit has published, under its present director, Professor
使用语言。该股在现任主任领导下出版了《教授》
Bas Aarts, an app – the interactive Grammar of English – for tablets and
Bas Aarts，一个应用程序-英语的交互式语法-用于平板电脑和
smartphones.1
智能手机.1
It is crystalline in its clarity and avoidance of jargon – but
它清晰明了，避免使用行话，但
entirely without prescription or moral judgment (i.e. ‘good grammar’ versus
完全没有处方或道德判断（即“良好语法”与
‘bad grammar’). There are only two imperatives it implicitly enjoins. That
“语法错误”）。它含蓄地嘱咐的命令只有两个。那个
the language we use should make sense, and that the sense made should be
我们所使用的语言应该是有意义的，而这种意义应该是有意义的
appropriate to the situation. That’s it. Oh, and it helps a bit if you know how
适合情况。就这样。哦，如果你知道怎么做会有点帮助
it works.
它起作用了。
Situation is the more interesting to me. I love the way grammar flows
情况对我来说更有趣。我喜欢语法的流畅
like liquid to adapt to its situation, as it does, pre-eminently, in poetry. Or it
喜欢液体来适应它的处境，尤其是在诗歌中。或者它
can be clunkily pedantic, as in legal discourse (e.g. Groucho’s ‘party of the
可能是笨拙的迂腐，如在法律话语中（例如格鲁乔的政党）
first party shall hereafter be known as the party of the first party…’). The
甲方在下文中称为甲方的一方……）。这个
poet’s discourse reveres the richness of ambiguity and the erotics of vague.
诗人的话语崇尚模糊的丰富性和模糊的情欲。
The lawyer’s discourse labours to disambiguate.
律师的谈话努力消除歧义。

What follows is not a grammar rule book nor what used to be called a
下面的内容既不是语法规则书，也不是过去所说的语法规则书
‘primer’. It is a set of ruminations by someone who has worked with words
“底漆”。它是一组由研究过单词的人进行的反刍
and who, like M. Jourdain with his prose, has discovered he has been using
还有谁，像M。乔丹用他的散文，发现他一直在用
grammar all his life – more or less right(ly). And who relishes its
他一生的语法——或多或少是正确的。谁喜欢它
curiosities.
好奇。

The ultimate test of grammar rules – the grammar book serialised in the Times feature ‘Grammar for Grown-ups’.
语法规则的终极测试——《泰晤士报》连载的语法书以“成人语法”为特色。
How good is your grammar? John Sutherland, one of Britain’s most celebrated professors of English literature,
你的语法有多好？约翰·萨瑟兰，英国最著名的英国文学教授之一，
is here to test, stretch, amuse and instruct you with his definitive quiz on all things grammatical.
是来测试，伸展，娱乐和指导你与他的决定性测验对所有事情的语法。
Why do purists insist that ‘television’ is wrong while ‘telephone’ is correct?
为什么纯粹主义者坚持认为“电视”是错误的而“电话”是正确的？
Was Bill Clinton taking risks with language as well as his presidency when he declared,
当比尔·克林顿宣布，
‘I did not have sexual relations with that woman’?
“我没有和那个女人发生性关系”？
And can the use of ‘ain’t’ ever be defended, especially when there’s no sunshine when she’s gone?
“是不是”这个词能被辩护，特别是当她走后没有阳光的时候？
This is neither a rule book nor a primer but a rollercoaster ride through the mysteries and magic of the world’s greatest language.
这既不是一本规则书，也不是一本入门读物，而是一次穿越世界最伟大语言的神秘和神奇的过山车之旅。

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