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SweetFreedom Posted 12 years ago
Grammar
Buy his round at the pub?
Does " buy his round at the pub" mean "offer him a drink (free of charge) at the pub (that is, pay his debt for him)"?
Background info:
I have mentioned kinship and reciprocation as the twin pillars of
altruism in a Darwinian world, but there are secondary structures
which rest atop those main pillars. Especially in human society,
with language and gossip, reputation is important. One individual
may have a reputation for kindness and generosity. Another
individual may have a reputation for unreliability, for cheating and
reneging on deals. Another may have a reputation for generosity
when trust has been built up, but for ruthless punishment of cheat-
ing. The unadorned theory of reciprocal altruism expects animals
of any species to base their behaviour upon unconscious
responsiveness to such traits in their fellows. In human societies we
add the power of language to spread reputations, usually in the
form of gossip. You don't need to have suffered personally from X's
failure to buy his round at the pub. You hear 'on the grapevine' that
X is a tightwad, or - to add an ironic complication to the example
- that Y is a terrible gossip.
Background info:
I have mentioned kinship and reciprocation as the twin pillars of
altruism in a Darwinian world, but there are secondary structures
which rest atop those main pillars. Especially in human society,
with language and gossip, reputation is important. One individual
may have a reputation for kindness and generosity. Another
individual may have a reputation for unreliability, for cheating and
reneging on deals. Another may have a reputation for generosity
when trust has been built up, but for ruthless punishment of cheat-
ing. The unadorned theory of reciprocal altruism expects animals
of any species to base their behaviour upon unconscious
responsiveness to such traits in their fellows. In human societies we
add the power of language to spread reputations, usually in the
form of gossip. You don't need to have suffered personally from X's
failure to buy his round at the pub. You hear 'on the grapevine' that
X is a tightwad, or - to add an ironic complication to the example
- that Y is a terrible gossip.
Top answer
SweetFreedom Does " buy his round at the pub" mean "offer him a drink (free of charge) at the pub (that is, pay his debt for him)" 'Buy one's round' = take one's turn in paying for everyone's drinks in a group.
- SweetFreedom Does " buy his round at the pub" mean "offer him a drink (free of charge) at the pub (that is, pay his debt for him)" 'Buy one's round' = take one's turn in paying for everyone's drinks in a group.
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6 Answers
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SweetFreedomDoes " buy his round at the pub" mean "offer him a drink (free of charge) at the pub (that is, pay his debt for him)"'Buy one's round' = take one's turn in paying for everyone's drinks in a group.
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Sorry, failed to get it.
In " You don't need to have suffered personally from X's failure to buy his round at the pub."
His? Whose?
In " You don't need to have suffered personally from X's failure to buy his round at the pub."
His? Whose?
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SweetFreedomSorry, failed to get it.In " You don't need to have suffered personally from X's failure to buy his round at the pub." His? Whose?You hear 'on the grapevine' (i.e., from someone else) that when it was Jack's turn to buy drinks for everyone, he (Jack) failed (or refused) to do so. Those who were at the pub at the time "suffered personally" from Ja
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