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Henry74 Posted 14 years ago
Grammar
How to expand "both...and..."?
Hi again,
This is going to be an easy one, I think.
Suppose you had a sentence like,
He's been a longtime critic of both Idealism and Materialism.
And suppose, now, that you wanted to expand the list. I believe, in that case, you should lose both, e.g.
He's been a longtime critic of Idealism, Materialism and Dualism.
Now, I might be imagining things, but doesn't the second sentence sound weaker to you? In my language it would, a little.
You only have an anonymous list; whereas, in the other sentence, the structure both...and... would add weight to the statement (at least, this is how I hear it, when I hear the echo of my language in that sentence). It almost sounds as if it were hinting at an encompasing criticism that used similar arguments against both Idealism and materialism.
Provided that, as I said, I'm not imagining something that simply isn't there in English; is there a way for me to make each item on the list stand out a little bit more?
In my language I could say someting similar to ...of both A, and B, and C, and D. Would that be acceptable, or just ungrammatical?
Thank you for great help!
H.
This is going to be an easy one, I think.
Suppose you had a sentence like,
He's been a longtime critic of both Idealism and Materialism.
And suppose, now, that you wanted to expand the list. I believe, in that case, you should lose both, e.g.
He's been a longtime critic of Idealism, Materialism and Dualism.
Now, I might be imagining things, but doesn't the second sentence sound weaker to you? In my language it would, a little.
You only have an anonymous list; whereas, in the other sentence, the structure both...and... would add weight to the statement (at least, this is how I hear it, when I hear the echo of my language in that sentence). It almost sounds as if it were hinting at an encompasing criticism that used similar arguments against both Idealism and materialism.
Provided that, as I said, I'm not imagining something that simply isn't there in English; is there a way for me to make each item on the list stand out a little bit more?
In my language I could say someting similar to ...of both A, and B, and C, and D. Would that be acceptable, or just ungrammatical?
Thank you for great help!
H.
Top answer
Hi, How about this? He's been a longtime critic of the classic belief systems of Idealism, Materialism and Dualism. Clive
- Hi, How about this?
- He's been a longtime critic of the classic belief systems of Idealism, Materialism and Dualism.
- Clive
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7 Answers
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Hi,
How about this?
He's been a longtime critic of the classic belief systems of Idealism, Materialism and Dualism.
Clive
How about this?
He's been a longtime critic of the classic belief systems of Idealism, Materialism and Dualism.
Clive
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Thank you for reply Clive.
I take it to implicitly say that no, ...of both A, and B, and C is not grammatical in English.
Unfortunately, from the perspective of how things sound in my language, adding words before the beginning of the list does not change the sense of anonymity that that list gives me, as opposed to the two-item list with both...and....
But, if you'
I take it to implicitly say that no, ...of both A, and B, and C is not grammatical in English.
Unfortunately, from the perspective of how things sound in my language, adding words before the beginning of the list does not change the sense of anonymity that that list gives me, as opposed to the two-item list with both...and....
But, if you'
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Henry74I might be imagining things, but doesn't the second sentence sound weaker to you?Yes. I feel your pain! Maybe:
... critic not only of Idealism, but of Materialism and (of) Dualism as well.
... critic not only of Idealism and (of) Materialism, but of Dualism as well.
CJ
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Ha! That's a good idea! I like it.
It gives me an idea. Can I try to make as much... as... work here?:
He's been as much a (longtime) critic of Idealism, as he's been of Materialsm and Dualism.
Hhmm... I'm not sure. On the one hand, all those added words seem to amplify the divide between the two groups (Idealism - Materialsm and Dualism); on the other hand, I h
It gives me an idea. Can I try to make as much... as... work here?:
He's been as much a (longtime) critic of Idealism, as he's been of Materialsm and Dualism.
Hhmm... I'm not sure. On the one hand, all those added words seem to amplify the divide between the two groups (Idealism - Materialsm and Dualism); on the other hand, I h
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For more weight in a list of three, say: "He's been a longtime critic of Idealism and Materialism and Dualism."
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Henry74He's been as much a (longtime) critic of Idealism, as he's been of Materialsm and Dualism.This works. Yes.
Note: Idealism, etc. seem to be rather academic topics, so I expected a certain level of formality inconsistent with the use of the contraction "he's". He has been as much ...was what I expected. Ignore this remark if yo
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Thank you for your stylistic notes, they are really appreciated.
And no, I don't have to write something Academic, or anything like that.
That sentence was more of a chancy convergence of two separate train of thoughts. On one hand, my interest in Philosophy; on the other, the question of how to maintain semantic weight in English, whille expanding a list, which has been at the back o
And no, I don't have to write something Academic, or anything like that.
That sentence was more of a chancy convergence of two separate train of thoughts. On one hand, my interest in Philosophy; on the other, the question of how to maintain semantic weight in English, whille expanding a list, which has been at the back o
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