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JKBelieve Posted 21 years ago
Grammar
Wow I have so many questions today......
I don't really understand what this passage means....I especially(.... does particularly sound better?) don't understand why 'At least' suddenly comes out....The first sentence is quite a mystery as well...
' Ladies, what man's love is there that would stand a year's nursing of the object of his affection? Whereas a nurse will stand by you for ten pounds a quarter, and we think her too highly paid. At least Mr Crawley grumbled a good deal about paying half as much to Miss Hester for her constand attendance upon the Baronet his father.'
Thank you very much to everybody who are giving up their precious time to read this and answer my questions.....^^
' Ladies, what man's love is there that would stand a year's nursing of the object of his affection? Whereas a nurse will stand by you for ten pounds a quarter, and we think her too highly paid. At least Mr Crawley grumbled a good deal about paying half as much to Miss Hester for her constand attendance upon the Baronet his father.'
Thank you very much to everybody who are giving up their precious time to read this and answer my questions.....^^
Top answer
'What man would be willing to take care of his sick wife or mistress for a year? And yet, a nurse will take care of us for £40 a year, and we even consider that expensive. Mr.
- 'What man would be willing to take care of his sick wife or mistress for a year?
- And yet, a nurse will take care of us for £40 a year, and we even consider that expensive.
- Mr.
- '
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11 Answers
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'What man would be willing to take care of his sick wife or mistress for a year? And yet, a nurse will take care of us for £40 a year, and we even consider that expensive. Mr. Crawley may not have felt exactly this way, but at least he complained about paying Hester £20 a year to take care of his father.'
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Thank you.....now I understand the first sentence perfectly. BUT I still don't understand why 'At least' came out. Even in your version 'we' complain about paying £40 a year. Mr.Crawley doesn't exactly feel this way but complained about paying £20 a year.
What doesn't Mr.Crawley feel 'this way'? £40 a year being a lot or willingness to take care of his sick father?
What doesn't Mr.Crawley feel 'this way'? £40 a year being a lot or willingness to take care of his sick father?
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If you don't mind my jumping in, I have an idea about "at least". The general idea is that people complain about the cost of nurses. The specific idea is that Mr. Crawley complained about the cost of a particular nurse.
There is a general tendency to use "at least" between a general statement and a specific example that illustrates the generality. The idea of the "at least" is that m
There is a general tendency to use "at least" between a general statement and a specific example that illustrates the generality. The idea of the "at least" is that m
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At least Mr Crawley grumbled a good deal about paying half as much to Miss Hester for her constant attendance upon the Baronet his father.
The meaning of "at least" in the above sentence is equivalent to "certainly".
Certainly Mr Crawley grumbled a good deal about paying half as much to Miss Hester for her constant attendance upon the Baronet his father.
The functio
The meaning of "at least" in the above sentence is equivalent to "certainly".
Certainly Mr Crawley grumbled a good deal about paying half as much to Miss Hester for her constant attendance upon the Baronet his father.
The functio
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Hello all
I find a sense of ellipsis here; the 'at least' and 'certainly' versions seem to be slightly different derivatives of the 'full' version, where 'certainly' ~ 'it is the case that':
'People are stupid. It is at least the case that my brother is.'
I read the 'at least' version as a 'step back' from a too-general assertion:
'People are stupid. At lea
I find a sense of ellipsis here; the 'at least' and 'certainly' versions seem to be slightly different derivatives of the 'full' version, where 'certainly' ~ 'it is the case that':
'People are stupid. It is at least the case that my brother is.'
I read the 'at least' version as a 'step back' from a too-general assertion:
'People are stupid. At lea
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Thanks everyone, I am so grateful for all your interests in my question.
Another question,
1.how does 'taking out your time' sound?
2.how does 'I am so grateful for all your interests in my question' sound?
Thanks to everyone
Another question,
1.how does 'taking out your time' sound?
2.how does 'I am so grateful for all your interests in my question' sound?
Thanks to everyone
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I agree with MrP's point, which I summarize as follows:
1. "At least", though it emphasizes an assertion by way of an example, has the sense of "stepping back" out of fear that the original statement may have been overly inclusive.
2. "Certainly" is used to introduce an example that adds further weight to an assertion without - or less of - the sense of "stepping back".
1. "At least", though it emphasizes an assertion by way of an example, has the sense of "stepping back" out of fear that the original statement may have been overly inclusive.
2. "Certainly" is used to introduce an example that adds further weight to an assertion without - or less of - the sense of "stepping back".
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To answer JK's last question:
1. Sorry, I'm not sure what "taking our your time" is intended to mean.
2. I would write it as: "I am so grateful to all of you for your interest in my question". Note that "interest" is usually a non-count noun, so should not be pluralized.
1. Sorry, I'm not sure what "taking our your time" is intended to mean.
2. I would write it as: "I am so grateful to all of you for your interest in my question". Note that "interest" is usually a non-count noun, so should not be pluralized.
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Thank you all for taking the time to help [me / us / ...].
I'm grateful that you all took such (an) interest in my question.
I'm grateful that you all took such (an) interest in my question.
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