Comments on: Is That a Noun or a Verb? I’m Confused

By: Michael Callan

Michael Callan — Wed, 18 Feb 2009 22:48:33 +0000

I’m confused with this paradox I read:

In Seville there is a barber. He shaves every man in Seville, who does not shave himself.

In other words there should be only two conclusions:

1 If a man shaves himself then the barber does not shave that man.

2 If the barber shaves a man then the man does not shave himself.

The paradox arises when you consider who shaves the barber.
If the barber (who is a man) shaves himself then the barber should not shave himself. If the barber does not shave himself then the barber should shave himself.

By: Michael

Michael — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 02:46:00 +0000

Ironic, isn’t it, that confusing sentences can sometimes become less confusing if you add a comma or an extra word. You’re right that these examples aren’t very long – I didn’t want them to be too confusing!

Cutting sentences in half brings the greatest benefits when they are overly long, but if you wanted to, you could simplify the examples like this:

Throughout the film, he fears that the treasure won’t be his. The thought troubles him.

Be aware of schedule changes for this afternoon’s trains. Because of labor strikes, they may be delayed.

By: Willis

Willis — Thu, 02 Oct 2008 16:57:01 +0000

One of my biggest peeves is something like this. A phrase like “It was all that He could do to keep himself from retching on the floor” just BUGS me. When there is subject verb confusion it jars my reading. Of course, I have come to understand a sentence like that, but I still do not like it!

(I’ve come to like this blog in a short amount of time! I’ll be checking this out regularly.)

By: Samuel Chinzah

Samuel Chinzah — Mon, 29 Sep 2008 17:51:57 +0000

Well let me be frank here (Which, is anyway the reason i am commenting). The writer must be much more proficient in the language than i am. But the first examples used are only
re-arranged (in the secondth examples) so that a comma or other pauses are used. Which doesnt mean (to me) that the sentences arent any longer.

Forgive me not, i am only trying to learn something here

By: Michael

Michael — Mon, 29 Sep 2008 08:33:39 +0000

I like PreciseEdit’s advice. I had never heard the term “rhetorical subject” before. Interesting, though, that by putting the rhetorical subject first, we ended up with passive voice sentences… But sometimes you have to break some rules to follow other rules. The primary rule being, make your meaning clear.