I was thinking about a couple of words this morning. There is often a discrepency among people as to the correct way to phrase the concept of taking information for granted. In common language, it seems that people choose to say "I assumed this was true." Many Grammar Fantatics will argue that this is grammatically incorrect because to "assume" literally means to "take on", as in responsibility. They will say that the correct word to use here is "presume." I have no issues with this argument, other than that it is a hard habit to break. I like the word presume. It sounds almost old fashioned and makes me purse my mouth in a way that seems to me to be almost British in nature. But as I thought more and more about this, I came to the conclusion that I might also be okay with using the word "assume" as it is, because the way in which it is most often used seems to say, "i am taking on the responsibility of taking for granted that this information is true." When one assumes that something happened, or that something is true, they are taking responsibility for thinking that, and will generally be held accountable for any results of their assumptions. In this way I think that both words are appropriate linguistically, and therefore have resolved to be more forgiving of this apparent faux pas and might even let myself use "assume" from time to time.
Okay, so, I haven't updated my blog about my weight loss every Tuesday night like I planned. But I am proud to report that not only have I continued to go to the gym at least thrice a week, I even convinced N to join it with me! The exercise thing is going a lot better. Today I even looked at myself in the mirror while I was zumba-ing! I don't think that I will ever be the kind of person who loves, loves, loves going to the gym, it does feel kind of good, kind of virtuous to get all sweaty and be able to tweet, "I am at the gym doing zumba!" For those of you who don't know, Zumba is the new fitness craze. I guess if you were to totally simplify things you would call it a type of aerobic class, but it is really so non-aerobic-y. There is not a lot of pumping, or jumping. It is 100% dancing. A little bit of salsa, a little bit of hip-hop, and tonight, even a little bit of ballet. It gets the heart rate waaaay up, and I always end up drenched in sweat, and best of ...
Yeah but you missed that the definition(s) of "presume" sometimes characterize how the assumption is made.
ReplyDelete1: to undertake without leave or clear justification : dare
2: to expect or assume especially with confidence
3: to suppose to be true without proof
4: to take for granted
As grammar continues to be seen as a hindrance to communication it becomes even more important for people like you, put in place to serve as guardians over grammar and syntax, to maintain proper usage of words.
There may come a day when english speakers tire of having a small and ineffectual pool of words to describe life, and at that point your work would take on a newfound appreciation.
Hmm. I missed this post somewhere along the way. But you know, I've often wondered why we have "assume" and "presume," two words which are often used interchangeably. At first I was right with you on your explanation of why assume would be wrong. Then, when you refuted yourself, I was right there with you again. You're one smart cookie. And I'm back to square one.
ReplyDeleteAnd might I please point out my overt and complete envy of the fact that you have a boyfriend who reads and comments - thoughtfully, even - on your writings. Never in my life in all the many boyfriends I've had (and that's actually been quite a few) or even the many more boys I've liked, have I been able to wrangle a readership out of any of them, even the supposedly intellectual ones. Dating someone who reads my writing (because he wants to, not because I ask him to) is a MUST on my next-time-around list. You're lucky. I hope you know it.