My biggest pet peeve is when people
use your instead of you’re. So, just for the sake of
education, let’s have a crash course is the correct usage of you’re and your. YOUR shows possession, such as “Is that your cheese?” or “Your mustache
looks really good.” While YOU’RE is
the contraction of you and are, for example “You’re the cutest thing I ever did see.” Or “You’re not the boss of me!” Most of us would agree that this
grammar rule is easy-peasy, no problem. . .But sadly, it seems that quite a few
people missed the School House Rock
episode that explained contractions.
Now just because that is my pet
peeve does not mean I run around like a crazed grammar nazi, correcting every your/you’re mix up. Actually, I don’t
correct anyone’s grammar ever, unless I am specifically asked to edit
something. Why not? Because I’m not their English teacher (yet), and it isn’t
my business to correct them. Also, if I went around correcting everyone’s
grammar, if I were to make an accidental grammatical error I would look like a hypocritical
ass, or at least that’s my logic. Although, I have discovered that not everyone
shares my logic . . . I still remember it like it was yesterday, I was simply
scrolling around on Facebook (probably procrastinating on a paper that was due
in a few days), and I made the simple comment on someone’s status, “You’re
friends are funny.” At first I didn’t even notice my mistake, I was in a hurry
to go get my popcorn out of the beeping microwave, but when I returned to my
computer I saw it. A comment underneath my comment, and all it said was “your*”.
That’s it. I was mortified, I had made the one grammar mistake that I always hated
. . . I was one of them. I thought
about pleading my case in another comment, “Please understand, that was just a
mistake! I know the difference between your
and you’re, I really do!!” but the
damage was done, I would just have to live with the shame. (Okay, maybe I’m
being a little dramatic, but you get my point.)
Everyone makes grammar mistakes
every now and again, even us English majors. So next time you see a grammar
mistake on Facebook, take a moment to think, “Should correct this person, even
though I’m not their English teacher? Maybe they were just in a hurry to race
to the microwave to prevent their popcorn from burning. Maybe I should give
them a break.” Leave the corrections up
to the professionals.
Yes, that one is annoying. I'm also not a fan of the "to, too, two" controversy. But I agree that it isn't good to correct people's grammar for no reason. It can be taken as rude, and really it makes the person seem dumb. And yes, if you make a mistake it makes you look like a hyporcite.
ReplyDeleteOf, course, when you have worked to get to the level of grammatical excellence that we have, it's ok to make mistakes now and then. ;)
Oh yeah, love the comic too. Did you draw it yourself?
ReplyDeleteYou're right it is absolutely annoying when someone else corrects your grammar error. I understand the need to be grammatically correct in papers and school work, but there is always the occasional slip in social media sites and text messaging. I find it extremely rude and mean when someone corrects me in a text; it is like they are asserting some sort of authority for taking an extra minute to make sure everything is spelled correctly with proper punctuation. It is a text or a Facebook status. It is not what's going to send you off to graduate school. Funny comic strip!
ReplyDeleteYes, grammar nazis find it hard to make friends. So do people who insist on using words that no one else knows the meaning of while speaking. Of course, some of the conflict stems from the uncertainty of what exactly internet/social media writing is and whether grammar is important or not in blogs or facebook posts. Sometimes it may even be appropriate to use incorrect grammar to make a point. Thanks for bringing up this issue!
ReplyDeleteMay I ask why you didn't just delete the comment and repost another one? I do that all the time. I'm that girl who has to re-read my status posts at least twice before I am absolutely sure that it sounds right,is spelled right and is grammatically correct. I think this is more so my family and friends actually think that my college education is doing me good. I know that panic feeling when you make a stupid mistake simply because you were thinking faster than you could type and it just happens. It's horrible! Funny post. :)
ReplyDeleteTRUEEEE story haha
ReplyDeleteEvery time I post anything on Facebook, I have to re-read it two or three times to make sure it's right, but I have screwed up a few times, much to my friends pleasure -_-
It's worse over on Reddit, a forum site I frequent. Those guys will flip all kinds of stuff if you mess up any of the obvious grammar rules. I posted something using the phrase "My girlfriend and I" and the top comment was about how my grammar was incorrect and that people would probably "downvote" me for it. These guys take that kind of stuff seriously.
Really funny post though, I enjoyed it. I laughed really hard when you said "I've become one of them" because that's my exact thought process haha