Comments on: Why Come They Ain’t Smart No More http://blog.benjaminfenster.com/2008/09/why-come-they-aint-smart-no-more/ A Blog of Musings and Mockery Thu, 19 Jan 2012 19:56:15 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: Ben http://blog.benjaminfenster.com/2008/09/why-come-they-aint-smart-no-more/comment-page-1/#comment-119 Ben Sat, 13 Sep 2008 14:12:48 +0000 http://blog.benjaminfenster.com/2008/09/02/why-come-they-aint-smart-no-more/#comment-119 It's also fair only to contrast authors with other authors. That Shakespeare wrote poetry doesn't itself suggest that every baker and fisherman in 1600 conversed with their families in iambic pentameter. The fun of comparing letters from soldiers is that they should be (statistically) at the same level of education, or the same "class" of society. There's no particular reason for a soldier today to be less educated than a soldier of 1864, besides that society is overall. It’s also fair only to contrast authors with other authors. That Shakespeare wrote poetry doesn’t itself suggest that every baker and fisherman in 1600 conversed with their families in iambic pentameter. The fun of comparing letters from soldiers is that they should be (statistically) at the same level of education, or the same “class” of society. There’s no particular reason for a soldier today to be less educated than a soldier of 1864, besides that society is overall.

]]> By: just pixels http://blog.benjaminfenster.com/2008/09/why-come-they-aint-smart-no-more/comment-page-1/#comment-118 just pixels Fri, 12 Sep 2008 22:03:13 +0000 http://blog.benjaminfenster.com/2008/09/02/why-come-they-aint-smart-no-more/#comment-118 The fallacy in your post is that you chose a particularly eloquent civil war passage to compare with a crass (or made up) contemporary quote. Older language always sounds more refined, civilized, pleasing than everyday language. Shakespeare versus Dickens versus Steinbeck versus TXTing. A hundred years from now "Dear Marie" will sound poetic compared to: <i>Hey M-toy, It is #*&@ here. BTW $&@)* and *^$#@ yesterday. And *(^*% *#^% Iraqi #%^^$^. Finally #^%$$&^ &%$$&&^ &$#^&%#$ #%&^%. </i> The fallacy in your post is that you chose a particularly eloquent civil war passage to compare with a crass (or made up) contemporary quote.

Older language always sounds more refined, civilized, pleasing than everyday language. Shakespeare versus Dickens versus Steinbeck versus TXTing. A hundred years from now “Dear Marie” will sound poetic compared to:

Hey M-toy,
It is #*&@ here. BTW $&@)* and *^$#@ yesterday. And *(^*% *#^% Iraqi #%^^$^. Finally #^%$$&^ &%$$&&^ &$#^&%#$ #%&^%.

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