مرور ۱۲: حرف زدن دربارهٔ مردمReview 12: talking about people

Five lessons, one discipline

هنجارها (۶۱). انتظاری را بدون نام‌بردن گروه بیان کن: it is expected that، you are supposed to، it is customary to؛ هر تعمیم را با tend to، as a rule، by and large تعدیل کن؛ مجهولِ داوری اجتماعی را به کار ببر (it is frowned upon، it would be seen as odd) چون داور واقعاً کسِ خاصی نیست؛ و would برای رفتار نوعیِ گذشته. نسل‌ها (۶۲). used to برای وضعیتی که قطع شده، would فقط برای کنش تکراری؛ no longer برای منفیِ رسمی؛ حال کامل برای تغییری که نتیجه‌اش اکنون است؛ و I had assumed / it had never occurred to me برای بازبینی باور خودت — قوی‌ترین امتیازدهی در این زبان، چون نام می‌برد چه فکر می‌کردی. مهاجرت (۶۳). بعضی اسم‌ها از پیش خودشان استدلال‌اند. اسمِ خنثی با جملهٔ موصولی تعریف‌کننده (people who have applied for asylum) را به حکم (illegals) ترجیح بده، و بیانِ شخص‌محور را به برچسبی که شخص را بلعیده. نابرابری (۶۴). X is not the same thing as Y، قالبِ جداکردن دو ایده‌ای که کسی به هم جوششان داده؛ compound و over time برای علت‌هایی که کند کار می‌کنند؛ و شرطِ وارونهٔ had they been born… برای استدلال دربارهٔ فرصت. سنت (۶۵). what is it for?، it is supposed to…، و آزمودنِ «always»ی که از آب درمی‌آید for as long as I remember. هر پنج، یک انضباط‌اند: چیزی را بگو که واقعاً می‌توانی از آن دفاع کنی، و نه بیشتر.

NORMS (61). State an expectation without naming a group: it is expected that, you are supposed to, it is customary to; hedge every generalisation with tend to, as a rule, by and large; use the passive of social judgement (it is frowned upon, it would be seen as odd) because the judge really is nobody in particular; and would for typical past behaviour. GENERATIONS (62). used to for a discontinued state, would only for a repeated action; no longer for the formal negative; the present perfect for a change whose result is now; and I had assumed / it had never occurred to me for revising your own belief — the strongest concession in the language, because it names what you thought. MIGRATION (63). Some nouns are already an argument. Prefer a neutral noun with a defining relative clause (people who have applied for asylum) to a verdict (illegals), and person-first phrasing to a label that has swallowed the person. INEQUALITY (64). X is not the same thing as Y, the template for separating two ideas someone has fused; compound and over time for causes that work slowly; and the inverted conditional had they been born… for arguing about opportunity. TRADITION (65). what is it for?, it is supposed to…, and testing an always that turns out to be for as long as I remember. All five are one discipline: say the thing you can actually defend, and no more.