Standard English. The generally accepted norms of
grammar and
usage are called“standard English Although it is true that standards changeover time and from place to place, and although the standards of some people are not those of others at anytime or place, there is still some solid core of practices and
rules that must be observed if a statement is to be considered grammatically correct, acceptable, and understandable. That core equals standard English.
It includes agreement between
subject and
verb, between
antecedent and
modifier, and between referent and
pronoun. Only in the most unusual circumstances can these rules be broken or ignored and the result be considered allowable (usually in ction, entertainment,
journalism, and the like. Even in such circumstances, rule violations are commonly
still seen as violations, even if their purpose is condoned or appreciated.
Standard English extends beyond the core of inviolable rules to less-certain strictures that deal with language at a moment of change or dispute. Closest to the core and therefore least bendable are rules of
spelling, conjugation, and
declension—
there are rather clear practices in these areas, and violations are more likely than not to attract unwanted attention. That said, it is clear that perfectly reputable,
acceptable writers,
publishers, teachers, and others di er on the tolerability of spellings like centre travelled “decision-making,” and many other quite common words. Most likely, attention to
audience, locally accepted guidebooks or
style manuals, and consultation with others can resolve these disputes quickly for the writer or speaker making immediate choices about the applicable standard. But standards are somewhat fragmented nonetheless.
The forms of verbs and
nouns or pronouns in di erent cases are, like spellings, not very volatile. But, for example, there is a movement toward wide acceptance of
“who” in all circumstances or more than would have been permissible until recently.
Almost everyone says, Its me and many people now write it and are not corrected or seen to be in error. Similarly,
contracted negatives and other verb forms are far more common in the most rigorously checked and examined prose than they used to be (see
contraction). Other examples abound of
colloquial, dialect, and
slangconjugations and declensions entering the language so pervasively that they have become standard or close to it in many respects.
Once one moves beyond the fundamental patterns of shape changing in words,
one enters the realm of
order of words, sentence structure, style,
rhetoric, and similar categories in which grammar provides far less director clear guidance. All these categories are, after all, matters of choice, areas for writers to select the means and devices best suited to what they want to say and how they want to say it. Grammar and usage can only point to common errors, weak or overused methods,
and general strictures about clarity, e cacy, directness, and the like. It is up to the writer or speaker to match expression to idea and purpose, to audience and prevailing standards, and to the moment.
Yet for all the deviations from standards, the mission of making statements—to
convey one’s message most e ectively, clearly, and e ciently—remains and must be observed.
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