*insert Joker impersonation* Why...so...LITERAL?!

[RJ 17]

Seriously, I've noticed a growing trend around here of people taking other people's comments to be 100% literal as properly defined by the dictionary. That is to say, it's growing increasingly difficult to simply have a casual, informal conversation without someone jumping in and saying something like "The game can't be "excellent" if it has technical flaws". Nevermind the fact that someone could easily find a game to be "excellent" despite it's flaws so long as said person really likes the game...so why do people feel the need to but in and say "NOPE! It can't be excellent because by the definition of "excellent" it states: (*copy-paste from dictionary site*)!"

Or an example that just happened with me: apparently you're not allowed to supplant "sooner or later" with "Law of Averages" seeing as how the literal definition of "Law of Averages" does not mean "sooner or later", at least not when dealing with a sample size of the number of movies that Marvel has made for their new interconnected universe. No, apparently the Law of Averages only applies to large-scale calculations and blah blah blah.

So I ask you, my fellow Escapists, what's wrong with being informal? I had thought that - personal stances on some issues aside - we're all friends here, right? We're all a community. Why must we then be so stuck up as to adhere to the absolute definition of every word and phrase being typed?

 

[Thaluikhain]

It's an excellent way to annoy people, derail a conversation, or complain about hyperbole.

Hyperbole can get out of hand, and being annoying is what the net is for, after all.

 

[AustinN]

Probably just people who can't deal with someone liking something they don't like, so they have to grasp at straws to oppose their opinion. It's like how a lot of people can't accept that most things are subjective, so they have to try to convince themselves that their opinion is objective. Comments on negative/mediocre video game reviews are places where you'll find a lot of this.

Captcha: Autism Speaks. Because sometimes, autistic people take things too literally.

 

[Elfgore]

This is why I've fled towards user groups and forum games of late. Some people just want to have a conversation, but a few people can't have that. No, everything has to become a debate. Usually filled with condescension and accusations. If I see strawman one more time I'm going to flip.

Some people just can't seem to enjoy themselves here.

 

[tippy2k2]

Excellent without technical flaws? I wonder where that example came from...

>.>
.>


Anyway, I'm not 100% sure why that is. For whatever reason, there are some people that just get hung up on the exact phrasing you're using. Even when you explain to them what you mean and what you're saying, for whatever reason, because you said it like THAT, it's obviously wrong.

Personally, I think it comes down to more the attitude of the poster than anything. For some, we're not here to debate; we're here to win. Even if it's winning on a "technicality", you can win with it.

 

[RJ 17]

Excellent without technical flaws? I wonder where that came from...

>.>
.>

Yeah, that "incident" was part of the inspiration to this topic. But I'm a gentlemen and as such didn't want to call anyone out by name.

 

[Redlin5_v1legacy]

I don't think there is an easy answer for this one. Everyone is bound to interpret the text on the white page differently. Tone can be difficult to pick up sometimes but the art of reading the subtext of what someone is saying via their writing seems to be lost on a lot of people browsing the web.

I don't let it get to me. Some people just love to have fights over semantics when it really isn't the topic on hand.

Those people are silly in my eyes. =P

 

[Lilani]

-snip-

The one that grates on me the most around here is when somebody gets pounced on for saying "Am I the only one who..." and everybody proceeds to post that one stupid Critical Miss comic that says "First of all, you're never the only one, you fucking clown."

Oh yes, EXCUSE me for my HORRIBLY INACCURATE statement. I can't BELIEVE I could have made such a HORRIBLY CONCEITED STATEMENT. I guess I should also correct the error I made this morning when I said it was raining cats and dogs, as there were no felines or canines falling from the sky at that particular moment. And I wouldn't know if burning my tongue on my coffee ACTUALLY hurt like hell, because I've never been there. Oh, and when I said the stoplight was taking FOREVER to change, I didn't ACTUALLY mean forever, because of course it did change eventually.

HOW COULD I HAVE BEEN SO CARELESSLY FIGURATIVE WITH MY WORDS. OBVIOUSLY THIS HYPERBOLE IS AFFECTING HOW WELL MY POINT IS COMING ACROSS. FROM NOW ON I WILL ONLY MAKE LITERALLY CORRECT STATEMENTS WITH NO EMBELLISHMENT OF ANY KIND.

 

[Ikasury]

*snicker snicker lol lol*

because its hard to convey sarcasm via text without some manner of ctrl+sarcasm button, believe me, i have tried to find it, must be some new-fangled japanese device what with the pretty changing letters n' all that shows what one REALLY means... feheyheyhey...

yes...

:3

 

[Fiz_The_Toaster]

That's mainly the reason I've fled to the Brovengers user group, and I don't even bother going into threads with a shit load of pages anymore.

Some people just wanna fight, they don't want a debate, and they just want to show off what pedantic little shits they are. I understand that sometimes sarcasm and figures of speech may get lost in text, but there really isn't a reason to be a jerk about it.

-snip-

The one that grates on me the most around here is when somebody gets pounced on for saying "Am I the only one who..." and everybody proceeds to post that one stupid Critical Miss comic that says "First of all, you're never the only one, you fucking clown."

Oh yes, EXCUSE me for my HORRIBLY INACCURATE statement. I can't BELIEVE I could have made such a HORRIBLY CONCEITED STATEMENT. I guess I should also correct the error I made this morning when I said it was raining cats and dogs, as there were no felines or canines falling from the sky at that particular moment. And I wouldn't know if burning my tongue on my coffee ACTUALLY hurt like hell, because I've never been there. Oh, and when I said the stoplight was taking FOREVER to change, I didn't ACTUALLY mean forever, because of course it did change eventually.

HOW COULD I HAVE BEEN SO CARELESSLY FIGURATIVE WITH MY WORDS. OBVIOUSLY THIS HYPERBOLE IS AFFECTING HOW WELL MY POINT IS COMING ACROSS. FROM NOW ON I WILL ONLY MAKE LITERALLY CORRECT STATEMENTS WITH NO EMBELLISHMENT OF ANY KIND.

Some people just like being mental masterbators.

I have a feeling some people are like this:

Spoiler

I mean, I've heard some pretty awesome debates that uses figures of speech and whatnot, but I guess there must be some reason we just can't have nice things. :/

 

[Johnny Novgorod]

English is a second language to me but I didn't learn it to speak it poorly.

 

[Riverwolf]

...

Captcha: Autism Speaks. Because sometimes, autistic people take things too literally.

As a person with Asperger's syndrome... I don't take offense, because it's true, and extremely frustrating for me and my family/friends. I have real trouble detecting sarcasm unless it's EXTREEEMLY ENUNCIAAAAATED or a subject matter I'm intimately familiar with.

I'm also quite guilty of getting hung up on semantics and phrasing while debating. It's very easy for me to do; I'm not trying to be a jerk, it's just a real effort to accept that someone used wording that I don't like to convey a perfectly reasonable argument. I'm trying to do better, though.

I will argue, however, that poor choice of words (not wording that I don't like, but legit bad wording) can cause real misunderstandings in a debate, causing it to spiral out of control. Hence why in a formal debate, it's important to clearly define the terms being used, especially when using words that have contradictory meanings.

 

[ccggenius12]

being annoying is what the net is for, after all.

I defy your explanation.

Spoiler

But seriously, the real problem is that people don't assume that every post on the internet comes with a giant "In my opinion" prior to someone stating their opinion, and then some anal retentive individual leaps on them because the only thing that brings them joy in their shitty lives is telling people on the internet that they are wrong. Like I just did. With video. Of puppets.

 

[Vault101]

I think you mean "perfect" rather than Excellent...excellent is a subjective term

some people are just kind of pedantic about that....somtimes theyre being smart asses (whats 3 things you couldnt live without? oxygen, food, the sun...OH HOHOHOHOH YOU ANSWERED IT LITERALLY AREN'T YOU CLEVER!!!!??...[sub/]screw you[/sub])

The one that grates on me the most around here is when somebody gets pounced on for saying "Am I the only one who..." and everybody proceeds to post that one stupid Critical Miss comic that says "First of all, you're never the only one, you fucking clown."
b]

to be fair "am I the only one?" reeeeaaallly annoys me...

 

[geK0]

I think you mean "perfect" rather than Excellent...excellent is a subjective term

some people are just kind of pedantic about that....somtimes theyre being smart asses (whats 3 things you couldnt live without? oxygen, food, the sun...OH HOHOHOHOH YOU ANSWERED IT LITERALLY AREN'T YOU CLEVER!!!!??...[sub/]screw you[/sub])

The one that grates on me the most around here is when somebody gets pounced on for saying "Am I the only one who..." and everybody proceeds to post that one stupid Critical Miss comic that says "First of all, you're never the only one, you fucking clown."
b]

to be fair "am I the only one?" reeeeaaallly annoys me...

Am I the only one who isn't annoyed by that phrase?

 

[RJ 17]

English is a second language to me but I didn't learn it to speak it poorly.

My friend, I can appreciate your position, but you should know that there's a rather large difference between speaking in a casual/informal context and speaking poorly.

 

[RJ 17]

I think you mean "perfect" rather than Excellent...excellent is a subjective term

Tell that to Strazdas.

Seriously, I don't ask for much, but what I do ask for includes being able to use the figurative context and usage of various words and phrases without someone jumping up and saying:

"Nuh-uhhhh! That statement is false! Not based upon the merit of its point but rather the fact that I refuse to acknowledge (*fill in the blank with a figurative phrase*) as a figurative phrase!"

"And why's that?"

"Because it leads to the destruction of the language when you don't use words properly."

"Well as someone with a degree in English, I have to disagree. Refusal to acknowledge the figurative/casual/informal usages of words leads to language stagnation. Beyond that, you're severely limiting your vocabulary and ability to communicate by doing so."

 

[Johnny Novgorod]

English is a second language to me but I didn't learn it to speak it poorly.

My friend, I can appreciate your position, but you should know that there's a rather large difference between speaking in a casual/informal context and speaking poorly.

Maybe I'm wrong but I've always associated formality with social etiquette.

 

[RJ 17]

English is a second language to me but I didn't learn it to speak it poorly.

My friend, I can appreciate your position, but you should know that there's a rather large difference between speaking in a casual/informal context and speaking poorly.

Maybe I'm wrong but I've always associated formality with social etiquette.

Are we going for a job interview here? Perhaps a night at the theatre? Or a black-tie dinner? No? We're just a bunch of random chuckleheads on the internet talking about games and various other random things? That's what I thought. There's no such need for "social etiquette" around here.

As I said, there's a massive difference between someone saying "y u noh like this game it's great and has great chars and a great story I relly like it bcuz the grafix r pretty and...etc", which is indeed a complete bastardization of the language, and someone saying "I can't see why you don't like that game. The graphics are fantastic despite it only being 30 FPS, and the gameplay is extremely fun as well. I particularly like the characters and the story, they're simply the best."

The former is someone attempting linguistical murder, the latter is someone using adjectives and figurative phrases to express their opinion in a more verbose and descriptive manner. If anything, the informal/figurative helps get across meaning and intention. Remove that and you'd simply be saying. "That game's fun. It has good graphics. I like the story and characters."

In short, if you're worried about being rude by using the informal/casual "tense", don't be.

 

[MeChaNiZ3D]

It's an excellent way to annoy people, derail a conversation, or complain about hyperbole.

Hyperbole can get out of hand, and being annoying is what the net is for, after all.

How can it be an "excellent" way if the OP has no issue with it?