View Single Post
  #1 (permalink)  
Old 17-May-2003, 14:37
xanana
Guest
 
Posts: n/a
Default Semantics of this sentence

Hello,

I saw this sentence, on a big advert in a train station advertising a cable car service:

Quote:
Wonder why people climb mountains, when it's safer to be asleep at home.
When I read the sentence; I thought it could mean two things:
  • (a) He/she is amazed at daredevil mountaineers who risk their lives and the comfort of home to summit mountains.
    (b) He/she is offering an answer to the question: do you want to know why people climb mountains ?

Note that the backdrop of this sentence is a picture of the summit of the cablecar service. Do you think there's anything wrong with this sentence ? If yes, how would it be corrected to convey the meaning in (b) ?

Thanks

Gavin
Reply With Quote