Why is "Children do learn" wrong? Pres Bush said it the other day, and he was laughed at.
mrrich:?:
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Why is "Children do learn" wrong? Pres Bush said it the other day, and he was laughed at.
mrrich:?:
Really? I donīt think this sentence is wrong. Maybe the reason why they laughed is that they were kinda not agreeing with that statement...
Pragmatics: to communicate more than that which is explicitly stated.Quote:
Originally Posted by mrrich
Children learn.
=> meaning, it's a general truth or fact about children.
Children do learn.
=> meaning, children do indeed learn. Do is used for emphasis.
President Bush's meaning is in orange; the audience members who laughed is in purple:
Emphatic do has many uses in English.The laughter
- To add emphasis to an entire sentence: "He does like spinach. He really does!"
- To add emphasis to an imperative: "Do come in." (actually softens the command)
- To add emphasis to a frequency adverb: "He never did understand his father." "She always does manage to hurt her mother's feelings."
- To contradict a negative statement: "You didn't do your homework, did you?" "Oh, but I did finish it."
- To ask a clarifying question about a previous negative statement: "Ridwell didn't take the tools." "Then who did take the tools?"
- To indicate a strong concession: "Although the Clintons denied any wrong-doing, they did return some of the gifts."
A: Children do learn.
B: No one said they didn't. :lol: