They are an attempt to...

[99bottles]

I think that camps and camping are an attempt to feel close to nature.

Is are an attempt right in this case? If it's not, how should I rewrite this sentence?

 

[emsr2d2]

I'm not sure what difference you see between camps and camping. Camps (or campsites) are where people go when they go camping. They're so closely connected that it seems odd to use them as two separate examples of something.

 

[probus]

Usually in Canada a rustic dwelling in or near the wilderness (what the Russians call a dacha) is called a cottage, but in some Canadian dialects it's called a camp.

 

[Jemima23]

I'm not sure what difference you see between camps and camping. Camps (or campsites) are where people go when they go camping. They're so closely connected that it seems odd to use them as two separate examples of something.

I agree. 99bottles could instead write something like "camping and hiking".

 

[99bottles]

I'm not sure what difference you see between camps and camping. Camps (or campsites) are where people go when they go camping. They're so closely connected that it seems odd to use them as two separate examples of something.

I thought camping is used when staying in tents whereas camps are organized facilities. Have I got it wrong?

 

[probus]

I think you have it right. The usage of camp as a synonym for cottage is probably confined to some parts of Canada

 

[99bottles]

I think you have it right. The usage of camp as a synonym for cottage is probably confined to some parts of Canada

So, is it OK to say camps and camping are an attempt?

 

[jutfrank]

You just mean 'camping', not 'camps'. It's the activity that you're talking about.

Camping is an attempt ...

 

[99bottles]

You just mean 'camping', not 'camps'. It's the activity that you're talking about.

Camping is an attempt ...

No, I want to mean both. Camping is referring to tents. In camp, kids stay in cabins.

 

[5jj]

When I was a boy scout, I used to go on annual camp. We slept in tents.

The difference you feel between camps and camping is just not obvious to many British people.

 

[99bottles]

When I was a boy scout, I used to go on annual camp. We slept in tents.

The difference you feel between camps and camping is just not obvious to many British people.

Don't you know what a summer camp for children looks like nowadays?

 

[5jj]

I have read about them. They are not a major part of childhood in England. That is why I said "The difference you feel between camps and camping is just not obvious to many British people".

 

[99bottles]

I have read about them. They are not a major part of childhood in England. That is why I said "The difference you feel between camps and camping is just not obvious to many British people".

So, if I write a story that takes place in a modern camp (cabins, facilities and all) and someone in there says 'Camping is an attempt to feel close to nature,' won't it confuse the reader? (Because camping is referring to tents whereas the premises of the story are in a modern camp with cabins.)

 

[jutfrank]

You just mean 'camping', not 'camps'. It's the activity that you're talking about.

Camping is an attempt ...

No, I want to mean both. Camping is referring to tents. In camp, kids stay in cabins.

Well, I don't quite understand what you mean by 'camps', but in any case it doesn't make sense to say that a thing is an attempt. An action, or an activity (such as camping), can be an attempt, but a thing (such as a camp) can't.

 

[99bottles]

Well, I don't quite understand what you mean by 'camps'.

THIS is camp.

THIS is camping.

Isn't it confusing for the reader if I use just the word camping when I actually talk about something different?

 

[5jj]

THIS is camp.

THIS is camping.

To some people, not to others. If you want your meaning to be clear to all speakers of BrE and NAmeE, you'll need to say something like: I think that going to summer camps and going camping are attempts to get close to nature. However, I think that most young people who go to summer camps go for the fun and the activities with other young people more than for the idea of getting close to nature.

 

[99bottles]

To some people, not to others. If you want your meaning to be clear to all speakers of BrE and NAmeE, you'll need to say something like: I think that going to summer camps and going camping are attempts to get close to nature. However, I think that most young people who go to summer camps go for the fun and the activities with other young people more than for the idea of getting close to nature.

How about this: People go to camps in an attempt to....

 

[5jj]

What is the second half of your sentence?

 

[99bottles]

What is the second half of your sentence?

... feel close to nature.

 

[5jj]

Well, it's grammatical but, as I suggested in post #16, I don't think it's true. Still, that's just my opinion.