Saturday, March 21, 2009

Is this English?

". . . health disparities for disenfranchised individuals who are the victims of violence through ecologically-based interventions."

Yes, this is in Amy Bonomi's CV and she's an OSU professor on Facebook.

I think the problem grew when "wife beating" became "domestic violence" became "spousal abuse" became "intimate partner violence." The language is completely out of control.

2 comments:

Three Score and Ten or more said...

Any semanticist or even etymologist could tell you that the language has always been out of control. When each communicator constructs a message it is always from his or her personal paradigm. Any message "receiver" who attempts to interpret that message has, necessarily, to to do it from his or her (the receiver of the message not the sender) own paradigm. I consider it an evidence of the existence of God that any of us ever succeed in exchanging ideas in a form that is comprehensible or even mildly functional.

Norma said...

Thanks Richard. Rarely have I seen paradigm (look at me I'm king of the hill) used so well.