Grammar & Spelling - Is it important? Read post first

[lord_carbo]

Recently I read a post on a forum which started with, "[he] seems to have thought that i was supporting his position is that the healthcare system ISNT meant to do a profit.. because its government run." He completely intertwined the relative clause with the next sentence, thus his message was completely construed. What truly made it confusing was the fact that the original poster was in defense of private health care. I didn't know how to respond except to criticize his grammar.

Grammar is important, especially at such a basic level.

Originally Posted by Hudelf

I disagree with the idea of that being a normal evolutionary process. If everyone online were to completely ignore grammar and spelling, I think it would be foolish to think those habits would not carry into other domains as well.

Good writing ability and vocabulary comes from practice. If, as children, one is never introduced to proper grammar, it is entirely plausible that they will not learn until it is too late, meaning college or even into the working world, which can be disastrous, especially concerning resumés and the like.

Uh, that's how it's an evolutionary process. Read some old literature. William Shakespeare, the King James Bible, Jonathan Edwards, even anything as recent as Charles Dickens. You'll see a more prevalent use of the subjunctive mood, a concept often under-looked in modern English classes. I perpetuate its use, lest it die out completely. "Thou," "thy," stuff like that, too. And it's just different. I do not know how I would go about explaining the difference. We just know it to exist.

Old English's distinctions from other Germanic languages comes from the evolution of language. Have you learned reflexive verbs in Spanish or German? Noun gender? That too (and thank goodness).