时间:2019-01-02 作者:英语课 分类:英语语法 Grammar Girl


英语课

Grammar Girl here.


Today I'm going to beg the question.


Ellen at Swarthmore said she would appreciate it if I talk about the misuse 1 of the phrase begs the question. "I keep seeing it as a way to say The question begs to be asked or The question that should be asked," she says.


Well, Ellen, you're right. You do hear it used to mean "raises the question," but that's not what it really means.


The Right Way to Use "Begs the Question"


Begs the question is actually a term that comes from logic 2, and it's used to indicate that someone has made a conclusion based on a premise 3 that lacks support (1, 2).  It can be a premise that's independent from the conclusion (3) or in a simpler form, the premise can be just a restatement of the conclusion itself (4, 5).


For example, let's say Squiggly is trying to convince Aardvark that chocolate is healthful, and his argument is that chocolate grows on trees, so it must be healthful. Aardvark could rightly say there's no proof that something is good for you simply because it grows on a tree. Some things that grow on trees are poisonous--Chinaberry tree fruit, for example (6). So Squiggly's argument is based on a faulty premise.


Aardvark could correctly say that Squiggly's argument begs the question. What does growing on trees have to do with being healthful, anyway?


I remember what begs the question means by thinking that THEE argument raises a specific question--it begs *the* question--What's your support for that premise? OR  more informally, What does that have to do with anything? You use the phrase begs the question when people are hoping you won't notice that their reasons for coming to a conclusion aren't valid 4. They've made an argument based on a lame 5 assumption. The question is What's your support for that premise?


Here's an example of a simple argument that begs the question. This one just restates the conclusion as a basis for the conclusion: Chocolate is healthful because it's good for you. That begs the question. How do you know chocolate is good for you? Again, the question is What's the support for your premise? or What does that have to do with anything? If I didn't just accept that chocolate is healthful, I'm not going to accept that it's healthful because you say it's good for me. They're the same thing. Make a better argument.


The Wrong Way to Use "Begs the Question"


Sadly, begs the question is used wrong a lot. It took me about two seconds to find good examples of bad usage in the news. Many people mistakenly believe it's OK to use the phrase to introduce a clever or obvious question. For example,


After chronicling Natalie Coughlin's accomplishments 6, a reports writes: "All of which begs the question, is Coughlin the best female swimmer this country has ever seen?" The reporter is using begs the question to mean something like "makes me wonder."


Here's an example from another paper:


"Board members’ explanations to the public grow more and more vague. This begs the question: What is going on in the minds of these officials who were appointed to serve us?" Again, the reporter seems to think begs the question means something like "makes me wonder" or "leads us to ask."


Common Usage Versus 7 Established Meaning


In fact, that wrong usage is so common some people will argue it's not an error anymore (7). But I'm firmly in the camp that believes it's worthwhile to stick to the formal definition. There are plenty of phrases writers can use when they mean "makes me wonder" or "raises the question." There's no hole in the English language that needs to be filled, so there's no reason to use begs the question improperly 8.


The quick and dirty tip is to remember that when something begs the question, it begs the question: what is your support for that premise?


Administrative 9




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Finally, this week the Small Biz Tech Girl and Get-It-Done Guy are tackling a great topic: how to manage all those social networks you've joined. Check it out and thanks for listening.


 



n.误用,滥用;vt.误用,滥用
  • It disturbs me profoundly that you so misuse your talents.你如此滥用自己的才能,使我深感不安。
  • He was sacked for computer misuse.他因滥用计算机而被解雇了。
n.逻辑(学);逻辑性
  • What sort of logic is that?这是什么逻辑?
  • I don't follow the logic of your argument.我不明白你的论点逻辑性何在。
n.前提;v.提论,预述
  • Let me premise my argument with a bit of history.让我引述一些史实作为我立论的前提。
  • We can deduce a conclusion from the premise.我们可以从这个前提推出结论。
adj.有确实根据的;有效的;正当的,合法的
  • His claim to own the house is valid.他主张对此屋的所有权有效。
  • Do you have valid reasons for your absence?你的缺席有正当理由吗?
adj.跛的,(辩解、论据等)无说服力的
  • The lame man needs a stick when he walks.那跛脚男子走路时需借助拐棍。
  • I don't believe his story.It'sounds a bit lame.我不信他讲的那一套。他的话听起来有些靠不住。
n.造诣;完成( accomplishment的名词复数 );技能;成绩;成就
  • It was one of the President's greatest accomplishments. 那是总统最伟大的成就之一。
  • Among her accomplishments were sewing,cooking,playing the piano and dancing. 她的才能包括缝纫、烹调、弹钢琴和跳舞。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
prep.以…为对手,对;与…相比之下
  • The big match tonight is England versus Spain.今晚的大赛是英格兰对西班牙。
  • The most exciting game was Harvard versus Yale.最富紧张刺激的球赛是哈佛队对耶鲁队。
不正确地,不适当地
  • Of course it was acting improperly. 这样做就是不对嘛!
  • He is trying to improperly influence a witness. 他在试图误导证人。
adj.行政的,管理的
  • The administrative burden must be lifted from local government.必须解除地方政府的行政负担。
  • He regarded all these administrative details as beneath his notice.他认为行政管理上的这些琐事都不值一顾。
学英语单词
affiliatory
alphatic mercuration
angiocardiograms
antineutropenic
Apneumony
Arapiles
argentocyanide
Aufkirch
biathlon
bigamously
blown someone off
cactoids
carandente
catalytic amount
clean-up operation
coil dissipation
colloidal mud
colter drill
computer assisted personal interviewing
Constantine-Silvanus
cottonwoods
current indicator lamp
daryaganj
DB list
delay-line helix
discrete maximum principle
dussert
electro-thermal equivalent
electronic millsecondmeter
Epilast
equivalent articulation loss
Eritrichium spathulatum
exactly right
extended port
false impression
fine-mapping
flabellinids
gamma radiometer in borehole
genetic differences
Hammond postulate
high-temperature-oxidation resistant coating
hollow stalk
HWL (hot water line)
indicator plankton
Kalkchabasit
Knoop hardness
lag wood screw
lambdoid suture
limp standard
Manganoandalusite
Meyer atomic volume curve
minimum wall thickness
mnemonic instruction code
multiplatinum
Neumann method
nicalex
occidentalol
ochterus marginatus
optimal Bayes control
oscillator stage
outgoing current
peachwort
photoelectric tristimulus colorimetry
plastic mortar
plastic-faced plywood
polyether ester thermoplastic elastomer
pootas
prices guard wire
print line length
production force
progress variable
pseudoinclusion
quality ranges
repetitive transportation
ring-shaped placenta
Roan Mountain
roll-tech
Rubik's cubist
saline contamination
Sc. D. Med.
scotist
section column
sexadecimal number
split pin for set piston rod
spring free end
staphylococcal scalded skin syndrome
Strunian Stage
subflare kernel
superantigenicity
telepherage
temperature vibration
the deceased
three-step
to go out
tombolas
travel bag
two-periods
vermiculture
wave shaping electronics
woman power
yeast autolysate