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Related to that, here's an observation about English vs. German writing: English has a huge vocabulary, so educated authors show their mettle by using "big wor
by veddox 9y ago
Related to that, here's an observation about English vs. German writing:
English has a huge vocabulary, so educated authors show their mettle by using "big words": the one word from amongst all the approximately 600,000 English words that precisely fits the meaning they seek. (If it has Latin or French roots, so much the better...)
The German vocabulary is estimated at about half of its English counterpart. However, the grammar is quite a bit more complex. So if a German author wants to show off his learning, he does so by utilising the whole spectrum of grammatical constructs to find just the right inflection for what he wants to say. He proves his mastery not primarily by the wealth of his vocabulary, but by his command of the syntax.
(OK, that last sentence was probably superfluous. But it was too fun to exclude ;-) )
- mrkgnao 9y agoA (not necessarily original) example would be nice.
- veddox 9y agoHere's a passage from Dawkins' "The Greatest Show on Earth": "As we look back on the history of life, we see a picture of never-ending, ever-rejuvenating novelty. Individuals die; species, families orders and even classes go extinct. But the evolutionary process itself seems to pick itself up and resume its recurrent flowering, with undiminished freshness, with unabated youthfulness, as epoch gives way to epoch." And a passage from Brecht's "Leben des Galilei": "Eine Menschheit, stolpernd in diesem tausendjährigen Perlmutterdunst von Aberglaube und alten Wörtern, zu unwissend, ihre eigenen Kräfte voll zu entfalten, wird nicht fähig sein, die Kräfte der Natur zu entfalten, die Ihr enthüllt. Woführ arbeitet Ihr? Ich halte dafür, dass das einzige Ziel der Wissenschaft darin besteht, die Mühseligkeit der menschlichen Existenz zu erleichtern." I realize that those excerpts are from two different genres, but perhaps they will serve as example. Of course, English writers do not rely exclusively on vocabulary to create good style, just as Germans do not shun all big words. But in general, writers will try to capitalize on the strengths of their respective languages.