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> the Drake Passage was the least impractical route for large European ships to travel around South America to access its west coast. "least impractical"? Uni

> the Drake Passage was the least impractical route for large European ships to travel around South America to access its west coast. "least impractical"? Unintentional double negative, I think? Currently it conveys the meaning of being "most practical" whereas it was the opposite.

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mattclarkdotnet 1y ago
Yeah, the thrust of the story is that it was the worst of all options
- eru 1y ago
  No. It was a best out of a bunch of bad options.
- whycome 1y ago
  It was the best (of the worst)
louthy 1y ago
I had to read that twice, but it’s correct I think. It’s an impractical route, but all the routes are… the Drake Passage was the least impractical of all of the routes.
- sanderjd 1y ago
  Although I did wonder later on why they couldn't have gone through the Straits of Magellan on the journey west. Presumably it was even more difficult for large ships to navigate that narrow and presumably shallow passage.
  - louthy 1y ago
    It was impractical ;)
    - sanderjd 1y ago
      Or at least, more impractical :)
      - louthy 1y ago
        At most. * brain explodes *
  - Kon-Peki 1y ago
    At that time, the Straits of Magellan were “controlled” by Spain and it would have been extremely difficult to sail through undetected. Plus, it’s like sailing through a maze where if you touch the wall you die. You really should have someone that’s been through it many times before. Even in modern times, they require local pilots to guide ships.
andyjohnson0 1y ago
I read "least impractical" as meaning "least worst" -- the best bad option.
throwanem 1y ago
It's correct and as intended. "Least impractical" denotes "most practical" but the double negative, which you accurately note is unusual but which is grammatical in this usage, calls attention to the specific connotation that all options are bad and this, though also bad, is nonetheless the most potentially serviceable of the lot.
- 542354234235 1y ago
  We all know that language contains a lot of subtleties, but it is always interesting when someone breaks down exactly how those are used in some interesting prose. And the prose itself is good too.
  - throwanem 1y ago
    I've been an eager student of grammatical nuance in English since my introduction to the written language at age two. I'm always happy to take apart an example of same and show its workings!
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mattclarkdotnet 1y ago

Yeah, the thrust of the story is that it was the worst of all options

eru 1y ago
No. It was a best out of a bunch of bad options.
whycome 1y ago
It was the best (of the worst)

louthy 1y ago

I had to read that twice, but it’s correct I think. It’s an impractical route, but all the routes are… the Drake Passage was the least impractical of all of the routes.

sanderjd 1y ago
Although I did wonder later on why they couldn't have gone through the Straits of Magellan on the journey west. Presumably it was even more difficult for large ships to navigate that narrow and presumably shallow passage.
- louthy 1y ago
  It was impractical ;)
  - sanderjd 1y ago
    Or at least, more impractical :)
    - louthy 1y ago
      At most. * brain explodes *
- Kon-Peki 1y ago
  At that time, the Straits of Magellan were “controlled” by Spain and it would have been extremely difficult to sail through undetected. Plus, it’s like sailing through a maze where if you touch the wall you die. You really should have someone that’s been through it many times before. Even in modern times, they require local pilots to guide ships.

andyjohnson0 1y ago

I read "least impractical" as meaning "least worst" -- the best bad option.

throwanem 1y ago

It's correct and as intended. "Least impractical" denotes "most practical" but the double negative, which you accurately note is unusual but which is grammatical in this usage, calls attention to the specific connotation that all options are bad and this, though also bad, is nonetheless the most potentially serviceable of the lot.

542354234235 1y ago
We all know that language contains a lot of subtleties, but it is always interesting when someone breaks down exactly how those are used in some interesting prose. And the prose itself is good too.
- throwanem 1y ago
  I've been an eager student of grammatical nuance in English since my introduction to the written language at age two. I'm always happy to take apart an example of same and show its workings!
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