4 ms·
I'm aware of it being tied to an implication, but I don't agree with you that "why are you so angry?" is in the same category as the example you gave ("have you
by vukmir 13y ago
I'm aware of it being tied to an implication, but I don't agree with you that "why are you so angry?" is in the same category as the example you gave ("have you stopped beating your wife").
In my view, if I ask you "why are you so angry?" I perceive you as being angry.
- dragonwriter 13y ago> In my view, if I ask you "why are you so angry?" I perceive you as being angry. If you want to ask a question about the reason for the facts on which you make that inference without telling someone how they feel, you ask the question about the reason for the facts, rather than asking them to explain a mental state that you have inferred about them.
- vukmir 13y agoAgain, I'm not a native speaker of English, but the obvious way to ask you for the reasons that make you angry is to ask you: "Why are you so angry?" I'm still learning English and would appreciate if you would be kind and teach me an alternative way to ask that question.
- dragonwriter 13y agoThe problem is not with the way of asking the question. The problem is with the assumption about the other person's feelings underlying the premise of the question.