Endeavour: Difference between revisions

From The Jolly Contrarian
Jump to navigation Jump to search
← Older edit
VisualWikitext
No edit summary
No edit summary
 
(10 intermediate revisions by the same user not shown)
Line 1: Line 1:
:“Well”, a drama tutor said to me once, “I cannot argue with you about that. You ''are'' trying.”  
{{a|plainenglish|}}{{quote|
:I smiled, flushed with such an unexpected compliment.
“Now look,” said I, flapping my arms: “I ''am'' trying”. <br>
:“''Very'' fucking trying.”
“Well, yes”, she replied, “I’ll give you that. You ''are'' trying.” <br>
I smiled, flushed with the endorphins of an unexpected compliment.<br>
“''Very'' trying indeed.”<br>
“Oh, right.”}}


“[[Endeavour]]”  neatly illustrates the practical problem with [[plain English]]. It is a silly word: long; archaic; it conjures images of Captain Spaulding, in a pith helmet, slashing through jungle on the hunt for a pajama-wearing elephant. Its alternative — “[[try]]” — is better in every way that a plain speaker cares about: shorter, more idiomatic, clearer, less ''fussy''.


A {{t|verb}} that illustrates the practical problem with plain English. “[[Endeavour]]” is a silly word: long, archaic, and it conjures images of Captain Spaulding, in a pith helmet, slashing through mangroves in the Congo on the hunt for Dr. Livingstone. Its alternative — to “[[try]]” — is better in every way that a plain Englishman cares about: shorter, more idiomatic, plainer, less fussy.  
But there lies the problem: “[[try]]” slices cleanly through the semantic murk that “[[endeavour]]” so skilfully stirs up. It makes clear something the [[legal eagle]] rather hoped to obscure: namely, that to promise to ''try'' to do something is a ''feeble'' [[covenant]], hardly worth the paper it is written on.


But there lies the problem: “[[try]]” slices cleanly through the semantic murk that “[[endeavour]]” so skilfully stirs up. It makes clear something the [[Mediocre you|draftsman]] rather hoped to obscure: namely, that his client’s convenant is not worth the paper it is written on.
Consider:


Consider these alternatives:
:''“The vendor shall [[endeavour]] to notify the purchaser of its intention within a reasonable period, but shall not have any liability for failing to do so.”''
Which sounds qualified — sure — but at least carrying some meat on its bones.


:''“The vendor shall [[endeavour]] to notify the purchaser of its intention within a reasonable period, but shall not have any liability for failing to do so.”''
But the [[plain English]] alternative reveals how thin that old hogget really is:
Which sounds qualified, sure, but at least carrying some meat on its bones. But the plain English alternative reveals how thin that gruel really is:
:''“The vendor must [[try]] to tell the purchaser, but isn't responsible if it doesn’t.”''
:''“The vendor must [[try]] to tell the purchaser, but isn't responsible if it doesn’t.”''
{{sa}}


* [[Best reasonable efforts]]


{{plainenglish}}
*[[BAU]]

Latest revision as of 11:04, 17 January 2023

Towards more picturesque speech™
SEC guidance on plain EnglishIndex: Click ᐅ to expand:
Plain English
Drafting
Metaphor
Tell me more
Sign up for our newsletter — or just get in touch: for ½ a weekly 🍺 you get to consult JC. Ask about it here.

“Now look,” said I, flapping my arms: “I am trying”.
“Well, yes”, she replied, “I’ll give you that. You are trying.”
I smiled, flushed with the endorphins of an unexpected compliment.
“Very trying indeed.”
“Oh, right.”

“Endeavour” neatly illustrates the practical problem with plain English. It is a silly word: long; archaic; it conjures images of Captain Spaulding, in a pith helmet, slashing through jungle on the hunt for a pajama-wearing elephant. Its alternative — “try” — is better in every way that a plain speaker cares about: shorter, more idiomatic, clearer, less fussy.

But there lies the problem: “try” slices cleanly through the semantic murk that “endeavour” so skilfully stirs up. It makes clear something the legal eagle rather hoped to obscure: namely, that to promise to try to do something is a feeble covenant, hardly worth the paper it is written on.

Consider:

“The vendor shall endeavour to notify the purchaser of its intention within a reasonable period, but shall not have any liability for failing to do so.”

Which sounds qualified — sure — but at least carrying some meat on its bones.

But the plain English alternative reveals how thin that old hogget really is:

“The vendor must try to tell the purchaser, but isn't responsible if it doesn’t.”

See also

Retrieved from "https://jollycontrarian.com/index.php?title=Endeavour&oldid=70880"