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Paul Strasser wrote of "methinks":
> It's a semi-cute word, and even though it's middle English
> (and hence has a stuffiness quotient above 5.5) it does
> seem a bit less pushy than "I think". . . .
Hmm, cute and stuffy: if that's civility, I'll stick with pushiness. ;)
Seriously, though, as Doug pointed out, there's suddenly this weird epidemic of
"methinks." One writer started it, another writer responded in kind, a third
writer started using it for whatever reason, and the cumulative effect is
getting icky. My problem with "methinks" is that it's always seemed to me an
affectation people turn to when they're trying to sound coy, witty, urbane,
ironic. As a reader I'm always turned off by it; it sounds pompous to me.
(Wasn't gonna say anything, but since the subject has come up...) But that's
just one reader's opinion. As I've commented in recent threads, we don't all
react the same way to what we see on the list, particularly when it comes to
issues of tone.
Tech-writing tie-in: A few people lately have alluded to trying to be funny in
their documentation. Trying to sound cute can get in the way of communication by
having unpredictable effects on your audience. At the very least, it can
distract them from your actual message.
Christine
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