Jose Carillo's English Forum
English Grammar and Usage Problems => Use and Misuse => Topic started by: tonybau on November 23, 2009, 04:05:50 PM
-
Emblazoned on the rears of Victory Liner buses:
"We move people better...safer."
It probably was decided on because of the two words "better...safer." rhyming (my presumption). I feel "more safely" should have been used.
toonybau
-
It stirred my mind to think.But I think the sentence is grammatically correct,considering what it wants to implies as a bus company."Better and safer" really rhymes and adheres to the fact of reaching the number of Filipinos who would understand simple and plain English.Can you suggest one more word that would rhyme with "safely"?
By the way, I don't represent Victory liner. :-\
-
Dear vinzvonvan,
I would have said, "We move people better!", emphasizing and implying the company's greater efficiency than other carriers. :) To me, the addition of "...safer" destroys the impact and makes the motto open to attack by English critics.
My personal opinion.
tonybau
-
I think vizvonvan is right in saying that the slogan ""We move people better...safer" is grammatically and semantically defensible. And tonybau also has a point in saying that "We move people more safely" is better. However, I would say that neither of the two is an appropriate slogan for a bus company. The verb "move" doesn't convey the idea of the actual speed levels by which modern-day buses transport people; in fact, the image it creates in my mind is that of a moving company that uses (at least in the Philippine setting) old, reconditioned open-body "lipat-bahay" trucks.
Apart from the mismatch in their speed imagery, both "We move people better...safer" and "We move people more safely" are very vague statements. You move people better than what? In what way do you move people better or safely--at a slow, moderate, or fast speed? Do you pamper them while moving them? The slogan doesn't give a glimmer at all of the quality of movement or, to be more precise about it, of the quality of transporting.
So what would be a better slogan? I frankly have no idea at this point, but coming up with a good one is a job that normally would take a competent advertising agency perhaps a day or two of high-quality brainstorming. All I know is that "We move people better...safer" and "We move people more safely" are both weak, imprecise, and unimpressive slogans for such a major bus company. It definitely deserves a much better slogan for its money.
Any idea from the wordsmiths among the Forum members?
-
Oooopps!I committed a mistake...forgot to preview.Regarding the second sentence of my comment to tonybau's post: it should be:"what it wants to imply" (not implies).Apologies :'(
-
Advertising has its own set of rules and psychology principles. "We move people better" could be a complete and precise message already. But the addition of "...safer" has a particular impact which could be addressing the major motorist concerns these days. Our people want to see more specific promises, and I for one would be easily persuaded to ride at Victory Liner (as it wakes me up a few minutes before my waiting shed approaches, screens passangers a bit...) if the word "safer is emblazoned on its sides. The ellipsis symbol (...) could explain the omission (of other details which may pertain to the various services it offers) making it that short and easy to register. IMHO-madgirl
-
Whoever comes up with the better slogan should get an honorarium of huge proportions from Victory. If the company decides to change its slogan to anything that was mentioned in the forum, you'll know why. :-)
As far as advertising, there doesn't have to be rhyme or reason. Just watch tv ads and look at those scattered along the roads or browse the papers (which I don't do anymore). What is catchy and grabs the people's attention and sticks in their minds is all that matters.
For Victory, "Better. Safer." Of course, backed up by the kind of better quality service one would naturally expect plus the assurance of safer passage en route to one's destination.
I don't ride their buses, BTW.
-
so what slogans should airplanes use, just curious? you fly? JAL is having trouble surviving, but DELTA is quick to buy it out. how can they lure passengers back? with the christmas season approaching and recent accidents in air navigation, what slogans do you think would click?
--- happy landing!
--- free cellphones in case of emergencies!
--- $30 to go home this christmas!
--- no noisy children aboard!
--- big Y seats at cockpits!
;D ;D ;D...just having fun here. no pun intended.
-
No offense to the present-day Japanese, but this talk about slogans and advertising nudged my memory of the title of a tongue-in-cheek but instructive book on advertising that I read many, many years ago. The title of that book was From Those Wonderful Guys Who Gave You Pearl Harbor, and if I remember right, it was supposed to be a generic advertising slogan for Japanese exports to the North American market. How times and mores change! ::)
-
Question: Is there something wrong with the title of my piece,
"My Close Encounter With Chelsea Clinton and Harrison Ford, Albeit Briefly" ??
Was I right to convert the adjective "brief" to the adverb "briefly"?
Of course, if I were to say, "I met them briefly." we know it's correct.
However, because I added the conjunction "albeit", would it have made
the title of the piece, gravely incorrect? Over to you, Joe. ;D.....
I just opened the Oxford Dictionary and "brief", if used as an adjective,
can't be converted into "briefly" after all! Over the years, I've heard
BBC journalists say "briefly please, we haven't got time..." I never thought
it to be embarrassingly wrong! Again, over to you Joe, and keep it "brief"--
Hahaha! ;D ;D ;D
-
Hello Hill,
I know, Sir Joe won't delete that "news" of yours. Let it stay. Our forum needs something like that to break the monotony ;D . I read it to hubby and ....(gosh ::). The dialogue changed. He said, "Come on...you have 300!". :'( It's winter, eh :-*
Your title "My Close Encounter....." is a noun phrase, so the modifer must be an adjective. So, it should be "My Close......, Albeit Brief (and Candid)" ?
I think when BBC journalists say " Briefly please, we haven't got time", they mean "Say it briefly (tell us briefly), please, as we haven't got time". So, "briefly" serves as an adverb modifying "say".
Prof. Joe? ::)
-
Question: Is there something wrong with the title of my piece,
"My Close Encounter With Chelsea Clinton and Harrison Ford, Albeit Briefly" ??
Was I right to convert the adjective "brief" to the adverb "briefly"?
Of course, if I were to say, "I met them briefly." we know it's correct.
However, because I added the conjunction "albeit", would it have made
the title of the piece, gravely incorrect? Over to you, Joe. ;D.....
I just opened the Oxford Dictionary and "brief", if used as an adjective,
can't be converted into "briefly" after all! Over the years, I've heard
BBC journalists say "briefly please, we haven't got time..." I never thought
it to be embarrassingly wrong! Again, over to you Joe, and keep it "brief"--
Hahaha! ;D ;D ;D
Yes, Hill, I think your use of "briefly" in the title "My Close Encounter With Chelsea Clinton and Harrison Ford, Albeit Briefly" is grammatically erroneous, but it's not because "brief" can't be converted into "briefly." It's because "briefly" is an adverb that by definition should modify a verb or an adjective, but there's none of either that it can modify in "My Close Encounter With Chelsea Clinton and Harrison Ford, Albeit Briefly." (The adjective "close" modifies "encounter" and has no grammatical link with the adverb "briefly." That title is a noun phrase that can only be modified by an adjective, as follows: "My Close Encounter With Chelsea Clinton and Harrison Ford, Albeit Brief." The operative noun that the adjective "brief" modifies is, of course, "encounter."
In contrast, there's nothing wrong with BBC journalists saying "Briefly please, we haven't got time..." That statement is actually an ellipted (shortened and streamlined) version of the sentence "Please say it briefly; we haven't got time..." The verb "say" is therefore hiding in "Briefly please, we haven't got time...", and it is that verb that's being modified by the adverb "briefly."
-
Thank you, Joe. I knew it was a grave, embarrassing error a day after I posted this
particular piece. In fact, on FB, "What's on your mind", I put the question to FB users
themselves, and no one bothered to say, "hoohohooo, wrong, Hill, ...it should be..."
Joe, I am never afraid to admit mistakes, even from a very young age, because that
was how I was brought up by my parents. My father would also say, "If you really think
you're right, argue that you're right...but if you know you're wrong, admit it and say,
"Oops, sorry...I stand corrected."
One should never be afraid to apologise, admit their slip ups, and so forth...I don't have
any hang-ups whatsoever. We learn everyday and my mother and her sisters, my sisters
and cousins and aunts, having been all educators at one time or another shared the
same...Thank you, Joe for correcting me in the technical sense. Much appreciated indeed.
Yes, I did rectify the title of the piece on Saturday and what a relief!!! ;D ;D ;D :-* (but I'm guilty, too of not bothering to check my articles before posting them. Somehow, spontaneious delivery has always been my norm...wrong, wrong, wrong. If I'm not sure,next time I'd consult you, behind the scenes, before posting my pieces.!!
-
spontaneous....hahhaah (grrrr, I hate typo errors)
-
I have no problem at all with occasional grammar or usage mistakes, Hill; they are part and parcel of our being human, and, of course, life is a continuing learning experience. What gets me is when people hold on to their wrong grammar and usage for dear life even if the evidence to the contrary has become overwhelming! This applies particularly to academics and self-styled experts who have built their reputations on their supposed infallibility and ex cathedra pronouncements.
-
Not a few times I 've seen some forum members misplacing quotation marks. For example, even the more seasoned members place the ending quotation mark before (instead of after) the period. Of course, there are exceptions (such as placing the ending mark before a semi-colon, etc.)
I'm sure most, like me, would appreciate your "reviewing" us on this topic.
Thanks.
-
It’s not really surprising why some members of the Forum differ in their use of punctuation. The reason is that most use the American standard for punctuation (especially Filipinos), some use the British standard (particularly the Britons and Australians), and the rest merrily—or should we say unknowingly—mix up both standards. There’s now a tendency towards a uniform punctuation style following the American standard, but in the meantime we have to contend with the deviations.
The style variations begin with the comma. American English requires a comma after each item in an enumerative sequence and before the “and” preceding the last item: “The senators, congressmen, governors, city mayors, barangay captains, and all citizens are duty-bound to respect the Constitution.” British English doesn’t put a comma before the “and”: “The senators, congressmen, governors, city mayors, barangay captains and all citizens are duty-bound to respect the Constitution.” However, although Philippine journalism uses American English, it has adopted the British English no-comma rule before the “and”—to the confusion of Filipino English-language learners. (My advice: let the newspapers do away with that comma as they please, but use it in your own writing as American English formally requires.)
How quotation marks are used also vary. As we know, American English uses double quotation marks (“…”) for quoted material, and single quotation marks (‘…’) for quotes within quotes:
“And God said, ‘Let there be light, and there was light’.”
Traditional British English does the exact opposite, using single quotation marks (‘…’) for quoted material, and double quotation marks for quotes within quotes:
‘And God said, “Let there be light, and there was light”’.
And take note of one more thing: American English puts the period before the closing quotation mark; British English puts it outside the closing quotation mark.
In recent years, however, there has been a notable shift to the American punctuation standard among the British print media, particularly the broadsheets. Some of them now routinely use double quotation marks (“…”) for quoted material, and single quotation marks (‘…’) for quotes within quotes:
Here, for instance, is The Independent-UK’s reporting on US President Obama’s laying down the Afghanistan exit timetable:
Obama is not expected to set a deadline for an American withdrawal, but Gibbs stressed, “This is not an open-ended commitment.”
“I think there has to be a renewed emphasis on the training of Afghan national security forces,” Gibbs said, explaining that the president's plan looked toward the day when the Afghan army and police would be “primarily responsible” for security.
Even the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) now uses the American punctuation standard for quoted statements:
But Lady Ashton, the former EU trade commissioner, said European leaders were “very comfortable” with her appointment.
“Over the next few months and years I aim to show I am the best person for this job,” she said. “I think for quite a few people, they would say I am the best for the job and I was chosen because I am.”
However, the BBC maintains the British style of putting the comma outside the closing quotation marks of an orphan quote, and does the same for the period at the end of a quoted statement that ends a quote. Look at the passage below from one of its online reports:
One estimate suggests 333 million people in India “use English”, but India's National Knowledge Commission says “even now, no more than 1% of our people use English as a second language, let alone a first language”.
Newspapers using the American punctuation standard 100 percent would, of course, render that statement as follows:
One estimate suggests 333 million people in India “use English,” but India's National Knowledge Commission says “even now, no more than 1% of our people use English as a second language, let alone a first language.”
Whatever punctuation standard we use in the Forum, there shouldn’t be any problem for as long as we are consistent in using that standard. However, since the Philippines uses American English, it would be highly advisable for Filipinos to use the American punctuation standard consistently.
-
Hi, Madgirl!
I just saw your reply this evening. Thanks, dear. Sorry, it was an oversight.
You know what, why don't you be a contributor to this new blog site of mine it's free and
in your own time--you can write anything under the sun! ;D Glad your husband had a
laugh with the article. I enjoy laughing myself! Just tell me if you're interested---everyone
is welcome to contribute, too! Cheerio! :) ;D Haaay, Joe, you're such a wonderful cyberfriend.
-
And take note of one more thing: American English puts the period before the closing quotation mark; British English puts it outside the closing quotation mark.
Fifty years ago, it was the other way around!
-
I didn't know about that timeline. How times and English usage have changed!