Editing 1576: I Could Care Less
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==Explanation== | ==Explanation== | ||
− | This comic references the dichotomy between the literal meaning of the phrase "I could care less" and its idiomatic meaning in American English as an expression of indifference | + | This comic references the dichotomy between the literal meaning of the phrase "I could care less" and its idiomatic meaning in American English as an expression of indifference. Many people argue that this use is incorrect and the phrase should be "I couldn't care less.", which is the standard form in British English, and is the attitude expressed, for example, by the Weird Al Yankovic song "Word Crimes": <blockquote>Like I could care less <br /> |
That means you do care<br /> | That means you do care<br /> | ||
At least a little</blockquote> | At least a little</blockquote> | ||
− | However, linguists point out that the strict application of logic to an idiom is inappropriate: many expressions seem on the surface to mean the opposite of | + | However, linguists point out that the strict application of logic to an idiom is inappropriate: many expressions seem on the surface to mean the opposite of what they actually mean (e.g. "head over heels"), and they defend "I could care less" on those grounds. Steven Pinker argues in ''The Language Instinct'' that the phrase is sarcastic. |
In this comic, Megan feels alone because there is unavoidable difference between her understanding of her own words and the listener's interpretation, so while she sees discussion of semantics as being of potentially high social and emotional value, she doesn't think it has objective value. However, ironically, at the end of the comic, the meaning of "I could care less" with regards to Ponytail's behavior is ambiguous: either Megan is brushing off Ponytail's pedantry because she doesn't care about it (she couldn't care less) or she is hurt by Ponytail's focus on the details of her words rather than the emotional cues she should have learned over the course of their relationship (she actually could care less). | In this comic, Megan feels alone because there is unavoidable difference between her understanding of her own words and the listener's interpretation, so while she sees discussion of semantics as being of potentially high social and emotional value, she doesn't think it has objective value. However, ironically, at the end of the comic, the meaning of "I could care less" with regards to Ponytail's behavior is ambiguous: either Megan is brushing off Ponytail's pedantry because she doesn't care about it (she couldn't care less) or she is hurt by Ponytail's focus on the details of her words rather than the emotional cues she should have learned over the course of their relationship (she actually could care less). | ||
− | The title text refers to another | + | The title text refers to another phrase often used in ways some consider incorrect: "literally" [[725: Literally]]. The sentence is also ambiguous, as it may mean that literally or figuratively, the speaker could or couldn't care less. |
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==Transcript== | ==Transcript== | ||
− | : | + | :Megan: Anyway, I could care less. |
− | : | + | :Ponytail: I think you mean you couldn't care less. Saying you could care less implies you care at least some amount. |
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:Megan: I dunno. | :Megan: I dunno. | ||
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:Megan: We're these unbelievably complicated brains drifting through a void, trying in vain to connect with one another by blindly flinging words out into the darkness. | :Megan: We're these unbelievably complicated brains drifting through a void, trying in vain to connect with one another by blindly flinging words out into the darkness. | ||
− | + | :Megan: Every choice of phrasing and spelling and tone and timing carries countless signals and contexts and subtexts and more, and every listener interprets those signals in their own way. Language isn't a formal system. Language is glorious chaos. | |
− | :Megan: Every choice of phrasing and spelling and tone and timing carries countless signals and contexts and subtexts and more, | ||
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− | + | :Megan: You can never know for sure what any words will mean to anyone. All you can do is try to get better at guessing how your words affect people, so you can have a chance of finding the ones that will make them feel something like what you want them to feel. Everything else is pointless. | |
− | :Megan: You can never know for sure what any words will mean to anyone. | ||
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− | + | :Megan: I assume you're giving me tips on how you interpret words because you want me to feel less alone. If so, then thank you. That means a lot. | |
− | :Megan: I assume you're giving me tips on how you interpret words because you want me to feel less alone. | ||
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− | + | :Megan: But if you're just running my sentences past some mental checklist so you can show off how well you know it, then I could care less. | |
− | :Megan: But if you're just running my sentences past some mental checklist so you can show off how well you know it, | ||
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{{comic discussion}} | {{comic discussion}} | ||
− | [[Category: | + | [[Category:Language]] |
[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]] | [[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]] | ||
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]] | [[Category:Comics featuring Megan]] | ||
− | [[Category: | + | [[Category:Comics with inverted brightness]] |
[[Category:Logic]] | [[Category:Logic]] | ||
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