Fear and Loathing of the English Passive (2010)

2 comments

• zimpenfish 13 minutes ago
  Language Log[0] (where Mr Pullum often writes[2]) has a whole bunch of "prescriptive passive is nonsense" posts[1].

  [0] https://languagelog.ldc.upenn.edu/nll/

  [1] https://languagelog.ldc.upenn.edu/nll/index.php?s=passive+vo... (this does include praise for correct use of passive voice, etc., but there's a good amount of criticism.)

  [2] https://languagelog.ldc.upenn.edu/nll/?author=3 (except this search appears broken, at least on Safari)
• nephihaha 1 hour ago
  Orwell is partly to blame because he wrote against it. I suspect it is partly because passives are more cumbersome in English.

  Many English writing guides seem to display a fear of adverbs as well.