To Go Boldly Where No ….Ugh! It’s just not the same.
If I’m not careful, I’ll split every infinitive in this and all galaxies. I’m told this is because I grew up in the mid-west and, by golly, that’s the speech pattern used there. Dunno if that’s valid, but I like the idea.
I never thought much about infinitives, split or otherwise, until one of the many grammar rules I learned said this habit/technique was, “strictly verboten” (to quote Sergeant Schultz) and considered gauche…at best…in the intelligentsia of writing circles. Sigh. Come on, man. I mean, it worked for Gene Rodenberry for crying out loud…Yes, I’m no Gene Roddenberry.
Well, being quite comfortable and practiced with gauche, (I almost invented it.) I was tempted to ignore the rule. But, since I’m from the wrong side of the writing tracks and, like a red-headed stepchild, looking to improve my image, I religiously scoured each sentence of what I loosely call prose for offending splits.
Until one day I found this, from Grammar Girl…
So although you’ve probably heard that it’s bad to split infinities, it just isn’t true. You could even call it a grammar myth.
Say, what? She goes on to give a bit of interesting history…
The logic behind the 19th-century rule about not splitting infinitives rests on comparing English to Latin, because in Latin there is no two-word form of the infinitive. They don’t have to deal with full verbs versus bare verbs. Therefore, it’s impossible to split infinitives in Latin. For some reason, many grammarians in the 19th century got the notion that because it is impossible to split infinitives in Latin, it shouldn’t be done in English either.
Then, miracle of miracles, she says…
But notions change over time, and today almost everyone agrees that it is OK to split infinitives, especially when you would have to change the meaning of the sentence or go through writing gymnastics to avoid the split. English isn’t Latin after all.
Praise be!! I’m not among the unwashed grammar heathens—at least so far as this sin is concerned. She gives an example of how “unsplitting” can actually alter the meaning of the text…
EXAMPLE: Steve decided to quickly remove Amy’s cats.
In this case, the word quickly splits the infinitive to remove: to quickly remove.
If you try to just unsplit the verb, you actually change the meaning. For example,you might try to say:
EXAMPLE: Steve decided quickly to remove Amy’s cats.
Now, instead of saying that Steve removed Amy’s cats quickly (zip zip) while she stepped out for a minute, you’re saying that he made the decision to remove the cats quickly.
You could rewrite the sentence without the split infinitive to make the same point. For example:
EXAMPLE: Steve decided to grab Amy’s cats and set them free before she got back from the corner market.
But that isn’t really necessary.
The bottom line is that you can usually avoid splitting infinitives if you want to, but there’s no reason to go out of your way to avoid it, and certainly don’t let anyone tell you that it’s forbidden.
So, there you have it. To split, or to not split, that is the question. Hey, I did it again!
Thanks for visiting. See you again on Friday.
Themocracy
One less grammar headache to worry about – you just made my day!
I’m thrilled. Seriously! Here in Indiana, split infinitives are everywhere. I’m glad you found the rule. It’s a chore to clean those up!
Very helpful post. I’ll have to bookmark that. Thanks.
I tend to ignore split infinitives too. Sometimes I’ll get a few back from the editor, but not too many. I’m thinking they don’t really care as long as it sounds good.
Elizabeth
Mystery Writing is Murder
I’ve needlessly worried! Okay, I haven’t, but I tried to answer with a split infinitive and that is the best I could come up with, though arguably, moving needlessly to the end doesn’t change the meaning… unlike Steve’s quick decision making (those mind-reading cats will evade you if you don’t think and act quickly). Seriously though, I learned something, so thanks!
Grammar Girl is great!
Ditto Patricia.
“Me, I never have ever boldy or meekly split any infinitives wherever I might to have tried to go,” said the The Old Silly with his tongue firmly in his cheek.
Yoicks! I don’t know whether to be glad I don’t have to worry about it or sad because I wasn’t in the first place and how many other grammar rules are out there that I’m blithely ignoring. Argghh!
I love Grammar Girl, too. Infinitives can be a pain.
Grammar and my draft = oh no…
Really Angelic