In a message dated 9/3/2004 4:08:37 PM Eastern Standard Time, pas@xxxxxxxx
writes:
There is no sense anymore. [parse away]
A "couple" has lost its numerical value. People use "literally" to mean
figuratively -- "Oh man, it was so funny, I literally shit my pants". It's
all mixed up.
----
Well, the case is tricky.
"I literally shit my pants."
-- or as Geary prefers,
"I _literarily_ shit my pants."
The case is parallel to Julie Krueger's problems with 'thankfully'. With
Stone's sentence, the 'literally' can apply pre-fixistically:
"Literally, I shit my pants." (+> ("so funny it was")).
One problem with 'literally' is that it comes from Latin _littera_,
'letter', and, for the life of Geary, I cannot see what shitting one's pant
(for the
fun of it or other) may have to do with the letter.
Stone suggests that the correct is:
"Figuratively, I shit my pants."
-- which _does_ make more sense, in the consideration that it's a _figure_
we are talking here ("a sad figure", perhaps).
The gist of this, though: I'm not so sure as Stone seems to be that people
use 'literally' to mean 'figuratively'. In any case, it's a case here of what
they actually _say_ rather than _mean_.
An extra problem was identified by Grice. ('Further notes in logic and
conversation'). With certain adverbs, notably 'ironically' and 'metaphorically'
(cf. 'figuratively'), the effect is self-defeating:
"You're such a fine friend."
can be uttered _ironically_ to mean
"You're a scoundrel."
However, the explicitation of the 'ellipsistical' is self-defeating -- or
odd at best:
"Ironically, you're such a fine friend".
Ditto for 'metaphorically'.
"The moon is made of cheese."
is apt and literary;
"Metaphorically, the moon is made of cheese"
is clumsy. Part of the charm of metaphor and figurative speech is that you
don't _disclose_ what figure you are employing. Those who use "literally" are
actually trying to balance this, in an attempt to restore _literalness_ to the
_same_ level of 'figurative' speech (and this is in accordance with the
ancient rhetoricians, for who the 'literal' was just one more figure of speech
among others.
Cheeres,
JL
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