Grammar Rules, Rules of Thumb, and the Internet Corpus
Kevin Miller - Yoshinogawa Review, Vol. 27, 2004
Where would language education be without grammar rules? For many people, learning a language means learning and applying the appropriate grammar rules. This is often true for native speakers learning their mother tongue at school as well as for non-native speakers learning a second language. However, as most language students quickly come to realize, grammar rules are frequently complex, abstract, and filled with exceptions, resulting in frustration for learners. Still, the notion that language can be created by applying the appropriate rules persists, and for non-native speakers—until widespread use of language translating technology becomes a reality—grammar rules will be used to prescribe how to construct meaningful utterances.
It seems that rules, whether applied to sports, traffic, or language, require referees or police—people whose purpose is to see that the rules are correctly applied. In language learning, this role typically falls to the teacher, and so we have the image of a language teacher as one who patrols the classroom, whacking students on the knuckles with a ruler whenever they split an infinitive or violate some other grammar rule. While that image may be a bit outdated, and while communicative language teaching methodology has reduced the amount of time devoted to the explicit teaching of grammar, there are times when referencing grammar rules is appropriate and helpful. Likewise, there are times when a reliance on grammar rules is insufficient for the problem at hand.
A case of the latter was apparent to me as I was proofreading a preliminary version of the English Department entrance test [at Shikoku University], where the following item (which has since been deleted from the test) appeared:
The Nile is ( ) than the Mississippi.
a. much longer b. more long c. very long d. more longer
The item appeared in a section of ten multiple-choice questions that dealt with a range of skills, including knowledge of grammar, knowledge of vocabulary, and knowledge of idioms. This item was one of four that dealt with knowledge of grammar. In choosing the item, the test writer likely had one of two things in mind:
(1) Can the student construct a natural-sounding sentence with the choices provided?
(2) Does the student know the grammar rules for making comparisons?
If the student gets the question correct, and most of the other questions on the test as well, he or she will be admitted to the university. If the question is answered wrong, along with too many others, then the student will be deemed unfit to enter the university.
For native English speakers, choosing an answer because it “sounds natural” is fairly easy, but beginning non-native learners of English lack the vast input necessary to judge what sounds natural. For them, a reliance on English grammar provides a way to get the above question right. All they have do is to apply the following grammar rule: “The comparative of one-syllable adjectives is made by adding –er.” The test writers know that students who have graduated from high school in Japan have likely encountered this rule at some point in their English learning careers. If so, and if they apply the rule correctly, they would naturally choose answer (a), much longer.
But suppose the student has an incomplete understanding of the grammar rule for comparatives. Perhaps he or she remembers that sometimes you use more and sometimes you add –er, but never both. The student can then eliminate answers (c) and (d), leaving the choices (a) much longer, and (b) more long. But which to choose? If the student chooses (b) more long, is it absolutely, categorically wrong? Should this choice potentially count against the student for entry into the university? Before addressing these questions, let’s examine the grammar rule for comparatives of one-syllable words as it appears in reference materials. As English grammar rules go, it’s fairly concise and understandable, and most grammar resources basically agree on it.
A Practical English Grammar, Fourth Edition, (Oxford) states (p. 36, 37):
One-syllable adjectives form their comparative and superlative by adding er and est to the positive form:
bright brighter brightest
Adjectives ending in e add r and st:
brave braver bravest
Irregular comparisons:
bad worse worst
far farther farthest (of distance only)
further furthest (used more widely)
good better best
old elder eldest (of people only)
older oldest (of people and things)
Impact Grammar, (Longman) states (p. 131):
The comparative form of one-syllable adjectives … is formed by adding –er.
small, smaller; high, higher
For adjectives ending with e drop the e before adding –er….
brave, braver
Interestingly, The Grammar Book, (Heinle & Heinle) which some consider the bible on grammar and usage for ESL teachers, seems to equivocate a bit (p. 494):
1. Use of more vs. –er
The decision of when to use more vs. –er with comparative adjectives and adverbs is a complicated process, since no one has carried out a study to fully determine current usage. In the absence of a more definitive, empirically based statement, we feel that some version of Frank’s three-part formulation (1972:118-119) [referring to Frank, M. (1972). Modern English: A Practical Reference Guide, Prentice-Hall] is the best set of rules available:
Part 1: Use –er with one-syllable adjectives and adverbs and with those two-syllable adjectives ending in –y or –ple, -ble and occasionally –tle, –idle.
taller happier simpler
faster noisier humbler
harder dirtier subtler
idler
Part 2: Use either –er or more with two-syllable adjectives that take the following weakly stressed endings:
-ly : friendlier, more friendly
-ow : mellower, more mellow
-er : cleverer, more clever
-some : handsomer, more handsome
Note that there are also some two-syllable adjectives without any of the above
suffixes which can take either –er or more, e.g., stupid, quiet.
Part 3: Use more with other adjectives and adverbs of two or more syllables:
distant, exact, useful, wretched, etc. arrogant, intelligent, beautiful, etc.
Notice that no mention is made in any of the above sources, nor in many others, of using more with one-syllable adjectives. One would think, then, that the question is settled, and the use of more with one-syllable adjectives, with a limited number of exceptions, is simply wrong. A student who chooses answer (b) more long, should rightly face the possibility of elimination on the university entrance test.
The again, maybe not. Perhaps it’s the rule that is the problem, and not the student. Maybe the grammar rule is really only a rule of thumb, or a suggestion on how to form the comparative with one-syllable adjectives, in which case violations cannot be considered wrong, though they may sometimes be ill-advised. Consider the following:
1) There are common one-syllable adjectives (not including irregular ones, like bad), that only take more, not –er.
ex.: real X This portrait looks realer than that one. vs
O This portrait looks more real than that one.
apt X He would be apter to go if you paid him. vs
O He would be more apt to go if you paid him.
fun X This game is funner than that one. vs
O This game is more fun than that one.
wrong X It would be wrong to punish him, but wronger to do nothing vs
O It would be wrong to punish him, but more wrong to do nothing
left X The candidate was lefter of center than I would have liked vs
O The candidate was more left of center than I would have liked
right X You may both be right, but she is righter. vs
O You may both be right, but she is more right.
2) There are many one-syllable adjectives that sound better with more, or at a minimum, sound acceptable with either.
ex.: fair O? It would be fairer if you divided them equally. vs
O It would be more fair if you divided them equally.
free O? Democratic governments are freer than totalitarian ones. vs
O Democratic governments are more free than totalitarian ones.
still O? The forest was stiller than I remembered it. vs
O The forest was more still than I remembered it.
3) While it’s common to think of a comparative as “X is longer than (noun),” i.e.,
The table was longer than two meters.
This rope is longer than that one.
there is another use of the comparative where “X is longer than it is (adjective),” as in:
The table is longer than it is wide.
We can shorten this to read …
The table is more long than wide.
In this construction, we typically do not use longer than, because it sounds strange or ambiguous without the “it is.”
O? The table is longer than wide.
More examples:
“On his way out, another tent caught his eye. This one was more long than tall.”
http://www.writersbbs.com/html/FishEggs/1.98/2.html
In the end, the journey turned out to be more long than challenging.
http://www.spadafori.com/cols_00/qsr001029.pdf
“More strange than true.” – Shakespeare, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Act. V, Scene 1
http://www.bartleby.com/70/1851.html
More brave than sensible, my brother placed himself in front of the car to block their escape. ... See Bob Herbert, “Criminal Justice Breakdown,” The
N.Y. Times
instapundit.com/lawrev/conradrv.htm
4) There is a huge corpus of examples using more plus one-syllable words by respected writers, journalists, and literary figures. The following were found on the Internet.
Nowhere in recent times has this proved more true than in the periodic commemoration of …
http://www.jameswebb.com/articles/wallstjrnl/main.htm [Wall Street Journal]
Because of their courage, the free world is now more vast than anyone ever dared imagine.
http://bushlibrary.tamu.edu/papers/1990/90051901.html
Juliet: But trust me, gentleman, I'll prove more true
Than those that have more cunning to be strange.
I should have been more strange, I must confess
– Shakespeare, Romeo & Juliet, Act II, Scene 2
http://www.bartleby.com/70/3822.html
This was never more clear than on Wednesday night, when Davis’ name wasn't mentioned until 46 minutes into the five-candidate debate. – CNN
http://www.cnn.com/2003/ALLPOLITICS/09/26/mgrind.day.debates/
That little man stood for all the drugged millions to whom the world of the gangster and the prize-ring is more ‘real’, more ‘tough’, than such things as wars, revolutions, earthquakes, famines and pestilences. – George Orwell
etext.library.adelaide.edu.au/o/o79e/part23.html
He remembered how some of the men had run from the battle. As he recalled their terror-struck faces he felt a scorn for them. They had surely been
more fleetand more wild than was absolutely necessary. – The Red Badge of Courage, Stephen Crane
http://www.pagebypagebooks.com/Stephen_Crane/The_Red_Badge_of_Courage/CHAPTER_XV_p2.html
“It's all blatantly illegal, there's nothing more clear than what the U.N. Charter says about this (use of violence).” – Noam Chomsky
http://www.zpub.com/un/islam.html
…as Mandelstam emphasized, poetry is much more raw than prose.
http://hgpoetics.blogspot.com/2003_07_20_hgpoetics_archive.html
Obviously, the examples above, many of which were found on the Internet corpus, are at odds with the previously cited grammar rule on comparisons with one-syllable adjectives, resulting in, at a minimum, the following observations:
1) The grammar rule re. comparatives with one-syllable adjectives is out of step with actual usage. Native speakers routinely use more to form a comparative with one-syllable words, both in speaking and writing. One must ask oneself, “Is it really fair to penalize a student for making an “error” on a rule that is so frequently broken by educated, highly literate native speakers?”
2) Grammar rules should not be confused with rules of thumb. Grammar rules of thumb aid users in making correct choices, but they do not guarantee that the rules are inviolable. A person who adds –er to a one-syllable word to form a comparative will usually be right, but not doing so does not mean the person is wrong.
3) When in doubt about current English usage, refer to the Internet corpus for evidence, examples, or counter-examples.
There are pitfalls to the approach recommended in the third point above, as the Internet is an unreliable corpus. It features many examples of non-native English and vast quantities of error-filled passages. However, with the correct search methods, one can find convincing examples of current usage by respected and reliable native users. The key is to refine one’s search by adding qualifiers, as shown in the following procedure:
1) Go to google.com.
2) Locate the search box to type an inquiry. For a construction where the order of the words is important, open quotes and type the entire phrase, then close quotes. Example: “more real than”
3) Outside of the quotes, add a qualifier, such as online literature, n.y. times, quotation, or bbc (note that capitals are not necessary). Without the qualifier, a search will reveal thousands of examples, but it is time consuming to sift through them looking for convincing examples by native users. By adding the qualifiers, one can more quickly judge which examples are likely to be appropriate. Generally, it’s best to use one qualifier at a time and make multiple searches, unless there is a specific reason for using several qualifiers.
4) A Google inquiry generates a list of sites that include the searched item. It also provides a choice of clicking on the current URL or clicking on a link to a cached page. A cached page is a copy of the original page stored by Google. For the purpose at hand—using the Internet as a corpus—the best choice is the cached link. Clicking on the current URL may link to an updated version of the page where the target phrase is no longer present. Clicking on the cached link goes to the original page where the phrase was found by the Google search engine. The cached page has the added advantage that the target phrase will be highlighted in the text, so it can be located quickly.
The first or second search result listed for each of the qualifiers above are as follows:
“more real than” + online literature [Note that the “+” is not necessary.]
“I love acting. It is so much more real than life.” - Oscar Wilde (1854-1900)
www.scriobh.com (second result listed)
“more real than” + n.y. times
“Is Real Property More Real Than Intellectual Property?”
– IPLSStandardwww.nd.edu/~ipls/IPLSStandard/IPLSStandardVol1Iss2.pdf (first result listed)
Two notes about this entry: 1) the qualifier n.y. times did not actually yield a quotation from The New York Times with the target phrase, but rather a file in PDF format that happened to reference The New York Times elsewhere in the article. However for the purpose of this corpus search, the result was satisfactory, as the publication is from the Intellectual Property Law Society of the Notre Dame Law School, which falls within the range of acceptability for this type of search in that is was written by a presumably educated, highly literate user of English. In any case, results further down the list did come from The New York Times.
2) PDF files are sometimes cumbersome to deal with, but Google allows the user to click on a link called “View as HTML,” which is faster and requires no downloading, though much of the original formatting is lost.
“more real than” + quotation
“The city as we imagine it, then, soft city of illusion, myth, aspiration, and nightmare, is as real, maybe more real, than the hard city one can locate
on maps in statistics, in monographs on urban sociology and demography and architecture.” - Jonathan Raban
http://www.greatest-quotations.com
(first result listed)
“more real than” + bbc
“In another few years the manufacturing threat from Eastern Europe and China, and the IT and service industry competitiveness from places such as
India, will be even more real than they are already.” – James Kerr, BBC News
news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/northern_ireland/3333763.stm (second result listed)
Note: The first result listed was also from BBC News, but it came in a quotation from an individual, so there was some doubt as to whether the speaker was of native speaker proficiency.
It’s worth pointing out that a search of the Internet corpus does not result in a good example of “more long than” by an educated, native-like user of English, at least not in the same sense that it’s used in the original test item that prompted this search. This brings us back to the original question, “Should a student who chooses (b) “more long” be penalized? After all, answer (a) “much longer” sounds more natural in the particular sentence used in the test item, and is arguably the best choice. However, if answer (a) is correct, it is because current usage deems it so, not because of the grammar rule for making comparatives. In this case, I and the other entrance test proofreaders recommended avoiding the issue by eliminating the test question. While “much longer” is preferable to “more long” in this test item, there seems to be no reliable grammar rule that prescribes it.
References
Celce-Murcia, M., Larsen-Freeman, D. (1983), The Grammar Book: An ESL/EFL Teacher’s Course, Heinle & Heinle Publishers.
Crystal, D. (2003), The Cambridge Encyclopedia of The English Language, Second Edition, Cambridge University Press.
Ellis, R., Gaies, S. (1999), Impact Grammar, Addison Wesley Longman Asia ELT.
Frank, M. (1972), Modern English: A Practical Reference Guide, Prentice-Hall
Larsen-Freeman, D. (2003), Teaching Language: From Grammar to Grammaring, Newbury House Teacher Development.
Thomson, A.J., Martinet, A.V. (1986), A Practical English Grammar, Fourth Edition, Oxford University Press.
On-line literature referenced
Crane, S. The Red Badge of Courage, Chap. XV
http://www.pagebypagebooks.com/Stephen_Crane/The_Red_Badge_of_Courage/CHAPTER_XV_p2.html
Shakespeare, W. A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Act. V, Scene 1
http://www.bartleby.com/70/1851.html
Shakespeare, W. Romeo & Juliet, Act II, Scene 2
http://www.bartleby.com/70/3822.html
URLs referenced
etext.library.adelaide.edu.au/o/o79e/part23.html
http://www.bartleby.com/70/3822.html
http://www.bartleby.com/70/1851.html
http://bushlibrary.tamu.edu/papers/1990/90051901.html
http://www.cnn.com/2003/ALLPOLITICS/09/26/mgrind.day.debates/
http://www.greatest-quotations.com
http://hgpoetics.blogspot.com/2003_07_20_hgpoetics_archive.html
http://www.jameswebb.com/articles/wallstjrnl/main.htm
http://www.pagebypagebooks.com/Stephen_Crane/The_Red_Badge_of_Courage/CHAPTER_XV_p2.html
www.scriobh.com
http://www.spadafori.com/cols_00/qsr001029.pdf
http://www.writersbbs.com/html/FishEggs/1.98/2.html
http://www.zpub.com/un/islam.html
instapundit.com/lawrev/conradrv.htm
IPLSStandardwww.nd.edu/~ipls/IPLSStandard/IPLSStandardVol1Iss2.pdf
news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/northern_ireland/3333763.stm
Kevin Miller - Yoshinogawa Review, Vol. 27, 2004
Where would language education be without grammar rules? For many people, learning a language means learning and applying the appropriate grammar rules. This is often true for native speakers learning their mother tongue at school as well as for non-native speakers learning a second language. However, as most language students quickly come to realize, grammar rules are frequently complex, abstract, and filled with exceptions, resulting in frustration for learners. Still, the notion that language can be created by applying the appropriate rules persists, and for non-native speakers—until widespread use of language translating technology becomes a reality—grammar rules will be used to prescribe how to construct meaningful utterances.
It seems that rules, whether applied to sports, traffic, or language, require referees or police—people whose purpose is to see that the rules are correctly applied. In language learning, this role typically falls to the teacher, and so we have the image of a language teacher as one who patrols the classroom, whacking students on the knuckles with a ruler whenever they split an infinitive or violate some other grammar rule. While that image may be a bit outdated, and while communicative language teaching methodology has reduced the amount of time devoted to the explicit teaching of grammar, there are times when referencing grammar rules is appropriate and helpful. Likewise, there are times when a reliance on grammar rules is insufficient for the problem at hand.
A case of the latter was apparent to me as I was proofreading a preliminary version of the English Department entrance test [at Shikoku University], where the following item (which has since been deleted from the test) appeared:
The Nile is ( ) than the Mississippi.
a. much longer b. more long c. very long d. more longer
The item appeared in a section of ten multiple-choice questions that dealt with a range of skills, including knowledge of grammar, knowledge of vocabulary, and knowledge of idioms. This item was one of four that dealt with knowledge of grammar. In choosing the item, the test writer likely had one of two things in mind:
(1) Can the student construct a natural-sounding sentence with the choices provided?
(2) Does the student know the grammar rules for making comparisons?
If the student gets the question correct, and most of the other questions on the test as well, he or she will be admitted to the university. If the question is answered wrong, along with too many others, then the student will be deemed unfit to enter the university.
For native English speakers, choosing an answer because it “sounds natural” is fairly easy, but beginning non-native learners of English lack the vast input necessary to judge what sounds natural. For them, a reliance on English grammar provides a way to get the above question right. All they have do is to apply the following grammar rule: “The comparative of one-syllable adjectives is made by adding –er.” The test writers know that students who have graduated from high school in Japan have likely encountered this rule at some point in their English learning careers. If so, and if they apply the rule correctly, they would naturally choose answer (a), much longer.
But suppose the student has an incomplete understanding of the grammar rule for comparatives. Perhaps he or she remembers that sometimes you use more and sometimes you add –er, but never both. The student can then eliminate answers (c) and (d), leaving the choices (a) much longer, and (b) more long. But which to choose? If the student chooses (b) more long, is it absolutely, categorically wrong? Should this choice potentially count against the student for entry into the university? Before addressing these questions, let’s examine the grammar rule for comparatives of one-syllable words as it appears in reference materials. As English grammar rules go, it’s fairly concise and understandable, and most grammar resources basically agree on it.
A Practical English Grammar, Fourth Edition, (Oxford) states (p. 36, 37):
One-syllable adjectives form their comparative and superlative by adding er and est to the positive form:
bright brighter brightest
Adjectives ending in e add r and st:
brave braver bravest
Irregular comparisons:
bad worse worst
far farther farthest (of distance only)
further furthest (used more widely)
good better best
old elder eldest (of people only)
older oldest (of people and things)
Impact Grammar, (Longman) states (p. 131):
The comparative form of one-syllable adjectives … is formed by adding –er.
small, smaller; high, higher
For adjectives ending with e drop the e before adding –er….
brave, braver
Interestingly, The Grammar Book, (Heinle & Heinle) which some consider the bible on grammar and usage for ESL teachers, seems to equivocate a bit (p. 494):
1. Use of more vs. –er
The decision of when to use more vs. –er with comparative adjectives and adverbs is a complicated process, since no one has carried out a study to fully determine current usage. In the absence of a more definitive, empirically based statement, we feel that some version of Frank’s three-part formulation (1972:118-119) [referring to Frank, M. (1972). Modern English: A Practical Reference Guide, Prentice-Hall] is the best set of rules available:
Part 1: Use –er with one-syllable adjectives and adverbs and with those two-syllable adjectives ending in –y or –ple, -ble and occasionally –tle, –idle.
taller happier simpler
faster noisier humbler
harder dirtier subtler
idler
Part 2: Use either –er or more with two-syllable adjectives that take the following weakly stressed endings:
-ly : friendlier, more friendly
-ow : mellower, more mellow
-er : cleverer, more clever
-some : handsomer, more handsome
Note that there are also some two-syllable adjectives without any of the above
suffixes which can take either –er or more, e.g., stupid, quiet.
Part 3: Use more with other adjectives and adverbs of two or more syllables:
distant, exact, useful, wretched, etc. arrogant, intelligent, beautiful, etc.
Notice that no mention is made in any of the above sources, nor in many others, of using more with one-syllable adjectives. One would think, then, that the question is settled, and the use of more with one-syllable adjectives, with a limited number of exceptions, is simply wrong. A student who chooses answer (b) more long, should rightly face the possibility of elimination on the university entrance test.
The again, maybe not. Perhaps it’s the rule that is the problem, and not the student. Maybe the grammar rule is really only a rule of thumb, or a suggestion on how to form the comparative with one-syllable adjectives, in which case violations cannot be considered wrong, though they may sometimes be ill-advised. Consider the following:
1) There are common one-syllable adjectives (not including irregular ones, like bad), that only take more, not –er.
ex.: real X This portrait looks realer than that one. vs
O This portrait looks more real than that one.
apt X He would be apter to go if you paid him. vs
O He would be more apt to go if you paid him.
fun X This game is funner than that one. vs
O This game is more fun than that one.
wrong X It would be wrong to punish him, but wronger to do nothing vs
O It would be wrong to punish him, but more wrong to do nothing
left X The candidate was lefter of center than I would have liked vs
O The candidate was more left of center than I would have liked
right X You may both be right, but she is righter. vs
O You may both be right, but she is more right.
2) There are many one-syllable adjectives that sound better with more, or at a minimum, sound acceptable with either.
ex.: fair O? It would be fairer if you divided them equally. vs
O It would be more fair if you divided them equally.
free O? Democratic governments are freer than totalitarian ones. vs
O Democratic governments are more free than totalitarian ones.
still O? The forest was stiller than I remembered it. vs
O The forest was more still than I remembered it.
3) While it’s common to think of a comparative as “X is longer than (noun),” i.e.,
The table was longer than two meters.
This rope is longer than that one.
there is another use of the comparative where “X is longer than it is (adjective),” as in:
The table is longer than it is wide.
We can shorten this to read …
The table is more long than wide.
In this construction, we typically do not use longer than, because it sounds strange or ambiguous without the “it is.”
O? The table is longer than wide.
More examples:
“On his way out, another tent caught his eye. This one was more long than tall.”
http://www.writersbbs.com/html/FishEggs/1.98/2.html
In the end, the journey turned out to be more long than challenging.
http://www.spadafori.com/cols_00/qsr001029.pdf
“More strange than true.” – Shakespeare, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Act. V, Scene 1
http://www.bartleby.com/70/1851.html
More brave than sensible, my brother placed himself in front of the car to block their escape. ... See Bob Herbert, “Criminal Justice Breakdown,” The
N.Y. Times
instapundit.com/lawrev/conradrv.htm
4) There is a huge corpus of examples using more plus one-syllable words by respected writers, journalists, and literary figures. The following were found on the Internet.
Nowhere in recent times has this proved more true than in the periodic commemoration of …
http://www.jameswebb.com/articles/wallstjrnl/main.htm [Wall Street Journal]
Because of their courage, the free world is now more vast than anyone ever dared imagine.
http://bushlibrary.tamu.edu/papers/1990/90051901.html
Juliet: But trust me, gentleman, I'll prove more true
Than those that have more cunning to be strange.
I should have been more strange, I must confess
– Shakespeare, Romeo & Juliet, Act II, Scene 2
http://www.bartleby.com/70/3822.html
This was never more clear than on Wednesday night, when Davis’ name wasn't mentioned until 46 minutes into the five-candidate debate. – CNN
http://www.cnn.com/2003/ALLPOLITICS/09/26/mgrind.day.debates/
That little man stood for all the drugged millions to whom the world of the gangster and the prize-ring is more ‘real’, more ‘tough’, than such things as wars, revolutions, earthquakes, famines and pestilences. – George Orwell
etext.library.adelaide.edu.au/o/o79e/part23.html
He remembered how some of the men had run from the battle. As he recalled their terror-struck faces he felt a scorn for them. They had surely been
more fleetand more wild than was absolutely necessary. – The Red Badge of Courage, Stephen Crane
http://www.pagebypagebooks.com/Stephen_Crane/The_Red_Badge_of_Courage/CHAPTER_XV_p2.html
“It's all blatantly illegal, there's nothing more clear than what the U.N. Charter says about this (use of violence).” – Noam Chomsky
http://www.zpub.com/un/islam.html
…as Mandelstam emphasized, poetry is much more raw than prose.
http://hgpoetics.blogspot.com/2003_07_20_hgpoetics_archive.html
Obviously, the examples above, many of which were found on the Internet corpus, are at odds with the previously cited grammar rule on comparisons with one-syllable adjectives, resulting in, at a minimum, the following observations:
1) The grammar rule re. comparatives with one-syllable adjectives is out of step with actual usage. Native speakers routinely use more to form a comparative with one-syllable words, both in speaking and writing. One must ask oneself, “Is it really fair to penalize a student for making an “error” on a rule that is so frequently broken by educated, highly literate native speakers?”
2) Grammar rules should not be confused with rules of thumb. Grammar rules of thumb aid users in making correct choices, but they do not guarantee that the rules are inviolable. A person who adds –er to a one-syllable word to form a comparative will usually be right, but not doing so does not mean the person is wrong.
3) When in doubt about current English usage, refer to the Internet corpus for evidence, examples, or counter-examples.
There are pitfalls to the approach recommended in the third point above, as the Internet is an unreliable corpus. It features many examples of non-native English and vast quantities of error-filled passages. However, with the correct search methods, one can find convincing examples of current usage by respected and reliable native users. The key is to refine one’s search by adding qualifiers, as shown in the following procedure:
1) Go to google.com.
2) Locate the search box to type an inquiry. For a construction where the order of the words is important, open quotes and type the entire phrase, then close quotes. Example: “more real than”
3) Outside of the quotes, add a qualifier, such as online literature, n.y. times, quotation, or bbc (note that capitals are not necessary). Without the qualifier, a search will reveal thousands of examples, but it is time consuming to sift through them looking for convincing examples by native users. By adding the qualifiers, one can more quickly judge which examples are likely to be appropriate. Generally, it’s best to use one qualifier at a time and make multiple searches, unless there is a specific reason for using several qualifiers.
4) A Google inquiry generates a list of sites that include the searched item. It also provides a choice of clicking on the current URL or clicking on a link to a cached page. A cached page is a copy of the original page stored by Google. For the purpose at hand—using the Internet as a corpus—the best choice is the cached link. Clicking on the current URL may link to an updated version of the page where the target phrase is no longer present. Clicking on the cached link goes to the original page where the phrase was found by the Google search engine. The cached page has the added advantage that the target phrase will be highlighted in the text, so it can be located quickly.
The first or second search result listed for each of the qualifiers above are as follows:
“more real than” + online literature [Note that the “+” is not necessary.]
“I love acting. It is so much more real than life.” - Oscar Wilde (1854-1900)
www.scriobh.com (second result listed)
“more real than” + n.y. times
“Is Real Property More Real Than Intellectual Property?”
– IPLSStandardwww.nd.edu/~ipls/IPLSStandard/IPLSStandardVol1Iss2.pdf (first result listed)
Two notes about this entry: 1) the qualifier n.y. times did not actually yield a quotation from The New York Times with the target phrase, but rather a file in PDF format that happened to reference The New York Times elsewhere in the article. However for the purpose of this corpus search, the result was satisfactory, as the publication is from the Intellectual Property Law Society of the Notre Dame Law School, which falls within the range of acceptability for this type of search in that is was written by a presumably educated, highly literate user of English. In any case, results further down the list did come from The New York Times.
2) PDF files are sometimes cumbersome to deal with, but Google allows the user to click on a link called “View as HTML,” which is faster and requires no downloading, though much of the original formatting is lost.
“more real than” + quotation
“The city as we imagine it, then, soft city of illusion, myth, aspiration, and nightmare, is as real, maybe more real, than the hard city one can locate
on maps in statistics, in monographs on urban sociology and demography and architecture.” - Jonathan Raban
http://www.greatest-quotations.com
(first result listed)
“more real than” + bbc
“In another few years the manufacturing threat from Eastern Europe and China, and the IT and service industry competitiveness from places such as
India, will be even more real than they are already.” – James Kerr, BBC News
news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/northern_ireland/3333763.stm (second result listed)
Note: The first result listed was also from BBC News, but it came in a quotation from an individual, so there was some doubt as to whether the speaker was of native speaker proficiency.
It’s worth pointing out that a search of the Internet corpus does not result in a good example of “more long than” by an educated, native-like user of English, at least not in the same sense that it’s used in the original test item that prompted this search. This brings us back to the original question, “Should a student who chooses (b) “more long” be penalized? After all, answer (a) “much longer” sounds more natural in the particular sentence used in the test item, and is arguably the best choice. However, if answer (a) is correct, it is because current usage deems it so, not because of the grammar rule for making comparatives. In this case, I and the other entrance test proofreaders recommended avoiding the issue by eliminating the test question. While “much longer” is preferable to “more long” in this test item, there seems to be no reliable grammar rule that prescribes it.
References
Celce-Murcia, M., Larsen-Freeman, D. (1983), The Grammar Book: An ESL/EFL Teacher’s Course, Heinle & Heinle Publishers.
Crystal, D. (2003), The Cambridge Encyclopedia of The English Language, Second Edition, Cambridge University Press.
Ellis, R., Gaies, S. (1999), Impact Grammar, Addison Wesley Longman Asia ELT.
Frank, M. (1972), Modern English: A Practical Reference Guide, Prentice-Hall
Larsen-Freeman, D. (2003), Teaching Language: From Grammar to Grammaring, Newbury House Teacher Development.
Thomson, A.J., Martinet, A.V. (1986), A Practical English Grammar, Fourth Edition, Oxford University Press.
On-line literature referenced
Crane, S. The Red Badge of Courage, Chap. XV
http://www.pagebypagebooks.com/Stephen_Crane/The_Red_Badge_of_Courage/CHAPTER_XV_p2.html
Shakespeare, W. A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Act. V, Scene 1
http://www.bartleby.com/70/1851.html
Shakespeare, W. Romeo & Juliet, Act II, Scene 2
http://www.bartleby.com/70/3822.html
URLs referenced
etext.library.adelaide.edu.au/o/o79e/part23.html
http://www.bartleby.com/70/3822.html
http://www.bartleby.com/70/1851.html
http://bushlibrary.tamu.edu/papers/1990/90051901.html
http://www.cnn.com/2003/ALLPOLITICS/09/26/mgrind.day.debates/
http://www.greatest-quotations.com
http://hgpoetics.blogspot.com/2003_07_20_hgpoetics_archive.html
http://www.jameswebb.com/articles/wallstjrnl/main.htm
http://www.pagebypagebooks.com/Stephen_Crane/The_Red_Badge_of_Courage/CHAPTER_XV_p2.html
www.scriobh.com
http://www.spadafori.com/cols_00/qsr001029.pdf
http://www.writersbbs.com/html/FishEggs/1.98/2.html
http://www.zpub.com/un/islam.html
instapundit.com/lawrev/conradrv.htm
IPLSStandardwww.nd.edu/~ipls/IPLSStandard/IPLSStandardVol1Iss2.pdf
news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/northern_ireland/3333763.stm