这就是通常所说的“有争议的问题”。如果在考试中遇到这种情况,能否得分,就要看命题者以哪种“权威”用法为准了。有时是英式英语和美式英语的区别。有的是常见用法和不常见(但正确)的用法,最好使用常见用法。
柯帕斯英语网是目前为数不多的能严肃对待英语问题解答的网站,这点值得点个大大的赞!
在这里,你不仅能读到专家老师非常专业的解答,有时甚至还会读到专家老师的“引经据典”(给出权威的依据或出处)。但我注意到,有时这种“权威的依据或出处”是权威报刊或媒体(如《纽约时报》《华盛顿邮报》《泰晤士报》《华尔街日报》《时代周刊》《经济学人》等),有时这种“权威的依据或出处”是权威的语法著作或词典(如夸克语法、朗文语法、牛津语法、剑桥语法、牛津词典、朗文词典等)。我的问题是,假若“权威报刊或媒体”与“权威语法著作”相矛盾(在贵网站曾多次出现过),到底该信谁或该以哪个为准?
权威报刊或媒体上的说法,不管是来自《纽约时报》《华盛顿邮报》《泰晤士报》《华尔街日报》《时代周刊》《经济学人》哪一种,如果它与权威的语法著作或词典(如夸克语法、朗文语法、牛津语法、剑桥语法、牛津词典、朗文词典等)的说法相矛盾,想都不用想,肯定是以语法著作或词典为标准,判定权威报刊或媒体上的用法为错误!
有人可能会说,权威报刊或媒体的文章都是受过良好教育的文化人写的,应该不会出错;但你要明白,所谓的“受过良好教育”,并不一定受的是“语文”(或“语言”)教育,比如一些非语言类学科背景的“文化人”,你能保证他写的东西一定不会出语法错误和用词错误吗?其实,就算你是学语言学的,你也未必能确保你写的东西不出错。所以,《纽约时报》《华盛顿邮报》《泰晤士报》《华尔街日报》《时代周刊》《经济学人》等媒体上出现语言类错误不仅是可能的,而且是完全正常的!
当然,你可能会问:难道权威语法或词典就不会出错吗?也可能会出错,但主要是指排版错误或编校错误。如果一本权威语法或词典认为某个用法不能那样用,那这个用法基本就可以断定是错误的(它至少代表“一家之言”)。如果两本不同的语法著作或词典对某一用法出现冲突——比如A词典说“可以这样用”,而B词典说“不可以这样用”,这才叫“有争议的用法”。而绝不是,某个媒体的用法不符合某本词典或某语法的用法,说成是有争议的用法。类似地,如果我们国家的某个权威的“日报”(比如《人民日报》)中某个词语的使用不符合《现代汉语词典》的用法,你能把它归结为“有争议的用法”吗?同样的道理,如果《泰晤士报》的某个用法不符合《牛津词典》的用法,你能把它归结为“有争议的用法”吗?
当然,英语与汉语在语言的规范性方面有所不同:汉语语法基本上是“规定性的”,而英语语法区分“规定性”与“描述性”,但即使是“描述性”语法,除了semantically or pragmatically anomalous, grammatical in some dialect(s) only, of questionable grammaticality这类“描述性”标签外,也有诸如 ungrammatical, non-standard之类的“规定性”标签。
总结一下:报刊或媒体中的文字属于语言的应用层面,而语法著作或词典属于语言的规范层面。不仅仅是英语和汉语,任何一种语言都一样,如果其报刊或媒体中的语言与其语法或词典中的规范相冲突,肯定是以语法著作或词典的说法为准,而不是反过来,也不能说成那是属于“有争议的用法”。
依我看,就两句话:
权威媒体的文章是学习语言的很好材料,但不是判断语言正误的标准;
权威辞书的内容是判断语言正误的标准,但不是学习语言的最佳材料。
我手头没有国外图书语言文字的质检资料(但从前面老师列举的 BNC 中的语料例句来看,质量肯定也好不到哪里去),下面列举部分国内图书和媒体的情况。
最近在国内权威网站“人民网”上读到过一篇题为《莫言等作家作品被"咬文嚼字"挑错部分错误曝光》的文章,其中被曝光的就包括有阿来的《尘埃落定》、张平的《抉择》、张洁的《无字》、徐贵祥的《历史的天空》、柳建伟的《英雄时代》、麦家的《暗算》、贾平凹的《秦腔》、迟子建的《额尔古纳河右岸》、周大新的《湖光山色》、刘醒龙的《天行者》、毕飞宇的《推拿》、莫言的《蛙》等。
附人民网文章截图(网址:http://culture.people.com.cn/n/2013/0508/c172318-21405739.html)
再看看文汇出版社的《重生2》,差错率高达10.94%!10.94%是个什么概念?那就是每10个中就至少有1个是错!
更多出版物的语言文字的差错问题,大家可以到“中国质量新闻网”去搜一下,多了去了,下面再列举两例:
如果你怀疑上面例子中出版社的权威性,那就再来几个你认为权威的:
https://baijiahao.baidu.com/s?id=1610215384781334937&wfr=spider&for=pc
https://baijiahao.baidu.com/s?id=1610215384781334937&wfr=spider&for=pc
完全同意大鹏老师的看法。权威报刊或媒体上的说法与权威的语法著作或词典的说法相矛盾,想都不用想,肯定是以语法著作或词典为标准。比如英国国家语料库BNC(British National Corpus)被公认是一个比较权威的语料库,而且语料来源广泛,其中有些来自SPOKEN,有些来自FICTION,有些来自MAGAZINE,有些来自NEWSPAPER,有些来自 NON-ACAD,有些来自ACADEMC,有些来自MISC。但这里面不符合语法的用法虽然不能说“比比皆是”,但确实“并不少见”。这里仅以几例涉及主谓一致的情况为例作个说明:
例一:下面是 I has 的用例:
the result I didn't know I couldn't pronounce his name so I has to check it.
worst of all, I has to get inside the ovens and clean them.
Does that mean I has to die or be rescued again?
so the after-effects left me feeling only as if I has swallowed barbed wire and my brain was battering at the inside of my skull.
if I has the option between a Leeds win and a scum/Liverpool loss.
I has all his trademarks and more: male impotence and self-importance
As I has suggested, some of the work is disappointing.
例二:下面是 they has 的用例:
They has them in London when it's Christmas.
...and they has to earn their keep.
Jean Shrimpton says they has a'rawness'.
1,700 non-transferable votes which could conceivably have affected the issue either way if they has been transferable.
...believing they has found in it the panacea for their 13-year malaise.
They has a successful fringe meeting of the pro-Life supporters at the recent Labour Party Conference
例三:下面是 we has 的用例:
Oh we has Hermitage Wine Company.
Well Joe says we has our ten pound next week.
by the time we has taken those people home
we has to put up with young Doctor Lovell dashing in and out again before...
We has our orders, see?
We have more coppers than we has windows.
we has two translations in Bahasa Indonesia, involving a choice between kami and kita
...assuming we has used that period for more flexible diplomacy
例四:下面是 we does 的用例:
Well we doesn't when we're (unclear) one another.
Are we does it mean we're having one?(注意这句,不仅用了we does,而且前面还用了are,你很难想像这样的句子是出自BNC吧)
and if we does well, Aah might try t' Yorkshire Post next year and send' im
we does not mean plural speakers in the same way that they means more than one third...
例五:下面是 they does 的用例:
Well they does that here.
and they does cut string.
But they doesn't want it.
How strange they doesn't have them, that was only a week or two.
They does microwaves and all over there.
They doesn't want to do them.
They speak English, where they does not refer to a specific agent
……
也许有人会说,这样的“错误”,在我们国家初中生都应该不会犯,这些句子会不会“来路不正”啊!但是你要知道,这些句子既然是这么“高大上”的BNC(英国国家语料库),它收录的语料应该不会是“路边摊”的手抄本吧。