Boldly split infinitives, and begin with conjunctions

JUNE CASAGRANDE

Somewhere out there, a group of misled but well-meaning grammar

prophets is spreading a sort of false gospel.

They warn people against the horrors of ending sentences with

prepositions. They predict gloom and doom for anyone who dares to

begin a sentence with “and,” “but,” “so” or “because.” To hear them

talk, you’d think splitting an infinitive is as dangerous as

splitting an atom.

They all mean well -- really they do. But they’re unintentionally

doing harm, punishing people for trying to play by the rules.

Take, for example, the teacher who, once upon a time, told one of

this column’s readers a “rule” about infinitives.

“One of the lessons I learned in grammar school was to not split

infinitives,” says one reader, whose name is being withheld to

protect whatever teacher promoted this wisdom. “That was one lesson I

learned, and it stuck with me.”

See? Here we have someone, who’s willing to respect grammar rules,

but who’s been misled by an authority he thought he could trust.

In case you don’t know, an infinitive is the basic form of a verb

and includes the word “to”: “to walk,” “to think,” “to be,” “to

spread bad grammar rules.”

The term “infinitive” is meant mainly to distinguish between this

main form and a verb’s conjugated forms. For “to walk,” some

conjugations are “I walk,” “he walks,” “I walked,” “he has walked,”

and “I was walking” -- all those forms that are tailored to suit the

situation.

So, to split an infinitive is to put anything between the “to” and

the word that follows. “To boldly go where no man has gone before” is

possibly the most famous example of a split infinitive. But is it

wrong?

Here’s what three official sources say about splitting

infinitives.

The Chicago Manual of Style: “Although from about 1850 to 1925

many grammarians stated otherwise, it is now widely acknowledged that

adverbs sometimes justifiably separate the ‘to’ from the principal

verb, ‘They expect to more than double their income next year.’”

The Associated Press Stylebook: “Occasionally, however, a split is

not awkward and is necessary to convey the meaning: ‘He wanted to

really help his mother.’ ‘Those who lie are often found out.’”

Strunk and White’s “The Elements of Style”: “Some infinitives seem

to improve on being split, just as a stick of round stovewood does.

‘I cannot bring myself to really like the fellow.”

So, if you want to go where no man has gone before, by all means,

feel free to boldly go.

Moving on to those prepositions at the ends of sentences, Dan

Rosen of Glendale illustrates the issue nicely.

“The ‘between you and I’ issue is one that I am frequently tempted

to comment on (or ‘on which I am frequently tempted to comment’).”

Notice that Dan is fully aware that the hard-core sticklers might

oppose ending his sentence with “on,” but he did it anyway? Why?

Because he trusted his ear more than the faceless grammar ghouls who

spread fear about ending sentences with prepositions. Always trust

your ear.

The most famous quip about the “rule” against ending a sentence

with a preposition is attributed to Winston Churchill: That is the

type of pedantry up with which I shall not put.

The experts agree.

From “The Elements of Style”: “Years ago, students were warned not

to end a sentence with a preposition; time, of course, has softened

that rigid decree. Not only is the preposition acceptable at the end,

sometimes it is more effective in that spot than anywhere else. ‘A

claw hammer, not an ax, was the tool he murdered her with.’”

The Chicago Manual of Style and “Garner’s Modern American Usage”

agree.

And if you rifle around in these books long enough, you’ll see

that most permit beginning sentences with “and,” “so,” “but” and

“because.”

So when a ghostly memory in your mind contradicts your own common

sense and good judgment, tell it to boldly go to the worst place you

can think of.