Reticulating Splines

I found myself in an absurdly long-winded, pedantic debate via exchange of emails over the course of a week or so with a favorite English professor (and personal friend & mentor of sorts) of mine over the use of ‘alright’ vs. ‘all right.’ I wrote a letter to him in which I used my preferred ‘alright’ variation, resulting in the response:

“It’s spelled “all right.”  Ever the English teacher, I correct away.  Which is what you’re looking for.”

To which I responded:

“Thanks, I just think ‘alright’ is more visually appealing and I prefer it to ‘all right.’ I hope that won’t be a problem.”

His retort:

“OK. Yeah.  In the same way sentapeed is.  Keep arguing with me and we’ll get along great.”

The thesis of my defense:

Actually, it’s nothing like that, as this entry from Merriam-Webster explains: “The one-word spelling alright appeared some 75 years after all right itself had reappeared from a 400-year-long absence. Since the early 20th century some critics have insisted alright is wrong, but it has its defenders and its users. It is less frequent than all right but remains in common use especially in journalistic and business publications. It is quite common in fictional dialogue, and is used occasionally in other writing.” (http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/alright)

Which prompted this long response, some of which I omitted:

“Good for you, Dylan.  Well played, well defended, especially since you like the way the word looks on the page.  As with all things in your work, you are the final arbiter of its fashion, its style.  Don’t let any conventional critics like me sway you, awright?  Or as one of my football players last year liked to say, “Aight?”  I think that’s how it’s spelled.

As with many aspects of language, it’s often which dictionary or scholar you consult that helps determine your own particular bias.  My position is that if a word calls too much attention to itself, it distracts the reader from what you’re trying to say.  And if you read the word (or phrase) aloud, it sounds the same with either spelling.  This note below makes more sense to me, especially the underlined part:

http://www.answers.com/topic/all-right

USAGE NOTE: Despite the appearance of the form alright in works of such well-known writers as Langston Hughes and James Joyce, the single word spelling has never been accepted as standard. This is peculiar, since similar fusions such as already and altogether have never raised any objections. The difference may lie in the fact that already and altogether became single words back in the Middle Ages, whereas alright has only been around for a little more than a century and was called out by language critics as a misspelling. Consequently, one who uses alright, especially in formal writing, runs the risk that readers may view it as an error or as the willful breaking of convention.

The point being here, as I said above, that readers are thinking about something other than your subject matter, scene, description, whatever, and are wondering if you’ve made a mistake.  To move them to that (their own) notion, that you might be in error, means you are in error because they are moved away from your notion.  Thanks.  You’re helping me with revisions to my book.”

And my final summation of my stance on the matter:

“I see where you’re coming from. I think that especially in creative writing, it’s more important to do your own thing even if (especially if, actually) it defies convention. Knowing rules and thinking of unique and imaginative ways to break them is appealing to me, and I know you for a fact you feel the same. However, when it comes to article or essay writing, yes, I agree that conventions ought to be stuck to because they exist for the reason you stated. For instance, in papers I write for school, I’ve adjusted my habit of using the U.K. versions of words (e.g., ‘anthropomorphise,’ ‘recognise’) in favor of the standard American English ‘zed’ spellings, at first out of frustration of having instructors mark every instance of it in red pen, and later because I realised that conformity in language does serve the purpose of maintaining a common ground between you and the reader so they can concentrate on what you’re trying to say without getting too caught up in how you’re saying it. However, on a creative level, how things are said are, to me, just as important as what’s being said, as it introduces texture and personal style, which is why in my poetry and fiction / creative non-fiction (and emails, as you’re now aware of), I tend to stick to my own linguistic preferences. It all boils down to the level of formality in what I’m writing.”

So, in the future, if I use “alright” and anybody corrects me, I’m just going to link them to this blog. Even if it somehow comes up in a verbal conversation, I will write this address out for them and not even bother with defending myself, because if I go the rest of my life never having this same discussion again, I’ll be happy. Alright?