Majoring in English—why so much disrespect?

[Anonymous]

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dony898 wrote:Everyone dunks on English majors until they need help writing a single coherent sentence on LinkedIn.

I had to write a job description recently and used AI for the first to time to do it. It was pretty dam* good. I just had to tweak it a bit. I was a bit shocked.

I saw a video of a fake podcast created by Google Gemini for a technical manual. It was shockingly amazing.

I think many, if not most, people find it to be good because they can't write to save their arse so anything that's comprehensible is going to be good.

95% of all communication in the business world is simply communicating the equivalent of the chicken crossed the road.

Who cares if your company earnings press release is written well. It just needs to communicate that revenues were up 5% and earnings increased 10%.

Who cares if advertising copy is well written? Almost nobody which is why it’s literally being taken over by AI.

Who cares if a Company’s IPO perspectus is well written? Nobody considering few read them…however you do need to make sure AI doesn’t hallucinate something to cause a lawsuit down the road.

This isn’t about “good” writing…it’s just is it good enough. That’s all the corporate world cares about.

I disagree. You should see the unprofessional emails and memos that Doge sends me on a daily basis. Good writing matters.

I don’t know what “professional” means…but in finance much communication is unprofessional and filled with expletives…but it’s not unclear.

Company maiings and prospectesus are filled with expletives?

Internal company communications…I doubt the unprofessional DOGE emails referred by PP are company mailings or prospectuses.

I'd doubt that would be allowed since it is all discoverable in any lawsuit

Huh? We are talking about emails to an analyst saying you better have the f**king pitch book done by 6.

What’s the lawsuit? People at work cursed at me?

[Anonymous]

I disagree with the premise. English majors are well respected in places where people are not 'anonymous' trolls.

[Anonymous]

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dony898 wrote:Everyone dunks on English majors until they need help writing a single coherent sentence on LinkedIn.

I had to write a job description recently and used AI for the first to time to do it. It was pretty dam* good. I just had to tweak it a bit. I was a bit shocked.

I saw a video of a fake podcast created by Google Gemini for a technical manual. It was shockingly amazing.

I think many, if not most, people find it to be good because they can't write to save their arse so anything that's comprehensible is going to be good.

95% of all communication in the business world is simply communicating the equivalent of the chicken crossed the road.

Who cares if your company earnings press release is written well. It just needs to communicate that revenues were up 5% and earnings increased 10%.

Who cares if advertising copy is well written? Almost nobody which is why it’s literally being taken over by AI.

Who cares if a Company’s IPO perspectus is well written? Nobody considering few read them…however you do need to make sure AI doesn’t hallucinate something to cause a lawsuit down the road.

This isn’t about “good” writing…it’s just is it good enough. That’s all the corporate world cares about.

I disagree. You should see the unprofessional emails and memos that Doge sends me on a daily basis. Good writing matters.

I don’t know what “professional” means…but in finance much communication is unprofessional and filled with expletives…but it’s not unclear.

Company maiings and prospectesus are filled with expletives?

Internal company communications…I doubt the unprofessional DOGE emails referred by PP are company mailings or prospectuses.

I'd doubt that would be allowed since it is all discoverable in any lawsuit

Huh? We are talking about emails to an analyst saying you better have the f**king pitch book done by 6.

What’s the lawsuit? People at work cursed at me?

Curse words are discouraged in company emails. It is very unprofessional and all emails are discoverable.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I disagree with the premise. English majors are well respected in places where people are not 'anonymous' trolls.

Yep, the OP's premise is wrong.

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:An example of Chaucer's Canterbury Tales in Middle English. Understanding it is only the beginning.

"Whan that Aprill with his shoures soote

The droghte of Marche hath perced to the roote,

And bathed every veyne in swich licour,

Of which vertu engendred is the flour."

but, why do people need to understand this? I read Shakespeare, Flaubert, etc.. but I don't see the point in needing to understand very old English. My DH is English. He doesn't even like reading those types of books

Which then begs the question, why do I need to study so many subjects that I will never use in my career? It's not necessarily the specific subject matter that's important, its the the thought processes and skills that we develop that's important.

I can understand learning history, social science, but none of those classes are taught in ye olde English. So, again, why does one need to understand Chaucer's old English?

I think it's important to read some classics, but I don't think it's important to read every classic.

Majoring in English is not only (or primarily) about reading the classics. It's about thinking about literature and the ways that literature reflect (or doesn't reflect) society and our culture. It's about expanding our imaginations and empathy through seeing the world through others' perspectives. And it's about close reading and defending ideas with specific examples.

Well put. I couldn’t agree more.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I disagree with the premise. English majors are well respected in places where people are not 'anonymous' trolls.

Ha! I mean, sure, I get respectfully called to "read this over before I send it", all the time.

[Anonymous]

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dony898 wrote:Everyone dunks on English majors until they need help writing a single coherent sentence on LinkedIn.

I had to write a job description recently and used AI for the first to time to do it. It was pretty dam* good. I just had to tweak it a bit. I was a bit shocked.

I saw a video of a fake podcast created by Google Gemini for a technical manual. It was shockingly amazing.

I think many, if not most, people find it to be good because they can't write to save their arse so anything that's comprehensible is going to be good.

95% of all communication in the business world is simply communicating the equivalent of the chicken crossed the road.

Who cares if your company earnings press release is written well. It just needs to communicate that revenues were up 5% and earnings increased 10%.

Who cares if advertising copy is well written? Almost nobody which is why it’s literally being taken over by AI.

Who cares if a Company’s IPO perspectus is well written? Nobody considering few read them…however you do need to make sure AI doesn’t hallucinate something to cause a lawsuit down the road.

This isn’t about “good” writing…it’s just is it good enough. That’s all the corporate world cares about.

I disagree. You should see the unprofessional emails and memos that Doge sends me on a daily basis. Good writing matters.

I don’t know what “professional” means…but in finance much communication is unprofessional and filled with expletives…but it’s not unclear.

Company maiings and prospectesus are filled with expletives?

Internal company communications…I doubt the unprofessional DOGE emails referred by PP are company mailings or prospectuses.

I'd doubt that would be allowed since it is all discoverable in any lawsuit

Huh? We are talking about emails to an analyst saying you better have the f**king pitch book done by 6.

What’s the lawsuit? People at work cursed at me?

Curse words are discouraged in company emails. It is very unprofessional and all emails are discoverable.

Again, so what? Are you implying the existence of curse words somehow lead to a lawsuit?

You clearly don’t work in an environment where this is commonplace, so not sure why you keep responding.

[Anonymous]

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dony898 wrote:Everyone dunks on English majors until they need help writing a single coherent sentence on LinkedIn.

I had to write a job description recently and used AI for the first to time to do it. It was pretty dam* good. I just had to tweak it a bit. I was a bit shocked.

I saw a video of a fake podcast created by Google Gemini for a technical manual. It was shockingly amazing.

I think many, if not most, people find it to be good because they can't write to save their arse so anything that's comprehensible is going to be good.

95% of all communication in the business world is simply communicating the equivalent of the chicken crossed the road.

Who cares if your company earnings press release is written well. It just needs to communicate that revenues were up 5% and earnings increased 10%.

Who cares if advertising copy is well written? Almost nobody which is why it’s literally being taken over by AI.

Who cares if a Company’s IPO perspectus is well written? Nobody considering few read them…however you do need to make sure AI doesn’t hallucinate something to cause a lawsuit down the road.

This isn’t about “good” writing…it’s just is it good enough. That’s all the corporate world cares about.

I disagree. You should see the unprofessional emails and memos that Doge sends me on a daily basis. Good writing matters.

I don’t know what “professional” means…but in finance much communication is unprofessional and filled with expletives…but it’s not unclear.

Company maiings and prospectesus are filled with expletives?

Internal company communications…I doubt the unprofessional DOGE emails referred by PP are company mailings or prospectuses.

I'd doubt that would be allowed since it is all discoverable in any lawsuit

Huh? We are talking about emails to an analyst saying you better have the f**king pitch book done by 6.

What’s the lawsuit? People at work cursed at me?

Curse words are discouraged in company emails. It is very unprofessional and all emails are discoverable.

Again, so what? Are you implying the existence of curse words somehow lead to a lawsuit?

You clearly don’t work in an environment where this is commonplace, so not sure why you keep responding.

Hey jerk, I was initially responding to the post that company writing was not important. Why don’t you crawl back into your hole if you don’t know what the heck you’re talking about.

[Anonymous]

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dony898 wrote:Everyone dunks on English majors until they need help writing a single coherent sentence on LinkedIn.

I had to write a job description recently and used AI for the first to time to do it. It was pretty dam* good. I just had to tweak it a bit. I was a bit shocked.

I saw a video of a fake podcast created by Google Gemini for a technical manual. It was shockingly amazing.

I think many, if not most, people find it to be good because they can't write to save their arse so anything that's comprehensible is going to be good.

95% of all communication in the business world is simply communicating the equivalent of the chicken crossed the road.

Who cares if your company earnings press release is written well. It just needs to communicate that revenues were up 5% and earnings increased 10%.

Who cares if advertising copy is well written? Almost nobody which is why it’s literally being taken over by AI.

Who cares if a Company’s IPO perspectus is well written? Nobody considering few read them…however you do need to make sure AI doesn’t hallucinate something to cause a lawsuit down the road.

This isn’t about “good” writing…it’s just is it good enough. That’s all the corporate world cares about.

I disagree. You should see the unprofessional emails and memos that Doge sends me on a daily basis. Good writing matters.

I don’t know what “professional” means…but in finance much communication is unprofessional and filled with expletives…but it’s not unclear.

Company maiings and prospectesus are filled with expletives?

Internal company communications…I doubt the unprofessional DOGE emails referred by PP are company mailings or prospectuses.

I'd doubt that would be allowed since it is all discoverable in any lawsuit

Huh? We are talking about emails to an analyst saying you better have the f**king pitch book done by 6.

What’s the lawsuit? People at work cursed at me?

Curse words are discouraged in company emails. It is very unprofessional and all emails are discoverable.

Again, so what? Are you implying the existence of curse words somehow lead to a lawsuit?

You clearly don’t work in an environment where this is commonplace, so not sure why you keep responding.

Hey jerk, I was initially responding to the post that company writing was not important. Why don’t you crawl back into your hole if you don’t know what the heck you’re talking about.

What hole am I supposed to crawl back into? If you are the moron that keeps repeating over and over that cursing is unprofessional and emails are discoverable…maybe just admit that you don’t work in finance or a similar profession where this is all commonplace.

[Anonymous]

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dony898 wrote:Everyone dunks on English majors until they need help writing a single coherent sentence on LinkedIn.

I had to write a job description recently and used AI for the first to time to do it. It was pretty dam* good. I just had to tweak it a bit. I was a bit shocked.

I saw a video of a fake podcast created by Google Gemini for a technical manual. It was shockingly amazing.

I think many, if not most, people find it to be good because they can't write to save their arse so anything that's comprehensible is going to be good.

95% of all communication in the business world is simply communicating the equivalent of the chicken crossed the road.

Who cares if your company earnings press release is written well. It just needs to communicate that revenues were up 5% and earnings increased 10%.

Who cares if advertising copy is well written? Almost nobody which is why it’s literally being taken over by AI.

Who cares if a Company’s IPO perspectus is well written? Nobody considering few read them…however you do need to make sure AI doesn’t hallucinate something to cause a lawsuit down the road.

This isn’t about “good” writing…it’s just is it good enough. That’s all the corporate world cares about.

I disagree. You should see the unprofessional emails and memos that Doge sends me on a daily basis. Good writing matters.

I don’t know what “professional” means…but in finance much communication is unprofessional and filled with expletives…but it’s not unclear.

Company maiings and prospectesus are filled with expletives?

Internal company communications…I doubt the unprofessional DOGE emails referred by PP are company mailings or prospectuses.

I'd doubt that would be allowed since it is all discoverable in any lawsuit

Huh? We are talking about emails to an analyst saying you better have the f**king pitch book done by 6.

What’s the lawsuit? People at work cursed at me?

Curse words are discouraged in company emails. It is very unprofessional and all emails are discoverable.

Again, so what? Are you implying the existence of curse words somehow lead to a lawsuit?

You clearly don’t work in an environment where this is commonplace, so not sure why you keep responding.

Hey jerk, I was initially responding to the post that company writing was not important. Why don’t you crawl back into your hole if you don’t know what the heck you’re talking about.

What hole am I supposed to crawl back into? If you are the moron that keeps repeating over and over that cursing is unprofessional and emails are discoverable…maybe just admit that you don’t work in finance or a similar profession where this is all commonplace.

Your arsehole. That’s where you should crawl back to. Thats the only thing that needs to be admitted

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:History and English were considered respectable majors in the past. I know many who went on to law school or medical school. They’re generally thought to have good writing and analytical skills. Now, people scoff when you saying you’re majoring in English or history. I know there’s AI to worry about, but isn’t that true for CS and accounting too?

I don’t know a single English major that went on to medical school.

No way you know many.

DP. I know many! Though that is because I went to med school and my top school had loads of humanities majors including english, theater, history, classics…some were double majors with bio others were not. About 1/3 of my school did not major in stem.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:History and English were considered respectable majors in the past. I know many who went on to law school or medical school. They’re generally thought to have good writing and analytical skills. Now, people scoff when you saying you’re majoring in English or history. I know there’s AI to worry about, but isn’t that true for CS and accounting too?

I don’t know a single English major that went on to medical school.

No way you know many.

DP. I know many! Though that is because I went to med school and my top school had loads of humanities majors including english, theater, history, classics…some were double majors with bio others were not. About 1/3 of my school did not major in stem.

People don’t major in English because it’s a good route to medical school. On the contrary! It trains students in fewer marketable skills compared to other majors.

Look up salary statistics several years after getting the degree, English and History are the worst, Engineering is usually at the top. The perception of wasted potential and money is the reason for disrespect.

Whatever anecdote people bring, like the doctor or businessman with the English degree, that’s just outliers, the vast majority end up in jobs with limited career prospects.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Dcum is particularly engineering or business only. I don't think that's real life. In the Instagram that announces where graduates of my child's school are going to college, I see plenty of intended social science and humanities majors.

I agree. Posters here tend to be very narrow minded and can’t see past the stem, finance and law. Careers that don’t interest a lot of young people.

[Anonymous]

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dony898 wrote:Everyone dunks on English majors until they need help writing a single coherent sentence on LinkedIn.

I have nothing but respect for English and history majors, but writing a single coherent sentence on LinkedIn is a perfect example of what ChatGPT is good for.

And yet, to make this point, you have written a sentence that ends in a preposition.

From Scrbbler- The “rule” against ending sentences with a preposition is overwhelmingly rejected by modern style guides and language authorities and is based on the rules of Latin grammar, not English. Trying to avoid ending a sentence with a preposition often results in very unnatural phrasings.

There are some that are still poor grammar, like “where are you at”. But the pp sentence with an ending preposition is fine.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Many from the LMC view education as vocational training and don’t understand the value of a liberal arts education.

Many people don’t seem to understand that you can learn about many different things without needing to get a degree in it.