Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1904-06-13
THE THESIS

III - Aff'Af|f
Prof. Paul said he would maintain
That the most valuable result of
,bo study Of grammar is the power
Of mind that comes from the ability
% analy2e sentences.
That the classincatons given IN
grammar are probably without special
,ome. and might be dispensed with.
That the point of view in the
teaching Of this subject should be
changed from that Of study of the
traditional nomenclature Of grammar
N that Of a. regard for the logic OF the
sentence as the essential and only vital
part Of the study.
T. That tile classification should be
carried 20 farther than the namins
of the parts and properties Of the SEN
tence and such discrimination ms It's
analysis makes necessary.
g. That II the teacher has this point
OF view, grammar win become a llV-
ing vital and interesting exercise in
applied logic, instead of the uninterest-
tg and tedious subject which It fire.
quently Is under our present methods Of
obstruction.
The speaker continued IN part as
follows
u have observed somewhere OF late,
az the title of "a textbook the words,
Essentials Of English The title sug-
gests 10 me a tonic for II II could once
~ uapavfufnaA Ntshnf a tho nguafttq la
~ that most glorious. most useful, most
beautiful part of the course OF school
instruction, Il were contamination
devOutly to be wished. AS yet, | have
failed TO discern many hopeful indica-
tons that the makers OF our textbooks
B. English have any clear knowledge
Of what constitutes the essentials OF
the study Of our great mother tongue
or the key to the treasures that are I'm
It's printed volumes hidden.
CLASSIFICATION VS. GRAMMAR.
notice, for example, that text
book writers on grammar still believe
mat the classification of words, the
con1ugaton of verbs, tho modes and
lenses and the correction OF errors I'm
Tho choice Of words largely make mp
the science OF grammar And per-
haps ] stand alone I'm maintaining
that these things are not grammar, but
have q certain relation to the subject.
me classification and properties OF adj
a'cllves, Tor instance. are scarcely any
more an exercise In grammar than Is n
similar classification Of shells or rice
weeds. or wild ducks, or tame rabbits
classification Of words Is not gram
mar the science Of language. II Is
merely an exercise In classification no
hetl'r ana no worse, for the purposes
OF language, than n classification OF
leed ores or hydrocarbons would be. DO
1ot misunderstood me, Classification
i necessary I'm any science, and a drill
IN classification when founded upon
ieHl generalization. and not merely up
On memory "a an indispensable part of
en- educated persons mental discipline.
but grammar probably requires less,
"hie IN books It receives more. of the
art or formal classification than does
any other subject taught In the schools
grammar | Will define without refer
enc 10 any authorities on It's definition,
B the science Of language, But lang
lote ~ the expression Of thought, Log
is the science OF thought. and gram
Ildr is the Introduction TO logic In
ayt grammar Is logic, and the line be,
tween these subjects IL an arbitrary
que nave not seen this deolara ton
lu hhy BOOK, though some writer's have
IIlrectly admitted the truth Of H..
grammar analyses sentences. and SEN
Wnces are the expressions OF Judgment
ena reason Every sentence is a iudg-
ment' The analysis Of a sentence ia the
hhalysls or Judgment. and Is a pro
.',s or logic pure and simple, It was
- revelation to the mathematician OF
we country when Commissioner VIM. T
liarris first asserted. then proved from
,,e nature OF the thing itself and from
.tDuI,uant historical testimony. that the
s'tuuy OF language Is the best cultiva-
VT POSSIBLE FOR the reasoning powers.
mao always been supposed that
n,"lnematlcs was FIRST In the cultivation
~ tsason' The analysis Of a sentence
!. the analysis OF thought, and a
'"ousht IL an act OF Judgment.
WHAT GOOD IS TENSE?
II The student can successfully nm
wye any stanza or paragraph from
we classic English authors. then Il mat
Wm Itue as to whether he knows any
!nlng about tense or not. To take
tense as an Illustration Of the various
formal divisions and classifcatlons Of
h'anmnrlans, what IL ~ and for what
useful When first studied gram
WHt' All the books, without except on.
.gutalned the statement that tense ia
rrme' A quarter OF a century ago, DIR.
aIh used TO say that the statement
~ se'se ana foolish, since tense does