Double Positives and Double Negatives

[LaurieAG]

There was a joke in our local paper the other day.

 

(loosely) A Linguistics professor was lecturing a university class about the use of double negatives and said:- 'Many languages use a double negative as a positive while the Russian language regards it as a negative. Double positives are different because no language uses a double positive as a negative'

 

From the back of the class a student retorted 'Yeah, right'

 

This led me to think about how doubles can be compounded almost across the sentence i.e. 'you can NOT expect me NOT to do "A"' (if doing 'A' was considered normal behaviour) is much clearer than 'you can NOT NOT expect me to do "A"' (where the NOT NOT is redundant).

 

Does anybody else have any interesting compound double positive/negative examples?

[Turtle]

Does anybody else have any interesting compound double positive/negative examples?

 

Not hardly.

[LaurieAG]

That's a good one Turtle.

 

Not hardly. ;) :hihi:

 

hard·ly –adverb

1. only just; almost not; barely: We had hardly reached the lake when it started raining. hardly any; hardly ever.

2. not at all; scarcely: That report is hardly surprising.

3. with little likelihood: He will hardly come now.

4. forcefully or vigorously.

5. with pain or difficulty.

6. British. harshly or severely.

7. hard.

[Hill]

I'm positively sure there are some others.

[freeztar]

My girlfriend is always using a double negative as a positive. She's always yelling 'don't...stop'. :hihi:

 

;)

[Turtle]

Beatrix was not unremarkable in appearence. :confused:

[Monomer]

:xparty:

We don't need no education.

We don't need no thought control.

[LaurieAG]

Hi Turtle,

 

Beatrix was not unremarkable in appearence. :hihi:

 

I've noticed that all statements in the format of NOT UN-xxxx, or NOT DIS-xxxx are all compound double negatives, although some of them should be excluded because they don't make much sense.

[LaurieAG]

Hi Monomer,

 

:hihi:

We don't need no education.

We don't need no thought control.

 

Maybe a Fleudian slip, we need education, we need thought control!

[Turtle]

Beatrix was not unremarkable in appearence.

Hi Turtle,

 

I've noticed that all statements in the format of NOT UN-xxxx, or NOT DIS-xxxx are all compound double negatives, although some of them should be excluded because they don't make much sense.

 

Hi Laurie,

 

In my example, poetic license took hold. Not bad, aye? :hihi:

[LaurieAG]

Hi Hill,

 

I'm positively sure there are some others.

 

I'm positively certain too, that these double positives are actually positive.

[LaurieAG]

In my example, poetic license took hold. Not bad, aye? :hihi:

 

Hi Turtle,

 

Good one, but to be a bit difficult, how about a compound palindromic double positive/negative. I'll have a think about this one.

[Monomer]

Hi Monomer,

Maybe a Fleudian slip, we need education, we need thought control!

 

I know, I was merely quoting. :hihi:

[LaurieAG]

I know, I was merely quoting. :)

 

I know Mono,

 

If I thought it was you I would have put 'Freudian' instead of 'Fleudian', Ha.

[eric l]

It seems a bit strange that you have no reactions from your South African members, since in Afrikaans the double negative is absolutely standard. (This first sentence in Afrikaans would become something like "... no reactions from none of your South African members")

In French, there is a problem : "jamais" as an exclamation means "never", but if used in a sentence, it has to be matched by "ne"

But double negative iare colloquially used in many local variants of Dutch as well, and I think in many other languages, too. I do remember hearing things like "nobody told me nothing..."

And listen (and look) to this : YouTube - THE DUBLINERS

 

(not all YouTube clips have to be about "serious" science)

[LaurieAG]

I know, I was merely quoting. :P

 

 

Hi Monomer,

 

After further thought I must relegate the Pink Floyd example to the 'poor english' category because the real statements would be:

 

'We don't need ANY education, we don't need ANY thought control'

[LaurieAG]

It seems a bit strange that you have no reactions from your South African members, since in Afrikaans the double negative is absolutely standard. (This first sentence in Afrikaans would become something like "... no reactions from none of your South African members")

In French, there is a problem : "jamais" as an exclamation means "never", but if used in a sentence, it has to be matched by "ne"

But double negative iare colloquially used in many local variants of Dutch as well, and I think in many other languages, too. I do remember hearing things like "nobody told me nothing..."

And listen (and look) to this : YouTube - THE DUBLINERS

 

(not all YouTube clips have to be about "serious" science)

 

Hi Eric,

 

Some good examples 'never no more', but the 'nobody told me nothing' is another one where 'anything' should probably be substituted for 'nothing'.