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Article: Safire's secret ; Behind the tie, a loose spirit; The Word
- Article from:
- The Boston Globe (Boston, MA)
- Article date:
- October 4, 2009
CopyrightCopyright 2009 The Boston Globe. Provided by ProQuest LLC. (Hide copyright information)
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Several of the past week's tributes to language columnist and
pundit William Safire, who died last Sunday, referred to him as a
language arbiter. John McWhorter, in Forbes magazine, noted that he
and his fellow linguists "were not Safire fans. His take on language
was that it is something to be policed rather than observed."
A lot of loyal readers also assumed that policing was Safire's
role, which is why he had a fat folder of mail - labeled "You of
All People!" - itemizing his own mistakes. But was Safire really a
prescriptivist, an enforcer of rules, a resister of language change?
Or was that just one of the minor roles he played in his long-
running "On Language" gig?
It's only natural ...