A friend of mine is trying to sublet his apartment. He heard from a fellow named Shawn, who may be looking to sublet. He asked Shawn to send him a phone number to discuss the apartment. Shawn began his reply,
Hi,
So, I am actually in Sweden visiting my girlfriend until this Sunday. …
I instructed my friend not to rent to this worm.
Why? To review:
(So, I realize the sentence-starting "so" is an out-of-control linguistic staph infection. Is there nothing we can do to prevent its senseless spread?)
kate campion says
It’s phatic speech, something we all do/need in social situations. Why? Geez, it’s been way too long since Dr. Caton’s Linguistics 110.
Anyone? Enlighten me, remind me?
David Murray says
It ALWAYS has some kind of purpose, and usually a bullshit purpose.
In this case, the person who starts with “so” establishes him- herself as testifying as an expert.
If you ask me, on account of I’m a writer, whether it’s okay to split an infinitive and I say, “Yes, it’s fine, and only an old schoolmarm would say different,” I expose myself as having ventured an opinion. Which I have done.
If, on the other hand, I answer the same question beginning with “so”–“So, there’s disagreement among grammarians, some of whom say … and others say …”–well now I’m posing as a kind of clinician, which keeps me on a linguistic pedestal of my own installation.
Likely, because I want me up here and you down there.
Dr. Caton, how did I do?