Gabrielle Colbert
Prof. Emily Michael
ENC 1143
11 March 2019
Annotations: Kory Stamper’s “Irregardless”
Rhetorical Situation
Author & Ethos:
The author of “Irregardless: On Wrong
Words” is Kory Stamper, a lexicographer, author, and former
associate editor for Merriam-Webster Dictionary.
Context (When, Where, and What Format):
“Irregardless” is
a chapter in Stamper’s book “Word by Word: The Secret Life of
Dictionaries,” published in 2017 by Bloomsbury.
Ongoing Conversation:
“Irregardless” is a small part of a very
diverse and extremely opinionated conversation: words, where
they come from, and how one should use them.
Audience:
Stamper’s audience is general in an upscale sense
(English writers, students, speakers), as this is Bloomsbury’s
typical audience. She explains every term she uses with great
detail and examples in a way she does not need to with fellow
lexicographers.
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Thesis (Main Claim):
Stamper argues that “irregardless” has
grown popular through usage in speech and publications, and
continues to be used even if it is (obviously) structurally
incorrect.
Quotes & Observations
1.
In the beginning of “Irregardless,” Stamper states, ‘One of the
tasks that every Merriam-Webster editor must do is answer
editorial correspondence’ (52). She starts with this interesting
fact because her audience may not know this. She uses the
word “must” to inform them that this is not optional but, in
fact, a mandatory task.
2.
Stamper continues, ‘Since the 1860s, dictionary users have
been encouraged to write to the company with questions
about its books or the English language, and some long-
suffering editor will respond’ (52). This is another interesting
fact many in the audience may have been blissfully unaware
of--if they have a question about a word, they can send the
editor an email about it. Her choice of the word “long-
suffering” reveals how mentally painful, or rather draining,
answering these questions has become. The audience hears
the missing “Oh, what fun.”
3.
When first being informed that Merriam-Webster had entered
“irregardless” into the dictionary, Stamper recalls, ‘I rolled
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my eyes:
obviously
“irregardless” isn’t a valid word, so it
wouldn’t be entered into our dictionaries’ (53). This sentence
builds humor within the writing; for the audience can hear her
voice clearly. They hear the verbal irony as she puts italics on
“obviously.” She wants the audience to picture her dramatic
eye roll. Obviously.
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