How difficult it is to remind users of the English language, whether in the spoken or in the written form to be mindful of the language, and the manner they express themselves to be understood and they would not listen to do the right thing. It is indeed, an uphill task for people to take correction and adhere to the rules of the game. They are never convinced but choose to do it their own way, and that is why there are rules and regulations to guide human conducts otherwise things will go haywire and life becomes not only nasty, but short and brutish, just as the state would steadily descend into anarchy. And so it is in all aspects of human life, to observe the rules and obey the laws for a stable and peaceful society we all crave for. The language of mass communication cannot be an exception as there are standard rules to be applied in everyday intercourse or interaction with our neighbours and even those strangers we come across. Be it in official circle or one-on-one meeting with people, the way we put our thoughts through defines who we are.
Don’t be surprised that many people have lost opportunities of winning major contracts and even doing business successfully because they failed to articulate their thought process in a sound and orderly manner, then the blame game creeps in as to who is responsible for their failures. And that brings us to the subject of what the English purists and masters described as “overkill”, the ability to mislead the viewing or reading publics with tautologies that sound convincing, that they would never bat an eye, swallowing up these toxic expressions hook, line and sinker (there goes another colloquialism), that is, they accept things completely ignorant of the damage inflicted, and the cycle endures without an end in sight. The word, “overkill”, a noun, is an understatement to point out the tautology hidden in phrases such as “absolute perfection”, and “adequate enough”, aside from sounding pompous tend to dazzle and mesmerise, especially the uninitiated and learners of the language, or those still at elementary or secondary stage of the English language class. But not so to the starry-eyed and vigilant pragmatists who could easily point out or separate the grain from the chaff. These are the masters of the language who cannot be deceived by those perceived as smart writers who often choose to be at liberty to use words or expressions anyhow they liked it to sway the audience to act.
Often I do address this method of manipulating the publics on the antics of the advertising copywriter who, in his or her bid to sell to the consuming audience the clients’ products and services would go to any length to break the rules by piling up adjectives upon adjectives, all to convince the buyer to take that risk to go all out for such products or services on offer. This is absolute or complete madness as some people would see it. I would advise that one takes these manipulations with a pinch of salt and see them as advertisement gimmicks to hold down the consumer to act or accept that which is thrown at him or her. As it is the standard practice, I would briefly discuss the expression, “absolute perfection” and put in the can the phrase, “adequate enough” for another day. The word “absolute” is an adjective which the reference material, in this case the Chambers 21st Century Dictionary, for instance interprets as something complete, total or perfect; without limits, not controlled by anything or anyone else; again, something that is not measured, of absolute standard, the dictionary emphasises. On the other hand, the noun “perfection” is the state of being perfect, the process of making or being made perfect, complete, flawless, and so on. The adjective “perfect” is stated by the dictionary as something that is complete in all essential elements, faultless, flawless, excellent and absolutely satisfactory. From the example cited, we can now see why the phrase, “absolute perfection” is a misnomer and tautology carried too far; in this case one is indulging in the use of words which repeats the meaning found in other words already used. For instance, “I myself personally am a vegetarian”, the dictionary instructs us. So, play safe. Don’t be a copycat. Avoid those embarrassing moments that could hurt you. Keep to the Standard English and all would be well with you.
