Monday, December 13, 2010

pimp grammar

There's a pimp's handwritten business plan floating around the interwebz. While the soundness of its basic logic cannot be denied ("Treat This Pimpin Like it's a Business" indeed), the former writing teacher in me could not help but pull out the old red pen and make a few suggestions. But here's the thing, it's a fact of contemporary college education that most writing teachers are loath to outright criticize or correct their students (they're paying tuition after all). You see, outside of the Ivy League, most college writing teachers are faced with whole classrooms filled with pimps like Keep It Pimpin', and they're our bread and butter (we can't all be blessed with students like the Winkelvi, can we?). As a result, we are careful to word our feedback delicately, so as not to offend the senses of the ones who pad our, admittedly thin, paychecks*.


*Absolute truth: I taught college level research writing courses for the whopping total price of $1250/semester. The MOST I ever got paid for teaching a college level course was $2800. In the (modified) words of my literary hero DJay:

You know it's hard out here for a [rhetoric & writing instructor].
When he tryin to get this money for the rent.
For the Cadillacs and gas money spent
Because a whole lotta [students] talkin [nonsense].

HT kottke.

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