This One's For You, Mrs. S.
A couple of weeks ago, I got a comment on my blog from my 7th-grade English teacher, who wrote that she was "mighty proud of my efforts to maintain a grammatically correct generation." I looked her up in the phone book after that, and we had a nice chat. Her devotion to pounding grammar into impressionable young minds was one factor that led to me becoming a writer and copy editor. (The acting and real estate stuff I came up with on my own.) She's retired now, but my friends and I still reminisce about how scary we once thought she was, and how much we learned from her. She really was a fantastic teacher.
Anyway, I will continue to point out grammatical errors on this blog, even though the number of people who care is dwindling. Case in point: this ad for Sarah Jessica Parker's perfume, Lovely. The ad, which I found in my October issue of Glamour, reads "Experience a new way to wear Lovely. Liquid satin perfume seum leaves a delicate baby soft finish that begs to be touched. A perfect scent accessory to backless, strapless and skin bearing fashions."
Let's leave aside the issue of hyphenation, which is a whole other story. How can ad copywriters expect us to read their ads and buy their products if they make such egregious usage errors? Skin bearing? Seriously? What does the skin bear? It sounds to me like it might be time to visit a dermatologist if your skin is bearing something. Skin-baring fashions, on the other hand, that I can understand.
I want to find the ad agency who did this ad and chastise it for its sloppy work. Ad copywriters get paid decent money. They should at least take the time to proofread their copy. And if they can't, then I'd be happy to do it. For a fee, of course.
Anyway, I will continue to point out grammatical errors on this blog, even though the number of people who care is dwindling. Case in point: this ad for Sarah Jessica Parker's perfume, Lovely. The ad, which I found in my October issue of Glamour, reads "Experience a new way to wear Lovely. Liquid satin perfume seum leaves a delicate baby soft finish that begs to be touched. A perfect scent accessory to backless, strapless and skin bearing fashions."
Let's leave aside the issue of hyphenation, which is a whole other story. How can ad copywriters expect us to read their ads and buy their products if they make such egregious usage errors? Skin bearing? Seriously? What does the skin bear? It sounds to me like it might be time to visit a dermatologist if your skin is bearing something. Skin-baring fashions, on the other hand, that I can understand.
I want to find the ad agency who did this ad and chastise it for its sloppy work. Ad copywriters get paid decent money. They should at least take the time to proofread their copy. And if they can't, then I'd be happy to do it. For a fee, of course.
posted by Astera @ 9:10 PM
4 Comments:
At 10:07 PM,
Bruingirl said…
LOL!!!! I love the grammatical errors that you point out! I think their hilarious!!
hahahaha....I just HAD to throw that one in (you know what I'm talking about in the previous paragraph) b/c it just jumps out at you, I'm sure! ;-) Besides, WAY too many people make that mistake and it drives me up the wall!! And I wasn't even an English major!
BTW, I'm reading "Daughter of Persia" right now. Have you ever read it?
At 6:02 PM,
Anonymous said…
Your latest posting made me laugh here in Providence, Rhode Island, home of Brown University. I am glad to hear that you and your English teacher reconnected. Wonderful.
O Kanenas
At 6:27 PM,
Anonymous said…
yikes - not acceptable at all. And you can't imagine how many legions of people look at those ads before they get signed off either.
I also want to track down that ad agency...and send them my resume for the position that's undoubtably now open. :)
At 5:18 AM,
Jessi said…
How horrible!
I am also appalled by the surge of incorrect grammar in published materials. It's nice to know that there are others who find joy in pointing out the grammatical blunder or two.
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