When enough people know a saying, but don’t understand its intent, its meaning drifts. The idea is supposed to be that the existence of an exception proves that there is a rule, with “rule” being in the sense of a generality.
I learned that from the Grammar Girl podcast and found it interesting enough that it stuck with me (because it was something I’d long wondered). Her example is a sign that forbids skateboarding while school is in session. “You can infer that you are allowed to skateboard at other times. The rule that the exception proves is that skateboarding is generally allowed. If that were not a rule, why would exceptions be made at all?"
I can’t find the name of them but in one of the Star Wars novels the Millenium Falcon ends up trapped in some ice caverns and they encounter sentient clouds of gas, methane iirc.
So we do have some people making up cool aliens.
Oh, the Pequeninos in Speaker for the Dead. They were sentient humanoid beings that became the trees of their world when they died. There’s more to it than that, but that’s the gist.
Ok, fair enough, I’ll give us one example of being good at it, as the exception that proves the rule.
I’ve never understood this phrase. How does an exception prove a rule? Surely an exception disproves a rule?
You’re right, it’s a bullshit phrase
When enough people know a saying, but don’t understand its intent, its meaning drifts. The idea is supposed to be that the existence of an exception proves that there is a rule, with “rule” being in the sense of a generality.
I learned that from the Grammar Girl podcast and found it interesting enough that it stuck with me (because it was something I’d long wondered). Her example is a sign that forbids skateboarding while school is in session. “You can infer that you are allowed to skateboard at other times. The rule that the exception proves is that skateboarding is generally allowed. If that were not a rule, why would exceptions be made at all?"
Transcript: https://www.quickanddirtytips.com/qdtarchive/why-do-we-say-the-exception-that-proves-the-rule/
That does make sense, even if it is a completely ass way of phrasing it
I can’t find the name of them but in one of the Star Wars novels the Millenium Falcon ends up trapped in some ice caverns and they encounter sentient clouds of gas, methane iirc.
So we do have some people making up cool aliens.
Oh, the Pequeninos in Speaker for the Dead. They were sentient humanoid beings that became the trees of their world when they died. There’s more to it than that, but that’s the gist.