DailyGenesis.com

Ok, so this is something that’s always bothered me, and I just recently discovered that I’m not alone in my concern over the issue. So very many people misuse the phrase “begs the question.” I take note every time I hear it inappropriately applied, especially in something mainstream like a newspaper or TV broadcast by journalists who should, you would think, work hard to utilize language correctly.

I did a little search on the phrase and found a whole website dedicated to setting the record straight on this. Plus, there are a bunch of other people pontificating about the problem. So, I’ll try not to be too redundant, but just say this:

“Begs the question” does NOT mean “raises the question” or “implies the question” or “makes me want to ask this other question.” It is not correct to say something like “he said he doesn’t like tomatoes, which begs the question ‘why is he growing tomatoes in his back yard?’” While that is the way most everyone uses it, it is not the actual meaning of the phrase.

The correct meaning is explained on the get it right website linked above:

“‘Begging the question’ is a form of logical fallacy in which a statement or claim is assumed to be true without evidence other than the statement or claim itself. When one begs the question, the initial assumption of a statement is treated as already proven without any logic to show why the statement is true in the first place.”

It is a phrase with origins in logic or argument, and it is used most appropriately in legal matters and debate. It is not a phrase that most people have need to use very often. So, the next time you are tempted to throw out the phrase in a simple colloquial context, please think twice and help preserve the true meaning of the phrase. The English language thanks you for it!

This entry was posted on Saturday, July 5th, 2008 at 3:53 pm and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.