idiolectizing

A while back I mentioned the word "idiolect". Here's a little look into my idiolect, as I see it, specifically a look at an archaiasism that I think is the greatest usage of a contraction ever.

Consider the contraction "I've".

Now, we all learned in gradeschool that it was a contraction where the apostrophe stood for the "ha" in "have", giving us the meaning "I have". But, unfortunetaly, in the modern day, we only ever use this contraction when the word "to have" is being used as an auxillary to form the past tense: In plainer terms, we only ever use it when we're saying something like "I've already seen that movie," or "I've been thinking."

We forget that the "'ve" is actually "to have", which has another meaning outside of being an auxillary.

Yes, people. "To have" can actually mean "to have", even in its contracted form. "I've a book" or "I've a good idea." These are both valid usages! Just imagine the fun you could have with this!

-"Hey! How about we all be "cool" and speak the exact same boring way?"
-"You know what? I've a better idea! Let's not!"

And that's my rant.

I'll leave you with a word of the day, to help with your own idiolect:

atavism - appearance in an individual of a characteristic typical of an ancestral form; ALSO: such an individual
-reversion to a more primitive type

Imagine the fun you can have with this!

-"Hey! I've a good idea! Let's be weird! NEVER BE NORMAL!"
-"Don't you think that use of the "I've" contraction is a little archaic?"
-"Yes, I suppose... But come on! I'm just starting to put my wonderous idea into effect! Who could ever be weirder than an atavism?"

Can you people tell I'm tired yet? Sorry for the terrible examples. But you get the gist.

-lelandpaul
-21-