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Sorry I Haven't a Clue and language

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Edited by Patrick Andrews, Tuesday, 5 Apr 2011, 10:19

The comedy programme "I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue" could provide useful examples of many aspects of language analysis.  For example, last week there was a reference to 20,000 odd people in Thanet where the comedy derives from the fact that the odd could be attached to 20,000, meaning about 20,000 or to the people, meaning that the people are odd (strange).

It is interesting how often comedy can help us be aware of how language works in context/discourse.  McCarthy's(1991) book starts with an example from Morecombe and Wise. 

McCarthy M (1991) Discourse Analysis for Language Teachers Cambridge: CUP

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