Editing 2146: Waiting for the But
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==Explanation== | ==Explanation== | ||
+ | {{incomplete|Created by a BUT. Please mention here why this explanation isn't complete. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}} | ||
Often arguments are made in the form of "I think X, but Y", where Y is almost but not quite contradictory to X. More specifically, the argument would go "I am not [something generally considered distasteful], but [a more specific statement most people consider part of that general statement]". The first part of such a statement can sometimes be viewed as an apology or an excuse because the person talking knows that the second part might upset people. A common example would be "I'm not a racist, but I don't think we should let refugees from Africa into Europe." The idea of denying help to people from Africa will be seen as racist by many people, so the speaker tries to preempt that opinion of themself. | Often arguments are made in the form of "I think X, but Y", where Y is almost but not quite contradictory to X. More specifically, the argument would go "I am not [something generally considered distasteful], but [a more specific statement most people consider part of that general statement]". The first part of such a statement can sometimes be viewed as an apology or an excuse because the person talking knows that the second part might upset people. A common example would be "I'm not a racist, but I don't think we should let refugees from Africa into Europe." The idea of denying help to people from Africa will be seen as racist by many people, so the speaker tries to preempt that opinion of themself. | ||
+ | In this comic, [[Randall]] suggests that the longer the first part is, the worse the expectations of the post-adversative clause will be. Since [[Ponytail]] lists several seemingly unrelated but agreeable positions, it would seem likely that her statement following the adversative conjunction will be outrageous and upsetting to many; for example, she could be about to claim that car crashes could be beneficial if the sparks from the explosion were used to cook animals for food. | ||
− | In | + | In the title text, Randall gives another example of a sentence that will probably be followed by a but. It would appear that the person speaking in the title text is about to say that there is something involving predatory multi-level marketing schemes and the Spanish Inquisition BUT, unlike a but, no one expects either. |
− | + | Another possible explanation would be that when people hear a sentence that starts with "Listen," they tend to wait for the "but", and the longer it takes the more tension it may cause them, while the speaker may never intend to say "but". A similar idea was used for [[559:_No_Pun_Intended]] | |
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− | Another possible explanation would be that when people hear a sentence that starts with "Listen, | ||
==Transcript== | ==Transcript== | ||
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[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]] | [[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]] | ||
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]] | [[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]] | ||
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