<![CDATA[The teacher said "In English a double negative forms a positive.]]>The teacher said "In English a double negative forms a positive. In some languages, though, such as Russian, a double negative is still a negative. However, there is no language wherein a double positive can form a negative."
A voice from the back of the room piped up, "Yeah, right."

]]>https://forum.fedi.dk/topic/8b294b93-e164-4f5a-90aa-db2035131017/the-teacher-said-in-english-a-double-negative-forms-a-positive.RSS for NodeThu, 11 Jun 2026 14:40:04 GMTFri, 05 Jun 2026 06:00:46 GMT60<![CDATA[Reply to The teacher said "In English a double negative forms a positive. on Sat, 06 Jun 2026 12:46:41 GMT]]>@lankohr @kibcol1049 @quixoticgeek The programmer joke this reminds me of is the programmer found dead in a shower holding an empty shampoo bottle where the instructions simply said: Lather, rinse, repeat.

]]>https://forum.fedi.dk/post/https://mstdn.social/users/arcadiagt5/statuses/116703232116844914https://forum.fedi.dk/post/https://mstdn.social/users/arcadiagt5/statuses/116703232116844914Sat, 06 Jun 2026 12:46:41 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to The teacher said "In English a double negative forms a positive. on Sat, 06 Jun 2026 10:01:33 GMT]]>@kibcol1049

Klar doch ...

]]>https://forum.fedi.dk/post/https://norrebro.space/users/sebastian/statuses/116702582782352028https://forum.fedi.dk/post/https://norrebro.space/users/sebastian/statuses/116702582782352028Sat, 06 Jun 2026 10:01:33 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to The teacher said "In English a double negative forms a positive. on Sat, 06 Jun 2026 01:44:00 GMT]]>@kibcol1049 not wrong.

]]>https://forum.fedi.dk/post/https://masto.ai/users/ariaflame/statuses/116700626338849002https://forum.fedi.dk/post/https://masto.ai/users/ariaflame/statuses/116700626338849002Sat, 06 Jun 2026 01:44:00 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to The teacher said "In English a double negative forms a positive. on Sat, 06 Jun 2026 00:45:19 GMT]]>@the_wub @mfeilner @kibcol1049 @chillicampari

I once used the word, walking home in the pouring rain, thinking it equivalent to the English "but" - and was roundly scolded for it, in English, I learned the contradiction bit on the fly.

]]>https://forum.fedi.dk/post/https://beige.party/users/tuban_muzuru/statuses/116700395591068596https://forum.fedi.dk/post/https://beige.party/users/tuban_muzuru/statuses/116700395591068596Sat, 06 Jun 2026 00:45:19 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to The teacher said "In English a double negative forms a positive. on Fri, 05 Jun 2026 22:30:56 GMT]]>@kibcol1049
I heard this story in school:
Either a teacher or another student said "you can't extend consonants". A different student said "yes you cannn".

]]>https://forum.fedi.dk/post/https://noc.social/users/light/statuses/116699867125674896https://forum.fedi.dk/post/https://noc.social/users/light/statuses/116699867125674896Fri, 05 Jun 2026 22:30:56 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to The teacher said "In English a double negative forms a positive. on Fri, 05 Jun 2026 22:02:41 GMT]]>@mfeilner @the_wub @kibcol1049 @chillicampari "Doch!" (in contrast to "Ja") is the equivalent to French "Si!" (in contrast to "oui").

]]>https://forum.fedi.dk/post/https://radiosocial.de/users/DC4AC/statuses/116699756062764080https://forum.fedi.dk/post/https://radiosocial.de/users/DC4AC/statuses/116699756062764080Fri, 05 Jun 2026 22:02:41 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to The teacher said "In English a double negative forms a positive. on Fri, 05 Jun 2026 21:42:37 GMT]]>@lankohr @AlexanderVI @EF @rzeta0 @kibcol1049
It's been part of the US culture wars for decades now, if not longer; the rest of the anglosphere just has to roll with it. As a German speaker you may consider it a US Gift for the world.

]]>https://forum.fedi.dk/post/https://mastodon.social/users/HighlandLawyer/statuses/116699677153761010https://forum.fedi.dk/post/https://mastodon.social/users/HighlandLawyer/statuses/116699677153761010Fri, 05 Jun 2026 21:42:37 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to The teacher said "In English a double negative forms a positive. on Fri, 05 Jun 2026 21:29:52 GMT]]>@HighlandLawyer @AlexanderVI @EF @rzeta0 @kibcol1049 Ok, i don't get this "black" for "evil" could be confused with skin color, but ok.

]]>https://forum.fedi.dk/post/https://mastodon.social/ap/users/115465199009917356/statuses/116699627053341764https://forum.fedi.dk/post/https://mastodon.social/ap/users/115465199009917356/statuses/116699627053341764Fri, 05 Jun 2026 21:29:52 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to The teacher said "In English a double negative forms a positive. on Fri, 05 Jun 2026 21:04:31 GMT]]>@the_wub @mfeilner @kibcol1049 @chillicampari

Doch carries the freight of contradiction.

]]>https://forum.fedi.dk/post/https://beige.party/users/tuban_muzuru/statuses/116699527337064179https://forum.fedi.dk/post/https://beige.party/users/tuban_muzuru/statuses/116699527337064179Fri, 05 Jun 2026 21:04:31 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to The teacher said "In English a double negative forms a positive. on Fri, 05 Jun 2026 21:01:37 GMT]]>@mfeilner @the_wub @kibcol1049 @chillicampari Yes, and it can mean "Spiegel" (mirror) for "selber!" (You, not me).

]]>https://forum.fedi.dk/post/https://mastodon.social/ap/users/115465199009917356/statuses/116699515961815789https://forum.fedi.dk/post/https://mastodon.social/ap/users/115465199009917356/statuses/116699515961815789Fri, 05 Jun 2026 21:01:37 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to The teacher said "In English a double negative forms a positive. on Fri, 05 Jun 2026 21:00:52 GMT]]>@kibcol1049

Actually happened.

The lecturer was the Oxford linguist JL Austin, giving a talk at Columbia. The smartass in the back of the room was, as always, philosopher Sidney Morgenbesser.

https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Sidney_Morgenbesser#:~:text=Morgenbesser%20responded%20in%20a%20dismissive%20tone

]]>https://forum.fedi.dk/post/https://mathstodon.xyz/users/weekend_editor/statuses/116699512963588104https://forum.fedi.dk/post/https://mathstodon.xyz/users/weekend_editor/statuses/116699512963588104Fri, 05 Jun 2026 21:00:52 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to The teacher said "In English a double negative forms a positive. on Fri, 05 Jun 2026 20:51:28 GMT]]>@mfeilner @kibcol1049 @chillicampari My Dutch is significantly better than my German but I understand that "toch" and "doch" are used in similar ways in their respective languages.

"Het regent buiten maar wij gaan toch de stadt in".

"Toch?".

🙃

]]>https://forum.fedi.dk/post/https://mastodon.social/users/the_wub/statuses/116699476011073152https://forum.fedi.dk/post/https://mastodon.social/users/the_wub/statuses/116699476011073152Fri, 05 Jun 2026 20:51:28 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to The teacher said "In English a double negative forms a positive. on Fri, 05 Jun 2026 20:43:12 GMT]]>@the_wub @kibcol1049 @chillicampari "Doch" is the one-word solution for Germans for insisting on being right. "Doch" is what children say, thumping their feet on the ground, crying. "Doch" means "Still" or "Yes I f***g do" or "No, I will never do that" depending on context before. It can also mean "Yes, really!!" after somebody voiced doubt. Famous is Louis de Funes "Nein! Doch! Oooooh! in German Internet culture...

]]>https://forum.fedi.dk/post/https://mastodon.social/users/mfeilner/statuses/116699443515298456https://forum.fedi.dk/post/https://mastodon.social/users/mfeilner/statuses/116699443515298456Fri, 05 Jun 2026 20:43:12 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to The teacher said "In English a double negative forms a positive. on Fri, 05 Jun 2026 20:31:47 GMT]]>@eleder i mean, i get your point about irony being how meaning shifts, but i disagree that it somehow is unique. ‘Ain’t no reason’ are a double negative syntactically but remain negative. Syntax stops mattering strictly in most of these.

]]>https://forum.fedi.dk/post/https://hachyderm.io/users/cascheranno/statuses/116699398603481595https://forum.fedi.dk/post/https://hachyderm.io/users/cascheranno/statuses/116699398603481595Fri, 05 Jun 2026 20:31:47 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to The teacher said "In English a double negative forms a positive. on Fri, 05 Jun 2026 20:31:42 GMT]]>@lankohr @AlexanderVI @EF @rzeta0 @kibcol1049
I believe the English term for Schwarze Pädagogik is "poisonous pedagogy", to avoid confusion with educational practices applied to African Americans.

But yes, the song (and surrounding material of the film) is explicit on that point.

]]>https://forum.fedi.dk/post/https://mastodon.social/users/HighlandLawyer/statuses/116699398306619490https://forum.fedi.dk/post/https://mastodon.social/users/HighlandLawyer/statuses/116699398306619490Fri, 05 Jun 2026 20:31:42 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to The teacher said "In English a double negative forms a positive. on Fri, 05 Jun 2026 19:51:20 GMT]]>@kibcol1049 Could be done in french
"Ouais, bien sûr !"

]]>https://forum.fedi.dk/post/https://pouet.chapril.org/users/R1Rail/statuses/116699239599567558https://forum.fedi.dk/post/https://pouet.chapril.org/users/R1Rail/statuses/116699239599567558Fri, 05 Jun 2026 19:51:20 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to The teacher said "In English a double negative forms a positive. on Fri, 05 Jun 2026 19:44:58 GMT]]>@EF @rzeta0 @kibcol1049 to me a double negative is usually emphatic. It's complicated because double negatives in English work differently in different bits of the UK, hence the guidance not to use them when you need clarity. There are lots of cases though like 'no he did not break wind' that are universal-ish

English is what happens when you steal good ideas randomly from everyone else but have nobody doing the architecture for it 🤣

]]>https://forum.fedi.dk/post/https://mastodon.social/users/etchedpixels/statuses/116699214554892205https://forum.fedi.dk/post/https://mastodon.social/users/etchedpixels/statuses/116699214554892205Fri, 05 Jun 2026 19:44:58 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to The teacher said "In English a double negative forms a positive. on Fri, 05 Jun 2026 19:00:50 GMT]]>@HighlandLawyer @AlexanderVI @EF @rzeta0 @kibcol1049 It's not against education, it's against black pedagogy.

]]>https://forum.fedi.dk/post/https://mastodon.social/ap/users/115465199009917356/statuses/116699040993115875https://forum.fedi.dk/post/https://mastodon.social/ap/users/115465199009917356/statuses/116699040993115875Fri, 05 Jun 2026 19:00:50 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to The teacher said "In English a double negative forms a positive. on Fri, 05 Jun 2026 18:50:17 GMT]]>@jbenjamint @mfeilner @kibcol1049 @chillicampari Jo!

Or do you mean like "Yerssss. That's a very 'interesting' proposal you have there".

]]>https://forum.fedi.dk/post/https://mastodon.social/users/the_wub/statuses/116698999519267000https://forum.fedi.dk/post/https://mastodon.social/users/the_wub/statuses/116698999519267000Fri, 05 Jun 2026 18:50:17 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to The teacher said "In English a double negative forms a positive. on Fri, 05 Jun 2026 18:38:29 GMT]]>@lankohr @AlexanderVI @EF @rzeta0 @kibcol1049
"Repeat after me: 'an acre is the area of land whose length...' "

]]>https://forum.fedi.dk/post/https://mastodon.social/users/HighlandLawyer/statuses/116698953111189646https://forum.fedi.dk/post/https://mastodon.social/users/HighlandLawyer/statuses/116698953111189646Fri, 05 Jun 2026 18:38:29 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to The teacher said "In English a double negative forms a positive. on Fri, 05 Jun 2026 18:26:13 GMT]]>@stevewfolds @kibcol1049 😂

]]>https://forum.fedi.dk/post/https://mstdn.ca/users/Oldfartrant/statuses/116698904868116362https://forum.fedi.dk/post/https://mstdn.ca/users/Oldfartrant/statuses/116698904868116362Fri, 05 Jun 2026 18:26:13 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to The teacher said "In English a double negative forms a positive. on Fri, 05 Jun 2026 18:23:33 GMT]]>@kibcol1049 clearly, interpret it in whichever way is detremental to the speaker until they learn to speak clearly

]]>https://forum.fedi.dk/post/https://chitter.xyz/users/sylvie/statuses/116698894370582211https://forum.fedi.dk/post/https://chitter.xyz/users/sylvie/statuses/116698894370582211Fri, 05 Jun 2026 18:23:33 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to The teacher said "In English a double negative forms a positive. on Fri, 05 Jun 2026 18:07:40 GMT]]>@kibcol1049 We've also got "niin" with numerous meanings replacing whole sentences. The meaning depends on intonation (very subtle though) and tone etc. It's all surprisingly high-context.

]]>https://forum.fedi.dk/post/https://mastodontti.fi/users/paavi/statuses/116698831948590056https://forum.fedi.dk/post/https://mastodontti.fi/users/paavi/statuses/116698831948590056Fri, 05 Jun 2026 18:07:40 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to The teacher said "In English a double negative forms a positive. on Fri, 05 Jun 2026 18:01:26 GMT]]>@TrueNorthSpice @maggiejk I'm pretty sure that Finnish people can be blamed for that, maybe.

]]>https://forum.fedi.dk/post/https://mastodontti.fi/users/paavi/statuses/116698807431856909https://forum.fedi.dk/post/https://mastodontti.fi/users/paavi/statuses/116698807431856909Fri, 05 Jun 2026 18:01:26 GMT