Always exciting to receive reader mail:
Dear Jim,
Help! A friend and I are debating the correct use of "further" vs. "farther."
Chandra, Nashville,TN.
From: James Patrick
Chandra,
That seems to be an action packed Thursday evening you have going there.
Teachers often use clever tricks to assist via association with our language. I.e.
HOMES= the Great Lakes
Roy G. Biv= colors of the spectrum
"My very educated mother just served us nine pizzas"= Planets of the solar system
(even though Pluto is now considered the bastard stepchild of the solar system.) So, now we're left in the dark about what mother served nine of to the kids.
Also, "educated" is not a word I'd associate with this mother. Child endangerment seems more appropriate. But that doesn't fit the solar system rote memorization lesson I suppose.
Likewise, who names their kid Roy G. Biv???
The Mickey Mouse song is used to teach the correct spelling of Albuquerque...for those who stay up late night fretting over how to correctly spell Albuquerque. (answer: people who NEVER have sex.)
Quite simply, further and farther are slowly becoming interchangeable in the English language...which makes it, in my opinion, bi-sexual.
Back to your question, an old school method to settle your electrifying Thursday night debate:
Farther= physical distance...or the mileage that people plan to move from the U.S. after the election
Further= non-physical (I.e. my sex life)
example: "I desperately tried to further an evening of sexual relations with Monica but she kept moving farther down the bar."
I feel strongly that I would've been a great elementary school teacher.
Regards,
Jim Patrick
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