Leith on language
Sam Leith
Sentenced to Brexit
It may not have been “the Sun wot won it”, when it came to the Brexit vote. But could it have been grammar? That is, at least in part, the argument of The Language of Brexit, an enlightening new book by the academic linguist Steve Buckledee. He has been riffling through the propaganda on both sides of the referendum debate since early 2016 to unpick the linguistic habits of both sides; and plunges back into the language of our relationship with Europe since the 1970s.
Here’s a f’rinstance. We were told, here and there, before the vote, that referenda tend to favour the status quo. After the result, of course, pundits performed the manoeuvre known in the days of Kelvin McKenzie’s Sun as the “reverse ferret.” Emphasis was placed on the way in which, when you’re campaigning for the status quo, it’s hard to muster the passion of someone who’s telling you that something must be done. “Stay put!” doesn’t have quite the oomph of “Charge!”