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wrongly_amused
2008-11-19 06:48 am UTC (link)

I feel that kind of feeds into the purpose of the piece. I wouldn't use serious academia in something intended for common review. Polysyllabic words can become the unnecessary, sloppy parts of writing in the wrong context. But using one four syllable word, especially one with a very specific and intended meaning, in an otherwise fairly commonly worded application is not over the top.

Perhaps effectiveness of writing is more what I'm getting at. If it was a justifiable application in the context of the piece, the responsibility then falls on the reader to understand.

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eleutheria
2008-11-20 02:32 am UTC (link)

I was going to say something similar to this. I have a big issue with people who use jargon in posts intended for the everyday reader, I do think that's designed to make laypeople feel stupid and undereducated. (And for some terms, "just look it up" doesn't work. I spent two months reading things from my library to understand one person's jargon-laden post about postmodernism, Derrida, and critical theory, and still didn't get it.) But basic vocabulary, things that can be quickly looked up and understood, doesn't count as "jargon".

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