What grammar is and is not

Abstract

It is important from the outset that we are clear about what we mean by the term GRAMMAR in this book. Many people think of grammar as a rather boring school subject which has little use in real life. They may have come across the concept in Latin ‘O’ level, in English composition, or in the explanations of teachers as to what is ‘good’ or ‘bad’ grammar. So grammar is often associated in people’s minds with one of the following ideas: a dead language such as Latin, learning how to write ‘good English’, or learning how to speak ‘properly’. None of these ideas about grammar is completely wrong, but they do not represent the whole picture.