Defending Adverbs Exuberantly If Conditionally

Re:Defending Adverbs Exuberantly If Conditionally by Bjartr on Friday June 06, 2025 @08:15AM (#44200070)

I am reminded of the "Tom Swifty"[1], a sort of pun involving an adverb. They gained infamy though the YA books focusing on the adventures of Tom Swift. Here's a few examples

> "If you want me, I shall be in the attic," said Tom, loftily.

> "The thermostat is set too high," said Tom heatedly.

> "Don't you love sleeping outdoors," Tom said intently.

> "I just dropped the toothpaste," said Tom crestfallenly.

[1] https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tom_Swifty

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Re:Defending Adverbs Exuberantly If Conditionally by MortyWaves on Friday June 06, 2025 @08:51AM (#44200344)

Reason #385 to despise everything in the "YA" category across any media type.

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Re:Defending Adverbs Exuberantly If Conditionally by ckz on Friday June 06, 2025 @10:32AM (#44201335)

Careful fading Tom Swift too hard. The two main series date from the 1910-20s and the 50s-60s. Basically sci-fi Nancy Drew or Hardy Boys rather than modern YA, especially the second wave of books.

They're more "outwitting not-Soviet saboteurs with nuclear-powered inventions" and were written when science was putting the universe in our grasp.

They get mentioned here as an influence on folks from time to time (myself included), predictable adverb structure aside. :)

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Re:Defending Adverbs Exuberantly If Conditionally by vharuck on Friday June 06, 2025 @10:01AM (#44201023)

My favorite, plucked from Terry Pratchett:

"I'm a homosexual necrophiliac," said Tom in dead earnest.

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