English vocabulary question...

marie-p

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Well, I'm working on one of my essays and there's one article I'd like to quote but first I need to make sure that the sentence I want to use really means what I think it does.
Even though I live and study in English, it's not my first language so every once in a while I run into vocabulary problem.

Anyway, the article says something like this:
"Many African-Americans are today arrayed with the democratic party."

I'm not too sure what "array" means in that context. I looked it up in the dictionary and I can't find a definition that makes sense. The article was written in 1900 so maybe it's just older English...

Am I right to assume that it means that the African-Americans were in favor of the democratic party?
(I'm just worried that maybe it means the opposite and I'll look stupid for quoting it wrong)
 

katl8e

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I wouldn't have used the word "arrayed", as it means "dressed in" or "decorated with". Perhaps the author meant "allied" or "aligned".

A lot of native English-speakers use words improperly.
 

deb25

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I'd say the same. That sentence doesn't make a whole lot of sense to me.....
 

stampit3d

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I`ll ask my friend who is black and see if she knows what that means. She maybe has heard that quote before...and I`ll get back to you and let you know what she says. (Hopefully she can shed some light for you.)
Linda
 

wellingtoncats

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Oooh whilst on the topic of english essays could you give me a few tips? I've failed my last two at school and they aren't giving me good enough feedback to figure out what I'm doing wrong.
 

sharky

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Originally Posted by WellingtonCats

Oooh whilst on the topic of english essays could you give me a few tips? I've failed my last two at school and they aren't giving me good enough feedback to figure out what I'm doing wrong.
Sam
I am far from good at english but I would be willing to read and try to give feedback
 

sharky

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Originally Posted by Charcoal

He used an incorrect word. He meant align themselves with the democratic party.
what ever happened to proof reading?? Okay I know I dont here much..lmao
 

jennyr

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Sam
I teach English essay writing and most people fail first because they don't plan and second they don't structure their work properly. The worst thing you can do is just start to write and hope it comes out OK. If you go to the Purdue Owl Site (google it) there are loads of handouts on essay structure. All essays must have:

Attention Grabber
Thesis statement at end of introduction paragraph
Topic sentence for each paragraph
Good support sentences
Concluding paragraph

PM me if I can give more help
 

wellingtoncats

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I was hoping you would reply Jenny. Thank you very much for the information. I can't PM but I'll definitly let you know if you can help me further. Thanks again!
 

bumpy

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Maybe the word had a different meaning when it was used,. I keep thinking of the phrase towed array. But anywho array can also mean lined up.

On a another note, why don't you post your essay for us to review. If this is a school essay, then you may need to discover what the exam answer demands. For example, do they want you to take a side or present both sides of the issue? Or is this English paper more content based with marks awarded for each point raised as opposed to the depth or how convincing the article is.
 

gailc

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As soon as I read the sentence I knew arrayed was the incorrect word to use. I agree and would have thought it should have read aligned.
I like to proofread-when I was working I did that for a couple of my co-workers in the office. Some people just can't write a decent letter.
 

laureen227

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Originally Posted by Charcoal

He used an incorrect word. He meant align themselves with the democratic party.
& altho 'arrayed' can mean 'aligned', it's usually used for subjects dealing with science or mathematics. sounds like he used the thesaurus in MS word - it comes up with some strange choices sometimes!
 

turtlecat

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mm.. I'm not sure that it IS an incorrect word, keep in mind that it was a VERY OLD article, and word meanings change in 50 years let alone 100.
 

jennyr

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If you use the quote, I would put '(sic - probably means aligned)' just like that after the word 'arrayed'. then the markers will know YOU know what you are talking about.
 

jcat

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I teach German to English translation, and if one of my students used "arrayed" in that context, I would mark it as a full mistake, and replace it with "aligned". If it meant the difference between a passing and a failing grade, I'd quote a couple of dictionaries, write an "Obsolete usage" comment on the test itself, and calculate it as "half a mistake".
 
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