Talk: Jeffrey Dahmer

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An event mentioned in this article is a July 22 selected anniversary

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User:Someone Else: Thanks for correcting the "wife named susan" bit. I was somewhat wondering about that, since Dahmer is famous for being strictly gay. Also, I think some of the articles would have mentioned if he had a wife. --Pakaran 16:07, 22 Oct 2003 (UTC)

Should there be mention of Ed Gein, seeing how he was a famous serial killer, also from Wisconsin?

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Personally, think the Ed Gein mention is completely out of place in this article, so am removing it.

DreamGuy

Parallels or parallelisms

What do you guys think is the proper form?

 Parallels with the British serial killer Dennis Nielsen are often drawn.

or

 Parallelisms with the British serial killer Dennis Nielsen are often drawn.

English is not my mother language, but parallels sounds quite incorrect to me. xDCDx 16:18, 26 Jul 2004 (UTC)

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Hi, xDCDx.

English is my mother tongue, and "parallelisms" sounds quite incorrect to me, and to God ("parallels" 42,800 v "parallelisms" 119).

chocolateboy 16:45, 26 Jul 2004 (UTC)

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Hi there, the google thing is not proof enough for me. For example "fun" appears more in google than "funny", but both words are correct, and usually they are non-interchangeable. Investigating some more I found these: definition of parallelism definition of parallel The following quote from the latter one actually makes both of us right, but "parallel" is more widely used as an adjetive, and "parallelism" is only used as a noun, so I continue to think that "parallelisms" is more suitable for that particular phrase. Quote:

 parallel
 (...)
 n.
  3. The condition of being parallel; near similarity
     or exact agreement in particulars; parallelism.
 (...)

 parallelism
 n.
  1. The quality or condition of being parallel;
     a parallel relationship.
  2. Likeness, correspondence, or similarity in
     aspect, course, or tendency.
  (...)

xDCDx 20:35, 28 Jul 2004 (UTC)

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Hi.

Your "fun"/"funny" analogy misrepresents the Google stats, which compare the usage of two marginally overlapping nouns in the context used in the article i.e. "draw parallels", "parallels are drawn" and "drawing parallels" vs "draw parallelisms", "parallelisms are drawn" and "drawing parallelisms". The "fun"/"funny" standoff is completely unrelated.

Rifling through dictionary definitions to improvise an inappropriate usage is like rifling through inconsistencies in English orthography to argue that "fish" should be spelled "ghoti". Common usage, common sense, clarity and good taste disfavour any number of constructions that could legally be concocted by someone determined to use a dictionary to generate meaning rather than analyze it.

"Parallelisms" is at best clumsy and at worst clueless. Of course "parallelisms" can also mean "parallels". The transitive verb "to rule" can also mean "to draw something with a ruler". As a result, one could say "parallelisms have been ruled between Dahmer and Nielsen ... "; however one wouldn't and one shouldn't in an encyclopaedia.

chocolateboy 00:42, 29 Jul 2004 (UTC)

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Hello again,

I thought the google links were like the googlefight one, that's why I did not check them and provided the "fun"/"funny" comparison, my fault. These ones are more appropiate in the context. So you must be right then.

My stubborness came because in spanish we say "paralelismos" rather than "paralelos". One of the many false friends, although a rather subtle one.

Sorry for the trouble.

xDCDx 12:47, 29 Jul 2004 (UTC)