the public library will be by no means ignored

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The following sentence is in my writing in which I want to express that the public library won't be replaced by the computer. Do you think this sentence sounds natural to you? Could you give me some tips to write it better?
Although the computer has so many advantages, the benefits of the public library will be by no means ignored.

Thank you.

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@jinmin1988,

You should replace "will" with "should" in the second clause of that sentence:

Although the computer has so many advantages, the benefits of the public library should be by no means ignored.

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@jinmin1988,

jinmin1988 wrote:

The following sentence is in my writing in which I want to express that the public library won't be replaced by the computer. Do you think this sentence sounds natural to you? Could you give me some tips to write it better?
Although the computer has so many advantages, the benefits of the public library will be by no means ignored.

Thank you.

I would have said it this way:

Although the computer has many advantages, the public library has other benefits which can't be ignored.

The first part of your sentence implies a comparison (between the computer and the library), so I prefer to set up the second half of the sentence in a way which continues the analogy in the same order. So in the form I used you get Object (Computer)... Result (advantages), Object (Library)... Result (benefits), followed by a single conclusion.

Your original sentence isn't incorrect, but to me it doesn't flow as nicely and is a bit harder to understand.

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If this is an attempt to market this concept to the younger crowd, make the point using a much shorter sentence.

Computers ____________, but the library _____________.

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@rosborne979,

Quote:

Although the computer has many advantages, the public library has other benefits which can't be ignored.

Thank you, rosborne979. I think your sentence is nice, but how can I express my firm opinion, like the word "by no means", that the public library cannot be ignored.

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@jinmin1988,

I like rosborne's sentence-- if you include the "by no means" par it gets too wordy.

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@jinmin1988,

jinmin1988 wrote:

Quote:
Although the computer has many advantages, the public library has other benefits which can't be ignored.

Thank you, rosborne979. I think your sentence is nice, but how can I express my firm opinion, like the word "by no means", that the public library cannot be ignored.

If you want to add emphasis to your argument, then you could say, "Although the computer has many advantages, the public library definitely has other benefits which can't be ignored."

Or you could say, "Although the computer has many advantages, the public library has other benefits which can by no means be ignored."

However, in general, I feel that the fewer words you can use to express a clear idea the better. Also, the phrase "by no means" is a negative statement which requires you to invert the basic premise of the conclusion. While switches like this are not incorrect, they are sometimes verbally confusing.

Yoda (a fictional Star Wars Character) would say it this way: "Many advantages have computers, but benefits, the public library definitely has as well.". While this phrasing is not incorrect, it is an unusual reversal of the standard presentation, and is probably best left to creative writing rather than day to day conversation Smile

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If you're determined to use the phrase "by no means", then I would say it this way, "Although computers have many advantages, this is by no means a reason to ignore the benefits of the public library."

or

"Although computers have many advantages, this by no means undermines the benefits of the public library."

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@rosborne979,

rosborne979 wrote:

If you're determined to use the phrase "by no means"

It is my experience of ESL students that they want to preserve what they have written as much as possible. It is usually best to change what they have written as little a possible.

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@Setanta,

Setanta wrote:

It is my experience of ESL students that they want to preserve what they have written as much as possible. It is usually best to change what they have written as little a possible.

I have no experience with ESL students, so you may be right. I just thought he might benefit from seeing how an EFL person might phrase that sentence.

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@rosborne979,

EFL? English is a foreign language for you?

Students from foreign countries who wish to attend graduate schools in in the United States are almost always required to pass the TOEFL--test of English as a foreign language.

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@Setanta,

Setanta wrote:

EFL? English is a foreign language for you?

English as a First Language

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@jinmin1988,

Quote:

Although the computer has so many advantages, the benefits of the public library will be by no means ignored.

Quote:

Thank you, rosborne979. I think your sentence is nice, but how can I express my firm opinion, like the word "by no means", that the public library cannot be ignored.

I think your original sentence is fine and I like it - I think you can preserve the phrasing and improve the flow slightly if you change the word order in the second phrase, so that the whole thing would read:

Although the computer has so many advantages, the benefits of the public library will by no means be ignored.

0 Replies

@Setanta,

Quote:

It is my experience of ESL students that they want to preserve what they have written as much as possible. It is usually best to change what they have written as little a possible.

Thank you, Sentanta. You are always concerned about my questions.
I don't like to preserve what I have written an much as possible. I just think that the sentence written by rosborne may lack some emphasis, but if you, native speakers, think it's enough, I'll happily accepted it.

By the way, I have to take IELTS, not TOFEL in 4 days, and it is driving me crazy.

1 Reply

@jinmin1988,

Good luck with your exam, from what i've seen here, i have every hope that you will do well.

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the public library will be by no means ignored

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