Board Thread:Writer's Workshop/@comment-4127458-20150509020105/@comment-4127458-20150522060213

FrenchTouch wrote: Sorry, but...:"I'm in shock. I can hear?"
 * Earlier the same day
 * "They say ..."

Yes. Yes, you can hear. That statement doesn't give contradictory information on if he can hear or not. The statement itself is ambiguious, even if it says the word "say". Why this is ambigious is because there are two sentences prior that set up his inability to hear:

"I am deaf. I cannot hear at all."

"Saying" for him could mean reading lips or hand signaling, and I am sure the reader can place two and two together after reading the beginning words of the story. I mean, I guess I could say "They hand signaled that he would be out soon". Still, that might lead to another question: how do the docors know how to hand signal? ASL is not the most common skill in America. I could say "a little while ago, a translator hand signaled to us that my brother would be out soon." The main issue, is that this information is a bit long winded, and is kind of uncessary.

I mean, I can see where you got the problem with this, but I'm trying to make sure my words get to the point while not having information that is unecessary to the plot. Going back a few times, the only reasoning I can see someone suddenly thinking that he can "hear" is by the word "say", but I keep feeling that a reader wouldn't just suddenly forget the last few words that explicity state he cannot hear.

Still, I get the reasoning you have, and the vaguness of that phrase isn't that great. Still, I don't feel like it would be blatant as "yes. yes you can hear", seeing as that information is being placed due to ambuigitous phrasing, not the information therein.