0

This is part of my book review of Jak létají?:

The only bad thing is that sometimes there were sentences I couldn’t understand after reading them four times, so maybe I’ll get back to the book in a few years and see if I’ve had got further in my understanding of the world.

Though, whether you’ll complain about the unbearable amount of information stuffed up into a single sentence or wheter you’ll wonder at the beauty of the elegant expression, I can recommend you the book Jak létají just for the amazing depictions of the laws of the universe in dialog with technology.

In the text, I use "though" to say "either way, here's what we can definitely agree upon". I think I've already seen "though" used in a similar meaning but some people corrected me when I tried to use it myself.

Is it OK to use "though" in the given context?

If anything else is wrong with the question, please edit it.

| improve this question | |
  • It doesn't sound fluent to me. I don't think you actually need either though or nevertheless there, because whether already kind of fulfills their function. We use though or although to compare contrasting things: Though he is old, he is still strong. In your sentence you're not comparing anything contrasting - whether you'll complain or wonder is not being compared with any other idea, so there isn't really a place for though there. – stangdon Jan 7 '17 at 14:08
  • Possibly useful reference: freelancewritinggigs.com/2012/03/… – stangdon Jan 7 '17 at 14:09
  • @stangdon Though expresses contrast with the last sentence. So the maximally reduced sentence would sound like this: The only bad thing is that sometimes there were sentences. Though, even if you’ll complain, I can recommend you the book. – Probably Jan 7 '17 at 14:22
  • @stangdon The article says nothing about using [though -comma- sentence]. Does it mean it's wrong? – Probably Jan 7 '17 at 14:24
1

You wrote:

Though, whether you’ll complain about the unbearable amount of information stuffed up into a single sentence or wheter you’ll wonder at the beauty of the elegant expression, I can recommend you the book Jak létají just for the amazing depictions of the laws of the universe in dialog with technology.

Let's reverse the order of the sentence:

I can recommend the book for the amazing depictions of the laws of the universe in dialog with technology, {though} whether you will complain about the unbearable amount of information stuffed into a single sentence or whether you will wonder at the beauty of the elegant expression...

As you can see, you have not formed a full sentence with though, which functions analogous to yet. We are still waiting for the other shoe to fall, for the main clause.

So you must use a word other than though. You want a connector like "regardless of" or "even if".

... regardless of whether you will complain ... or whether you will wonder.

... even if you will complain ... or if you will wonder.

Or you can simply drop though.

I can recommend the book, whether you will complain or whether you will wonder at...

Whether you will complain ... or whether you will wonder at ..., I can recommend the book.

And if you want a contrast with the prior sentence:

However, I can recommend the book, whether...

That said, I can recommend the book, whether...

Nonetheless, I can recommend the book, whether ...

| improve this answer | |
  • Though expresses contrast with the sentence before. So the maximally reduced sentence would sound like this: The only bad thing is that sometimes there were sentences. Though, even if you’ll complain, I can recommend you the book. – Probably Jan 7 '17 at 14:53
  • You're opting for the "even if" alternative, which is fine. But for "maximally reduced", we simply drop though and leave out a connector like "even if". You need to provide both alternatives, complain/wonder at. You can substitute "however" for "though". – Tᴚoɯɐuo Jan 7 '17 at 14:56
  • So are you saying my usage of "though" is fine? – Probably Jan 7 '17 at 15:08
  • 1
    A shortened version: The only bad thing is that there were sentences I couldn't understand ... { though | although | but } I can recommend the book { nonetheless, in spite of that, anyway} for its amazing depictions. At that point, how your whether-clauses will integrate with the foregoing is not perfectly clear: whether you will complain about .... or whether you will wonder at .... – Tᴚoɯɐuo Jan 7 '17 at 15:22

Your Answer

By clicking “Post Your Answer”, you agree to our terms of service, privacy policy and cookie policy

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.