There are two types of grammar in language. One is prescriptive, and the other is descriptive. This difference is critical; moreover, this distinction should be noted in any kind of rules and systems in various domains of the world and the universe.
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Prescriptive grammar is also called normative grammar. It represents a set of rules that we are supposed to follow. In language usage, when we say we “should” or “must” do this or that, these things to be “reinforced” fall into this category. This is the type of grammar we typically and traditionally consider.
This is a prescription that tells us what is right and wrong. If we don’t follow these rules, we are considered to be in violation. Such violations are not only seen as wrong or inappropriate but even bad. Often, consciously or unconsciously, we think of these rules as a set of guidelines that teach us good and bad, much like moral and ethical principles. These are essentially enforced from the outside in.
As such, we need to learn, remember, and master them. Once people know how to follow them well, they can be “qualified” or even “certified” as users of the given language. As you can see, this prescriptive and normative mechanism is not limited to language grammar but extends to any kind of rules and systems in our lives.
Moral principles are also part of this. As we mature, we learn a set of rules that tell us how to behave well. The same applies to communities, cultures, societies, or organizations. These rules are the conditions for us to be a member of X, Y, or Z—not just in language but in all aspects of life.
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The other type is called descriptive grammar. While the prescriptive type is outside-in, descriptive grammar is inside-out. We are often not aware of these rules. A typical example is the way native speakers use their language. They don’t consciously care about the specific rules of their mother tongue, yet they use it well. A set of rules is embedded or hidden beneath their consciousness.
As such, descriptive grammar does not consist of rules that dictate what is right or wrong. If you make “mistakes” in speaking your mother tongue, while you might be “corrected” to some extent by other native speakers (often from a normative, prescriptive perspective, especially when you are a small child), your “mistakes” are not considered violations of the language system itself. They are more like variations that a native speaker might naturally make. That’s why we often say that a native speaker’s “mistake” is not really a mistake.
If the set of rules operates in such an inside-out manner, there is no such thing as an incorrect rule in principle. These are simply the way things are, and as everything changes, such “deviations” are merely part of the natural evolution of the language system. They are not externally enforced guidelines but more like emergent patterns that manifest internally. This principle applies not only to language but also to any type of system—community, society, culture, organization, and even our individual minds and behaviors.
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We often get confused by these differences. It is not that one is better than the other; both are necessary rules in every aspect of our lives.
Prescriptive rules are often applied to formal, intentional, and even artificial systems, such as moral and ethical principles, legal laws, and regulations. We need to create sets of rules, guidelines, laws, and regulations to drive and maintain systems—not just linguistic systems but many others.
When we don’t follow these rules, our actions can be considered violations, often interpreted as bad. The implication of good and bad, right and wrong, is always accompanied by the enforcement of these normative, prescriptive rules—not just in language but in other domains as well.
These rules are necessary to keep systems intact. As such, they are among the most important factors in our lives. Yet there are pros and cons. The downside is that prescriptive rules can act as obstacles to change and progress. Their main purpose is to maintain the status quo. While we can change and update them, their default value lies in keeping things as they are.
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On the other hand, descriptive grammar is a kind of hidden law embedded in all entities of the universe. A typical example is the natural laws of physics. These rules are not created, invented, or enforced artificially. There is no such thing as violating the law of nature. If a violation occurs, we would consider it supernatural.
The same is true not only of native language usage but also of any “internal rules” governing the systems of our lives. Unlike prescriptive rules, descriptive rules are “hidden” in nature or “unconsciously managed” in our societies, cultures, minds, and behaviors.
A history of science—from natural to social to human sciences—has been an effort to uncover such hidden grammars in our lives and the universe. For example, as Einstein “discovered,” we now know the rule that the speed of light is constant while space and time are not. Similar efforts to uncover hidden rules continue across various scientific fields.
Even in linguistics, there are still many mysteries about why we speak as we do. There are countless “grammars” we use without knowing them or why we use them. These mysteries exist everywhere in our lives and the universe.
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The difference between these two grammars is subtle. Often, they overlap, interchange, or blur into one another—sometimes mistakenly, sometimes inevitably.
For example, how about our conscience? Is it prescriptive, descriptive, or both? If both, how can we differentiate between them? What about “near-native speakers” using a “near-mother tongue”? Some aspects are conscious, while others are unconscious. What about creole languages or semi-artificially created languages? What about people who grew up speaking Esperanto as their mother tongue?
We can internalize external rules, and we can externalize internal rules. The two types of grammar are intertwined. Being aware of the distinction is helpful in reflecting on life.
The prescriptive rules set up and implement the values of our lives, defining “why” we live the way we do, in the past, present, and future. The descriptive rules help us discover the hidden mechanisms of our lives and the universe, explaining “how” we live the way we do, in the past, present, and future.
As such, we are all “grammarians.” I hope I will continue my life of writing with this perspective.
Happy New Year!
Image: Photo captured by the author.
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