I can't do any research here in Seattle; but in truth, Fowler himself could tell me that "animus against" was not redundant, and wasn't inelegant, and it would still be inelegant and redundant, to me.
It's my feeling that as the change has occurred, the preposition 'against' has become anachronistic, and that over time, those who feel the redundant 'negative' grate, will prevail.
The first step in that process will be when the first and second meanings in the dictionaries change places, as they have in the spoken language.
At about that point, I think it will become a contest of mimes between those who 'hear' the redundancy as unacceptable and those who don't.
On the other hand, "I could care less" is winning the contest with "I couldn't care less," and I'd sure never have predicted that, the first time I heard it. To the ears of most Americans now, it sounds better. Ears are funny things.
BTW, are you saying that you believe animus toward is incorrect, or just that you think animus against is just as correct? |
