Don't Like/Not Good

Reldar · 13 Feb 2011 at 04:27

Why do people assume when you say you "don't like" something/someone that you have negative feelings towards it/them?
Just because you don't like something it doesn't mean you dislike it. It's possible to have a neutral feelings/views.

The same can be said with "not good". People normally assume if it's not good, then it's bad.

What happened to neutral!? :confused:

[FnG]magnolia · 13 Feb 2011 at 04:30

"Don't like" is not the same as neutral.

Were you home schooled?

Dj_Jestar · 13 Feb 2011 at 04:42

OP, the word you are looking for is "indifference" and it's adjective variant.

[FnG]magnolia · 13 Feb 2011 at 04:49

Dj_Jestar said:
and it's adjective variant.

*bites tongue*

Carry on

Dj_Jestar · 13 Feb 2011 at 04:56

[FnG]magnolia;18454838 said:
*bites tongue*

Carry on

Que?

Indifference is a noun, indifferent is an adjective..

edit: oh, you mean my erroneous and superfluous apostrophe?

Reldar · 13 Feb 2011 at 04:57

[FnG]magnolia;18454830 said:
"Don't like" is not the same as neutral.

Were you home schooled?

It can be considered negative or neutral.

No.

[FnG]magnolia · 13 Feb 2011 at 07:03

Dj_Jestar said:
Que?

Indifference is a noun, indifferent is an adjective..

edit: oh, you mean my erroneous and superfluous apostrophe?

Yeah, sorry to be 'that guy'

[FnG]magnolia · 13 Feb 2011 at 07:04

Reldar said:
It can be considered negative or neutral.

No.

Please tell us all more about common expressions you misunderstand.

I bet you were home schooled.

steve-h · 13 Feb 2011 at 07:19

I think the real question is why you're bothered over such mysteries at 4AM.

semi-pro waster · 13 Feb 2011 at 09:14

Reldar said:
It can be considered negative or neutral.

No.

To "like something" is to express positive feelings towards it, they may not be particularly strong feelings but it is not a neutral state of being. To say "I don't like something" is to express the opposite viewpoint and hence you express a view that is negative towards it, again it may not involve strong feelings but it is taken to be a negative.

It's part of the limitations of language - if you wish to express a neutral viewpoint then say "I've got no feelings about it", "I don't care about it either way", "I'm utterly indifferent to it" but "don't like" is normally taken as an antonym of "like".

Castiel · 13 Feb 2011 at 09:18

I'm ambivalent about the OP.

[FnG]magnolia · 13 Feb 2011 at 09:19

^ Are you the most reasonable person in the world, semi-pro waster? I swear you always sound so composed when I'm raging about an OP's viewpoint adddaasdhasjkhdasjkdhasjkhjkgk

I actually feel more relaxed having read your post so OP, I take it back. I was being an ... a bad person

Derek W · 13 Feb 2011 at 09:20

steve-h said:
I think the real question is why you're bothered over such mysteries at 4AM.

Babestation finished and the op needed to find something else to do with his hands?

flibbage0 · 13 Feb 2011 at 09:43

[FnG]magnolia;18454872 said:
Please tell us all more about common expressions you misunderstand.

I bet you were home schooled.

Why do you think he was home schooled?

Can't just make assumptions like that.

[FnG]magnolia · 13 Feb 2011 at 09:47

Relax. It was either that or he was self-diagnosed with Aspergers. These are common internet throwaways, I meant no harm.

Do I need to start using more

for our more emotional posters?

Oh ...

Surfer · 13 Feb 2011 at 10:17

semi-pro waster said:
It's part of the limitations of language - if you wish to express a neutral viewpoint then say "I've got no feelings about it", "I don't care about it either way", "I'm utterly indifferent to it" but "don't like" is normally taken as an antonym of "like".

Strictly speaking the OP is correct.... well in a way....though his interpretation is not in line with the conventions of language. English possibly is not his first language?

It also depends on his tone of voice....the english language is quite complex as theres more answers expressible than merely those below.

I could say - Well i dont like it... emphasizing like. And the meaning would be clearer that i am not expressing negative feelings towards it. Just that its not positive feelings.

Like +1
Don't like -1
Neutral 0

What's Well i don't not like it.

Q. Do you like X = Do you have positive feelings towards X (+1)

A. No i dont. Logically this doesnt mean -1 it means -1 or 0

But usually someone would expound upon the answer to clarify their feelings on the matter. e.g. saying i'm indifferent to them, i'm not bothered either way etc.

Badgi · 13 Feb 2011 at 10:29

Last time I checked "don't like" was the definition of dislike. "Dislike: To have a feeling of not liking."

I wouldn't say I don't like something/someone if I held a neutral opinion. I'm more likely to say, "I can take it or leave it", "I'm not that keen" or even "I don't like it that much".

I can see other's point of view on this, but to me, to say "I don't like something/someone" without any other context would mean to me that person dislikes said thing/person.

Zefan · 13 Feb 2011 at 10:33

This is like the difference between "Unpopular" and "Not popular".

Very different meanings, but people get them mixed up.

Surfer · 13 Feb 2011 at 10:34

Which is why i said its possible english is not his first language.

If it is then....nm

semi-pro waster · 13 Feb 2011 at 10:54

[FnG]magnolia;18455020 said:
^ Are you the most reasonable person in the world, semi-pro waster? I swear you always sound so composed when I'm raging about an OP's viewpoint adddaasdhasjkhdasjkdhasjkhjkgk

Thank you, I think. I wish I were that composed but there are times when I'm infuriated with what people have posted, I find it's easier to take a deep breath before responding on the internet though which helps with a certain level of detachment.

Surfer said:
Strictly speaking the OP is correct.... well in a way....though his interpretation is not in line with the conventions of language. English possibly is not his first language?

It also depends on his tone of voice....the english language is quite complex as theres more answers expressible than merely those below.

I understand what you (and the OP) mean, it's what I was hinting at by saying it's a limitation of language - if there are multiple possible meanings for a phrase or at least subtleties of meaning then you've either got to elucidate your point or accept that sometimes (often) you may be misunderstood. Interestingly I'd say that the phrase "I don't dislike it" is more neutral than "I don't like it" but that's obviously open for interpretation despite being prima facie the diametric opposite of the original phrase - maybe something to do with the notion of negatives cancelling which despite being a mathematical construct is one we often adopt into linguistics.