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From: Joseph Dewey
Date: 01 Oct 2005
Time: 18:27:22 -0500
Remote Name: 24.10.232.18
Hi Alan. I think that the comparison between stuttering and cluttering is really fascinating. And, I think that what you’re describing is a pattern that on paper looks very similar, if not exact. However, there are some subtle differences in how they impact someone who stutters versus someone who clutters. With cluttering, what you’re hearing is an “interjection” or a “revision.” With stuttering, what you would be hearing is a “circumlocution.” Let me give an example that could be either stuttering or cluttering in print, and analyze them both. “I’m going to the….for a….to the place that you can buy candy.” With stuttering: the person wants to say “I’m going to the store,” but knows that a stutter will occur on the “s” of store, and so avoids saying the word store… so, the sentence is revised twice, to convey the same meaning without using an “s” word. With cluttering: the person is unsure of exactly what they want to say…they temporarily have a hard time remembering the word “store,” plus they want to express that they’re going to the store and that they’re going to get candy, and they’re vacillating between the two concepts without knowing how to organize it. These two examples will sound a lot different, too, even though on paper they would be the same. The stuttering example would be more even in pacing, with some frustration evident as each revision occurs. The cluttering example would be very jerky and disrythmic and there wouldn’t be evident frustration.