I just came across that line while reading White Oleander by Janet Fitch, pg 336. I also remember coming it across it in My Name Is Red by Orhan Pamuk, which was translated to English by someone else so it might not have been the author’s mistake.
I really did not expect to see more than one “I could care less” (when they meant “I couldn’t care less”) in published books so I had to make a post about it. Although, it wouldn’t be so odd to see it in self-published works.
On a side note, are there any more grammatical errors you’ve noticed in critically acclaimed books?
EDIT: The phrase also wasn’t used in dialogue to show how a character has bad grammar or something like that, so I don’t think it was intentional.
by DeepMarshmallow
4 Comments
could care less and couldn’t care less are both commonly used. it’s not the first time there’s a common expression that isn’t grammatically perfect.
Most people (at least Americans) say “I could care less.” It’s far less common for people to say “I couldn’t care less.” In fact both are correct. The former is short for “I could care less, but I won’t.” (or “don’t.”)
It’s an American thing.
It’s not a grammatical error, it is an idiomatic usage. They are said in slightly different ways, but mean the same thing. In both cases I’m pretty sure it was intentional.