Comments on: Compel vs. Impel

By: Dixie

Dixie — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 12:26:17 +0000

Loved your carrot and stick analogy!

By: Victoria

Victoria — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 03:36:20 +0000

This last reference really helped me a lot. “Impel would refer to a person being strongly motivated to take aggressive action.” Where as “Compel would refer to someone being forced to do something against that person’s will.” Thank you cecmiami!!

By: Jane

Jane — Wed, 03 Aug 2011 10:11:21 +0000

Those are good examples.

By: cecmiami

cecmiami — Wed, 03 Aug 2011 00:00:06 +0000

I see it this way:
Impel would refer to a person being strongly motivated to take aggressive action. A parent’s love for his child and desire to protect the child could impel the parent to interfere with professionals who are trying to help the child, teachers etc.

Compel would refer to someone being forced to do something against that person’s will.

How’s that?

By: Jane

Jane — Sun, 08 May 2011 12:26:38 +0000

If your analogy helps you understand the concept better than mine, that’s fine.

By: Andrew

Andrew — Wed, 02 Mar 2011 03:23:09 +0000

Carrot? I don’t see what you’re getting at with this analogy. How about compel is the gun and impel is the dollar?

By: Jim Hoppe

Jim Hoppe — Thu, 03 Feb 2011 07:58:31 +0000

Within and Without:
The motive force comes impelled from within or compelled from outside one’s self.

Redundancy:
It is redundant to say both “It might help” plus “in some instances”.
It helps to think of impel as the carrot and compel as the stick. It really does.