Punctuation: Take a Breath, Already!“I have always liked commas, but I seem to be in a shrinking minority. The comma is in retreat, though it is not yet extinct. . . .
“If all this involved only grammar, I might let it lie. But the comma’s sad fate is, I think, a metaphor for something larger: how we deal with the frantic, can’t-wait-a-minute nature of modern life. The comma is, after all, a small sign that flashes PAUSE. It tells the reader to slow down, think a bit, and then move on. We don’t have time for that. No pauses allowed. In this sense, the comma’s fading popularity is also social commentary.”
• Editorial Comment: Let’s not even talk about my colons.
• Related Favorite: The Oxford comma.
• Reading List: Columbia Journalism Review has published reading suggestions from selected journalists/Jprofs. Can’t say as I agree (or even have heard of!) all of these, but interesting. Better get caught up.
Visit our award-winning student news site, The Hard News Café• At Casey’s Barber Shop it’s a beard trim and a haircut, 12 bucks, by Nick Bolinder
• Logan City Council hopefuls talk growth, pollution, downtown issues, by Heidi Hansen & Cathy Morgan
• Utah Bioneers: We all play important roles in sustaining the Earth, by Allie Jeppson
• PeezPix cards & prints. . . Catalog here.
.
No comments:
Post a Comment