Bibliograph

Semicolon, the past, present, and future of a misunderstood mark, Cecelia Watson

Type

Label

Semicolon, the past, present, and future of a misunderstood mark, Cecelia Watson

Language

eng

Bibliography note

Includes bibliographical references and index

Illustrations

illustrations

Index

index present

Literary Form

non fiction

Main title

Semicolon

Nature of contents

bibliography

Oclc number

1060579931

Responsibility statement

Cecelia Watson

Sub title

the past, present, and future of a misunderstood mark

Summary

Charts the rise and fall of this infamous punctuation mark, which for years was the trendiest one in the world of letters. But in the nineteenth century, as grammar books became all the rage, the rules of how we use language became both stricter and more confusing, with the semicolon a prime example. Watson reveals how traditional grammer rules make us less successful at communication with each other than we might think. She argues that even the most die-hard grammar fanatics would be better served by tossing the rule books and learning a better way to engage with language

Table Of Contents

Introduction: love, hate, and semicolons -- Deep history: the birth of the semicolon -- The science of semicolons: American grammar wars -- sexy semicolons -- Loose women and liquor laws: the semicolon wreaks havoc in Boston -- The minutiae of mercy -- Carving semicolons in stone -- Semicolon savants -- Persuasion and pretension: are semicolons for snobs? -- Conclusion: against the rules?

Target audience

adult

Classification