Punctuation, Part 1

In this blog post, I will be reflecting on what I learned from the "Punctuation" section of Rules for Writers. 

La Parole, Ben (2009) "Grammar School" via Wikimedia
CC BY 3.0 License

1. Unnecessary Commas

• I have always had trouble with overusing commas; this is probably true because I tend to write wordy sentences. However, this section helped me understand when I should not use commas. Part 33c, "Do not use a comma before the first or after the last item in a series", was particularly helpful to me. The first part of the advice I already understood, however, sometimes I don't know if I should use a comma at the end of a series or not. The book provided the example, "Ironically, even novels that focus on horror, evil, and alienation, often have themes of spiritual renewal and redemption as well." There should not be a comma after the word "alienation". 

2. The Semicolon

• I always thought I was using the semi colon properly. That is, until I read the section on the semicolon in Rules for Writers. Part 34d, "Avoid common misuses of the semicolon". The helpful example was, "The scientists were fascinated by the species Argyroneta aquatica;, a spider that lives underwater". Another piece of advice I found helpful was, "occasionally, a semicolon may be used to emphasize a sharp contrast or  firm distinction between clauses joined with a coordinating conjunction." 

3. The Colon

• When writing, I try to avoid the colon because I'm not always sure how to use it properly. Part 35a was the most helpful in the colon section. It stated, "Use a colon after an independent clause to direct attention to a list, an appositive, a quotation, or a summary or an explanation." The example I found most helpful was colons in relation to quotations; "Consider the words of Benjamin Franklin: 'There never was a good war or a bad peace.'" 

Reflection:
While completing a peer review for two of my classmates' essay drafts, Jenny and Rachel, I was able to practice new grammatical skills gained from the Rules For Writers book on commas, semicolons, and colons. Below I will give an example from each draft. The most grammatical errors I found that related to the sections I read about were comma errors. This makes sense because commas are more commonly used that semicolons and colons. 

1. In Jenny's draft she wrote, "In order to achieve a “conversation-like” article, to relate more to the reader and to fit into the editorial genre." You do not need a comma after the word "article".

2. In Rachel's draft she wrote, "Furthermore, on April 29th, 2015, the director of the National Institutes of Health stated that no federal funds will pay for research of editing human DNA (Stockton)." When writing dates, you need to add a comma after the day and the year.