Week 12

SEMICOLONS

The semicolon ( ; ) is used sparingly nowadays. Used correctly, though, it is a helpful device for both writers and readers. It helps to combine two closely related sentences when the writer does not want to use a period. And when used with a complicated series (a list), the semicolon helps to separate each element in the series.

The two functions demonstrated below are the practices agreed upon by most contemporary writers.

1. The major function of the semicolon is to demonstrate a close relationship between two or more independent clauses that are not already linked by the coordinating conjunctions and, but, or, for, nor, so, or yet. (An independent clause, you'll remember, can stand alone as a complete sentence.)

However, you do not need to capitalize the first word in the clause following the semicolon.

* Mark Twain's life was a long and rich one; it seemed to him an inexhaustible mine of recollection.

* The trouble with Morley is that he likes food too much; he would be a better person if he weren't such a glutton.

* Very few people attend matinees at the Egyptian Theater; consequently, the management dropped all Sunday afternoon performances.

Notice that in each of the above examples, the semicolon separates independent clauses; the semicolon here is, in fact, a kind of weak period.

The writer in each instance believes that the ideas are too closely related for a period, which emphasizes separation of ideas.

Often, special words or phrases called conjunctive adverbs relate the two clauses. However, these words are not conjunctions; they do not join sentences. They only show the relationship between the two sentences.

Use a semicolon, not a comma.

* All these programs deserve more funding; however, our resources are very limited.

* All these programs deserve more funding; on the other hand, our resources are very limited.

* All these programs deserve more funding; therefore, we need to find more money.

2. The minor function of the semicolon is to separate elements in a series (a list) when an element has commas or when the reader would have trouble figuring out where one item in the list ends and when the next item begins. Also, semicolons are used consistently in the same list.

Do not confuse the reader by using a comma and then a semicolon to separate elements in the same sentence.

* While traveling in Europe, we visited Madrid, Spain; Rome, Italy; and Paris, France.

* For my twenty-first birthday party, I went out to dinner with Ruthie, my best friend; Kate and Bonnie, my roommates; and Brian, who works with me at Cabrillo.

* The politician flew on her plane, where she was isolated from reporters; then she landed and was whisked off to dinner, which she ate with great relish; finally she reached home, not knowing about the surprise victory party.

EXERCISE


YOUR NAME:
YOUR EMAIL:
TODAY'S DATE:

1. Write a sentence containing two closely related independent clauses joined by a semicolon.

2. Write another sentence using a semicolon to join independent clauses; this time, introduce the second clause with however, for example, consequently, in fact, or on the other hand.

3. Write a sentence using semicolons (not commas) to separate the items in a list. Remember, semicolons only separate elements in a list when you need to use commas inside one or more of the elements in the list.

Insert semicolons where they are needed in the following sentences. One of the sentences is correct as it is.

1. We spent the whole day cutting and splitting firewood then we drove home to a big dinner and a case of beer.

2. During Noriko's first semester at Cabrillo, she took English, which she had been studying for twelve years, art, which she found difficult, and math, her favorite subject.

3. A few days after Alicia left the city, her parents received a telegram from her asking for money.

4. Capitola was named in 1876 by F.A. Hihn, a real estate developer, on the other hand, Aptos is a name of ancient origin, derived from a Spanish rendering of the name of a Costanoan village or its chief.

COLON

A colon is used primarily to call attention to the words that follow. It is a signal to the reader that what follows gives more detailed information about what came before the colon.

A colon is almost always used at the end of a sentence or where there is a stop. Avoid using the colon to interrupt the natural flow of a sentence.

The colon introduces a list or series:

* Morley was making every kind of payment imaginable: alimony, child support, quarterly income tax, retirement, and even burial insurance.

* Ellen and I reached three decisions that afternoon: to get new jobs, to move out of her parents' house, and to return to college.

The colon introduces information that will clarify, amplify, or supplement:

* Poems are like dreams: in them you put what you don't know you know. (Adrienne Rich)

* Friendship is like love: it cannot be forced.

* Don't buy that car: it will break down a lot and be expensive to repair.

The colon introduces lengthy quotations (called block quotes):

A quotation of more than four typed lines is set up as a block quote. The quotation should be introduced by a sentence followed by a colon.

The introductory sentence tells the reader where the quotation is from and what it is about. The actual quotation begins on the next line. Indent the quotation ten spaces from the paper's left margin. The right margin for the quotation is the same as the paper's right margin. The line spacing of the quotation is the same as the spacing of the rest of the paper.

Do not use quotation marks around the quotation; the colon and the indenting tell the reader that these are words taken directly from the source.

In his novel Continental Drift, James D. Houston describes the San Andreas fault that lies along the western edge of North America:

It marks the line where two great slabs of the earth's crust meet and grind together. Most of North America occupies one of these slabs. Most of the Pacific Ocean floats on the other. A small lip of the Pacific slab extends above the surface, along America's western coastline, a lush and mountainous belt of land not as much a part of the rest of the continent as it is the most visible piece of that slab of crust which lies submerged. The line where these two slabs, or plates, meet is called the San Andreas Fault. (73) This fault line has had a tremendous impact on the city of San Francisco.

(The quotation is completed. The essay continues here.)

In addition, the colon is used in a variety of special ways, some of which are listed here:

* Between hours and minutes expressed in numerals: 11:15 a.m.

* Between Biblical chapters and verses: Matthew 25:34-45

* Between a title and subtitle: George Eliot: Her Mind and Her Art

* Following a salutation in a formal letter: Dear Mrs. Garcia:

* In ratios expressed in numerals: 4:l (four to one)

PART I:

1. Write a sentence using a colon to introduce a list or series.

2.Write a two-part sentence with a colon introducing a statement that clarifies or amplifies what comes before the colon.

Demonstrate the correct way to write a block quotation with its introductory sentence. Select a passage from a book, newspaper, or magazine to quote. See the example in the corresponding lesson for the proper format for a block quotation.

PART II: In the space beneath each of the following sentences, write both the word before and the word after the place where a colon should be inserted. Include the colon.

1. Last term we read Points of View An Anthology of Short Stories in our English class. (Hint: look at the title.)

2. Never use a semicolon as a colon they are rarely alike in their function.

3. For post-Christmas shoppers, Morley has a useful motto let the buyer beware!

4. This candy bar contains the following ingredients sugar, caramel, chocolate, pecans, artificial flavoring, and glutamate.

USING QUOTATION MARKS

Quotation marks have several important functions. The guides offered below are for typed or word-processed papers. Writings in some newspapers, magazines and journals sometimes follow slightly different conventions than those described in this lesson. When printing with a press, it is a greater inconvenience to use underline or italicize typeset than when formatting on a computer.

A. Quotation marks enclose the titles of poems, short stories, essays, articles, chapters of books, songs, single World Wide Web pages, and individual episodes of radio and television programs. Titles enclosed in quotation marks are of short works which are usually part of something else or a collection: a chapter is part of a book, an article is part of a newspaper, web page part of a web site, etc.

Edgar Allan Poe's "The Cask of Amontillado" is Morley's favorite story.

In the poem "My Last Duchess" Browning's irony is superb.

"How I Discovered Words" is one of the most moving chapters in Helen Keller's The Story of My Life .

You ought to read the article "You Aren't What You Don't Eat!" in last month's Health and Food.

B. Underline or italicize the titles of book-length works, periodicals (including newspapers and magazines), films, plays, epic poems, World Wide Web sites, radio and television programs, and CDs or music collections. Whichever method you choose, be consistent within your document!

Woody Allen's Crimes and Misdemeanors has much in common with Dostoevsky's Crime and Punishment and Shakespeare's MacBeth.

Do you get the New York Times newspaper or The New Yorker magazine?

C. Words singled out as a point of discussion should be enclosed in quotation marks.

In those days what was "cool" in Los Angeles was "real George" in Seattle and "in the mud" in South City.

I wish people would stop repeating mindless expressions like "just do it" and "whatever."

D. Quotation marks enclose words and phrases that are meant to express doubt or sarcasm. Stay away from quotation marks when you include slang or clichés in your own writing. If the slang is effective and the cliché absolutely crucial, do not apologize in quotes. Either it fits or it doesn't.

Five minutes after these "entertainers" began screeching their songs, I knew I'd been ripped off again.

Although one may prefer British accents to American accents, one cannot reasonably argue that the former are "better" than the latter.

QUOTATION MARKS—EXERCISE

Insert all necessary quotation marks clearly around titles of the appropriate titles. Underline the titles of book-length works and periodicals. Also, insert all necessary quotation marks clearly around words and phrases under discussion or meant to express doubt or sarcasm:

1. In Barbara Kingsolver's novel Animal Dreams the twenty-fourth chapter is titled The Luckiest Person Alive.

2. Two of Alice Adams' newest short stories, A Wonderful Woman and True Colors, are set in San Francisco.

3. Burt Bacharach's Do You Know the Way to San Jose? has fine lyrics.

4. Should you underline the title of Sylvia Plath's poem The Moon and the Yew Tree or enclose it in quotation marks?

5. Tom's review of the movie Star Wars was published in The Santa Cruz Sentinel under the title May the Force Be with Us All.

6. The terms hippie and hep cat have a close etymological relationship.

7. Words like explosive have been used to describe the recent popularity of Latin music in North America.

8. My boss actually said I was unreasonable, stubborn, and selfish; can you believe that?

9. Did your generous boss give you another candy cane for a bonus this year?

E. Another, very important, use of quotation marks is to show direct discourse: words spoken or written by someone other than the writer.

"You say this dog is a golden retriever?" the dog trainer asked skeptically.

"Well, yes. Don't you think she looks like one?" Lucy asked, a little shaken by such a question. She reached down to stroke her dog.

"Oh, sure. She looks like one. But she won't fetch or go near water. What kind of 'retriever' is that?"

Only the exact words of the speakers are enclosed in quotation marks, and each time the speaker changes, there is a new paragraph. Once the dialogue has been started, it is not necessary to name the speakers after each exchange.

A quote within a quote is indicated by a single quotation mark.

Indirect discourse (the substance, but not the exact words, of the speaker) is not enclosed in quotation marks:

The dog trainer said that Molly did not act like a golden retriever.

F. Periods and commas always go inside closing quotation marks.

"Don't throw bouquets at me," I warned him. "People will say we're in love."

"By the way," Mr. Horner said as he dismissed the class, "for Friday I want you to read Denise Levertov's poem 'Relearning the Alphabet.' "

G. Semicolons (;) and colons (:) always go outside closing quotation marks. Today we discussed Henry Reed's "Naming of Parts"; tomorrow we'll take up his "Judging Distances."

Next week we will take up Denise Levertov's long poem "Staying Alive": it is a poem about the Vietnam War.

H. If the entire quoted sentence is a question, the question mark goes inside the closing quotation mark.

"You know what I mean, don't you?" he said. When I nodded, he added, "Then what more can I say?"

I. If the phrase inside quotation marks is not a question but comes at the end of a sentence that is a question, the question mark is placed outside the closing quotation mark.

Who wrote "Relearning the Alphabet"?

J. But what happens when both the quotation and the entire sentence are questions? The first question mark, the one inside the closing quotation mark, is sufficient.

Who was it who asked, "Am I my brother's keeper?"

K. Where exclamation points (!) and closing quotation marks come together, follow the same principles applied to the question mark.

"Don't throw bouquets at me!" I shouted. "I can't stand 'Crossing the Bar'!" he cried. Then, pulling himself together, he explained, "Brave poems about death frighten me."

QUOTATION MARKS—EXERCISE

In each of the following sentences insert clearly and accurately all necessary single and double quotation marks and underlining. Keep whatever punctuation is already in the sentence.

1. I can't write another essay entitled What I Did Over Summer/Winter Vacation.

2. Last week we read Virginia Woolf's short story The Mark on the Wall. Next week we will begin her novel To the Lighthouse.

3. I have only one complaint against Edgar Allan Poe's story The Tell-Tale Heart : I can't understand it.

4. I hope you're not busy on Friday , said Margo , because I want you to come to my party.

5. Morley looked me in the eye and asked, Didn't you tell me Shakespeare was the author of the short story Bartleby, the Scrivener ?

6. Do you know the lyrics to the song Who's Afraid of the Big Bad Wolf ?

7. Get your head down, idiot! the sergeant yelled. Don't you want to live forever?

8. Ow, my foot, my foot! Norman cried out. Who dropped that stupid tack in the middle of the floor?

Press here to submit your answers to your tutor:

HOME