Semicolon : the past, present, and future of a misunderstood mark / Cecelia Watson ; illustrations by Anthony Russo.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Watson, Cecelia, author.

Contributor:

Russo, Anthony, illustrator.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

English language--Punctuation.

English language.

Semicolon.

Physical Description:

213 pages : illustrations ; 19 cm

Edition:

First edition.

Place of Publication:

New York : Ecco, an imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers, [2019]

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.

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?

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Other Format:

Online version: Watson, Cecelia. Semicolon.

ISBN:

9780062853059

0062853058

9780062853066

0062853066

9780062917935

0062917935

9780062917942

0062917943

OCLC:

1060579931

Publisher Number:

99981264465