[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
elements; they include subordinate clauses, such as Although Woolf is known
as a feminist, critics argue that . . . , or prepositional phrases like At first or
During that time . Commas should not be used to break off the beginning of
any element that forms part of the subject or verb phrase, though.
Sentences 127
5.3.3 The absence of a comma in a compound sentence
This is a rule that some people dispute, claiming instead that it is a matter of
stylistic choice, especially if the clauses are short and the sentence unambigu-
ous. Meanwhile, advocates argue that a comma should be placed in a com-
pound sentence before the co-ordinator, for example: Woolf claimed to be a
feminist, but some critics disagree. There is a general trend towards minimal
use of punctuation, and so it s likely that this is one rule that may not continue
to be stringently observed.
5.3.4 The absence of a comma with a non-restrictive element
A non-restrictive element, also known as a non-defining relative clause, is a
piece of information that is added parenthetically; it could be omitted from the
sentence and the sentence would still make sense. The non-restrictive element
is most commonly indicated by its setting within two commas, but brackets or
dashes can also be used. In the sentence Shakespeare, who is considered by
many to be the greatest ever playwright, was born in 1564 , the non-restrictive
clause could be omitted for the sentence to remain grammatically correct and
meaningful as Shakespeare was born in 1564. The mistake that is commonly
made is the omission of the second comma, for example: Shakespeare, who is
considered by many to be the greatest ever playwright was born in 1564. The
example I have given is a straightforward one; in other more ambiguous cases,
the use or lack of commas to indicate whether the element is non-restrictive or
restrictive can significantly alter the sentence s meaning.
5.3.5 Unnecessary comma(s) with a restrictive element
A restrictive element, or defining clause, as you might guess from the defini-
tion of its opposite above, is a piece of information that is crucial to the
meaning of a sentence. The mistake of marking it out with commas would
signal its status as additional rather than essential information, leading to con-
fusion and inaccuracy. Consider the different meanings implied in the two ver-
sions of this sentence: The two students, who were found guilty of plagiarism,
failed the course. / The two students who were found guilty of plagiarism
failed the course. In the first version, the fact that the students were guilty of
plagiarism is not signalled as the reason for their failure. This is presented as
additional information and as such may be just a coincidence. In the second
version, the plagiarism is presented as a restrictive element: it is crucial infor-
mation and thus indicates that it is the reason why the students failed the
128 Studying English Literature
course. Both sentences are grammatically correct but the different deployment
of commas presents different meanings.
Using commas around what is a restrictive element will perplex your reader.
In the sentence In Song of Solomon, Morrison s character, Guitar, is consumed
with greed for gold , the name of the protagonist has been placed within
commas signalling that it is a non-restrictive element. This would be fine if
there was only one character in Song of Solomon, but as there are several key
figures the name of Guitar is crucial information and thus is a restrictive
element that should not be contained within commas.
5.3.6 The absence of a comma in a series
Also known as the serial comma, the Oxford comma and the Harvard comma,
this is another issue about which there is, if not dispute, regional variation. In
the US, it is the rule to place a comma before the last item in a list, as in: Critics
who have influenced the study of cinema include Deleuze and Guattari, Laura
Mulvey, Stephen Heath, and Teresa de Lauretis. Traditionally, in the UK this
list would be presented without the comma after Heath . (Notice that I didn t
include one after Oxford comma in the list in the first sentence of this para-
graph.) I actually find the US use of this comma very helpful because it
clarifies each element of the list precisely. Gilles Deleuze and Félix Guattari co-
authored several texts and count as one item on the list above; in the UK
formula, this would look very confusing if it had been differently sequenced,
for example: Critics who have influenced the study of cinema include Laura
Mulvey, Stephen Heath, Deleuze and Guattari and Teresa de Lauretis. The
[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]