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March 13, 2006
U.S. Punctuation Patrol...Join Now!
Truss, Eats, Shoots & Leaves
I would like to extend this invitation to all English majors who desire a change from the mundane. Even a chance to experience life seen only by a few. Interested? Join the U.S. Punctuation Patrol today!
Face impossible odds in your job:
Proofread paper
Destroy unwanted apostrophes from our shores
Help the punctuation population from coast to coast
Travel from classroom to classroom
If this appeals to you, enlist NOW!
Sincerely,
Gen. Bart Kavanaugh
USPP Commander
O.K., that might have been a little extreme. But after reading the first part of this book, I felt this vibe...I think Truss has OCD. Yes, I understand that in punctuation and in grammar, we must set ourselves in a high standard. However, Truss she mistakes wherever she goes. I do see where she is coming from, it is sad to see the US and the UK decline in English grammatical and spelling skills. I have to admit that I was annoyed to see this phrase:
"for CD's, VIDEO's, DVD's, and BOOK's"
Where is the Punctuation Patrol when you need it? In fact, they're no where to be found. The website that I had found encourage me to start the USPP(Want to go? Click here.)! I know this will make Truss proud.
Maybe we need to stress grammar early in our academic careers? Because you can't teach an old dog new tricks. So, if you're like me, and scared to make a grammatical mistake on this particular blog...that only means that this book is helpful.
Posted by KevinHinton at March 13, 2006 6:58 PM
Comments
Kevin, I am like you with scared to make grammatical mistakes because I am an English major, but hey you got to get over your fears. Isn't so scary to read signs that are in public, what has our society come down to? If one person makes a apostrophe mistake someone else is going to see it and copy off of their example and so on. The chain will never end. However, i think that we all should march around school with this book in hand and MAKE some people read it. It could really help society.
And another thing, what is wrong with people with OCD? What are you trying to say?
Posted by: Denamarie Ercolani at March 13, 2006 9:59 PM
Lets make sure we dont make puncutation misstake's that other's might repeat! Guy's, I really like you're spirit!
Posted by: Dennis G. Jerz at March 13, 2006 10:30 PM
There is definitely a strong fear of punctuation and grammar for English majors. I know that I actually proofread my comment on Dena's blog just because I realized that because of it's informality I tend to slack on punctuating. I did leave some mistakes in there on purpose. Truss makes some great points. In middle school,Mr. Dovyak would give us three bonus points for every spelling mistake we found in any text we saw. I think that's a great idea because it's teaches you at an early age to notice them.
Posted by: Erin Waite at March 14, 2006 11:05 AM
Kev great pic u added by the way.
Okay now, on a more serious note. How interested in this passage were you? I mean did it not seem like you wanted to keep reading, i did. Well I really enjoyed and agreed with what you said.
"Maybe we need to stress grammar early in our academic careers? Because you can't teach an old dog new tricks. So, if you're like me, and scared to make a grammatical mistake on this particular blog...that only means that this book is helpful."
I totally agree with you!!!!
Posted by: Sarah Lodzsun at March 14, 2006 4:33 PM
Haha I agree with you guys! As I was typing my blog, I noticed myself using apostrophes and kept double-checking to make sure they were used correctly! I think this is something I'll keep doing just because of reading the chapter.
I also find people's misuse of apostrophes annoying. I once proofread a paper for this girl, and every single word she meant to be plural, she added an "'s". It was so annoying! Also, not to be picky, but lots of times in the dorm bathrooms in Brownlee, the maid or RA or someone will write a reminder to not spit in the sink or something, and they'll throw in appostrophes in random places and the English major inside of me just wants to erase it and make it grammatically correct.
Posted by: AmandaNichols at March 14, 2006 7:38 PM
I'm glad all of you feel that way about this subject. Good thing I'm not alone.
Posted by: Kevin"Kelo The Great" Hinton at March 14, 2006 8:01 PM