The English language is so interesting and as one goes through life, we never seem to stop learning! Recently I came across this amazing post on Facebook :
"PUNCTUATION"
WHO CARES ABOUT 'PUNCTUATION'?
Is it really necessary? What is the point of it?
I hear these comments all the time and as a proofreader and author, without the use of punctuation when writing a good book, whether it be a thriller, love story, non-fiction, children's book - as well as reports, statements, legal documents and so on, without commas, question marks, colons and semi-colons, your writing is apt to head off into unknown territory.
So yes, punctuation is not only important in writing – it is necessary! Have you ever had to re-read a sentence or paragraph more than once to get a grasp of the meaning?
And don’t forget the very interesting three dots – the ellipsis – which is a little trail of three dots (and three dots only) at the end of a sentence or statement, often leading to an undefined or mysterious place …
With the advent of social media, text messaging and technology in general, it is even more important to remember that punctuation as we know it today, has been around for as long as the 17th century.
In fact, in the fifth century BC, Greek playwrights were using basic symbols to show their actors where to pause when speaking their lines. The scholar Aristophanes of Byzantium (c257-c185BCE) was a Hellenistic Greek scholar, critic and grammarian, who invented a formal punctuation system as well as being renowned for his work on the Greek alphabet.
Our language is evolving and changing all the time with social media, text messaging and in general, technology, so it is hard to believe that ‘punctuation’ in its many forms has been around for centuries.
WHO CARES ABOUT 'PUNCTUATION'?
Is it really necessary? What is the point of it?
I hear these comments all the time and as a proofreader and author, without the use of punctuation when writing a good book, whether it be a thriller, love story, non-fiction, children's book - as well as reports, statements, legal documents and so on, without commas, question marks, colons and semi-colons, your writing is apt to head off into unknown territory.
So yes, punctuation is not only important in writing – it is necessary! Have you ever had to re-read a sentence or paragraph more than once to get a grasp of the meaning?
And don’t forget the very interesting three dots – the ellipsis – which is a little trail of three dots (and three dots only) at the end of a sentence or statement, often leading to an undefined or mysterious place …
With the advent of social media, text messaging and technology in general, it is even more important to remember that punctuation as we know it today, has been around for as long as the 17th century.
In fact, in the fifth century BC, Greek playwrights were using basic symbols to show their actors where to pause when speaking their lines. The scholar Aristophanes of Byzantium (c257-c185BCE) was a Hellenistic Greek scholar, critic and grammarian, who invented a formal punctuation system as well as being renowned for his work on the Greek alphabet.
Our language is evolving and changing all the time with social media, text messaging and in general, technology, so it is hard to believe that ‘punctuation’ in its many forms has been around for centuries.