Powerful punctuation: colons, dashes, and parentheses—
Variety, variety, variety—the essence of strong writing. Keeping one’s writing varied and fresh ensures one’s writing receives positive notice by those who matter the most. These three useful marks go a long way in helping one stand out in a sea of mediocrity.
Colon
A colon, like a period or semicolon, is a full-stop punctuation mark. Unlike the period or semi-colon, however, the colon draws attention to that which follows.
One must have a complete sentence in front of a colon for it to be used correctly. Examine the following examples:
1) U sing a colon to emphasize one word or concept: There is only one word I can think of to describe Lady Gaga: strange.
2) Using a colon to emphasize an entire sentence. Guns and Roses fell victim to an all-too-common plague: Axle Rose, the lead singer, turned into a total douche.
3) Using a colon to draw attention to a quote. Mark Twain said it best when he spoke about the importance of literacy: " T he man who can read books but doesn't has no advantage over the man who can't read at all."
4) Using a colon to point out a list. My mother told me to pick up three things from the store: milk, eggs, and cheese.
When using a colon, you must remember that a complete sentence MUST come before. What is wrong with the following construction:
"The three things I need from the store are: milk, eggs, and cheese."
What is the simplest way to fix the above construction?
On a separate sheet of paper, revise the ten sentences b elow so that they demonstrate stronger grammatical control as it concerns the use of colons . Note that you cannot simply add or remove something to make each of these correct: some may require re-wording (after all, the i nstructions do say to "revise"). If the sentence is correct "as is," write a C for that number on your paper.
1) The student council wanted: improved books, improved food, and improved air conditioning to improve their quality of high-school life.
2) The Bailey twins were convicted on three charges: swindling old people, walking in circles, and aiding mutated hamsters with X-ray vision.
3) Nancy Reagan said: “Just say no.”
4) The old woman from the Wendy’s commercials in the ‘80s achieved fame with the following phrase: “Where’s the beef?”
5) Keeping emergency gear in a vehicle is not a bad idea: flashlight, first-aid kit, cell phone, and extra batteries, just to name a few.
6) The reasons to go to college are: better job opportunities, a more diversified résumé, higher cognitive functions, and more options in a demanding world market.
7) When I got home yesterday, there was only one thing I wanted to do: play World of Warcraft.
8) When I woke up, all I could think about was: breakfast.
9) I’ll never forget what happened on Independence Day last year: my mom dressed up as Uncle Sam, and my dad dressed up as Rosie Rivets.
10) The cook used many ingredients: eggs, milk, flour, and vanilla.
Dash
Dashes are useful as sentence interrupts that function a lot like commas. They allow a writer to insert additional, non-restrictive information into a sentence. A dash is a very potent mark that puts strong emphasis on that which it sets apart from the main clause. When one needs to put stress on a particular thing, one calls on the dash. Examine the sentences below.
See if you can identify similarities in the way the dash is used and in the way colons, commas, and periods are used. Remember: it's all about variety!
In each, be sure to identify the main subject / main verb : sentences are getting very complicated at this stage, but one must ALWAYS keep the main clauses at the forefront of thought or errors will be made.
1) The care-takers—those who are helpers, nurturers, teachers, mothers—are still systematically devalued. –Ellen Goodman, “Just Woman’s Work?”
2) I would compete in this weekend’s marathon If I were a bit younger—but I am not.
3) Although the emphasis at the school was mainly language—speaking, reading, writing—the lessons always began with an exercise in politeness. –Elizabeth Wong, Fifth Chinese Daughter
4) Dad—who just turned sixty—plays golf four days a week.
5) After the game, I could think of only one word—fiddlesticks!
6) Two of the strongest animals in the jungle are, ironically, vegetarians—the elephant and the gorilla.
Q) Why do you suppose the author chose to use dashes in number one when commas clearly would have been just as good? (Hint: look at the content of the non-restrictive element in the sentence? What does it already contain a LOT of? Look at number 3 as well—is not the same thing happening there?)
Q) Why do you suppose the author in number two didn't just use a comma in front of "but"--- How does the dash make a difference? (HINT: refer to the above paragraph that introduces dashes).
Q) H ow does the use of dashes in number two create a grammatical "interrupt" to the main clause? Could commas also have been used just as effectively in this particular sentence? If so, why not just use commas?
Pare nthese s—
Parentheses, like dashes and commas, are interrupts that allow including a variety of comments into one’s writing. For all practical purposes, they function exactly the opposite of dashes: they take emphasis AWAY. Many readers consider information in parentheses to be nearly skip-worthy.
In other words, where dashes emphasize material, parentheses de-emphasize material. Examine the following:
1) Shirley (whom my wife and I have known since fifth grade ) is my wife’s best friend.
2) Though I’m not particularly fond of broccoli, I know it is good for my health (though I still think I can live without it).
3) My wife wants to replace our stove at home (we’ve had it for years).
4) My dog (Gunny) loves to go hunting with me.
Q) For sentences ending with parenthetical information, what do you notice about the location of the punctuation used to complete the main clause?
Q) How would using dashes instead of parentheses in number one change the way a reader might perceive the information in the sentence?
The non-restrictive elements above are punctuated with parentheses because the author purposefully wanted the readers to consider it only as additional information. The author’s goal with those sentences is to put all the emphasis on the main clause and the main clause alone. The additional information is inconsequential.
Emphasis: putting commas, dashes, and parentheses into perspective—
Earlier when we discussed non-restrictive elements in sentences, it was noted that commas are required to set apart such elements from the main clause. Commas always give a neutral emphasis on non-restrictive elements. In other words, the information is seen as neither strong nor weak; it is equal in all ways to the main clause it is attached to.
Examine the following three sentences. The non-restrictive element in the sentence is identical except for punctuation. Though each sentence says exactly the same thing, the punctuation is what determines the emphasis: neutral, strong, or weak.
My dad, who just turned sixty, plays golf four days a week. Neutral
My dad—who just turned sixty—plays golf four days a week. Strong
My dad (who just turned sixty) plays golf four days a week. Weak
Sentence one: commas are used with the non-restrictive element. Readers will view the information with indifference. In other words, the fact that dad just turned sixty neither emphasizes nor de-emphasizes the significance of his golfing habits.
Sentence two: dashes are used with the non-restrictive element. Readers will view the information with authority. By using dashes, the author puts the emphasis on dad’s advancing age and how amazing it is that he can engage physical activities as often as he does.
Sentence three: parentheses are used with the non-restrictive element. Readers will view the information as inconsequential. By using parentheses, the author puts the emphasis on the main clause alone. The only important information he wants to convey is that his dad plays golf four times a week—his age is completely irrelevant in the discussion.
Practice!
Even though using commas to indicate non-restrictive elements in sentences is always correct, there are times when dashes or parentheses are better choices. U se the tools available to make sure one’s audience reads exactly what you want them to read in exactly the fashion in which you want them to read. The tools for writing are not any less adept at proper communication than the tools of speaking. The one who masters the tools of writing is the one who becomes the true communicator.
Highlight or underline the main clauses in each sentence (I did the first and last one). Each sentence contains non-restrictive elements (clauses, phrases, etc) that require some sort of punctuation: neutral, strong, or weak. Based on the information in the main clause, decide how you should emphasize the elements.
This is a very subjective assignment : different people are going to view these sentences in different ways. There is more than one right answer for almost all of these (though some will certainly make more sense with one method than with another) ; however, if someone hands in a paper loaded with nothing but commas, I will give that person a zero. The idea with this exercise is to familiarize students with how to use the language to convey understanding in effective ways and to provide variety and sophistication in writing.
1) Jack and Jill two storybook characters went up a hill to fetch a pail of water.
2) Barney Fife I know this for a fact only carried one bullet in his gun.
3) Winter nights can be cold, lonely affairs especially if you forgot to pay the gas bill.
4) When I graduate from high school hopefully it won’t take more than four years I plan to use my impressive communication skills to write a quality résumé.
5) Alice Walker author of The Color Purple wrote the short story, “Everyday Use.”
6) No one and I mean no one can make a yard prettier than our gardener who used to work for Donald Trump.
7) My English teacher who is totally awesome has taught me more about writing than any teacher I have ever had.
8) Sam my dog loves to go fishing with me.
9) My friend Earl lives three doors down we call him Kryptonite.
10) When I woke up this morning, my mother had breakfast ready sausage and eggs, but since it took my sister a whole hour in the bathroom to get ready nothing unusual there I had to skip breakfast so I wouldn’t miss the bus.
11) Joan Rivers has had so much plastic surgery that she can use her head as a milk jug. I don’t think I’ll ever have plastic surgery though I might change my mind when I’m nine-hundred-years old like she is.
12) Slavery all aspects of it is a vile practice that robs people of their natural right to life.
13) George Washington a former President of the United States said he could never tell a lie how ironic considering today’s politicians.
14) Our dog which is barely bigger than a shoe beat the sweet-mustard-crap out of our neighbor’s Pit Bull Godzilla. And here I thought I’d seen everything guess I was wrong.
15) I think I have a pretty good idea about non-restrictive elements devices in a sentence that are non-essential to meaning; in fact, I plan to use these concepts the next time I write something hopefully that will be soon