For all you good souls who indicated that you USE and APPRECIATE and ENCOURAGE the serial (or Oxford, or even sometimes referred to as the Harvard) comma...
I APPLAUD you!
You answered right.
Yes, the serial comma is clearer, is more comfortable, is the right thing to do.
The anonymous comment from my last post (who I suspect to be Paige, my little twin in all ways) gave the best reason. If there is no comma before the conjunction, I assume those last two items have a closer relationship than the rest. And I end the sentence wondering just what else is next.
So please, please, reconsider (if you already aren't converted) using the serial comma. As you can see (from all the comments!), it makes the most sense.
And that's all I have to say.
8 comments:
Ok, for some reason I was taught to ALWAYS use it. Weird how everyone else wasn't. I don't know if I'm converted yet though. That's 29 years of not using it. . .
I was right!!! I am so amazed. I am glad I came away with some good english edicate.
(And if you want to go see two cute cowboy nephews you had better go check out my blog :) )
it totally was me :)
-paige
Ah ha! I missed the first post, but I'm glad to see I've been vindicated.
Depends on what style guide you're using.(: APA doesn't use it, but Chicago and MLA do.
ixnay on the serial comma! But seriously, you've been tagged; check out my blog.
I appreciate this post, Carly. For some reason I've felt alone in my use of the serial comma for many years, but now I know I'm in good company!
It's Veteran's Day and I'm finally catching up on reading blogs. You'll probably never see this comment b/c it's so late, but when I was writing my master's thesis. . . which is more intensely focused on things like serial commas then on actual content. . . I was instructed by my chair to use the serial commas. . so I do and always had like your mother. Same generation I guess!
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