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Full stops in essays

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1. Full stops in essays (a full stop is sometimes called a ‘period’) are used at the end of complete sentences – like this one.

2. The only common exception to this rule occurs when the sentence is a question or an exclamation (both of which should be avoided in academic essays).

Is this question really necessary?
What a mess!

Notice that both these marks of punctuation have their own built-in full stop.

3. The stop is also used following abbreviations:

ibid.     No. 1     ff.     e.g.

4. The stop is not necessary following common titles which are shortened forms of a word (technically, contractions):

Dr     Mr     St     Mme

5. Full stops are not necessary after the initial capital letters commonly used as abbreviations for the titles of organisations and countries:

NATO     BBC     UNESCO     USA

6. They are not used where the initial letters of a standard work of reference is used as an abbreviated title:

OED [Oxford English Dictionary]
DNB [Dictionary of National Biography]
PMLA [Papers of the Modern Languages Association]

7. No full stop is required if a sentence ends with a title or an abbreviation which contains its own punctuation:

He is the editor of Which?

She gave her address as ‘The Manor, Wilts.’

8. Full stops should not be used after titles, headings, or sub-headings.

Introduction
The Turn of the Screw
Industrial Policy Report

9. The stop is normally placed inside quotation marks but outside a parenthesis:

“What joy we had that particular day.”
Profits declined (despite increased sales).

10. However, if the quotation is part of another statement, or the parenthesis is a complete sentence, the full stop goes inside:

Mrs Higginbottam whispered “They’re coming”.

There was an earthquake in Osaka. (Another had occurred in Tokyo the year previously.)

© Roy Johnson 2003

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How to use bulleted lists

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how to write, structure, present, and punctuate lists

Bulleted lists – the basics

Bulleted lists are used when you wish to draw visual attention to a number of similar items.

  • works of fiction
  • diaries and biographies
  • dictionaries and reference books

This arrangement makes it easier for the reader to see, absorb, and understand the items. You can see that it is much easier than if the items were listed as part of one continuous sentence. Here are the same three items.

  • This section of the library contains works of fiction, diaries and biographies, plus dictionaries and reference books.

A bulleted list draws attention to the similarities of the items. It is a form of categorization, which also helps the reader digest the information. You can see at a glance that this is a group of European capital cities.

  • Paris
  • Berlin
  • Madrid
  • Rome
Presentation

Most word-processors or text editors will give you a choice of presentation styles for your bulleted lists. The list items may be preceded by

  • a bullet   (•)
  • a numeral   (3)
  • a letter   (A)
  • an icon   (†)

If you stick to the suggestions made here, a short bulleted list should serve most purposes. Use a numbered list only if the numbering system is related to the sequence of the items or has some other significance. There is no purpose in having numbers for their own sake.

Numerals may be offered as Arabic numbers (3, 4, 5, 6) or Roman numerals (iii, iv, v, vi). Unless you have a pressing need to do so, avoid lower case Roman numerals (viii) – because this gives the reader extra work in comprehension.

Icons should be used with restraint. Many documents and PowerPoint presentations are spoiled by huge arrows, tick marks, blobs, and pointers distracting the reader’s attention from the importance of what is being said.

Golden rules for bulleted lists

There are a number of different styles and conventions for presenting bulleted lists, but these are the most important (yet most-neglected).

  • The maximum number of items should be five.
  • The listed items should be similar in kind.
  • The statements should be grammatically parallel.
  • The statements should be of similar length.

Five is the golden maximum

With a maximum of five items in a bulleted list, the reader can recognise the individual items and the group as a whole. Once there are more than five items, it is not possible to see the group as a whole at the same time as understanding individual items. The more items you put into a bulleted list, the less effective it becomes.

Similar kinds of items

A bulleted list is most effective when the items listed are of a similar kind, the same order, or have something obviously in common. Here’s an example.

  • shoes
  • shirts
  • ties
  • trousers
  • jackets

This is obviously a collection of items in men’s clothing. You can see the separate items at a glance, but you can also see what they have in common, or to which general category they belong.

But if a bulleted list contains items which do not have a logical connection, this element of immediate categorisation is lost – as in the following example.

  • potatoes
  • raising flour
  • olive oil
  • frying pan

This could be the items in a recipe, but it could equally well be a shopping list.

It is not unusual to see bad examples of bulleted lists even in public announcements – such as a job advertisement.

  • two years experience
  • a first class degree
  • three weeks annual holiday
  • Equal opportunities

This is a collection of different kinds of items. The individual items are related to the job, but the first two are requirements of the applicant, whereas the third is a benefit of employment, and the fourth is a condition of employment.

Grammatical parallelism

If your list items are statements or instructions, each one should be expressed using the same grammatical pattern as the others. Here’s a good example that uses instructions.

In the event of a fire, all employees should immediately

  1. Vacate the office
  2. Use the fire escape
  3. Exit the building
  4. Assemble in the car park

The grammatical formula here is very simple – Verb + Noun.

Here’s a bad example of the same set of instructions

In the event of a fire, all employees should immediately

  • When you hear the fire alarm, you should leave the office immediately
  • Do NOT use the main stairs, as this could be dangerous.
  • All exits are clearly marked and should be used.
  • There is an emergency assembly point at the far end of the car park.
  • Copies of Health and Safety regulations are kept in the manager’s office. Any complaints should be entered on the incidents sheets. Please note – it is an offence to make false entries or accusations.
Punctuation of bulleted lists

Bulleted lists are often used to give examples of something mentioned in a previous statement – as in the following example.

For breakfast visitors will be given a choice of –

  • corn flakes or rice crispies
  • fruit juice or yoghurt
  • grapefruit or museli with cream

The opening statement can be left without any punctuation, a dash may be used, or you can use a colon. But the question arises – should the listed items be regarded as the conclusion of a sentence or not? That is, do they need to be punctuated with commas (or semicolons) and a full stop?

Some people try to continue the grammar and punctuation into the list – as if they were separate possible endings to the statement. If the bulleted list has been constructed properly, this should not be necessary. That’s because the natural grammar and punctuation of the ‘statement’ has already been visually disrupted by the introduction of the list.

Punctuation is only necessary if the statements in the list are complete sentences.The modern tendency is to minimalise punctuation.

If the items in the list are clearly separate statements, a new question arises. Should the items in the list begin with a capital letter? The answer is ‘Yes – but only if they are complete sentences’. Have a look at this example.

When first attending the exhibition, you will have three options.

  • You can visit all zones if you have a full day pass.
  • You can visit sections in the red zone with a half day pass.
  • You can top up to a full day pass at any time.

The items in this list are short, separate statements, so they are punctuated by an initial capital letter and ended with a full stop.

Indentation

Bulleted lists are normally indented – just as they appear on this web page. The same indentation would apply on a paper document. Most word-processors will arrange this automatically, just as the HTML code does the same for a web page.

Nested lists

Sometimes it might be necessary to have a list within a list. This often happens in lengthy and complex reports.

There are two popular methods for dealing with nested lists. The first is to use a numbering system. The second is to change the bullet styling.

  • The government recognises the need for housing subsidies.
  • It will provide subsidies for three types of housing.
  1. council housing
  2. private housing
  3. mixed housing
  • Subsidies cannot be claimed for office buildings.

© Roy Johnson 2012

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How to use quotation marks

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Quotation marks

quotation marks Quotation marks or quote marks are the single or double raised commas used at the beginning and the end of a written quotation.

quotation marks Single quote marks are shown ‘thus’.

quotation marks Double quote marks are shown “thus”.

quotation marks There are a number of instances where they are used.

quotation marks The simplest case to remember is that double quote marks should be reserved to show speech

“Good gracious!” exclaimed the duchess.

quotation marks The next most common use is when discussing somebody else’s writing:

In his recent account of the phone hacking scandal, Guardian journalist David Pallister mentions the ‘deep-seated culture of corruption’ shared by the police and the tabloid press.

quotation marks The words quoted are put into single quote marks for two reasons:

  • to show them distinct from the author’s own discussion
  • to respect the original and avoid any charge of plagiarism

quotation marks Remember that when a statement is ‘opened’ with a quote mark, it must be ‘closed’ at some point. It must not be left open.

quotation marks There are very few universally agreed conventions on the use of quote marks. Practice varies from one house style manual to another. The following are some general suggestions, based on current usage.

Emphasis

quotation marks In a detailled discussion, quote marks can be used as a form of emphasis, drawing attention to particular terms or expressions:

Internet users have developed their own specialist language or jargon. People ‘download’ software, use ‘file transfer protocols’, and run checks to detect ‘viruses’.

quotation marks An acceptable alternative would be to display these terms in italics.

quotation marks This distinction becomes important in academic writing where it is necessary to show a difference between the titles of articles and the journals or books in which they are published:

Higham, J.R., ‘Attitudes to Urban Delinquency’ in Solomons, David, Sociological Perspectives Today, London: Macmillan, 1998.

Quotes within quotes

quotation marks It is sometimes necessary to include one quotation within another. In such cases, a distinction must be shown between the two items being quoted.

The Express reported that ‘Mrs Smith claimed she was “deeply shocked” by the incident’.

quotation marks In this example, what Mrs Smith said is put in double quote marks (sometimes called ‘speech marks’) and the extract from the Express is shown in single quote marks.

quotation marks It’s very important that the order and the logic of such sequences is maintained – because this can affect the integrity of what is being claimed.

quotation marks Care should be taken with punctuation both within and around quotation marks.

The Express also pointed out that ‘At the meeting, Mrs Smith asked the minister “How could we as a family defend ourself against these smears?”‘

Titles

quotation marks Quote marks are commonly used to indicate the titles of books, films, operas, paintings, and other well-known works of art. An alternative is to show these in italics.

Charles Dickens’s novel ‘Bleak House’

Francis Ford Coppola’s film ‘Apocalypse Now!’

Benjamin Britten’s opera The Turn of the Screw

Pablo Picasso’s painting Guernica

quotation marks Quote marks can also be used to indicate the title of anything else which has a known existence, separate from the discussion:

photographs, exhibitions, television programmes, magazines, newspapers

quotation marks Quote marks are not necessary when indicating the titles of organisations.

Senator Jackson yesterday reported to the Public Accounts Committee of the House of Representatives.

History

quotation marks The quotation mark started its life as a raised comma. It was used at a time when typogrphical marks available to a printer were rather limited.

quotation marks With the advent of the typewriter, a single and a double raised stroke were added to the marks available – and are still present on most keyboards.

quotation marks But typographical purists have now invented what are called ‘smart quotes’. These are single and double raised commas which are automatically arranged and inverted at the start and the end of a quotation:

"Good gracious!" cried the duchess.

© Roy Johnson 2011

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How to write numbered lists

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tutorial, guidance notes, tips, and conventions

Numbered lists – definition

Numbered lists are used when it is important to draw attention to individual items in a group. They are also used to emphasise an ordered sequence.

Putting items in a numbered list helps a reader to see them both individually and as group. Both can be seen at the same time. Here’s an example:

Our main branch stocks –

  1. electrical goods
  2. household furniture
  3. domestic appliances
  4. leisure and sportswear
  5. fashion and accessories

You can see that the list reveals these different categories of goods more clearly than if the same information is presented in a sentence, with the items separated by commas.

Our main branch stocks electrical goods, household furniture, domestic appliances, leisure and sportswear, fashion and accessories.

Sequence in numbered lists

Numbered lists are especially useful if it is important that the items follow a particular sequence. Here’s an example from a recipe:

Basic scrambled eggs

  1. Melt two ounces of butter in a pan.
  2. Beat two fresh eggs in a bowl.
  3. Add one third of a cup of milk.
  4. Add a pinch of salt and pepper.
  5. Whisk until frothy.
  6. Pour mixture into pan.
  7. Stir continuously until semi-firm.
Parallelism in lists

Numbered and bulleted lists work best when each of the items listed is expressed in the same way. This is known as grammatical parallelism. In the example above, notice that each item begins with an action verb (Melt, Beat, Add) followed by the instruction.

In the next bad example, the items are expressed in a variety of grammatical forms. This blurrs the message being conveyed. In fact the items are also different in kind, because some are instructions, whilst others are information.

Fire regulations [BAD example]

  1. When the fire alarm goes off, you should leave the building.
  2. DON’T use the main stairway, as this could be dangerous.
  3. All fire exits are clearly marked.
  4. The main assembly point is located behind the warehouse.
Punctuation of lists

If the items in the list are expressed as complete sentences, they should be puctuated in the normal way. This means starting with a capital letter and ending with a full stop.

Health and safety regulations

  1. All doors must be locked by 6.00 pm.
  2. Smoking is not permitted in the building.
  3. All staff must be trained in the new fire regulations.
  4. No personal belongings may be left in the office overnight.

If the list items are sentence fragments, short phrases, or single words, there is no need to follow the normal rules of punctuation.

You will need five tools to complete this task:

  1. a screwdriver
  2. a hammer
  3. a spirit level
  4. a pair of pliers
  5. a measuring tape
Indentation of lists

It is common for numbered lists to be shown indented from the rest of the text – as they are on this page.

You can do this manually using the INDENT or TAB key on your keyboard. If you are using Microsoft Word, it will try to take over this process from you, indenting and numbering each sucessive line. This can be very annoying.

Nested lists

Sometimes it may be necessary to have a list within a list. This sometimes happens in lengthy and complex reports.

There are three key issues to be observed in cases of nested lists:

  1. The same general rules of presentation apply.
  2. Indetation is increased to include double indentation.
  3. The nested list needs a different system of numbering.

The secondary system of numbering should be easily distinguishable from the first. Use Roman numerals if necessary. If the numerical ordering is less important, it might be better to use an alphabetical system (a, b, c) or even revert to a bulleted list.

Numbered lists

Numbering systems

The numbers shown in a list can be offered as Arabic numbers (3, 4, 5, 6) or as Roman numerals (VII, XII, IV — or — iii, iv, v, vi). Avoid using Roman numerals unless you have a pressing need to do so, because this gives the reader extra work in comprehension.

Most word-processors will have this numbering feature automated. In Microsoft Word for instance, look under Paragraph -> Numbering.

There is not much point in having a list of items which goes into double figures or beyond. Readers will not be able to remember the order of the items. An exception can be made if it is a document that will be printed and used as a reference guide.

© Roy Johnson 2012

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Hyphens – how to use them correctly

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Hyphens – definition

hyphens Hyphens are short horizontal marks – (shorter than the dash).

redbtn Hyphens are used to show a link between words.

Examples

mother-in-law
re-enter
matter-of-fact
author-critic
president-elect
co-operation

Use

redbtn Hyphens are used to join words when forming compounds.

redbtn They are also used after prefixes – especially where it is necessary to avoid an awkward or confusing sequence of letters (as in re-enter).

redbtn Notice the difference between a compound word and the same terms used separately:

a fifteenth-century manuscript
in the fifteenth century

redbtn NB! The hyphen is not the same thing as the longer dash ( — ) but this distinction is rarely made in the UK.

redbtn Hyphens should be used where it is necessary to avoid ambiguity:

two-year-old cats
two year-old cats

redbtn They should also be used to distinguish terms which are spelled identically, but which have different meanings:

reformation – change for the better
re-formation – to form again

recover – to regain control
re-cover – to cover again

resign – to stand down
re-sign – to sign again

redbtn Hyphens are used when new terms are formed from compounds, but they are dropped when the compound is accepted into common usage. (This process is usually more rapid in the USA than in Europe.)

bath-tub -> bathtub
book-shelf -> bookshelf
club-house -> clubhouse

redbtn This phenomenon is currently visible in computer technology, where all three forms of a term may co-exist:

Word processor
Word-processor
Wordprocessor

redbtn Remember that the hyphen is not the same thing as the longer dash. A distinction between the two is commonly made in the US, but not in the UK.

Self-assessment quiz follows >>>

© Roy Johnson 2003

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Hyphens in essays

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1. Hyphens in essays are most commonly used to join words when forming compounds:

mother-in-law     president-elect

matter-of-fact     author-critic

2. They are also used after prefixes – especially where it is necessary to avoid an awkward or confusing sequence of letters:

re-enter    co-operation    pre-ignition

3. Notice the difference between a compound word and the same terms used separately:

a fifteenth-century manuscript     in the fifteenth century

4. Hyphens should be used where it is necessary to avoid ambiguity:

two-year-old cats   — two year-old cats

In the first case, all the cats are two years old. In the second case, two cats are each one year old.

5. Hyphens should also be used to distinguish terms which are spelled identically, but which have different meanings:

reformation  re-formation
recover   re-cover
resign   re-sign

6. Hyphens are used when new terms are formed from compounds, but they are dropped when the compound is accepted into common usage. (This process is usually more rapid in the USA than in Europe.)

bathtub —   was once bath-tub

bookshelf —   was once book-shelf

clubhouse —   was once club-house

7. This phenomenon is currently visible in computer technology,where all three forms of a term may co-exist:

Word processor —   Word-processor —   Wordprocessor

© Roy Johnson 2003

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Punctuation

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beginner’s guide to the basic principles of punctuation

Oxford University Press have just brought out a series of short beginners’ manuals on communication skills. Their emphasis is on compact, no-nonsense advice directly related to issues of everyday life. Punctuation in English can be almost as tricky as spelling. Robert Allen cleverly approaches the topic by explaining what punctuation is for, and how it can help you to write more effectively.

Punctuation He recognises that choices are not always clear cut. Does a pause in a sentence warrant a comma, a semi-colon, or maybe even a dash? And his explanations of the answers are illustrated throughout by everyday, practical examples. Beginners in particular will find his explanations very reassuring. He describes the basics of constructing statements and how they are best expressed using the basic elements of punctuation – from the comma to the full stop. Next comes the more complex issues of representing speech and using such punctuation marks as the colon and the semicolon. Don’t worry – everybody has problems with that one!

In fact there’s a useful section on how to avoid the most common mistakes in punctuation – such as using too many commas, or using the comma as a substitute for the full stop.

The second part of the book is a simple checklist of each common mark of punctuation – showing how each is used. And he ends with comments on the most popular problems – including what he calls ‘the grocer’s apostrophe’.

This is easy to read and understand. It’s a book which will be suitable for anyone unsure about what is ultimately a matter of taste and style.

© Roy Johnson 2002

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Robert Allen, Punctuation, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2002, pp.104, ISBN: 0198604394

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Punctuation – how to use it correctly

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Punctuation – definition

punctuation in english Punctuation in English language is used in writing to show the stress, ryhthm, and tone of the spoken word.

redbtn It is also used to clarify the meaning of sentences.

Examples

redbtn There are four common marks of punctuation:

redbtn These represent pauses of increasing length in a sentence.

comma [ , ]     semicolon [ ; ]

colon [ : ]     full stop [ . ]

Use

redbtn The following paragraph uses all the four common marks of punctation.

Punctuation should always be used lightly, even sparingly, and as accurately as possible. You will discover through practice that there are three basic rules: the comma, semicolon, and colon mark increasingly long pauses; full stops are used to separate distinct sentences; and a new paragraph should always
be employed to begin a new topic or point of argument.

redbtn NB! ‘Punctuation’ in speech is produced by tone, rhythm, stress, and intonation.

redbtn The four most common marks of punctuation are dealt with in detail in their own sections:

commas – semicolons – colons – full stops

redbtn The other common marks of punctuation are described below:

brackets – exclamation mark

dash – oblique stroke

hyphen – question mark

redbtn Some miscellaneous remarks on punctuation.

redbtn Brackets (these) are used to insert a remark (like this, for instance) or a qualification of some sort into a sentence.

redbtn Take care! If they are used too frequently they create a choppy, unsettling effect.

redbtn Full details in the section on brackets.

redbtn The dash (—) is used to indicate a sudden change of thought, an additional comment, or a dramatic qualification.

That was the end of the matter — or so we thought.

redbtn Dashes can also be used in pairs to insert a comment or a short list:

Everything — furniture, paintings, and books — survived the fire.

redbtn They should not be used as a substitute for brackets, or mixed with them.

redbtn The dash is not the same thing as the hyphen (which is shorter) but this distinction is rarely made in the UK.

redbtn The exclamation mark (!) indicates surprise, anger, or alarm.

What a mess!
Get out of this house at once!
The ship is sinking! Jump in the lifeboat!

redbtn Exclamation marks should be used with restraint. The more frequently they occur, the weaker becomes their effect.

redbtn The novelist F. Scott Fitzgerald once remarked that using an exclamation mark was rather like laughing at your own jokes.

redbtn The question mark [?] is used to show that a question has been raised.

redbtn The question mark is always placed at the end of the sentence.

redbtn The following examples are questions:

What are you going to do?
How much is that doggy in the window?
Why is that woman staring at us?

redbtn Since the question mark is placed at the end of a sentence, no full stop is required. [If you look closely, you will see that the question mark (like the exclamation mark) contains its own full stop.]

redbtn The following are not questions.

He wondered what to do next.
She asked herself the same question.
What will happen to them is a mystery.

redbtn The hyphen [ – ] is a short dash used to connect (parts of) words.

redbtn These might be prefixes:

re-enter         co-operate         pre-enrol

redbtn They can be compound adjectives:

multi-storey car park        extra-marital sex

redbtn They can be used when when forming compounds such as

son-in-law        couldn’t-care-less

redbtn The oblique stroke [ / ] is sometimes used to separate items in a list:

oil/water mix Kent/Surrey boundary
italic/Roman type 1972/73

redbtn It should not be used as a substitute for words such as and, plus, and or.

redbtn Try to avoid the either/or construction and such lazy (and ugly) compounds as this:

‘it will help to create an entire social/sexual/ideological system’.

redbtn The oblique stroke might be useful when taking notes, but it should be avoided in formal writing for the sake of elegance.

redbtn Miscellaneous remarks on punctuation.

redbtn Many aspects of punctuation are ultimately a matter of personal preference and literary style.

redbtn The general tendency in most public writing today is to minimise the amount of punctuation used.

redbtn There are also minor differences in practice between the UK and the USA.

redbtn The suggestions made above are based generally on conventions in the UK.

redbtn Double punctuation [“What’s the matter!?”] is rarely used, except in very informal writing such as personal letters or diaries.

redbtn The combination of colon-plus-dash [: — ] is never necessary. Some people use this [it’s called ‘the pointer’] to indicate that a list will follow, but the colon alone should be sufficient.

redbtn The importance of punctuation can be illustrated by comparing the two following letters. In both cases, the text is the same. It’s the punctuation which makes all the difference!

Dear John:

I want a man who knows what love is all about. You are generous, kind, thoughtful. People who are not like you admit to being useless and inferior. You have ruined me for other men. I yearn for you. I have no feelings whatsoever when we’re apart. I can be forever happy — will you let me be yours?

Gloria

Dear John:

I want a man who knows what love is. All about you are generous, kind, thoughtful people, who are not like you. Admit to being useless and inferior. You have ruined me. For other men, I yearn. For you, I have no feelings whatsoever. When we’re apart, I can be forever happy. Will you let me be?

Yours, Gloria

Self-assessment quiz follows >>>

© Roy Johnson 2003

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Punctuation in essays

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1. Punctuation is used in writing to indicate the natural pauses, stress, and intonation of the spoken word. It is also used to clarify the meaning of a sentence.

2. The most common marks of punctuation are the comma, the semicolon, the colon, and the full stop. These represent pauses of increasing length.

3. If you are in any doubt about punctuation, then use as little of it as possible. Write in short, direct sentences. It is perfectly possible to write clearly and efficiently using only the comma and the full stop.

4. Avoid using abbreviations (i.e., etc., &, e.g.) as well as too frequent use of the dash ( – ) and the exclamation mark (!). These all create the impression of a style which is too casual and chatty.

5. Abbreviations such as e.g. and i.e. are acceptable (and may be desirable) in your notes. However, if you wish to use any of these expressions in the body of your text, they should be written out fully in words – as for example and that is.

6. Short, clear, and simple sentences are usually more effective than those which are long and complex. If you are in any doubt at all, split up any longer sentences into two or three which are shorter. You are more likely to make your meaning clear with shorter rather than longer sentences.

7. What follows is an example of an entire paragraph which has been punctuated using only the comma and the full stop. [The subject is the structure of a paragraph.]

The central thought or main controlling idea of a paragraph is usually conveyed in what is called a topic sentence. This crucial sentence which states, summarises or clearly expresses the main theme, is the keystone of a well-built paragraph. The topic sentence may come anywhere in the paragraph, though most logically and in most cases it is the first sentence. This immediately tells readers what is coming, and leaves them in no doubt about the overall controlling idea. In a very long paragraph, the initial topic sentence may even be restated or given a more significant emphasis in its conclusion.

8. The paragraph which follows demonstrates the correct use of the comma, semicolon, colon, and full stop. These are the most common marks of punctuation.

Punctuation should always be used lightly, even sparingly, and as accurately as possible. You will discover through practice that there are three basic rules: the comma, semicolon, and colon mark increasingly long pauses; full stops are used to separate distinct sentences; and a new paragraph should always be employed to begin a new topic or point of argument.

9. The use of brackets (technical name ‘parentheses’) should be kept to a minimum. They are used to indicate a supplementary remark, an authorial aside, or a qualification of some sort. However, if they are used too frequently they interrupt the flow of the argument and create a choppy, unsettling effect.

10. Square brackets [like these] are used to indicate authorial additions. They indicate your changes to somebody else’s text, or your comments on it. For instance, if you are quoting a text which requires brief explanation, you would insert your own remarks between square brackets.

Thompson’s article then goes on to claim that ‘these dramatic upheavals [in government policy] were heralded by cabinet reshuffles earlier in the year’ (3) and it ends with an analysis of the election results.

11. If a quotation contains a mistake in the original you might wish to indicate that the error is not your own. This too is indicated by the use of square brackets.

The senior government minister who was recently acquitted of kerb-crawling claimed that at long last his ‘trails [sic] and tribulations’ were at an end.

12. Exclamation marks (!) should be used as little as possible in academic essays. They tend to create a slightly juvenile, overexcited tone. In any form of writing, the more frequently they are used the weaker becomes their effect.

13. The question mark (?) too should be used as little as possible. In fact questions should not normally be raised in essays – unless you are going to answer them. Keep in mind that most essays are posed in the form of questions which you should answer.

14. Try to minimise the use of the dash ( – ). These may be used singly to indicate an afterthought, or in pairs to insert an explanatory comment or a short list:

Everything – furniture, paintings, and books – survived the fire that broke out last week.

They should not be used as a substitute for parentheses, or mixed with them.

15. The hyphen ( – ) is a short dash used to connect prefixes to words (multi-storey car park) or when forming compounds such as ‘son-in-law’ or a ‘couldn’t-care-less’ attitude.

16. In general, the oblique stroke (/) should not be used as a substitute for words such as ‘and’, ‘plus’, and ‘or’. Try to avoid the either/or construction and such lazy (and ugly) compounds as ‘an entire social/sexual/ideological system’.

17. Note that the combination of colon-plus-dash [: – ] (which is called ‘the pointer’) is never necessary. Some people use this to indicate that a list will follow, but the colon alone should be sufficient.

18. Too frequent or uncontrolled use of these marks of punctuation tends to create a loose, sloppy style. You should normally keep them strongly in check, otherwise you might produce writing as bad as this:

What then went wrong? – how was the political impetus of the late 60’s/70’s lost that manifested itself so strikingly in the field of film study?

19. Quotations are normally shown in single quote marks – ‘like this’. When quoting speech use double quote marks:

The tutor remarked that “These conventions are designed to give your essays a pleasing and well-designed appearance”.

20. You do not need to put full stops after titles such as Mr, Dr, and Co (unless they occur at the end of a sentence). They are also not required in well-known business and company titles such as BBC and IBM. This is a practice which has now gone out of fashion.

21. Make a clear distinction between marks of punctuation such as the comma and the full stop, otherwise this may appear to produce weak grammar.

22. Many aspects of punctuation are ultimately a matter of personal preference, current fashion, and (in the case of newspapers and commercial publishers) what is known as ‘house style’. There are also minor differences in practice between the UK and the USA. The suggestions made above are based generally on common academic conventions in the UK.

© Roy Johnson 2003

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Semicolons – how to use them

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Semicolons – definition

semicolons The semicolon [ ; ] marks a long pause in a sentence.

redbtn It is half way between a comma and a colon.

Examples

Neither of us spoke; we merely waited to see what would happen.

He usually took great care; even so he made a few errors.

Four objects lay on the desk: a large book; a spiral-bound notepad; a glass vase containing flowers; and a silver propelling pencil.

Use

redbtn Semicolons are used between clauses which could stand alone, but which are closely related.

redbtn They are also used to punctuate lists in continuous prose writing.

redbtn NB! If you’re in any doubt about the semicolon – don’t use it.

redbtn The semicolon marks a pause which is longer than a comma, but not as long as a colon. This is a subtle distinction.

redbtn It is most commonly used between clauses which could be expressed as separate sentences, but which have some logical connection.

redbtn For instance, in the following example there could be a full stop after ‘England’:

Rutland was formerly the smallest county in England; no other area in the land was famous for so little.

redbtn The semicolon is used to avoid ambiguity in sentences composed of phrases of different length and a mixed content:

The Chairman welcomed the President, Dr Garvey; the Vice-President Mr Barncroft and his wife; several delegates from the United States; and members of the public who had been invited to attend.

redbtn Because the semicolon may be used instead of a full stop, some people use it without discrimination. They connect clause after clause with semicolons where no real link exists between them. This creates grammatical confusion and very poor style.

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© Roy Johnson 2004

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