Punctuation Theories Flashcards
Punctuation Theorists
Howard
Blake & Moorhead
Chomsky
Greenbaum & Nelson
Crystal
Truss
Punctuation Theories - Howard: Theory Defintion
MANY VARIETIES OF PUNCTUATION
- Used in various ways
USING A VARIETY OF PUNCTUATION IN THE WRONG CONTEXT - writer is liable to excite misunderstanding and derision
Punctuation Theories - Howard: 2 Theories
Writing for texts that will be read hastily
Writing for texts that will be read by educated readers
Punctuation Theories - Howard: Writing for hastily read texts
e.g. Newspaper articles
- Short sentences
- Many full stops
Allows for ease to read
Punctuation Theories - Howard: Writing for educated readers
e.g. University textbook
- Longer sentences
- More elaborated punctuation
Allows for finer distinction & greater flexibility in meaning
Punctuation Theories - Blake & Moorhead: 2 Distinctions
Difference between earlier & modern punctuation
- Earlier
- Modern
Punctuation Theories - Blake & Moorhead: Earlier
Used for rhetorical purposes
- Can be seen as puzzling & arbitrary (from rhetorical nature)
- Capital letters used to note emphasis (found in older nouns)
Punctuation Theories - Blake & Moorhead: Modern
More grammatical in it’s application
- Marks off grammatical units such as clauses & sentences
- Help reader know when to pause while reading aloud
Punctuation Theories - Chomsky: Theory
Language Acquisition Device
- Born with the ability to absorb grammar
- Language structure is hardwired into our brain’s LAD
- Universal grammar
- We all have the innate ability to acquire language grammar & structure
Punctuation Theories - Greenbaum & Nelson: Theory
Punctuation exists to act as a set of conventions developed by printers and publishers to help make texts more manageable & readable
Punctuation Theories - Crystal: Theory
It’s easier for people to argue about punctuation because there are only 12 signs to learn (easy to learn)
Punctuation Theories - Truss: Theory
Those who use improper punctuation / grammar do not read enough
