Bambi's Grammar Corner || I_________________________________________________________
Capitalizing TitlesI actually have a great list from one of my grammar books here. It's an old-y but a good-y:
Therefore, capitalize the following parts of speech:
- Nouns (e.g., flowers and Europe as in The Flowers of Europe)
- Pronouns (e.g., our as in Save Our Children; that as in The Mouse That Roared)
- Verbs (e.g., watches as in America Watches Television; is as in What Is Literature?)
- Adjectives (e.g., ugly as in The Ugly Ducking; that as in Who Said That Phrase?)
- Adverbs (e.g., slightly as in Only Slightly Corrupt; down as in Go Down, Moses)
In general, articles (the, an, a) and most other smaller particles of speech (of, and) are not capitalized unless they are at the beginning. However, it does sometimes depend on their placement and use within the sentence. If you have any doubts, post the particular title you want to write and I can give you a solid answer as to what should/shouldn't be capitalized.
Repeated WordsAlthough there is usually a way to get around it, sometimes you just can't avoid repeating a word directly after itself. The correct way to do this is to have a comma between the words. Even if the sentence wouldn't normally call for it, the comma would go there anyway. That's just how it is. If you're writing a formal paper, though, avoid repeated words. Sometimes, people just add the other word in because it sounds right, and it even works without it. The most frequent example of this is with the word "that."
Original Example:
"I thought that, that was his last pitch." Better Example:
"I thought that was his last pitch."Possible Example 2:
"I thought, 'Wasn't that his last pitch?'"Stacked PunctuationSometimes, there will be instances where you need two different pieces of punctuation right after each other. First, I'll give you a general guideline, and then I'll give you examples.
- When adding a question mark (?) or excalamation point (!) after an ellipse (...), you should always get rid of the last dot of the ellipse and replace it with your punctuation mark of choice. Remember that ellipses do have special purposes (see next section).
Example: What is this..?
- When a comma is following an ellipses, never remove the last period. Just put the comma after.
Example: [There are very few instances where this is necessary, so I can't really think of an example right now. Sorry. Basically, though, it would just be "...,"]
- The next sentence is an example of what it is explaining: If you want to say Mrs., Ms., Mr., or any other acronym/shortened word where you need a comma, always put the comma after the period.
- Punctuation with parentheses () is a bit tricky. Depending on what you're doing, the period/end punctuation for the sentence before it may or may not come after. Basically, if what is in the parentheses is an independent clause that can be supported as its own sentence, then what is inside should be capitalized and the end punctuation for the previous sentence should be before the parentheses. However, if what is in the parentheses is a dependent clause that could not be a complete sentence, then it should not be capitalized, and the end punctuation should come after the parentheses. If the parentheses are in the middle of a sentence, what is inside must be a dependent clause, and there should be no punctuation directly after the parentheses.
Mid-Dependent Example: I have brown eyes (with specs of gold) that shine in the light.
End-Dependent Example: I have brown eyes (with specs of gold).
Independent Example: He was beautiful. (You don't say?)
- Double parentheses are technically alright, but they're not particularly formal. In general, you want to start with brackets, and use parentheses inside them. [(text)] Never use brackets inside of parentheses. ([DO NOT DO THIS]) If you need three within each other, it is usually best to go [((text))]. However, if you wanted to be cool, there IS a system that goes to four with this. In most cases, though, it's better to just start a new sentence rather than go that far, mainly because not all professors/writers accept using that type of separation punctuation past the bracket.
Using Quotation MarksQuotation marks are annoying and weird. There are very few situations where the end punctuation comes after the quotation, so if you're not positive, the best thing to do would be to put it before the end quotation mark. I tend to not follow the quotation mark rules, but I'll lay them out for those who need it:
- Quoting Within A Quote
When you're quoting within a quote, you put the normal quotation marks as you would around the entire original quote, and then you actually use apostraphes around the quote inside.
For example: He sighed, realizing he would have to tell the full story. "I asked him what he was doing. He said, 'I'm dancing. What else would I be doing?' It took me by surprise to see he had such a nonchalant response."
- Changing Speakers
When you change speakers, you go to a new paragraph, even if the last paragraph only had one line. You never have one paragraph with two speakers unless one speaker is quoting another.
Example:
P1: "I fell into the well," Charlie said. He didn't seem pleased, for his clothes were dripping wet. "Why didn't you help, James?"
P2: James snickered. "I was too busy laughing my ass off."
P3: "Screw you! 'Laughing my ass off,' you say? Fuck you - I'm gonna push you into the well next time, James." Charlie began to strip, throwing the clothes at his so-called "friend" before he dressed himself.
