Punctuation conquers all, part one
- Amber Davis
- Feb 7
- 3 min read
Updated: Mar 24
Welcome to February, nerds. ‘Tis the season of love. So, obviously, I’ve been thinking a lot about punctuation.
I’ve crafted some comparisons that, I promise, will make sense if you hear me out, and we’d like to share them with you in a blog post series that we call Punctuation conquers all.
Please enjoy part one:
May your love be a semicolon
There may be no mark more misunderstood in the punctuation lexicon than the semicolon. Kurt Vonnegut was purported to hate it, and Edward Abbey called it “obscene.”1 (Hmmm… did those guys have healthy romantic relationships? Unrelated question, of course.)
Most wordsmiths fall into one of three camps: those who love the semicolon, those who hate the semicolon, and those who don’t understand how to use it and therefore avoid it at all costs.
I think you can guess where I stand.
A semicolon is a grace note; it’s technically unnecessary in any composition. It’s replaceable in every occurrence. Clauses joined by a semicolon might just as easily be left independent, or joined by an em dash, or a comma combined with a coordinating conjunction, or, in some cases, a common garden-variety comma alone. But how elevating it is to see the semicolon in proper use! This little hybrid enigma is the brave choice of an artisan: a touch of color, of light, of fire where none is strictly required.
One chooses a semicolon on purpose, because it is thoughtful and rare and beautiful—not because it’s the only mark that will do.
And isn’t that just like healthy romantic love? Best when you don’t need it, but you choose it anyway—for the color, the light, and the fire it adds to your life.
A semicolon is best employed when the independent clauses it’s joining are of equal importance.2 It can demonstrate contrast between independent clauses rather than agreement, or it can convey the exact level of relatedness between two ideas. It works either way. Like a colon, a semicolon signals that what follows it is closely related—whether by opposition or alignment—to what comes before it.3
Now, not to be too on-the-nose, but imagine that I just said all that about two independent people joined by love instead of clauses joined by an obscure punctuation mark. You see it, right? Two autonomous beings, each bearing equal confidence and self-awareness, are connected through a love that may highlight their differences at times, or their similarities. It works either way.
A semicolon offers clarity: it can replace a comma between two clauses that are joined by a coordinating conjunction like ‘and’ in cases where the sentence might otherwise be confusing.
For example:
Confusing with just a comma: "Their dinner date was scheduled for 7pm, and the hopeful young man, who had just arrived home from work, needed time to prepare."
Clearer with a semicolon: "The dinner date was scheduled for 7pm; and the hopeful young man, who had just arrived from work, needed time to prepare."
Healthy romantic love provides clarity in a confusing world.
Looking for more?
Like love, the semicolon:
Is controversial when overused, but sophisticated when applied in moderation.
Joins, but also maintains separation, just as lovers in a healthy relationship maintain independent identities.
Connects two statements when the second clause is missing some essential words that are supplied by the first clause—but be careful. This could be a job for the comma if one clause is overly dependent on the other. And don’t get me started on my comma metaphor.
We Mix nerds hope that everyone finds, celebrates, and revels in a semicolon-like love at some point in their life. And we hope that you stay tuned for Punctuation conquers all part two: May your love be a hyphen. Coming soon.
コメント