Thursday, March 5, 2009

The Semicolon: Kenny, Mia, Grace, Eve

Put your examples here. Each student makes one comment before next Wednesday's class.

Posted by Brad at 3/05/2009 01:55:00 PM

5 comments:

Eve Yan said...

Sample sentence using semicolon:

I never have time to explain that I was born in Scotland; that my Cantonese- and Mandarin-speaking mother had decided that she and my father would only speak English to their children.

In this sample, the semicolon is used to separate and combine the two ideas that “I never have time to explain”.

Here is my sentence using the same structure

I don’t think it is a big deal to tell people that my daughter was born in China; that she actually speaks Chinese in three tongues which have included, of course, Mandarin.

March 8, 2009 at 9:05 PM
Brad said...

Hi Eve,

That's an interesting use of a semicolon, actually, and quite the nonstandard one. It's acting much like a "super" comma here. Your example works, but beware of trying this usage in another setting as quite a few people would consider it an error!

March 8, 2009 at 10:19 PM
Grace said...

Example sentence using semicolon [;]:

“I never have time to explain that I was born in Scotland; that my Cantonese- and Mandarin-speaking mother had decided that she and my father would only speak English to their children.”

In this sample, the semicolon is used to separate and simultaneously combine two closely related independent clauses. These two clauses are both the objects of the verb “explain”, and the idea in the second clause has a further explanation about why the writer can not speak any Chinese. The whole sentence surely can be written as “I never have time to explain that I was born in Scotland, and my Cantonese- and Mandarin-speaking mother had decided that she and my father would only speak English to their children.” Thus, the verb “explain” has a compound sentence as object. The writer chose using semicolon, I think, one hand probably because the second clause is complex and lengthy; but the other hand and more importantly, “the semicolon allows the writer to imply the relationship” (the further explanation in the second clause as mentioned above) “between … the ideas” lying in the two clauses “without actually stating that relationship.”*

* from “Punctuation Tree” about semicolon

Here is my sentence using the same structure:

I make this call so early just to let you know right away that my daughter is sick; that we can not hold that birthday party for her today although we have prepared so much and a long time. (This sentence can be written as "I make this call so early just to let you know right away that my daughter is sick, so we can not hold that birthday party for her today although we have prepared so much and a long time.”)

March 10, 2009 at 7:46 PM
mia said...

Example sentence using semicolon:

They’ve clearly read those studies about children and second languages: Children lose their ability to learn a language fully and perfectly by age 4; more languages equates with higher intelligence.

In this example, the semicolon is used to separate two sentences which have closer related ideas.

Here is my sentence using the same structure:

He always thinks of his study and education: Study makes him grasp new knowledge; more education means higher earnings.

March 10, 2009 at 10:37 PM
kenny said...

I never have time to explain that I was born in Scotland; that my Cantonese-and Mandarin-speaking mother had decided that she and my father would only speak English to their children.

In this sentence, the semicolon connects the both sentences. Here is my sentence using semicolon for connecting the two related sentences.

I have never been practice the punctuation; without knowing that the boundary of writing would be restricted.

March 11, 2009 at 12:02 AM

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