Many of us can remember a course or two in college that we expected to be interesting because it covered a topic we were particularly fascinated by, but we were disappointed by the droning of a dry and boring professor. On the other hand, some of us might also be able to recall a course taken solely for scheduling convenience that pleasantly surprised us. A passionate and pedagogically competent professor introduced us to what we had thought to be an arid topic. Many will undergo the latter pleasant experience when they read the current bestseller, Eats, Shoots, and Leaves, by Lynne Truss. The book focuses on what many formerly believed to be the most parched of topics: punctuation and its (definitely not "it's") abusive use.
Clear writing and clear thinking are intimately linked, and punctuation is indispensable for clear writing. Punctuation is a late development in the history of the written word. As Truss explains, we emerged from a "scriptio continua swamp" where words where placed in sequence without punctuation, and where the reader was often required to literally divine the meaning of passages. Indeed, religious controversy swirled over the meaning of simple passages, ambiguous for the lack of punctuation.
Consider the meaning of the word sequence:
"verily I say to thee this day thou shalt be with me in paradise"
Perhaps it is a promise of immediate entrance into Paradise as in:
"Verily, I say to thee. This day thou shalt be with me in Paradise."
Or, perhaps it is a present promise for a more distant heavenly reward:
"Verily, I say to thee this day. Thou shalt be with me in Paradise."
Despite the interesting historical lessons in punctuation, the charm of Eats, Shoots, and Leaves, rests with Truss' sardonic British wit. She describes herself and kindred spirits as "sticklers" and half-seriously as wanting to lead the militant wing of the Apostrophe Protection Society. This militant wing would be armed with markers and paint to mark in desperately needed apostrophes or to eradicate impertinent ones from public signs.
In addition to humorous anecdotes illustrating hilarious confusion associated with misapplied punctuation, Truss uses wondrous and loving metaphors to describe punctuation. Did you know the period is male and the apostrophe is female? As Truss explains:
"In fact while one may dare to say that the full stop [a period for Americans] is the lumpen male of the punctuation world (do one job at a time; do it well; forget about it instantly), the apostrophe is the frantically multi-tasking female, dotting hither and yon and succumbing to burnout for all the thankless effort."
