- "Let's put a full stop to the Oxford comma." The Telegraph, July 2, 2011.
- "Grammar Enthusiasts Fear Losing the Oxford Comma." KMOV.com, St. Louis, July 1, 2011.
- "Oxford Comma, Still With Us." The Economist, June 30, 2011.
Never heard of the Oxford comma, you say? What's all this fuss about the Oxford comma?
The Oxford comma is the comma that follows the last item in a series, just before the "and," "or," or some other conjunction. You might know it by its more popular name, the serial comma. (See below.)
Writers and English teachers know all about the Oxford comma. The rest of us, not so much.
Keys 1, and 2
To my mind, writers and authors need to know just two things about the Oxford comma, and two things only.- The Oxford comma is helpful in managing lists. Most of the time we craft reasonably simple lists in which each item is independent and not tied conceptually to another item. Here are some examples:
- The patient c/o nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea.
- He grimaced, flexed his right leg, and pointed to his right lower quadrant
- The drug is contraindicated in anaphylaxis, severe combined immunodeficiency, coma, reduced level of consciousness, or pregnancy.
- The patient was visited by his wife, a co-worker and a friend.
- The patient was visited by his wife, a co-worker, and a friend.
- Conform to the publisher's style. Maybe you're a firm believer in the Oxford comma. Or maybe you would just as soon see it disappear forever. Whatever you think actually makes no difference when you're writing for publication. You need to know whether the publisher uses it, and if so, then you use it too.
To find out what a particular publisher prefers, check a few of their books, journals, or magazines. Do you consistently see the Oxford comma? Then use it.
If you don't see the comma used consistently, then assume you can either use it or ditch it, as you see fit.
My recommendation
Use it always. Makes life so much easier.Now go forth and write, create, formulate, scribe, scribble, and publish!
I have to say, I am a fan of the Oxford Comma!
ReplyDeleteMe too. I really became a fan when I was at Weekly Reader, the famous children's newsmagazine. Kids particularly have trouble sorting lists, and the serial comma was a necessity. I still use it to this day.
ReplyDeleteCount me in on the Oxford Comma fan club! However, my copyeditor may have a different vote. Anyone know what the APA style guide says? That is the primary nursing format.
ReplyDeleteAPA uses it. Here's a relevant blog: http://blog.apastyle.org/apastyle/2011/04/using-serial-commas.html
ReplyDeleteI was never a fan of the Oxford Comma because of the (lame) old excuse that "I was taught grammar this way..." However, after seeing the example above of the patient and his wife, I am a convert! Most of all, I am a fan of consistency -- either use it throughout your writing or not at all. And I remain a fan of Andy McPhee who made my days at Weekly Reader far more interesting than commas!
ReplyDeleteAwww, Emily, you're much too kind. You're a talented writer who was a joy to work with.
ReplyDeleteOK, so it looks like APA is in the Oxford comma camp (pg 88-89 of 6th edition). Thanks, ANdy!
ReplyDeleteUse it always? No, thank you! Much as I like the Oxford comma, it doesn't always clarify. I like to keep my options open and be prepared to omit it if it's apt to undermine the meaning or rhythm of a sentence.
ReplyDeleteLove the Oxford comma. So neat to read about it- never knew it had an official name!
ReplyDeleteI will be a devote user of the Oxford Comma from this day forward. Now where is it on my keyboard.....hmmmmm.
ReplyDeleteMy favorite example is: "For helping me finish this project, I would like to thank my parents, Karl Marx and God."
ReplyDeleteThe mind reels at the very idea.
Love it!
ReplyDeleteHi Andy,
ReplyDeleteWe've quoted this article in our blog post here:
http://b10track.blogspot.com/2011/07/what-authors-need.html
Love the post, thanks so much for the link. And you're right, my blog comments are almost always targeted to the technical writer, certainly not fiction writers, whose tolerance for all things punctuation should be much more broad.
ReplyDeleteVery important comma, this. I have arguments about it all the time. I haven't yet hit someone over it, though. It's not a popular thing here in South Africa, it seems, especially amongst those who go to finishing school.
ReplyDeleteI had no idea that this curly little nugget of ink has such a following or could engender such controversy. Me, I'd rather smack someone upside the head for writing "pre-meeting" or "pre-thinking," and leave the complex comma alone. But no, this Oxford comma debate endures and perhaps will never be settled. Ah, grammar.
ReplyDeleteLynne Truss in Eats, Shoots & Leaves: "There are people who embrace the Oxford comma, and people who don't, and I'll just say this: never get between these people when drink has been taken." - quote off Wikipedia's page on the Oxford comma
ReplyDeleteFor me, the Oxford comma is an amusing thing to fuss about. Expletives start circulating in my brain when I hear nonsense like "thought leadership" or nouns used as verbs (usually management jargon).
[...] 2 Key Things Writers Need to Know About the Oxford Comma [...]
ReplyDelete