Grammar, Quotation Marks, and Programing

[frizzantik]

I have this problem with english syntax. You're supposed to place punctuation inside of quotation marks if the punctuation is at the end of the bit being quoted, "like this," or "like this."

i hate adding the puctuation inside of the quotes, because the quotes to me signify some exact information, and even adding a comma or a period changes the information. i imagine this has to do with my programming background, where you might deal with a list of quoted values with the comma on the outside (eg, 1,"foo",2,"bar")

does anyone else feel that punctuation that wasnt in a quote shouldnt go inside of the quotation marks?

 

[honEbee]

I know it's nit-picky, but it really bothers me too (maybe it's a programming thing).

 

[nowonmai]

totally... for instance, the question mark should go INSIDE the quotes, not outside... it's not as if the question is seperate from the actual words spoken.
More on this from the jargon file: http://www.outpost9.com/reference/jargon/jargon_6.html#SEC13

 

[alasdairm]

does anyone else feel that punctuation that wasnt in a quote shouldnt go inside of the quotation marks?

i totally agree. if the text you are quoting did not, say, end with full stop but it is now quoted at the end of a sentence, sure the correct approach is:

"...gave her a pearl necklace".

you say you're not supposed to do it this way but why do you believe that to be the case?

there's a little irony here. a quotation is surely supposed to be accurate above all else. well, adding the punctuation into the quote means the quote is no longer accurate.

alasdair

 

[Pander Bear]

I can't stand it either. I buck the system and put my punctuation on the outside, with the quotations end punctuation inside. No professor in the english or comparative lit departments have given me shit for it. I haven't caught flak for it since middle school. We all ought to do what we want, this is one of those vestigial rules that is going to get axed from the grammar books in the next century, better just get on board for the big win.

 

[skydancer]

You're supposed to place punctuation inside of quotation marks if the punctuation is at the end of the bit being quoted, "like this," or "like this."

Yeah, that's supposedly the only legal way to do it. Well, the establishment can suck my cock.

I have spent 1/3 of my useful life right now doing it the RIGHT way and have yet to receive a complaint about it!

I am also consistent when I use parentheses at the end of a sentence. It can get a bit freaky when lots of stuff gets nested, but that is the price for a CONSISTENT GRAMMAR (I do it like this! Are there any laws about nested parentheses shyte (not that I care!)?).

 

[bong420tripper]

I think I may be the most recent person in this thread to take a college english course, and to much of your chagrin, they now teach that you a quotation should never be in the middle of a sentence. There is to be an introductory phrase to the quote, and then the quote should conclude the sentence. That being said, this would effectively end any need for a " "and the worm sank," " type of quotation. It would now be assumed that it is to be, "the worm sank."

I can't say I agree with that whatsoever, but that is what my professor stressed last semester. I cannot see such a trend lasting very long.

 

[Pander Bear]

I'm in two upper division english courses, one of which is advanced composition. I think you may have one of those strange professors with his own ideas of senetence construction. I know I've gotten the red pen for things that everybody else on the planet does.

 

[bong420tripper]

^ Isn't it interesting how once you become a professor you can force your students to write according to what you think should be the current standard?

 

[haste]

This is something that has always confused the hell out of me - so I alternate the placement and hope I get it right once in awhile

 

[fizzygirl]

^ Isn't it interesting how once you become a professor you can force your students to write according to what you think should be the current standard?

Only if your field doesn't have its own accepted standard. If you wanna see something truly anal and retarded, check out the APA publication book. One big huge thing that basically tells you every nitpicky detail of where to put your commas, spaces, tables, how to name stuff, etc. It sucks so bad when you're first learning it and have to look every little thing up...

 

[Cosmic Mist]

I think it's stupid. I'm a bit of a stickler for proper grammar when it comes to writing, and i never really knew what to do here. I htink it's a matter of going with what feels right.