Could we be we in danger of losing our comma forever? And would you miss it if it disappeared?
The humble comma could be abolished 'without doing much damage,' according to an American professor of English talking in The Times newspaper today.
John McWhorter from Columbia University argues that 'as internet users and even some authors become increasingly idiosyncratic .... in their use of this punctuation mark, it may have outstayed its welcome.'
Commas, he says, could be taken out of modern American text citing the Oxford comma, inserted after the penultimate item in a list, as an example. 'There could even be a case made for not using commas at all'.
I disagree. In England our language changes all the time, with new words being added and others falling into disuse, but we can't afford to let punctuation go out of fashion.
Take this example from The Times article: 'Rachel Ray finds inspiration in cooking her family and her dog.' In a world without commas, what sort of mother would Rachel be?
Today's generation has dispensed of the letter 't' as in compu'er, wa'er and par'y. So, come on, do we care enough to keep the comma? What do you think?
