I know the rules about using quotation marks. Capital Community College’s grammar website pulls no punches:
In the United States, periods and commas go inside quotation marks regardless of logic.
They go on to explain:
There are peculiar typographical reasons why the period and comma go inside the quotation mark in the United States. The following explanation comes from the "Frequently Asked Questions" file of alt.english.usage: "In the days when printing used raised bits of metal, "." and "," were the most delicate, and were in danger of damage (the face of the piece of type might break off from the body, or be bent or dented from above) if they had a '"' on one side and a blank space on the other. Hence the convention arose of always using '."' and ',"' rather than '".' and '",', regardless of logic." This seems to be an argument to return to something more logical, but there is little impetus to do so within the United States.
It’s time to reform and incorporate logic. It’s time to recognize that quotation marks have two functions: one for dialogue and another for other uses. I’m ready to defect to the Brits for guidance in this matter. In British usage, only those punctuation marks included in the quoted material are placed within quotation marks in direct quotations. Otherwise they place punctuation outside the closing quotation marks. Likewise with quotation marks used to set off non-traditional meanings, titles and so forth.
Notice the difference in this sentence:
Mr. Watson made us all memorize Edgar Alan Poe’s poem, “The Raven.” (American)
Mr. Watson made us all memorize Edgar Alan Poe’s poem, “The Raven”. (British)
Or this one:
I especially appreciated Penfield's article, “The Makings of a Memoir.” (American)
I especially appreciated Penfield's article, “The Makings of a Memoir”. (British)
The British form makes sense. The poem name and article title are independent parts of the sentences. If either were put in parentheses, the period would come after the closing parenthesis, I.e. ... Edgar Alan Poe’s poem (The Raven).
Fortunately American grammar is more reasonable where question and exclamation marks are used. Their placement inside or outside the closing quotation mark is determined by whether they apply to the whole sentence or the part within the quotes. For example,
Did Larry ask “Is Mattie going to be there”?
Larry asked, “Is Mattie is going to be there?”
I have already begun using British guidelines in this respect, and shall continue to do so (unless someone pays me serious money to conform to their choice of style guide). But if I am to make any inroads, I need lots of help. Otherwise, I look as ignorant as my children used to think I was, and my efforts will make only the tiniest of ripples. I invite you to join me in publicly proclaiming independence from archaic punctuation logic. Rules eventually change to reflect common usage, so let’s be common!
Write now: examine a small stack of old manuscripts and determine places where you might edit closing quotes according to British usage. Make a decision about sticking to the traditional form versus helping shift a rule.
References:
http://grammar.ccc.commnet.edu/grammar/marks/quotation.htm
http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20100618102646AAkcgnL
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quotation_mark#Punctuation
I turn my attention to my knees. One puckery scar from early girlhood is still there, much smaller now than it was fifty some years ago, and the other is gone entirely. Once upon a time I recalled the occasions on which I skinned those knees, even to the perverse pleasure of picking at the scabs until they eventually flaked off to reveal fresh pink skin underneath. I still recall picking at the scabs, and the pain of having the knees scrubbed clean and swabbed with red-orange merthiolate, but the specifics of the wounds are long forgotten.
A small scar on my left jaw is an inch away that its original location. That one is the reminder — when I look in my side-view mirror — of the cyst that settled there, the cyst that I passed off to a curious fourth-grade classmate as a mosquito bite. He didn’t buy that. That “bite” lasted for several months before my mother took me to the doctor in Santa Fe to have it removed.
A scar on my left inner forearm remains much as it has for nearly fifty years and reminds me of the day less than a week before my wedding when I was helping my father tie springs in a chair Mother was reupholstering. A spring slipped, gashing my arm as it flew forth, leaving something resembling the “quality check” mark on Darigold milk cartons. My father put his quality check mark on me, I decided.
I scan my shins. Which one has the nick from the corner of the dishwasher door? The nick that occurred one evening when we’d had company for dinner. I’d forgotten that both shins now have dishwasher door nicks. Which is which? I no longer remember, but the story lives on.
When I lift my bangs and hold my forehead up to the light, I can still see the faintest reminder of the day I thought I could stop a huge log rolling down the hill behind our house by grabbing the protruding limb. The log weighed nearly as much as I do, and the trip to the ER for stitches took hours, and they wouldn’t let my husband come into the examination room with me. “Sometimes people talk more freely without family members present,” was the explanation that not so subtly suggested that there could be another cause for this wound. I understood, and I'm still indignant, fifteen years later.
How fascinating. Over time, most scars fade and shrink, but their stories live on. Our scars may be nature’s way of carving our stories into our very bodies, creating visual reminders we won’t soon forget.
Write now: conduct a tour of your scars. Record the story of each one and tell how you feel about the scar today. Do you hide it? Flaunt it? Resent it? Or maybe it’s a trophy?
Last week a friend sent me a link to Belief-O-Matic, a fun quiz on Beliefnet that features twenty multiple choice questions about your concept of God, the afterlife, human nature and related beliefs. It’s programmed to compare your pattern of responses to beliefs of 27 different religions. It generates a report showing how closely your beliefs align with each faith. The e-mail included a report of her top ten matches. To my amazement, her top one was Neo-Pagan.
Wow! I thought. She publicly admits to being pagan?
Then I stopped to examine my response. It was strong and immediate. And stunned. The word “pagan” carries lots of baggage.
* * * * *
STOP RIGHT HERE
Before reading any further, take a few seconds to focus on your reaction to that name/label.
* * * * * My instant associations include earthy, sensual, orgies, seasonal, Earth worship, Gaia, priestesses and sacrifice as well as more sinister ones: burning at the stake, Satan, ignorance, heathens. Thoughts of warnings about pagans that I learned in Sunday School flash to mind. Pagans were to be avoided by all but missionaries for fear of contamination. No wonder I reacted strongly.
Over the years I’ve grown open to learning about other religions, and my beliefs have evolved far from my childhood training. Nevertheless, belief is a strongly personal thing, and may not be easy to talk about — or write about. Traditionally, public discussion of religion has been on a par with talking about money, sex and politics — strictly taboo. Some people are reluctant to take a strong stand on any issue, for fear of making waves, seeming foolish, alienating people, or being trapped if they should change their mind.
Then I saw the connection with life writing and Truth. “The Truth shall set you free,” may first have been uttered by the apostle John, but it resonated so strongly that it’s rare to listen to a motivational/inspirational speaker for more than twenty minutes and not hear that sentiment. It underlies much of the current memoir movement.
By sending that report, my friend spoke her truth. I checked with her. She has received no negative responses, and she feels empowered for having made this disclosure. A few friends have sent their results to her. Turns out there are lots of people in our midst who hold pagan beliefs, and she would not have known that if she hadn’t been brave enough to share. In fact, I was as astonished to find that I’m among that number as I was at her initial disclosure.
Write now: Explore your reactions to the word Pagan. What is the origin of your beliefs and the way you value those words? How have these beliefs and values shaped your outlook and your life? Have they changed over time? Record your thoughts in a journal, essay or story.
Photo by ; Kam
I woke up this morning thinking I wrote a lot yesterday and the day before. I don’t have anything to say today. I can skip it. I don’t have to write everyday. I want to get back to my manuscript. I need to make nametags for the new class today.
In short, I itched to do anything but write in my journal. I’ve been lax about journaling lately. It’s so easy when I’m on fire with a new idea or picking at a knot of understanding. Other days it feels in the way. How easy it would be to fall away from the practice, and I don't want that to happen, because I do believe in the power of Practice.
Journaling is a Practice. Natalie Goldberg writes constantly about the importance of Writing Practice and her Roshi validated it as Natalie's Way. He put it on a par, at least for her, with “sitting” (in meditation). I also find that writing focuses and clarifies my mind. I know from experience that journaling often pays its biggest dividends when my thoughts are whirling and passion is high.
So it was today. Within the space of half an hour I came up with two new concepts that laser in on the lake of energy behind an inner dam of blocked vision that I hadn’t realized was there! A list of blog topics spewed out. Ideas for two new classes and books emerged in full focus and clarity. I could write the Table of Contents right now.
Yes, I’m juiced. I’m stoked. The time I invested in journaling will save that much time and more by smoothing the path of other things I do today.
What’s my bottom line here? Usually the days I don’t feel like journaling are the most important days to do it.
What did I do to get the pump primed, to make it work?
- I sat down, picked up my journal, opened to the next empty page and wrote the date. (I write the date and also the day of the week — if I get mixed up on the date, that helps me untangle later by referring to a calendar, and it occasionally provides valuable context.)
- I wrote the obvious: “I don’t feel like writing today.”
- I began writing about what I’d rather be doing. On the second “rather” writer's rush set in. My concept expanded. It was still largely documentary, but new ideas poked up heads like sprouts in spring. Words flowed.
I didn’t get close to any topic that will move my manuscript along, but a small resentment I thought of and captures proved to be a gold mine. Words are flowing, and the energy from focus on other projects will move the manuscript. Yes, this was time well spent.
Write now: Open your journal if you have one. If you don’t, open a new file or get a fresh piece of paper, and write for twenty minutes. Just write, about anything that comes to mind. Write about why you don’t feel like writing. Write about a dream project. Write about something that puzzles you. Just keep your finger smoving and see what surprises emerge.
Photo: Lee Coursey
