Block · one region of the page, as the scanner read it. It may hold a whole story, part of one, several, or an advertisement; stitching blocks into articles is the next step. Text is supplied OCR.
Page 5 · column 2 of 6 · from the scan, no model involved
ill ICI trtlll CUIlMIUirUUUS Lfltf comma is indispensable. “Helen is a pretty tall woman.” Or, “Helen is a pretty, tall woman." The whole meaning of the sentence is controlled by the comma in, “Helen saw Fred when he came in, and blushed.”
Some months ago a TV guide described a documentary on alcohol: “It includes comments from writers Mike Royko and Studs Terkel, bartenders and former drinkers.” Omission of a comma after “bartenders” left the sentence in shambles. We have to go for clarity first.
In many constructions a comma may subtly alter the meaning. “My son Michael challenged the speaker” is not quite the same thing as “My son, Michael, challenged the speaker.”‘I would put a comma after “her” in this sentence: ‘‘Ronald adored her, and she him.” Without the comma it sounds as if one were speaking Chinese.
Believe me, most of the “rules” for use of the comma are more guidelines than rules. The Chicago Manual of Style offers 43 guides for the placement of a comma. The first of the guides says: “The use of the comma ik mainly a matter of good judgment, with ease of reading as the end in view.” I say amen to that.
© 1993 Universal Press Syndicate
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