Comma Sympathizer
I'm a movie nut. I love movies just like Dont loves her movies (nice site, btw... I'm glad to see you liked Gerry). Anyway, I have touched on the flick Shattered Glass once before near the very beginning of my blog's birth. Today [edit: today = last friday, see below for more info] I started thinking about it again for random reasons.
In the film, there is a scene that meanders away from the crux of the movie to have a dalliance in the (I suspect) factual idiosyncracies of journalistic routine, an aside only an editor could probably fully appreciate. I am reminded of a scene in which Hank Azaria's character (the voice of Moe and Apu from The Simpsons, incidentally) returns to the office to find the magazine's staff all being subjected to proofing articles in some form of geek punishment designed to make them better understand the scourge that is "comma abuse". The punishment in question involved them actually being made to read through finished pieces and highlight all the commas.
Apparently, this is a noteworthy epidemic in the journalistic community, or at least noteworthy enough to parody in the film. Don't get me wrong. The scene served its purpose as part of the forward momentum of the script; for that, I probably shouldn't have referred to it as a "dalliance". It was, afterall, a facilitator for a rift to arise between Azaria's character (the editor for the paper) and his boss. The fallout from which would ultimately wind up with Azaria being fired from his post and replaced with a less than unanimously loved staffer played by Peter Sarsgaard (good actor).
Even though I haven't seen the film in a probably five months, I return to the humor of that scene, subdued as it may have been, because if reminds me of the way that I write. I have always strived for a strong vocabulary and writing skills that are above reproach, and I am probably being self-conscious about this... Well, I'll just put it to you plainly: do, I, abuse, commas?
NOTE FROM THE EDITOR:
editor_maser: Looks good. Needs more commas though!! And what's with the date for your post? That was a week ago. It couldn't have taken you that long to write this post?! How much are we paying you?! Get your pinko comma-lovin' ass out of my office!!
Feel free to comment on my grammatical idiosyncracies. I'll go first: My sentences are longer than my... They're long. (hat-tip to Ocean's Eleven for that one) :p
In the film, there is a scene that meanders away from the crux of the movie to have a dalliance in the (I suspect) factual idiosyncracies of journalistic routine, an aside only an editor could probably fully appreciate. I am reminded of a scene in which Hank Azaria's character (the voice of Moe and Apu from The Simpsons, incidentally) returns to the office to find the magazine's staff all being subjected to proofing articles in some form of geek punishment designed to make them better understand the scourge that is "comma abuse". The punishment in question involved them actually being made to read through finished pieces and highlight all the commas.
Apparently, this is a noteworthy epidemic in the journalistic community, or at least noteworthy enough to parody in the film. Don't get me wrong. The scene served its purpose as part of the forward momentum of the script; for that, I probably shouldn't have referred to it as a "dalliance". It was, afterall, a facilitator for a rift to arise between Azaria's character (the editor for the paper) and his boss. The fallout from which would ultimately wind up with Azaria being fired from his post and replaced with a less than unanimously loved staffer played by Peter Sarsgaard (good actor).
Even though I haven't seen the film in a probably five months, I return to the humor of that scene, subdued as it may have been, because if reminds me of the way that I write. I have always strived for a strong vocabulary and writing skills that are above reproach, and I am probably being self-conscious about this... Well, I'll just put it to you plainly: do, I, abuse, commas?
NOTE FROM THE EDITOR:
editor_maser: Looks good. Needs more commas though!! And what's with the date for your post? That was a week ago. It couldn't have taken you that long to write this post?! How much are we paying you?! Get your pinko comma-lovin' ass out of my office!!
Feel free to comment on my grammatical idiosyncracies. I'll go first: My sentences are longer than my... They're long. (hat-tip to Ocean's Eleven for that one) :p
posted by ruby maser at 10/28/2005 07:23:00 PM
5 Comments:
If you are a comma abuser, then I am too. So I don't see it. Those of us with long ... thoughts - write with the same stream of consciousness. Run-on sentences are my specialty, along with bad jokes.
Taking a course in writing procedures however, taught me a lot. If you want to get your point across, you have to write simply.
Hemingway will have my heart forever in his talent to make something so simple, so powerful.
I can't recall the Ocean's Eleven quote ... if Jukebox would have watched it with me the other day (he says my TV is too small for such a great flick) I'd have it fresh in the brain!
I can't write like Hemmingway though. :( He's a great writer, no doubts there, in the same vein as Steinbeck.
Nevertheless, I always have been drawn to convoluted sentence structures along the lines examples that can be found in Edgar Allen Poe's works, coupled with the heavy, laden imagery of Ray Bradbury.
It's almost like Baroque or Roccoco architecture in comparison to Minimalism or the International Style.
Ironically, I don't have the same affection for Baroque/Roccoco architecture as I do for its written equivalent. :p
hmm i would have thought that clock work orange would be one of your favors!
ill be thinking about you soon realy soon.
Hook em Horns :p
Ruby, your comparisons of literal people are a little lost on me but I get your point. And your ironic humor too.
:)
Oh, now there is no reason for that, blue. If you are coming to town, don't be bringin' yer hoodlum football team with ya ;)
Annex, I can sound well-read but I am actually unable to sit throught books and haven't in years.
That's what I love about Poe and Bradbury and the like. Shorter stories = ruby finish :)
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