Post by asmodeus on Aug 18, 2009 8:48:49 GMT -5
My son recently received his introductory letter from his new 2nd grade teacher, and aside from some troubling typos, I was more dismayed to see more than half of the sentences ending with exclamation points. His teacher is so excited! They are going to learn about penguins! Unfortunately, I've seen the liberal use of exclamation points not just at the early elementary level, but in all levels. By teachers, principals and administrators.
If any educators happen to read this board, I would offer the following advice provided by Jane Sumerset:
The greener you are as a writer, the more generous you usually act with exclamation points. Taught during early grammar school as an important punctuation and typically allowed to fester by grammar software, it really needs to be used less in writing - even less than the few times it is usually employed now.
I've seen someone write that you get a total of three exclamation points to use in your writing career and no more. While that exaggerates the idea, it makes the point perfectly clear - exclamations can be done without in most forms of writing without the littlest negative repercussion.
When a sentence ends in an exclamation point, it usually sounds either tacky or out-of-place. If you need to add an exclamation to stress an idea, it's a good sign that your writing needs some work. If you've ever written anything with this kind of punctuation, try reading through it again - you'll find that you can usually strike it out and rewrite without much problems.
Of course, there are pieces where exclamations come naturally. In fact, that's the only time you should ever use one. When a sentence, thought or expression naturally requires it, the necessity is obvious - otherwise, don't use them.
If any educators happen to read this board, I would offer the following advice provided by Jane Sumerset:
The greener you are as a writer, the more generous you usually act with exclamation points. Taught during early grammar school as an important punctuation and typically allowed to fester by grammar software, it really needs to be used less in writing - even less than the few times it is usually employed now.
I've seen someone write that you get a total of three exclamation points to use in your writing career and no more. While that exaggerates the idea, it makes the point perfectly clear - exclamations can be done without in most forms of writing without the littlest negative repercussion.
When a sentence ends in an exclamation point, it usually sounds either tacky or out-of-place. If you need to add an exclamation to stress an idea, it's a good sign that your writing needs some work. If you've ever written anything with this kind of punctuation, try reading through it again - you'll find that you can usually strike it out and rewrite without much problems.
Of course, there are pieces where exclamations come naturally. In fact, that's the only time you should ever use one. When a sentence, thought or expression naturally requires it, the necessity is obvious - otherwise, don't use them.