Home|
Writing Courses|
Advice|
Teaching Observations|
Collection of Thoughts|
Sentence Collection|
Etc,. etc., etc.|
English Department |
Whitman College |
Comments|
1. Rule: when you tack stuff on the end of a complete sentence, normally do
so without commas. (See #5 and #6 for exceptions.)
John ate slugs with a spoon. [no comma between "slugs" and "with"]
John ate slugs when they were in season. [no comma between "slugs"
and "when"]
John ate slugs because he couldn't get Fritos. [no comma between
"slugs" and "because"]
2. Rule: when you tack stuff on the front of complete sentences, do so
with commas.
When he was hungry, John ate slugs.
3. Rule: when you combine two complete sentences with and, but,
or--use commas.
After dinner, John ate slugs.
In front of the television, John ate slugs.
John ate slugs, and Joan ate cardboard.
4. Rule: use commas when you tack things on the end of a sentence when
the thing you tack on restates something in the main
sentence.
John ate slugs and felt fine. [The phrase "felt fine" isn't a complete
sentence.]
Joan ate cardboard and thought she was eating slugs. [The
phrase"thought she was eating slugs" isn't a couplete sentence.]
John ate slugs, slimy little ones with blond feelers.
5. Rule: use commas when you tack -ing phrases on the end
of sentences (especially more than one).
John ate the slugs quickly, singing between swallows, breathing whenever he
could.