18 - Does punctuation matter?

2/17/06 10:46 M Page 52

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18 Does punctuation matter?

Languages like French and Arabic are regulated by
famous academies. These can tell you the correct rules
of grammar and the right way to spell words. English,
however, has no official rules for grammar, spelling or
punctuation. As a result, many British children never
study grammar at school and you do not lose marks in
most UK exams if you make a mistake in spelling
or grammar.
decide what is right and wrong?
c The market trader in the article is from the East End
of London and speaks a famous dialect of English
called cockney. Cockneys often drop the first or last
letter of a word so here is pronounced ‘ere and of
becomes a short o’. What do you think the cockney
sentence ‘As ‘e go’ a big ‘ouse? means?

Before you read, discuss the following.

Glossary
a Would you lose marks in your exams if you made 1 to yearn for something (a literary word): to want
such mistakes? something very much
b Do we need punctuation in an age of text messaging 2 let me be: leave me alone
and e-mails? If we do need these rules, who should

Never mind the

punctuation, look
at our low price’s
The misplaced apostrophe is a sign of the times but there are few complaints in the East End, writes Pav Akhtar
“ERE, have a pound o’ these,” said Alan
Old, a greengrocer more concerned with
selling things than grammar, in a charming
attempt to sell me some marrows I did not
need.
“People round here don’t care much for
spelling and the like. All they’re interested
in is getting the price. The best price.”
Misuse of the apostrophe is so
commonplace, according to research by the
Oxford Dictionary of English, that it may
become “acceptable”.
Mr Old, 49, was standing behind rows
of green beans at his stall on the Roman
Road Market, east London. His goods were
advertised on signs littered with misused
apostrophes.
“So what if I’ve spelt something
incorrectly? No one notices. Just as long as
the carrots are carrots and corn is corn,
they’re happy.”
Danny Wilson, 16, from Dagenham, east
London agreed: “Grammar is not that
important. Nobody really takes any notice.
For example, when you are sending a text
message on your phone, you just abbreviate
everything and, when you’re doing that, the
rules for spelling go out of the window and
grammar is not even a consideration.”
Not all shoppers in the market were so
indifferent. Caroline Willson, 24, from
Hornchurch, east London, is about to start a
teacher training course at Canterbury Christ
Church University College.
“It is very important that you are able to
write a sentence properly. If you can’t, it
reflects badly on you. It’s a shame that
people have little idea of how to use English
grammar properly.”
Her mother, Gill, 48, offered parental
support. “I come from the traditionalist
viewpoint that punctuation and grammar are
important to our day-to-day lives. It’s
relevant because it helps us to speak our
language properly. It worries me that so
many children do not know how to write
using the correct grammar.”
Tony Hassan, 41, a clothing trader from
north London, was unapologetic about
several improper uses of the apostrophe on
his stall.
“Does a customer want to know about
the price, or does she want to know whether
I’ve spelt ‘its’ in the grammatically correct
way?”
Petra Hayes, 30, from Hackney, east
London, a fellow stall-holder, disagreed.
“Even if it’s lingerie, like my stall, you
won’t find a word misspelt or a point of
grammar overlooked.”
There was indeed nothing –
grammatically – at fault on her stall.
Paul Oakley, 35, a greengrocer on the
market, is also a staunch defender of correct
grammar usage. “It makes a good
impression if people can see you have spelt
things correctly, and have the grammar right.
If you make mistakes, people notice and
some of them even point it out. I take the
time to write things out properly.”
Paul Dashford, 37, a fellow greengrocer,
was more acerbic. “People around here don’t
even know what an apostrophe is. So what
do they care?”
Brenda Humphries, 55, from Camden,
north London, has been teaching English for
30 years. “Grammar is extremely
important,” she insisted. “Too many
children now depend on the spell and
grammar check facility computers offer. It’s
a losing battle, I’m afraid.”

© The Daily Telegraph

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18 - Does punctuation matter? 2/17/06 10:47 M Page 53

NEWSPAPER ARTICLES TO GET TEENAGERS TALKING Work and education

As you read, complete the crossword Now discuss the following.

with words from the text to reveal the
name of a common punctuation mark.
1 She sells vegetables from a ___________ in the market.
2 When texting, you ___________ words to make them
shorter.
3 A ___________ is a green vegetable often eaten with
rice or meat.
4 When texting, rules of spelling go out of the
___________ .
5 The Oxford Dictionary of English carried out some
___________ into how British people use the
apostrophe.
6 A ___________ is about half a kilo.
7 You’ll have to type this letter again. It’s ___________
with mistakes.
8 If Paul Oakley misuses the apostrophe on his signs,
some of his customers will __________ out the mistake.
9 The misuse of the apostrophe has become __________
in recent years.
1
2
a Which of the speakers do you agree with?
b Is it important to know the rules of spelling and
punctuation when you speak a language? Or is
Danny Wilson right when he says, Grammar is not
that important. Nobody really takes any notice?
c How well do you know the grammar of your mother
tongue?
d Do you judge people by the way they use grammar?
e Do you think English should have an academy to lay
down rules for what is right and wrong? Or do you
like the idea that a language can be anything you
want it to be?
Read the letters below. Explain how
the punctuation changes the meaning.
Dear Jack,
I want a man who knows what love is all about. You
are generous, kind, thoughtful. People who are not
like you admit to being useless and inferior. You
have ruined me for other men. I yearn for you. I
have no feelings whatsoever when we are apart. I
can be forever happy - will you let me be yours?
Jill

3
Dear Jack,
4
I want a man who knows what love is. All about
5
you are generous, kind, thoughtful people, who are
6
not like you. Admit to being useless and inferior.
7 You have ruined me. For other men, I yearn. For
8 you, I have no feelings whatsoever. When we’re
9 apart, I can be forever happy. Will you let me be?
Yours, Jill

Now match A and B to make sentences

about the article. Can you punctuate these sentences in
A more than one way? How does it
1 Alan Old and Tony Hassan say their customers ... change the meaning? Compare your
2 Danny Wilson says grammar ... answers with a friend.
3 Caroline Willson suggests that ...
4 Gill Wilson is worried that ... a David thought Caroline looked really tired.
5 Paul Oakley takes the time to ...
David thought Caroline looked really tired.
6 Brenda Humphreys points out that children ...
B b A woman without her man is nothing.
a ... now rely on computer programs to correct their A woman without her man is nothing.
spelling.
c The girls who had finished the exam left the room.
b ... get all his signs right.
c ... are more interested in prices than correct grammar. The girls who had finished the exam left the room.
d ... you make a bad impression if your grammar is
poor.
e ... is irrelevant when you send a text message.
f ... too many children never learn correct grammar.

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