The Oxford comma is absolutely necessary
By Emma Ralls
A&E Editor
Commas are a very important device in a writer’s toolbox. Among other things, commas divide sentences, work as a parenthetical element, signal to a reader there is a slight pause in a sentence, set off dialogues or quotations and list items.
However, one comma hasn’t been getting the recognition it deserves: the Oxford comma.
The Oxford comma, also known as the serial comma, is punctuation that is placed just before the words “or” and “and.” To better explain, the Oxford comma comes before the last word in a series of three or more items.
For example, when writing about classes a student is taking, they may write, “I’m in a history, math, and science class.” Its purpose is to help make a writer’s sentence as clear and unambiguous as possible.
Before getting into the nitty-gritty of why it is absolutely necessary to use the Oxford comma, it might do some good to take a look into the history of one of the most debated punctuation marks in history.
Scribendi Academy reports that the Oxford comma dates as far back as the 15th century when Italian printer Aldus Manutius established the comma as we know it as a way to separate things. However, the creation of the Oxford comma is attributed to Horace Hart, printer and overseer of the Oxford University Press from 1893 to 1915.
Hart included what was not yet titled the Oxford comma in his 1905 style guide, “Hart’s Rules for Compositors and Readers,” for employees of the press. In 1978, Peter Sutcliff would give the comma its proper name in a book about the history of Oxford University Press.
The question remains, “How can something that has been established since the 1400s be debated?”
People against the use of the Oxford comma argue that it is completely redundant. Some people proclaim that the comma makes a sentence sound too pretentious and clutters it. For those willing to listen, there are concise and clear answers to these statements that only further prove that the comma must be used in a good writer’s work.
On the topic of redundancy, while some may consider the Oxford comma unnecessary, a $5 million lawsuit may prove otherwise. In 2018, a four-year-long lawsuit against Oakhurst Dairy was forced to settle and provide a big payout to overtime workers entirely because of the lack of an Oxford comma in state law.
In Maine, there was an overtime law that wasn’t applied to, “The canning, processing, preserving, freezing, drying, marketing, storing, packing for shipment or distribution of (1) Agricultural produce; (2) Meat and fish products; and (3) Perishable foods.”
The lack of a comma after the word “shipment” led four truck drivers in 2014 to sue the Oakhurst Dairy Company for years of unpaid overtime.
“For want of a comma, we have this case,” said First Circuit Judge David J. Barron on the federal court’s decision to keep the drivers’ lawsuit.
Barron’s reasoning for why the case was valid was because the law’s punctuation, or lack thereof, made it unclear if “packing for shipping or distribution” is one activity or if “packing for shipping” was a separate activity from “distribution.” This expensive mistake could have been avoided by using the Oxford comma, thus supporting the argument that the Oxford comma is valid and should be used.
Many of those who lobby for the
argument that the Oxford comma causes
sentences to be cluttered and sound pretentious will provide the example that many stylebooks don’t use the Oxford comma. Scribendi Academy lists the Associated Press Stylebook, Canadian Press, and, most surprisingly, the University of Oxford style guide as some of the most notable examples.
But, the people who use this argument fail to mention that the stylebooks do, in fact, permit the use of the Oxford comma when a sentence could be misinterpreted without it. Additionally, many respected style guides, including the Chicago Manual of Style and the American Medical Association strongly recommend the use of the Oxford comma to steer clear of confusion.
To get straight to the point, let’s examine these two sentences.
Sentence A: “In her speech, Jenna said that she was inspired by her parents, Mother Teresa and Martin Luther King Jr.”
Sentence B: “In her speech, Jenna said that she was inspired by her parents, Mother Teresa, and Martin Luther King Jr.”
The missing Oxford comma in sentence A would lead to some confusion if Mother Teresa and Martin Luther King Jr. were Jenna’s parents, which they are not. In sentence B, though, the confusion is cleared away with the Oxford comma, and it is very obvious Jenna is inspired by her parents and Mother Teresa and Martin Luther King Jr.
The Oxford comma also more clearly replicates the spoken rhythm when writing.
“When you’re reciting a list of things out loud, the chances are that you probably would put a short pause before the final item, and the Oxford comma reflects that,” said the Oxford Royale Academy.
Commas are used to separate and initiate a pause between objects before continuing — something we do unconsciously when speaking.
Why would writers not want to make their writing easier and more natural for someone to read?
Regardless if someone is a strong advocate for the use of the Oxford comma or believes it should be wiped from all literary works, there is no debating that there are many instances where including the Oxford comma is absolutely necessary.
To avoid a costly and confusion-evoking situation, just include the comma.
By Emma Ralls
A&E Editor
Commas are a very important device in a writer’s toolbox. Among other things, commas divide sentences, work as a parenthetical element, signal to a reader there is a slight pause in a sentence, set off dialogues or quotations and list items.
However, one comma hasn’t been getting the recognition it deserves: the Oxford comma.
The Oxford comma, also known as the serial comma, is punctuation that is placed just before the words “or” and “and.” To better explain, the Oxford comma comes before the last word in a series of three or more items.
For example, when writing about classes a student is taking, they may write, “I’m in a history, math, and science class.” Its purpose is to help make a writer’s sentence as clear and unambiguous as possible.
Before getting into the nitty-gritty of why it is absolutely necessary to use the Oxford comma, it might do some good to take a look into the history of one of the most debated punctuation marks in history.
Scribendi Academy reports that the Oxford comma dates as far back as the 15th century when Italian printer Aldus Manutius established the comma as we know it as a way to separate things. However, the creation of the Oxford comma is attributed to Horace Hart, printer and overseer of the Oxford University Press from 1893 to 1915.
Hart included what was not yet titled the Oxford comma in his 1905 style guide, “Hart’s Rules for Compositors and Readers,” for employees of the press. In 1978, Peter Sutcliff would give the comma its proper name in a book about the history of Oxford University Press.
The question remains, “How can something that has been established since the 1400s be debated?”
People against the use of the Oxford comma argue that it is completely redundant. Some people proclaim that the comma makes a sentence sound too pretentious and clutters it. For those willing to listen, there are concise and clear answers to these statements that only further prove that the comma must be used in a good writer’s work.
On the topic of redundancy, while some may consider the Oxford comma unnecessary, a $5 million lawsuit may prove otherwise. In 2018, a four-year-long lawsuit against Oakhurst Dairy was forced to settle and provide a big payout to overtime workers entirely because of the lack of an Oxford comma in state law.
In Maine, there was an overtime law that wasn’t applied to, “The canning, processing, preserving, freezing, drying, marketing, storing, packing for shipment or distribution of (1) Agricultural produce; (2) Meat and fish products; and (3) Perishable foods.”
The lack of a comma after the word “shipment” led four truck drivers in 2014 to sue the Oakhurst Dairy Company for years of unpaid overtime.
“For want of a comma, we have this case,” said First Circuit Judge David J. Barron on the federal court’s decision to keep the drivers’ lawsuit.
Barron’s reasoning for why the case was valid was because the law’s punctuation, or lack thereof, made it unclear if “packing for shipping or distribution” is one activity or if “packing for shipping” was a separate activity from “distribution.” This expensive mistake could have been avoided by using the Oxford comma, thus supporting the argument that the Oxford comma is valid and should be used.
Many of those who lobby for the
argument that the Oxford comma causes
sentences to be cluttered and sound pretentious will provide the example that many stylebooks don’t use the Oxford comma. Scribendi Academy lists the Associated Press Stylebook, Canadian Press, and, most surprisingly, the University of Oxford style guide as some of the most notable examples.
But, the people who use this argument fail to mention that the stylebooks do, in fact, permit the use of the Oxford comma when a sentence could be misinterpreted without it. Additionally, many respected style guides, including the Chicago Manual of Style and the American Medical Association strongly recommend the use of the Oxford comma to steer clear of confusion.
To get straight to the point, let’s examine these two sentences.
Sentence A: “In her speech, Jenna said that she was inspired by her parents, Mother Teresa and Martin Luther King Jr.”
Sentence B: “In her speech, Jenna said that she was inspired by her parents, Mother Teresa, and Martin Luther King Jr.”
The missing Oxford comma in sentence A would lead to some confusion if Mother Teresa and Martin Luther King Jr. were Jenna’s parents, which they are not. In sentence B, though, the confusion is cleared away with the Oxford comma, and it is very obvious Jenna is inspired by her parents and Mother Teresa and Martin Luther King Jr.
The Oxford comma also more clearly replicates the spoken rhythm when writing.
“When you’re reciting a list of things out loud, the chances are that you probably would put a short pause before the final item, and the Oxford comma reflects that,” said the Oxford Royale Academy.
Commas are used to separate and initiate a pause between objects before continuing — something we do unconsciously when speaking.
Why would writers not want to make their writing easier and more natural for someone to read?
Regardless if someone is a strong advocate for the use of the Oxford comma or believes it should be wiped from all literary works, there is no debating that there are many instances where including the Oxford comma is absolutely necessary.
To avoid a costly and confusion-evoking situation, just include the comma.