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Subject:Re: The Death of the Apostrophe From:Karen Mayer <Karen_Mayer -dot- TOUCH_TECHNOLOGY -at- NOTES -dot- COMPUSERVE -dot- COM> Date:Wed, 15 Nov 1995 11:21:24 EST
I beg your pardon, but it's not an age issue at all. It's an ignorance
issue. Many people, regardless of how old they are, don't understand what
an apostrophe is for. I've seen plenty of ads that misuse it and plenty
of older folks that misuse it. As a person under 35, I know very well how
to use my apostrophes, thank you.
It's the same ignorance of English that causes people to write "their"
instead of "they're," and say "acrost" instead of "across." It's not just
a problem of apostrophes and hyphens, but of not learning English well
enough to use it correctly. Maybe it's a sign of a living, therefore
changing, language.
-- Karen Mayer
-------------------- ORIGINAL MESSAGE TEXT --------------------
In the essay (ITS ACADEMIC, OR IS IT?) Larson posits that people under the
age of 35 generally have no idea how the apostrophe ought to be used. Ever
since a colleague pointed the article out to me, I've become hyper-aware of
how often the apostrophe is misused today.
-------------------- END OF ORIGINAL MESSAGE --------------------
