Re: Misuse of 'quotes' (late in the game)

Subject: Re: Misuse of 'quotes' (late in the game)
From: "Schweizer, Alex" <alexs -at- VISTEON -dot- COM>
Date: Mon, 8 Jun 1998 10:26:57 -0400

Take a look at Brusaw's Handbook of Technical Writing (or if you have a
free afternoon, look at The Chicago Manual of Style section on using
quotation marks). It is wrong to use quotes to emphasize a word or
phrase which is not a direct quotation. To make a point in the past
(when my expertise was questioned), I have gone as far as to scan a page
from a reference book and forward it to the person who needed to
validate my say so. Then you can say to the Marketing Director, "You
know, I've been doing some research in my style manuals and it appears
that using quotations is appropriate only when you are quoting someone
directly."

On the other hand, marketing is an untamed beast with rules of it's own.
Here's part of the intro to our internal style guide:
"...the style guide should be used when generating documentation for our
products. Issues to keep in mind: The marketing department has it's
own style, what else can we say? But the rest of you cannot make up
words. Period. Product documentation, however, should follow some
basic rules... "

> -----Original Message-----
> From: Bruce Byfield [SMTP:bbyfield -at- AXIONET -dot- COM]
> Sent: Friday, June 05, 1998 7:16 PM
> Subject: Re: Misuse of 'quotes'
>
> At 12:32 PM 6/4/98 +0959, Rev Simon Rumble wrote:
> >Our Marketing Director has obviously been reading the output of too
> many
> >signwriters. He seems to put quotes around "everything" in all his
> >sentences.
> >
> >Does anyone have a diplomatic way of explaining to him why what he's
> doing
> >is "wrong"? It's "really" annoying me :)
>
> It isn't wrong: it's a widespread usage. However, it's a usage that is
> probably better to avoid, because it is misleading. I can think of at
> least 3 possible uses:
>
> --Quotes.
>
> --Sarcasm or Humor.
>
> --Inexact phasing.
>
> Only the first one is really useful. If he means to be sarcastic or
> funny and can't convey the tone by his wording, maybe he shouldn't
> risk
> being misunderstood. On the other hand, if he's being inexact, that's
> fine for a first draft, when getting something down is the most
> important thing. However, by the time his work goes out, he should
> have
> replaced the words within the quotation marks with something more
> exact.
>
>
> --
> Bruce Byfield, Outlaw Communications
> Co-ordinator ,Vancouver Technical Communicators' Co-op List
> Vancouver, BC, Canada
> (604) 421-7189 or 687-2133
> bbyfield -at- axionet,com or bruce -at- dataphile-ca -dot- com
> www.outlawcommunications.com
>
> "Who is stronger than hope? Death.
> Who is stronger than the will? Death.
> Stronger than love? Death.
> Stronger than life? Death.
>
> But who is stronger than death? Me, evidently."
>
> - Ted Hughes, "Examination at the Womb Door"




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