Breaking the Rules (2)
Consider this sentence:
- Jim threw me the book and I dashed out the door.
Is that sentence punctuated correctly? Absolutely not! By now you know that there are only two ways to join independent clauses:
- a comma, followed by a fanboy (, and)
- a semicolon (;)
Therefore, the correct way to punctuate that sentence would be:
- Jim threw me the book, and I dashed out the door.
Nonetheless, many professional writers would agree that in this particular case, it is "acceptable" to leave out the comma, because the clauses are fairly short and the author is trying to convey a sense of speed or urgency.
Here are some more examples:
- Jack jumped in the car and the driver stomped on the gas.
- I kissed her and she trembled.
- The dog barked and the squirrel ran up the tree.
- Betty put her glass down and I poured her another drink.
In this lesson, you're going to write a sentence with two clauses. Join the clauses with "and", but leave out the comma that you would normally place before "and".
Attention! Give each clause a different subject. That is, do not write a sentence wherein one person does two things. Instead, write a sentence in which Person A does something, and then Person B does something else.
Note: Keep in mind that you are writing a sentence that is grammatically incorrect! And you should probably never do it again—unless you become a professional writer. Only after you have mastered the rules of grammar are you allowed to break them! |
Instructions for the Quiz
Write a compound sentence with two short clauses. Join the clauses with "and" but leave out the comma. Each clause should have a different subject, as in this example:
- The dog barked and the squirrel ran up the tree.