Re: Free books

On 04/08/2025 at 05:23, lar3ryca wrote:
> On 2025-08-03 00:42, Richard Heathfield wrote:
>> On 03/08/2025 07:01, Hibou wrote:
>>> Le 03/08/2025 à 02:29, Peter Moylan a écrit :
>>>>
>>>> I have vaguely noticed that there are punctuation differences between
>>>> AusE and AmE, but have never seen a place where the difference in rules
>>>> is explained. The only one that really sticks out for me is the
>>>> illogical placement of commas and periods on the wrong side of a
>>>> quotation mark.
>>
>> Likewise.
>>
>>> It's usual in AmE to use double inverted commas for speech (and 
>>> that's also my preference, because of their extra weight on the 
>>> page), whereas single inverted commas are usual in BrE.
>>
>> ``It's usual for me to use double inverted commas, because when I 
>> quote speech `I don't trust single quotes to be strong enough to hold 
>> the doubles in place', but the doubles have got the singles nailed.''
> 
> I'm intrigued by your 'double inverted commas' for two reasons.

IMHO the two characters at the beginning of the above paragraph are 
backquotes and the two at the end are single quotes.

WIWAL in primary school (4-11) and being taught to write English, what 
are now called double-quotes were called speech-marks (or 66/99 (after 
their look when written - see U201C/U201D) and/or inverted commas). 
Single quotes were apostrophes, or used to quote a passage inside double 
quotes.

I will continue to use double quotes for speech and direct quotations 
whatever the modern system is.

> 
> 1. In the example above, you have two characters at the beginning of the 
> sentence and two at the end, in mirror image. Are those what you call 
> 'double inverted commas', and is that the normal usage in published 
> literature?
> 
> 1. In Canada, a quotation mark is not called inverted commas, and in 
> fact, the are more like a single character with commas not inverted but 
> just raised to the top of the character space, and in published works, 
> one of that character is mirrored horizontally.
> 
>> That's an example of where the comma belongs outside the qutation 
>> marks because it's not part of the quotation. The full stop, however, 
>> /is/ part of the quoted sentence and is therefore brought into the fold.
>>
>>>
>>> The Americans also use a full stop after abbreviations such as Dr. 
>>> and Mr.. (That double full stop is a Hibouisme - la logique avant 
>>> tout !) In BrE, a full stop is used if the last letter of the 
>>> abbreviation is not the last letter of the word - etc., Feb., Rev., 
>>> but Mr not Mr. - and to avoid ambiguity - to the relief of the 
>>> infamous coy. commander.
>>
>> I was taught 40 years ago not to punctuate abbreviations, at least not 
>> in business correspondence. It seemed like weird advice at the time, 
>> but it has stood up to 40 years' hard use and has worn well.
>>
>> Maybe what is usual in BrE isn't quite as usual as you thought.
>>
> 



-- 
Chris Elvidge, England
I WILL NOT DO THE DIRTY BIRD
Bart Simpson on chalkboard in episode AABF08