"She was sure it would be repeated. It was; she lifted her head and smiled." (Mansfield, 85)
The second sentence is why I chose this quote. I love simple. There's almost nothing more simple than, simply, "It was," if you leave of the second part. I chose it, also, because I absolutely love it when semicolons are used properly! I have a slight fear of semicolons; I'm afraid to misuse them. (Nicely done, right?) Also, I feel - perhaps I stand alone in this - that a semicolon is almost never needed. Not like a period or a comma is needed. Semicolon overuse is another concern, one I think can be likened to a sickness, something that either needs a strict regimen of pills or a very hard beating to overcome.
One of my favorite authors, Linda Howard (Burn comes out in paperback in August! Yea!) has this very annoying habit of overusing semicolons to the point of ridiculousness. About 10 pages in, I'll start to notice a light sprinkling of them, just a drop here or there. And then, more of them, quicker and quicker, and a few pages later, it is pouring semicolons and I try to run for cover before getting drenched. I almost never make it. And then, suddenly, it's over and the semicolons end, just like that. Weird, right?
This particular sentence is not all that important to the story, but I thought it caught Katherine Mansfield's voice quite nicely, setting the tone for the rest of the rather proper prose. Of course, she does use more semicolons as the piece goes on, but not in that down-pouring way that some people do. And, maybe it was more acceptable back then. Or maybe it's just me.
Jennifer,
ReplyDeleteWatch out! I am a semicolon drencher. I happen to think they are very necessary. You would see a paragraph like the following from me:
It is easy to understand why red, purple, and black got voted as the most popular colors for a woman's wardrobe. Red was rated as the third most popular color; red says,"If you've got it, flaunt it". Purple was voted as the second most popular;did you know that more women are hired after wearing purple to an interview than any other color? Lastly, black got the number one vote with a 60% landslide; you can't go wrong with the little black dress that screams, "I am in control"!
Semicolons are a must for any essay.They keep you from getting confused.They keep all of the sentences in a paragraph following the topic sentence. And, they allow you to add interesting tid bits.
Of course, this is just my opinion..
Jennifer,
ReplyDeleteI am not a semicolon cop either. I don't use them very often but when the oportunity arises I sprinkle them in.
Did you think that Miss Brill was homeless? the whole time I was reading the story I was thinking the author was describing a homeless person. The kind that you see in films, a little nuts, pushing the cart and wearing the old dirty fur. The way it was written she kept repeating thoughts. I was surprised when she went to her room in the end.
Hi, Jennifer. I enjoyed your commentary on semicolons. I had a teacher once who said people get two semicolons each for their lives, so spend them wisely! :) Nancy
ReplyDeleteAlthough I chose The Lottery for my blog entry, Miss Brill was written extraordinarily well. I couldn't quite pin down exactly what her character was about and like Kevin said she was almost portrayed as crazy. How we judge people by their looks and I have to admit there are times when I look at someone and think, I am so much better than that. Of course in theory I am just being a snob and am no better than any one person.
ReplyDeleteI thought at the end when the two young people were talking about her like she was not even there to be a remarkable part of the story, how because of that she strode right past the backery and went home.