No one can deny the fact that the University of Oxford is a highly respected school, and everyone loves a well-tailored Johnston & Murphy oxford boot. Unfortunately, there is one Oxford we can’t all seem to see eye to eye on, the Oxford comma.
Why do some people fight so hard for this small, debatably meaningless, grammatical mark? Let’s look at it from one perspective by studying this sentence: I love my friends, Beyoncé and Justin Timberlake. If you read this, you would probably think the author was pretty awesome because he is friends with Queen B and JT. Now change the sentence to: I love my friends, Beyoncé, and Justin Timberlake. You still think the guy is cool because he has a great taste in music, but not as cool because he’s definitely not going to be able to get you Bey’s autograph. Judging by this example, the Oxford comma seems pretty important, yet there is still another viewpoint to take into account.
Although it may be a small part of the writing style, some grammar warriors would die before going back to the ways of the Oxford comma. Some grammar enthusiasts argue that the dilemma of the missing comma has an easy solution. To solve the confusion problem, you can simply rearrange the items in the list: I love Justin Timberlake, my friends and Beyoncé. The Oxford comma, also called the serial comma, was not used, but splitting up Beyoncé and Justin Timberlake makes it clear that the two celebrities are not included in the speaker’s friend group. Although this makes the sentence more understandable, some will still argue that it throws off the flow of the sentence.
What does the comma’s parent say? While a recent debate was riled up by The University of Oxford supposedly kicking its baby to the curd, the school actually still uses its baby comma. The rumor that was spread made it sound as if Oxford had stopped using the comma completely, when in actuality, they just ceased its use in the public relations department. So, serial comma enthusiasts rest easy, Oxford still supports its trouble-making kid.
People of Ouachita Baptist University can agree on a lot of things, but the Oxford comma’s powers are strong enough even to tear apart the almost invincible community of Ouachita.
Our beloved Dr. Sonheim is pro-Oxford. Her enthusiastic opinion about the comma could sway anyone who is on the fence about how to punctuate items of three or more in a series.
“I feel that by always using the Oxford, it’s one way to always be consistent across the board,” said Sonheim.
Although Sonheim is an avid Oxford user, she is not hurt by people who do not use it.
“No, it does not hurt my feelings,” said Sonheim. “I do not think a person is immoral, unintelligent, or not a good writer if she chooses not to use an Oxford comma. I just think it’s really classy.”
What a great thing it is that no feelings will be hurt in the process of cutting out the Oxford comma, because senior elementary education major, Reagan Rucker, is on to teach tomorrow’s youth the beauty of not using the comma.
“I would love it if we could just come to an agreement about the comma, so it can become universal,” said Rucker. “It’s hard to teach something one way, and then have to explain that they may run into exceptions.”
While Rucker would love not having the burden to choose between styles, she chooses to go without the serial comma because she is forced to decide. Is this fight for the comma really worth all of the confusion and mayhem we are causing?
Who knew such a small mark could cause such a big debate? For now, you get to decide how many commas you put in a sentence and how your words are interpreted, but one day, you may not have the choice, comma or freedom.
By Ali Kinsey, staff writer
