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That seems like an unfortunate tool to have discarded. Right now, I can use vertical separation to structure text, but horizontal separation.... Well, that's fa
by GavinMcG 3y ago
That seems like an unfortunate tool to have discarded. Right now, I can use vertical separation to structure text, but horizontal separation.... Well, that's far more limited.
Within sentences, there's the dash—either em or space-en-space, depending on where you're from—and there are plenty of other structural options. Between sentences, you've got the ellipsis, and that's it. The way they're used in the Declaration, in place of paragraph breaks, is helpful even when you're not just trying to save space—for example, to structure a list of short words or phrases without creating the visual separation from the text that comes with using separate lines.
- ChristianGeek 3y agoAn ellipsis should never be used between sentences; you should be using a semi-colon.
- GavinMcG 3y agoNo, that’s the whole point I’m making. A semicolon is no better than terminal punctuation in creating visual horizontal space, which is a tool for communicating semantic structure, but one that we never use. I am not speaking to what is grammatically proper, but rather to what is possible outside of current accepted usage.