W A M C
Northeast
Public Radio]
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[Originally Broadcast on
W A M C Northeast Public Radio] |
An Ellipses has Nothing to do with the Sun© DrWrite.Com 2005
An ellipsis is a series of three periods-—only three-—that mark missing words, force a pause, or create an abrupt interruption. For example:
Most of the time the ellipsis is preceded by a space, even at the end of a sentence. You've seen it often; those unassuming little dots. Harmless little things that we just skip right over. But do you ever wonder what they signify? What was left out? And more importantly…why? Advertisers love them. In the example above, the reviewer might have said:
Slip those little ellipses in there and you've changed the entire meaning. "The play was wonderful ... a complete triumph". It's perfectly legal and it's done all the time.
Sometimes an ellipses is used to indicate a missing word, like this: "Uncle Jack told Billy Bob to get the … out of the house."
And Captain Kirk spoke with ellipses.
Ellipses can also be used as a cue to the reader to pause, just a little bit longer than we might pause for a comma. But be careful. Too many ellipses…too much time...but...I could be wrong.
"The play was wonderful ... a complete triumph".
"Mr. Hardcastle ... one of my best friends ..."
"The play was wonderful, although the acting was abominable and the direction was misguided. That the show ever made it to the stage is a complete triumph for the producers and their ability to convince the investors that the production had any merits. Were it not for a finely written script, attending the performance would be a total waste."