Envision the front cover of a magazine with a picture of a cheerful woman striking a pose with her dog – the headline reads “Rachel Ray finds inspiration in cooking her family and her dog”. As it is, the headline comes across as rather sinister; but a punctuated version – “Rachel Ray finds inspiration in cooking, her family, and her dog” clears the air. Phew!
No gainsaying, syntax and punctuations do matter.
In attempting to read just about any material, there are both internal and external factors that inform how a reader engages the art of reading. Continue reading “The whole and the sum of its parts”