This is the weekend edition of TheMarioBlog and will be updated as needed. The next blog post is Monday, June 20
Is this the end of the period? Period?
Could the period, that punctuation mark that signifies the end of a thought and the start of another be going the way of the fax machine, Princess phones and DC 10 aircraft?
According to an article in The New York Times, which, by the way, was entirely written without any periods at the end of paragraphs, that seems to be the reality of it all.
Just like that:
“The period — the full-stop signal we all learn as children, whose use stretches back at least to the Middle Ages — is gradually being felled in the barrage of instant messaging that has become synonymous with the digital age” (period absent by design)
“….The conspicuous omission of the period in text messages and in instant messaging on social media….. is a product of the punctuation-free staccato sentences favored by millennials — and increasingly their elders — a trend fueled by the freewheeling style of Facebook, WhatsApp and Twitter”
Just as soon as I started getting worked up about the end of the period, I went back to my iPhone and my text messages of the past 48 hours. Oh, my God, I had not put any periods at the end of my sentences myself. How can I be offended by the elimination of a punctuation mark that I myself have omitted?
“Pick yourself up, Mario,” I said to myself. Face it, it takes an extra click on the keyboard to add a period, and what does it add?
And, claim the expert quoted in this Times piece, perhaps the use of the period now is restricted to create an effect, basically what we have done in speech forever, as when we say: “I am not voting for this one. Period.”
“If the love of your life just canceled the candlelit, six-course, home-cooked dinner you have prepared, you are best advised to include a period when you respond “Fine.” to show annoyance”
So, the period goes from a functional “this is the end of the thought” symbol, to “this is the end of the conversation” statement.
In an era when we say goodbye to so many things we have cherished—from favorite TV sitcoms, to the printed edition of the newspaper, or a morning show host—now we may be saying bye to the period, too.
It may take me a while to stop using it when I write, but I don’t think I will use periods in my text messages, as I agree that by simply clicking eion nter, I am signaling to the person with whom I exchange messages that a thought is completed as the conversant continues.