And, Commas, and what comes between them 2

[JediBMC]

As I look back to my education, I remember the rule, when referencing multiple items, to be that the referenced items, if exceeding two items, are seperated by a comma. Additionally, I remember that between the second to the last item and the "and" used for the last item, there should be a comma.

Now I see a great deal of print media where the comma is left out. Let me provide an example:

I like dogs, cats, turtles, and fish.

I like dogs, cats, turtles and fish.

Does my memory serve me well? If so, then when and why has this changed?

-Brian-
I'm not an actor, but I play one on TV.

 

[CajunCenturion]

Those are some good points TheRambler, but in each case, it's not really an exception to the rule, it is the writer, who presumably knows the rules, that is making a conscience decision not to apply the rule. I have no problem with someone who knows the rules but chooses not to apply them in certain situations.

Although a writer certainly has that license, it can and does lead to confusion, especially to those who are not that familar with the rules in the first place. It can be difficult for someone who is not aware of the rules to distinguish between an intentional bypass of a rule for effect and assuming from what is written that no rule exists.

Good Luck
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[TheRambler]

Yes CajunCenturion, it is difficult for most of us who are not writers.
I think we need more happy reading, before happy writing then.

 

[Stella740pl]

CajunCenturion,

...if we can't agree on how to spell why should we agree on punctuation.
[/quote Columb's patronizing rant as an epigraph]

I've found a lot of articles on the subject, and not many of them agree on everything. There rules are not all cut and dry. Perhaps the most comprehensive article I found on Wikipedia, but there are many others, with very different opinions. Take a look:

http://www1.umn.edu/urelate/style/punctuation.html#Anchor-ELLIPSIS-17304

1. Use ellipsis points to show the omission of words, phrases, or lines from quoted material. Use a period followed by ellipsis points to indicate the omission of the last part of the quoted sentence or the first part of the next sentence. Use a period followed by ellipsis points only after a grammatically complete sentence. Do not change lowercase letters to capitals or vice versa in the middle of quoted material. When what remains is not grammatically complete, leave out the period.

http://www-unix.oit.umass.edu/~pwtc/engl450/grammar.html

Ellipsis indicate an that part of a quotation has been omitted. Be certain that the omission does not change the sense of the excerpt. If the part of the passage following the ellipsis begins mid-sentence, capitalize the first word and place it in brackets. 
Bronowski asserts: "I have seen in my lifetime an abyss open in the human mind: a gulf between the endeavour to be man, and the relish in being brute . . . (W)e have ordered them to love their neighbor and to turn the other cheek, in a society which has constantly compelled them to shoulder their neighbor aside and to turn their backs." 
Four ellipses alone on a line Indicate that an omitted portion of the text is a paragraph or more.

http://www.mccc.edu/students/tutoring/ellipsis.html

The ellipsis ( ... ) is used to 
a) indicate that something has been omitted from a quotation.  
…
b) indicate a pause or hesitation.

http://www.cdtl.nus.edu.sg/wrg/ellipsis.htm

An ellipsis is indicated by three dots ( … ) typed or written in succession. When you leave out a part of a quotation that does not contribute significantly to the meaning of the quote, the omitted part is marked using the ellipsis. These are the standard practices where the ellipsis occurs: 
 *   insert a space before and after the ellipsis if the omitted section is in the middle of the quotation; 
 *   insert a full-stop after the ellipsis if it occurs at the end of a sentence; 
 *   do not use the ellipsis for creating suspense or emphasis in your writing; there are more appropriate punctuation marks for these effects (i.e. semicolons, colons and dashes).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ellipsis

In printing and writing, an ellipsis (plural: ellipses) is a row of three dots (…) or asterisks (* * *) indicating an intentional omission….
An ellipsis can also used to indicate a pause in speech, or be used at the end of a sentence to indicate a trailing off into silence.
…
The Chicago Manual of Style suggests the use of an ellipsis for any omitted word, phrase, line or paragraph from within a quoted passage. There are two commonly used methods of using ellipses: one uses three dots for any omission, the second makes a distinction between omissions within a sentence (using three dots: …) and omissions between sentences (using a period followed by three spaced dots: ...).

 

[Dimandja]

Great research, Stella! I wonder why the ellipsis is so ellusive....

One of my favorite uses of ellipses is as in the following quote: "[...] and vote for me".

I am showing that I have omitted parts of the sentence being quoted.

Or: "The [...] airplane landed".

I omitted something from the quoted material, but the quoted sentence still makes sense.

I have never used ellipses for omissions without bracketing them.

 

[strongm]

Yep, bracketing the ellipsis for omissions is an accepted usage. Some authorities suggest / instead of the brackets (as in "The /.../ airplane landed") but this always looks wrong to me somehow.

 

[columb]

On a purely aethetic note /.../ looks too much like a comment from a piece of code. Whether correct or not I agree with strongm that it looks wrong. This would preclude me from using it.

Columb Healy
Living with a seeker after the truth is infinitely preferable to living with one who thinks they've found it.

 

[RGarcia87]

Brian, I was taught the same way, too. I was told to leave out the comma only if the items were associated somehow. For example:

For dinner I had red beans and rice, chicken, and corn.

As most people know red beans and rice is Cajun and are mixed together.