It is by all odds the loftiest of cities. It even managed to reach the highest point in the sky at the lowest moment of the depression.
E. B. WhiteRead
Semi-colons only prove that the author has been to college.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote humorously suggests that the use of semi-colons indicates a level of education or sophistication in writing.
E. B. White's quote playfully critiques the overuse of semi-colons in writing, implying that their mastery is often seen as a marker of higher education or literary pretension. It serves as a reminder that writing should prioritize clarity and communication over complex punctuation that may detract from the message.
Themes
Semi-ColonWritingEducationPunctuationHumor
In practice
Example use cases
In a writing workshop, to illustrate the importance of clarity, one might say: 'As E. B. White pointed out, semi-colons only prove that the author has been to college.'
More from E. B. White
All quotes →It isn't silence you can cut with a knife any more, it's interchange of ideas. Intelligent discussion of practically everything is what is breaking up modern marriage.
E. B. WhiteRead
The main thing I try to do is write as clearly as I can. Because I have the greatest respect for the reader, and if he's going to the trouble of reading what I've written -- I'm a slow reader myself and I guess most people are -- why, the least I can do is make it as easy as possible for him to find out what I'm trying to say, trying to get at. I rewrite a good deal to make it clear.
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A good farmer is nothing more nor less than a handy man with a sense of humus.
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A despot doesn't fear eloquent writers preaching freedom- he fears a drunken poet who may crack a joke that will take hold.
E. B. WhiteRead
All writing is communication; creative writing is communication through revelation-it is the Self-escaping into the open.
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