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Semi-colons only prove that the author has been to college.
E. B. White
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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

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.
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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.
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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.
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All writing is communication; creative writing is communication through revelation-it is the Self-escaping into the open.
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