And now an ode to jana lucash's most commonly used and highly praised punctuation mark - the dash
The dash is a humble mark. One does not get much simpler than a simple straight line - OR SO YOU THOUGHT. Dashes are an easy to use, yet magnificently beautiful, useful and flexible punctuation mark that has been heralded by many as the #1 punctuation mark ever created.
In a shockingly honest and highly read article in the New York Times, Ben Yagoda (read: boy wonder, savior of the human race) proclaimed that the dash was "the most versatile piece of punctuation." It seems only fools can be left wondering when Ben Yagoda says something like that!
One of the greatest writers and thinkers of our human history, Emily Dickinson, was common user and self-proclaimed #1 fan of the dash. An analysis of Dickinson's poetry proclaims, "Dickinson uses dashes musically, but also to create a sense of the indefinite, a different kind of pause, an interruption of thought, to set off a list, as a semi-colon, as parentheses, or to link two thoughts together..."
One notable stanza of Ms. Dickinson's poetry (notable for its beauty, its rhythm and its sweetness) reads:
In a shockingly honest and highly read article in the New York Times, Ben Yagoda (read: boy wonder, savior of the human race) proclaimed that the dash was "the most versatile piece of punctuation." It seems only fools can be left wondering when Ben Yagoda says something like that!
One of the greatest writers and thinkers of our human history, Emily Dickinson, was common user and self-proclaimed #1 fan of the dash. An analysis of Dickinson's poetry proclaims, "Dickinson uses dashes musically, but also to create a sense of the indefinite, a different kind of pause, an interruption of thought, to set off a list, as a semi-colon, as parentheses, or to link two thoughts together..."
One notable stanza of Ms. Dickinson's poetry (notable for its beauty, its rhythm and its sweetness) reads:
The meadows—mine--
The mountains—mine--
All forests—stintless stars--
As much of noon, as I could take--
Between my finite eyes--
I don't know about you, but my heart stopped for a good seven minutes after reading that. Absolutely powerful. Magnificent. Jaw-dropping. I was in ecstasy. The use of the dash — eight times in only twenty-two words — was the most gorgeous thing I had ever seen on this great world.
Thank you Emily, and thank you, Ms. Lucash. While you may have erred in the past, you have come to terms with the dash and now accept it for what it is — the greatest thing to ever exist, ever. Thank you.
Thank you Emily, and thank you, Ms. Lucash. While you may have erred in the past, you have come to terms with the dash and now accept it for what it is — the greatest thing to ever exist, ever. Thank you.