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Article: Linguistic conservatives should arm for battle: The humble apostrophe is under threat in various parts of the Anglosphere.(The Week)(Brief article)
- Article from:
- National Review
- Article date:
- February 23, 2009
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2009 National Review, Inc. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Linguistic conservatives should arm for battle: The humble apostrophe is under threat in various parts of the Anglosphere. One English municipality has dropped it from street signs for places like St. Paul's Square. Australian grammarian Kate Burridge (author of Weeds in the Garden of Words) wants the possessive apostrophe scrapped altogether. A professor at University College, London, is arguing that strict rules of spelling and grammar "hold children back," and he wants the apostrophe completely eliminated. Defenders of the little critter have counterattacked with examples of sentences ambiguous in an apostrophe-free world: ...