NEW PUNCTUATION RULES FOR EXCLAMATION POINTS.

NEW PUNCTUATION RULES FOR EXCLAMATION POINTS. The New York Times has a continuing feature called “Draft” devoted to the art of writing. On August 6, Ben Yagoda had an entry in the feature which was devoted to exclamation points. I was particularly interested in some new rules that are apparently developing for punctuating text messages. Because messages are short, punctuation is useful in conveying shades of meaning. Yagoda reports on what members of the younger generation tell him about the rules. The rules are descriptive in the sense that they are generalizations about what seems to be current practice. A 12-year-old is asked where one rule comes from, and says: “Nowhere. It’s just something you learn.” Some proposed rules: A single period should not be used at the end of a sentence in a text message; using one period suggests sarcasm. Two exclamation points are frowned on; either one or three is OK. Yagoda quotes a message which has exclamation points with this pattern: 1-0-2-2-5-0; he analyzes the way that the text builds to a crescendo.