Writing Help: Capitalization

You are not logged in. [Log In] Wordsmith Talk » Forums » General Topics » Looking for (writers, speakers, ...) » Writing Help: Capitalization

Page 1 of 4

Topic Options

#178798 - 08/17/08 08:37 PM Writing Help: Capitalization
Nouveau Scribe stranger Registered: 08/17/08 Posts: 1 Loc: United States	Is there a reason to capitalize the words "communist" and "socialist" in this sentence: Quote: Anyone who thinks that is nothing but a Socialist or Communist ... This is quoted from a book about writing: "Reading, Writing, and Rhetoric" by Hogins and Yarber. I can understand if he meant "Communist Party of China" where capitalization is required but in this context, is capitalization justified?
Top

#178809 - 08/18/08 06:31 AM Re: Writing Help: Capitalization [Re: Nouveau Scribe]
Faldage Carpal Tunnel Registered: 12/01/00 Posts: 12381	I would say leave them all lower case unless, as you say, they're part of a proper noun phrase.
Top

#178825 - 08/19/08 03:30 AM Re: Writing Help: Capitalization [Re: Faldage]
Zed Pooh-Bah Registered: 08/27/02 Posts: 2031 Loc: British Columbia, Canada	I would leave it lower case as well but there could be an argument that it is capitalized to indicate that the writer was referring to members of a group or movement and not just to their ideology. Nope, capitals still look wrong.
Top

#181313 - 12/29/08 12:14 PM Re: Writing Help: Capitalization [Re: Zed]
LukeJavan8 old hand Registered: 06/23/08 Posts: 830 Loc: Land of Flat River	If I were still teaching high school I would have the students leave them in lower case, unless, as Zed says, it refers to a particular group, and not their ideology. This is a great topic, our country and its use of language and grammar sadly and badly needs this, to wit, the media.
Top

#181429 - 01/03/09 10:58 PM Re: Writing Help: Capitalization [Re: Zed]
hellerfan stranger Registered: 12/31/08 Posts: 3 Loc: Houston, TX	If you're going to label a person a member of the Socialist or Communist groups (parties), then the words Socialist and Communist are proper nouns and should be capitalized.
Top

#181458 - 01/04/09 06:06 PM Re: Writing Help: Capitalization [Re: hellerfan]
LukeJavan8 old hand Registered: 06/23/08 Posts: 830 Loc: Land of Flat River	Originally Posted By: hellerfan If you're going to label a person a member of the Socialist or Communist groups (parties), then the words Socialist and Communist are proper nouns and should be capitalized. but would not zed's comment above still be correct?
Top

#181778 - 01/16/09 09:12 AM Re: Writing Help: Capitalization [Re: LukeJavan8]
Andrew Robinson stranger Registered: 10/16/08 Posts: 23 Loc: Ireland	Different publishers have their own house rules about capitalization; problems can arise when there is a difference between for instance a college fellow (contemporary) and a College Fellow (proprietor).
Top

#181866 - 01/18/09 07:18 PM Re: Writing Help: Capitalization [Re: Andrew Robinson]
PastorVon member Registered: 12/30/08 Posts: 106 Loc: USA, North Carolina	Originally Posted By: Andrew Robinson Different publishers have their own house rules about capitalization; problems can arise when there is a difference between for instance a college fellow (contemporary) and a College Fellow (proprietor). But, aren't there a number of style manuals that serve as standards? I think of the Chicago Style Manual for one. When I was in college (1960s), Harbrace's Manual was the standard at the university I attended.
Top

#181873 - 01/19/09 06:35 AM Re: Writing Help: Capitalization [Re: PastorVon]
Faldage Carpal Tunnel Registered: 12/01/00 Posts: 12381	Originally Posted By: PastorVon But, aren't there a number of style manuals that serve as standards? There are. They don't always agree on specifics. Different publishers choose different manuals.
Top

#181887 - 01/19/09 07:07 PM Re: Writing Help: Capitalization [Re: PastorVon]
Faldage Carpal Tunnel Registered: 12/01/00 Posts: 12381	Originally Posted By: PastorVon But, aren't there a number of style manuals that serve as standards? PastorVon started a sentence with a conjunction!
Top

Page 1 of 4

Forum Stats

7151 Members
16 Forums
12706 Topics
187591 Posts

Max Online: 853 @ 10/23/07 11:39 AM


	Wordsmith Talk		About Us \| What's New \| Search \| Site Map \| Contact Us