Rhetoric & Technical Communication
Rhetoric & Technical Communication
Toscano, Aaron, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Dept. of English

Resources and Daily Activities

  • Conference Presentations
    • PCA/ACA Conference Presentation 2022
    • PCAS/ACAS Presentation 2021
    • SEACS 2021 Presentation
    • SEACS 2022 Presentation
    • SEACS 2023 Presentation
    • South Atlantic MLA Conference 2022
  • Dr. Toscano’s Homepage
  • ENGL 2116-014: Introduction to Technical Communication
    • February 13th: Introduction to User Design
    • February 15th: Instructions for Users
      • Making Résumés and Cover Letters More Effective
    • February 1st: Reflection on Workplace Messages
    • February 20th: The Rhetoric of Technology
    • February 22nd: Social Constructions of Technology
    • February 6th: Plain Language
    • January 11th: More Introduction to Class
    • January 18th: Audience & Purpose
    • January 23rd: Résumés and Cover Letters
      • Duty Format for Résumés
      • Peter Profit’s Cover Letter
    • January 25th: More on Résumés and Cover Letters
    • January 30th: Achieving a Readable Style
      • Euphemisms
      • Prose Practice for Next Class
      • Prose Revision Assignment
      • Revising Prose: Efficiency, Accuracy, and Good
      • Sentence Clarity
    • January 9th: Introduction to the Class
    • Major Assignments
    • March 13th: Introduction to Information Design
    • March 15th: More on Information Design
    • March 20th: Reporting Technical Information
    • March 27th: The Great I, Robot Analysis
  • ENGL 4182/5182: Information Design & Digital Publishing
    • August 21st: Introduction to the Course
      • Rhetorical Principles of Information Design
    • August 28th: Introduction to Information Design
      • Prejudice and Rhetoric
      • Robin Williams’s Principles of Design
    • Classmates Webpages (Fall 2017)
    • December 4th: Presentations
    • Major Assignments for ENGL 4182/5182 (Fall 2017)
    • November 13th: More on Color
      • Designing with Color
      • Important Images
    • November 20th: Extra-Textual Elements
    • November 27th: Presentation/Portfolio Workshop
    • November 6th: In Living Color
    • October 16th: Type Fever
      • Typography
    • October 23rd: More on Type
    • October 2nd: MIDTERM FUN!!!
    • October 30th: Working with Graphics
      • Beerknurd Calendar 2018
    • September 11th: Talking about Design without Using “Thingy”
      • Theory, theory, practice
    • September 18th: The Whole Document
    • September 25th: Page Design
  • ENGL 4183/5183: Editing with Digital Technologies
    • August 24th: Introduction to the Class
    • August 31st: Rhetoric, Words, and Composing
    • Major Assignments for ENGL 4183/5183 (Fall 2022)
      • Rhetoric of Fear
    • November 16th: Voice and Other Nebulous Writing Terms
      • Finding Dominant Rhetorical Appeals
    • November 2nd: Rhetorical Effects of Punctuation
    • November 30th: Words and Word Classes
    • November 9th: Cohesive Rhythm
    • October 12th: Choosing Adjectivals
    • October 19th: Choosing Nominals
    • October 26th: Stylistic Variations
    • October 5th: Midterm Exam
    • September 14th: Verb is the Word!
    • September 21st: Coordination and Subordination
    • September 28th: Form and Function
    • September 7th: Sentence Patterns
  • ENGL 4275: Rhetoric of Technology
    • April 13th: Authorities in Science and Technology
    • April 15th: Articles on Violence in Video Games
    • April 20th: Presentations
    • April 6th: Technology in the home
    • April 8th: Writing Discussion
    • Assignments for ENGL 4275
    • February 10th: Religion of Technology Part 3 of 3
    • February 12th: Is Love a Technology?
    • February 17th: Technology and Gender
    • February 19th: Technology and Expediency
    • February 24th: Semester Review
    • February 3rd: Religion of Technology Part 1 of 3
    • February 5th: Religion of Technology Part 2 of 3
    • January 13th: Technology and Meaning, a Humanist perspective
    • January 15th: Technology and Democracy
    • January 22nd: The Politics of Technology
    • January 27th: Discussion on Writing as Thinking
    • January 29th: Technology and Postmodernism
    • January 8th: Introduction to the Course
    • March 11th: Writing and Other Fun
    • March 16th: Neuromancer (1984) Day 1 of 2
    • March 18th: Neuromancer (1984) Day 2 of 2
    • March 23rd: Inception (2010)
    • March 25th: Writing and Reflecting Discussion
    • March 30th & April 1st: Count Zero
    • March 9th: William Gibson’s Neuromancer (1984)
  • ENGL 6166: Rhetorical Theory
    • April 12th: Knoblauch. Ch. 4 and Ch. 5
    • April 19th: Jacques Derrida’s Positions
    • April 26th:  Feminisms and Rhetorics
    • April 5th: Knoblauch. Ch. 3 and More Constitutive Rhetoric
    • February 15th: Isocrates (Part 2)
    • February 1st: Aristotle’s On Rhetoric Books 2 & 3
      • Aristotle’s On Rhetoric, Book 2
      • Aristotle’s On Rhetoric, Book 3
    • February 22nd: St. Augustine’s On Christian Doctrine [Rhetoric]
    • February 8th: Isocrates (Part 1)-2nd Half of Class
    • January 11th: Introduction to Class
    • January 18th: Plato’s Phaedrus
    • January 25th: Aristotle’s On Rhetoric Book 1
    • March 15th: Descartes, Rene, Discourse on Method
    • March 1st: Knoblauch. Ch. 1 and 2
    • March 22nd: Mary Wollstonecraft
    • March 29th: Second Wave Feminist Rhetoric
    • May 3rd: Knoblauch. Ch. 6, 7, and “Afterword”
    • Rhetorical Theory Assignments
  • ENGL/COMM/WRDS: The Rhetoric of Fear
    • February 14th: Fascism and Other Valentine’s Day Atrocities
    • February 21st: Fascism Part 2
    • February 7th: Fallacies Part 3 and American Politics Part 2
    • January 10th: Introduction to the Class
    • January 17th: Scapegoats & Conspiracies
    • January 24th: The Rhetoric of Fear and Fallacies Part 1
    • January 31st: Fallacies Part 2 and American Politics Part 1
    • Major Assignments
    • March 7th: Fascism Part 3
  • LBST 2212-124, 125, 126, & 127
    • August 21st: Introduction to Class
    • August 23rd: Humanistic Approach to Science Fiction
    • August 26th: Robots and Zombies
    • August 28th: Futurism, an Introduction
    • August 30th: R. A. Lafferty “Slow Tuesday Night” (1965)
    • December 2nd: Technological Augmentation
    • December 4th: Posthumanism
    • November 11th: Salt Fish Girl (Week 2)
    • November 13th: Salt Fish Girl (Week 2 con’t)
    • November 18th: The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy (Part 1)
      • More Questions than Answers
    • November 1st: Games Reality Plays (part II)
    • November 20th: The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy (Part 2)
    • November 6th: Salt Fish Girl (Week 1)
    • October 14th: More Autonomous Fun
    • October 16th: Autonomous Conclusion
    • October 21st: Sci Fi in the Domestic Sphere
    • October 23rd: Social Aphasia
    • October 25th: Dust in the Wind
    • October 28th: Gender Liminality and Roles
    • October 2nd: Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein
    • October 30th: Games Reality Plays (part I)
    • October 9th: Approaching Autonomous
      • Analyzing Prose in Autonomous
    • September 11th: The Time Machine
    • September 16th: The Alien Other
    • September 18th: Post-apocalyptic Worlds
    • September 20th: Dystopian Visions
    • September 23rd: World’s Beyond
    • September 25th: Gender Studies and Science Fiction
    • September 30th: Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein
    • September 4th: Science Fiction and Social Breakdown
      • More on Ellison
      • More on Forster
    • September 9th: The Time Machine
  • LBST 2213-110: Science, Technology, and Society
    • August 22nd: Science and Technology from a Humanistic Perspective
    • August 24th: Science and Technology, a Humanistic Approach
    • August 29th: Collins & Pinch’s The Golem (Science), Ch. 2
    • August 31st: Collins & Pinch’s The Golem (Science), Ch. 3 and 4
    • December 5th: Video Games and Violence, a more nuanced view
    • November 14th: Boulle, Pierre. Planet of the Apes. (1964) Ch. 27-end
    • November 16th: Shelley, Mary. Frankenstein. 1818. Preface-Ch. 8
    • November 21st: Shelley, Mary. Frankenstein. 1818. Ch. 9-Ch. 16
    • November 28th: Shelley, Mary. Frankenstein. Ch. 17-Ch. 24
    • November 30th: Violence in Video Games
    • November 7th: Boulle, Pierre. Planet of the Apes Ch. 1-17
    • November 9th: Boulle, Pierre. Planet of the Apes, Ch. 18-26
    • October 12th: Lies Economics Tells
    • October 17th: Brief Histories of Medicine, Salerno, and Galen
    • October 19th: Politicizing Science and Medicine
    • October 24th: COVID-19 Facial Covering Rhetoric
    • October 26th: Wells, H. G. Time Machine. Ch. 1-5
    • October 31st: Wells, H. G. The Time Machine Ch. 6-The End
    • October 3rd: Collins & Pinch’s The Golem at Large (Technology), Ch. 7 and Conclusion
    • September 12th: Collins & Pinch’s The Golem (Science), Ch. 7 and Conclusion
    • September 19th: Collins & Pinch’s The Golem at Large (Technology), Prefaces and Ch. 1
    • September 26th: Collins & Pinch’s The Golem at Large (Technology), Ch. 2
    • September 28th: Collins & Pinch’s The Golem at Large (Technology), Ch. 5 and 6
    • September 7th: Collins & Pinch’s The Golem (Science), Ch. 5 and 6
  • New Media: Gender, Culture, Technology (Spring 2021)
    • April 13th: Virtually ‘Real’ Environments
    • April 20th: Rhetoric/Composition Defines New Media
    • April 27th: Sub/Cultural Politics, Hegemony, and Agency
    • April 6th: Capitalist Realism
    • February 16: Misunderstanding the Internet
    • February 23rd: Our Public Sphere and the Media
    • February 2nd: Introduction to Cultural Studies
    • January 26th: Introduction to New Media
    • Major Assignments for New Media (Spring 2021)
    • March 16th: Identity Politics
    • March 23rd: Social Construction of Gender and Sexuality
    • March 2nd: Foundational Thinkers in Cultural Studies
    • March 30th: Hyperreality
    • March 9th: Globalization & Postmodernism
    • May 4th: Wrapping Up The Semester
      • Jodi Dean “The The Illusion of Democracy” & “Communicative Capitalism”
      • Social Construction of Sexuality
  • Science Fiction in American Culture (Summer I–2020)
    • Assignments for Science Fiction in American Culture
    • Cultural Studies and Science Fiction Films
    • June 10th: Interstellar and Exploration themes
    • June 11th: Bicentennial Man
    • June 15th: I’m Only Human…Or am I?
    • June 16th: Wall-E and Environment
    • June 17th: Wall-E (2008) and Technology
    • June 18th: Interactivity in Video Games
    • June 1st: Firefly (2002) and Myth
    • June 2nd: “Johnny Mnemonic”
    • June 3rd: “New Rose Hotel”
    • June 4th: “Burning Chrome”
    • June 8th: Conformity and Monotony
    • June 9th: Cultural Constructions of Beauty
    • May 18th: Introduction to Class
    • May 19th: American Culture, an Introduction
    • May 20th: The Matrix
    • May 21st: Gender and Science Fiction
    • May 25th: Goals for I, Robot
    • May 26th: Isaac Asimov’s I, Robot
    • May 27th: Hackers and Slackers
    • May 30th: Inception
  • Teaching Portfolio
  • Topics for Analysis
    • A Practical Editing Situation
    • American Culture, an Introduction
    • Efficiency in Writing Reviews
    • Feminism, An Introduction
    • Fordism/Taylorism
    • Frankenstein Part I
    • Frankenstein Part II
    • Futurism Introduction
    • How to Lie with Statistics
    • Isaac Asimov’s “A Cult of Ignorance”
    • Langdon Winner Summary: The Politics of Technology
    • Marxist Theory (cultural analysis)
    • Oral Presentations
    • Oratory and Argument Analysis
    • Our Public Sphere
    • Postmodernism Introduction
    • Protesting Confederate Place
    • Punctuation Refresher
    • QT, the Existential Robot
    • Religion of Technology Discussion
    • Rhetoric, an Introduction
      • Analyzing the Culture of Technical Writer Ads
      • Rhetoric of Technology
      • Visual Culture
      • Visual Perception
      • Visual Perception, Culture, and Rhetoric
      • Visual Rhetoric
      • Visuals for Technical Communication
      • World War I Propaganda
    • The Great I, Robot Discussion
      • I, Robot Short Essay Topics
    • The Rhetoric of Video Games: A Cultural Perspective
      • Civilization, an Analysis
    • The Sopranos
    • Why Science Fiction?
    • Zombies and Consumption Satire
  • Video Games & American Culture
    • April 14th: Phallocentrism
    • April 21st: Video Games and Neoliberalism
    • April 7th: Video Games and Conquest
    • Assignments for Video Games & American Culture
    • February 10th: Aesthetics and Culture
    • February 17th: Narrative and Catharsis
    • February 24th: Serious Games
    • February 3rd: More History of Video Games
    • January 13th: Introduction to the course
    • January 20th: Introduction to Video Game Studies
    • January 27th: Games & Culture
      • Marxism for Video Game Analysis
      • Postmodernism for Video Game Analysis
    • March 24th: Realism, Interpretation(s), and Meaning Making
    • March 31st: Feminist Perspectives and Politics
    • March 3rd: Risky Business?

Contact Me

Office: Fretwell 255F
Email: atoscano@uncc.edu
Topics for Analysis » Punctuation Refresher

Punctuation Refresher

I don’t want to spend an awful lot of time on these “rules,” but I think it would help to refresh ourselves on some common grammar practices in Standard Edited American English. Please refer back to this page as you need to throughout the rest of the semester.

Coordinating Conjunctions

BOYSFAN–but, or, yet, so, for, and, & nor

Use commas to separate two independent clauses joined by a coordinating conjunction. Independent clauses are simply clauses that can stand alone as sentences–they contain a subject and a verb and a complete thought. Consider the following examples below:

  • I wish you wouldn’t sleep in class. Your grade depends on your being awake and attentive during discussions.
  • You can do well in class if you show up regularly. Not showing up to class regularly will affect your grade.
  • I want to become a circus clown. I will go to the School of Clownology in Charlottesville, VA this fall to pursue my degree.

Let’s join those sentences with coordinating conjunctions:

  • I wish you wouldn’t sleep in class, for your grade depends on you(r) being awake and attentive during discussions.
    • I realize “for” is a bit of a stilted way of writing. More likely you’d use the subordinating conjunction because without a comma:
      I wish you wouldn’t sleep in class because your grade depends on you(r) being awake and attentive during discussions.
    • More on that in the next section.
  • You can do well in class if you show up regularly, but not showing up to class regularly will affect your grade.
    • “not showing up to class regularly” is a subject of the sentence and is doing something…well, it’s actually NOT doing something, but you understand what I mean.
  • I want to become a circus clown, so I will go to the School of Clownology in Charlottesville, VA this fall to pursue my degree.

Subordinating Conjunctions

WWAABSET-O–when, while, after, although, because, since, even though, and others (too many to list)

Use commas with most subordinating conjunctions that introduce or open a sentence:

  • When Mopsy was born, my parents got her from a neighbor. {You could even say, “After Mopsy was born, my parents got her from a neighbor.”}
  • While you were away, I watched TV and read. {Notice that “While you were away” cannot stand alone as a sentence. Also, some readers scoff at using “while” for situations other than time; instead, they prefer “although.”}
  • Because I want a life free of difficulty, I do not plan to have children.
  • Although I prefer Star Wars to Star Trek, I usually prefer science fiction narratives to fantasy works (books, movies, etc).
  • Even though the Patriots are a great team, they couldn’t cheat their way to a Super Bowl win.

Conjunctive Adverbs (aka. Transitional Words and Hedging Words)

  • The adverbs: however, furthermore, also, instead, nevertheless, first, second, third, finally, next, and many others
  • The introductory phrases: for example, in fact, for instance, in conclusion, therefore, of course, in other words, and many others

Use a comma to set off introductory words and phrases. Since these words allow writers to transition smoothly from sentence to sentence, they often follow a semicolon (;) before beginning a new independent clause. For example,

I would really love to come to your wedding; however, I can’t keep my mouth shut when asked, “Does anyone know why these two should not be joined in matrimony? Speak now or start placing bets on when they’ll divorce.” Therefore, please don’t expect a gift from me, and please don’t have any children–no need to continue your horrific lineage!

Of course, too many of these phrases affects you concision, so use sparingly and only for strategic emphasis–not all the time.

Notable Exceptions

As with most rules and laws, there are some exceptions to comma placement. Below is a statistically inaccurate list about which comma rules are adhered to more than others. Remember, your audience will have a lot to do with the style you choose. I’m more familiar with MLA style, but I’ve become increasingly aware of AP and APA style through the years.

  • 100% (or close enough): Comma splices are nearly universally unacceptable; a comma splice is when a comma is used to join two or more independent clauses without a coordinating conjunction.
    Example: People with loud children shouldn’t be allowed in restaurants, they should just stay home and entertain themselves.
  • 90% (or thereabouts): Commas normally appear with all coordinating conjunctions except when a sentence is very short; I have noticed that implied subjects often omit commas with coordinating conjunctions.
    Example: Go outside and cut me off a switch. {‘You’ is the implied subject. Both “Go outside” and “Cut me off a switch” are independent clauses. The speaker just isn’t saying “You go outside, and you cut me off a switch.”}
  • 80% (or nowhere near): In some cases, introductory prepositional phrases do not need commas; however, no authority has definitively told me which phrases to put a comma after and which to not. Long ago, I taught a developmental grammar class, and the book we used claimed to use commas after introductory prepositional phrases of more than five words. Kolln & Gray recommend using a comma “for the opening prepositional phrase if it exceeds five to six words” (p. 228). I never knew that “rule” and later learned that some readers expected commas after all introductory prepositional phrases and some didn’t want them even after the five- to six-word introductory prepositional phrases.
    • Example: Over the past year, I have been preparing for the LSAT.
    • Example: On Tuesday, we ought to go out to lunch.{I believe the “On Tuesday” deal about not using commas is that it’s common to start out with that type of phrase, so most people drop the comma. In fact, journalists, who must conserve space in those tiny columns of print, seem to limit as many commas as possible. AP style (Associated Press) is a style used by many newspapers.}
  • A No-No: Don’t use a comma to separate a sentence subject that begins with a preposition. For instance, you wouldn’t write the following:
    “Under the bridge, is where I drew some blood” because Under the bridge is the noun phrase containing the subject of that sentence, bridge. However, the following uses a comma appropriately: “Under the bridge downtown, I gave my life away.” In that sentence, I is the subject, and Under the bridge is the introductory prepositional phrase.
  • 50% (and probably accurate): Use commas to set off items in a series…but which items? Yes, the plot thickens!
    Example: You need to study hard, rest, and stay focused to do well on the exam.
    Example: Go to the store and buy beer, chips, and beef jerky.
    {Depending on your style guideline, you may or may not omit the comma before the “and” in the above examples.}
  • But there’s an issue with not using the “extra” comma: Consider the statement, “My uncle left me his property, houses, and cars.” With that “extra” comma, there’s no way to mistake that your uncle left you three distinct items–property (e.g., land), houses, and cars. However, if you said, “My uncle left me his property, houses and cars,” houses and cars comprise his property. When you use a comma to separate a noun from a following description, that description is an appositive. For instance, the sentence, “I wonder if it’s snowing in Chicago, a place north of here,” uses a place north of here to further describe Chicago.

That’s enough comma stuff for a lifetime. Pick up a grammar/style handbook to help you with these issues. Although I am more concerned with your content, proper mechanics is still important.

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