SOME NOTES ON WRITING AND GRAMMAR
Walter vom Saal
This document is under development
This is a very preliminary document. More will be added, and this document may be significantly revised.
Notes on updates from the original 8/25/03 version:
9/16/03: addition to the section on affect vs effect, with the AEIOU mnemonic
device.
1. Spelling and grammar are important. I will talk about this in class.
2. I will expect you to become aware of common errors, be able to catch them, and learn to correct them in your own work.
3. I normally will become less lenient regarding spelling and grammatical errors as the semester progresses. In particular, I normally will take off more points for specific errors after we have discussed them in class, or after I have noted a prior error of the same type and given you feedback about it.
4. Disclaimer: I think this is all correct, but the last time I proofread it I found some mistakes. If you find what you think is an error, check it out carefully, and if you still believe it is an error, please let me know!
CONTENTS:
Grading notations used in grading papers
Overall grades
If you see two grades at the top of your paper...
Some common technical errors
Grammar and spelling: common errors in Psyc 345
Broader guidelines for good writing
GRADING NOTATIONS: There are several marks I make frequently in the margins of papers. Their meaning is as follows:
[checkmark] = good, I agree, ok (picture me nodding my head yes).
x = no, I disagree, wrong (picture me shaking my head no).
? = unsure what this means, unclear (picture me asking myself "Huh?")
awk = awkward phrasing. If you see this, read your sentence out loud - you should notice that it doesn't sound right.
sp = spelling error.
C+R = correct and resubmit. (DO NOT RETYPE: make corrections on the original paper and re-submit the original paper.)
NAS = Not A Sentense. Incomplete sentences. Sentence fragments. (See below.)
ROS = Run-on-Sentence. (See below).
check ++ = very good
check + = good
check = ok
check - = weak
check -- = very weak
IF YOU SEE TWO GRADES AT THE TOP OF YOUR PAPER, such as:
C = [check plus] T = [check minus]
OR
C = 8.5 ......... T = 6.0
The "C" grade is for content and the "T" grade is for technical correctness (grammar, spelling, etc.)
NAS = Not A Sentence. Incomplete sentences. Sentence fragments.
EXAMPLES will be added here.
ROS = Run-on-sentences.
WRONG: Walking is healthy, I do it every day.
RIGHT: replace the comma with a period (to make it into two sentences).
RIGHT: replace the comma with a semicolon, a dash, or (when appropriate) a colon.
(1) Using apostrophes.
The apostrophe is the little mark that looks like a single quotation mark.
There are two uses of the apostrophe before an “s.”
Apostrophe use #1. The apostrophe with an “s” may be used to indicate possession:
This ball belongs to the dog. It is the dog’s ball.
We had a car. We broke the car’s engine.
Slightly more complicated: when there is already an “s” there because something is plural, such as when we are talking about three balls, then the apostrophe goes AFTER the s. Examples to illustrate this:
I have a dog. She has a red ball she plays with. The red ball is the dog’s ball.
I have three dogs. They have three balls they play with. Those balls are the dogs’ balls.
I have three dogs. They have one green ball they play with. The green ball is the dogs’ ball.
Test question: Determine whether the following is correct or not:
- There are all kinds of technology’s that we take for granted.
Apostrophe use #2. The apostrophe with an “s” may be shorthand for “is,” as in:
“It’s a girl!!!”
What’s that?
When’s he coming over for dinner?
The dog’s going to rip up that ball.
There is an EXCEPTION to the above: the word “it’s” has an apostrophe when it stands for “it is,” as in “It’s a girl!” Its does NOT have an apostrophe when the “s” is used to indicate possession, as in “the paint on the car gradually lost its (NOT it’s) shine.” There is no apostrophe for any of the possessive pronouns: his, hers, whose, theirs, its.
Think this through clearly – tell me if it is correct:
I’m worried that the dog’s going to rip up the girl’s ball.
(2) Separate vs. joined words. These are complicated, and sometimes you just have to learn what the standard usage is by remembering it, because there may be no simple rule. Here are some we have discussed:
every day vs. everyday.
If you are using the word “every” to modify “day”, it is two words. Example: I walk every single day instead of every of every other day. These are all separate words.
HOWEVER, you could be describing an everyday event: when both together are modifying the word “event”, then they are joined.
Another example to illustrate this (both of the following sentences are correct):
Science is used every day.
Science can solve everyday problems.
WRONG: Where as the following incident has occurred…
Whereas is one word. So are whereby, wherefore, etc.
alot vs a lot.
There is no such word as alot, just as there is no such word as alittle.
WRONG: There were alot of people at the dance.
RIGHT: There were a lot of people at the dance.
Other one-word vs. two-word examples. [Please let me know if you think of other one-word vs. two-word examples that could be added here.]
3. He vs. him
She vs. her
They vs. their
These should be so elementary that you never make an error, but I still get
things like:
- often him and his friends would go downtown together.
Ask yourself this: would “him” go downtown? If HE would go downtown,
then HE AND HIS FRIENDS would go downtown.
4. who vs. whom:
This distinction can get difficult. Read the following sentences and ask yourself
if they are correct:
- As I thought about it, I wondered whom took the prize home.
- These are the people who I gave the gift to.
- We need to grieve for those whom have died.
GUIDELINES for dealing with who vs whom:
A. leave off the rest of the sentence. Then
B. change to he/him or they/them. If HE or THEY would work, use WHO. If HIM or THEM would work, use WHOM.
In the examples above:
- Since HE (not HIM) took the prize home, then you wondered WHO (not WHOM) took the prize home.
- Since you gave the gift to THEM (not THEY), then these are the people WHOM you yelled at.
- Since THEY (not THEM) have died, then we need to grieve for those WHO (not WHOM) have died.
Final thought: What do you do when you know what is correct, but it just sounds terrible? I once read a guideline that I liked: if that happens, it's a no-win situation, since some people will be uncomfortable if you use WHO and some will be uncomfortable if you use WHOM. In that case: rewrite the sentence.
5. affect vs. effect
To affect something is to influence something. In this use, the word affect is a verb.
- The poor home environment affected the boy’s self image.
An effect is a consequence or a result. In this use, the word effect is a noun.
- The poor home environment had a big effect on the boy.
Something affects something else.
Something has an effect on something else.
In this use, affect is a verb (it DOES something) and effect is a noun (it IS something).
Here is a mnemonic device suggested in a previous class. Imagine this is as confusing as a weathervane that is pointing in lots of directions: VANE stands for Verb=Affect, Noun=Effect.
Here is another mnemonic device::
Think of the vowels AEIOU:
A is to E as I is to O; and now U know!
Affect is to Effect as Influence is to Outcome.
--- To affect is to influence. (That is, to affect something is to influence
it.)
--- An effect is an outcome. (That is, to produce an effect is to produce an
outcome.)
Try using these mnemonic devices on some examples you generate yourself..
PROBLEM FOR PSYCHOLOGISTS! As psychologists, you have a special problem, because the word AFFECT can be used as a NOUN in Psychology to mean “emotion.” It is used most often in diagnosis:
- The person had flat affect.
- The person had inappropriate affect.
(I spoke with Dr. DiNardo and this term IS used in his class on Abnormal Psychology, so if you took his class you should know this! It is also mentioned in most introductory psychology textbooks.)
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GRAMMATICAL AND SPELLING ERRORS: COMMON ERRORS
IN PSYC 345.
(Parentheses indicate # of students out of 50 who made this error in Psyc 345
sp02)
Red items below are incorrect.
6. Distinguish between adolescent, adolescents, and adolescence.
This is correct: There are people we call adolescents who are going through
a period we call adolescence. (>2)
There are living facilities we call residences, and we call the people who live
there residents (>2)
Trick for both of these: use the singular and you’ll see what works.
7. I interviewed a women. (>6) (I found it hard to believe there were this many errors on the distinction between one woman and many women. They are pronounced differently and they are spelled differently.
8. After a period of illness, she past away. (>3) This error probably comes from hearing the phrase but not seeing it written. When someone dies, we might say that they "passed away." The past tense of PASS is PASSED (Pass me the vegetables; he eti
9. They did it everyday. She still misses him
everyday. (>10)
CORRECT: I will do it any day now. Soon I will do it every day.
WRONG: I will do it anyday now. Soon I will do it everyday.
Note: my spelling checker catches anyday but does not catch everyday. That’s
because everyday IS a word. You CAN talk about an everyday event, an everyday
occurance, an everyday experience, etc. . But you would NOT say an event occurs
everyday; you would say it occurs every day.
(See # 2 above for more on everyday.)
10. She was treated badly in her passed relationships. Take a look at #8. We talk about the past, the present, and the future. There are past events, past experiences, etc., and there is past practice. All these cases refer to a TIME in the PAST.
11. We discussed his past, then this lead to another topic. (>3) Learn the difference between the present and past tense of this: he will lead us down the path; yesterday he led us down the path.
12. She gave me some words of advise. (>2). Learn the difference between advice and advise. We advise people. We give them advice. Sometime your adviser doesn't know how best to advise you. Sometimes you don't like the advice your advisor gives you.
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BROADER GUIDELINES FOR GOOD WRITING
1. Good writing does not come automatically. It takes work.
2. look at your first sentence and your final sentence. These are the most important sentences in your paper. Make them powerful. Make them clear. Make them have a strong message. Make them grammatically correct!
(And remember that they are the sentences your professor is sure to look at! But also remember that they are the sentences that will have the most impact on ANY reader.)
Note that the same is true of an oral report. Start strong; end strong.
3. A related concept: in good writing, usually the first sentence of every paragraph carries the essential message. Make the first sentence of your paragraph a "lead sentence" that makes the essential point. The remainder of the paragraph expands on or clarifies or adds additional supporting material to the first sentence. (This is a guideline. It is not always true, and not always best practice, and some people think it can lead to boring writing. I think it is an excellent practice to follow when you are first writing something, and when your primary goal is clarity, as it will be in the reports you write for this course.)
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