Summertime, and the Livin' Is Easy, part II

Summer back-to-basics tip # 3: who and whom If there’s any grammar bugaboo that confounds people, it’s when to use “who” and when to use “whom.” (It’s right up there with the lie/lay dilemma.)   Okay, here goes: Who is a subject, whom is an object. In other words, who does it to whom.   I know what you’re thinking: nice in theory, but how does it work? If you can substitute “he,” "she," or "they," use “who.” If you can substitute “him,” "her," or "them," use “whom.” Did Flora know who was invited to the dance? (“he” was invited; so “who”) She invited whom? (she invited “them”; so “whom”) While it’s definitely a good idea to master this in your writing, if you have to think about it for more than 15 seconds, choose “who” and move on. (Life’s short enough as it is.)   Summer back-to-basics tip # 4: quotation marks The rules regarding quotation marks are simpler than you might think.   Commas and periods go inside the quotation mark. “Millicent,” she begged, “please go.” Question marks, exclamation points, and dashes go inside the closing quotation mark unless they are not part of the actual quotation. What’s the most famous line in “Now, Voyager”? "Don't ask for the moon! We have the stars!" (The question mark is outside the closing quotation mark because the movie is called "Now, Voyager," not "Now, Voyager?" The second exclamation point is inside the quotation mark because the line ends in an exclamation mark.) Colons and semicolons go outside the quotation marks. She defined "gridlock": a traffic jam.   Single quote marks: In American English there are only two instances in which these have a role. When a quotation occurs within another quotation: "Sabrina looked at me and said, ‘please go away.'" To save space in newspaper headlines: Governor Regrets 'Partisan Squabbling' * In England and other countries that adhere to British English, commas and periods go outside the quotation marks. “Cyril”, she begged, “be kind to the marchioness”.

Comments

[Loren Santow]

Dear Wordwise editor,
I have a suggestion for a blog topic. It comes up a lot in the textbooks and academic books I currently spend a lot of time reading. Do you have any thoughts on the capitalization of the word "white" as it pertains to race? I go ballistic when I see "White" but I can't articulate exactly why. I don't care for "Black" either but it doesn't chafe as badly. Can you explain why "White" ain't right?
By the way, I'm your brother.

[Dan Santo]

Racial designations (such as white, black, etc.) are not capitalized, according to AP Style, The New York Times Manual of Style & Usage, and the Chicago Manual of Style. Caucasian and Negro, however, should you have a reason to use either of these words, are uppercased.