Harvard's Latest Field of Expertise: the Semicolon

The story includes Kurt Vonnegut's musings about the meaning of the semicolon, and quotes an expert from Harvard...

A recent public-service ad campaign in the New York City subways used a semicolon in urging riders to dispose of their newspapers rather than leaving them
behind on the train: "Please put it in the trash can; that's good news for everyone."

The New York Times used the ad campaign as an entry point into a broader investigation of the little-used punctuation mark and its cultural associations. The story includes Kurt Vonnegut's musings about the meaning of the semicolon, and quotes an expert from Harvard—Louis Menand, Bass professor of English and American literature and language, who is also a staff writer for the New Yorker—who deems the ad campaign's usage "impeccable."

Most popular

The Professor Who Quantified Democracy

Erica Chenoweth’s data shows how—and when—authoritarians fall.

Harvard Layoffs Continue, with More to Come

In the wake of federal government actions, several Harvard schools and institutes are cutting costs.

The Downsides of Prozac

Harvard researchers discuss the side effects of Prozac and other SSRIs

Explore More From Current Issue

group of students perform on a stage in front of a crowd

In comedy groups, students find ways to be absurd, present, and a little less self-conscious.

Nicolo Maestas in a grey suit and wearing glasses sits with her arms on a table

The Harvard health economist not afraid to get in the weeds

An illustration of a green leaf being hit by a beam of light and bouncing off the leaf and then becoming a color prisim

Light-based analysis of botanical collections link plants to Earth’s changing climate.