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Guest Posted 22 years ago
Grammar

Serial commas and dependent clauses

I know that when one is listing a series of nouns (e.g., "He loved peaches, apples, and oranges."), the comma after "apples" is called for, but what about the following sentence:

"James ran out of the hotel, hailed a cab, drove to the casino and shot the man with the embroidered silk patch right between the eyes--that is, right between the eyebrows."

Is it necessary to insert a comma between "casino" and "and"?

Thanks,

Mike
  

Top answer

In your first example the comma is not necessary. It's better to say: He loved peaches, apples and oranges Your second example is correct. You don't need a comma after the last but one item on a list, whether it's a list of words or actions.

— Novalee

  • In your first example the comma is not necessary.
  • It's better to say: He loved peaches, apples and oranges Your second example is correct.
  • You don't need a comma after the last but one item on a list, whether it's a list of words or actions.
  • Hope this helps
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2 Answers
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In your first example the comma is not necessary. It's better to say:
He loved peaches, apples and oranges

Your second example is correct. You don't need a comma after the last but one item on a list, whether it's a list of words or actions.
Hope this helps
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Thanks for your input, Novalee. But many sources (e.g., The Elements of Style and The Chicago Manual of Style, among others) insist that the serial comma is prefered in the first example, and (as I see now from looking at page two of Elements) Strunk Jr. and White would also require the comma in the second sentence (though part of me still thinks it could be optional).

In the end, of co
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