Whatever happened to the double space between sentences?
Am I the only one who has noticed the shift in the writing world from two spaces to one? The double space is important for pacing when reading in one's head and a chance to catch your breath when forced to read aloud. But somehow that strict rule of writing has disappeared. I've witnessed the shift in the ramblings of the cyberworld, the printed articles of Newsweek and Time Magazine, and the latest published books given to me as Christmas gifts. So why the change?
It seems as if our writing is beginning to reflect the rapid rate of modern life. Immediate access, prompt reflection, instant knowledge. Maybe we have lost the patience required for a double space. Or maybe we've become better readers, more equipped by daily rendezvous with our favorite internet pages. Who needs that extra tic of white between sentences? It's a waste of space (pun intended).
But maybe, just maybe, by expelling the double space we are losing an essential structure to the printed (or imprinted) word. A steady, composed stream of thoughts separated distinctly by two spaces, rather than the single spot that identifies each word as its own. Let's not allow ourselves to get too lazy just because there's a push to post first or limit our characters so that they fit into an electronic box.
The defined expanse between sentences declares their worthiness to stand independently. The double space is a prelude to the next thought, a hint that there's so much more to come.
Sometimes the rules are not made to be broken.
I've wondered the same thing--nice to read a blog post about it (glad I'm not the only one)! Also, you should check out the book "Eats, Shoots, and Leaves" a pretty entertaining, fast read about a woman's aggravation with the saturation of punctuation mistakes in our society. You may already know it!
ReplyDeleteVery interesting post, Cate! I actually think I never learned (or never cared enough to learn) about the two spaces rule. The way you describe the importance of each sentence at a time was really cool!
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