Intermediate English Grammar for ESL Learners - Robin Torres-Gouzerh 2016

Parentheses and brackets
23 Punctuation

Parentheses enclose explanatory material, supplemental material, or any added information that could clarify the text it refers to. They are placed at the beginning and end of the enclosed text.

The museum demolition that began in 1993 (and ended in 1996) was a sad reminder of how suddenly historical buildings can be taken away.

Parentheses can be used in text references.

The death toll of Hurricane Katrina was staggering (see Table 5.7).

Parentheses can be used to set off a list of elements.

The green screen on your left indicates (1) the wind speed, (2) the outside temperature, (3) the atmospheric pressure, and (4) the humidity ratio.

Brackets enclose editorial comments and corrections.

These painting copies [reproduced from the original artworks that burned in the fire of 1954] are listed as some of the most expensive art of the exposition.

The students prefer Milton over him [Shakespeare].

The president said, “The illiteracy level of our children are [sic] appalling.”

Brackets can also be used to replace a set of parentheses within a set of parentheses.

During his trial, Fidel Castro stated, “None of you are entitled to condemn, you’ll see, history will absolve me!” (See Fidel Castro’s speech “History Will Absolve Me” [October 16, 1953].)

Exercise 23.11 Insert parentheses and brackets where needed.

1. The Skibby Chronicle published anonymously in the 1530s but now believed to be the work of Poul Helgesen describes Danish history from 1047 to 1534.

2. As members of the book club, we had to read The Stranger Albert Camus 1913-1960 and discuss the novelist’s concept of the absurd.

3. According to historical accounts, the first bridge over the Chattahoochee River there Columbus, Georgia was built by John Goodwin in 1832-1833.

4. They were told there was a heavy load of work that they would have to deal with during the semester: They would have to 1 take two three-hour exams, 2 read 13 books, and 3 write a 50-page essay.

5. Thomas (art Benton 1888-1975 finished his famous Indiana Murals in 1932.

6. Some scholars argue that Michelangelo noted Italian painter and sculptor 1475-1564 was the quintessential Renaissance man.