Teacher Discussion Forums

Is the use of the comma in the following sentence correct?

The delivery boy knew he carried strange cargo, but still ventured off unafraid.

I know that the comma is not separating two clauses because there is no subject in "but still ventured off unafraid", which makes it a phrase, not a clause. But wouldn't the comma placement be covered under another rule, such as: Use commas to set off phrases that express contrast, or: Use a comma to avoid confusion?

Thanks,

Donna

The comma is optional. I would put one in.

I would use a comma if I wanted to imply a pause after "but", e.g.

1. The delivery boy knew I was away on holiday, but still left my organic vegetable box on the doorstep in full view of every passing housebreaker.

2. The delivery boy knew I was away on holiday but still left my organic vegetable box, etc.

For me, the lack of a comma in #2 implies no pause after "but", and no "end of clause intonation" on "holiday".

(Though not everyone interprets commas in that way.)

MrP

I think more artistic license should be allowed for punctuation, especially with commas. Some grammarians say a single comma should never separate a subject from its verb. This sentence really has a compound predicate. It's structurally identical to

The delivery boy knew he carried strange cargo and still ventured off unafraid.

"And" and "but" are both coordinating conjunctions. There's a structural reason for omitting the comma and an aesthetic one for including it. The comma indicates a pause. It can reflect the pace of the speaker.