atw: Re: AND, BUT, or OR as the first word of a sentence

  • From: James Hunt <jameshunt@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
  • To: austechwriter@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
  • Date: Thu, 16 Oct 2003 21:32:21 +1000

 From Ebbit and Ebbit, "Writer's Guide and Index to English" [Scott, 
Foresman & Co., umpteenth reprint of the 1939 edition].

"In current writing of all varieties, 'and' may stand at the beginning 
of a sentence. Used with restraint, it can contribute to movement and 
emphasis. "

There were a lot of rather silly 'rules' for English devised by 19th 
Century pedants of various kinds, and this was one of them. But the 
rules often fail in application. For example, quite a lot of sentences 
in the King James Bible begin with "And...", and it is hard to believe 
that the translators were not masters of the English language.

Why do technical writers persist with artificial strictures like this 
when other writers do not? And is it because much of our work is 
written for the kinds of people who see the words and miss the meaning?

Or not, as the case may be. (Pooh Bear)


James Hunt

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