even if she birthed you – Fibromyangela

escad:

trekkingwilbury:

redditfront:

Some examples of why the Oxford comma is generally a good idea

Please don’t let the Oxford comma die. If you were apathetic about it before, I think this will help you understand why it is necessary.

From an editorial standpoint, the serial (or Oxford) comma is usually preferred; but there are some cases in which it actually introduces ambiguity. “My parents, Ayn Rand, and God” is obviously clearer than “My parents, Ayn Rand and God.” But what about “My mother, Ayn Rand, and God”? Now “Ayn Rand” can read as an appositive that modifies “my mother,” and you’ve wound up related to the damn woman again.

In fact, adding the serial comma in the third example given leads to a similar issue. “Nelson Mandela, an 800-year-old demigod, and a dildo collector” can just as easily refer to two people (one an 800-year-old demigod named Nelson Mandela, and the other a dildo collector) as it can to three. The latter reading is more probable, but

Cases like these are rare, of course, so it’s true that, as the OP states, the Oxford comma is generally a good idea. But don’t forget to consider context and readability; when it comes to communicating effectively, those are more important than your ability to follow the right grammatical rules.