The Oxford comma is a fairly huge issue in the grammar geek universe. For those who aren’t familiar, this term refers to a comma that precedes a conjunction in a list of words. For example: “We love web design, copywriting, and development.” The Oxford comma comes before the word “and” and the final item in the list.
The truth is, there isn’t really a right answer. If you live by the guidelines of the AP Stylebook, then you wouldn’t dare use an Oxford comma. But some of us can’t help but wonder why you wouldn’t use it.
Here’s the Reasoning:
So let’s say you just won a big award. You’ve got your fancy suit on and you’re ready to stand at the podium and thank the most influential people in your life – your parents. Let’s say their names are John and Jane. The sentence on your piece of paper would read:
I’d like to thank my parents, John and Jane.
Makes sense. But now, let’s say you want to thank a few more people. Your list of people is as follows:
1. My parents
2. Walt Disney
3. Beyonce
If you were to leave out the Oxford comma, your sentence would read:
I’d like to thank my parents, Walt Disney and Beyonce.
It’s pretty much impossible that your parents are Walt Disney and Beyonce, wouldn’t you say? Enter: The Oxford comma. When you throw in that extra separating stop between the last two people on your list, you clarify that there are three distinct items rather than one with a couple of modifiers.
I’d like to thank my parents, Walt Disney, and Beyonce.
So go ahead and make the call for yourself. But we pretty much guarantee that once you read the Walt Disney & Beyonce example, you’ll never read a list of items the same unless it uses the Oxford comma. Whatever you choose do to, stay consistent!
[END NERD RANT]