Is Admiral's car-insurance advert grammatically acceptable?
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Admiral car insurance
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declarative sentence turned into a question
(poster on the London Tube)
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The Charge:
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"Admiral's comprehensive car insurance
comes crammed full of great benefits as standard" is a standalone declarative
sentence. You cannot simply put a dash, add a few words (does
yours? in this case) and turn it into an interrogative
sentence (i.e. a question). |
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Defence 
Defense  Case:
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This is not one sentence. It is two. The
first is declarative, and the second is interrogative. Of course,
this advert could have been written:
Admiral's comprehensive car insurance comes crammed full of great benefits
as standard. Does yours?
However, it flows less well with a full stop
/ period .
A dash can be
used to replace a semicolon to extend a sentence. It can also be
used to replace
a colon to expand on something mentioned earlier in the sentence.
A dash can also
be used to replace three dots (ellipsis) to create a pause for effect.
So, why shouldn't it be used to replace a full stop? It creates the
desired effect. To summarise, this is two sentences; therefore, the charge
cannot stand. |
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Prosecution Case:
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A sentence starts with a capital letter and
ends with a full stop. There aren't many 100% rules in grammar, but
this is one. You cannot simply replace punctuation of your choice
with other punctuation of your choice. Where would this end? Should
I start replacing apostrophes with dashes because I find them more
appealing? |
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Judge Grammar Monster's Decision:
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When I think of the terms like "aren't
you" and "isn't it" at the end of sentences to turn them
into questions, I find it difficult not to find in favour of the Defence.
Remember these from school?
This is blue, isn't it?
You live in Germany, don't you?
These examples each comprise two sentences: one declarative and one
interrogative. And, these are separated by commas, which can only be
described as a hideous grammatical howler. However, this format of
questioning is widely accepted. I find Admiral's format with a dash
more acceptable than the format with a comma. As the latter is so widely
condoned, I judge that Admiral's advert is grammatically
acceptable. |
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