05:33 am - QotD
From a conversation regarding the reasons some people use multiple question marks (locked entry, May 2008, quoted with the permission of each speaker):
![[info]](http://stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small}
hematopoetic: |
Why??????????????? Would you rather people use lots of extra letters? |
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sabotabby: |
Well, if they must. The extra letters mimic the sound, while the extra punctuation marks do nothing. |
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marnanel: |
I see them as wild hopeless gesticulations of increasing despair. |
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beeblefish: |
See, I also see them as this, but there is a matter of degree, and the combination ?! need mentioning [too]. For example: wtf? -- a question as to what, indeed, the fuck is going on wtf?? -- a question, but with added confussion wtf?! -- a question, but with some anger behind, maybe incredulity wtf!? -- similar, but with anger in the front seat maybe, this might also be bad form, I'll have to ask Lynn Truss... wtf??!! -- this is, I think, total exasperation, bewilderment and probably also a lot of disappointment. (anything beyond this, of course, and the person needs to be shot...) |
[When I saw "wild hopeless gesticulations of increasing despair," I knew I needed to quote the thread.]