[Essay] ...emotions were mixed...

Status
Not open for further replies.

rodgers white

Senior Member
Joined
Jan 17, 2016
Member Type
English Teacher
Native Language
Chinese
Home Country
China
Current Location
China
Hi there. Would you please proofread the following text? Any help would be appreciated.

In the end, Jingying did what she normally did. She came right out and said what was on her mind. “Gan, I’m pregnant.”

Gan just stopped, looked at her, and, seeing that she was serious, he smiled. “Well, that is unexpected. It’s not even my birthday”. Gan took her by the hand and pulled her to him, hugging her. No words were spoken, nor were any needed.

Several weeks later, the forest thinned and was gone. Before them was a sandy plain beyond which was a mountain range. Gan stopped and took in the view.Jingying was by his side holding his hand. “We’re home Gan, I wonder what we’ll find.”

Gan’s emotions were mixed. He wasn’t sure how he felt. “Father's plan was to destroy the city. I don’t know what to expect. It’s been so long though, my guess is that there's nothing left. Come on, let’s keep going. We should be able to make it to the cave before dark.”
 

Charlie Bernstein

VIP Member
Joined
Jan 28, 2009
Member Type
Other
Native Language
English
Home Country
United States
Current Location
United States
Hi there. Would you please proofread the following text? Any help would be appreciated.

In the end, Jingying did what she normally did. She came right out and said what was on her mind. “Gan, I’m pregnant.”

Gan just stopped, looked at her, and[STRIKE],[/STRIKE] seeing that she was serious, he smiled. “Well, that is unexpected. It’s not even my birthday”. Gan took her by the hand and pulled her to him, hugging her. No words were spoken, nor were any needed.

Several weeks later, the forest thinned and was gone. Before them was a sandy plain beyond which was a mountain range. Gan stopped and took in the view. [space] Jingying was by his side holding his hand. “We’re home Gan. I wonder what we’ll find.”

Gan’s emotions were mixed. He wasn’t sure how he felt. “Father's plan was to destroy the city. I don’t know what to expect. It’s been so long though, my guess is that there's nothing left. Come on, let’s keep going. We should be able to make it to the cave before dark.”
Technically, your comma after and in the second sentence was correct. But it's customary not to have commas immediately on both sides of conjuctions.

I think it's just because it looks better. And since dropping the second comma never causes confusion, it works.
 

TheParser

VIP Member
Joined
Dec 8, 2009
Member Type
Other
Native Language
English
Home Country
United States
Current Location
United States
Gan just stopped, looked at her, and, seeing that she was serious, he smiled.

NOT A TEACHER

I may be wrong, of course, but I think that sentence needs reworking.

I would be more comfortable with something like: "Gan just stopped, looked at her, and -- seeing that she was serious -- smiled."
 

Tdol

No Longer With Us (RIP)
Staff member
Joined
Nov 13, 2002
Native Language
British English
Home Country
UK
Current Location
Japan
How about there will be nothing left?
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Top