Kerfuffled by the full stop and quotation marks?

If walls could talk and peruse the many messages written upon our bodies, we would greatly appreciate the explanation on the lessons to be learned on how Quotation marks, Periods and Full stops figure into things. You see I am a bit confused and mystified by the concept. Some humans place them on the inside, while others argue that they should be on the outside.

Someone read an article, while leisurely leaning upon my wall and drinking from a jug/pitcher, worryingly trying to find out if he had been promoted to a Principal /Headmaster. You see he applied in the US for job in the UK, which was a conundrum, since he had totally mixed up his quotations, full stops and punctuation marks. Now he is supposed to explain where the full stop or period should be placed at the end of a sentence ending with a quotation in academic writing, or he may not get hired. He was totally baffled and kerfuffled by the problem you see.

He then realized that in the American English, it is the exact opposite to the British system, and the full stop is placed outside when the sentence is complete and inside when the sentence is incomplete.

One of the most common errors in academic writing is related to the use of the period (or full stop) when a sentence ends with a quotation.

Should the full stop be placed before or after the closing quotation mark? This is a very frequent question that academics and students ask themselves when writing an essay or a thesis/dissertation paper.

According to British English usage:

The full stop should be placed before the closing quotation mark when the sentence quoted is a full grammatical sentence, i.e a sentence that can stand on its own and is complete. Let’s see an example to make it clear. Mary argued that “John should be socially responsible for the overall aspect of the research done by the large number of his students.”

Full stop outside

When the sentence is not complete and cannot grammatically stand alone, the full stop or period must be placed after the closing quote mark. eg. "Peter Piper picked". Unfinished statement.

Full stop inside

The full stop should be placed before the closing quotation mark when the sentence quoted is a full grammatical sentence, i.e a sentence that can stand on its own and is complete. "Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled pepper."

According to the American usage system

Do everything opposite to how the British does everything. Punctuate the opposite way. Drive on the opposite side of the road.

If the British people spell their words with two of any letters, use only one. Or use it backwards, or don't use it at all. eg.:

One says theater, the other says theatre.

US GB

airplane aeroplane

color colour

favorite favourite

ladybug ladybird

arugula rocket, salad leaves

Acetaminophen Paracetamol

Behavior Behaviour

Courtesy CONFUSEDWORDS.ORG

bonnet-hat, exam-test, pyjamas-pajamas, rubbish-garbage, holiday-vacation, lift-elevator, motorbike-motorcycle, cutlery-silverware, module-class, windscreen-windshield, timetable-schedule, cashier-teller, parcel-package, postman-mailman, dustbin-trashcan, full stop-period, queue-line, mate-buddy, the list is endless.

BTW...Tip means messy in the UK. Just be careful how and where you use it.

You may be wondering why a wall should be concerned with punctuation. I may ask you the same question. Why should I not care about what is written on me, depending on where I am. I am just as proud about getting things right as you are. Many walls all over the world stand proud and tall, happy and honored/honoured to represent humanity in their many different endeavors/endeavours.

I must admit that I am still a bit confused, but I am a wall. As long as you get and understand the concepts though, I stand happy.

"I can do whatever I want today".