Where Is The Comma In "God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen" Supposed To Go?

[Uke]

The Pedant's Revolt of 1381

Oh, don't even get me started on the less/few thing! It drives me CRAZY when I hear professional media types (usually 20 or 30-somethings) get this all confused. I had an English professor who would have crucified students for not paying attention to this usage.

 

[Opsimath]

Oh, don't even get me started on the less/few thing! It drives me CRAZY when I hear professional media types (usually 20 or 30-somethings) get this all confused. I had an English professor who would have crucified students for not paying attention to this usage.

Less/fewer misuse annoys me, too. It's not that hard!

And how about between/among comparative/superlative?

Or no commas. I've seen "apples and oranges and pears" instead of "apples, oranges, and pears".

But, if those are the biggest problems I face then I really don't have big problems.

The fact that I just ate the last of my dark chocolate covered roasted espresso beans is a definite problem!

 

[davismanLV]

The fact that I just ate the last of my dark chocolate covered roasted espresso beans is a definite problem!

And your dealer is out of town, right?? YIKES!!

 

[Uke]

O.K., I finally watched the actual video and feel much better now!

 

[geoguy]

The percussionist in that clip truly suffered for his art.

 

[GGJaguar]

The fact that I just ate the last of my dark chocolate covered roasted espresso beans is a definite problem!

 

[gjmalcyon]

Holy cow. Did anyone actually watch the video?

Yes, and it quieted any desire to do face percussion.

 

[adorshki]

After "merry." It is an adjective modifying "gentlemen." "Gentlemen" is an appostive of "ye." The expanded sense of it is: "God rest ye, (who are) merry gentlemen."

Which is exactly why it goes after "Ye", because you don't separate the adjective from the word being modified, with a comma.

 

[adorshki]

Less cannot be counted - fewer can be counted.
Less music on fewer guitars.
Difference between Applesauce and apples

And yet nobody agreed there could be no such thing as an increasing rate of abstinence a couple of months ago...

 

[Opsimath]

And your dealer is out of town, right?? YIKES!!

Yes! The supplier of my gateway beans is located out of town. I'll be turning to the ever willing enabler, Amazon, where my initial perusal discovered that beans can be ordered in 5 pound bags. With a 12 beans a day habit, um, I mean requirement, I wonder how long a 5 pound bag would last.

I even found beans with a subscription service! Beans, automatically. As many as I want. As often as I want.

I think I need to sell the family silver. Need. More. Beans.

(Just kidding everyone! Kinda.)

 

[Charlie Bernstein]

I sent the link to some stickler friends. Everyone likes the song, but no likes the slaps.

They should redo it.

 

[GAD]

I sent the link to some stickler friends. Everyone likes the song, but no likes the slaps.

They should redo it.

The slaps are part of the fun.

 

[Charlie Bernstein]

The slaps are part of the fun.

Well, there, then!

(All those little Guy Fawkes beards make me a little squeemy, too.)

 

[Cougar]

Where Is The Comma In "God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen" Supposed To Go?

In order to affix the comma properly, one must make some sense of the original clause, and in this I can find no meaning whatsoever. To begin with, what's God got to do with it? And are there various words left out that are supposed to be assumed? Is it "[May] God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen"? And what does it mean for God to rest you? So is it "May God Provide Rest to Ye, you Merry Gentlemen, you"?

Deciding where the comma goes is the least of my worries with the phrase "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen"!