Apostrophe

Apostrophe (Gr. apostrophē, 'a turning away,' or 'breaking off') is a rhetorical figure by which a speaker changes the course of his speech, and addresses, with greater or less emotional emphasis, persons present or absent, the dead, or inanimate objects, either to invoke them as witnesses, or to pity, praise, or blame them. Quintilian explained it as directed to a person present, but modern use has extended it to the absent or dead, who are for the time being supposed to be present. When the figure is well managed, it has a thrilling effect, both in oratory and poetry; but when extravagantly introduced, it becomes ludicrous. Examples of it abound in the writings and speeches of the great poets and statesmen both of ancient and modern times.—APOSTROPHE in Grammar, is the sign (') used to indicate the omission of a letter or letters in a word, as in o'er, thro', can't; and as a sign of the modern English genitive or possessive case, as in boy's, boys', men's, conscience', Moses'. In the latter case, it marked originally merely the dropping of the letter e in writing, as in fox's, James's, and was equally common in the nominative plural. Gradually the latter use was dropped, and it was extended to all possessives, even where e had not been dropped, as in man's, children's, conscience' sake. This usage, as Dr Murray points out, was not yet established in 1725.