Capitalize This

April 24, 2008 11:01 AM

Wordsmiths, Help! -- Do you capitalize the word "left" in the phrase "the political left"?

Incredibly, I have not found clear info on this by googling. I've found examples of totally mixed usage. Which just makes me all the more confused.

Examples of phrases where I havent a clue if the word "left" or "right" needs to be capitalized:

the right wing (also, does this get a hypen?)
the left wing
the center left
the new left
the political left
on the left
on the left side of the poliltical spectrum

and so on...

does anyone know for sure? (a link to an authoritative source would be great but i'm willing to accept confident assertions, so desperate am I!)

Thanks.

posted by jak68 to education (26 comments total)

Wordsmith to the rescue.

Yes.
posted by wordsmith at 11:08 AM on April 24

Yes. It's a proper noun (isn't it?).
posted by yerfatma at 11:14 AM on April 24

counter examples:

If its a proper noun, I can understand for example capitalizing "left" in the phrase "the Left Bank" (just like you'd capitalize South if you're referring to it as a region "my relatives from the South" but not in "go south three blocks").

However, is "the political left" really a proper noun? Isnt it more like "the left side of the car" (which, I assume, you wouldnt capitalize it there, right?) Cuz the "political spectrum" isnt a geographical region (like the Left Bank or the South). So why capitalize it there? Isnt it more like a car (where you wouldnt capitlaize "the left side of the car")?
posted by jak68 at 11:18 AM on April 24

Ah...but isn't it a physical space? The left referring to the seats on the left side of the senate or house of reps building floor?
posted by Charlie Lesoine at 11:20 AM on April 24

I.e., is "the political left" even a name? I can see "the New Left" being a name, a label, a common noun - but "the political left" - is that a proper noun?

(For that matter, are common nouns capitalized? I dont think I capitalize "the people" for instance). So even if its a common noun it wouldnt be capitalized. Is it a proper noun though? "The New Left" is a proper noun, but i'm not sure that "the political left" is a proper noun...
posted by jak68 at 11:20 AM on April 24

charlie, even if its a physical space though, I dont think *anyone* capitalizes "the left side of the car", right? I think it has to have some aspect of proper-nounism for it to be capitalized, and i'm not sure that a generic "left side of the political spectrum" which is what "political left" means, has enough proper-nounism?
posted by jak68 at 11:21 AM on April 24

No, no, no. This probably-unauthorized copy of the 2005 AP Stylebook says:

left wing (n.) But: left-wing (adj.), left-winger (n.)

I don't see how this could possibly be construed as a proper noun. It is not a political organization, it is a term for people who share political leanings, like "the gun-control lobby."
posted by enn at 11:29 AM on April 24 [1 favorite]

the right wing (also, does this get a hypen?)

Depending on your style guide, either "no" or "when it's an adjective but not when it's a noun."

So "the right wing" would not be hyphenated but "a right-wing commentator" would be. (Think of it this way: the hyphen is to make clear that it's one adjective, not two -- it's not a "right commentator" nor a "wing commentator" but a "right-wing commentator." This is more helpful when it's part of a string of other adjectives in front of the noun.)
posted by winston at 11:31 AM on April 24

not unless you're Hunter S. Thompson, and This Is Your Style Of Journalism.
posted by drjimmy11 at 11:33 AM on April 24 [1 favorite]

As with many such questions, there isn't necessarily a hard-and-fast answer; it depends on the style guide. Chicago (15th ed., at 8.72) has it thus:

the Left; member of the left wing; left-winger; on the left.
posted by scody at 11:36 AM on April 24 [2 favorites]

"The [the] Political Left" looks like a book title to me. I'd prefer it uncapitalized.
posted by flibbertigibbet at 11:44 AM on April 24

I would capitalize it as a noun, not as an adjective (unless it's part of a proper name, e.g. the New Left, which arguably gets capitalized as the name of a political movement).

Left wing: no hyphen as a noun, hyphenated as an adjective.
posted by ottereroticist at 11:44 AM on April 24

As with many such questions, there isn't necessarily a hard-and-fast answer; it depends on the style guide.

Exactly, and this is one of those points where I disagree with Chicago. If I'm editing under a strict Chicago mandate (as indeed I am at the moment), I'll put it up as a noun, but on my own account, I'd leave it down.
posted by languagehat at 11:51 AM on April 24

I've noticed conservative writers writing it as the Left more often than non-conservative writers.
posted by Pants! at 11:53 AM on April 24

I think the previous comment is correct in pointing out a political bias to usage. One often wishes to portray one's opponents as monolithic and capitalizing the term for a very broad range of opinions is a quick way to do that.
posted by Gnatcho at 12:09 PM on April 24

Most of these should be lowercase, especially adjectives like "left side of the spectrum." When in doubt, use lowercase.

The main exception I can think of is if I wanted to emphatically refer to "the Left" (or "the Right") as a distinct group -- a specific bloc of activists. This could be used to clearly distinguish it from something like "McCain has moved to the right on immigration," where it refers to relative positioning rather than a distinct group and thus has to be lowercase. Seems to me that this is a flexible/discretionary decision (assuming you're not bound by a house usage guide -- I assume you're not since you're asking this question).

But again, these should generally be lowercase; use capitals only if you specifically want a "proper noun" effect.
posted by Jaltcoh at 12:11 PM on April 24

The correct answer is check the styleguide used by your organization. And if that fails, default to lowercase.
posted by KirkJobSluder at 12:26 PM on April 24

Capitalize it..
posted by johngoren at 12:52 PM on April 24

Do not capitalize it. The left is not a particular group - it's a broad category.
posted by Dasein at 12:55 PM on April 24

No caps - the left is not yet a self-defined or clearly-defined entity.
posted by taliaferro at 1:20 PM on April 24

lol, funny to see so many different responses. I'm going to go with scody and his chicago style book answer (backed up also by enn and his AP style book) which sort of make sense to me- though keeping track of the various uses of the word (adjective? noun? proper noun? etc) seems overly confusing, I guess it makes some grammatical logical sensca

Thanks all.
posted by jak68 at 1:42 PM on April 24

oops, "sensca" = "sense."
posted by jak68 at 1:43 PM on April 24

Next: the Poor, the Unemployed, and your Huddled Masses yearning to breathe free...
posted by weapons-grade pandemonium at 2:15 PM on April 24

Style choice.

I think it's easier to read capitalized in that you don't get garden path problems. I'd probably capitalize it as a proper noun only (the Left, the Right), but not adjectivally (the left wing, the right-of-center republicrats, etc.)
posted by rokusan at 2:59 PM on April 24

The political left -- where did it go?
The political right -- the right to do what?
I vote for capitalization, unless it's clear from context
posted by PercussivePaul at 3:18 PM on April 24

Dasein: The left is not a particular group - it's a broad category.
Exactly--and this usage bias can actually provide a style guide in a way--capitalize "the political Left" if you want to convey a sense of an organized movement, but not if you want to indicate a looser affiliation or political tendency.
"The Gay Agenda" is always (homophobically) capitalized, right? By the same logic, if you want to either sow fear of "the Left" (or "the Right", as in "Vast Right-Wing Conspiracy") or if you want, more neutrally, to convey that you're talking about a semi-organized grouping, such as "the anti-war Left."
posted by Mngo at 3:43 PM on April 24