Musk's Typographical Proclamation
In a recent post on his social media platform X, Elon Musk weighed in on a discussion, not about space travel or artificial intelligence, but about the humble dash. Replying to a post that used em dashes—the long ones—to set apart a clause, Musk declared
a need for change. He argued that unspaced em dashes 'too much resemble a hyphenated word'. He then offered his solution: 'The en dash, '–', is a better length'. This wasn't his first foray into the world of type; Musk has previously tweeted about 'agonizing' over the fonts for Tesla and SpaceX, revealing himself to be a passionate, if opinionated, font lover.
A Quick Guide to Dashes
To understand Musk's point, it helps to know the cast of characters. First, there's the hyphen (-), the shortest of the three. It's not technically a dash but a punctuation mark used to join words (like 'well-being') or parts of a word. Next up is the en dash (–), named because it was traditionally the width of the letter 'n'. It's primarily used to indicate a range, like 'pages 10–20' or 'a Monday–Friday schedule'. Finally, there's the em dash (—), the longest of the trio, which is about the width of the letter 'm'. The em dash is used to create a dramatic break in a sentence, to set off a parenthetical thought, or to signal an interruption—like this. Musk's beef is with this long dash, suggesting its shorter cousin, the en dash, is a more elegant substitute for parenthetical phrases.
Do Typographers Agree?
Musk’s preference for a shorter dash is not without precedent, though his reasoning might be simplified. The debate between the en dash and the em dash is a long-standing one in the world of design and typography. Some style guides, like The Chicago Manual of Style, have traditionally favoured the unspaced em dash for breaks in text. However, many typographers argue this creates a jarring visual disruption. Noted typographer Robert Bringhurst, in his influential book 'The Elements of Typographic Style', advocates for using a spaced en dash – like this – to set off phrases. His reasoning is that it is less visually disruptive and creates a more even texture in a block of text, which improves readability. So, while Musk calls for just using the 'better length' en dash, many professional typographers who agree with him also specify that it should be flanked by spaces to function correctly as a separator.
The Bigger Picture
Why does a billionaire's opinion on punctuation even make headlines? The incident is a perfect example of modern internet culture, where the trivial musings of a major public figure can spark widespread debate and analysis. It touches on our relationship with language, design, and the outsized influence of tech personalities on seemingly every facet of life. Musk's comments on typography, like his previous statements on bold fonts, show a leader who is deeply invested in the user experience on his platform, down to the most minute detail. It also reveals a desire to challenge established conventions, whether in engineering or in English grammar. The resulting conversation brings a niche topic like typography into the mainstream, prompting thousands of people to learn the difference between an en and em dash for the very first time.
