wwii?

[flashpig]

I am writing an essay on filmmaking immediately after the second world war, but am having great difficulties expressing this time period.

The question refers to the war as WWII, however I feel that in an essay such shortening is different to the style I am writing in. I was taught to never write 'can't' in an essay, because it should be 'can not', 'isn't' because it is 'is not'. It feels a bit strange.

I tried lengthening it to World War 2, which again feels wrong because I was told that in essays you should avoid using numerals for numbers where words would fit.

So then I write World War Two and find that this looks odd because of the string of capitals, and I wonder "should I actually capitalise this?" It just looks so strange when it isn't a proper noun. Or maybe it is.

I am thinking, as the question was phrased using WWII, I should use this, but it just sticks out like a sore thumb. Heck, all of them do, but I want to use the right one.

[Ouisch]

It's been a long time since I was in school and had to write an essay, so I can't comment specifically on your concerns.  I can only say that I'm a writer and editor for a magazine, and we use both the Chicago Manual of Style as well as the Associated Press Style Book as reference tools.  In both cases, contractions (such as isn't, can't, won't, etc) are perfectly acceptable, as is the use of "WWII" when referring to the second World War.  To my mind, writing out "cannot" and "shall not" instead of using the contractions would make the essay unnecesarily tedious and wordy.  And using the abbreviation WWII or WW2 has become quite commonplace in journalism and conversation.

[Quizmonster]

I should simply use 'WWII', particularly given that the question was couched in precisely that format. In addition, it is listed as an acceptable abbreviation in Chambers Dictionary.

[Quizmonster]

I should have mentioned above that you need to use 'II' - as you do in the body of the question - and not the 'ii' in your question-heading!

[Ewood27]

If your essay does not refer to any other wars, you could spell out World War Two once if you insist, then refer to it simply as "the War".  That's what we called it when it was going on!

[BetsyLou]

I would refer to it the first time as 'the second World War', and thereafter 'WWII', if I was writing such an essay.

Also, unless your essay's being marked by the person who told you not to use can't, won't etc, then I'd try to get used to using them. I'm doing a postgrad course at the moment, and I've never encountered any oppostion to using them, either in my current course or my undergraduate degree (or at any time in school or sixth-form college, for that matter). Contractions are part of normal language usage and (I find) pieces of writing that are all 'cannot' and 'is not' sound stilted and as if the writer's first language is probably not English. But obviously if you think your tutor will object, then it's not worth losing marks over!

[Bernardw]

Hi,

Just refer to it as "The Second World War" initially, thereafter simple "The War". (Omit the uppercase letters except in the first instance

Hope that helps

[Peter Pedant]

hi  Flashie

You're the fella with the headache. And here you are with another one.

what about  -  the War? or even the war   ?

If you can get this dilemma into your essay, then there is a good quote from an eighteenth century mathematician Euler.

non notatione sed notione

not by notation but by the notion

use it in the context of it is not important what one calls the period, but what is important are the ideas in the period. (period = length of time to us brits by the way)

hope this helps