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Which of the following shows the correct use of bracketing commas?

"The last chapter of the first section is set, in contrast to the preceding ones, in the couples' home."

OR

"The last chapter of the first section is, in contrast to the preceding ones, set in the couples' home."

In both examples, the additional information within the pair of commas are the same. I am confused about the point where the rest of the sentence could be split. Is there a general rule regarding this?

AKR
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    This was asked before but not answered. I suspect the answer is that there is a lot of freedom but it can change the meaning in complex ways. – Stuart F Mar 26 '24 at 09:49
  • Does this answer your question? [Correct rule for placement of a parenthetical phrase in a sentence]https://english.stackexchange.com/questions/420286/correct-rule-for-placement-of-a-parenthetical-phrase-in-a-sentence) Essentially. parentheticals have a reasonably (but far from totally) free distribution within sentences, as with adverbs. Here, sentence-initial, sentence-terminal, between the auxiliary and the main verb, or immediately after the main verb slots are available. << Ø The last chapter of the first section is Ø set Ø in the couples' home Ø. >> (commas inserted as necessary) ... – Edwin Ashworth Mar 26 '24 at 15:13
  • That's the grammar; in your example, only the emphasis will shift. Note that terminal placement adds emphasis to the parenthetical statement. But as Stuart says, doubtless there are cases where the meaning is altered (as with adverbs). And, I'd say, some cases where variants just don't work well. – Edwin Ashworth Mar 26 '24 at 15:14
  • Thanks Ashworth and Stuart. I take that the emphasis will change when the parenthetical takes either the initial or terminal position, and other than that the parenthetical is considerably free. Is that correct? – AKR Mar 26 '24 at 16:49

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