In first person narrative, is it acceptable to end rhetorical questions with a period?
In first person narrative, would it be acceptable to use a period in place of a question mark when the narrator is asking a rhetorical question?
example: My car broke down again. Why does this always seem to happen when I'm broke and between jobs(? or .)
I feel, as the narrator, it is more of a statement and I am trying to display an emotion other than inquiry.
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A rhetorical question is still a question, isn't it? I would use a question mark for a question and a period for a statement.
"Why does this always happen to me?"
"Rats, this always happens when I'm broke and between jobs."
This post was sourced from https://writers.stackexchange.com/a/32535. It is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.
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A question is a question. The reader may not understand if you don't put the question mark at the end. If you're reading outloud, a sentence with a question mark at the end would curve up, but if it's a period, you would only take a pause.
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