328 Style Rules Wiki (Winter 09) - Recently Updated Pages

Effect/Affect

jasonberthiaume — Fri, 29 May 2009 12:56:09 CDT

Jason Berthiaume

Both “effect” and ”affect” can be used as a noun and verb.
EFFECT
Primarily used as a noun.
“Effect” is used as noun when talking about a result, or something that is brought about.
Example: The effects of pollution have damaged the ozone.
Use effect as a verb when talking about producing a result; causing something to occur.
Example: The new stadium effected a positive increase in revenue.
AFFECT
Affect is almost always used as a verb.
“Affect” as a verb: To have an influence on; to impress or to move; to produce a change in something or someone.
Example: The consumption of alcohol affects your judgment.
Use affect as a noun when talking about an emotional state.

verbal obesity (kiana 0504)

kiana0504 — Wed, 27 May 2009 22:27:36 CDT

Kiana Smith 27 May 2009 Writing as a Technology 328 Style Rules Project I decided to deal with what I like to call verbal obesity. Verbal obesity is when a sentence or paragraph contains unnecessary words. More specifically, my rule seeks to aid writers in eliminating excessive detail, redundant pairs and modifiers, high language and using a phrase for a word. To begin, excessive detail is when a writer provides the reader with too much non-vital information about the subject of a sentence. The following is an example of this; A big truck that you might purchase from a dealership like Ford or GM will use much more gas than a smaller car that you might purchase from a Honda or Toyota Dealer. The above sentence included several unnecessary details, which only cluttered the sentence and caused the reader to arrive at the point slower. It would have been more effective for the reader if the sentence were written like this; A big truck from Ford or GM uses more gas than a small car from Honda or Toyota. Do you see the difference? The subject of the sentence is immediately made clear as is the point. If asked to recap a reader could quickly identify the point of the modified sentence. Writers will often use redundant pairs and modifiers. A redundant pair is two words that essentially mean the same thing or have the same impact on a sentence. A redundant modifier can be a word that is typically an adjective that is used to intensify a verb or a noun. Writers typically use this type of verbal obesity when they are attempting to be very specific or when they are attempting to write in a formal fashion. NOTE TO READER: I feel like I am coming across to cold and mechanical. What do you think? Should I change my approach to how I express the importance of my rule?

Williams Style Essay

dwilli22 — Wed, 27 May 2009 21:25:40 CDT

Daniel Williams
Professor Krause
May 27, 2009
Keeping an author’s work in present tense

Whenever I’m writing a paper for college, I tend to overlook whether or not I’m staying in present tense. One of many reasons that I lack in committing to present tense within a paper occurs because as I’m writing, others sources and works are being involved into my writing that have other tenses. Once a past or future tense becomes involved into my writing, those tense than emerge throughout my entire paper. Without my consistency to stay in a present tense, readers have difficulties following the proven sequences that support my thesis. William Strunk and E.B. White, explains further for the importance in why an author should focus in on staying in present tense.

Strunk and White build up emphasis by the importance for why an author should stay in a present tense in their book The Elements of Style. “ In summarizing a poem, story, or novel use present tense, you may use past if it seems more natural… but if a writing is inconsistence while shifting from one tense to another it gives the appearance of uncertainty and irresolution” (31). Strunk and White further apply their theory by using the example from Romeo and Juliet.

Example: “Chance prevents Friar John from delivering Friar Lawrence’s letter to Romeo. Meanwhile, owing to her father’s arbitrary change of the day set for her wedding, Juliet has been compelled to drink the potion on Tuesday night, with the result that Balthasar informs Romeo of her supposed death before Friar Lawrence learns of the non delivery of the letter” (31).

By applying the rule to stay in present tense to the example above, it prohibits any confusion to occur from a reader’s point of view. A reader must be able to follow the sequences above in a present tense matter in order to understand the sequences of events. If any tense change occurs within the Romeo and Juliet sequence above, it then could offset the reader mind to believe the possibly that the event has or hasn’t already occurred.

In order to guide a reader towards a series of events an author must be able to rely on the conscientiously use one tense. Though some stories can be tricky on whether or not the narrator is reliable in the mind of reader, but that is only debating for value of truth and not events. In a paper I wrote last semester about a book called Madame Bovary, my narrative did not meet up to the expectations of Strunk and White emphasis on staying in present tense.

Example: Emma distracts Charles by her beauty which enables him to ask Roualt for advising his daughter’s hand in marriage. Eventually Emma became content with the idea of marrying Charles Bovary, in order to satisfy her desire for a new adventurous journey in comparison to her currently lifestyle (Williams).

In this last example I obviously did not apply the present tense manner in order to narrate the sequences of events much like the Romeo and Juliet example. By not being able to stay in present tense gives the reader uncertainty much like Strunk and White said previously about the writer providing a reader with uncertainties whenever shifting tenses. Once again by shifting tenses it leads the reader to question the writer’s accuracy on whether or not they are fully aware of the actual occurrences in the story. To further a reader’s better understanding on the importance of present tense is to use Williams Style Toward Clarity Grace.

In Joseph Williams Style Toward Clarity and Grace, readers are provided a different perspective on obtaining elegance in writing rather than William Strunk and E.B. Whites The Elements of Style which tends to focus primary on content rather than the structure of writing. I was able to apply Williams’ theory on clarity and elegance to further discuss the rule on maintaining present tense within short stories, poems, and books.

By elaborating the idea of Williams’s theory on clarity, writers can limit the amount of turgid. Much like the idea of sustaining present tense in order to construct clear writing short stories, poems, and books, Williams applies two principles.

Two Principles
(1) the subjects of the sentences names the cast of characters and

(2) the verbs that go with those subjects name the crucial actions those characters are part of.

Williams’s principles emphasis by how a writer should obtain clarity in their writing. Similar to the emphasis of staying in present tense that William Strunk and E.B. White explains in The Elements of Style, is shared in Williams’s two principles to obtain clarity in Style Toward Clarity and Grace.

The first principle that Williams speaks the importance to achieving clarity in writing is by introducing a noun at the beginning of the sentence with “names or cast of characters” (21). The second principle that Williams’s emphasis “action,” that is developed by a verb following a noun. Williams’s intent to express verbs as crucial “action” that follow nouns emphasis the idea of obtaining clarity in ones writing. Other than clarity that Williams’s guides a reader to direct importance to achieve elegance in writing.
Williams guide’s writers to achieve elegance in their writing is to prevent any turgid……

None

dwilli22 — Wed, 27 May 2009 21:22:20 CDT

There is no abstract available for this page revision.

verbal obesity (kiana0504)

kiana0504 — Wed, 27 May 2009 20:33:56 CDT

My definition of verbal obesity is when a sentence or paragraph has excessive detail, redundant pairs and modifiers, high language, and using a phrase for a word.

Example 1 (excessive detail)
1a) A microwave oven that you might buy in any department store uses less energy that is so expensive than a conventional oven that uses gas or electricity.
1b) Microwave ovens use less energy than conventional ovens.

Example 2 (redundant pairs and modifiers)
2a) If and when we are able to finish our final project, each and every one of the members of our group will be thrilled and excited!
2b) Once we've completed our project, our group will be happy.

2c) In the world we live in today, extremely liberal people mostly affiliate themselves with the democratic party.
2d) Today, extreme liberals tend to be democrats.

Example 3 (high language)
3a) You must endeavor to facilitate their congnizance of the deleterious result of excessive sesquipedalianism.
3b) You have to help them realize that big words have can have bad results.

Example4 (using a phrase for a word)
4a) It was possible that they had a chance at winning the game prior to the fumble.
4b) They could have won the game before the fumble.

Possesive S (Kiana0504)

kiana0504 — Wed, 27 May 2009 19:52:03 CDT

Go to the verbal obesity page. I changed my topic from possesive S, but I couldn't figure out how to delete this page.

Keeping To One Tense (Dan Williams)

dwilli22 — Wed, 27 May 2009 12:19:23 CDT

There are times while writing where we have the tendency not to stay in a present tense. This is a common error for many writers including myself and that is whyWilliam Strunk and E.B.

Example: 1A
Chance prevents Friar John from delivering Friar Lawrence’s letter to Romeo. Meanwhile, owing to her fathers arbitrary change of the day set for he wedding, Juliet has been compelled to drink the potion on Tuesday night, with the result that Balthasar informs Romeo of her supposed death before Friar Lawrence learns of the non delivery of the letter. (Strunk and White 31)

Note: Using the Romeo and Juliet scenario a reader can be confused on what events had or had not occurred. If the writer is changing their tense throughout their work, it leads to uncertainties for the reader to rely on an author being a reliable source.

Gene Dickerson Comma Use.

KWynalek — Wed, 27 May 2009 08:38:39 CDT

Eugene Dickerson Use of the Comma The use of the comma is sometimes questionable, regarding where to place it in a sentence. Early in my education, I was taught that a comma was used to take a breath while reading. I was taught that in writing, a comma is used in the very same way. There are a variety of rules regarding the proper use of commas as stated in my table of contents rule page. For example, in writing; if there are three or more items written consecutively, the first two items must be separated by a comma but not the last. Such as, I have one apple, one orange, and one pear. This is known as the “serial” comma according to “Elements of Style”, written by Strunk &Williams, (pg.2). I don't think you have to reference the page number when you do not use an exact quote from the book. All parenthetical expressions do require comma use however, where to place that comma, is questionable. Does the comma separate one word from another or does it separate one phrase from one word? Such is the case with the term however. Logic indicates that the flow of the sentence must not be interrupted; therefore the comma placement is where the writer thinks it should be. As mentioned in the opening paragraph, commas are also used to take a breath while reading or in writing. This is an example of that rule. Placement of the comma is strategic according to the author. Would this be correct or incorrect? In some cases, I have looked at essays written by students that started at the top of a page and ended at the bottom of a page You may want to mention that this is called a run-on sentence and can be corrected with the use of a comma. You may also want to provide an example fo this.-Kate Wynalek. Clearly the flow of the sentence needed to be interrupted. In a case such as this, commas should be strategically placed so a sentence flow can be established. A pause in reading the passage or a pause in writing the passage must be created in order to make the passage readable. In the first example S&B (pg.2) says “if the flow is slightly interrupted the comma can be omitted”, at the authors discretion. Again, the comma use is questionable. Williams states in “Style Towards Clarity and Grace”, “But how we think about correctness depends on our social and geographical origins, on our educational history, even on our character” (pg.170). There are several instances of comma usage that requires exact rules to be applied. For example, parenthetical expressions must include commas when dates are used containing words and figures. A sentence containing two independent clauses must be separated by a comma. For example; I am going home, I am going to take my shoes off and put my feet up. In order to conform to my rule, it is important to understand that logic plays a role in sentence structure, along with the rhythm of that sentence. If a sentence is constructed in a word sequence such as; I think that you need a colon here instead of a semi-colon. Henry has headaches regularly, Henry hates having headaches regularly. A comma must be used to distinguish the two sentences while maintaining the rhythm and structure of both sentences. The rule allows for comma use in order to maintain creativity by the author You may want to re-phrase this sentence...it is awkward.
. I have learned over the years that the English language changes according to its’ usage, such as in the case of the possessive singular noun. Does the apostrophe go behind the last letter or is the apostrophe supposed to be placed between the last letters? Williams says, “If we are committed to excellence in prose, have a common end; a style that communicates effectively, even elegantly. That style by and large, is one that is readable, precise and forceful” (pg.197). Eugene Dickerson Use of the Comma The use of the comma is sometimes questionable, regarding where to place it in a sentence. Early in my education, I was taught that a comma was used to take a breath while reading. I was taught that in writing, a comma is used in the very same way. There are a variety of rules regarding the proper use of commas as stated in my table of contents rule page. For example, in writing; if there are three or more items written consecutively, the first two items must be separated by a comma but not the last. Such as, I have one apple, one orange, and one pear. This is known as the “serial” comma according to “Elements of Style”, written by Strunk &Williams, (pg.2). All parenthetical expressions do require comma use however, where to place that comma, is questionable. Does the comma separate one word from another or does it separate one phrase from one word? Such is the case with the term however. Logic indicates that the flow of the sentence must not be interrupted; therefore the comma placement is where the writer thinks it should be. As mentioned in the opening paragraph, commas are also used to take a breath while reading or in writing. This is an example of that rule. Placement of the comma is strategic according to the author. Would this be correct or incorrect? In some cases, I have looked at essays written by students that started at the top of a page and ended at the bottom of a page. Clearly the flow of the sentence needed to be interrupted. In a case such as this, commas should be strategically placed so a sentence flow can be established. A pause in reading the passage or a pause in writing the passage must be created in order to make the passage readable. In the first example S&B (pg.2) says “if the flow is slightly interrupted the comma can be omitted”, at the authors discretion. Again, the comma use is questionable. Williams states in “Style Towards Clarity and Grace”, “But how we think about correctness depends on our social and geographical origins, on our educational history, even on our character” (pg.170). There are several instances of comma usage that requires exact rules to be applied. For example, parenthetical expressions must include commas when dates are used containing words and figures. A sentence containing two independent clauses must be separated by a comma. For example; I am going home, I am going to take my shoes off and put my feet up. In order to conform to my rule, it is important to understand that logic plays a role in sentence structure, along with the rhythm of that sentence. If a sentence is constructed in a word sequence such as; Henry have headaches regularly, Henry hates having headaches regularly. A comma must be used to distinguish the two sentences while maintaining the rhythm and structure of both sentences. The rule allows for comma use in order to maintain creativity by the author. I have learned over the years that the English language changes according to its’ usage, such as in the case of the possessive singular noun. Does the apostrophe go behind the last letter or is the apostrophe supposed to be placed between the last letters? Williams says, “If we are committed to excellence in prose, have a common end; a style that communicates effectively, even elegantly. That style by and large, is one that is readable, precise and forceful” (pg.197).
Not a bad essay. You may want to make sure that you have paragraphs when you copy/paste on to the wiki. Also, when you are referencing a book you need to mention the author, use the quote, and just put the page number in parentheses like this : (197) you don't need to write (pg.197)-Kate Wynalek

Essay- Hardacre

KWynalek — Wed, 27 May 2009 08:24:40 CDT

Jessica Hardacre
March 2nd, 2009
Steven D Krause
Style Rules
Being positive takes you further in life then ("than") being negative. If one has this theory in life, why not put it on paper? The Elements of Style written by William Strunk and E.B. White, has a specific rule on positivity. To put statements in positive form sounds simple enough, however when it comes time to write an essay, it can become difficult. Negativity is something that a lot of writers’ (no apostrophe on "writer") struggle with while writing an essay, (no comma) for many reasons. Unsure of the topic, unsure of their stand point, or unsure of their will to do the assignment, is (are) all reasons writers' (remove ') struggle with negative sentences. So what exactly is your rule? Maybe you can reword the previous sentence to make it a little clearer.
Positive sentences in an essay extract useless words, dazzle readers, follows (follow) composition rules, and puts (put) good feel to a paper even if the main idea is negative rework this sentence a bit. To add to this rule, I feel as though the word “not” should be added to the list of rules (you did not even list your rule or how to use it or what it means). The word “not” is a very negative word and if we as a society could get rid of the word, “Yes” would be used a little more often. “Yes” is a positive word and should be used more often, especially when it can benefit someone. (you said "used more often twice in a row, these sentences do not flow with each other, watch how you structure your sentences
I found this rule under the principles of composition in the novel “Elements of Style.” The meaning of composition even has a positive swing on it, a way of writing a positive integer as a sum of positive integers. (Wikipedia) Composition is the basis of a paper. If there were no guidelines and no rules to writing, then there would just be a whole lot of words on paper with no structure. This rule not only helps with paragraph structure, but also gives the writer a lot to focus on. As my education becomes more specific or focused, my writing habits change continuously.
In high school, the guidelines were a very basic, a maybe omit "a" five paragraph essay; I think the semi-colon should be a colon intro, three main paragraphs-one being the opposite view, and a conclusion. As previously stated, rules have become more complex and mind blogging. The positive rule makes one think of what they are writing and what the point is to the sentence in depth. “Not” is a word that most people speak quite frequently, so extracting it from writing is quite possibly mind draining.
“Not” is a very negative word and one that is hard to avoid. “Consciously or unconsciously, the reader is dissatisfied with being told only what is not; he wishes to be told what is.” (Elements) With that I would pounder ponder how a write can avoid letting the reader down. “I did not remember” (Elements) or “I didn’t remember” would make anyone upset. “I forgot” not only makes the statement positive, but also puts the knowledge in the reader’s mind that the information was heard only a mistake was made.
When putting this rule in use it does something even better than having a positive feel in a paper, it also cuts down on useless words. Useless words is another rule, and another story! The amount of words used to make a sentence negative is far more then to make one positive, another great reason to use positive words. In the sentence I found in the book, “He was not very often on time,” is very long and confusing. Switching the sentence to, “He usually came late” is a past tense sentence that is straight to the point, and also a positive spin of the original sentence.
Even while writing this very essay, I found it a challenge to re-word a sentence that I would normally use “not” in. As my professor explained to our class, breaking your own rule would be tragic. As I struggled with my sentence phrasing by concentrating on avoiding the word “not,” I found my vocabulary skills come into use. For all omit "For" and capitalize "all" those “study sessions” for the ACT’s, SAT’s, and most recently the MTTC has actually paid off.

You may also want to explain that when a statement is written in the negative, a reader must translate it into the positive in his mind before creating meaning. I remember reading that in one of the style books. I think it was Williams' book. Nich start to your essay. Kate Wynalek

Look up the meaning of the words - Candice Stephens

KWynalek — Wed, 27 May 2009 08:17:18 CDT

My stylistic rule is: Make sure that before you use any type of word that you are not familiar with or have doubts about, that you check the word's meaning in the dictionary for the correct spelling, pronunciation, a simpler version of the word, or the correct word class to use it as within a sentence.

I think that the intro should be worked on, maybe something a little catchy. I feel as though this could be your second paragraph...With so many rules for writing, I thought that it would be difficult to even come close to coming up with a rule that has never been written. With so many rule books written all over the place, in the book stores and online, it’s kind of hard to think of one that hasn’t been thought of. Williams says,” After all, no one sells more books by offering fewer rules.” Who is Williams, what did he write? introduce him before quoting him (Williams 176) So I would remove "so" here, maybe I'm just biased since not beginning a rule with so is my rule =)in order to come up with a rule, I had to do some self analyzing. What is it that I find myself doing when I write a paper that has an impact on my writing style? Well, the first thing that I thought about was how I can’t ever get the rules straight about the proper places for nouns, verbs, subjects and so on. I realized that there are books upon books with that kind of information, as well as class courses on that subject. So, I went through a few other ideas. I began to think about the book, “The Elements of Style” author?, in chapter four. It was filled with useful information. try combining the last 2 short sentences into one I just haven’t come across a book that had a chapter that lists words and expressions that are commonly misused. My rule is a “spin off” of their rule.

Williams' book teaches the writer how important it is to make sure that clarity is present in their writing. My rule coincides with the clarity. If the reader cannot understand what it is that they are reading You may want to re-phrase by saying If readers cannot understand what they are reading-Kate Wynalek, the writing has not accomplished its Goal might work better hereduty, which is to inform. Misused words can create a lack of clarity in your writing.It might help the reader understand your point better if you explain why misused create lack of understanding and how they ruin a writers credibility. Misused words are one of the worse (worst) things you can do to a paper. Misused words will ruin your credibility as a writer. These 3 sentences can be combined a lot of useless words... and maybe some background info to be includedWhen you lose your credibility, you lose your audience. I like this sentence Williams mentions in short, “Keep in mind that your readers will infer from your style something about your character.” (Williams 120)Good quote! Misused words will have the more advanced writer looking down upon you and judging you not only as a writer, but also as a person. People will start to categorize you with being uneducatedConsider rephrasing. Williams says that, “some rules belong to that category of rules observed by some well-educated people, and ignored by others equally well educated: split infinitives, which for that, ect." Words are often misused by the writer because the word is not used by the writer often. So by studying the new word, the writer is also expanding their knowledge.
You begin quite a few sentences in this paragraph with "Misused words" - you might want to change some of those so it doesn't sound as repetitive.I was just about to type the same thing.

Strunk, White, and Williams (as I mentioned above, introduce the authors better in the beginning) all mention how, no comma needed if its a thought maybe " as far as the wording within passages is concerned,appropriate comma the simpler the better . Using big words "big word"????can sometimes be good for writing and sometimes it is better to use a more simple version of the word. It really depends on the type of reading or writing. Confusing, long, difficult to pronounce Big words can sometimes add unclarity to the reader. Williams (no apostrophe in "Williams" the "s" is part of his last name) states,” Replacing unnecessarily formal words with more common ones may not reduce wordiness, but you will make your diction sharper and more direct.” (Williams 118) Strunk and White agrees no S on agree, ”There is nothing wrong, really, with any word- all are good, but some are better than others.” (Strunk and White 77) Another good quote. If you wanted to expand of this I think it would add to your paper to say what kinds of words you find better than others. You go on to talk about how S&W say nouns and verbs are best, do you agree? try not to end a paragraph with a quote; as someone just said, expand on this idea, explain your interpretations so we understand why it was placed here.

Using words in the correct class within your writing creates clarity as well as enhances the style of your writing. You have to know which words fall in the category of verbs, noun, adjectives, pronouns and so on in order to create effective passagesPerhaps re-phrase like this: In order to create effective passages, writers must know the parts of speech of particular words.-KW . Strunk and White tell us you should write with nouns and verbs. They say that, “it is nouns and verbs, not their assistants, that gives good writing its toughness and color.” (Strunk and White 72)
I am an English major and I plan to teach English.Good, I like that you added your personal need for this knowledge I love to use writing as a tool for expression and communication,end sentence, begin next one with I earse the but but I just find myself pressed for bright, new and exciting words to use for my writing. What I often do is find myself writing down words that I hear another classmate say or see a new word in a paper or some interesting article.I like that you are adding a personal relationship with your writing Without checking the true meaning or the correct context to use it, I happily insert my new found word into one of my papers. So far, I have been lucky to have had used the word correctly,Good job! thats hard to do! but one day it would have caught up to me. That is why I am glad to have read this book so that I can start to check the dictionary more often. Consider re-phrasing the last sentenceI like the story you include here at the end of your essay, it adds a nice personal touch. Just a thought, but I thought it might be a neat idea if you start off talking about how you used to borrow words from other places that you didn't really know at the beginning of the essay - and then at the end of the essay tell us how glad you are that you've learned this rule and how benefical it has been to you. But, that's just a suggestion- it works just fine here together at the end too.
You have a good essay, here. You may want to polish it up be re-wording a few sentences. KW

"One" Statement (Howard)

KWynalek — Wed, 27 May 2009 08:08:42 CDT

Style guides for writing clear and concise English appear to be very hit or miss amongst among maybe?-Liz Brose writing critics in today’s day and age. Of these guides that seemingly come and go, two specific texts have stood above the rest and caught the attention of critics alike. The Elements of Style, which was co-written by William Strunk Jr. and E.B. White, is a one-hundred and five page “how-to” guide detailing how one can positively affect their writing style. The shorthand method that Strunk and White utilize in The Elements of Style allows the reader to quickly and effectively locate these different writing technique “how-to’s”, or inside the quotes-LB so that they can execute these tips in their own texts or essays. The other text that has signaled much attention from critics is Joseph M. Williams guide, Style: Toward Clarity and Grace. Williams’s text differs from Strunk and White’s due to his efficient explanations of his different writing rules. William’s book also nearly doubles in size compared to Strunk and White,You may want to say Williams' book is nearly double the size of Strunk and White's version-Kate Wynalek and his text is printed in a much smaller font. Structural differences aside, these two guides both provide key and pertinent information that can help a learning (may want to change the word "learning" it makes the sentence sound a little choppy)-LBEnglish writer produce a clear and concise written text. However for an established writer; these rules can be interpreted as opinionated and have room for “personal” revision.

One such rule that fits the latter would be the introduction of “one”. Strunk and White briefly introduce “one” as a term that “[stands] in the sense of a person and not to be followed by ‘his’ or ‘her’” (54).May want to re-work this quote, could be a little confusing to someone not in this class-LB While this current version of the rule is suitable, I believe that there should be an addition to this stylistic rule. One common correction that I always found on my high school papers was the replacement of “you” or “your” with the term “one”. This is interesting because I have been told by my early high school English teachers that this correction is common during the acquisition of the writing process, Could use more explanation here-LB yet why do Strunk and White fail to include this tidbit in their justification of the term “one”? The absence of this aspect in Strunk and White’s guide has led me to restate this rule to include “one” as a justified replacer Replacement?-LB for the terms “you” or “your” in a written academic paper/essay. For example, if one was to edit this sentence: “To successfully gain admittance to Eastern, you must turn in a completed application alongside high school transcripts and ACT/SAT test scores”, one could simply replace “you” with “one”. I believe that this replacement is beneficial to the writer for many reasons.

For starters, I believe that “one” is a crucial tool for the communication between a writer’s work and the audience. While “you” or “your” are grammatically correct, “one” is diagnosed by many of my earlier educators as indicating professionalism. As a writer, one must reach to a broad audience with their works. The terms “you” and “your” tend to take away from this broad environment and turn the essay into a personal one-on-one thinking match. And while essays are meant to reach out to reader after reader, they aren’t meant for just one person. You broke my rule with thie sentence. Don't start a sentence with and or but :-)-LBEven Professor Krause mentions this in his introductory YouTube clip about the essay, “Assume an audience who are not familiar with the assigned books”, hence an audience (defined in my own words: “A selection of readers who have little or no background knowledge of the materials). (Do you need the quotes if it is your own words? Also consider rewording that sentence to make it less confusing).Therefore, “one” suits itself as a warranted replacement of “you” and “your”.

In regards to clarity and style, “one” can also stand as marker for Standard English. As mentioned earlier, Strunk and White briefly introduce “one” and its usage as a writing tool; however Williams ignores the term completely. One instance where Williams even hints at the issue of “you” and “your” in writing appears in chapter ten (Usage) (add comma here) where he discusses how the illustration of “‘you’ is essentially one of five different contexts where its use indicates that one shouldn’t utilize a present tense verb ending” (171). This “rule” that Williams incorporates into his guide is fascinating because although he doesn’t openly mention the term “one” in relation to this rule, if a writer was to replace “you” or “your” in this case, the writer can still follow this rule. In fact, whenever I see the word “one” used in my texts or other texts, it typically represents the future tense, as well as the present tense depending on the occasion. I find this relationship between “one” and the tense of a work useful for a writer because it adds specifically what Williams and Strunk and White are striving for: style and clarity in writing.

In conclusion, I would skip the "in conclusion" makes it sound like a 5 paragraph essay- LB I feel like my revision of Strunk and White’s rule regarding the “one” statement was essentially an addition. While I didn’t take away any structure of the original rule, I added what I felt was something that was etched into my writing process. This simple word, “one”, attacks the reader in a way that “you” or “your” cannot. “One” allows the reader to not only consider the writer to be speaking to them, but any other anonymous person who may come across any particular written text. The word “one” instantly changes the number of available readers from one to however many find interest in the text, which is quite remarkable. There is one exception to this revision however; that is, the only time "you" statements should be used in written text is if the writer is writing to a specific person or one group of people (i.e. an interview with a corporate boss or a political speech). As for any writing critics who may decide to evaluate my new rule, may I say bring it on. Because I myself am a descriptive follower of language, I do not take to or set precedence towards one language (or writing style for that matter). If there was one thing I will take from this unit, it would be that in order to be a successful educator in the field of English, one should review and question the prescriptive views of writing. For no rule regarding writing style is set in stone, but nearly written down on paper, awaiting its revision by a college student registered in Eng.328 at Eastern Michigan.

White, E.B. and William Strunk. The Elements of Style. New York: Longman, 2000.

Williams, Joseph. Style: Toward Clarity and Grace. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1995

Great paper. I like how you provided examples and how you thouroughly explained your rule.

Interesting rule...I really liked your essay and you did a great job of explaining your rule.-KW

Emphatic Word Placement Essay (Michelle Squires)

KWynalek — Wed, 27 May 2009 07:55:52 CDT

Michelle's Style Rules Essay

When it comes to style in writing what tends to come to mind is the manner in which something is written, be it the structure, the grammar, or even the choice of wording. However, style, as it pertains to writing, includes much more than just grammar, structure, and diction. In fact, ever since writing has been an academic subject, students have been taught to follow writing rules. As writing has evolved, style rules have been developed to guide writers in the form of manuals, such as the classic writing style book The Elements of Style, written by William Strunk Jr. and E.B. White. Although these ‘rules’ have been put into place as a way to aid writers, the word ‘rule’ implies something that is not to be broken. As is so often the case, however, rules end up getting bent and this is the case for many of the rules in Strunk and White’s book.

In this paper I will showcase a modification I made to one of the rules in Strunk and White’s The Elements of Style regarding the placing of emphatic words in a sentence. The modification I chose to make actually came about after reading another classic style book Style Toward Clarity and Grace by Joseph M. Williams. After introducing my modified style rule, I will explain how I came up with this rule and it’s significance.

Emphatic Word Placement Should Either Be at the End or the Beginning of a Sentence.

My interpretation of the ‘emphatic word placement’ rule is as follows.

Placing emphasis at the beginning of a sentence:

a. Faithfulness and honesty he admires.

b. Cheating and Lying I cannot excuse.

The emphasis here is placed on the words at the beginning of the sentences.

Placing emphasis at the end of a sentence:

a. He admires faithfulness and honesty.

b. I cannot excuse cheating and lying.

The emphasis here is placed on the words at the end of the sentences.

*Both of these examples allow readers to emphasize the same words and both are powerful ways in which to influence writing where style is concerned.

How This Rule Came To Be

The Elements of Style is a celebrated style book designed to help people write. William Strunk Jr. and E. B. White pack over twenty style rules in this hundred or so page handheld book, which often come across as if they are, and should be, the only rules one should follow when writing. As stated in the beginning of this paper, rules are regularly bent and this seems to be an issue concerning Strunk and White’s handy little guide to writing.

Rules are made to be broken, as they say, but clearly Strunk and White are not familiar with the phrase. The Elements of Style comes across to readers more as a drill sergeant would to new recruits, demanding to say the least. One gets the distinct impression that if a rule is not precisely followed push-ups will ensue. However, even the tough exterior of the book does not present significant enough evidence to the correctness, so to speak, of these rules.

The forcefulness of The Elements of Style is demonstrated in the rule I chose to modify. Rule 22 states, “Place the emphatic words of a sentence at the end” (32). This rule indicates that if emphasis were placed anywhere else it would be incorrect. However, this is clearly not the case. Indeed, Strunk and White realize this as well as they write, “The other prominent position in the sentence is the beginning” (33).

So why are the authors so demanding if they realize there are other options? Your guess is as good as mine, but I would venture that. However, because of its harsh nature, The Elements of Style has been criticized by many, including Joseph M. Williams, author of Style Toward Clarity and Grace.

Williams’ Style Toward Clarity and Grace is a style book that is almost in complete opposition to that of Strunk and White’s The Elements of Style. In addition to offering much more detail and explanation, Williams’ book comes across to readers as being a helpful guide to be followed instead of the rigid method in which Strunk and White assert their rules. From the very first page of Style Toward Clarity and Grace Williams writes, “But I want to do more than just help you write clearly. I also want you to understand this matter – to understand why some prose seems clear, other prose not, and why two readers might disagree about it…” (1). Williams seems to focus more on his readers understanding of why his “principles” should be taken into consideration, which is much different than the ‘Do what I say’ attitude of Strunk and White.

Williams directly addresses the Strunk and White rule I discuss in this paper and surprisingly, all authors are in agreement on this one. Williams’ principle on word placement states, “Put at the end of your sentence the newest, the most surprising, the most significant information: information that you want to stress – perhaps the information that you will expand on in your next sentence” (48). However, that is not to say that the modification that I made to Strunk and White’s rule is incorrect, according to Williams as he writes, “Each sentence should teach your reader something new. To lead your reader to whatever will seem new to that reader, you have to begin that sentence with something that you can reasonably assume that reader already knows” (49). The examples I use in my modified rule assume that readers are aware that, for instance, qualities such as faithfulness and honesty are valuable and cheating and lying are inexcusable.

As stated more than once in this paper, rules are often bendable, if you will. This applies to my modified rule as well. It is probably better to place emphatic words at the end of a sentence as Strunk and White, as well as Williams suggests. Strunk and White propose, “The word or group of words entitled to this position (in regards to emphatic words) of prominence is usually the logical predicate – that is, the new element in the sentence…” (32). This, along with Williams’ discussion of his principle regarding this style guide is very convincing, but I happen to believe that the position of emphatic words can be either at the start or at the end of a sentence.

However, I take issue with the exclusivity.
My belief in emphatic word placement comes from the exclusive nature of both Strunk and White’s rule and Williams’ principle. It’s the exclusivity that I take issue with. Both style books discussed here may be perceived as dueling, as undeniably they are at times, but under the surface they seem to say “follow me’. It’s almost as if there is no give either way. Strunk and White’s The Elements of Style may be the harsher of the two style books, but Williams’ Style Toward Clarity and Grace can also be perceived as a strict guide book that just is not as strict. The point I most wanted to stress in my own modification of a rule for this assignment and paper is that rules can be bended and it’s perfectly fine to bend and even break them. Both books discussed here can be wonderful writing accessories, but it is not necessary to follow either of them down to the letter. Writing style is supposed to allow writers the freedom to express themselves in the manner they wish. Style books help ensure writers write in an understandable fashion, but should not take away the individual writers style.

Works Cited:

White, E.B. and William Strunk. The Elements of Style. New York: Longman, 2000.

Williams, Joseph. Style: Toward Clarity and Grace. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1995

Michelle, I really like your style rules essay. You analyze the books and explain your rule clearly. I made a few minor word changes, but your essay was great!
-Kate Wynalek

Kate Wynalek's Essay

KWynalek — Tue, 26 May 2009 14:54:07 CDT

How to Use My Style Rule

After reading The Elements of Style by William Strunk Jr. and E.B. White and Style Toward Clarity and Grace by Joseph Williams, my task was to come up with my own style rule. There are many important grammar rules in the English language, and some are difficult to master. I believe that the most important aspect of writing is clarity, so the rule I decided on is as follows: Write with clarity and concision so that the reader is not confused and can easily comprehend the topic being discussed. This can be a problem for me when I am writing, and as a result, my writing is not as clear to the reader as it is to me, as the writer. Questions to ask yourself when beginning a piece of writing are: 1.) What group of people will be reading my writing? 2.) Do they have prior knowledge of my topic? 3.) What questions might they have that I can answer for them in my piece of writing? 4.) Are there any pre-conceived notions or biases that need to be addressed? After considering these questions, Williams and Strunk and White can help the writer to stay on topic and keep her topic clear in the reader’s mind.

“Readers are likely to feel that they are reading prose that is clear and direct when (1) the subjects of the sentences name the cast of characters, and (2) the verbs that go with those subjects name the crucial actions those characters are part of.” (21) This advice is given to us from Joseph Williams. He gives an example of an unclear sentence and then offers a revision. “Our lack of knowledge about local conditions precluded determination of committee action effectiveness in fund allocation to those areas in greatest need of assistance.” (21) This sentence is made clearer by following the first two principles, and sounds much better when it reads, “Because we knew nothing about local conditions, we could not determine how effectively the committee had allocated funds to areas that most needed assistance.” (22) By re-wording thoughts, the writer can make her message clearer for her reader.

Strunk and White also have advice about keeping messages clear for the reader. “Write with nouns and verbs. Write with nouns and verbs, not with adjectives and adverbs. The adjective hasn’t been built that can pull a weak or inaccurate noun out of a tight place. This is not to disparage adjectives and adverbs; they are indispensable parts of speech. Occasionally they surprise us with their power, as in Up the airy mountain, Down the rushy glen…” (71) They are telling us that nouns and verbs are the “meat and potatoes” of writing. It is okay to use modifiers in conjunction with nouns and verbs, but keep them to a minimum in order to keep the message clear in the reader’s mind. Strunk and White also advise the writer not to overwrite. “Rich, ornate prose is hard to digest, generally unwholesome, and sometimes nauseating. If the sickly-sweet word, the overblown phrase are a writer’s natural form of expression, as is sometimes the case, he will have to compensate for it by a show of vigor, and by writing something as meritorious as the Song of Songs, which is Solomon’s.” (72) By keeping writing simple, the purpose for the writing remains clear in the reader’s mind.

Another thing to remember about writing for a general audience is to manage the flow of information. In order to do this effectively, Williams tells us “Put at the end of your sentence the newest, the most surprising, the most significant information: information that you want to stress—perhaps the information that you will expand on in your next sentence. As you begin a sentence, you have to prepare your readers for new and therefore important information.” (48) In writing, connect something the reader already knows to the new information that is being introduced. Use transitions to lead the reader to pieces of new information in each sentence. This helps the reader comprehend what is being read. Strunk and White tell us to “Use definite, specific, concrete language. Prefer the specific to the general, the definite to the vague, the concrete to the abstract.” (21) Instead of saying: She showed satisfaction as she savored in the sweet flavor of her labor, you can simply state: All of the hard work was worth it, as she took a bite of the chocolate chip cookie made from scratch. This tells the reader exactly what happened, instead of making her assume what is going on in the writer’s head. Williams also gives advice about using concrete language. “A reader may feel a passage is unfocused if a theme is only implicit or if the writer uses no single word to pull together concepts that may seem to a reader wholly unrelated.” (86) The topic and theme of a paragraph should be consistent.

Writing clearly stems from being concise. According to Williams, concision occurs when a writer uses a simpler “near-synonym” for a big word or group of big words. “There is a common word for almost every fancy borrowed one. When we pick the ordinary word we rarely lose anything important.” (118) By using the simpler synonym, we can avoid complex wordiness in our writing. According to Strunk and White, we can also avoid using complex wordiness by “Avoid[ing] a succession of loose sentences. This rule refers especially to loose sentences of a particular type: those consisting of two clauses, the second introduced by a conjunction or relative.” (25) The writer can use conjunctions or transitions when connecting two ideas, but using a string of them in a paragraph can confuse the reader.

If a writer avoids writing in the negative, she can help hold the reader’s attention by avoiding confusion. Williams explains “To understand many negatives, we have to translate them into affirmatives, because the negative may only imply what we should so by telling us what we shouldn’t do. The affirmative states directly.” (130) Strunk and White agree with using the affirmative by saying “Put statements in a positive form. Make definite assertions. Avoid tame, colorless, hesitating, noncommittal language. Use the word not as a means of denial or in antithesis, never as a means of evasion.” (19) This advice seems simple, but will only become second nature with practice. This is also something I work on with students. Instead of telling them not to do something, I try to tell them what they should be doing. When a person avoids using the negative in everyday speech, it is easier to transfer over into their writing.

In conclusion, there are five things to remember in order to keep writing clear, concise, and easy for the reader to comprehend. Writing with nouns and verbs keeps a piece of writing to the point. Adjectives and adverbs can certainly be used, but use them sparingly. Managing the flow of information is very important for clarity. Choppy writing is very difficult for the reader to comprehend. Using appropriate transitions and conjunctions to connect ideas helps to maintain the flow of a piece of writing. Using specific language and avoiding abstract information is critical to keep the information clear in the reader’s mind. Another way to keep the information clear in the reader’s mind is to avoid using big words or flowery language when simpler synonyms can be substituted. The last thing to remember when trying to keep a piece of writing as clear as possible for the reader is to avoid writing in the negative. Negative language is confusing to the reader because she must translate into the affirmative to gain meaning and understanding. By using these five style rules, a writer can definitely make her writing clear, concise, and easy for the reader to comprehend.

Works Cited
Strunk Jr., William, and E.B. White. The Elements of Style. 3rd ed. New York: MacMillan Co, 1979.
Williams, Joseph M. Style Toward Clarity and Grace (Chicago Guides to Writing, Editing, and Publishing). New York: University Of Chicago P, 1995.

Clear and concise writing, KWynalek

KWynalek — Tue, 26 May 2009 14:43:01 CDT

Write with clarity and concision so that the reader is not confused and can easily comprehend the topic being discussed. You can do this by using specific language, keeping your writing in the affirmative, using nouns and verbs, managing the flow of information, and substituting simpler synonyms for big words.

Clear and Concise, KWynalek

KWynalek — Tue, 26 May 2009 14:33:20 CDT

Write with clarity and concision so that the reader is not confused and can easily comprehend the topic being discussed. You do this by writing in the affirmative, using nouns and verbs, substituting simpler synonyms for big words, using specific language, and mamaging the flow of information.

Possesive S (Krause)

skrause.emich — Sat, 16 May 2009 06:58:01 CDT

Most of the time, you should indicate possession by adding apostrophe s to the noun:

Steve’s essay
the dog’s toy
Education’s ideals

If the noun ends with an “s,” you can either add a apostrophe s or just an apostrophe:

Charles’ bed or Charles’s bed
Mr. Adams’ family or Mr. Adams’s family

Be consistent: don’t switch between “Charles’” and “Charles’s” within the same text.

To form possessives of plural nouns, add an apostrophe after the “s:”
Students’ essay
Doctors’ office
“Student’s essay” indicates that one student has possession of the essay; “Students’ essay” indicates that more than one student possess the essay

It’s is a contraction of “it is,” while “its” is actually the possessive of “it.” So, for example:

The dog napped next to it’s chew toy.

This sentence should be:

The dog napped next to its chew toy.

Avoid Redundancy Style Rule (Offer)

kellyoffer — Wed, 04 Mar 2009 22:41:46 CST

To prevent wordiness in writing, it is beneficial to avoid redundancy. The idea is to omit needless words so one's writing is concise. To be an effective writer, one must exhibit authority on the subject he/she is writing about. When people use redundant modifiers, and/or categories, it appears that they are embellishing their writing.

Redundant modifiers:
· each and every
· future plans
· seldom if ever
· honest truth

Redundant: Each and every person attempts to make future plans, which seldom if ever come true; this is the honest truth.
Concise: Every person attempts to make future plans, which seldom come true; this is the truth.

Redundant categories:

large in size
blue in color
soft to the touch

Redundant: The stuffed animal is large in size, blue in color, and soft to the touch.
Concise: The stuffed animal is large, blue, and soft.

Style Rule - Avoid Redundancy (Offer)

kellyoffer — Mon, 02 Mar 2009 22:26:29 CST

each and every
future plans
seldom if ever
honest truth

Redundant: Each and every person attempts to make future plans, which seldom if ever come true; this is the honest truth.
Concise: Every person attempts to make future plans, which seldom come true; this is the truth.

Redundant categories:

large in size
blue in color
soft to the touch

Redundant: The stuffed animal is large in size, blue in color, and soft to the touch.
Concise: The stuffed animal is large, blue, and soft.

Emphatic Word Placement (Michelle Squires)

msquires — Mon, 02 Mar 2009 22:16:59 CST

Emphatic Word Placement Should Either Be at the End or the Beginning of a Sentence. My interpretation of the ‘emphatic word placement’ rule is as follows. Placing emphasis at the beginning of a sentence:

a. Faithfulness and honesty he admires.

b. Cheating and Lying I cannot excuse.

The emphasis here is placed on the words at the beginning of the sentences.

Placing emphasis at the end of a sentence:

a. He admires faithfulness and honesty.

b. I cannot excuse cheating and lying.

The emphasis here is placed on the words at the end of the sentences.

*Both of these examples allow readers to emphasis the same words and both are powerful ways in which to influence writing where style is concerned.

When it Doubt, Take the Big Word Out (Rachael Gorney)

Rgorney — Mon, 02 Mar 2009 18:04:02 CST

It is common for many inexperienced writers to try and make their papers appear more educated by using overly formal diction. In certain circumstances this works to the benefit of the writer, but this technique also has the affect of portraying the author in a negative light to their readers. It is often times easier for both writers and their audiences, if writers use words that are easily available to them, rather than inflating their works with complicated language. By using language that is considered natural, a writer's work is made both easier to understand for readers and less troublesome for them to explain when questioned about their topics.

Example sentence:
The implementation of quarterly raises within our workplace is contingent upon the unanimous approval of the board.

Could be better stated as:
To start earning raises each quarter, the decision must first be approved by the entire board.