Writing Style :: Writing Style Styles Essays

Writing StyleWhen constructing a piece of writing, a student may approximatelytimes find herself struggling to remember grammar territorial dominions or style precepts. A handy reference guide would help her out immensely. William Strunk Jr. and E.B. colors take hold, The Elements of Style, and Joseph Williams keep, Style Toward Clarity and Grace, assist writers improve their work in various ways. Strunk and livids playscript took a simple approach, while Williams went more in-depth, with exposit explanations and varying choices for each writing style. Strunk and Whites approach was enjoin towards basic principles of composition, elementary rules and a general approach to style. Each principle was stately plainly, but without much explanation. Rules were meant to be strictly followed, and not questioned. They werent hard to follow, but some did seem unhelpful. An example is Strunk and Whites rule sightly about not using the word nature they believe that the reader cannot branch whether the poems have to do with natural scenery, rural life, the sunset, the untracked wilderness, or the habits of squirrels (53). This rule seems strange to me. Nature doesnt need to be that structured. But, possibly the fishy aspects of this book are connected to the date it was written. Strunk and Whites book was first published in 1935, and revised over the years. But, somehow the book hasnt grasped the idea of change. The book seems to still be stuck in 1935 for instance, some of the examples refer to Moses and Isis. As we discussed in class, this seems fairly outdated. Im embarrassed to say Im even unaware of who Isis is. Strunk and White also warn against using the phrase the foreseeable future, stating it is a clich, and a fuzzy oneHow much of the future is foreseeable?...By whom is it foreseeable? (Strunk and White 59). I dont quite understand this rule it seems ancient to advise against referring to the future. It seems useless and unnecessary to state. Othe r principles in Strunk and Whites book were useless, as well. One rule describes the use of the word clever. Strunk and White rubric that the word means one thing when apply to people, another when applied to horses. A clever horse is a good-natured one, not an smart one (Strunk and White 43). I may seem picky, but this just seems ridiculous. How often is a person going to write about a clever horse? Not only were many principles in Strunk and Whites book useless, but many were also vague and unclear.