First Blog
Monday, March 01, 2004
After reading Strunk and White I found myself believing that style was cut and dry; only one correct way to write existed and I had simply overlooked the writing “Bible” for 22 years. Then, we practiced the high-quality English teaching strategy of experiencing other perspectives. Sampling another perspective on style through Williams’s style guide provided grounds to make critical judgments about the effectiveness of each. Rather than accepting every writing suggestion, I compared the way Williams and White presented the information. By reading Williams as a second approach to style, it became clear that writing was not cut and dry. In fact Strunk and Williams often added or subtracted from each other; new points were presented in both style guides and they also contradicted each other at points. Through both of these style guides a clear sense of what style is developed.
Style, in my own words, is the ability to write in the most understandable way possible. There are grammatical rules to follow, which are the most definitive. They help writing flow with word and sentence gracefulness. Subsequently, there are sets of rules about placement of subject and predicate, using characters and actions in the most effective way possible, and other rules that are time-tested suggestions. However, these suggestions offer us a framework that we can manipulate to write clearly while maintaining authenticity. I hesitate to use the word “properly” because there is no one proper way to use some of these rules. Most of them are suggestions that help a writer tweak there writing from the abstract to the most comprehendible.
Williams wrote two rules that name a critical element of style:
1. “The subject of the sentence names the cast of characters
2. The verbs that go with those subjects name the crucial actions those characters are part of” (21).
The first rule teaches writers not to leave readers assuming what the subject of a sentence is. This rule is helpful because that I often forget to specifically name my subject. This usually happens because I write without thinking of my audience. Therefore, my writing assumes the audience knows who or what is performing the action in my sentences when, in actuality, it is only implied. I realized after reading Williams what a turn-off it is for readers to have to assume they know who or what the subject of the sentence is. Readers don’t have time to reread every sentence, therefore we should make the subject clear early on in the sentence.
The first rule also cleared up my confusion about dangling modifiers. Williams defines a dangling modifier as “a modifier that ‘dangles’ when its implied subject differs from the specific subject of the clause that follows it” (148). By saying something like “In order to understand style, the style guide you read must be written by a well-known author,” I leave the reader with two different subjects; the implied subject-some person and the subject of the main clause—the style guide you read. Williams’s rule about using characters as subjects shed light on using more than one subject in a sentence: using dangling modifiers. Unclear subjects make writing unclear. Willaims’s style guide rooted out many areas of my writing that could be improved upon.
That is not to say that Strunk and White did not offer new stylistic approaches or offer clarity suggestions that I found helpful. In fact, in Strunk and White’s The Elements of Style I found ways to clear up the component of my writing I worry about most: grammar. Strunk and White use imperative sentences for a reason; they are confident with the stylistic rules they provide. White says “Do not join independent clauses with a comma…and use a colon after an independent clause to introduce a list of particulars, an appositive, an amplification, or an illustrative quotation” (5-6). White does not tell you that you might want to try these suggestions. Instead he comes right out and tells you to either do something or not do something. The rules for using colons and semicolons are more definitive than rules on where to place the subject and predicate of a sentence. Therefore, these stylistic suggestions serve their purpose: to make writing more clear and understandable through the prescriptive rules.
Sunday, February 22, 2004
It is very interesting to examine the rest of our Eng 328 responses to the style guides of Strunk and White and Williams, after making my own assessments. The more I read the blogs of our class, the more I realize that writing is almost purely experience based. Each person in our class has examined the contents of these guides based on what they knew about writing prior to reading these guides. Also, as readers we each have different purposes in mind when looking at these texts. For instance, Don Putelka says in his blog, “Having read both books it is my opinion that although both books deal with the rules and style of writing it is somewhat unfair to compare the two. For one The Elements of Style is more so a rule book and is to be used as a guideline for experienced writers. In contrast, Williams’s book, Style: Toward Clarity and Grace is more like a textbook meant to teach a person how to write. It is directed toward a person who is in more need of improvement then the Strunk and White book.” This realistic interpretation is based on Don reading the guides with an experienced writers point of view. It is true that Williams’s book can be looked at as the more explicit of the two guides. Williams goes into great deal and leaves me feeling the need to practice writing after I have finished reading. I wouldn’t use this book as a text for my future students to read, but I would certainly take writing ideas from the book and introduce them to my class.
Don Putkela's Unofficial Blog
I also found a common point of interest with Christine Haas, who says in her blog “Williams explains the idea to omit needless differently than Strunk and White. In chapter seven of Williams’ book it is stated, ‘Usually compress what you mean in to the fewest words’(115). After the rule is laid out, an example is stated in order to help readers understand the rule. Williams book is more of a classroom lesson; it takes a much longer time to state the rules and it takes a long time for a writer to take full advantage of them. While the rule may seem accessible as it is read, try putting it into practice. There are countless variations and techniques that clash, leaving a writer with an extremely tough job: making a point and making it interesting!
Christine Haas's Unofficial Blog
It is interesting that originally I thought I enjoyed Strunk and White’s style guide more useful and here I am writing about Williams. I guess, despite what has been said in these guides, less is not always more!
Monday, February 16, 2004
My initial response to Strunk and White’s Elements of Style, focuses on grammatical rules for using commas, colons, semicolons, etc. In Strunk and White I thrived on the short, yet concise rules. This brevity is enticing to any professional writer who years to know all they can about writing, while also realizing there are only 24 hours in a day. It seems that this book has a target audience in mind: college students. Stunk and White accomplish their task of writing to an audience that want the “bottom line.” However, the book recognizes the fact that there is no “bottom line” in writing; there are merely rules that help in maintaining cohesive writing, which can be manipulated and still successfully followed. This book continues to answer questions I have about writing properly; it points out words that do no replace other words synonymously such as the use of “can” for “may.” The rules in this book are generally memorizable, and even if they are forgotten it is not difficult to look up the specific rule. Although, I found myself quite attached to this particular style guide, I had to realize there are plenty of alternatives, one of which we would be getting into for our next assignment
The next style guide we examined was Williams’s Towards Clarity and Grace, which spotlights the larger issues of style: cohesion, concision, and clarity. While I found Strunk and White to answer my quick questions about grammar or style devices, Williams presented ways to improve to improve my writing that were absolutely new to me. For instance, the idea of using the issue, point, discussion structure for each paragraph of a written work seems common knowledge, but it really isn’t. Writers who have been writing for a long time often forget exactly “how” they make their writing stand out. It seems almost as though it just magically happened. Williams makes writing techniques visible. Once they are visible to a writer, the concept can be expanded on. Another Williams’s point that stands out for me is that pertaining to subject-verb connection. As a writer, I consistently write long sentences. One thing I overlooked as a long-sentence writer is that the further the subject gets from the verb the more difficult it becomes to follow the meaning of the sentence. While I have been thinking that longer is better, elaborating on almost every point I make, I habitually cluttered my writing. It is my belief that if experienced writers can make these assumptions than students will be sure to fall into these traps. For this reason, I believe it is necessary that future teachers are aware of these mistakes so that we can guide students in alternative directions. After reading these style manuals I find myself more conscientious of my writing process and less focused on the end result. Both of these style manuals encourage revision leaving me more at ease about producing drafts that may commit these fatal errors. My only wish is that I would have discovered these manuals much earlier in my writing career.
My initial response to Strunk and White’s Elements of Style, focuses on grammatical rules for using commas, colons, semicolons, etc. In Strunk and White I thrived on the short, yet concise rules. This brevity is enticing to any professional writer who years to know all they can about writing, while also realizing there are only 24 hours in a day. It seems that this book has a target audience in mind: college students. Stunk and White accomplish their task of writing to an audience that want the “bottom line.” However, the book recognizes the fact that there is no “bottom line” in writing; there are merely rules that help in maintaining cohesive writing, which can be manipulated and still successfully followed. This book continues to answer questions I have about writing properly; it points out words that do no replace other words synonymously such as the use of “can” for “may.” The rules in this book are generally memorizable, and even if they are forgotten it is not difficult to look up the specific rule. Although, I found myself quite attached to this particular style guide, I had to realize there are plenty of alternatives, one of which we would be getting into for our next assignment
The next style guide we examined was Williams’s Towards Clarity and Grace, which spotlights the larger issues of style: cohesion, concision, and clarity. While I found Strunk and White to answer my quick questions about grammar or style devices, Williams presented ways to improve to improve my writing that were absolutely new to me. For instance, the idea of using the issue, point, discussion structure for each paragraph of a written work seems common knowledge, but it really isn’t. Writers who have been writing for a long time often forget exactly “how” they make their writing stand out. It seems almost as though it just magically happened. Williams makes writing techniques visible. Once they are visible to a writer, the concept can be expanded on. Another Williams’s point that stands out for me is that pertaining to subject-verb connection. As a writer, I consistently write long sentences. One thing I overlooked as a long-sentence writer is that the further the subject gets from the verb the more difficult it becomes to follow the meaning of the sentence. While I have been thinking that longer is better, elaborating on almost every point I make, I habitually cluttered my writing. It is my belief that if experienced writers can make these assumptions than students will be sure to fall into these traps. For this reason, I believe it is necessary that future teachers are aware of these mistakes so that we can guide students in alternative directions. After reading these style manuals I find myself more conscientious of my writing process and less focused on the end result. Both of these style manuals encourage revision leaving me more at ease about producing drafts that may commit these fatal errors. My only wish is that I would have discovered these manuals much earlier in my writing career.
Thursday, February 12, 2004
One of the nation's 50 largest universities, Eastern produces more professional educators than any school in the nation. Its enrollment exceeds 23,000 and its total annual budget is some $170 million. In recent years, the University has enhanced its learning environment through more than $213 million in structural initiatives, including $41 million toward the Bruce T. Halle Library; $29.6 million toward the Convocation Center; $14.5 million toward the College of Health and Human Services Building; and $13.8 million toward the John W. Porter College of Education Building.
Revised to:
One of the nation’s 50 largest universities, Eastern maintains status by using funds to enhance the lives of all enrolled students. Its enrollment exceeds 23,000 and its total annual budget is some $170 million. Maintaining the standards of a large university has meant spending $213 million in structural initiatives. The first of these initiatives put toward the Bruce T. Halle Library: $41 million, the Convocation Center: $29.6 million, the College of Health and Human Services Building: $14.5 million, and the John W. Porter College of Education Building: 13.8 million.
According to Williams, cohesion depends on the precision of the issue and the discussion that the writer articulates. In deciding on changes overall, I began with the creation of a brand new introduction sentence. This sentence, the first of my issue, promised my reader a topic theme that I would be discussing throughout the paragraph. I made sure to include the word “funds” because the paragraph would explicate specifically how EMU’s funds were used to add to the university. I also used the phrase “enrolled students,” which would be a repetitive concept in this paragraph. My paragraph needed just one more sentence to get to the heart of my issue.
The second sentence remained dedicated to the issue of the paragraph. The two generalized word/phrases used in the first sentence of the issue, were made specific; numbers were provided further describing funds and student enrollment. Now, two concepts were well established in the issue, therefore the discussion could begin.
The discussion begins with a blanket statement. “Maintaining standards of a large university has meant spending $213 million in structural initiatives” serves the purpose of covering the concept that would be explicated throughout the paragraph: how funds were being applied to campus buildings that would the lives of enrolled students. From here the discussion component of the paragraph is easy. In fact, it is so easy that I can use a list to name each of the campus buildings using EMU funding to uphold EMU’s placement as one of the 50 largest universities.
Monday, February 09, 2004
My post-modern identity consists of layers: I am a 22 year old, a student, an English major, a dancer, a daughter, a niece, a sister: I have an infinite number of ever-changing roles. Regardless of which role I am fulfilling at a particular moment in time, William Strunk Jr. And E.B. White’s book titled The Elements of Style, is of use. As a daughter, living away from home, I email my mother. As a professional dancer, I acquired my job by presenting a well written resume. In other words, by using universal rules of writing, organization, style, and form, I am able to convey meaning for varying purposes and audiences.
The particular section of the book, “Elementary Rules Of Usage” stands out as a perpetual reference guide. Perpetual because English grammar and rules for usage and composition are well established. Despite the fact that there will be changes over time, the core of these sections is permanent. In any of the roles my identity assumes, I necessitate an understanding of these rules, but my role as a teacher calls for an understanding of these rules so deep that it becomes second nature. The rules for commas, colons, and semi-colons were my particular favorites. Rule number five reads “Do not join independent clauses with a comma. If two or more clauses grammatically complete and not joined by a conjunction are to form a single compound sentence, the correct punctuation mark is a semicolon” (Strunk 6). Finally, I thought as I was reading, a clarification about semi-colons that makes sense. Semi-colons separate clauses that can exist independently; I have waited for the simple language that Strunk uses to define these rules. The examples provided in this book are excellent for me to refer back to whenever the rule regresses, in my mind, to its fuzzy state. I am confident about my understanding of these rules because, as I read the beginning of rule five, I was already forming questions that the end of that rule would attend to.
The flow of these rules follows the flow of my thoughts, anticipating questions that will arise. As I read rule five, I began to wonder what the specifics would be when adding a conjunction. Sure enough, Strunk had an answer. I appreciate the brevity Strunk uses when defining the rules. However, further examples would tighten my understanding. While remaining in the “usage section,” readers come to the rule on using colons: “Use a colon after an independent clause to introduce a list of particulars, an appositive, amplification, or an illustrative quotation” (7). An obviously dense statement, followed by only two examples, one of which exemplifies the list of particulars, which is the one that is clearest without an example, left me desiring more. Thus far I had gained a respect and appreciation for Strunk’s ability to clarify these rules for me; Now, I was asking Strunk not to leave me in the dust right while I was on the brink of making serious progress.
Lastly, the usefulness glossary in Strunk’s style guide was the topping on the cake. When I read about grammatical rules, linguistic terminology, or even poetry, I crave the convenience of a dictionary within. In this book, I am granted one. Even the terminology that seems common knowledge on some days can slip my mind on others. Having this glossary reduces the time necessary for reading this text as well as making it all-inclusive. This style guide may have begun as a response to one man’s pet peeves about writing, but it shall live on in infamy as a reference tool that keeps writers on their toes!
Thursday, January 08, 2004
Hello everyone. I am going to attempt to give you info about me that is different from what I posted in the listserve. For starters, I have been dancing for the past 18 years of life...which means I was in ballet shoes at age 3! It has become my passion; every style of dance has its own meaning for me. Tap dance reveals my spunk and even in class you'll occasionally catch my flapping my feet. Jazz puts me in the zone. A zone that enables me to dance my emotions; the songs I dance to are often a reflection of what I feel. Hip-Hop has become my favorite. It is very stylized and whether you are mimicing moves you have seen (Wade Robinson,etc), adding to what you have seen, or choreographing your own moves, you are feeling it. If you aren't feeling it, then it isn't Hip-Hop. Ballet adds some technical flare; I have to train my body to move every muscle and strenghten every muscle to enable this to happen in the first place. As you can see, dance is one of my greatest joys in life. A joy I am thankful to be able to share with my dance students. I hope this gave you a little insight into who I am...I look forward to hearing about everyone else in our class!
