William Strunk, Jr. Quotes
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In his Philosophy of Style, Herbert Spencer gives two sentences to illustrate how the vague and general can be turned into the vivid and particular: In proportion as the manners, customs, and amusements of a nation are cruel and barbarous, the regulations of its penal code will be severe. In proportion as men delight in battles, bullfights, and combats of gladiators, will they punish by hanging, burning, and the rack.
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It is worse to be irresolute than to be wrong.
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Rewrite and revise. Do not be afraid to seize what you have and cut it to ribbons ... Good writing means good revising.
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None are so fallible as those who are sure they're right.
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Avoid fancy words....If you admire fancy words, if every sky is beauteous, every blonde curvaceous, every intelligent child prodigious, if you are tickled by discombobulate, you will have bad time Reminder 14.
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To acquire style, begin by affecting none.
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A dash is a mark of separation stronger than a comma, less formal than a colon, and more relaxed than parentheses.
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Vigorous writing is concise.
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Rather, very, little, pretty - these are the leeches that infest the pond of prose, sucking the blood of words. The constant use of the adjective little (except to indicate size) is particularly debilitating; we should all try to do a little better, we should all be very watchful of this rule, for it is a rather important one, and we are pretty sure to violate it now and then.
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...when a sentence is made stronger, it usually becomes shorter. Thus, brevity is a by-product of vigor.
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If you don't know how to pronounce a word, say it loud!
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Remember, it is no sign of weakness or defeat that your manuscript ends up in need of major surgery. This is a common occurrence in all writing, and among the best writers.
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A drawing should have no unnecessary lines and a machine no unnecessary parts.
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Opinions scattered indiscriminately about leave the mark of egotism.
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In exposition and in argument, the writer must likewise never lose his hold upon the concrete; and even when he is dealing with general principles, he must furnish particular instances of their application.
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Make definite assertions. Avoid tame, colorless, hesitating, non-committal language.
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Instead of announcing what you are about to tell is interesting, make it so.
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The approach to style is by way of plainness, simplicity, orderliness, sincerity.
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The adjective hasn't been built that can pull a weak or inaccurate noun out of a tight place.
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If you use a colloquialism or a slang word or phrase, simply use it; do not draw attention to it by enclosing it in quotation marks. To do so is to put on airs, as though you were inviting the reader to join you in a select society of those who know better.
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A sentence should contain no unnecessary words, a paragraph no unnecessary sentences, for the same reason that a drawing should have no unnecessary lines and a machine no unnecessary parts.
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The surest way to arouse and hold the attention of the reader is by being specific, definitive, and concrete. The greatest writers - Homer, Dante, Shakespeare - are effective largely because they deal in particulars and report the details that matter. Their words call up pictures.
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Never call a stomach a tummy without good reason.
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To air one's views gratuitously, is to imply that the demand for them is brisk.
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The situation is perilous, but there is still one chance of escape.
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This book is intended for use in English courses in which the practice of composition is combined with the study of literature. It aims to give in a brief space the principal requirements of plain English style. It aims to lighten the task of instructor and student by concentrating attention (in Chapters II and III) on a few essentials, the rules of usage and principles of composition most commonly violated. The numbers of the sections may be used as references in correcting manuscript.
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Rich, ornate prose is hard to digest, generally unwholesome, and sometimes nauseating.
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Every writer, by the way he uses the language, reveals something of his spirit, his habits, his capacities, his bias....Avoid the elaborate, the pretentious, the coy, and the cute. Do not be tempted by a twenty-dollar word when there is a ten-center handy, ready and able.
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