Elements of Style by Strunk and White [Book Summary #13]

My Rating: 10/10

Considering this is revered as the Bible of writing texts, I would not feel comfortable giving it anything less than a 10 out of 10. Stephen King highly recommends it in his great book, On Writing.

The Elements of Style is a timeless book, essential reading for anyone interested in writing concise copy.

My Notes

1. Form the possessive singular of nouns by adding 's.

• Pronominal possessives hers, its, theirs, yours, and ours have no apostrophe. 

2. In a series of three or more terms with a single conjunction, use a (serial) comma after each term except the last. Ex: red, white, and blue

3. Enclose parenthetic expressions between commas.

• A name or a title in direct address is parenthetic. Ex: If, sir, you refuse, I cannot predict what will happen.
• Abbreviations etc., i.e., and e.g., abbreviations for academic degrees, and titles that follow a name are parenthetic. 

4. Place a comma before a conjunction introducing an independent clause.

5. Do not join independent clauses with a comma, if they don't have a conjunction.

• Exception: clauses very short, alike in form, or when tone is easy and conversational. 

6. Do not break sentences in two.

7. Use a colon after an independent clause to introduce a list of particulars, an appositive, an amplification, or an illustrative quotation.

• Follow salutation of a formal letter, separate title of a work from its subtitle or Bible chapter from verse. 

8. Use a dash to set off an abrupt break or interruption and to announce a long appositive or summary.

• Dash: stronger than a comma, less formal than a colon, and more relaxed than parentheses. 

9. The number of the subject determines the number of the verb.

10. Use the proper case of pronoun.

11. A participial phrase at the beginning of a sentence must refer to the grammatical subject.

12. Choose a suitable design and hold it.

13. Make the paragraph the unit of composition.

• Calls for a good eye as well as a logical mind; moderation and sense of order are the main considerations. 

14. Use the active voice.

15. Put statements in positive form.

• Make definite assertions. Avoid tame, colorless, hesitating, noncommittal language. Use not for denial or antithesis, never for evasion.   
• Not is weak. [Place negative and positive in opposition when used.]
• Save auxiliaries would, should, could, may, might, and can for situations involving real uncertainty. 

16. Use definite, specific, concrete language.

17. Omit needless words.

• Especially the phrase, The fact that. Also: case, character, nature, who is, and which was.

18. Avoid a succession of loose sentences.

• Recast enough to remove the monotony, replacing them with simple sentences, sentences of two clauses joined by a semicolon, by periodic sentences of two clauses, or sentences (loose or periodic) of three clauses--whichever best represent the real relations of the thought.

19. Express coordinate ideas in similar form.

• See the Beatitudes. 

20. Keep related words together.

• The subject of a sentence and the principal verb should not, as a rule, be separated by a phrase or clause that can be transferred to the beginning. 
• Modifiers should come, if possible, next to the words they modify. 

21. In summaries, keep to one tense.

• In summarizing the action of a drama, use the present tense. In summarizing a poem, story, or novel, also use the present though you may use the past if it seems more natural to do so. 

22. Place the emphatic words of a sentence at the end.

Matters of Form

1. Colloquialisms: do not draw attention to it by enclosing it in quotation marks. 

2. Exclamations: do not attempt to emphasize simple statements by using a mark of exclamation (true exclamations and commands only).

3. Numerals: do not spell out dates or other serial numbers. Write them in figures or in Roman notation, as appropriate. 

• Exception: when they occur in dialogue, most dates and numbers are best spelled out. 

Words and Expressions Commonly Misused 

Aggravate. Irritate. First means "to add to" an already troublesome or vexing matter or condition. Second means "to vex" or "to annoy" or "to chafe." 

All right. Properly written as two words--all right. 

Among. Between. When more than two things or persons are involved, among is usually called for. When however, more than two are involved but each is considered individually, between is preferred. 

And/or. A device, or shortcut, that damages a sentence and often leads to confusion or ambiguity. 

Anybody. In the sense of "any person," not to be written as two words. Any body means "any corpse," or "any human form," or "any group." The rule holds equally for everybody, nobody, and somebody. 

Anyone. In the sense of "anybody," written as one word. Any one means "any single person" or "any single thing." 

As good or better than. Expressions of this type should be corrected by rearranging the sentences. 

As to whether. Whether is sufficient. 

As yet. Yet nearly always is as good, if not better.

• Chief exception is at the beginning of a sentence, where yet means something different. 

Can. Means "am (is, are) able." Not to be used as a substitute for may. 

Case. Often unnecessary. 

Claimed. Not to be used as a substitute for declare, maintain, or charge.

Comprise. Literally, "embrace.": A zoo comprises mammals, reptiles, and birds (because it "embraces," or includes them). But animals do not comprise a zoo--they constitute a zoo.  

Disinterested. Means "impartial."

Each and every one. Pitchman's jargon. Avoid, except in dialogue. 

Enormity. Use only in the sense of "monstrous wickedness." Misleading, if not wrong, when used to express bigness. 

Fact. Use this word only of matters capable of direct verification, not matters of judgement. That a particular event happened on a given date and that lead melts at a certain temperature are facts. But such conclusions as that Napoleon was the greatest of modern generals, or that the climate of California is delightful, however defensible they may be, are not properly called facts.

Farther. Further. Farther serves best as a distance word, further as a time or quantity word.

Fortuitous. Limited to what happens by chance. Not to be used for fortunate or lucky.

Gratuitous. Means "unearned," or "unwarranted."

However. When however comes first, it means "in whatever way" or "to whatever extent."

Importantly. Avoid by rephrasing.

Inside of. Inside. The of following inside is correct in the adverbial meaning "in less than." In other meanings, of is unnecessary.

Lay. A transitive verb; do not misuse for intransitive lie.

Less. Should not be misused for fewer.

Like. Not to be used for the conjunction as.

Meaningful. A bankrupt adjective. Choose another, or rephrase.

Personalize. A pretentious word, often carrying bad advice.

Transpire. Not to be used in the sense of "happen," "come to pass." Correct for "become known."

Type. Not a synonym for kind of.

An Approach to Style

The beginner should approach style warily, realizing that it is an expression of self, and should turn resolutely away from all devices that are popularly believed to indicate style--all mannerisms, tricks, adornments. The approach to style is by way of plainness, simplicity, orderliness, sincerity. 

1. Place yourself in the background.

2. Write in a way that comes naturally.

3. Work from a suitable design.

4. Write with nouns and verbs.

5. Revise and rewrite.

6. Do not overwrite.

7. Do not overstate. 

8. Avoid the use of qualifiers (rather, very, little, pretty).

9. Do not affect a breezy manner.

10. Use orthodox spelling. 

11. Do not explain too much.

12. Do not construct awkward adverbs.

13. Make sure the reader knows who is speaking.

14. Avoid fancy words.

15. Do not use dialect unless your ear is good.

16. Be clear.

17. Do not inject opinion. 

18. Use figures of speech sparingly.

19. Do not take shortcuts at the cost of clarity.

20. Avoid foreign languages.

21. Prefer the standard to the offbeat. 

"If you write, you must believe--in the truth and worth of the scrawl, in the ability of the reader to receive and decode the message. No one can write decently who is distrustful of the reader's intelligence, or whose attitude is patronizing." 

"It is now necessary to warn you that your concern for the reader must be pure: you must sympathize with the reader's plight (most reader's are in trouble about half the time) but never seek to know the reader's wants. Your whole duty as a writer is to please and satisfy yourself, an the true writer always plays to an audience of one."