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A review by davenash
The Elements of Style by William Strunk Jr.
3.0
I was assigned this book in my Freshman writing course. I though it was over rated then. It did not make me a better writer. I reread the book on my own. I think more highly of it now, but, rereading it did not make me a better writer.
I like to think of Elements of Style as the common denominator of all well written English.
Elements sites Faulkner and Hemingway and then Whitman and Frost in the same examples because, despite differences in style, these writers follow the basic rules, principles and concepts of Elements.
The exception to Elements are authors who write in a heavy dialect like Zora Neal Hurston, Their Eyes were Watching God, and Richard Shelby, Requiem for a Dream. I can't think of other good writers who don't follow the spirit of Elements.
Elements illustrates the difference between voice and narration.
Elements maintains a consistent voice. What it lacks is a narrative quality. It's not memorable; there is no story.
Elements serves the reader best as a check after writing instead of a guide on how to write.
I disagree with Elements that the paragraph is the basic building block of writing.
The sentence is the basic building block of writing.
The key to good writing is stringing pleasing sentences together.
The best advice I've read on writing comes from Several Short Sentences About Writing: write each sentence out as its own line, this will force you to consider each sentence and will not hide a weak sentence in the flow of a paragraph. https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13155290-several-short-sentences-about-writing
I half-followed that advice in this review.
I like to think of Elements of Style as the common denominator of all well written English.
Elements sites Faulkner and Hemingway and then Whitman and Frost in the same examples because, despite differences in style, these writers follow the basic rules, principles and concepts of Elements.
The exception to Elements are authors who write in a heavy dialect like Zora Neal Hurston, Their Eyes were Watching God, and Richard Shelby, Requiem for a Dream. I can't think of other good writers who don't follow the spirit of Elements.
Elements illustrates the difference between voice and narration.
Elements maintains a consistent voice. What it lacks is a narrative quality. It's not memorable; there is no story.
Elements serves the reader best as a check after writing instead of a guide on how to write.
I disagree with Elements that the paragraph is the basic building block of writing.
The sentence is the basic building block of writing.
The key to good writing is stringing pleasing sentences together.
The best advice I've read on writing comes from Several Short Sentences About Writing: write each sentence out as its own line, this will force you to consider each sentence and will not hide a weak sentence in the flow of a paragraph. https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13155290-several-short-sentences-about-writing
I half-followed that advice in this review.