The Elements of Style Illustrated"So friendly, so classic, so delightful . . . Kalman has taken 'the little book' and made it even more elegant and uplifting." —Los Angeles Times The only style manual to ever appear on a bestseller list now refreshed by one of our most beloved illustrators Every English writer knows Strunk and White's The Elements of Style. The book’s mantra, make every word tell, is still on point. This much-loved classic, now in its fourth edition, will forever be the go-to guide when in need of a hint to make a turn of phrase clearer or a reminder on how to enliven prose with the active voice. The only style manual to ever appear on bestseller lists has explained to millions of readers the basic principals of plain English, and Maira Kalman’s fifty-seven exquisite illustrations give the revered work a jolt of new energy, making the learning experience more colorful and clear. |
Contents
ELEMENTARY RULES OF USAGE | 1 |
ELEMENTARY PRINCIPLES OF COMPOSITION | 31 |
Use the active voice | 33 |
Put statements in positive form | 34 |
Use definite specific concrete language | 37 |
Omit needless words | 39 |
Avoid a succession of loose sentences | 40 |
Express coordinate ideas in similar form | 43 |
A FEW MATTERS OF FORM | 55 |
WORDS AND EXPRESSIONS COMMONLY MISUSED | 63 |
This | 97 |
Place yourself in the background | 100 |
Write in a way that comes naturally | 101 |
Write with nouns and verbs | 105 |
Do not overstate | 106 |
Use orthodox spelling | 108 |
Keep related words together | 44 |
In summaries keep to one tense | 49 |
Place the emphatic words of a sentence at the end | 52 |
Do not explain too much | 109 |
SPELLING from the first edition | 122 |
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Common terms and phrases
active voice adjective adverb ambiguity antecedent apposition Avoid become Benjamin Harrison better Chapter comma common composition concise conjunction dialogue Dictionary E. B. White E. M. Forster early and prepare Edition Elements of Style English exclamation expression follow formal writing give grammatically group of words Harrison hyphen independent clause indicating Jean Stafford language lefthand example lefthand version less Literally loose sentences main clause means misused modern modify Nether Stowey never nice nonrestrictive noon plane object Omit needless words paragraph parentheses participle periodic sentence person phrase PITSY'S BEAUTY plural possessive preposition principle prose punctuated quotation marks refer requires rule semicolon sense simple singular sometimes speech spelling split infinitive statement Strunk substitute tences tense thing thought Toni Morrison transitive verb unless unnecessary usage usually William Henry Harrison William Strunk Jr word or group writer must address