Longman / Prentice Hall

English

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The Elements of Style, 4/E
William Strunk, Jr.
E. B. White

ISBN-10: 020530902X
ISBN-13: 9780205309023

Publisher: Longman
Copyright: 2000
Format: Paper; 105 pp
Published: 07/23/1999

Suggested retail price: $9.95
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You know the authors' names. You recognize the title. You've probably used this book yourself. This is The Elements of Style, the classic style manual, now in a fourth edition.

The revisions to the new edition are purposely kept minimal in order to retain the book's unique tone, wit, and charm. A new Glossary of the grammatical terms used in the book provides a convenient reference for readers. The discussion of pronoun use is revised to reflect the contemporary concern with sexist language. In addition, there are numerous slight revisions in the book itself which implement this advice. A new Foreword by Roger Angell reminds readers that the advice of Strunk & White is as valuable today as when it was first offered.

This book has conveyed the principles of English style to millions of readers. Use the fourth edition of “the little book” to make a big impact with writing.

  • How to cut deadwood out of your sentences.
  • How enliven your prose with the active voice.
  • How to put statements in the positive form.

  • A new Glossary of grammatical terms.
  • A new Foreword by Roger Angell.
  • The classic principles of English style.



FOREWORD.


INTRODUCTION.

I.ELEMENTARY RULES OF USAGE.

 1.Form the Possessive Singular of Nouns by Adding 's.

 2.In a Series of Three or More Terms with a Single Conjunction, Use a Comma after Each Term except the Last.

 3.Enclose Parenthetic Expressions between Commas.

 4.Place a Comma before a Conjunction Introducing an Independent Clause.

 5.Do Not Join Independent Clauses with a Comma.

 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 Question.

 8.Use a Dash to Set Off an Abrupt Break or Interruption and to Announce a Long Appositive or Summary.

 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 the Sentence Must Refer to the Grammatical Subject.

II.ELEMENTARY PRINCIPLES OF COMPOSITION.

12.Choose a Suitable Sesign and Hold to It.

13.Make the Paragraph the unit of Composition.

14.Use the Active Voice.

15.Put Statements in Positive Form.

16.Use Definite, Specific, Concrete Language.

17.Omit Needless Words.

18.Avoid a Succession of Loose Sentences.

19.Express Coordinate Ideas in Similar Form.

20.Keep Related Words Together.

21.In Summaries, Keep to One Tense.

22.Place the Emphatic Words of a Sentence at the End.

III.A FEW MATTERS OF FORM.

IV.WORDS AND EXPRESSIONS COMMONLY MISUSED.

V.AN APPROACH TO STYLE (WITH A LIST OF REMINDERS).

 1.Place Yourself in the Background.

 2.Write in a Way That Comes Naturally.

 3.Work From a Suitable Style.

 4.Write with Nouns and Verbs.

 5.Revise and Rewrite.

 6.Do Not Overwrite.

 7.Do Not Overstate.

 8.Avoid the Use of Qualifiers.

 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.

Afterword.

Glossary.

William Strunk, Jr. first used his own book, The Elements of Style, in 1919 for his English 8 course at Cornell University. The book was published in 1935 by Oliver Strunk.

E. B. White was a student in Professor Strunk's class at Cornell, and used "the little book" for himself. Commissioned by Macmillan to revise Strunk's book, White edited the 1959 and 1972 editions of The Elements of Style.

Some acclaim for previous editions:

"Buy it, study it, enjoy it. It's as timeless as a book can be in our age of volubility."
— The New York Times

"No book in shorter space, with fewer words, will help any writer more than this persistent little volume."
— The Boston Globe

"White is one of the best stylists and most lucid minds in this country. What he says and his way of saying it are equally rewarding."
— The Wall Street Journal

"The book remains a nonpareil: direct, correct, and delightful."
— The New Yorker

". . . Should be the daily companion of anyone who writes for a living, and for that matter, anyone who writes at all."
— Greensboro (N.C.) Daily News

"This excellent book, which should go off to college with every freshman, is recognized as the best book of its kind we have."
— St. Paul Dispatch – Pioneer Press

"It's hard to imagine an engineer or a manager who doesn't need to express himself in English prose as part of his job. It's also hard to imagine a writer who will not be improved by a liberal application of The Elements of Style."
— Telephone Engineer & Management

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