Writing with Personal Style
Writing style is completely malleable. In this sense, style is effected by the author’s mood, intended audience, knowledge on the topic, attitude toward the topic, environment and state of consciousness-- give or take. Some may even say that the movement of the moon changes one’s ability to bring words together. But that is not the whole story. Given a group of fifty students, all generally similar, put in the same environment, taught by the same teacher using the same techniques (et c), you will have fifty different styles. In this light, the argument about the essence of style is very much like the nature verses nurture argument. I believe that a certain amount of one’s style is just how they are hardwired.
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Strunk and White wrote as if the rules are cut and dried and beholds the style of sharp militant commands (xiv). Additionally, they made the assumption that "the reader was someone who was in serious trouble most of the time" (xvii). On the other hand, Williams allows his text to take another stance for the reader, as he feels "not all of us will agree on what counts as correct" (170). Therefore, for Williams, the focus is on assisting the reader who desires to improve his or her writing style through the ‘knowledge is power’ lenses. Basically, when one is knowledgeable about the principles and rules of writing well, they shall not need to follow crude writing rules of someone else to create a competent …show more content…
This is the advice found in Elements, "clarity can only be a virtue and muddiness is not merely a disturber of prose, it is a destroyer of life, of hope" (79). The only advice that they offer to assist the reader, besides preaching about the deadliness of lack of clarity is, "when you say something, make sure you have said it" (79). The reader is then aware of the paramount importance of clarity, but how can they ensure that they are expressing themselves clearly? Williams can help, the aggregate focus of his entire text is essentially advising on how to improve clarity, whether it is through controlling the structure of a sentence, or through the ways to control word choice. Actually, the cohesion, emphasis and coherence of one’s work is undeniably tied to the clarity of the text. But again, running true throughout Style is that one must know the rules, when to implement different principles and when to go against the simpler advice, for example, in Elements, it is advocated that active voice is the only way to go; however, in Style, it outlines the circumstances when one should use passive voice and when it is appropriate to use active
When looking into the inner workings of a machine, one does not see each individual gear as being separate, but as an essential part of a larger system. Losing one gear would cause the entire system to stop working and eventually fail. This concept of mechanics lays the foundation to many issues touched on in Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison. The machine imagery comes through in two conversations with men that the invisible man may idolize, though he does not realize this at the time. The first of these conversations is with the veteran, while the second is with Lucius Brockway. Though the two may not qualify as “main characters,” they both play a crucial role, or as two gears in the system of Invisible Man. While one has a more literal focus on machineries than the other, both men have similar ideas of the topics they inadvertently discuss. Both conversations pave the way to the narrator’s awakening and the realization of his use in society. Within Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison, the narrator’s various interactions with people regarding machines allow him to acquire knowledge in regar...
As every well-read person knows, the background in which you grow up plays a huge role in how you write and your opinions. Fuller grew up with a very strict education, learning multiple classic languages before she was eight years old. Fern grew up with writers all throughout her family and had a traditional education and saw first hand the iniquities of what hard-working had to contend with. Through close analysis of their work, a reader can quickly find the connections between their tone, style, content, and purpose and their history of their lives and their educational upbringing.
Author’s style is defined as the distinct literary manner that makes his or her expression of content unique from other authors; Katherine Anne Porter and Emily Dickinson have different styles that contribute to a better understanding of the themes of their work. In “The Jilting of Granny Weatherall” Porter uses the strea...
Gulcur, Leyla, Padgett, Deborah K., and Tsemberis, Sam. (2006). “Housing First Services for People Who Are Homeless with Co-Occurring Serious Mental Illness and Substance Abuse.” Research on Social Work Practice, Vol 16 No. 1.
Tunstall, L. (2009). Homelessness: an overview. EBSCO Publishing Service Selection Page. Retrieved February 5, 2011, from http://web.ebscohost.com/pov/detail?hid=119&sid=d5f751fa-0d0d-4ed1-8deb-483e701af50c%40sessionmgr111&vid=3&bdata=Jmxhbmc9ZW4tY2Emc2l0ZT1wb3YtY2Fu#db=p3h&AN=28674966
When a writer starts his work, most often than not, they think of ways they can catch their reader’s attention, but more importantly, how to awake emotions within them. They want to stand out from the rest and to do so, they must swim against the social trend that marks a specific society. That will make them significant; the way they write, how they make a reader feel, the specific way they write, and the devotion they have for their work. Washington Irving, Nathaniel Hawthorne, and Edgard Allan Poe influenced significantly the American literary canon with their styles, themes, and forms, making them three important writers in America.
“Style is how you write, and you write well when you are interested. A writer’s own interest in the story is the essential thing. If there is a flash of warmth in him it is repeated in the reader. The emotion is bigger than style.
...icates that 95% of projects are catering for people with mental health needs and further research by Homeless Link shows that 7 out of 10 of homeless people experience one or more mental health problems. Their recent research findings on the mental health needs of homeless clients indicate that 44% of those with a mental health problem said they self medicate with drugs or alcohol; 35% of those with a mental health need said that they would like more support – including talking therapies and services for dual diagnosis; 60% of people in homelessness services have been found to be affected by complex trauma;14% of clients stated that they self-harm, compared with 4% of the population; one fifth of clients who had recently attended A&E had done so because of either mental health or self-harm; and only 10% of clients have additional support from mental health services.
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Mental Health: A Report of the Surgeon General. Rockville, MD: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services; Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, Center for Mental Health Services, National Institutes of Health, National Institute of Mental Health, 1999.
Somers, Julian M., et al. "Housing First Reduces Re-Offending Among Formerly Homeless Adults With Mental Disorders: Results Of A Randomized Controlled Trial." Plos ONE 8.9 (2013): 1-8. Academic Search Premier. Web. 13 Dec. 2013.
Homelessness nationwide is on the rise, and the mentally ill play a larger role more than we realize. It is no secret that homelessness can be a controversial issue, however what is clear is that mental illness places people at a ...
National Coalition for the Homeless. (2006). NCH Mental Illness and Homelessness. Retrieved from NCH: http://www.nationalhomeless.org/publications/facts/Mental_Illness.pdf
Over the years it has become a national common characteristic of the entire nation. Not only does homelessness effect an individual’s health and well- being, but it effects society as a whole. Due to the fact that many people who are without shelter or everyday necessities tend to be looked upon as thieves, and criminals who are labeled as sick and mentally ill. Many states who claim majority to be men. It is documented that 1/3rd of the homeless population has been issued to suffer from some sort of mental illness. According to Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration mental illness was ruled as the third largest root to homelessness for many single adults. The hypothesis was conclude after a survey was collected in 2008, it showed that in 25 cities around 1/8th of cities claim that mental illness is ranked to be the peak to homelessness and 38 % suffer from alcohol and numbers increase when it comes to alcohol abuse. In most case these single adults who suffer from mental illness are not able to maintain house hold management. Those who are of urban landscape show a greater number of homeless who reside in that current state. That means that there are roughly around 62.9 % of people who suffer from mental health are documented for treatment and out of that percentage around 26 % mental individual make of the individuals staying in shelters and the rest of the individuals find themselves partaking in the street life. And then there are those who go
Studies have shown that over 3.5 million people a year experience homelessness. “35% of the homeless population are families with children, which is the fastest growing segment of the homeless population. 23% are U.S. military veterans. 25% are children under the age of 18 years. 30% have experienced domestic violence. 20-25% suffer from mental illness.” (National Student Campaign Against Hunger and Homelessness ). In the 1980’s federal funds were withdrawn from low-income families and people with a mental illness. This was the cause of the boom of
Strunk, William and White, E. B. The Elements of Style (4th ed.). Allyn & Bacon, Boston, MA, 2000.