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Effective Expression 
 
 A Textbook on Composition and Rhetoric 
 
 For the Four Years of High School 
 
 And the First Year of College 
 
 By 
 CHARLES ELBERT RHODES, A.M. 
 
 Assistant Principal and former head of the Department 
 of English, Lafayette High School; Buffalo, New York. 
 Lecturer on English at the University of Buffalo. 
 Instructor in English, Chautauqua Summer Schools. 
 Editor of Thackeray's Barry Lyndon, Mrs. 
 Gaskell's Cranford, Old Testament Narratives, etc. 
 
 THE GREGG PUBLISHING COMPANY 
 
 NEW YORK 
 
 BOSTON SAN FRANCISCO 
 
Copyright, 192 1, by The 
 Gregg Publishing Company 
 
 g 58-F-5 
 
 PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA 
 
FOREWORD 
 
 (For the Teacher) 
 
 As long as people write there will be occasional new 
 books to help them do it. We see no need of apolo- 
 gizing for adding one more book upon a subject so 
 thoroughly treated; a live subject constantly demands 
 fresh, new books to keep it alive. There would be 
 cant and a deadening sameness in the teaching of Eng- 
 lish composition if we did not from time to time have 
 presented to us the new reactions of teachers who 
 have taught with their minds open and with a view 
 to aiding others in their task. We believe we have 
 something to offer, and we offer it. 
 
 Every teacher has discovered that pupils, as a rule, 
 do not like English composition. They look upon it 
 as a meaningless and perfunctory kind of drudgery 
 which must be endured in order to get through the 
 subject; but they see no pleasure, and little good in 
 it. If we are frank with ourselves, some of us will have 
 to admit that in our student days we, too, looked upon 
 the writing of compositions with disfavor. In the case 
 of some of us, the reason for our attitude is very evi- 
 dent: we were told to bring in compositions; we were 
 not shown what they are nor how to write them. The 
 task was next to impossible. May it not be true that 
 the difficulties would be removed from the way of our 
 pupils if we should give them a better point of view, 
 
 iii 
 
 460972 
 
iv FOREWORD 
 
 remove their prejudices, and substitute for the con- 
 ception of composition as drudgery, the better one 
 that it is a creative process whereby something worth 
 while is produced as the artisan produces an automo- 
 bile, as the artist produces a master painting? 
 
 This book is the expansion, the development, of our 
 definition of composition: Composition is the process 
 whereby the raw material of thoughts and emotions is 
 made into the finished product of effective expression. 
 After fifteen years of experience with high-school pupils, 
 college Freshmen, and with teachers in a leading sum- 
 mer school, the writer of this book is thoroughly con- 
 vinced that the conception of composition given in our 
 definition does remove prejudices, does give a new 
 point of view, and does give a new incentive to the 
 pupil, which makes him look upon composition writing 
 as a challenge to all his powers of brain and heart. The 
 idea of producing something does appeal to all wide- 
 awake pupils. The plan works. The theory has been 
 thoroughly tested in abundant practice. If composi- 
 tion is presented as this book explains it, most of the 
 difficulties of the subject vanish, and in their place 
 comes the joy of accomplishment. This conception 
 of composition becomes: 
 
 ". . . The Power that drives behind, 
 Guiding the purposes, taming the mind, 
 Holding the runaway wishes back, 
 Reining the will to one steady track, 
 Speeding the energies faster, faster, 
 Triumphing over disaster." x 
 
 1 " Work," by Angela Morgan. 
 
FOREWORD v 
 
 We trust we have made the book self-explanatory. 
 We have emphasized " getting ready to write" in an 
 introductory chapter, for it is the best approach to 
 the subject; we have treated the fundamental prin- 
 ciples and the rhetorical qualities, vitally, for too often 
 they have been but empty words; we have shown the 
 philosophy of the paragraph and the topic-sentence, 
 together with the relation of the topic-sentence to the 
 method of development, for the paragraph is the unit 
 of the composition, and mastery of it goes far toward 
 mastery of the whole subject. We have corrected the 
 popular conception that rhetoric is flowery writing by 
 showing that it is the art of effective writing; we have 
 shown that diction, grammar, the use of figures of 
 speech, and the study of poetry are essential for all 
 who would so handle "pure, crude facts," the raw 
 material, as to make the finished product effective. 
 We have shown that oral composition is best treated 
 along with written composition and that such a method 
 both saves time and increases efficiency. The chapter 
 on The Finished Product reveals the importance of 
 bringing the knowledge of literature to bear upon our 
 writing, and shows how and what to read until one 
 has formed his own taste and needs less guidance. 
 
 We have retained the usual names for the four chief 
 forms of discourse, Narration, Description, Exposition, 
 and Argumentation, for we see no good reason for dis- 
 continuing their use. On the contrary, we fail to see 
 how a teacher can comply with the requirements of 
 the New York State syllabus and the Uniform College 
 
vi FOREWORD 
 
 Entrance requirements, unless we use the same 
 nomenclature. 
 
 In Narration, we have emphasized motivation, for 
 it is the secret of plot construction, and have dwelt at 
 length upon short-story writing and upon dramatiza- 
 tion, because they furnish practice in handling situa- 
 tions. In Description, we have, as our definition shows, 
 made more than is customary of the emotional point 
 of view and of informal description, for they are both 
 vital to a real understanding of the subject. We have 
 treated Exposition as the commonest form of discourse 
 and tried to make it eminently practical by applying 
 it to literary criticism, the making of abstracts, ex- 
 plaining situations in novels, and to class recitations. 
 In Argumentation, we have distinguished between the 
 informal and formal types, and have given sufficient 
 logical tests to insure facility in determining what con- 
 stitutes real evidence, such as may be offered as proof. 
 We have especially emphasized the need and the method 
 of finding the main issues, which is the vital thing in 
 argumentation. 
 
 While we have used the terms Narration, Description, 
 Exposition, and Argumentation, we have been careful 
 to point out that they are academic distinctions used 
 to classify the various forms of the finished product, 
 and that they are not to be used mechanically, nor to 
 be considered like the water-tight compartments of a 
 ship with no inter-communication. On the contrary, 
 we have shown that even single paragraphs may con- 
 tain examples of all four forms. We have shown that, 
 
FOREWORD vii 
 
 academically, we should be able to distinguish these 
 forms and to produce them; but that, in actual writing 
 and speaking, we should not be hampered by them to 
 the extent of being artificial. 
 
 Effective expression is intended for the four years of 
 the high-school course and college Freshman English. 
 We have not tried, however, to dictate the order of the 
 work for the various years. Practices differ in different 
 states. It is left for the teacher to adapt the principles 
 of the book to the work of each year, as circumstances 
 may dictate. The chapters on Getting Ready to Write, 
 The Rhetorical Essentials of Composition, Diction, The 
 Paragraph, Oral English, and The Use of Figures of 
 Speech, will require attention each year of the course. 
 The teacher's own judgment and the prescriptions of 
 the syllabus followed will furnish the only criteria 
 whereby to decide just what to do each year and how 
 to make composition grow upon the pupils from year 
 to year, so that they are led to comprehend the phil- 
 osophy of it and to apply its principles so as to increase 
 gradually in the power of effective expression. 
 
 The teacher who heeds these suggestions will, we 
 believe, be able to substitute interest in composition 
 for prejudice against the subject and go a long way 
 toward inspiring pupils to find a real delight in creating 
 finished products of effective expression which will chal- 
 lenge the attention and hold the interest of others. 
 
 Charles Elbert Rhodes. 
 
 May, 1921 
 
CONTENTS 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Foreword (For the Teacher) iii 
 
 Chapter I. Getting Ready to Write 1 
 
 Composition. A Composition. Composition and Rhetoric. 
 The Purpose of this Book. Something to Say. Impression and 
 Expression. Sufficient Material. Sources of Material. Mate- 
 rial from Experience. Material from the Imagination. Ma- 
 terial from Reading. The Organization of Material. Evaluat- 
 ing the Material. Review Questions. Suggestions for exercises 
 in gathering, selecting, and organizing material. 
 
 Chapter II. The Rhetorical Essentials of Composition . 16 
 The Purpose of Expression. Unity. Coherence. The Quali- 
 ties of the Finished Product. Clearness. Force. Interest as a 
 Result of Force. Elegance. The Personal Touch. Testing 
 the Work According to the Principles. Revision. Suggestions 
 for practice in applying the rhetorical principles, laid down in 
 this chapter, to material in preparation for writing. 
 
 Chapter III. Diction 52 
 
 Barbarisms. Vulgarisms. Improprieties. Slang. Good Use. 
 Reputable Use. National Use. Present Use. The Writer's 
 Problem. Vocabulary Building. The Value of an Adequate 
 Dictionary. Denotation. Connotation. The Right Word for 
 Clearness. The Right Word for Force. The Right Word for 
 Elegance. Euphonious Words. Suggestions and Exercises in 
 Diction. 
 
 Chapter IV. The Paragraph 93 
 
 The Necessity for Paragraphs. The Length of Paragraphs. 
 The Topic Sentence. The Repetition of the Topic Sentence. 
 Kinds of Paragraphs. The Isolated Paragraph. The Related 
 Paragraph. The Introductory Paragraph. The Transitional 
 Paragraph. The Summarizing Paragraph. Paragraph Devel- 
 opment. What Method to Use. Paragraph Developed by 
 Giving Details. Paragraph Developed by Comparison. Re- 
 view Suggestions. 
 
x CONTEXTS 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Chapter V. Letter Writing 130 
 
 The Place of Letter Writing in Literature. Good Form Essen- 
 tial in Letter Writing. Social or Friendly Letters. Titles. 
 The Ordinary Conventions of Informal, Friendly Letters. 
 1. The Heading. 2. The Salutation. 3. The Address. 4. 
 The Body of the Letter. 5. The Closing. 6. The Superscrip- 
 tion. Formal Notes. Business Letters. 1. The Heading. 2. 
 The Inside Address. 3. The Salutation. 4. The Body of the 
 Letter. 5. The Complimentary Close. 6. The Signature. 
 Exercises in Letter Writing. 
 
 Chapter VI. Oral Composition 165 
 
 The Paragraph in Oral Composition. How Oral Differs from 
 Written Expression. Oral Diction. Oral Phrasing. Transi- 
 tions. Emphasis. Denotation and Connotation in Oral Com- 
 position. Connotation and Reserve Power. Planning for Oral 
 Composition. The Essentials of Good Speaking. Self-mastery. 
 Poise. Proper Breathing. Vocalization. Two Aims in Voice 
 Training. Enunciation and Articulation. Pronunciation. 
 The Pleasing Voice. Modulation and Adaptation. Pitch. In- 
 flections or Slides. Kinds of Inflections. The Circumflex In- 
 flection. Rate of Speaking. Pauses. Vocal Emphasis or Force. 
 Gesture. Practice in Oral Composition. Reading Aloud. Dec- 
 lamation. Kinds of Speeches. Announcements. Introduc- 
 tions. After-dinner Speeches. The Oration. The Lecture. 
 Other Forms of Speeches. To the Teacher. 
 
 Chapter VII. Narration 225 
 
 Kinds of Narration. Point of View in Narration. Material of 
 Narration. The Introduction in Narration. Motivation. 
 Simple Narration. Plot Narration. Plot Development. Ed- 
 gar Allan Poe's Requisites of the Short Story. Completing 
 Stories. The Paragraph in Narration. Action in Narration. 
 Characters in Narration. Introduction of Characters. Con- 
 versation in Narrative. The Climax in Narration. The Final 
 Tests of Efficiency in Narration. The Tests of Unity. The 
 Test of Coherence. The Test of Proportion. Dramatization. 
 The Essentials of the Drama. Pageants. Exercises in Drama- 
 tization for Practice. Dramatizing Poems, Short Stories, and 
 Scenes from Books. Exercises in Planning Pageants. Descrip- 
 tion in Narration. Exposition and Narration. Argumentation 
 in Narration. Summary of Narration. Review Questions and 
 Theme Assignments. 
 
CONTENTS xi 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Chapter VIII. Description 275 
 
 The Material of Description. Local Point of View in Descrip- 
 tion. Mental and Emotional Points of View. The First Gen- 
 eral Impression. Exact and Artistic Description. Artistic or 
 Literary Description. Kinds of Literary Description. De- 
 tailed Description. Impressionistic Description. Suggestive 
 or Informal Description. What to Describe. Unity in De- 
 scription. The Grouping of Details — Coherence. Grouping 
 and Wording Important Details for Proportion — Emphasis. 
 Methods of Securing Emphasis. Diction in Description. Con- 
 cluding Word. 
 
 Chapter IX. Exposition 326 
 
 Exposition and Argumentation. Definition of Exposition. 
 The Means of Exposition. Exposition by Synonym. Special 
 Forms of Exposition. Exposition of a Situation in a Story. 
 Exposition of Character. The Abstract. Literary Criticism 
 and Book Reviews. Cautions. The Editorial. Exposition by 
 Analysis. Limiting the Subject. The Outline in Exposition. 
 Essentials of an Outline. The Writings of Edgar Allan Poe. 
 A Simple Plan for an Expository Composition. A Still Simpler 
 Plan for an Expository Composition. Suggestions for Practice 
 in Expository Writing. 
 
 Chapter X. Argumentation 387 
 
 Informal or Conversational Argumentation. The Raw Mate- 
 rial of Argumentation. Evidence and Not Evidence. Evidence 
 of Fact. Evidence of Inference, or Reasoning from Facts. In- 
 duction. The Fallacies of Induction. Deductive Reasoning. 
 The Syllogism. The Enthymeme or Incomplete Syllogism. 
 Fallacies in Deduction. Evading the Issue. Other Forms of 
 Reasoning. A Priori or Reasoning from Cause to Effect. A 
 Posteriori Reasoning. Argument from Sign. Argument from 
 Example. Argument from Analogy. A Fortiori Argument. 
 Formal Argumentation. Discussion and Debate. The Propo- 
 sition. The Clash and the Issues. Finding the Issues. Af- 
 firmative Contentions. Negative Contentions. The Brief. 
 Parts of the Brief. The Introduction of the Brief. The Body 
 of the Brief, or Proof. The Conclusion. Introduction. The 
 Forensic. The Oral Development of the Brief. Refutation. 
 Planning for Rebuttal. Persuasion. Suggestive Exercises in 
 Argumentation. 
 
xii CONTENTS 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Chapter XI. The Use of Figures of Speech 451 
 
 Simile. Metaphor. Allegory. Personification. Apostrophe. 
 Allusion. Epithet. Onomatopoeia. Metonymy. Antithesis. 
 Climax. Anticlimax. Repetition. Parallelism. Interrogation. 
 Exclamation. Alliteration. Hyperbole. Suggestions for re- 
 view and practice in the use of figures of speech. 
 
 Chapter XII. Composition in Verse 467 
 
 Variations in Rhythm. Substituted Feet. Catalectic, Acata- 
 lectic, and Hypercatalectic Lines. Rests or Csesural Pauses. 
 Identical Rhyme. The Stanza. Kinds of Poetry. Epic Poetry. 
 Lyric Poetry. Dramatic Poetry. Didactic Poetry. 
 
 Chapter XIII. The Finished Product — Literature . . . 496 
 
 Appendix I. Symbols Used in Marking Compositions . . 514 
 
 Appendix II 516 
 
 Index 525 
 
EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 CHAPTER I 
 GETTING READY TO WRITE 
 
 Composition. Composition is a creative process. It 
 means, literally, "putting together/' and is a formal 
 arrangement of thoughts in such a manner as to make 
 them clear to others and to arouse their interest. It 
 is the most effective way of saying things; it is 
 expression. 
 
 A Composition. A composition is the result, the 
 finished product, of the process of composition. The 
 finished product must always be the aim of the writer, 
 but the creative process is what demands his closest 
 attention, from its beginning with a vague desire to 
 express something, through all the stages of gathering, 
 valuing, and selecting material, until the work is com- 
 pleted, with the finished product as the tangible result. 
 The quality of the composition depends wholly upon 
 the ability and the skill employed in the process of 
 composing. 
 
 Composition and Rhetoric. Grammar enables a 
 writer to construct correct sentences, but it does 
 not make him a good writer; it shows him what 
 
 1 
 
2" EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 is : r?gM; it does riot show him what is best. Rhetoric 
 alone can do that. Rhetoric takes up the task where 
 grammar can no longer continue it. Rhetoric is the 
 science which studies inductively what men have writ- 
 ten, and discovers the principles according to which 
 they have made their writings effective. Rhetoric, as 
 a science, aids us in our reading and insures our com- 
 prehension of what we read. Rhetoric, as an art, en- 
 ables us to write effectively, so expressing our thoughts 
 and emotions that others may comprehend us and be 
 interested. Rhetoric, in this sense, is inseparable from 
 the art of composition; it is what makes the process 
 of composition capable of creating artistic finished 
 products, worthy of the name of compositions, at the 
 best, what is called literature. 
 
 Do not be misled by the popular conception of rheto- 
 ric, that it is mere flowery speech. That would make 
 rhetoric something to be avoided; the true conception, 
 already stated, is what must be sought and mastered 
 by all who would so write and speak as to command 
 attention. 
 
 Rhetoric furnishes the principles whereby the process 
 of composition is carried on to successful completion. 
 This it does by aiming at the interest of those addressed, 
 through the qualities of clearness, force, and elegance, 
 which in turn are made possible by the strict applica- 
 tion of the principles of unity, coherence, and pro- 
 portion. 
 
 Rhetoric does this by guiding us in gathering raw 
 material and in grouping it; by telling us how much 
 
GETTING READY TO WRITE 3 
 
 to use and how to increase the literal power of words 
 by using them in a figurative sense. Rhetoric is abso- 
 lutely essential to the process of composition. 
 
 The Purpose of this Book, That the purpose of this 
 book may be clear from the outset and that it may 
 become a sure guide in the art of composition, we state 
 its aim and method in a definition suggested by the 
 industrial world: Composition is the process whereby 
 the raw material of thoughts and emotions is made 
 into the finished product of effective expression. Our 
 book is a practical demonstration of the theory and 
 practice of composition and rhetoric under the simple 
 analogy of making a finished product out of raw mate- 
 rial. Experience has already proved that this treat- 
 ment of the subject appeals to young writers and 
 speakers with unusual force; it works and brings 
 results. 
 
 Something to Say. The first requisite is to have, or 
 to acquire, something to say, and to know just what 
 it is. Without this the making of the finished product 
 may at first seem an unattainable end. One must have 
 something to say; he must have more than enough. 
 A seed-thought is sufficient for a beginning. Having 
 it, one should have little difficulty in causing it to grow 
 in the proper way. 
 
 Impression and Expression. To state the matter of 
 gathering raw material in another way, a person must 
 be impressed before he can express himself. When any- 
 thing has impressed him he will have something to say. 
 Impression comes whenever one becomes conscious — 
 
4 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 painfully conscious, sometimes — that something is in- 
 fluencing him through his senses, his intellect, his emo- 
 tions, or his aesthetic sensibilities. Being impressed is 
 having real experience and knowing it. 
 
 The boy who takes a long walk will doubtless be 
 impressed, through his senses, by fatigue; if he is 
 observing, his mind will be impressed by what he sees 
 and hears, while his memory will also retain images of 
 things seen and heard; if he experiences some great 
 joy, or some narrow escape from danger, he will be 
 emotionally impressed; and if he appreciates some 
 beautiful scene, he will be aesthetically impressed. In 
 a word, this boy might be impressed in four ways: 
 physically, mentally, emotionally, and aesthetically. 
 Ask him to tell about his walk and he will do it. Being 
 impressed, he has something to express. He has taken 
 the first step toward making a finished product of 
 effective expression; he has the raw material. 
 
 Impression and expression are complementary. The 
 inability, which we have all felt, to express ourselves 
 when material was scant, is sufficient proof of the 
 need of being impressed. On the other hand, it is 
 equally true that impression demands expression. Our 
 thoughts and emotions are vague, chaotic, and elusive, 
 as long as they are merely unexpressed thoughts and 
 emotions. Some of the greatest thinkers have felt 
 powerless to embody all of their best thoughts and 
 feelings in adequate language; they have been con- 
 scious of " thoughts that break through language and 
 escape," as Browning puts it. It is the expressing of 
 
GETTING READY TO WRITE 5 
 
 thoughts and emotions in language that confines them, 
 preserves them, prevents their escape. The better the 
 expression, the smaller the amount that can escape. 
 The fact that there is a tendency to escape is the 
 strongest possible plea for great care in seeking ade- 
 quate expression. We think in terms of language more 
 or less vaguely; when we embody thought in definite 
 language we first realize its full value ourselves, and 
 can impart it to others. We then know the value of 
 being impressed and of making our impressions per- 
 manent both for ourselves and for others. We know 
 that impression and expression are inseparable. 
 
 Sufficient Material. The first requisite before be- 
 ginning to write is to obtain sufficient material. To 
 proceed to the process of composition without sufficient 
 material is like trying to build a house without enough 
 lumber, nails, plaster, and such other things as are 
 necessary for a complete house. No carpenter would 
 undertake such a hopeless task. 
 
 To undertake to make a finished product of expres- 
 sion without sufficient material is equally futile. If 
 one tries it, the insufficiency will be revealed. Half 
 truths will be offered for whole ones. The result will 
 be misleading and often as dangerous as if untruths 
 were used. What is offered as a finished product will 
 be incomplete and as ineffective as a house with timbers 
 left out and with those that are used insecurely fas- 
 tened for want of enough nails. The composition, made 
 from insufficient material, lacks all the fundamental 
 rhetorical qualities; is in no sense a finished product. 
 
6 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 Hence, no careful student will think of writing until 
 he has all the material he needs. 
 
 If he is wise he will secure more than enough. Even 
 the builder must count upon some lumber being de- 
 fective; he gets more than just enough. To have 
 enough for the final draft of a composition the writer 
 must first secure a sufficient amount, so that he can 
 discard all that the evaluating process finds unavail- 
 able. The finished product must contain only the 
 choicest of the material. In gathering material we 
 must secure enough and to spare; we must never be 
 content with scant measure. 
 
 Sources of Material. Gathering material is so im- 
 portant a step preparatory to actual writing that we 
 need detailed instruction for guidance. There are three 
 sources : experience, the imagination, and reading. The 
 nature of the subject under consideration determines 
 which source is most suitable. But generally it is 
 found wise to seek material from at least two sources, 
 and sometimes all three. 
 
 Material from Experience. Experience, when accom- 
 panied by observation, is the best source of first-hand 
 information. Poets like Wordsworth, and poet-natu- 
 ralists like Thoreau and John Burroughs, have turned 
 their experience to good literary uses because they have 
 been so genuinely impressed, because they have "seen 
 into the life of things." All who possess what John 
 Burroughs calls "sharp eyes" are never in want of 
 material for writing from experience. Real observation 
 furnishes facts upon which the imagination can build. 
 
GETTING READY TO WRITE 7 
 
 To one who is deeply impressed, facts are more 
 than facts; like the daffodils to Wordsworth, they 
 become living, sentient things; they are sources of 
 thought. 
 
 Material from the Imagination. The imagination is 
 the picturing power. It is most active in children. A 
 boy cannot play horse, nor a girl dolls, without 
 imagination. 
 
 Upon a basis of facts, the imagination builds some- 
 thing else more vivid, more beautiful. 1 The imagina- 
 tion is the real creative force. It arranges facts, often 
 dull and commonplace, according to some definite 
 plan. It breathes into them the very breath of life. 
 Shakespeare became the creator of perfect characters 
 and of undying plays because of his imagination. 
 
 The child often seems to lose much of his imagina- 
 tive power when he passes out of the fairy-tale age. 
 But the only difference between the fairy tale and the 
 true-to-life tale, is that the latter is more restrained, 
 that it may be made true to life. Both are products 
 of the imagination. 
 
 The imagination is an important source of material 
 because it enables the writer to see "the light that 
 never was on land or sea," because it enables him "to 
 give airy nothings a local habitation and a name." 
 This means that he has farsight and insight, and that 
 he can use his knowledge of facts to the fullest possible 
 extent — touch them, as it were, with a magic wand, 
 and give them life. 
 
 1 See Wordsworth's Daffodils, page 306. 
 
8 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 The imaginative writer is never limited by what he 
 sees; he thinks about it, compares it with something 
 suggested by it, personifies it, apostrophizes it, trans- 
 forms it. It is the imagination that brings into play 
 the laws of the association of ideas, so that one's mate- 
 rial actually grows. The imagination is an indispen- 
 sable source of material; without it the writer becomes 
 as mediocre as Mr. Gradgrind, enamored of bare facts. 
 With it he enters, or at least approaches, the larger 
 realm of the poets, the realm of vital truths. 
 
 Material from Reading. There are many subjects — 
 historic, biographic, scientific, concerning which expe- 
 rience and the imagination are insufficient sources of 
 raw material. For matter upon such subjects the writer 
 must go where others have left the record of then- 
 experience, to books. 
 
 Great care is needed to get all the benefit possible 
 from reading, and also a word of caution lest some 
 yield to the temptation of taking more than a legiti- 
 mate amount or taking without giving credit. A slav- 
 ish reliance upon others is not only fatal to originality; 
 it is intellectual dishonesty. To guard against such 
 tendencies these cautions should be kept in mind: 
 
 Read as many different authorities as possi- 
 ble; never only one. 
 
 Do not copy the language of the book, but 
 make brief notes of the facts you desire to use, 
 and in your own language. 
 
 A method of note taking highly commended by writ- 
 ers of experience is the card-catalogue system. Cards, 
 
GETTING READY TO WRITE 9 
 
 or slips of paper, of the size of a postal card, are used. 
 One note only is recorded upon each card. The chief 
 advantage of this method over the use of notebooks is 
 that the cards maybe sorted so as greatly to facilitate the 
 arrangement of material according to one's plan for his 
 composition. Sorting the cards into appropriate groups 
 enables one to plan for unity and coherence from the first. 
 
 Such simple matters as seeking material in books, or 
 in a library, without waste of time and effort, deserve 
 consideration. Do not look at random. Common sense 
 will dictate the consultation of library card-catalogues 
 as the only sure and quick way of finding out all there 
 is in a library upon your subject. The Reader's Guide 
 to Periodical Literature will often make available much 
 fresh material. Most modern books not only contain 
 tables of contents but topical indexes. Consult these 
 to locate material upon your subject without reading 
 whole books. When whole books, or chapters, must 
 be examined, read by paragraphs, noting topic and 
 summarizing sentences to get the gist of the thought. 
 Read every word only where intensive study is re- 
 quired. Following such commonplace directions will 
 save much time and facilitate the process of getting 
 material from books. 
 
 The Organization of Material. Possessing even an 
 abundance of material does not mean that one is ready 
 to write. It is still only raw material. Like all raw 
 material, it requires much working over before it can 
 properly be called a finished product of expression. 
 This process is " organizing the material." 
 
10 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 Having the raw material in the form of bare 
 facts from reading, notes condensing the re- 
 sults of observation and experience, and notes 
 indicating additions and elaborations sug- 
 gested by the imagination, one should make 
 a tentative plan. This plan should be a topical 
 outline of the whole composition, indicating 
 approximately what each paragraph is to in- 
 clude. After considerable experience a men- 
 tal plan may suffice, but the beginner cannot 
 dispense with a written one. 
 
 Evaluating the Material. This is a critical step. It 
 means the selection of the suitable material from all 
 that is available. We now realize why it is necessary 
 to collect more material than at first seems necessary. 
 When the plan is made, the material on hand may, 
 for the first time, be estimated at its real value for the 
 purpose in view. Much that promised to be of value, 
 and may be of real value in itself, is found during the 
 judging process to be useless, and must be discarded. 
 Never use material simply because you have it, or for 
 its own sake. Use only that which is of real value 
 from the point of view of creating an effective finished 
 product. Using only suitable material also means put- 
 ting into the finished product nothing that is trite, 
 hackneyed, or commonplace. It means using what is 
 new, striking, vivid, and peculiarly adaptable for the 
 end in view. 
 
 The evaluating process is also necessary to deter- 
 mine the relative worth of the different parts of the 
 suitable material. It indicates how properly to classify 
 
GETTING READY TO WRITE II 
 
 it; how the less important, yet suitable, material should 
 be arranged, in sentences and paragraphs, so as to show 
 that it is subordinated to other material. 
 
 Careful organization of the suitable material must be 
 accomplished by means of clear thinking and definite 
 planning, to make the finished product interesting and 
 effective. 
 
 Thus far all material has been viewed as raw material 
 only, without regard to the language to be employed 
 to make it effective. That important matter will re- 
 ceive proper attention in due time. 
 
 Subject and Tftle. To distinguish between subject 
 and title is the final step in organization, or composition 
 planning. The subject is large and general; the title 
 is restricted and specific. The subject suggests the 
 whole; the title, a part. To attempt to write upon 
 large subjects is to court failure through being too 
 general and flat. One cannot be specific or clear while 
 trying to handle whole subjects. The subject must be 
 limited; to limit a subject is to take some specific 
 phase of it and to make it concrete and definite. This 
 is to select a title. 
 
 However, it is not wise to begin with a title. Begin 
 with general reading and thinking in terms of the 
 larger subject. Then, when the title for the composi- 
 tion is chosen, it can be considered in the light of its 
 relation to the subject of which it is but a part. For 
 instance, if the title, My Favorite Form of Recreation, 
 should be assigned, the logical method of preparation 
 would be to consider the general subject, " Recreation," 
 
12 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 in a general and somewhat abstract way, and then to 
 consider other forms of recreation for the sake of com- 
 parisons to enable the writer to show why some par- 
 ticular form of recreation is his favorite. In a word, 
 it is necessary to study the subject in order to do jus- 
 tice to the title. To think of the title only, and to 
 gather material limited to the title without regard to 
 the subject of which it is but a part, is incomplete, 
 unscholarly, and inadequate. 
 
 Furthermore, the habit of studying subjects first 
 tends to develop careful thinking, and so to keep the 
 writer from the rut of narrowness into which he must 
 inevitably fall if he thinks of titles only. The more 
 carefully one studies a subject the more he recognizes 
 how impossible it is to write about it as a whole with- 
 out indulging in commonplaces and generalities, both 
 fatal to interest and effectiveness. Then, too, he will 
 know the need of further thought upon an appropriate 
 and striking title, and will be ready for it and in a 
 position to appreciate the fundamental rhetorical prin- 
 ciples according to which the actual writing must be 
 done. 
 
 These principles form the subject of the next chapter. 
 
 A careful study of the following review questions 
 should give facility in acquiring sufficient material, in 
 evaluating it, and in organizing it. 
 
 Review Questions 
 
 1. Distinguish between composition and a composition. 
 
 2. Show the value of grammar and of rhetoric in composition. 
 
 3. What is rhetoric? 
 
GETTING READY TO WRITE 13 
 
 4. What is meant by having something to say? 
 
 5. What do you mean by impression and what is its relation to 
 ■expression? 
 
 6. What is the result when one attempts to write without having 
 sufficient material? 
 
 7. What constitutes suitable material? 
 
 8. What are the three sources of material? Why should one 
 learn to use all three sources? Give a topic on which the first 
 would be the most serviceable. Do the same for the second and 
 the third. Give a topic in which all three could be used to ad- 
 vantage. 
 
 9. What is the best way of taking notes? Give reasons. 
 
 10. What is meant by organizing material? How is it done? 
 
 11. What is the evaluating process? 
 
 12. Why is a plan necessary? 
 
 13. Give a subject and then derive a title from it. Show the 
 relation between the two. Why should one never be content with a 
 title alone? 
 
 Suggestions for exercises in gathering, selecting, 
 and organizing material: 
 
 (Note: It is recommended that no writing be attempted while 
 studying this chapter, but that much drill be given in the important 
 work of getting ready to write: getting impressions.) 
 
 1. A preliminary plan for an account of a day's outing. All 
 available good material should be noted; all incidents, episodes, 
 anecdotes, striking occurrences, general results, etc. Then let the 
 essential material be selected according to its value in making an 
 interesting sketch. Discard the rest. Again, taking up the 
 essential material, decide which is worthy of elaborate treatment 
 and how properly to subordinate the rest to it. In a word: Or- 
 ganize the essential material. 
 
 2. Assign, for reading and thought, the subject "Photography." 
 Books and articles might be suggested or even provided. A general 
 talk by the teacher will be valuable. Such phases of the subject as, 
 "The Pleasures of Amateur Photography," "Commercial Pho- 
 tography," "The Origin of Photography," "The Camera Fiend," 
 and "Photographs as Souvenirs," might be assigned for oral com- 
 position work with good results. 
 
14 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 When satisfied that the class has a fair amount of general in- 
 formation of photography, the teacher might assign some such 
 title as, "My First Failures in Picture Taking and What They 
 Taught Me," "My Experiences in Hunting with a Camera," 
 "My Album and What It Means to Me," "The Camera and the 
 Stereopticon," and "The Need of Good Composition to Secure 
 Artistic Pictures." Or, as is often more satisfactory, the teacher 
 may allow each pupil to select his own topic. 
 
 Then have plans made, material estimated as to fitness and 
 appropriateness, and the suitable material organized in accordance 
 with a definite plan so that the class is ready to write. "The 
 readiness is all." 
 
 A little later in the course have the composition written. 
 
 3. For training in the method of getting material through the 
 imagination, some subject like the following might be used: "What 
 the Old Fireplace Told Me." The teacher might get the class 
 started in some such way as this: Emphasize the importance of the 
 setting for such an imaginative sketch. Suggest the fictitious 
 discovery of an old house, deserted, but in a fair state of preserva- 
 tion, with furniture, books, some old newspapers, a bundle of 
 old letters, etc. Imagine spending some hours in the library of 
 this house, before the fireplace, and amusing oneself by reading 
 the old letters which give some suggestions concerning the character 
 and habits of a former occupant. Let the fireplace speak as an 
 observer. Make an outline, select suitable material, arrange it, 
 and preserve for revising and writing later. 
 
 Such exercises, which may with profit be extended through parts 
 of several recitations, may be effective in stimulating the imagina- 
 tion and training it for more difficult tasks. 
 
 4. Assign as a subject the name of some well-known historical 
 character concerning whom much has been written. Have at 
 least two biographies, or biographical sketches, read for general 
 information. Never allow one to get the idea that a mere catalogu- 
 ing of events in a man's life is a character sketch. 
 
 Then select some one episode in the man's life, or some one 
 phase of his character, as a title, and gather all possible material 
 upon it, classify, discard, and organize the material preparatory 
 to writing. For example, if Edgar Allan Poe were the man whose 
 life had been read, the titles that might easily and naturally be 
 suggested would be such as: "Poe and the Short Story," "Poe 
 as the Originator of the Detective Story," "The Weird as Handled 
 
GETTING READY TO WRITE 15 
 
 by Poe," "Poe as a Literary Critic," "The Artistic Qualities of 
 Poe's Poetry," etc. 
 
 In all such exercises the fundamental distinction between sub- 
 ject and title may be clearly shown and illustrated. Practice of 
 this kind is very valuable. 
 
 At the option of the teacher any other subjects may be treated 
 and other titles drawn from them, provided, of course, that the 
 principles of this chapter are actually put into practice. 
 
CHAPTER II 
 THE RHETORICAL ESSENTIALS OF COMPOSITION 
 
 The basic principles of rhetoric, without which no 
 finished product can be made, must be mastered before 
 we can proceed further. These essentials are so im- 
 portant that they must be applied to the material at 
 every step in the process of making the finished product 
 — in the sentence, in the paragraph, and in the whole 
 composition. They must be so applied that attention 
 is not called to them by any sort of artifice; they should 
 be used as naturally, as unconsciously, and as unerr- 
 ingly as one follows his multiplication tables in arith- 
 metic. They will here be considered in a general man- 
 ner and sufficiently conclusive to prepare the way for 
 a detailed treatment when discussing the paragraph 
 and the forms of discourse. 
 
 The Purpose of Expression. The purpose of all ex- 
 pression, written and oral, is to present thought and 
 emotion in language so as to influence others. The 
 questions naturally arise: How are we to influence 
 others? What effect are we to have upon them? The 
 answer is obvious; we are to influence them intellect- 
 ually, emotionally, and aesthetically. Rhetoricians are 
 substantially agreed upon this: a threefold demand of 
 all readers and listeners, a demand that is intellectual, 
 
 16 
 
THE RHETORICAL ESSENTIALS OF COMPOSITION 17 
 
 emotional, and aesthetic, constitutes the motive and 
 purpose of all writers and speakers, and indicates the 
 means whereby they can best satisfy the demand. In 
 a word, rhetoric, as an art, reveals the purpose and the 
 method of expression; it gives the characteristics of 
 the finished product and shows how best to make it 
 effective. 
 
 Rhetoric both satisfies the demands of the reader, or 
 listener, and furnishes the means to the writer and 
 speaker. The best way to effect one's intellect is to 
 explain what is unknown. Explanation is making clear. 
 To make his message intelligible the writer or speaker 
 employs the first requisite of rhetoric and the first 
 characteristic of the effective finished product, Clear- 
 ness. To touch the emotions of another the writer and 
 speaker arouse love, hate, pity, fear, ambition, patriot- 
 ism, heroism, and the like; and by so doing they go 
 beyond the sphere of the intellect; they go deeper and 
 make a more vital appeal; they arouse interest. This 
 is done by the rhetorical quality known as Force, the 
 second characteristic of the finished product of effective 
 expression. Besides these two qualities there is a third, 
 called Elegance, whose effect is to please the reader or 
 listener. The appeal of Elegance is to the aesthetic 
 sensibilities. Every finished product of effective ex- 
 pression must possess these three qualities. 
 
 These characteristic qualities of the finished product 
 constitute the aim and ideal that must be ever before 
 the writer and speaker. Before dealing with them in 
 detail, however, we must turn to the three great funda- 
 
18 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 mental principles which enable us to select and arrange 
 the raw material of thoughts and emotions in such a 
 manner as to produce the requisite effective qualities. 
 They are Unity, Coherence, and Proportion. 
 
 Unity. Unity means oneness. It is sticking to the 
 subject. It implies so limiting the subject that one 
 may stick to it. Unity concerns itself principally with 
 the selecting and evaluating of the material; it is the 
 principle according to which the suitable material is 
 assorted and separated from the available material. It 
 directs us to discard all that is not vitally essential for 
 our present purpose and to retain all that is essential 
 for the sake of clearness. Unity requires that in the 
 sentence, the paragraph, the whole composition, every- 
 thing that is said should center around one definite 
 idea and be the expansion of that idea. It forbids 
 running off on tangents; it allows no unnecessary 
 digressions or parenthetical interpolations. 
 
 Long, rambling sentences, such as the following, from 
 Dickens' Little Dorrit, violate the principle of unity 
 because they reveal a lack of clear thinking and pre- 
 sent a jumble of unrelated ideas. Flora Finching is the 
 speaker who rushes on without pause for punctuation 
 or transition, as in the following: 
 
 "Ask me not if I love him still or if he still 
 loves me or what the end is to be or when, we 
 are surrounded by watchful eyes and it may 
 be that we are destined to pine asunder it may 
 be nevermore to be reunited not a word not a 
 breath not a look to betray us all must be 
 
THE RHETORICAL ESSENTIALS OF COMPOSITION 19 
 
 secret as the tomb wonder not therefore that, 
 even if I should seem comparatively cold to 
 Arthur or Arthur should seem comparatively 
 cold to me we have fatal reasons it is enough 
 if we understand them hush." 
 
 — Little Dorrit: Charles Dickens 
 
 An excellent example of a lack of unity, coherence, 
 emphasis, and of every other rhetorical quality, is the 
 following from Mark Twain's Sketches Old and New, 
 and called Mr. Bloke's Item: 
 
 "Last evening, about six o'clock, as Mr. 
 William Schuyler, an old and respected citizen 
 of South Park, was leaving his residence to 
 go downtown, as has been his usual custom 
 for many years with the exception only of a 
 short interval in the spring of 1850, during 
 which he was confined to his bed by injuries 
 received in attempting to stop a runaway 
 horse by thoughtfully placing himself in its 
 wake and throwing up his hands and shouting, 
 which if he had done so even a single moment 
 sooner, must have inevitably have frightened 
 the animal still more instead of checking its 
 speed, although disastrous enough to himself 
 as it was, and rendered more melancholy and 
 distressing by reason of the presence of his 
 wife's mother, who was there and saw the sad 
 occurrence, notwithstanding it is at least 
 likely, though not necessarily so, that she 
 should be reconnoitering in another direction 
 when accidents occur, not being vivacious and 
 on the lookout, as a general thing, but even 
 the reverse, as her own mother is said to have 
 
20 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 .stated, who is no more, but died in the full 
 hope of a glorious resurrection, upwards of 
 three years ago, aged eighty-six, being a Chris- 
 tian woman and without guile, as it were, or 
 property, in consequence of the fire of 1849, 
 which destroyed every single thing she had in 
 the world. But such is life. Let us all take 
 warning from this solemn occurrence, and let 
 us endeavor so to conduct ourselves that when 
 we come to die we can do it. Let us place our 
 hands upon our heart, and say with earnestness 
 and sincerity that from this day forth we will 
 beware of the intoxicating bowl." 
 
 The above item had been inserted, says the writer, 
 in the Californian by the subeditor in the absence of 
 the head editor. The head editor objected, upon his 
 return, and then the subeditor read it for the first time. 
 His comment is so much to the point that we quote it : 
 
 "I have read it, and I am bound to admit 
 that it seems a little mixed at first glance. 
 However, I will peruse it once more. . . . 
 
 "I have read it again, and it does really 
 seem a good deal more mixed than ever. . . . 
 
 "I have read it over five times, but if I can 
 get at the meaning of it, I wish I may get my 
 just deserts. It won't bear analysis. There 
 are things about it which I cannot understand 
 at all. It doesn't say what ever became of 
 William Schuyler. It just says enough about 
 him to get one interested in his career, and 
 ^ then drops him. Who is William Schuyler, 
 "^ anyhow, and what part of South Park did he 
 live in, and if he started downtown at six 
 
THE RHETORICAL ESSENTIALS OF COMPOSITION 21 
 
 o'clock did he ever get there, and if he did, 
 did anything happen to him? Is he the indi- 
 vidual that met with the ' distressing acci- 
 dent'? Considering the elaborate circum- 
 stantiality of detail observable in the item, it 
 seems to me that it ought to contain more 
 information than it does. On the contrary, it 
 is obscure — and not only obscure, but utterly 
 incomprehensible. ' ' 
 
 We cannot improve upon that comment. 
 
 The incomprehensible item may be called "a horrible 
 example" much exaggerated. But that emphasizes its 
 value. In a lesser degree, but in a similar manner, 
 many so violate the principle of unity by getting further 
 and further away from the topic and by inserting 
 numerous useless and bewildering explanatory phrases 
 and clauses, that what they write is "not only obscure, 
 but utterly incomprehensible." 
 
 Observing the principle of unity prevents all such 
 writing. 
 
 As an example of a paragraph that illustrates unity, 
 read the following: 
 
 "Arnold has done for literature what Ruskin 
 did for art. By means of his exquisite creative 
 work and his clear and steady discernment of 
 the best that has been thought and said in the 
 world — in a word, by his study of perfection, 
 he has enriched thought and quickened feeling. 
 His intellectual activity is as varied and un- 
 ceasing as his love is strong and pure. His 
 nature, genial, frank, and manly, is revealed 
 
22 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 in poetry of elegance and power. He teaches 
 the gospel of Wordsworth — that weWed shade 
 in which to grow ripe, and leisure in which to 
 grow wise. As a literary critic he has no supe- 
 rior in the art of revealing beauty, of stimu- 
 lating enjoyment of the high and rare excel- 
 lence in literature. His instinct for seizing the 
 spirit of the author and embalming it in the 
 amber of beautiful phrase, is as unfailing as 
 his analysis of the means by which that author 
 attained distinction in form is clear and sound. 
 As a writer upon morals and politics, he is 
 characterized by the spirit of l sweetness and 
 light/ with a purpose to make reason and the 
 will of God prevail. The results of his work 
 are exceedingly great."— Chaucer to Arnold. 
 
 COHERENCE. Coherence is the quality by means 
 of which, in sentences, paragraphs, and whole com- 
 positions, the various parts are held together in unity. 
 By means of coherence the relation of each part of a 
 composition to its context, is made clear. It has to do 
 with the arrangement of the material within the sen- 
 tence, the paragraph, and the whole composition. Co- 
 herence demands close thinking to secure logical con- 
 nection, and skill in evaluating material to secure 
 proper coordination and subordination. Things closely 
 related in thought should be kept together. 
 
 Phrases similar in meaning or similar in their relation 
 to the words they modify, should be similar in form; 
 any needless inversions, shifting of subject, and changes 
 in voice, should be avoided, if coherence is to be main- 
 
THE RHETORICAL ESSENTIALS OF COMPOSITION 23 
 
 tained. Care must be taken regarding the position of 
 all modifying words, phrases, or clauses, that their 
 connection with the words they are intended to modify 
 may be immediately evident. Things wholly unlike 
 and unrelated in thought can no more be made to 
 " stick together" than glass and tin can be soldered. 
 
 Coherence is aided by correct grammatical construc- 
 tion, by sufficient and concise connectives, and by fre- 
 quent use of periodic sentences. Long, loose sentences 
 easily become incoherent; the very nature of periodic 
 sentences favors coherence. Coherence must be the 
 constant guide in all composition and paragraph plan- 
 ning. Skill may be acquired in securing this quality 
 by breaking up long paragraphs into separate sentences 
 and clauses, and then putting them together again 
 correctly. 
 
 As an example of incoherence, reread the paragraph 
 from Mark Twain. ,Note that the further the writer 
 of the item attributed to Mr. Bloke proceeds, the 
 further he gets from his subject, which was evidently 
 an accident to Mr. Schuyler. So much incongruous 
 matter, however, is dragged in that we are soon lost 
 in a maze of irrelevant statements. 
 
 The quotation from Chaucer to Arnold, already used 
 to illustrate unity, serves equally well for coherence. 
 Observe how all the parts hang together, and with in- 
 creasing clearness and force show what Arnold did for 
 literature. Every word, phrase, and clause is related 
 to its context in a manner that is unmistakable. 
 
 Proportion and Emphasis. To get away from the 
 
24 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 dead level of the commonplace, emphasis is essential 
 in the finished product. Proportion and emphasis are 
 best considered together, for a properly proportioned 
 sentence, paragraph, and composition will also be suit- 
 ably emphasized. By means of proportion and em- 
 phasis the writer, or speaker, indicates what thoughts 
 he desires to have stand out conspicuously because of 
 their importance. 
 
 Emphasis is secured by placing the thought to be 
 stressed in the naturally emphatic positions — the be- 
 ginning and the end. Of these, as a rule, the end is 
 the more emphatic. The periodic sentence is naturally 
 emphatic, for "it ends with words that deserve dis- 
 tinction." Emphasis is also secured by strong words, 
 by striking figures, by balanced sentences, and by con- 
 trast. Conciseness of diction and proper punctuation 
 are also essential. The loose sentence, with a weak 
 ending, is a hindrance to emphasis. 
 
 Proportion and emphasis contribute to force. 
 
 A well-known passage in Burke's Speech on Concilia- 
 tion with America illustrates the method of securing em- 
 phasis by contrast: 
 
 " Compare the two. This I offer to give you 
 is plain and simple; the other is full of per- 
 plexed and intricate mazes. This is mild; that 
 harsh. This is found by experience effectual 
 for its purpose; the other is a new project. 
 This is universal; the other calculated for cer- 
 tain colonies only. This is immediate in its 
 conciliatory operation; the other remote, con- 
 tingent, full of hazard. Mine is what becomes 
 
THE RHETORICAL ESSENTIALS OF COMPOSITION 25 
 
 the dignity of a ruling people— gratuitous, un- 
 conditional, and not held out as a matter of 
 bargain and sale. I have done my duty in 
 proposing it to you." 
 
 This chapter is vitally connected with the preceding 
 one on Getting Ready to Write, in which we considered 
 the gathering of the raw material from which the 
 finished product is made. Here we learn the essential 
 principles of rhetoric, according to which the raw mate- 
 rial must be further tested as to its fitness for the 
 desired end, and as to the manner in which it must be 
 arranged. We have seen that interest must be secured 
 through clearness, force, and elegance, which depend 
 upon unity, coherence, and emphasis. At this stage of 
 the process of composition, it is frequently necessary 
 to modify the original provisional plan for the form 
 and size of the finished product, and to increase or 
 diminish the amount of actually suitable material. In 
 perfecting the final plan and in shaping the material 
 according to it, careful thought is essential. The mate- 
 rial must be worked over; some must be reduced in 
 bulk; some must be enlarged; some must be condensed 
 into small space, or be expressed with extreme con- 
 ciseness; some must be developed, or expressed with 
 full detail, that the finished product may be properly 
 proportioned. To fail here is to fail utterly; to succeed 
 here insures final success. 
 
 The Qualities of the Finished Product. Clearness. 
 Clearness is that quality of expression which enables 
 the reader or the listener to grasp, at once, the exact 
 
26 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 meaning of the writer or the speaker. Clearness of ex- 
 pression depends upon clearness of thinking. Unity 
 and coherence go far toward securing it. It demands 
 the absence of its three chief enemies — vagueness, am- 
 biguity, and obscurity. It requires an accurate use of 
 words, words of undoubted denotation, words that are 
 precise, concrete, specific, and strong. It demands a 
 mastery of sentence-structure, especially of the com- 
 plex sentences, so that every subordinate clause may 
 be comprehended at a glance. It allows no unneces- 
 sary words, no meaningless phrases, no misplaced 
 clauses. It demands ample and correct punctuation. 
 Clearness is a purely intellectual quality. It charac- 
 terizes our expression when we know exactly what we 
 want to say and then say it according to the principles 
 of rhetoric already explained and illustrated. 
 
 For an example of a lack of unity through the viola- 
 tion of the principles of unity and of coherence, read 
 again the quotation from Little Dorrit (page 18). 
 
 The following from Woodrow Wilson's What We Are 
 Fighting For, illustrates perfect clearness : 
 
 "The position of America in this war is so 
 clearly avowed that no man can be excused 
 for mistaking it. She seeks no material profit 
 or aggrandizement of any kind. She is fighting 
 for no advantage or selfish object of her own, 
 but for the liberation of peoples everywhere 
 from the aggressions of autocratic force. The 
 niling classes in Germany have begun of late 
 to profess a like liberality and justice of pur- 
 pose, but only to preserve the power they have 
 
THE RHETORICAL ESSENTIALS OF COMPOSITION 27 
 
 set up to Germany and the selfish advantages 
 which they have wrongly gained for them- 
 selves and their private projects of power all 
 the way from Berlin to Bagdad and beyond. 
 Government after government has, by their 
 influence, without open conquest of its terri- 
 tory, been linked together in a net of intrigue 
 directed against nothing less than the peace 
 and liberty of the world. The meshes of that 
 intrigue must be broken, but cannot be broken 
 unless wrongs already done are undone; and 
 adequate measures must be taken to prevent 
 it ever again being re woven or repaired." 
 
 FORCE. Force is the quality of discourse through 
 which it arouses and holds attention. Force is an emo- 
 tional quality, rather than an intellectual one, and hence 
 is the chief means of securing interest. It depends 
 upon the mood of the writer or speaker, upon his will 
 power, upon his suggestiveness, or connotation, in the 
 use of words, upon his use of striking figures of speech 
 — in a word, upon every possible means whereby he 
 may appeal to the feelings of those whom he addresses, 
 even to the extent of recapturing, if need be, the wan- 
 ing interest of one on the point of relapsing into indif- 
 ference. To this should be added the fact that force 
 implies a mastery of all the devices of style so that one 
 wholly conceals his art and compels his reader or lis- 
 tener to follow him under the powerful spell of his 
 message. 
 
 For examples of force one has only to turn to those 
 parts of novels, short stories, dramas, or poems, which 
 
28 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 have greatly interested him, which have held him in 
 almost breathless suspense. Such passages grip us be- 
 cause they possess the quality of force. In general it 
 may be said that all passages depicting dramatic situa- 
 tions, not in dramas only but in any form of literature, 
 are forceful; all that deeply arouse our feelings by 
 appealing to fear, admiration, or any of the qualities 
 that excite us; all that makes us curious or hold us in 
 suspense, are of great force. In Macbeth, for instance, 
 when Macbeth has gone into the chamber of Duncan 
 to carry out his evil plan, and Lady Macbeth is wait- 
 ing outside in the hall, there is tremendous force in 
 her words because they represent the intensity of her 
 feelings. 
 
 "He's about it." "I laid the daggers handy. 
 He could not miss them." 
 
 We are made to share her feelings. 
 
 To take another case of unusual force, recall the 
 closing scene of Dickens' A Tale of Two Cities. Read 
 the last three pages. We quote only a few words dealing 
 with Sydney Carton's parting with the little girl whom 
 he comforted on the way to the guillotine. She says : 
 
 "You comfort me so much. I am so ignorant. 
 Am I to kiss you now? Is the moment come? " 
 
 "Yes." 
 
 "She kisses his lips; he kisses hers ; they sol- 
 emnly bless each other. The spare hand does 
 not tremble as he releases it; nothing less than 
 a sweet, bright constancy is in the patient 
 face. She goes next before him — is gone; the 
 
THE RHETORICAL ESSENTIALS OF COMPOSITION 29 
 
 knitting women count twenty-two." 
 
 "I am the Resurrection and the Life, saith 
 the Lord : he that believeth in me, though he 
 were dead, yet shall he live: and whosoever 
 liveth and believeth in me, shall never die." 
 
 "The murmuring of many voices, the up- 
 turning of many faces, the pressing on of many 
 footsteps in the outskirts of the crowd, so that 
 it swells forward in a mass, like one great heave 
 of water, all flashes away. Twenty-three." 
 
 That is of remarkable force because of the subject 
 treated, but equally because of the manner of treat- 
 ment. There are no gruesome details. All is told most 
 moderately. There is force in the very moderation. 
 And note the connotation of the numbers, twenty-two, 
 twenty-three. Ordinarily those numbers have only the 
 simplest denotation; here, because of the significance 
 of what the knitting women were counting, the mean- 
 ing is inexpressibly sad. 
 
 In Browning's short poem, How They Brought the 
 Good News from Ghent to Aix, we have an illustration 
 of spell-binding interest, because from beginning to 
 end, every stanza is of greater force than those before 
 it, and the last stanza is the most forceful of all, for, 
 though the destination has been reached by one of the 
 three messengers and the day has been saved, the 
 exhausted condition of that one rider and his horse, 
 Roland, touch us profoundly and relieve us from the 
 tension of the excitement of the breakneck speed at 
 which we have followed all the way from Ghent. We 
 quote the last stanza: 
 
30 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 "And all I remember is — friends flocking round 
 As I sat with his head 'twixt my knees on the ground; 
 And no voice but was praising this Roland of mine, 
 As I poured down his throat our last measure of wine, 
 Which (the burgesses voted by common consent) 
 Was no more than his due who brought good news from Ghent. *'■ 
 
 The reason detective stories, stories of adventure, 
 and " thrillers, " have such power to get and hold atten- 
 tion that one cannot put them down until finished, is 
 because of the constant use, and often over-use, of the 
 quality of force to stimulate the reader's curiosity and 
 to lead him from one position of suspense to another. 
 The bad effect of cheap melodramas and the worst 
 kind of "thrillers/' is due to the overcrowding of too 
 forceful incidents. The danger lurking in such litera- 
 ture, if it may for the sake of argument be called litera- 
 ture, lies in the fact that much reading of it dulls one's 
 sensibilities so that he fails to recognize the higher kinds 
 of force which add interest and give character to the 
 greatest literature, such as the following lines from 
 Browning's Easter Morn: 
 
 "And so I live, you see, 
 Go through the world, try, prove, reject, 
 Prefer, still struggling to effect 
 My warfare; happy that I can 
 Be crossed and thwarted as a man, 
 Not left in God's contempt apart, 
 With ghastly smooth life, dead at heart, 
 Tame in earth's paddock as her prize. 
 Thank God, she still each method tries 
 To catch me, who may yet escape, 
 She knows, — the fiend in angel's shape! 
 Thank God. No paradise stands barred 
 To entry, and I find it hard 
 To be a Christian, as I said." 
 
THE RHETORICAL ESSENTIALS OF COMPOSITION 31 
 
 Here, again, we have great force. How has Brown- 
 ing secured attention and aroused interest? What ele- 
 ment of force is in the italicized words? 
 
 In the following excerpt from The Merchant of Venice 
 we find an unusual example of force. Tubal, perhaps 
 unwittingly, throws Shylock first into one kind of vio- 
 lent emotion, then into another; then he repeats the 
 process. First Shylock bitterly laments the loss of his 
 money and of his jewels, so that he feels that he has to 
 suffer the whole of the curse upon his nation; then, 
 when he learns of the reported loss of Antonio's argosy, 
 he is beside himself with fiendish joy. Note the sudden 
 change of emotional reaction: 
 
 "Shy. How now, Tubal! what news from Genoa? hast thou 
 found my daughter? 
 
 Tub. I often came where I did hear of her, but cannot find 
 her. 
 
 Shy. Why, there, there, there, there! A diamond gone, cost 
 me two thousand ducats in Frankfort! The curse never fell upon 
 our nation till now. I never felt it till now. Two thousand 
 ducats in that; and other precious, precious jewels. I would 
 that my daughter were dead at my foot, and the jewels in her ear! 
 Would she were hearsed at my foot, and the ducats in her coffin! 
 No news of them? Why so? — and I know not what's spent in 
 the search. Why, thou loss upon loss! the thief gone with so 
 much, and so much to find the thief; and no satisfaction, no revenge, 
 nor no ill luck stirring but what lights upon my shoulders; no 
 sighs but of my breathing, no tears but of my shedding. 
 
 Tub. Yes, other men have ill luck too. Antonio, as I heard in 
 Genoa, — 
 
 Shy. What, what, what? Ill luck, ill luck? 
 
 Tub. Hath an argosy cast away, coming from Tripolis. 
 
 Shy. I thank God, I thank God! Is it true, is it true? 
 
 Tub. I spoke with some of the sailors that escaped the wreck. 
 
 Shy. I thank thee, good Tubal; good news, good news! Ha, ha! 
 Here in Genoa? 
 
32 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 Tub. Your daughter spent in Genoa, as I heard, in one night 
 fourscore ducats. 
 
 Shy. Thou stick'st a dagger in me. I shall never see my gold 
 again. Fourscore ducats at a sitting! Fourscore ducats! 
 
 Tub. There came divers of Antonio's creditors in my company 
 to Venice, that swear that he cannot choose but break. 
 
 Shy. I am very glad of it. I'll plague him; I'll torture him. 
 I'm glad of it. 
 
 Tub. One of them showed me a ring that he had of your daughter 
 for a monkey. 
 
 Shy. Out upon her! Thou torturest me, Tubal. It was my 
 turquoise; I had it from Leah when I was a bachelor. I would 
 not have given it for a wilderness of monkeys. 
 
 Tub. But Antonio is certainly undone. 
 
 Shy. Nay, that's true, that's very true. Go, Tubal, fee me an 
 officer; bespeak him a fortnight before. I will have the heart of 
 him, if he forfeit; for, were he out of Venice, I can make what 
 merchandise I will. Go, go, Tubal, and meet me at our synagogue; 
 go, good Tubal; at our synagogue, Tubal." 
 
 Interest As a Result of Force. We have already 
 spoken of force as the rhetorical quality of the finished 
 product which reaches the emotions and produces in- 
 terest. Inasmuch as interest is essential for effective- 
 ness in any form of discourse, a further discussion of 
 it is to the point. The first aim of every writer or 
 speaker should be to interest those addressed. Without 
 interest, composition is useless. Interest is a sympa- 
 thetic arousing of the emotions of one's readers or 
 hearers. It is the first step toward engaging their wills 
 in attention. Whether in writing a letter of application 
 for a position, in telling a story, in painting a word pic- 
 ture, in explaining a process, or in arguing to prove a 
 proposition, interest must be immediately aroused. 
 
 To aid in securing interest: never apologize, never 
 explain needlessly, never indulge in long introductions. 
 
THE RHETORICAL ESSENTIALS OF COMPOSITION 33 
 
 Avoid the trite, the dull, the hackneyed, the common- 
 place. Put yourself in the place of those you are about 
 to address. Ask yourself how even a dull subject 
 might be made interesting to you; then address others 
 as you would be addressed. Feel what you are to say 
 so that your own interest will fire you with such ear- 
 nestness that others cannot but be influenced by the 
 very contagion of your emotions and by your expres- 
 sion of them. Be alive to your subject and your mes- 
 sage will be a living one for others. 
 
 In The Gentle Reader, by Dr. Samuel McChord 
 Crothers, the chapter on The Honorable Points of 
 Ignorance begins, "I happen to live in a community 
 where there is a deeply rooted prejudice in favor of 
 intelligence, with many facilities for its advancement." 
 By being striking, original, with a touch of humor, that 
 single sentence arouses interest. Whoever reads it will 
 want to read more. In the same volume, the essay on 
 Intimate Knowledge and Delight opens with this striking 
 periodic sentence, "In the affairs of the mind we are 
 all ' Indian givers.'" Again we are interested. The 
 author has caught our attention, aroused our curiosity, 
 and given a challenge which few would hesitate to 
 accept. We may not be sure as to the meaning of 
 "Indian givers"; at any rate we want to know how 
 the author develops his thought. We read on. 
 
 Charles Lamb begins A Chapter on Ears in this way : 
 "I have no ear." That sentence does not tell us much, 
 or it tells too much. It is misleading, as it was meant 
 to be. For that reason we feel inclined to read on for 
 
34 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 further information. The same author begins his A 
 Quaker's Meeting with this long sentence, excellent for 
 its periodicity and climactic effect: 
 
 " Reader wouldst thou know what true peace 
 and quiet mean; wouldst thou find a refuge 
 from the noise and clamors of the multitude; 
 wouldst thou enjoy at once solitude and so- 
 ciety; wouldst thou possess the depth of thy 
 own spirit in stillness, without being shut out 
 from the consolatory faces of thy species; 
 wouldst thou be alone and yet accompanied; 
 solitary, yet desolate; singular, yet not with- 
 out some to keep thee in countenance ; a unit 
 in aggregate; a simple in composite; — come 
 with me to a Quaker's meeting." 
 
 The suspense produced by the periodic sentence is, of 
 itself, an element of force. But aside from this the au- 
 thor has stimulated a series of emotions which appeal 
 to all. He has aroused interest. 
 
 The successful writer and speaker must not only 
 secure interest; he must hold it. If it lags for an in- 
 stant it may be next to impossible to recapture it. 
 While it may not be always possible to keep interest 
 at the high point attained by a striking opening sen- 
 tence, it may be kept near that point. If what follows 
 the opening is a logical and illuminating development 
 of the idea suggested in the beginning, interest will 
 naturally continue. Remember to impart all informa- 
 tion vitally, that you are to produce a realizing sense of 
 the truth and the importance of what you are saying. 
 Choose vivid, exact, concrete words. Remembering 
 
THE RHETORICAL ESSENTIALS OF COMPOSITION 35 
 
 that every unnecessary word is like a nonconducting 
 material which weakens the current of the live wire of 
 your essential message, make every word count. If 
 you can illustrate, do so, but avoid trite examples. 
 Use apt, striking, forceful ones. Never be guilty of 
 dragging in an illustration for its own sake. It not 
 only makes you violate the principle of unity, it makes 
 you ridiculous. Do not be too detailed in giving in- 
 formation that is simple and easily comprehended; 
 suggest. On the other hand, do not take too much for 
 granted in imparting what is new or difficult. Be as 
 complete as the quality of clearness demands, for clear- 
 ness is the first step toward force, as force is the means 
 of securing interest. If you are handling material that 
 is counted dull and dry by many, remember that that 
 only lays before you the challenge to study it and your 
 prospective readers or auditors, until you can make it 
 interesting with a compelling force. 
 
 If conviction is sought, remember that it is more 
 than imparting information, that it includes reaching 
 the reader's or listener's will and presenting it with a 
 motive strong enough to move it to action. Never de- 
 ceive yourself by thinking that mere statements are 
 legitimate arguments. Guard your weak points; select 
 irrefutable proofs, and state them forcefully. Move 
 logically toward your conclusion; when you reach it 
 state it with conviction, then stop. 
 
 Where the aim is to please, remember that sustained 
 interest is a necessary element of pleasure. The desire 
 to please is not only legitimate, but essential in dealing 
 
36 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 with weighty subjects. Use vivid, idiomatic English, 
 and words that are euphonious and picturesque. Ob- 
 serve the law of "the fitness of things. " 
 
 Elegance. This elusive quality is often called 
 " beauty," but inasmuch as the word elegance is more 
 inclusive, more suggestive, we prefer it. If it seems too 
 difficult at first to produce this quality of rhetoric, we 
 can at least learn to appreciate it in others and study 
 to avoid whatever interferes with it : we can steer clear 
 of ugliness. Elegance is not to be looked upon as a 
 distinct quality, separate from clearness and force, but 
 rather as a natural result of the presence of other quali- 
 ties at their best. Elegance is that quality which is 
 discovered and appreciated by good taste. It is partly 
 inherent in the subject-matter, partly dependent upon 
 form. It is farthest removed from the commonplace; 
 it approaches the sublime. It adds to expression that 
 undefinable charm which can be felt with increasing 
 pleasure, as one's aesthetic sensibilities are developed. 
 Elegance is secured by perfect adaptation of material 
 and form to the purpose of the writer. It comes more 
 easily when the definite object is to please. 
 
 Diction is an essential element in securing elegance. 
 "A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in pitchers 
 of silver." Propriety is the ruling principle. It de- 
 mands "the right word in the right place"; the right 
 word must be exact, and often figurative — always 
 euphonic. As Aristotle puts it : "Beauty in words con- 
 sists in the meaning conveyed, in the image they pre- 
 sent, and in the sound." 
 
THE RHETORICAL ESSENTIALS OF COMPOSITION 37 
 
 As to sentences, the short and the balanced forms 
 are most conducive to elegance. Let the union between 
 thought and emotion and their expression be vital and 
 agreeably expressed. 
 
 To appreciate elegance read those prose writers who 
 have excelled in producing it: Ruskin, Irving, Haw- 
 thorne, George William Curtis, Henry van Dyke, David 
 Grayson. Above all, read the best poetry from Shake- 
 speare and Milton to Alfred Noyes. As an example of 
 elegance the following is suggestive: 
 
 "This hapless quartet in misery, surpassing 
 anything else in fiction or in poetry, have lost 
 faith in man and in deity; only the storm ac- 
 cords with their inward anguish. Lost to the 
 world and to themselves they have found 
 kindness in the biting wind and comfort in 
 the driving rain. Nothing more is needed to 
 deduce the fall of man from his original estate 
 than this miserere of despair. How many hap- 
 less vagrants since have welcomed the play of 
 the elements after man's ingratitude! It is 
 the very crown of the dramatist's art that he 
 so pierces to the core of human neglect, and 
 that, with the increasing sum of sorrow, he 
 compels the heavens to weep at man's stony- 
 hearted attitude." 
 — King Lear, in Literary Clinic Papers: F. Hyatt Smith 
 
 Alfred Noyes abounds in passages suitable for ex- 
 amples of elegance. We give but one: 
 
 "There is a song of England that thrills the beating blood 
 With burning cries and yearning 
 
38 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 Tides of hidden aspiration hardly known or understood; 
 
 Aspirations of the creature 
 
 Tow'rds the unity of Nature; 
 Sudden chivalries revealing whence the longing is renewed 
 In the men that live for England, live and love and die for England : 
 
 By the light of their desire 
 
 They shall blindly blunder higher, 
 To a wider, grander Kingdom and a deeper, nobler Good." 
 — A Song of England: Alfred Noyes 
 
 The Personal Touch. Now that we have seen what 
 the three qualities of the finished product are and have 
 carefully examined the three principles upon which 
 they depend, before we proceed to a consideration of 
 the final testing of our material we pause to point out 
 an often overlooked essential of successful writing — the 
 personal touch. The makers of literature have, without 
 exception, been upon most intimate terms with their 
 work and so have made it vital. As long as one looks 
 upon any writing as a mere task and as drudgery, he 
 will never write well. He cannot. When, however, 
 one actually lives with his subject — or better still, lives 
 his subject — he almost inevitably writes well. What 
 he produces shows his sincerity, his realizing sense, and 
 his mastery of his subject. Of him it may be said, as 
 the late Joyce Kilmer said of another, "He did not win 
 success; he is success." This living, personal touch, 
 more than anything else, gives that charm which we 
 call style to one's writing. It is worth while even in the 
 most prosaic attempts; it is absolutely necessary in 
 our endeavors to rise above mediocrity. 1 
 
 Milton said that if one would be a real poet his life 
 
 1 See quotation from Newman, page 100. 
 
THE RHETORICAL ESSENTIALS OF COMPOSITION 39 
 
 should be a poem. To the most casual reader it is 
 evident that Shakespeare lived in the characters he 
 created, and lived with them in all their scenes of 
 comedy and of tragedy. Dickens so lost himself in 
 his books, while writing them, that for weeks he seemed 
 another than himself, and so his books have more than 
 the " touch of nature which makes the whole world 
 kin." Hawthorne entered so into the characters and 
 scenes of The Scarlet Letter, while writing it, that his 
 family scarcely knew him and he had to be urged to 
 eat and sleep. The result was his masterpiece. To 
 give but one more illustration, take the case of Brown- 
 ing and The Ring and the Book. Referring to the old 
 yellow book which he picked up from a junk stall in 
 Florence, he says: 
 
 "Here it is, this I toss and take again; 
 Small quarto-size, part print, part manuscript: 
 A book in shape but, really, pure crude fact 
 Secreted from man's life when hearts beat hard, 
 And brains, high-blooded, ticked two centuries since." 
 
 Later he says : 
 
 "I had mastered the contents, knew the whole truth 
 Gathered together, bound up in this book. 
 
 This is the bookfull; thus far take the truth, 
 The untempered gold, the fact untampered with, 
 The mere ring metal ere the ring was made. 
 
 — thence bit by bit I dug 
 The lingot truth, that memorable day, 
 Assayed and knew my piecemeal gain was gold, — 
 Yes; but from something else surpassing that, 
 
40 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 Something of mine which, mixed up with the mass, 
 Made it bear hammer and be firm to file. 
 Fancy with fact is just one fact the more. 
 
 I fused my live soul and that inert stuff." 
 
 Is it strange that Browning could say of The Ring and 
 the Book that it was "my four years' intimate " ? 
 
 There is no better illustration in the whole realm of 
 literature to show the perfect working of the concep- 
 tion of composition which we are seeking to explain, 
 than this work of Browning. The old yellow book 
 which he called "pure crude fact," was the raw material 
 from which he made the finished product, the poem 
 which is, perhaps, the greatest single poem of modern 
 times. He tells us how he mingled fact and fancy, 
 which is an important part of the process of working 
 over the material and shaping it for his purpose. But 
 what we want especially to emphasize is, that he has 
 told us: 
 
 "I fused my live soul and that inert stuff." 
 
 The book is not only by Browning; it is Browning. 
 It is Browning because he put himself into it, as he 
 now lives through it. 
 
 Our own poet, Bryant, has touched upon the same 
 subject in a little poem called The Poet. He shows 
 that the personal element is absolutely essential if one 
 would move his readers, or as we put it, "if he would 
 give the quality of force to his finished product." 
 
 We quote the poem, italicizing some of the words for 
 emphasis : 
 
THE RHETORICAL ESSENTIALS OF COMPOSITION 41 
 "THE POET 
 
 1 
 "Thou who wouldst wear the name 
 
 Of poet 'mid thy brethren of mankind, 
 And clothe in words of flame 
 
 Thoughts that shall live within the general mind! 
 Dream not the framing of a deathless lay 
 The pastime of a drowsy summer day. 
 
 "But gather all thy powers, 
 
 And wreak them on the verse that thou dost weave, 
 And in thy lonely hours, 
 
 At silent morning or at wakeful eve, 
 While the warm current tingles through thy veins 
 Set forth the burning words in fluent strains. 
 
 3 
 
 "No smooth array of phrase 
 
 Artfully sought and ordered though it be, 
 Which the cold rhymer lays 
 
 Upon his page with languid industry, 
 Can wake the listless pulse to livelier speed, 
 Or fill with sudden tears the eyes that read. 
 
 4 
 
 "The secret wouldst thou know 
 
 To touch the heart or fire the blood at will? 
 Let thine own eyes overflow; 
 
 Let thy lips quiver with the passionate thrill; 
 Seize the great thought, ere yet its power be past, 
 And bind, in words, the fleet emotion fast. 
 
 5 
 
 "Then, should thy verse appear 
 
 Halting and harsh, and all unaptly wrought, 
 Touch the crude line with fear, 
 Save in the moment of impassioned thought; 
 Then summon back the original glow, and mend 
 The strain with rapture that with fire was penned. 
 
42 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 6 
 "Yet let no empty gust 
 
 Of passion find an utterance in thy lay, 
 A blast that whirls the dust 
 
 Along the howling street and dies away; 
 But feelings of calm power and mighty sweep, 
 Like currents journeying through the windless deep. 
 
 7 
 "Seek'st thou, in living lays, 
 
 To limn the beauty of the earth and sky? 
 Before thine inner gaze 
 
 Let all that beauty in clear vision lie; 
 Look on it with exceeding love, and write 
 The words inspired by wonder and delight. 
 
 8 
 
 "Of tempests wouldst thou sing, 
 
 Or tell of battles — make thyself a part 
 Of the great tumult; cling 
 
 To the tossed wreck with terror in thy heart; 
 Scale, with the assaulting host, the rampart's height. 
 And strike and struggle in the thickest fight. 
 
 9 
 "So shalt thou frame a lay 
 
 That haply may endure from age to age, 
 And they who read shall say: 
 
 1 What witchery hangs upon this poet's page! 
 What art is his the written spells to find 
 That sway from mood to mood the willing mind!'" 
 
 In a word, Bryant's contention is that if one would 
 write effectively, "clothe in words of flame thoughts 
 that shall live," the writing should not be looked upon 
 as "the pastime of a drowsy summer day," for it is a 
 task requiring all our powers. Nor will mere industry 
 suffice, it is not enough to appeal to the intellect; the 
 heart must be touched, and to do that the writer 
 
THE RHETORICAL ESSENTIALS OF COMPOSITION 43 
 
 must fully feel his subject, " seize the great thought, 
 ere yet its power be past, and bind, in words, the fleet 
 emotion fast." The kind of emotion, too, that is to be 
 recorded, must be selected with care, and, at the time 
 of writing the vision of the design sought must be 
 kept before us as we live over the scene. And finally, 
 we must "summon back the original glow" as we revise 
 our work. 
 
 Study the poem carefully; it will help you to give 
 the personal touch to your work and, hence, to express 
 yourselves better. 
 
 If it be objected that it is all right to speak about the 
 poets feeling their subjects and the novelists living over 
 their scenes, but how about those who handle the 
 dull, dry subjects? How about the themes we have 
 to write in the high school or college? 
 
 The answer is that all who have attained real success 
 in any line of writing have done just what we have 
 seen to be true concerning Browning, Dickens, and 
 Hawthorne. Charles Darwin, to mention but one of 
 the great scientists, was in as intimate touch with his 
 work as Browning was, and the results show it. The 
 same is true of historians, essayists, journalists, and all 
 other kinds of writers. It is true that it takes more 
 time and effort to get upon intimate terms with some 
 kinds of subjects than others, but that should not 
 deter one from attempting it. As a matter of fact, the 
 secret of most people's lack of interest in their daily 
 tasks — and we include high school and college pupils 
 — is their failure to understand the joy of work as the 
 
44 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 only adequate means of living and expressing oneself. 
 They look upon it as a curse, not as a blessing; some- 
 thing to be belittled, scorned, and shunned, instead of 
 something to be magnified, loved, and sought. Right 
 here in the English work is a good opportunity to learn 
 that cheap cynicism about work is not an evidence of 
 superior intelligence and of good taste, but of quite 
 the opposite qualities. Nothing is more important to 
 learn than to get the right attitude toward one's work 
 and in composition writing it is absolutely essential. 
 The following stanza from a remarkable poem tells it 
 all, and with rare distinction and charm: 
 
 "Work! 
 Thank God for the might of it, 
 The ardor, the urge, the delight of it — 
 Work that springs from the heart's desire, 
 Setting the brain and the soul on fire — 
 Oh, what is so good as the heat of it, 
 And what is so glad as the beat of it, 
 And what is so kind as the stern command, 
 Challenging brain and heart and hand?" 
 — Work: A Song of Triumph : Angela Morgan 
 
 Testing the Work According to the Principles. The 
 reason so many make a failure of composition work 
 and come to the conclusion that they never can suc- 
 ceed and that it is not worth while anyway, is that 
 they persist in believing that a composition is some- 
 thing to be hastily dashed off, at a single sitting, the 
 night before it is due. We have shown that composi- 
 tion is just the opposite of that sort of thing; that it 
 is the process whereby the raw material of thoughts 
 and emotions is made into the finished product of 
 
THE RHETORICAL ESSENTIALS OF COMPOSITION 45 
 
 effective expression. The process implies working ac- 
 cording to fundamental principles, according to a def- 
 inite design, to accomplish a predetermined and worth- 
 while end. We have explained and illustrated the three 
 fundamental principles — unity, coherence, and empha- 
 sis or proportion. We have done the same with the 
 definite design by showing how the finished product 
 must possess the qualities of clearness, force, and ele- 
 gance. And we have shown that these qualities must 
 unite in so appealing to the intellect, the emotions, and 
 the aesthetic qualities of the reader or hearer as to 
 secure and hold his attention until he is influenced by 
 what he reads or hears. 
 
 All this comprises rhetoric in the true sense. What 
 some call rhetoric is often held cheap and looked upon 
 as even worthy of scorn, "an affected and exaggerated 
 display in the use of language." But rhetoric is noth- 
 ing of the sort. To call it "an affected and exaggerated 
 display in the use of language" is to pervert it and to 
 reveal a woeful ignorance. In fact it is only the 
 ignorant and the cynics who so designate it. This is 
 true rhetoric: "The art of perfecting discourse; the 
 art of presenting thought in language so as to influence 
 others." We have shown that the application of the 
 principles so as to secure the qualities of rhetoric, is 
 composition, the process of making the finished product 
 of effective expression. 
 
 The next step of testing the work according to the 
 principles is analogous to the work of the builder. He 
 selects his material according to his design, always on 
 
46 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 the alert to see that it is just what he wants and can 
 best use; then he shapes it and arranges it according 
 to his design, being ever careful that the separate 
 parts are properly joined together. But when he has 
 done all this, he carefully tests it again to discover any 
 possible errors in time to correct them. 
 
 So with the writer or speaker. He selects and eval- 
 uates his material according to the principle of unity 
 which is closely related to the quality of clearness 
 which must characterize the finished product. He as- 
 sembles the various parts of the material and binds 
 them together according to the principles of coherence 
 and of proportion, always remembering that the sta- 
 bility and attractiveness of the result demand constant 
 aiming at the qualities of force and elegance. 
 
 The threefold aim of being clear, forceful, and ele- 
 gant, it must be remembered, can be attained only 
 when, by observing the principle of unity, enough of 
 the right material is used and all that is incongruous is 
 eliminated; when, by observing the principle of co- 
 herence, the proper material is so arranged and put 
 together, within the sentence and within the paragraph, 
 that the relation between the parts is unmistakable; 
 when, by observing the principle of emphasis or pro- 
 portion, the more important parts of the material are 
 placed where they best catch the eye or ear, and so 
 give the sense of proper proportion. 
 
 It will help to comprehend the very heart of rhetoric 
 if the indisputable relationship between the three quali- 
 ties and the three principles is ever kept in mind. In 
 
THE RHETORICAL ESSENTIALS OF COMPOSITION 47 
 
 so far as the finished product is concerned, the qualities — 
 clearness, force, and elegance — are final. They com- 
 prise the end and the aim. The three principles — unity, 
 coherence, and emphasis or proportion — constitute the 
 means through which the end is reached. Keeping this 
 casual relation in mind, since it gives a philosophical 
 basis for the work of composition, will greatly aid dur- 
 ing the process of composition. It will help do away 
 with the feeling that these rhetorical terms are mere 
 words; it will help to comprehend them so that they 
 may become vital. 
 
 At first thought any subject that is technical seems 
 so difficult that many shun it. But it must be remem- 
 bered all art has its technical side; all work is first 
 technical; even the most ordinary acts of life, like 
 walking, are at first very technical. But when the 
 technique is mastered, not only its difficulty but its 
 very existence is forgotten. The student, upon first 
 being confronted with the technique of rhetoric, may 
 naturally say, "It is a mass of confusing rules and 
 definitions. " But when he has overcome the strange- 
 ness and mastered the technique, he will wonder why 
 it ever bothered him, and he will write and speak 
 rhetorically without ever being conscious of the laws 
 which once confused and annoyed him. When one 
 applies the tests of rhetoric to his work while planning 
 to write, and then tests it again to see how well he has 
 planned, he will find the task becoming less and less of 
 a task and more and more a delight, " challenging brain 
 and heart and hand"; he will gradually approach the 
 
48 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 delightful stage where all artifice is gone and true art 
 conceals art. 
 
 Now, at last, having secured and evaluated and 
 planned to arrange our material according to the prin- 
 ciples of rhetoric to attain the aim of rhetoric, and 
 having thought and lived intimately with our subject 
 and the material while planning to write, so that we 
 have actually been mastered, in a way, by it; now, at 
 last, we are ready to write. Being thoroughly prepared, 
 the act of writing, which at first seemed impossible 
 and was impossible then, is comparatively simple and 
 easy. Follow your design contained in your revised 
 and tested plan, but do not allow it to hamper you 
 unduly. Write without restraint as you are led on by 
 your ideal of what the finished product is to be, keep- 
 ing your reader in mind and studying how best to 
 impress him intellectually, emotionally, and aestheti- 
 cally. Write as rapidly as possible without careless- 
 ness, remembering that the personal touch, here as 
 heretofore, should keep you from mechanical formality. 
 
 If you are preparing a speech for oral delivery, try 
 out your phrases and sentences orally upon an imag- 
 inary audience; in other words, deliver your speech 
 beforehand until you have attained the desired oral 
 qualities and then report it fully so as to lose none of 
 its power. 
 
 The practice of speaking aloud the sentences you are 
 about to write is often found advantageous in any 
 kind of writing, without reference to its being used 
 
THE RHETORICAL ESSENTIALS OF COMPOSITION 49 
 
 orally. Moreover, when one sounds his words and sen- 
 tences, the practice both aids him in detecting errors 
 of euphony and of grammar and in overcoming self- 
 consciousness. Keep away from the " Now-I-take-pen- 
 in-hand" idea of writing; think rather of making the 
 expression of your message as real, as effective, as the 
 message itself. Then writing will become a pleasure; 
 its result a finished product capable of interesting and 
 influencing your reader. 
 
 Avoid the trite, the threadbare, the commonplace in 
 thought, in words, and in fuller expressions. 
 
 Seek striking, original, and even startling ways of 
 expressing your thoughts; but avoid letting such aims 
 lead you into positions that render you queer, eccentric, 
 or ridiculous. Learn to draw the line of nice distinc- 
 tion between these two classes of effects. 
 
 Be bold. Be daring. Be yourself. Be alive to what 
 you say and what you say will be alive. 
 
 Remember that words are but symbols of thoughts 
 and emotions and that no word is ever appropriate 
 unless it helps to make the thought or the emotion 
 clear, forceful, and attractive. 
 
 Never dawdle along when you should stop. Stop 
 with interest at its height. 
 
 Revision. When the writing is done, revise. This 
 is the time to apply the final test to the finished product. 
 For unity, look for any incongruous matter that may 
 have crept in, for digressions, for needless parenthetical 
 interpolations, and for omissions of any details essential 
 for unity. For coherence, test sentences, paragraphs, 
 
50 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 and the whole composition, to see that all minor parts 
 are so placed as to make the relations clear, that there 
 are no unwarranted changes in structure such as are 
 detrimental to coherence, and that all connectives con- 
 nect what they are intended to unite instead of parts 
 that are unrelated. For emphasis, test by examining 
 the emphatic positions, the beginnings and the ends 
 of the various parts and of the whole, to see that 
 what deserves distinction is so placed as to catch 
 the eye immediately, and to see that the proportion 
 between parts and the whole and parts and parts is 
 right. 
 
 Ordinarily such testing is sufficient. When these 
 tests have been rigorously applied the qualities depend- 
 ent upon them, clearness, force, and elegance, will be 
 present. 
 
 Occasionally, however, it is well to test for them by 
 looking for such violations of clearness as ambiguity, 
 vagueness, and obscurity; for such lack of force as 
 results from strained, far-fetched figures, mixed figures, 
 and loose constructions; and for such enemies of ele- 
 gance as "fine writing," ostentation, uneuphonious 
 words, slang, and other improprieties. 
 
 The test for diction is usually included in that for 
 elegance, but a careful scrutiny of the words employed 
 with a view to improvement, is always in order and 
 never without good results. 
 
 Having finished the testing process for revision, re- 
 write, and you have a finished process of effective 
 expression. 
 
THE RHETORICAL ESSENTIALS OF COMPOSITION 51 
 
 Suggestions for practice in applying the rhetorical 
 principles, laid down in this chapter, to material in 
 preparation for writing. 
 
 1. Study model paragraphs found in the various chapters and 
 at the end of this volume to find examples of the rhetorical qualities. 
 
 2. Plan, with the aid of loose cards, for brief compositions upon 
 subjects upon which you have material from observation or ex- 
 perience. With the threefold aim of all composition in mind, 
 arrange your material to secure unity, coherence, and emphasis, 
 bearing in mind that through all of these qualities clearness, force, 
 and elegance are made possible. 
 
 3. Write according to the above plan. 
 
 4. Revise by applying the tests laid down under the heading, 
 "Revision." 
 
 5. Rewrite. 
 
 6. Collect material upon the subject "Optimism" and then 
 plan for a composition of three hundred words upon the title, 
 •"Looking upon the Bright Side." Write, revise, and rewrite. 
 
 7. Collect material, organize it according to a general plan by 
 selecting the suitable material from the available and with the aid 
 of cards make your final plan by applying the rhetorical principles. 
 Write, revise, and, if necessary, rewrite brief compositions upon 
 the following titles: 
 
 My Favorite Hero of Fiction 
 
 A Place I Should Like to Visit 
 
 Why I Should Like to Know 
 
 My Favorite Study 
 
 A Page from My Diary 
 
 Misleading Proverbs 
 
 A Strange Superstition 
 
 Remember that in every case the present purpose is the acquiring 
 of facility in applying to the material the rhetorical principles laid 
 down in this chapter as means of "presenting thought in language 
 ■so as to influence others." 
 
CHAPTER III 
 DICTION 
 
 The first and the last requisite of good English is 
 good diction. Diction is the proper use of the words 
 most appropriate for the purpose of the writer or 
 speaker. 
 
 However proficient one may be in grammar, or even 
 in rhetoric, in a general way, so long as his diction is 
 defective he can never approach quite to the goal of 
 good English. The writer must have at least a fair 
 working vocabulary before beginning to write; he must 
 be able, upon his last review of his work, still further 
 to improve his diction. More than any other one 
 thing, the words a person uses reveal the man. Some 
 have called words the clothing or dress of our thoughts, 
 and the expression is suggestive. Wordsworth's say- 
 ing, however, comes nearer the truth. He says, " Words 
 are the incarnation of thoughts." Words give to 
 thoughts the best possible tangible body; they do more 
 if they are the right words; they give some adequate 
 expression of that elusive, intangible something which 
 we call "the soul" of words. Hence the importance of 
 good diction. 
 
 In his foreword to The Ruling Passion, Henry van 
 Dyke says: "Make me respect my material so that I 
 
 52 
 
DICTION 53 
 
 dare not slight my work. Help me to deal very honestly 
 with words and with people, because they are both 
 alive. " Since his own works rank so high he may be 
 said to have answered his own prayer. 
 
 The Soul of Words is the striking title of a chapter of 
 Ralcy Husted Bell's book, The Changing Values of 
 English Speech. Part of a single paragraph from that 
 chapter gives the author's conception of the value of 
 good diction: 
 
 "We know that Shakespeare, consciously 
 or not, had to do with the soul of words. He 
 was easily the king of metaphor. The won- 
 drous alchemy of his brain transformed the 
 dross to gold; it touched the coarest clay, and 
 lo! it was aglow with love. This many-sided 
 man toyed with words as a god might play 
 with the hearts of men, and this godlike dal- 
 liance of his never brutalized his words. He 
 breathed upon them and they wept. He threw 
 them into careless, happy throngs, where 
 rollick-laughter soothed the hurts of day and 
 banished the ghosts of night. He peopled the 
 brain with beauty; threw strange silhouettes 
 of shadow over the horizon's edge; and far 
 above the highest peaks of thought he sowed 
 all the heavens of the soul with myriad stars 
 of hope. He thought, and his words were wise ; 
 he felt, and they thrilled with infinite passion; 
 he looked out upon the green fields of Eng- 
 land, and in his soul every blossom was mated 
 with a word, every blade of grass and leaf and 
 brook and living thing was tallied with the 
 teeming symbols of his brain. Within his 
 
54 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 heart the very stones have speech. Words to 
 him were significant, more than lifeless blocks, 
 with which to rear the glittering domes of 
 thought. He was an architect who built with 
 life. He gave to words their weight and worth. 
 He never debased a syllable of his tongue, 
 never mutilated a word, never prostituted its 
 meaning, never humiliated it into slavery. 
 Every word, therefore, was a winged spirit 
 eager to do homage to his genius; and through 
 all these many years they have served him as 
 faithfully as love ever serves the heart of 
 
 Another has said: 
 
 " Words are the red corpuscles in the blood 
 of language, and upon language depends social 
 integrity. See the mighty importance of 
 words ! Is it less than sacrilegious to mistreat 
 them? Words being the red corpuscles of lan- 
 guage, it follows that the smaller one's vocabu- 
 lary is the more anaemic will be his brain's 
 children. ... I like the writer who will occa- 
 sionally drive me to the dictionary." 
 
 Such is the ideal use of words. What, however, do 
 we find? One has only to read Shakespeare, or any 
 good writer, or to hear any good speaker, to become 
 aware of the meagerness of his own vocabulary. With- 
 out the precise word to give it adequate expression, a 
 thought is soon lost. Inasmuch as we think mostly in 
 words, no thought can ever be other than vague and 
 incomplete until we have adequate words to embody it. 
 
DICTION 55 
 
 Reading is a most humiliating process for the one 
 with a small vocabulary. Not only does such a reader 
 fail to comprehend what he reads; he is literally "held 
 up" by every unknown word. He cannot intelligently 
 proceed. He is the slave of the unknown word. His 
 humiliation is complete. 
 
 The person with a very limited vocabulary is like a 
 would-be carpenter with only a saw and a hammer. 
 He can do a few things well; a few more he may be 
 able to do badly; but most of the great things he ought 
 to accomplish he cannot do at all. He cannot build 
 anything worth while. What he needs is a full kit of 
 tools. 
 
 So the person with a very limited vocabulary must 
 overuse the few words he has. Not only does this 
 process reveal his weakness in expression; it also wears 
 out the few words he has, making them less expressive. 
 Overused and wrongly used words, like a saw, become 
 dull. One so impoverished cannot express anything 
 well. At best he will talk and write only generalities 
 which are extravagant and false. He will, often with 
 a sense of satisfaction, resort to slang as if it were an 
 omnibus capable of carrying all sorts of ideas. Not 
 knowing the value of words, he will be unwise in 
 selecting new ones and ridiculous in using them. Bar- 
 barisms, improprieties, provincialisms, and solecisms, 
 will all be welcomed alike, so that even though his 
 vocabulary increases it cannot be said to improve; 
 though he may have more words he has not greater 
 power of expression. 
 
56 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 Before we discuss the properties of good diction, it 
 will be well to point out more fully the nature of bar- 
 barisms, improprieties, and solecisms. 
 
 Barbarisms. Barbarisms are words not in the 
 English language. They have been improperly derived 
 from foreign languages too hastily imported, or used 
 without being imported, and they are wrongly com- 
 pounded or abbreviated. Examples of the foregoing 
 are "chic," "ad libitum," "disremember," "Jap." 
 
 To use a foreign word when there is a perfect equiva- 
 lent in English is pedantic — it is an abnormal desire to 
 air one's knowledge of other languages. This fault, 
 however, must not be confused with the use of the 
 many words which have been adopted into our language 
 to supply a real demand, when they express an idea 
 for which there is no equivalent in English. Such words, 
 because of the history they embody, are better than 
 any which might be manufactured to take their place. 
 In fact, no "manufactured" words could take their 
 place. Hence, with perfect propriety and good sense, 
 we have borrowed and adopted alligator, cigar, negro, 
 and indigo from the Spanish; canto, sonnet, opera, and 
 portico from the Italian; ballast, boor, sloop, and yacht 
 from the Dutch; blonde, bouquet, depot, and trousseau 
 from the French; loafer, meerschaum, poodle, and zinc 
 from the German; acme, lexicon, pathos, and crisis from 
 the Greek; abbe, cherub, rabbi, and sabbath from the 
 Hebrew; canary, guinea, oasis, and zebra from the 
 African dialects; canoe, hammock, potato, tobacco, and 
 wigwam from various American Indian tongues; alco- 
 
DICTION 57 
 
 hoi, chemistry, coffee, and tariff from the Arabic ; china, 
 junk, silk, and tea from the Chinese; bungalow, calico, 
 jungle, and sugar from the Hindu; bamboo, gong, rattan, 
 and sago from the Malay; awning, bazaar, chess, and 
 sash from the Persian; boomerang, kangaroo, taboo, and 
 tattoo from the Polynesian dialects; caste, coconut, 
 lasso, and molasses from the Portuguese; czar, drosky, 
 rouble, and w&ase from the Russian; bey, ottoman, and 
 tulip from the Turkish. Most of these lists might be 
 greatly lengthened, but enough words have been given 
 to show that the English is greatly indebted to other 
 tongues for many words which are so Anglicized that 
 many never suspect their foreign origin. 
 
 Vulgarisms. Another class of barbarisms, or words 
 not in the English language, is vulgarisms. Though 
 not in the language, in the sense of reputable language, 
 they are altogether too much in the language of the 
 illiterate and the vulgar. Many of them are "clipped" 
 words, like "ad," "bike," "exam," "gents," "gym," 
 "phone," and "prelim." Others are improper com- 
 pounds, like "enthuse," "unbeknown," and "preven- 
 tative." 
 
 Some slang should be classed among vulgarisms, in- 
 asmuch as it uses words of its own that are not acknowl- 
 edged by good usage. In this class are "hit," "chump," 
 "biff," "snide," and the like, together with most of the 
 slang of certain classes, much of whose talk is incom- 
 prehensible to those outside their group — the slang of 
 the street urchin, sailors' slang, thieves' slang, college 
 slang, baseball slang, etc. 
 
58 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 Most slang, however, consists not of words not in 
 the language, but of proper words used in slangy com- 
 binations^ with slangy accent, and in other ingenious 
 ways to give them an unnatural effect. Such usage 
 will be considered under the heading " improprieties." 
 
 Newspaper reporters, and some editors, are fre- 
 quently "a law unto themselves" in the matter of lan- 
 guage, and many of their inventions are barbarisms, 
 while some, it must be confessed, might even be called 
 vulgarisms and slang. Common among their "inven- 
 tions" are nouns used as verbs, such as "to suspicion," 
 "to culture," "to railroad," and "to suicide"; and 
 verbs used as nouns, such as "a scoop," "an invite," 
 "a combine," and "a steal." 
 
 The ordinary newspaper is not a safe guide for those 
 who would improve their English. 
 
 Obsolete words were once in good use; now they are 
 barbarisms. 
 
 Newly coined words may some day become properly 
 current; until they do they are only barbarisms. 
 
 Improprieties. An Impropriety is a wrong use of 
 a good word, one that is actually in the language. They 
 are right as words, but are so used as to reveal the 
 ignorance of the user, who often employs them without 
 any regard to their meaning, or because they sound 
 something like what the user remembers having heard. 
 Improprieties are errors in both denotation and conno- 
 tation. The celebrated Mrs. Malaprop, as her name 
 indicates, indulged very freely in improprieties, and 
 with an air of perfect propriety could speak of "an 
 
DICTION 59 
 
 allegory on the banks of the Nile," "a nice derange- 
 ment of epitaphs." "Then, sir, she should have a super- 
 cilious knowledge of accounts," and the like. Shake- 
 speare's "Dogberry," and Mrs. "Quigley," belong to 
 the same class. But we do not have to go to literature 
 or to distant ages to find improprieties. The pupil who 
 defined a tragedy as a " heartrendering comedy not 
 fit to be seen," and the other who sought to praise her 
 friend's apparel by saying "she was dressed in the 
 garbage of an angel," were just as bad as Mrs. Mala- 
 prop. Such people are either very ignorant or over 
 anxious to be "funny." Whoever guesses at the mean- 
 ing of words and uses them just because they are "big 
 words," and because they sound "scholarly," is guilty 
 of this common form of indulging in improprieties. 
 
 Improprieties are as fatal to good English as they 
 are common. Their danger lies in the fact that they 
 render precision, and hence clearness, impossible. 
 
 While it is not to be supposed that intelligent people 
 will be guilty of confusing "garb" with "garbage," 
 ''allegory" with "alligator," and "arrangement" with 
 "derangement," it is not strange that, during the 
 process of learning, pupils should have some difficulty 
 with such words as "affect" and "effect," "lie" and 
 "lay," "learn" and "teach," "purpose" and "pro- 
 pose," "proscribe" and "prescribe," and many other 
 words that seem to be synonymous but are not. Conse- 
 quently we give a list of words often confused, that 
 their differences may be noted and heeded. 
 
60 
 
 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 ability — capacity 
 
 accept — except 
 
 acceptation — acceptance 
 
 access — accession 
 
 accredit — credit 
 
 acts — action 
 
 address — direct 
 
 adherence — adhesion 
 
 admire — like 
 
 admit — confess 
 
 advance — advancement 
 
 advice— advise 
 
 aggravating — irritating 
 
 ago — since 
 
 alleviate — relieve 
 
 allow — think 
 
 all ready — already 
 
 allude — elude 
 
 allusion — illusion — delusion 
 
 ally— alley 
 
 almost — most 
 
 alone — only 
 
 alternative — choice 
 
 among — between 
 
 ancestry — posterity 
 
 ancient — antiquated 
 
 anecdote — antidote 
 
 angry— mad 
 
 antagonize — oppose 
 
 antic — antique 
 
 apt— likely 
 
 argue — augur 
 
 as — like 
 
 assay — essay 
 
 assent — consent 
 
 assertion — statement 
 
 average— ordinary 
 
 awfully— very 
 
 badly— much 
 
 balance — remainder 
 
 barn — stable 
 
 bashful— modest 
 
 begin — initiate 
 beside — besides 
 bore — boor 
 bound — determined 
 bring — fetch 
 calamity — misfortune 
 can — may 
 casual — causal 
 cemetery— seminary 
 center — middle 
 champion — support 
 character — reputation 
 childlike— childish 
 chose — choose 
 click — clique 
 cloths — clothes 
 commercial — mercantile 
 company— guest 
 compare — contrast 
 compliment — complement 
 completion — completeness 
 confuse — confound 
 conscience — consciousness 
 consequence — importance 
 construe — construct 
 contagious — infectious 
 continual — continuous 
 converse — reverse 
 corporal — corporeal 
 counsel — council — consul 
 couple — two 
 credible — credulous 
 criticism — censure 
 crowd — company 
 cunning — amusing 
 custom — habit 
 dangerous — in danger 
 date— engagement— appoint- 
 ment 
 deadly— deathly 
 deal — transaction 
 deception — deceit 
 
DICTION 
 
 61 
 
 decided — decisive 
 decimate — destroy 
 definite — definitive 
 deny — refuse 
 depot— station 
 deprecate — depreciate 
 deteriorate — detract 
 difference — deference 
 directly — as soon as 
 discover — disclose 
 discover — invent 
 disinterested — uninterested 
 displace — replace 
 disposition — disposal 
 distinct — distinctive 
 divers — diverse 
 dominate — domineer 
 drive — ride 
 dumb— stupid 
 effect — affect 
 elude — illude 
 emigration — immigration 
 eminent — prominent 
 enormity — enormousness 
 equable — equitable 
 esteem — estimation 
 example — problem 
 exceed — excel 
 
 exceptional — exceptionable 
 exercise — exorcise 
 expose — expound 
 extend — give 
 falsity — falseness 
 farther — further 
 female— woman 
 final — finale 
 fire — throw 
 fix — repair — mend 
 fly— flee 
 fogy— foggy 
 funny — odd 
 genius — genus 
 
 gentleman — man 
 
 good — well 
 
 guilt — guile 
 
 happen — transpire 
 
 healthy — healthful 
 
 home — house 
 
 horrid — unpleasant 
 
 host — great many 
 
 human — humane 
 
 idol — idyl — idle 
 
 if — whether 
 
 ignorant — illiterate 
 
 illicit — elicit 
 
 implicate — involve 
 
 impotent — impudent 
 
 impractical — impracticable 
 
 impute — impugn 
 
 in — into 
 
 inaugurate — commence 
 
 individual — person 
 
 infallible — unfailing 
 
 ingenious — ingenuous 
 
 irony — sarcasm 
 
 its — it's 
 
 last — latest 
 
 lay— lie 
 
 lay — laid 
 
 learn — teach 
 
 lease — hire 
 
 leave — let 
 
 lend — loan 
 
 less — fewer 
 
 lightening — lightning 
 
 limit — limitation 
 
 limited — small 
 
 live — reside 
 
 locate — settle 
 
 long— lengthy 
 
 lose — loose 
 
 love — like 
 
 lovely — pretty 
 
 luxuriant — luxurious 
 
62 
 
 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 ma j ority— plurality 
 
 manly — mannish 
 
 moral — morale 
 
 most — almost 
 
 mutual — common 
 
 near — nearly 
 
 need — want 
 
 neglect — negligence 
 
 new — novel 
 
 nice — attractive — beautiful 
 
 noise — sound 
 
 notice — mention 
 
 notorious — notable — famous 
 
 observation — observance 
 
 obvious — evident 
 
 odious — odorous 
 
 often— constantly 
 
 oral— verbal 
 
 organism — organization 
 
 part — portion 
 
 partake — share 
 
 partly— partially 
 
 patron — customer 
 
 pay— settle 
 
 people— persons 
 
 petition — partition 
 
 perspicuity— perspicacity 
 
 pitiable— pitiful 
 
 plenty — abundance 
 
 plenty— plentiful 
 
 politic — political 
 
 pomace— pumice 
 
 posted — informed 
 
 practical — practicable 
 
 present — introduce 
 
 preventive — not preventative 
 
 product— produce — produc- 
 tion 
 
 professor -—instructor— 
 teacher 
 
 prominent — prominence 
 
 promise — assure 
 
 prophecy — prophesy 
 proposal — proposition 
 prosecute — persecute 
 purpose — propose 
 quite — quiet 
 raise — rise 
 real — really 
 real — very 
 real — reliable 
 recipe— receipt 
 recollect — remember 
 relation — relative 
 relic — relict 
 
 remunerate — reimburse 
 resourse — resource 
 respectively — respectfully 
 resume — sum up 
 reverend — reverent 
 romance — novel 
 rural — rustic 
 scared — afraid 
 scholar — pupil— student 
 series— succession 
 sewage — sewerage 
 shall — will 
 
 significance— signification 
 sit— set 
 site — situation 
 solicitude — solicitation 
 some — somewhat 
 stationery — stationary 
 statue — stature — statute 
 successful — successive 
 subtle — subtile 
 swath— swathe 
 tact— tack 
 their — there 
 then — than 
 tract — track 
 tragedy— disaster 
 transpire — happen 
 trend — direction 
 
DICTION 63 
 
 truth— veracity vocation — vacation — avoca- 
 union— unity— unison tion 
 
 university— college— school way— ways 
 
 unquestioned— unquestion- without— unless 
 
 able womanly — womanish 
 visitor— visitant 
 
 Slang. One of the commonest forms of improprie- 
 ties is slang. It comprises so many vivid and some- 
 what humorous metaphors, and is so often picturesque, 
 that it has many defenders who say that slang is but 
 idiomatic English in the early stages of development. 
 On the other hand, there are many who not only de- 
 nounce all slang, but all who use it. Such people say 
 that all slang is vulgar, and hence that no one can use 
 it without becoming vulgar. In view of these two facts 
 it becomes necessary to study this phase of diction 
 with discrimination. 
 
 In the first place, it is not true that all slang is vul- 
 gar. Much of it is; but much also is not. Slang is a 
 special, limited vocabulary, often consisting of bor- 
 rowed or coined words which gain ready acceptance 
 among people who are looking for immediate and strik- 
 ing effect, and who desire to register a protest against 
 hackneyed and commonplace usage. Such coinage and 
 usage of new ways of saying things is inevitable in a 
 living and growing language because the illiterate have 
 their share in making a language grow and in keeping 
 it alive. It is a fact, too, that some expressions that 
 were once slang are now reputable idioms which could 
 not be well spared. Such expressions as "up against 
 it," and "on the job," are so well on the way toward 
 
64 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 becoming idioms that it is going too far to call them 
 vulgar. It must be remembered that as soon as slang 
 becomes reputable it ceases to be slang. 
 
 What, then, is to be the attitude of the student of 
 good English toward slang? It should not be wholly 
 condemned, inasmuch as it has been shown to be a 
 step toward idiomatic English — the best English. If 
 one is student enough to know good slang from bad, if 
 he is strong enough to be master of it, he may use it 
 with proper discrimination upon the few occasions when 
 it is picturesque and expressive. One who occasionally 
 uses slang in this guarded way should not be denounced 
 as slangy and wholly condemned. A few, and but a 
 few, can trust themselves to use slang to a limited ex- 
 tent, but never vulgar slang. 
 
 On the other hand, the case against slang is so strong 
 that those whose practice is to use reputable words 
 only should not be denounced as literary prudes and 
 extreme purists. 
 
 The case against slang may be summed up as follows: 
 The users of slang are mostly those who are either 
 ignorant of real word-value or too lazy to select the 
 best word to express an idea adequately. What Shake- 
 speare said about idle words is also an apt description 
 of slang — "Idle words — servants to shallow fools. " 
 Idle words do nothing worth while. When one tries to 
 use a good word, such as peach, to describe every- 
 thing that meets with his approval, he demonetizes a 
 good word so that it becomes idle, because indefinite. 
 Slang is really the most ineffective form of speech, even 
 
DICTION Co 
 
 in its own narrow territory. Moreover, it is short lived; 
 a discovery to-day, a memory to-morrow. Slang is 
 fatal to the use of synonyms; it prevents all fine shades 
 of meaning. It sacrifices all possibility of growth into 
 a wider command of language for a supposed immedi- 
 ately picturesque and humorous effect. It is a penny- 
 wise-pound-foolish policy. It is a lawless adopting of 
 outlandish new substitutes for usage which long custom 
 has tested and which reputable writers and speakers 
 have made permanent. Careful people do not run after 
 every new and fantastic fashion in words; they wait, 
 and they are rewarded. In a word, the whole question 
 of slang reduces itself to this: If one would stagnate 
 and deteriorate, let him become a slave to slang. If one 
 would grow, let him make his diction a matter of study 
 and of conscience. 
 
 Oliver Wendell Holmes spoke to the point on this 
 form of impropriety: 
 
 "I think there is one habit worse than that 
 of punning. It is the gradual substitution of 
 cant or flash terms for words which truly char- 
 acterize their objects. I have known several 
 very genteel idiots whose whole vocabulary 
 had deliquesced into some half-dozen expres- 
 sions. All things fell into one of two great 
 categories, fast or slow. Man's chief end was to 
 be a brick. When the great calamities of life 
 overtook their friends, these last were spoken 
 of as being a great deal cut up. Nine tenths of 
 human existence were summed up in a single 
 word, bore. These expressions come to be alge- 
 
66 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 braic symbols of minds which have grown too 
 weak or too indolent to discriminate. They are 
 the blank checks of intellectual bankruptcy; 
 you may fill them out with what idea you like, 
 it makes no difference, for there are no funds 
 in the treasury upon which they are drawn. 
 . . . Do not think I undervalue the proper use 
 and application of a proper cant-word or 
 phrase. It adds picquancy to conversation, 
 as a mushroom does to a sauce. But it is no 
 better than a toadstool, odious to sense and 
 poisonous to the intellect when it spawns itself 
 all over the talk of men and youths capable of 
 talking, as it sometimes does. ..." 
 
 Let us discriminate and be shy of absolute pro- 
 scription. 
 
 Solecisms embrace all errors in grammar except 
 idioms, and need no further mention here. 
 
 Good Use. Words have " standing." There is what 
 Ruskin calls "the peerage of words," and it is by their 
 standing that our words must be judged. We call this 
 standard good use, a term which demands explana- 
 tion. It means the words used by the best writers of 
 English and the best speakers of the language. By 
 "best" we mean those writers and speakers who have 
 succeeded in so appealing to their readers and listen- 
 ers as to hold their attention, make them understand 
 their message, feel its importance (or lack of import- 
 ance), and receive some pleasure from the manner in 
 which the message is presented. Good use is a sort of 
 standardizing of the words of those who have been 
 
DICTION 67 
 
 able writers and have succeeded in making what they 
 wrote clear, forceful, and elegant. It is more than the 
 verdict of public opinion, for that could not measure 
 good use. Numbers do not settle such matters. It 
 is the verdict of the opinion of the few who have the 
 right to be called authorities; an opinion expressed, 
 not directly as an opinion, but indirectly through the 
 way they have written. Good, enduring literature is 
 the source of what we call good use. Grammars and 
 dictionaries have been made from a study of good 
 literature, and are the great aids in keeping people 
 to-day up to the standard of literature without the 
 need of an exhaustive study of literature. Grammars 
 and dictionaries are the practical means of bringing the 
 standards of good use within reach of all. 
 
 By good use we mean reputable, national, and present 
 use. 
 
 Reputable Use. By reputable words we mean those 
 of good reputation, those habitually employed by the 
 best writers and speakers, those which do not offend 
 good taste; in brief, we mean words which are not 
 barbarisms or improprieties. Reputable words are 
 those which are pronounced "good" because they are 
 used by all the best makers of literature. 
 
 National Use. By national use we mean universal 
 use as far as our own country is concerned. It means 
 that no localisms, no provincialisms, can be accepted 
 as "good use." It means that whatever one writes 
 must be equally intelligible to readers in Boston, Phila- 
 delphia, Chicago, New Orleans, and San Francisco. 
 
68 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 National use, however, is to be taken in a wider 
 sense to include universal "good use" in England as 
 well as in America. While, of course, there are some 
 differences, good English words are good American 
 words; good American words are also good English 
 words. England and America are both constantly bor- 
 rowing from each other, so that it is safe to say that 
 " national use" means good use by the best writers 
 and speakers who use the English language the world 
 over. 
 
 Well-read people never find difficulty in understand- 
 ing authors who give " local color" to descriptions of 
 places characterized by their own peculiarities and who 
 make characters in books speak their own language, 
 however full of provincialisms it may be. In fact they 
 count such usage one of the chief charms of literature. 
 Writers violate the principle of " national use" only 
 when they use local words, barbarisms, technical words, 
 and Anglicisms, when there is no good reason for so 
 doing and every reason for speaking so as to satisfy 
 the universal demand for a commonly understood 
 diction. 
 
 Present Use. By present use is meant the employ- 
 ment of words now understood and with the meaning 
 now understood. This principle rules out obsolete 
 words and "new words," by which we mean those not 
 yet accepted, such as slang, newspaper words, and the 
 like. The word prevent, as used in the authorized 
 version of the Bible and in Shakespeare, means "to go 
 before." Now it means "to hinder," and should be 
 
DICTION 69 
 
 used in that sense only. The same is true of let. When 
 Hamlet says: 
 
 "By Heaven, I'll make a ghost of him that lets me," 
 
 he uses the word let according to the meaning then 
 accepted; namely, "to hinder." Now, however, it 
 means just the opposite, and should be used in that 
 sense in accordance with the principle of " present use." 
 
 Most rhetoricians agree in saying that good use is 
 determined by the three principles just explained: re- 
 putable use, national use, and present use. The three 
 characteristics, however, are all relative, and should 
 not be used in an arbitrary sense in applying them to 
 a living and constantly changing language like our 
 own. As general principles they are of great value; as 
 strict rules they would be found confusing. 
 
 The Writer's Problem. The writer's problem is to 
 become the master of a sufficiently large and varied 
 vocabulary to enable him to embody his thoughts, and 
 the separate ideas which compose them, in such a way 
 as to make them readily intelligible to others, interest- 
 ing to them, and, as far as possible, pleasing to them. 
 Of fundamental importance in learning to "make a 
 finished product of effective expression" is the writer's 
 supply of words. By "supply of words" we do not, of 
 course, mean the words one may hunt up in a diction- 
 ary. They are not his. By "supply of words " we mean 
 the words one knows and can use immediately. Unless 
 this supply is comparatively large the writer will find 
 it impossible to make any progress when he begins to 
 
70 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 embody his thoughts in a tangible form. If he has to 
 stop too often to consult a dictionary he will lose his 
 trend of thought and give up in despair. One must have 
 a good working vocabulary before beginning to write. 
 Only when he has that can he hope to get help from 
 the dictionary, or book of synonyms, to supplement 
 what he has. To depend wholly upon the dictionary 
 at the time of writing must be avoided. How, then, 
 shall one secure his vocabulary? 
 
 Vocabulary Building. Vocabulary building is a life- 
 long process. The small child begins with no vocabu- 
 lary at all, but as soon as he learns to prattle he picks 
 up new words almost daily by the process of imitating 
 his elders. This goes on continuously, for he seems 
 proud of his growing powers of expression until he enters 
 his teens, when, all too often, he is inclined to rest upon 
 his accomplishments in vocabulary building. In many 
 cases, doubtless, he may feel justified in this, because 
 he has already a larger supply of words than his par- 
 ents. But this is the time, usually coincident with his 
 entering high school, when higher standards than paren- 
 tal example become necessary. Then is the time for 
 you (we address you directly now) to apply an educa- 
 tional standard in the use of which your teachers can 
 guide you. 
 
 Every new subject will require a large number of 
 new words if you would understand it. In your Eng- 
 lish you will read many books dealing with life in terms 
 new to you. To understand and to appreciate these 
 books you will again have to increase your vocabulary. 
 
DICTION 71 
 
 Every new word acquired will soon become an old 
 friend who will make further reading both easier and 
 more interesting. If you do not master the strange 
 words they will cause you embarrassment every time 
 you meet them, and you will not make progress; you 
 may even be tempted to call your studies dull and un- 
 interesting. The difficulty, however, will be in you 
 and not in the books. If you form the habit, which 
 will at first be attended with labor, you will make 
 steady progress and you will like it, feeling new power 
 with every new word. No one thing can do more for 
 you in making it easy to understand what you read 
 and in making it possible for you to express your own 
 thoughts. 
 
 The Value of an Adequate Dictionary. We say " ade- 
 quate" because altogether too many seem to think 
 that any dictionary will do, so they try to get along 
 with an old one, an old one newly bound and sold 
 cheap, or a very small one. All of these are inadequate 
 because they are out of date or because they are too 
 much abridged. Their definitions are often only syn- 
 onymns, and hence are misleading. Every student 
 should possess a dictionary of his own — an unabridged 
 one if possible, but none smaller than the high school 
 student's or a "desk" dictionary, such as the Webster's 
 Academic Dictionary. 
 
 An adequate dictionary gives the following informa- 
 tion: 
 
 1. Spelling (including syllabication, e.g.., syl-lab-i-ca- 
 tion). 
 
72 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 2. Approved pronunciations, i.e., all allowed by good 
 usage, together with accent marks and the sounds of 
 the letters. 
 
 3. Etymology, or derivation, of words. 
 
 4. Part, or parts, of speech, including the principal 
 parts of verbs. 
 
 5. The meanings. When necessary further informa- 
 tion is given telling when a word is archaic, obsolete, 
 obsolescent, colloquial, or slang. 
 
 6. Synonyms and antonymns. 
 
 7. Sentences illustrating various meanings (in un- 
 abridged dictionaries). 
 
 In the use of large dictionaries, where several defini- 
 tions are given, one must be careful to examine them 
 all to insure his finding the exact information wanted. 
 For instance, take the word " diction " as treated in 
 the New Standard Dictionary: 
 
 dic'tion, 1, dik'shan; 2, dfc'shon, n. 1. The 
 use of words or the manner of using them, 
 either in literature, oratory, or song; the man- 
 ner in which anything is expressed in words. 
 It includes articulation, pronunciation, intona- 
 tion, declamation, and punctuation. 2. Spe- 
 cif., that department of rhetoric which deals 
 with the choice and arrangement of words and 
 modes of expression. See Style, Vocabulary. 
 3. A phrase; a verbal description. [<L. die- 
 tio(n), <dico, say]. 
 
 Syn. : Expression, language, phrase, phrase- 
 ology, style, vocabulary, wording. An author's 
 diction is strictly his choice and use of words, 
 
DICTION 75 
 
 with no special reference to thought; expres- 
 sion regards the words simply as the vehicle 
 of thought. Phrase and phraseology apply to 
 words or combinations of words which are 
 somewhat technical; as in legal phraseology) 
 in military phrase. Diction is general; word- 
 ing is limited; we speak of the diction of an 
 author or of a work, the wording of a proposi- 
 tion, a resolution, etc. {verbiage never bears 
 this sense; see Circumlocution). The language 
 of a writer or speaker may be the national 
 speech he employs; as, the English or French 
 language) or the word may denote his use of 
 that language; as, the author's language is 
 Well (or ill) chosen. Style includes diction, ex- 
 pression, rhetorical figures such as metaphor 
 and simile, the effect of an author's prevailing 
 tone of thought, of his personal traits — in 
 short, all that makes up the clothing of 
 thought in words; thus, we speak of a figura- 
 tive style, a frigid or an argumentative style, or 
 of the style of Macaulay, Prescott, etc. 
 
 That single illustration of the word diction, which it 
 is now most essential to understand fully, shows the 
 value of the dictionary. It is the guidebook without 
 which no student of English can travel far, nor at all 
 profitably, into the vast unknown country of literature. 
 No other book so well compensates for the amount of 
 study given it. No other book can take its place. 
 Learn how to use it. When you know how to use it, 
 and use it daily and often every day, only then will 
 you fully comprehend its value; The more you use it 
 
74 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 the more it will impart to you its treasures, and the 
 more you will value them. Constant use of the dic- 
 tionary while in school and college will result in such 
 a vocabulary that afterward only an occasional con- 
 sultation will suffice; but a stinted, haphazard, and 
 begrudging use during one's period of adolescence and 
 early manhood, when knowledge comes comparatively 
 easily, will mean a whole life handicapped with a bur- 
 den of embarrassing ignorance. 
 
 Emerson went so far as to commend the dictionary 
 as a book to read, and his diction is undeniable evi- 
 dence of the extent of his familiarity with it. He said : 
 "Neither is a dictionary a bad book to read. There 
 is no cant in it, no excess of explanation,_and it is full 
 of suggestion.' ' 
 
 (Note: The greatest dictionary in existence is the Oxford Dic- 
 tionary. It is exhaustive, the last word on the subject. The best 
 American dictionaries are the Standard, Webster's, and the Cen- 
 tury (encyclopedic). 
 
 Acquiring and using the dictionary habit is the only 
 adequate method of solving the problem of vocabulary 
 building. It does solve it. 
 
 But the mere possession of a large supply of words 
 does not solve the problem of diction, which, as we have 
 seen, means the right use of words in expression. Hav- 
 ing an adequate vocabulary, how shall one proceed to 
 use it? Even the standards of good usage, already 
 explained, do not go far enough. We must learn the 
 two fundamental powers of words, denotation and con- 
 notation. 
 
DICTION 75 
 
 Denotation. Denotation is the naming of a thing, 
 marking it off to distinguish it from all other things, 
 giving a logical definition of it. The dictionary gives 
 the denotation of a word. What a word denotes has 
 to do with the word itself without regard to other 
 words with which it may be used, without regard to 
 any special significance it may have for some people. 
 The first matter to decide in choosing a word is that 
 it can express the exact meaning you have in mind. 
 All words have denotation. 
 
 Connotation. By Connota ion we mean a secon- 
 dary denotation, a reference to something else than 
 the object named, but suggested by it. Most nouns, 
 verbs, adjectives, and interjections have varying de- 
 grees of connotation; the other parts of speech have 
 little or none. The amount of connotation a word may 
 have depends upon the intelligence and the emotional 
 activity and imagination of the reader. It may be 
 called a subjective quality from the viewpoint of the 
 reader. But a writer cannot give his reader the pleas- 
 ure of finding a rich connotation without selecting con- 
 notative words. The only sure way to know such words 
 is to study literature, especially poetry, until one is 
 familiar with words as others have used them, until he 
 has seen the company they have kept. The " better 
 read" one is, the more he knows of life, the richer his 
 experiences, the more he will be able to choose words 
 rich in connotation, full of suggestiveness, and hence 
 capable of arousing the interest and promoting the 
 pleasure of the intelligent reader. 
 
76 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 The chief source of pleasure in reading comes from 
 connotation. The more one reads, if he reads appre- 
 ciatively, the more he will want to read. Knowing 
 the power of connotation he can "read between the 
 lines," find countless appropriate images clustering 
 around familiar words, and find charms of which the 
 uninitiated never dream. The writer must select words 
 of connotation to produce the finished product of effec- 
 tive expression capable of interesting the reader. 
 
 Since much of the charm of poetry lies in its sugges- 
 tiveness, we naturally turn to the poets for examples 
 of perfect connotation. Few words may be used, the 
 facts stated may be but trifling, but the thought reac- 
 tion, the emotional reaction they produce, is often 
 tremendous. Take, for example, Poe's lines from Helen. 
 
 "To the glory that was Greece 
 And the grandeur that was Rome." 
 
 Note also the almost uncanny connotation from the 
 single fine which closes Poe's Haunted Palace, so truly, 
 so sadly characterizing the insane: 
 
 "And laugh — but smile no more." 
 
 The closing fines of Wordsworth's She Dwelt Among 
 the Untrodden Ways give a splendid connotation of 
 pathos, though the word used is "difference." 
 
 "But she is in her grave, and, oh, 
 The difference to me!" 
 
 The secret of enjoying connotation, even the secret 
 of finding it, lies in a leisurely reading, in second thought 
 
DICTION 77 
 
 to give the implied meanings time to reach us. Linger 
 over the following lines from Wordsworth's Excursion 
 and see if you do not find a forceful connotation sug- 
 gesting desolation, loneliness, and yet a home not to 
 be despised. 
 
 "A quiet treeless nook, with two green fields, 
 A liquid pool that glittered in the sun, 
 And one bare dwelling; one abode, no more! 
 It seemed the home of poverty and toil, 
 Though not of want: the little fields made green 
 By husbandry of many thrifty years, 
 Paid cheerful tribute to the moorland house." 
 
 Words expressive of great emotion — love, joy, ecstasy, 
 sorrow, patriotism, are always so full of meaning that 
 they overflow, as it were, with suggestions of more 
 meaning for all who have shared such emotions. Fig- 
 urative words are connotative because, from their very 
 nature, they imply some sort of comparison, and so 
 bring up other ideas appealing to the imagination. 
 How rich in connotation are metaphors, apostrophes, 
 allusions! The success of an allegory, or even a parable 
 or fable, depends upon appreciating the large conno- 
 tation. The same is true of satire and humor. A sense 
 of humor might be defined as an ability to discover 
 pleasing connotations. Words used with striking suc- 
 cess by authors; words inseparably associated with 
 noted men or events in history, such as mark the 
 struggle for liberty and independence; mystic words, 
 passwords, symbolic words, whatever their denotation, 
 have a wide connotation. Then, too, there are count- 
 less words which have a personal connotation, full of 
 
78 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 suggestion for ourselves though not for others, such as 
 words reminiscent of red-letter days, great sorrows, 
 crises in our lives, and all things that have affected us 
 peculiarly or profoundly. 
 
 So important is connotation, and so little appreciated, 
 that I quote two paragraphs from Professor S. H. 
 Clark's Interpretation of the Printed Page'. 
 
 "Relevatory as the discussion of connota- 
 tion has been, it has merely emphasized what 
 we have always known — that words are sug- 
 gestive, and that they stir us emotionally. 
 But have we not learned the greatest of all 
 lessons in connection with the study of litera- 
 ture? Learned that it cannot be taught, that 
 it can only be presented to you for your ac- 
 ceptance or rejection? You have come to see 
 that it appeals not to the practical or scientific 
 side of your nature, but to the imaginative; 
 that its purpose is to give you 'delight/ as 
 Lowell says, through the arousal of the emo- 
 tions; and connotation is the most important 
 element in stirring the imagination and arous- 
 ing the feelings. Your delight is in the pic- 
 tures, ideas, thoughts, characters, music, of 
 the verse and prose which is called literature. 
 You have come to see now that without de- 
 notation the connotation may escape you en- 
 tirely; and best of all, you see that all you 
 know of life, art, history, science, nature, the 
 wider will be for you the connotation of litera- 
 ture. And it is connotation that makes litera- 
 ture great. 
 
 "It is the beauty about us in man and na- 
 
DICTION 79 
 
 ture that stirs the artist's heart and is the im- 
 pulse to create. It is what the ordinary man 
 fails to see that moves the artist's soul and 
 urges him to expression, whether he be painter 
 or sculptor or poet. To arouse deep feeling — 
 of joy or pity or indignation or love — that is 
 the artist's mission. Everything in literature 
 depends upon the connotation. And the con- 
 notation depends upon our experience, our 
 temperament, our education. What moves 
 me may not move others, and what stirs them 
 may leave me cold. But the greatest artist is 
 he whose appeal is the most nearly universal 
 to all peoples and to all times." 
 
 Denotation and connotation indicate in a general 
 way how to select the right word. To be more specific, 
 however, we must test the. fitness of words by examin- 
 ing them in the light of the three great rhetorical quali- 
 ties — clearness, force, and elegance. 
 
 The Right Word for Clearness. Words are but the 
 symbols whereby ideas are indicated. Clearness de- 
 mands that of all possible words the one should be 
 chosen which embodies the idea most precisely. Pre- 
 cision is not satisfied with finding a word that is good, 
 that is of reputable, national, and present use; it de- 
 mands the word that expresses the idea in mind with 
 exactness and without any likelihood of appearing am- 
 biguous, vague, or obscure to the reader. This means 
 that an abstract idea requires an abstract word; that 
 a concrete idea requires a concrete word ; that a general 
 idea requires a general word; that a specific idea re- 
 
80 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 quires a specific word; that a technical idea requires 
 a very specific, or technical word, and that any idea of 
 exceptional significance, such as a homely idea, a dis- 
 tinctly local one, or a poetic one, requires a word that 
 expresses the homeliness, local color, or poetic appeal, 
 with precision. 
 
 The commonest mistakes are made by using general 
 terms to excess. Some, however, after being told that 
 specific words are better than general ones, get into the 
 habit of using them even when general ones are more 
 precise. 
 
 The secret of clearness in the use of words lies in 
 clear thought. If the idea is clearly defined in the 
 mind of the writer, he will not be satisfied with the 
 first word he thinks of. He will estimate the fitness of 
 all possible words, to find which one will precisely 
 denote the idea. If he is in doubt he will refresh his 
 memory by consulting a dictionary or book of syn- 
 onyms until he finds which word is best for his present 
 purpose. The dictionary will give the correct denota- 
 tion and the book of synonyms will give him the exact 
 shade of meaning for the adequate embodying of his 
 idea. Time thus spent is never wasted. Care here 
 will soon render one practically immune from the dan- 
 ger of using improprieties; being on the alert for the 
 right word, he will accept nothing else. 
 
 For instance, when the present writer once sought to 
 characterize Mrs. Gaskell's Cranford with great pre- 
 cision, and at the same time to avoid giving the idea 
 that the book might be called weak and without charm, 
 
DICTION 81 
 
 lie consulted Roget's Thesaurus, after which he was 
 satisfied, and wrote this sentence, "Crawford is never 
 overdrawn, never stilted nor insipid [italicised here but 
 not in the original], never vulgar, and never unsympa- 
 thetic nor unkindly critical." 
 
 In expository writing, where clearness is the most 
 essential quality, the exact word is absolutely essential. 
 In narration and description it adds life and vividness, 
 and is again indispensable. It has been said of Poe 
 and Coleridge that they had "a genius for the right 
 word," and it is because of that quality that their 
 writings so satisfy our " word sense " and prepare the way 
 for the other appeals which they make upon the reader. 
 
 It is not in regard to the nouns and verbs alone that 
 precision is necessary. Adjectives and adverbs de- 
 mand the greatest care lest we use too strong or too 
 weak ones, and so violate the dictum of precision. 
 And even prepositions and conjunctions, if selected 
 with care, go far toward securing the product of effec- 
 tive expression. 
 
 The following paragraph from Poe's Fall of the House 
 of Usher may well serve the double purpose of illus- 
 trating the precise word for securing clearness and the 
 right word to produce force. The italicized words, 
 mostly adjectives and adverbs, make it impossible to 
 miss the writer's meaning, the denotation of the words; 
 while, at the same time, they have such evident conno- 
 tation that we feel the writer's emotions. 
 
 " During the whole of a dull, dark, and 
 soundless day in the autumn of the year, when 
 
82 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 the clouds hung oppressively low in the heav- 
 ens, I had been passing alone, on horseback, 
 through a singularly dreary tract of country, 
 and at length found myself, as the shades of 
 the evening drew on, within view of the mel- 
 ancholy House of Usher. I know not how it 
 was, but with the first glimpse of the building 
 a sense of insufferable gloom pervaded my spirit. 
 I say insufferable, for the feeling was unrelieved 
 by any of that half-pleasurable, because poe- 
 tic, sentiment with which the mind usually re- 
 ceives even the sternest natural images of the 
 desolate or terrible. I looked upon the scene 
 before me — upon the mere house, and the sim- 
 ple landscape features of the domain — upon 
 the bleak walls — upon the vacant eyelike win- 
 dows — upon the few rank sedges — and upon a 
 few white trunks of decayed trees — with an 
 utter depression of soul which I can compare to 
 no earthly sensation more properly than to 
 the after-dream of the reveler upon opium — 
 the bitter lapse into everyday life — the hideous 
 dropping off of the veil. There was an iciness, 
 sl sinking, a sickening of the heart — an unre- 
 deemed dreariness of thought which no goading 
 of the imagination could torture into aught of 
 the sublime. What was it — I paused to think 
 — what was it that so unnerved me in the con- 
 templation of the House of Usher? It was a 
 mystery all insoluble ; nor could I grapple with 
 the shadowy fancies that crowded upon me as 
 I pondered. I was forced to fall back upon the 
 unsatisfactory conclusion that while, beyond 
 doubt, there are combinations of very simple 
 natural objects which have the power of thus 
 
DICTION 83 
 
 affecting us, still the analysis of this power lies 
 among the considerations beyond our depth. 
 It was possible, I reflected, that a mere differ- 
 ent arrangement of the particulars of the scene 
 of the details of the picture would be sufficient 
 to modify, or perhaps to annihilate its capacity 
 for sorrowful impression ; and acting upon this 
 idea, I reined my horse to the precipitous brink 
 of a black and lurid tarn that lay in unruffled 
 luster by the dwelling, and gazed down — but 
 with a shudder even more thrilling than before 
 — upon the remodeled and inverted images of 
 the gray sedge, and the ghastly tree stems, and 
 the vacant and eyelike windows.' y 
 
 The Right Word for Force. Necessary as clearness is 
 to insure perfect understanding, it is often incapable 
 of arousing interest. As we have already seen, interest 
 depends upon force and force upon connotation. The 
 word that stands the test for clearness may, or may 
 not, stand the test for force. It may appeal to the 
 mind, but not to the emotions; it may be clear, but 
 weak, and so leave the reader unmoved. The only 
 way to remedy this defect is to choose the right words 
 for force. 
 
 Here again the study of synonyms aids us. Among 
 the possible synonyms which might be used, the prin- 
 ciple of force demands that we select the one which 
 not only denotes the idea we wish to express, but the 
 one which also connotes, or suggests, something more 
 than its precise meaning. One of the best ways of being 
 forceful enough to arouse interest is to choose homely 
 
84 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 words, words which are everywhere familiar because 
 they have been in use so long, because they bring up 
 many memories and deep emotions; because, in a 
 word, of their rich connotation. 
 
 Take the word home itself. It is probably the richest 
 in connotation of all the words in the English language, 
 even including the word mother, for the word home 
 connotes mother. By homely words we mean those 
 closely associated with home, used in the home in 
 constant, daily intercourse. They are always forceful, 
 and hence interesting. They arrest the attention; they 
 are expressive; they are effective. They might almost 
 be called " living words" but for the fact that the con- 
 notation of " living words" is such that it is better, 
 here, to call them vital words. 
 
 There is to-day a dangerous tendency, even in the 
 home, to substitute slang for homely words. Those 
 who do so may simply mean to use especially expres- 
 sive words, and they think slang very expressive. It 
 takes but little thought, however, to make it clear to 
 one that, except in a very limited sphere, slang is the 
 least expressive of all language. Its very newness, its 
 lack of connotation, make it feeble indeed when con- 
 trasted with the pure, homely words which so abound 
 in the mother tongue. 
 
 Closely associated with homely words are idioms, 
 those most homely expressions which have survived 
 from the earliest times and are so rich in metaphor, in 
 associations. Idiomatic English is the best English and 
 it is the best because the most forceful. 
 
DICTION 85 
 
 There are many occasions when homely words are 
 not entirely appropriate, when words of more formality 
 are required to produce the desired force. The most 
 effective method, then, is to select figurative words, 
 words which increase their connotative power because 
 they are used in some other than their literal sense, and 
 so make a strong appeal to the imagination. Metaphor, 
 personification, and apostrophe are the figures most 
 suitable for increasing the force of an idea. To say, "I 
 remember," is perfectly clear, but wholly lacking in 
 force. But note the force of these words, " Remem- 
 brance wakes with all her busy train." 
 
 Take a single sentence from the quotation from Poe 
 (page 81): "It was a mystery all insoluble) nor could 
 I grapple with the shadowy fancies that crowded upon 
 me as I pondered." Note the italicized words. Not 
 only do they make the meaning clear; they make us 
 feel as the traveler felt as he saw the bleak walls of the 
 melancholy House of Usher. Each word overflows 
 with suggestion — mystery, insoluble, grapple, shadowy f 
 fancies, crowded, pondered. We cannot get away from 
 such words. In spite of ourselves our attention is 
 riveted upon them. We are interested. 
 
 The chief secret of force in words is to choose words 
 rich in connotation. 
 
 The Right Word for Elegance. Elegance, like clear- 
 ness and force, must be considered in finding the right 
 word. Elegance is an undervalued quality of rhetoric. 
 It is, however, of the greatest importance. Negatively, 
 it should prevent us from giving offense; positively, it 
 
86 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 should enable us to please. Elegance has to do with the 
 niceties of language; with aptness and appropriateness 
 in selecting words; with propriety suitable to the sub- 
 ject considered, the occasion, and the kind of persons 
 addressed. Elegance demands clearness; allows a cer- 
 tain amount of force, but opposes too much force. 
 Elegance is like the governor of an engine, regulating 
 it and making it run smoothly. Elegance has to do 
 with "the fitness of things." It is the personification 
 of the judgment and good taste of the writer, keeping 
 him safely within bounds; preventing wild and un- 
 controlled outbursts; keeping him sane; giving him 
 poise. No writer can afford to ignore elegance. 
 
 Elegance demands that adaptation of language to 
 thought which makes us feel that words have done 
 "their perfect work," so that we are pleased. Brutus 
 used such words before the mob as might have pleased 
 the senate, but were beyond the comprehension of the 
 mob. Antony adapted his words to his subject, to the 
 occasion, and to his audience. From the viewpoint of 
 adaptation and fitness, Brutus' speech lacked elegance, 
 while Antony's possessed it. In general, elegance is 
 opposed to all ungrammatical, slipshod speech or writ- 
 ing; to slang; to all improprieties and barbarisms, and 
 to too many colloquialisms. In general, elegance .dic- 
 tates a very different kind of language for the sermon 
 and the popular address; for the lecture before a cul- 
 tured audience and the political speech. And yet, the 
 law of fitness would demand that the Bowery Mission 
 talk should be very different from the Fifth Avenue 
 
DICTION 87 
 
 church sermon. This book is addressed to pupils of 
 high school and college age, boys and girls of at least 
 average intelligence, and a willingness to learn the prin- 
 ciples of composition. The purpose of the writer has 
 been to make the style of the book appropriate for 
 such pupils; not for eighth-grade pupils. To be ap- 
 propriate for the reader words must not be above him, 
 nor beneath him; young children should not be ad- 
 dressed as adults, nor adults as young children. Simple 
 subjects demand simple words; profound subjects re- 
 quire words in keeping with their character. Mr. 
 Micawber, with his flowery words and stilted speech 
 for all occasions, generally revealed what elegance is 
 not. In this connection the fact that fine writing is 
 not tolerated by the principle of elegance is evident. 
 Fine writing is as much a violation of elegance as is 
 the use of slang. Display of any kind is as offensive 
 to good taste when it is used in language as when it 
 is seen in dress. In the use of figures of speech this is 
 especially important. Clearness, force, and elegance 
 are all aided by such figures as suggest themselves 
 naturally; far-fetched, overostentatious, flowery fig- 
 ures too easily lend themselves to grotesque effects. 
 
 Dryden's words are to the point: "When men affect 
 a virtue which they cannot reach they fall into a vice 
 which bears the nearest resemblance to it. Thus an 
 injudicious poet who aims at loftiness runs easily into 
 the swelling, puffy style, because it looks like greatness. ft 
 
 Elegance is an aid to both clearness and force in the 
 interest of economy in words, not from an economical 
 
88 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 point of view, but from the artistic. Verbosity, tau- 
 tology, and redundancy are as aesthetically displeasing 
 as they are economically wasteful. To make one word 
 serve where you are tempted to use two is in the in- 
 terest of all good qualities of composition. " Brevity 
 is the soul of wit"; it is more, it is the secret of effec- 
 tiveness in all writing and speaking. "Be brief, be 
 l>rief, but not too brief," is another good maxim. Be 
 as concise as clearness will permit. Avoid a " fatal 
 fluency"; avoid, at the same time, such a lazy or 
 miserly hoarding of words as indicates, or seems to 
 indicate, poverty of thought. Remember that economy 
 means not too few and not too many words, but just 
 enough. 
 
 The evil effect of ignoring the law of economy in 
 words is clearly shown in the following remark of a 
 debater concerning his opponent. He said, "The gen- 
 tleman of the affirmative is evidently carried away 
 with the exuberance of his own verbosity." It was effec- 
 tive. The debater referred to was the only one so 
 carried away; his thought was all too meager for such 
 expression and his wordiness did not conceal but did 
 reveal the fact. 
 
 Caution must, of course, be used to discriminate be- 
 tween wrong kinds of repetition and justifiable repe- 
 tition for rhetorical effect. 1 
 
 Euphonious Words. Closely related to the repeti- 
 tion of ideas in unrhetorical ways is the repetition of 
 similar sounds and the using of any words offensive to 
 
 1 See example of elegance, page 37. 
 
DICTION 89 
 
 the ear. Readers are justly exacting about this, and 
 it is therefore incumbent upon the writer and the 
 speaker to cultivate verbal harmony. Such expressions 
 as the following are violations of elegance because they 
 are disagreeable word combinations. 
 
 "Teach each hollow grove to sound his love." 
 "Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers." 
 "He came near missing seeing you." 
 
 In the first quotation " teach each" gives a disagree- 
 able conjunction of similar sounds; the second illus- 
 trates the unpleasant effect of too much alliteration 
 and also another thing that should be avoided, a series 
 of words hard to enunciate; the third shows how the 
 principle of euphony is violated by the repetition of the 
 same endings. 
 
 To sum up, avoid the needless and unpleasant repe- 
 tition of similar sounds, especially sibilant sounds, the 
 long "u" sound, and such endings as ing, ness, Hon, ity, 
 and rhyming words. All harsh combinations of sounds 
 attract attention to themselves and so defeat the pur- 
 pose of the writer. Avoid them. Study such literature 
 as that of Burke, Ruskin, van Dyke, and others, espe- 
 cially the best poets, to appreciate the value of the 
 musical sounds of agreeable word combinations. The 
 cultivation of good taste includes the ability to detect 
 what is pleasing to the ear. 
 
 The right word is the word that expresses the writer's 
 idea clearly, satisfying the mind; forcefully, arousing 
 his interest through stirring his feelings ; and elegantly, 
 adapting itself to the subject, the occasion, and the 
 
90 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 one addressed, so as to be pleasing to his taste, which 
 demands fitness and propriety. While securing the 
 three rhetorical qualities — clearness, force, and elegance 
 — the writer also avoids the errors of using too few or 
 too many words; too new or too old words ; hackneyed 
 words, harsh words, grandiloquent words, and all words 
 which one might be tempted to use for their own sake. 
 
 We have seen the need of an ample supply of words, 
 and we have pointed out how to secure it through 
 reading and the use of an adequate dictionary; we have 
 shown what good usage is and how to detect violations 
 of it; and we have shown how, when one has a large 
 vocabulary, he must use it according to the funda- 
 mental principles of denotation and connotation, so as 
 to stand the tests of the great rhetorical qualities of 
 composition, clearness, force, and elegance, and result 
 in a finished product of effective expression in so far as 
 that depends upon good diction. 
 
 As a final word of advice and as an example to fol- 
 low, we close this chapter with the words of one who 
 worked hard and long to acquire a good vocabulary, 
 and succeeded, Robert Louis Stevenson: 
 
 "All through my boyhood and youth I was 
 known and pointed out for the pattern of an 
 idler > and yet I was always busy on my own 
 private end, which was to learn to write. I 
 kept always two books in my pocket, one to 
 read and one to write in. As I walked my 
 mind was busy fitting what I saw with appro- 
 priate words; when I sat by the roadside I 
 
DICTION 91 
 
 would either read, or a pencil and a penny ver- 
 sion book would be in my hand to note down 
 the features of the scene or commemorate 
 some halting stanzas. Thus I lived with 
 words. 
 
 "And what I thus wrote was for no ulterior 
 use; it was written consciously for practice. 
 It was not so much that I wished to be an 
 author (though I wished that, too) as that I 
 had vowed that I would learn to write. That 
 was a proficiency that tempted me, and I prac- 
 ticed to acquire it as men learn to whittle, in 
 a wager with myself. Description was the 
 principal field of my exercise; for to anyone 
 with senses there is always something worth 
 describing, and town and country are but one 
 continuous subject. . . . Whenever I read a 
 book or a passage that particularly pleased me, 
 in which a thing was said or an effect rendered 
 with propriety, in which there was either some 
 conspicuous force or some happy distinction 
 in the style, I must sit down at once and set 
 myself to ape that quality. I was unsuccess- 
 ful, and I knew it, and tried again, and was 
 again unsuccessful, and always unsuccessful; 
 but at least in these vain bouts I got some 
 practice in rhythm, in harmony, in construc- 
 tion, and the coordination of parts. 
 
 "That, like it or not, is the way to learn to 
 write ; whether I have profited or not, that is 
 the way. It was so Keats learned, and there 
 never was a finer temperament for literature 
 than Keats' s. 
 
 "It is the great point of these imitations 
 that there still shines, beyond the student's 
 
92 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 reach, his inimitable model. Let him try as 
 he please, he is still sure of failure; and it is an 
 old and very true saying that failure is the 
 only highroad to success." 
 
 Suggestions and Exercises in Diction 
 
 1. By way of warning, study your own work to discover any 
 possible barbarisms, or words not at present in the language; any 
 improprieties, or words that are used in a wrong sense; or any 
 solecisms, or errors in grammar. In this connection it will be 
 helpful to consult the list of words often confused. When in doubt 
 as to the use of any word, consult a good dictionary or a good book 
 of synonyms, or both. 
 
 2. When you are satisfied that your work is free from positive 
 errors, look it over again to test your diction for exactness or pre- 
 cision. Ask yourself concerning each noun, verb, adjective, and 
 adverb, especially if it conveys exactly the meaning you wish it 
 to express, if it says too little or too much; then, with the aid of a 
 book of synonyms, change your faulty words to better ones which 
 convey your precise meaning, even the most delicate shade of 
 meaning if you are dealing with matters which require fine shading. 
 
 3. Read your theme again to test it for euphony and correct all 
 harsh expressions and unmusical combinations of sounds. 
 
 4. Test your work for repetitions of the same words in too close 
 proximity and for the presence of any unnecessary words and 
 redundancies of expression. 
 
 5. Finally, test for idioms. Remember that the use of good and 
 accepted idioms gives a greater vivacity to expression than results 
 when one confines himself to rigidly grammatical language. 
 
 6. To increase your vocabulary, read any article from a current 
 magazine, noting down all the words whose meaning is not perfectly 
 clear to you. Look them up in a good dictionary; make them 
 your own and they will not bother you again. They will serve 
 you instead. Seek to acquire the habit of mastering all trouble- 
 some words at once and the time will soon come when your word 
 troubles will be practically over. 
 
CHAPTER IV 
 THE PARAGRAPH 
 
 The Necessity for Paragraphs. The paragraph is a 
 comparatively recent invention whose purpose is to aid 
 the reader to comprehend the writer readily, and to 
 aid the writer so to divide his subject that it may be 
 more easily understood. In a very real sense the para- 
 graph is a part of punctuation, since it marks a more 
 complete stop than the period. It might be said to indi- 
 cate a group of periods. It helps the writer not only to 
 divide and subdivide his subject, but to analyze and to 
 organize his thought. We may define the paragraph 
 as A Small Organized Division of a Composition, Pos- 
 sessing the Characteristics of a Complete Composition. 
 That is, it must have a topic, expressed or readily in- 
 ferred, and that topic must be sufficiently developed 
 by assembling sufficient details and by arranging them 
 according to the principles of unity, coherence, and 
 emphasis. In this way only can a complicated line of 
 thought be made clear and interesting. The paragraph 
 is the unit of the whole composition. 
 
 The Length of Paragraphs. Paragraphs may, of 
 course, be of various lengths, and the actual number 
 of words they contain is not of great importance. Some 
 writers, like John Richard Green,, use paragraphs of 
 
94 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 over thirteen hundred words, which would make from 
 three to four ordinary pages. Although his paragraphs 
 are perfect in structure, they are detrimental to interest 
 and make hard reading. The ordinary reader does not 
 like to have to read four pages without a pause. It is 
 tiring to the eyes and often confusing to one's thinking. 
 Common sense and usage have combined to set the 
 limit of ordinary paragraphs between one hundred and 
 four hundred words to avoid the danger of monotonous 
 frequency of pauses on the one hand, and on the other 
 hand, to steer clear of the equally great danger of 
 tempting the reader to lapse into inattention through 
 lack of interest. The desire to make paragraphs of a 
 given length should not, however, induce one to become 
 mechanical. 
 
 What really determines the length of a paragraph, 
 while keeping between the limits mentioned, is rhetoric. 
 Careful writers plan their paragraphs when they or- 
 ganize their material in accordance with its bulk and 
 with the purpose in view. If, for instance, one is to 
 write upon The Benefits of Foreign Travel, a composition 
 of between six and seven hundred words, he might 
 plan four paragraphs: a brief one devoted to explana- 
 tion of what he meant by foreign travel, and three to 
 develop the three points he wants to make and for which 
 he has the suitable material. According to the law of 
 proportion and emphasis he would estimate which point 
 is the most important and plan to reserve it for the last 
 and to develop it most fully, say to the extent of two 
 hundred and fifty words. The other two points would 
 
# 
 
 THE PARAGRAPH 95 
 
 be arranged in a climactic order, determined by the 
 same law. These might contain approximately two 
 hundred, and one hundred and fifty words, respectively. 
 Then each paragraph would be planned separately in 
 accordance with the laws of unity, coherence, and 
 emphasis, using separate cards for each paragraph plan. 
 The point to be made in each paragraph would furnish 
 the subtopic to be developed in it. The plan for the 
 composition might be this: Paragraph 1, Introductory 
 and beginning, ' ' By foreign travel we mean, et c . ' ' Para- 
 graph 2, "One benefit of foreign travel is that it broad- 
 ens one's views." Paragraph 3, " Another benefit of 
 foreign travel is its great educational value." Para- 
 graph 4, "A third benefit, and perhaps the best of all, 
 is that foreign travel enables the traveler to make true 
 comparisons between countries and so more fully ap- 
 preciate his own." When one plans in some such way 
 as this he will have no trouble about the length or the 
 number of paragraphs. Both will be naturally deter- 
 mined by the purpose, the material, and the applica- 
 tion of the principles of rhetoric. 
 
 Avoid, then, looking upon paragraphs as mere me- 
 chanical and artificial divisions of a composition marked 
 by indentations made twice upon every page. 
 
 Avoid making such short subdivisions, often con- 
 sisting of a single sentence, as to allow no chance for 
 development and to result in isolated generalizations 
 not paragraphs. 
 
 Avoid crowding into a single paragraph a mass of 
 incongruous material, as in the quotation from Mark 
 
m 
 
 96 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 Twain, page 19, for such material cannot possibly be 
 put into one paragraph and give one definite idea 
 (unity) ; such material cannot be arranged so that the 
 relation between each part and those near it will be 
 unmistakable (coherence) ; and such material, because 
 of its mixed character, because of its total lack of value, 
 cannot be arranged according to the principle of 
 emphasis. 
 
 Always paragraph in accordance with common sense 
 and the principles of unity, coherence, and emphasis, 
 remembering that only so can you secure clearness, 
 force, and elegance, and make a creditable finished 
 product of effective expression. 
 
 The Topic Sentence. In dealing with single sen- 
 tences, provided they are constructed according to the 
 rules of grammar and the principles of rhetoric, it is 
 comparatively easy to make one's meaning clear. But 
 when several sentences are brought together to co- 
 operate in setting forth some one larger idea, confusion 
 arises unless we know which one of the sentences is 
 chief of them all and what relation all the rest bear to 
 it. This confusion is avoided by having a topic sen- 
 tence. 
 
 The topic sentence, as its name indicates, contains 
 the topic of the paragraph. It is the embryo from which 
 the paragraph grows. It suggests what the paragraph 
 may be; what it will become in the hands of a skillful 
 writer; it is the master sentence, dominating all the 
 rest. 
 
 While we generally speak of the topic sentence, it 
 
THE PARAGRAPH 97 
 
 must be remembered that a part of a sentence, some- 
 times a single word, is often sufficient to suggest the 
 title of a paragraph, especially if it differentiates some- 
 thing specific to be developed. If, for instance, one 
 should desire to relate some humorous incident, the 
 topic for specific treatment is not the whole incident, 
 but its humorous qualities, which may be indicated, or 
 sufficiently suggested, by a single word. 
 
 The position of the topic sentence, or the sentence 
 containing the topic, is usually early in the paragraph, 
 but it may be anywhere or reserved and placed at the 
 end for the sake of emphasis. If it is so evident that it 
 may be readily inferred, it need not be expressed. In 
 fact, to express a topic when it would be more effective 
 to allow the reader to imagine it, not only results in 
 redundancy, but is fatal to interest. 
 
 The need of the topic sentence, from the viewpoint of 
 the reader, is seen in the fact that it materially aids 
 him in getting the meaning of the writer; it is an aid 
 to clearness and a means of securing interest. From 
 the viewpoint of the writer, the topic sentence is the 
 surest guide to unity. In fact, the test of the unity of 
 a paragraph lies in its capability of being reduced to a 
 single sentence. 
 
 The method of selecting topic sentences is not arbi- 
 trary; it is closely connected with the fundamental 
 process of organizing the material before writing. In 
 all careful expository writing the arranging of the ma- 
 terial according to an outline plan also furnishes the 
 necessary topic sentences. The titles of the subdivi- 
 
98 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 sions of the subject become the topic sentences of the 
 paragraphs. It may be, however, that in actual writing 
 the phrasing of these sentences will need revision for 
 the sake of conciseness. Topic sentences should be as 
 brief as is consistent with clearness. 
 
 In narration, where details are generally grouped in 
 the order of time, and in description, where they are 
 subject to space conditions, topic sentences are com- 
 monly omitted in writing, though they may have been 
 stated in the plan and are never absent from the mind 
 of the writer. 
 
 It is significant that almost invariably the great 
 writers, who are noted for clearness, employ topic sen- 
 tences; and a study of almost any of them seems to 
 indicate that their topic sentences have already served 
 as headings in their original outline plans. To prove 
 this we have but to give a series of opening sentences, 
 used as topic sentences, from a few careful writers. 
 First, take Macaulay's Second Speech on Copyright, 
 where a series of consecutive paragraphs begin, respec- 
 tively, with the following sentences: 
 
 "Sir, I have no objection to the principle of 
 my noble friend's bill." (Developed into a 
 paragraph of over four hundred words.) 
 
 "The present state of the law is this." 
 (Paragraph of about seventy-five words.) 
 
 "My noble friend does not propose to make 
 any addition to the term of twenty-eight years." 
 (Paragraph of about seventy-five words.) 
 
 ' ' My plan is different. ' ' (Paragraph of about 
 one hundred forty words.) 
 
THE PARAGRAPH 99 
 
 "It must surely, sir, be admitted that the 
 protection which we give to books ought to be 
 distributed as evenly as possible, etc." (Para- 
 graph of nine hundred words.) 
 
 " But this is not all. My noble friend's plan 
 is not merely to institute a lottery, etc." (Topic 
 in italicized words of second sentence. Para- 
 graph of seventy-five words.) 
 
 "Take Shakespeare." (Paragraph of sixty 
 words.) 
 
 "Take Milton." (Paragraph of ninety 
 words.) 
 
 "Let us pass on from Milton to Dryden." 
 (Paragraph of over four hundred words.) 
 
 " Go on to Burke." (Paragraph of one hun- 
 dred twenty words.) 
 
 "And, sir, observe that I am not selecting 
 here and there extraordinary instances in order 
 to make up a semblance of a case. I am taking 
 the greatest names of our literature in chrono- 
 logical order." 
 
 (Note here that the topic is the idea contained in two 
 sentences. This paragraph contains about four hun- 
 dred words.) 
 
 These eleven topic sentences contain about one hun- 
 dred twenty-five words which Macaulay develops into 
 over twenty-five hundred words, and yet, as we read the 
 topic sentences alone we get not only a fair conception 
 of Macaulay's line of thought, but by means of the most 
 natural connotation of the leading words in the topic 
 sentences we get also the gist of the thought itself. If 
 we had added the summarizing sentences, which we 
 
100 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 have not yet defined, the connection between the con- 
 tinuous paragraphs would be more clearly seen and 
 much more of the argument could be substantially 
 constructed. 
 
 Note also the great variety in the paragraph lengths, 
 varying from sixty to nine hundred words, and showing 
 the author's conception of the relative importance of 
 each sub topic. 
 
 The Repetition of the Topic Sentence: Summarizing 
 Sentence. Where the thought developed in a para- 
 graph is complicated, or where the proof necessary to 
 establish the truth of the topic sentence is extensive, 
 it is customary, with the best writers, to repeat the topic 
 sentence at the end of the paragraph for emphasis and 
 for summary. The repetition, however, is never in the 
 same words, but in similar words, or words stating the 
 same idea with variations. 
 
 The following first and last sentences from four para- 
 graphs of John Henry Newman's Literature show how 
 such a master repeated his topic sentence for the pur- 
 pose of emphasis and summary. 
 
 "Here, then, in the first place, I observe, 
 Gentlemen, that Literature, from the deriva- 
 tion of the word, implies writing, not speak- 
 ing. . . ." 
 
 Then, after some two hundred words of careful de- 
 velopment, we find this summary: 
 
 "We use the terms ' phraseology' and ' dic- 
 tion' as if we were still addressing ourselves to 
 the ear J 1 
 
THE PARAGRAPH 101 
 
 The next paragraph begins as follows: 
 
 "Now I insist on this, because it shows that 
 speech, and therefore literature, which is its per- 
 manent record, is essentially a personal work." 
 
 This paragraph closes, after another two hundred 
 words, with this summarizing sentence: 
 
 "In other words, Literature expresses, not objective 
 truth, as it is called, but subjective) not things, but 
 thoughts." 
 
 The next paragraph, of about six hundred words, 
 begins with a long introductory sentence which does 
 not contain the topic sentence, but leads to it in the 
 second sentence: 
 
 "Such objects become the matter of Science, 
 and words, indeed, are used to express them, 
 but such words are rather symbols than language, 
 and however we may use, and however we may 
 perpetuate them by writing, we never could 
 make any kind of literature out of them." 
 
 At the end of this long paragraph is this excellent 
 summary, gathering into brief space the central thought, 
 the master thought, of the whole paragraph: 
 
 "Science, then, has to do with things, lit- 
 erature with thoughts; science is universal, 
 literature is personal; science uses words 
 merely as symbols, but literature uses lan- 
 guage in its full compass, as including phrase- 
 ology, idiom, style, composition, rhythm, elo- 
 quence, and whatever other properties are in- 
 cluded in it." 
 
102 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 The fourth paragraph of four hundred words has its 
 topic in the second sentence, and is a further develop- 
 ment of an idea already briefly stated in the summariz- 
 ing sentence of the preceding paragraph: 
 
 " Literature is the personal use or exercise 
 of language." 
 
 And the final sentence is: 
 
 "His thought and feeling are personal, and 
 so his language is personal." 
 
 The topic sentences given above clearly illustrate 
 what has already been said to show that topic sentences 
 express the dominant thought of the paragraph, and 
 that a series of such sentences will give the line of 
 thought developed in the whole composition. In this 
 case, moreover, where the summarizing sentences are 
 also given, the illustration is still more forceful than in 
 that from Macaulay. 
 
 Note also that the last sentence of each of the first 
 three paragraphs quoted from Newman contains an 
 idea closely related with the topic sentence of the fol- 
 lowing paragraph, and that that relation is expressed 
 in a word that connects the two paragraphs, or, as it 
 were, dovetails them together. For instance, "as if 
 we were still addressing the ear " is given as a proof of 
 the fact that the writer of literature must be personal. 
 Newman counts that very important, so he begins the 
 next paragraph with, "Now I insist on this". The 
 word "this" dovetails the two paragraphs together, 
 thus showing beyond doubt that they are parts of a 
 
THE PARAGRAPH 103 
 
 larger whole, and must be considered together. Its 
 close connection is further emphasized by the rest of 
 the topic sentence, " because it shows that speech is 
 essentially a personal work." Such connecting words 
 as "this" are called transitional words. 
 
 Transitional words connect sentences within the 
 paragraph for the sake of paragraph coherence and 
 unity; transitional words connect sentences in related 
 paragraphs for the sake of unity and coherence in the 
 whole composition. Any words may serve for transi- 
 tion, but the commonest are conjunctions showing logi- 
 cal relations and pronouns, as in the case cited above. 
 Easy and natural transitions are the mark of careful 
 writers. Find other illustrations in the sentences 
 quoted from Newman. 
 
 Kinds of Paragraphs. Having considered the essen- 
 tials of paragraphs in general, the dominant thought 
 expressed in the topic sentence and furnishing the basis 
 for paragraph development, the summarizing sentence, 
 and the matter of transition, it now becomes necessary 
 to classify the kinds of paragraphs according to their 
 uses. There are five kinds: 
 
 The Isolated Paragraph. This is also called the in- 
 dependent paragraph. In some cases, as in the follow- 
 ing cyclopedia article, it is the whole composition. It 
 is not a full, but an adequate treatment, for the purpose 
 intended, of a subject: 
 
 "Guyot, Arnold, an American geographer; 
 born near Neuchatel, Switzerland, September 
 28, 1807; he was the colleague of Agassiz, at 
 
104 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 Neuchatel, in 1839-1848, and in 1848 accom- 
 panied him to the United States. In 1854 he 
 was appointed Professor of Physical Geogra- 
 phy and Geology at Princeton College. He 
 had the management of the meteorological 
 department of the Smithsonian Institution, 
 where he more than once delivered courses of 
 lectures, and in connection with which he 
 published Meteorological and Physical Tables. 
 His other works include several biographies, 
 and a series of geographies and wall maps 
 which are in general use in American schools. 
 He died in Princeton, N. J. ; February 8, 1884." 
 
 Brief news items, such as " personals," complete in 
 themselves, frequently are composed of single isolated 
 paragraphs. 
 
 Occasionally, also, we find isolated or independent 
 paragraphs forming parts of compositions. Some writ- 
 ers, like George Eliot, begin their chapters with general 
 statements, having in them a truth analogous to the 
 theme of the chapter, but without any vital or logical 
 connection with it. These are isolated paragraphs. 
 
 The Related Paragraph. Related paragraphs are so 
 connected that they co-operate in developing a subject 
 too extensive to be adequately treated in one para- 
 graph. They deal individually with the smaller sub- 
 divisions into which writer divides his whole sub- 
 ject for the sake of clearness. Since they are related in 
 thought they must be shown to be related to each 
 other and to the whole composition, by proper transi- 
 tions. (See illustrations from Newman, page 100.) 
 
THE PARAGRAPH 105 
 
 The Introductory Paragraph. The other three kinds 
 of paragraphs are related, but their special functions so 
 differentiate them as to render separate definition ad- 
 visable. The introductory paragraph serves to open 
 a subject by getting the attention of the reader and 
 giving sufficient intimation of what is to follow, to 
 arouse interest. Walt Whitman's introduction to his 
 The Death of Thomas Carlyle, is a good example of a 
 brief introductory paragraph: "And so the flame of 
 the lamp, after long wasting and flickering, has gone 
 out entirely." Another is that of Samuel Taylor Cole- 
 ridge's . The Functions of the Chorus in the Greek Tragic 
 Drama: "It will not be improper, in this place, to make 
 a few remarks on the remarkable character and func- 
 tions of the chorus in the Greek tragic drama." 
 
 The introductory paragraph should introduce, but do 
 no more. It should be brief and as concise as is com- 
 patible with clearness. 
 
 The Transitional Paragraph. When the transition is 
 of unusual importance, or too complicated to be ex- 
 pressed in a single word or phrase, the only way left is 
 to make the transition by means of a short paragraph. 
 Burke, one of the clearest thinkers, and hence clearest 
 writers, frequently uses such transitions. A single ex- 
 ample will suffice: 
 
 "The question now, on all this accumulated 
 matter, is — whether you will choose to abide 
 by a profitable experience or a mischievous 
 theory; whether you choose to build upon 
 imagination, or fact; whether you prefer en- 
 
106 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 joyment, or hope, satisfaction in your subjects, 
 or discontent." 
 
 The Summarizing Paragraph. Like the introductory 
 paragraph, the summarizing one should be brief, con- 
 cise, and devoted to a single subject only; a summary 
 of the line of thought recapitulated and a statement of 
 sufficient effects of what has gone before to bring the 
 subject to a suitable and definite close. Note the fol- 
 lowing closing of De Quincey's Vision of Sudden Death : 
 
 "The moments were numbered; the strife 
 was finished; the vision was closed. In the 
 twinkling of an eye our flying horses had car- 
 ried us to the termination of the umbrageous 
 aisle; at right angles we wheeled into our 
 former direction; the turn of the road carried 
 the scene out of my eyes in an instant, and 
 swept it into my dreams forever." 
 
 A summarizing paragraph is often found necessary 
 to mark important stages while developing an intricate 
 subject, to review what has been accomplished up to 
 a certain point, and to emphasize it. Here again we 
 find Burke, our best model. The first example is from 
 his famous speech at The Trial of Warren Hastings, and 
 marks one of his summaries of a part of the speech : 
 
 "I have here spoken only of the beginning 
 of a great notorious system of corruption, 
 which branched out so many ways, and into 
 such a variety of abuses, and has afflicted that 
 kingdom with such horrible evils from that 
 day to this that I will venture to say it will 
 make one of the greatest, weightiest, and most 
 
THE PARAGRAPH 107 
 
 material parts of the charge that is now before 
 you ; as I believe I need not tell your lordships 
 that an attempt to set up the whole landed 
 interest of a kingdom to auction must be at- 
 tended, not only in that act, but every conse- 
 quential act, with most grievous and terrible 
 consequences." 
 
 Burke sometimes combined summary with transi- 
 tion. He went even further; he combined summary, 
 transition, and introduction, in one short paragraph, 
 so complete were his transitions, so perfectly do they 
 make the reader look back upon what has already been 
 said, and forward to what is about to be said. 
 
 " These, Sir, are my reasons for not enter- 
 taining that high opinion of untried force by 
 which many gentlemen, for whose sentiments 
 in other particulars I have great respect, seem 
 to be so greatly captivated. But there is still 
 behind a third consideration concerning this 
 object, which serves to determine my opinion 
 on the sort of policy which ought to be pur- 
 sued in the management of America, even more 
 than its population and its commerce : I mean 
 its temper and character" 
 
 — Conciliation Speech. 
 
 The word " these" refers directly to the four argu- 
 ments against force just given and brings in the sum- 
 mary; then comes the transition; while the last clause 
 gives the introduction for the next argument. 
 
 Paragraph Development. The developed paragraph 
 is the one that is complete enough to make it fully serve 
 its purpose. In simple narration, where the purpose 
 
108 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 does not include explaining difficult situations, and 
 where the events follow one another in the natural 
 order and topic sentences are unnecessary, but little 
 development is required, and short paragraphs suffice. 
 This is especially noticeable where the narrative con- 
 sists largely of conversation, as in the following lines 
 from Oliver Twist: 
 
 "'Clear the office!' cried the magistrate. 
 'Officers, do you hear! Clear the office!'" 
 
 "The mandate was obeyed, and the indig- 
 nant Mr. Brownlow was conveyed out, with 
 the book in one hand and the bamboo cane in 
 the other, in a perfect frenzy of rage and de- 
 fiance. He reached the yard, and it vanished 
 in a moment. Little Oliver Twist lay on his 
 back on the pavement, with his shirt unbut- 
 toned and his temples bathed with water; his 
 face a deadly white, and a cold trembling con- 
 vulsing his whole frame. 
 
 "'Poor boy, poor boy!' said Mr. Brownlow, 
 bending over him. 'Call a coach, somebody, 
 pray, directly.'" 
 
 "A coach was obtained, and Oliver, having 
 been carefully laid in on one seat, the old gen- 
 tleman got in and sat himself on the other. 
 
 "'May I accompany you?' said the book- 
 stall keeper, looking in. 
 
 "'Bless me, yes; my dear friend,' said Mr. 
 Brownlow, quickly. 'I forgot you. Dear, 
 dear! I have this unhappy book still ! Jump 
 in. Poor fellow! There is no time to lose.' " 
 
 "The bookstall keeper got into the coach, 
 and away they drove." 
 
THE PARAGRAPH 109 
 
 Such, and most narrative paragraphs, cannot be said to 
 be developed, and yet they serve their purpose adequately. 
 
 When we consider exposition, on the other hand, 
 where matters of some difficulty must be made clear 
 and intelligible to those who, presumably, do not 
 already understand them, the case is very different. 
 Topic sentences must almost invariably be used and 
 the paragraphs must be fully developed. The typical 
 paragraph, then, is the expository. 
 
 The following is a typical paragraph of exposition : 
 
 "The great charm of Steele's writing is his 
 naturalness. He wrote so quickly and so care- 
 lessly that he was forced to make the reader 
 his confidant, and had not time to deceive 
 him. He had a small share of book learning, 
 but a vast acquaintance with the world. He 
 had known men and taverns. He had lived 
 with gunsmen, with troopers, with gentlemen 
 ushers of the court, with men and women of 
 fashion, with authors and wits, with the inti- 
 mates of sponging houses, and with the fre- 
 quenters of all the clubs and coffee houses in 
 the town. He was liked in all company be- 
 cause he liked it; and you liked to see his 
 enjoyment as you liked to see the glee of a 
 boxful of children at the pantomime. He was 
 not of those lonely ones of the earth whose 
 greatness obliged them to be solitary; on the 
 contrary, he was admired, I think, more than 
 any other man who ever wrote, and, full of 
 hearty applause and sympathy, he wins upon 
 you by calling you to share his delight and good 
 
110 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 humor. His laugh rings through the whole 
 house. He must have been invaluable at a 
 A 'tragedy, and have cried as much as the most 
 tender young lady in the boxes. " 
 ■■ —Thackeray: English Humorists of the Eighteenth Century 
 
 The above paragraph is typical, not only in being 
 fully developed, but in being developed by a combina- 
 tion of three methods — details, cause and effect, and 
 comparison and contrast. For the sake of study we 
 must consider the various methods separately, though 
 most great writers refuse to limit themselves to any 
 one method, but prefer a combination. 
 
 Development is such a large and such a general term 
 that it means but little until we consider the various 
 kinds of paragraph development. Then it is easily 
 comprehensible. 
 
 These five methods are sufficiently inclusive for all 
 practical purposes, and at the same time sufficiently 
 dissimilar to be easily distinguished and to give variety 
 of effect. They are: 
 
 1. By giving details 
 
 2. By giving examples or illustrations, general or 
 specific 
 
 3. By repetition of the idea of the topic sentence in 
 a similar but slightly different manner 
 
 4. By comparison and contrast 
 
 5. By giving causes or effects 
 
 When the topic sentence represents an effect the 
 paragraph may be developed by giving the causes 
 which produced the effect; when the topic sentence 
 
 4& 
 
THE PARAGRAPH 111 
 
 states a cause the paragraph may be developed by 
 stating the results which follow it. Closely connected 
 with this method is that of giving proofs of the truth 
 or falsity of the statement made in the topic sentence. 
 
 In dealing with the matter of paragraph development 
 we must again organize our material. In the chapter 
 on Getting Ready to Write we saw how necessary it is 
 to plan for the composition as a whole; here we plan 
 for the individual paragraphs. To make a good, whole 
 composition, we must make each separate paragraph 
 do its full part. In the general planning we do not have 
 completed paragraphs in mind, but only topics for 
 them. In paragraph planning we must keep in mind 
 both the paragraph itself and the whole composition: 
 the paragraph, that we may make it grow, or develop, 
 so as to be complete in itself; the whole composition, 
 that we may regulate that growth, or development, and 
 keep it of proper proportion relative to other para- 
 graphs and to the whole, and that we may secure suffi- 
 cient variety of structure. 
 
 In organizing material for a paragraph we do not see 
 how much of it we may crowd in, but what and how 
 much is absolutely essential for adequate development 
 of the topic in fulfilling its part of the purpose of the 
 whole composition. There is such a thing as over- 
 development of an individual paragraph. This occurs 
 whenever development is carried beyond the point nec- 
 essary for clearness. Such errors tend to obscurity, 
 and even to incoherence, and should be as carefully 
 guarded against as insufficient development. 
 
112 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 What Method to Use. Three things aid in deter- 
 mining which of the methods of paragraph development 
 to use: the form of the topic sentence, the material 
 available and suitable, and the purpose. 
 
 The topic sentence should always be so stated as to 
 challenge attention, to promise something to come to 
 call for elaboration, to invite to fuller explanation. It 
 should be characterized by such incompleteness as to 
 make the reader expect completeness and to look for 
 it. It is clear, then, that not every sentence is suitable 
 for a topic sentence. No sentence that is complete in 
 itself and is wholly without connotation or suggestion, 
 will make a good topic sentence. Many of the diffi- 
 culties experienced in writing would disappear if this 
 fact were kept in mind. Young writers would cease 
 trying to make that grow which is already fully grown r 
 cease developing the developed, cease trying to do the 
 impossible. They would shape topic sentences so as to 
 require development, and hence to aid in the process 
 of development. 
 
 The statement of the topic sentence is often sufficient 
 to determine which of the methods to use. Note the 
 following : 
 
 "The very sound of a lady's library gave me a great 
 curiosity to see it," says Addison, beginning one of the 
 Spectator Papers. Curiosity to see a lady's library is 
 his topic. As we read it our curiosity, too, is aroused. 
 Manifestly such a topic cannot be developed by repeti- 
 tion, by cause and effect, by comparison and contrast. 
 There are left the methods by illustration and by de- 
 
THE PARAGRAPH 113 
 
 tails or particulars. Addison wisely chose the latter. 
 It is the natural method of development. 
 
 When Macaulay begins a paragraph with the follow- 
 ing sentence we know that he will develop it by means 
 of comparison, for that method alone suggests itself 
 because of the form of the topic sentence: "The effect 
 of historical reading is analogous, in many respects, to 
 that produced by foreign travel." 
 
 When Macaulay begins another paragraph with these 
 words, "The spirits of Milton are unlike those of almost 
 all other writers," it is evident that the most natural 
 method of paragraph development is by obverse state- 
 ment or a form of contrast. 
 
 When Newman begins with this sentence, "Boys are 
 always more or less inaccurate, and too many, or rather 
 the majority of them, remain boys all their lives," 
 among the possible methods of development that of 
 examples or illustrations suggests itself to us as it did 
 to Newman. 
 
 Burke's famous paragraph beginning, "The proposi- 
 tion is peace," is a good example of development by 
 definition and by repetition as well as by obverse state- 
 ment. He defines what he means, both negatively and 
 positively, by a series of definitions, each of which helps 
 to clarify his topic sentence. Repetition is the natural 
 and effective method wherever the topic sentence is in 
 the form of a definition, epigram, proverb, or any sim- 
 ple, terse statement, which needs only restatement 
 with variations to gain sufficient clearness and force. 
 
 Burke's topic sentence, "First, the people of the col- 
 
114 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 onies are descendants of Englishmen," is evidently con- 
 sidered, as the context shows, as a cause. How natural, 
 then, to give the results, as Burke does in a paragraph 
 nearly two pages long. 
 
 In general, then, it may be said that the form of the 
 topic sentence frequently indicates the most natural 
 and most effective method of development to use. 
 Statements of things considered as made up of parts 
 or details, call for details or particulars; statements 
 mentioning or suggesting a comparison, a contrast, or 
 an analogy demand that the comparison or contrast 
 be given in detail ; statements setting forth the supposed 
 truth or falsity about anything, call for proof in the 
 form of authority or convincing illustrations or exam- 
 ples; statements in the form of epigrams are best de- 
 veloped by a series of similar, but increasingly illumi- 
 nating, restatements; and statements that may be re- 
 garded as causes, or as effects, demand the method of 
 giving effects or causes. 
 
 On the other hand, if one desires to use a ceitain 
 method, he should be careful to state his topic so as to 
 make it fit that method. 
 
 The second determining factor in regard to selecting 
 the best method of development is the available mate- 
 rial. It is sometimes necessary to cut the garment in 
 accordance with the cloth. One does not always have 
 all the material he wants, and he may not be able to 
 get it. Or he may not have the kind he wants, or he 
 may have a little of several kinds. As a result, he may 
 have to confine himself to some particular method, or 
 
 fli 
 
THE PARAGRAPH 115 
 
 he may have to use a combination of methods. Where 
 the writer has ample information or abundant experi- 
 ence such difficulties do not arise. But occasions are 
 common where both information and experience are 
 limited and where the imagination can render but 
 meager aid. Then he must make the most of what he 
 has and phrase the topic sentence suitably. 
 
 For instance, if a reporter were assigned to "write 
 up" a railroad accident concerning which only meager 
 reports were available, he could not give details, for 
 there are none; the methods of illustration, compari- 
 son, and contrast are out of the question. What method 
 shall he use? Only repetition and cause and effect are 
 left. He naturally uses both: repetition, to " stretch" 
 the few available facts into the semblance of a " story," 
 cause and effect, because the public wants to know 
 them in the briefest possible form, and because, in 
 part at least, they are likely to be included among the 
 few available facts. It is needless to say that in such 
 cases the imagination is drawn upon to an unwarranted 
 extent. And the reporter gets his story. 
 
 In general, when one has limited material at his dis- 
 posal, the most obvious way out of his difficulty is to 
 study it with unusual care to discover the most effective 
 way to express it by a combination of the methods of 
 paragraph development. Where possible, however, the 
 embarrassment caused by lack of material should be 
 removed by further study of the subject to gain suffi- 
 cient material. When one begins to write he frequently 
 finds his facts to dwindle, so that he must again consult 
 
116 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 his sources: books of reference, authorities, such as 
 histories, biographies, works of science, government re- 
 ports, and the like, according to the nature of the sub- 
 ject. Sometimes, too, he will find it necessary to visit 
 places, interview people, and try experiments, to gain 
 first-hand material from experience. Then most diffi- 
 culties vanish. 
 
 When there is an abundance of material its nature 
 will often suggest the best method of paragraph de- 
 velopment to use. Where the material consists largely 
 of details in the form of facts about the subject, the 
 enumerating of the best and most striking of them, in 
 some definite order, will be effective. This method, 
 while naturally the most common and the easiest to 
 use, should not be overused, lest it become monotonous. 
 
 When a considerable amount of the material may be 
 looked upon as examples, or illustrations, of principles 
 stated, the method of example and illustration should 
 be used. It is both more interesting and more effective 
 than the mere enumeration of details. 
 
 When there is a great abundance of material, when 
 the writer knows all sides of his subject and related 
 subjects, he may develop some of his paragraphs by 
 comparison or contrast with telling effect, because com- 
 parisons are instructive and contrasts, because of the 
 element of rhetorical force, hold interest. Notice the 
 effect of the following use of contrast, by Burke: 
 
 1 Compare the two. This I offer to give you 
 is plain and simple; the other, full of perplexed 
 and intricate mazes. This is mild; that harsh. 
 
THE PARAGRAPH 117 
 
 This is found by experience effectual for its 
 purposes; the other is a new project. This is 
 universal; the other calculated for certain col- 
 onies only. This is immediate in its concilia- 
 tory operation; the other remote, contingent, 
 full of hazard. Mine is what becomes the dig- 
 nity of a ruling people — gratuitous, uncondi- 
 tional, and not held out as a matter of bargain 
 and sale." 
 
 The principal kind of material suitable for the method 
 of development by giving causes and effects, is that 
 which naturally falls into the category of effects. (See 
 page 10.) 
 
 In all these cases the topic sentence should be made 
 to suit the material. 
 
 The third determining factor in selecting the method 
 of paragraph development is the purpose of the writer. 
 It is the most important of all. Where the purpose is 
 merely to give information, or to entertain, giving de- 
 tails often suffices. If the purpose includes, as it gen- 
 erally should, the arousing and holding of the reader's 
 attention to insure his receiving the information, the 
 method of giving examples, or that of comparison or 
 contrast, will be found far more effective. If the writ- 
 er's purpose is to convince, repetition may be effec- 
 tively used where he wants to " drive home" a single 
 truth so that there is no disputing its being a truth; or 
 he may use the method of giving causes or effects if ac- 
 tual, formal proof is thought necessary. (See page 126.) 
 
 Here, again, state the topic sentence so as to be suit- 
 able for the method of development to be used. 
 
118 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 Paragraph development is a carefully directed process 
 of growth. Whatever skill one may have in getting 
 material together, he is not a writer capable of making 
 the finished product of effective expression until he 
 can develop paragraphs completely and in a variety 
 of ways. We have already studied the theory of the 
 paragraph and have gone into detail concerning all the 
 essential characteristics of the paragraph, the topic 
 sentence and the methods of development. To sub- 
 stantiate our theory we now turn our attention to the 
 study of further illustrations from the writings of those 
 who have become masters of expression. The following 
 examples, illustrating the various methods of para- 
 graph development, may also be studied with reference 
 to the use of the topic sentence and the summarizing 
 sentence. Pupils are urged to study other models be- 
 sides these here given, because this is the way the best 
 writers often begin. Stevenson frankly confessed that 
 he studied others to learn their methods. 
 
 The period of imitation naturally precedes that of 
 independence and originality, but follows the gaining 
 of knowledge of the principles of composition. The 
 three great stages in the process of learning to write 
 are: first, master the principles of composition and 
 rhetoric as applied to the whole composition and to 
 its parts, especially the paragraph; secondly, study 
 the works of the masters to observe how they followed 
 the principles; thirdly, do your own writing, applying 
 the principles you have learned, and under the inspira- 
 tion and guidance of the masters. Bring literature to 
 
THE PARAGRAPH 119 
 
 the assistance of composition. Practice with models 
 before you, until " practice makes perfect/' when you 
 can make your own finished product of effective ex- 
 pression without the aid of models. It is a long process, 
 but it is the only one that will assure success. 
 
 Learning the principles and studying models are pre- 
 liminary and academic; practicing " never a day with- 
 out a line" is the work of a lifetime. 
 
 We begin the list of model paragraphs by citing one 
 developed, by giving details of the condensed state- 
 ment made in the topic sentence. Giving details is a 
 simple form of analysis, subdividing a whole into the 
 elements which compose it, and doing it in such a 
 manner as to show how the parts, when put together, 
 constitute that whole. 
 
 Paragraph Developed by Giving Details 
 
 It is difficult in a short summary of facts to 
 give any impression of the influence exercised 
 on the mind and feelings of his country by 
 Addison. It was out of proportion with the 
 mere outcome of his literary genius. It was 
 the result of character almost more than of in- 
 tellect, of goodness and reasonableness almost 
 more than of wit. His qualities of mind, how- 
 ever, if not of the very loftiest order, were rela- 
 tively harmonized to an astonishing degree, so 
 that the general impression of Addison is of a 
 larger man than the close contemplation of 
 any one side of his genius reveals him as being. 
 He has all the moral ornaments of the literary 
 character; as a writer he is urbane, cheerful, 
 
120 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 charming, and well mannered to a degree, 
 which has scarcely been surpassed in the his- 
 tory of the world. His wit is as penetrating 
 as a perfume; his irony presupposes a little 
 circle of the best and most cultivated listeners; 
 his fancy is so well tempered by judgment and 
 observation that it passes with us for imagina- 
 tion. We delight in his company so greatly 
 that we do not pause to reflect that the invent- 
 or of Sir Roger de Coverley and Will Honey- 
 comb had not half of the real comic force of 
 Farquhar or Vanbrugh, nor so much as that 
 of the flashing wit of Congreve. Human na- 
 ture, however, is superior to the rules, and 
 Addison stands higher than those more orig- 
 inal writers by merit of the reasonableness, the 
 good sense, the wholesome humanity that ani- 
 mate his work. He is classic, while they are 
 always a little way over on the barbaric side 
 of perfection. 
 
 — History of English Literature: Eighteenth Century, 
 Edmund Gossb 
 
 In this paragraph, developed by details, note first 
 what the writer has taken as his topic: "The influence 
 exercised on the mind and feelings of his country by 
 Addison." That is a very general statement, but just 
 such as many poor writers use as if it were a whole 
 paragraph. It is only the topic sentence of a para- 
 graph. Note the enumeration of the various details 
 which Professor Gosse had in mind when he made that 
 general statement. First, he says that the influence 
 was the result of character and reasonableness; sec- 
 ondly, that his qualities of mind were so harmonized 
 
THE PARAGRAPH 121 
 
 that they gave an almost exaggerated effect of his 
 greatness; third, he possessed the moral literary quali- 
 ties, urbanity, cheerfulness, charm, and manners to a 
 surpassing degree; fourthly, he mentions his wit, his 
 irony, and his fancy; fifthly, he shows that Addison's 
 charm is so captivating that we do not think of con- 
 trasting it with that of some of his predecessors; sixthly ? 
 Addison's human qualities put him above more ori- 
 ginal writers. The whole paragraph is summed up in 
 the statement that Addison is " classic," which sub- 
 stantiates the claim made in the topic sentence. 
 
 This might be taken as an example of a model para- 
 graph, for it has all the essentials of a well-developed 
 paragraph. Although the method of development is 
 by details, it has combined with it, in slight measure, 
 the method of comparison and contrast, also cause and 
 effect. The combination of methods, however, is very 
 common. It is closely related, also, with the method 
 of giving particulars or examples. 
 
 In studying this paragraph attention is called to the 
 variety of sentence structures and to the choice diction 
 and rhetorical qualities. 
 
 The second method of paragraph development, giv- 
 ing particulars or examples, is less analytical than giv- 
 ing details. When a general statement is made it may 
 be accepted; but it will mean more when it has been 
 illustrated, and its meaning will be clearer. The mind 
 always works from general to specific ideas, conse- 
 quently this is an effective way of expanding a para- 
 graph. It is sometimes used by elaborating some one 
 
122 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 specific illustration, and sometimes by giving a series 
 of specific cases illustrating the general statement of 
 the topic sentence. In the illustration which follows 
 the " series" is used, and with it is combined the 
 method of comparison, later to be described : 
 
 " There is a worse evil under the sun, and 
 that is — a female Poor Relation. You may do 
 something with the other; you may pass him 
 off tolerably well; but your indigent she-rela- 
 tive is hopeless. 'He is an old humorist/ you 
 may say, 'and affects to go threadbare. His 
 circumstances are better than folks would take 
 them to be. You are fond of having a charac- 
 ter at your table, and truly he is one.' But in 
 the indications of female poverty there can be 
 no disguise. No woman dresses below herself 
 from caprice. The truth must out without 
 
 shuffling. l She is plainly related to the L s ; 
 
 or what does she at their house? ' She is, in all 
 probability, your wife's cousin. Nine times 
 out of ten, at least, this is the case. Her garb 
 is something between a gentlewoman and a 
 beggar, yet the former evidently predominates. 
 She is most strikingly humble, and ostenta- 
 tiously sensible to her inferiority. He may 
 require to be repressed sometimes — aliquando 
 suffiaminandus erat — but there is no raising • 
 her. You send her soup at dinner, and she 
 begs to be helped — after the gentlemen. Mr. 
 
 requests the honor of taking wine with 
 
 her; she hesitates between Port and Madeira, 
 and chooses the former — because he does. She 
 calls the servant sir, and insists on not trou- 
 
THE PARAGRAPH 123 
 
 bling him to hold her plate. The housekeeper 
 patronizes her. The children's governess takes 
 upon her to correct her when she has mistaken 
 the piano for a harpsichord." 
 — Poor Relations, from Essays of Elia: .Charles Lamb 
 
 Note, in the above paragraph, that the first sentence, 
 besides being the topic sentence, is also a transitional 
 one, showing the relation between the paragraph and 
 the one which preceded it, which dealt with a poor 
 male relation. 
 
 Lamb's topic, evidently, is that a poor female rela- 
 tion is the worst evil under the sun. All through the 
 paragraph he compares her with the poor relation of 
 the other sex, but his chief method of making his mean- 
 ing clear is by showing in what particular ways she is 
 worse. That such is true, Lamb shows by her shabby 
 dress, a fact considerably elaborated by her mock 
 humility, also developed by giving illustrations, her 
 ignorance of good manners, etc. 
 
 Note how the interest is here enhanced by humorous 
 touches: 
 
 "To this late hour of my life, I trace impres- 
 sions left by the recollection of those friendless 
 holidays. The long, warm days of summer 
 never return but they bring with them a gloom 
 from the haunting memory of those whole-day- 
 leaves, when, by some strange arrangement we 
 were turned out for the live-long day, upon 
 our own hands, whether we had friends to go 
 to, or none. I remember those bathing excur- 
 sions to the New River, which L. recalls with 
 
124 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 such relish, better, I think, than he can—for 
 he was a home-seeking lad, and did not care 
 much for such water pastures: — how merrily 
 we would sally forth into the fields; and strip 
 under the first warmth of the sun; and wanton 
 like young dace in the streams; getting up 
 appetites for noon which those of us that were 
 penniless (our scanty morning crust long since 
 exhausted) had not the means of allaying — 
 while the cattle, and the birds, and the fishes 
 were at feed about us, and we had nothing to 
 satisfy our cravings — the very beauty of the 
 day, and the exercise of the pasture, and the 
 sense of liberty setting a keener edge upon 
 them. How faint and languid, finally, we 
 would return, toward nightfall, to our desired 
 morsel, half rejoicing, half reluctant, that the 
 hours of our uneasy liberty had expired." 
 * — Christ's Hospital, from Essays of Elia: Chaeles Lamb 
 
 In this paragraph Lamb's topic sentence, or rather 
 topic, is Friendless Holidays. Note how the rest of the 
 paragraph illustrates just what he meant by " friendless 
 holidays" when they were "turned out." Now we feel 
 that the boys were having a good time, and now we 
 feel that they were not for they could not satisfy their 
 appetites. The cattle, the bird, the fishes, the very 
 day, seemed to accentuate their misery. At the end 
 of the paragraph we have no doubt but that the friend- 
 lessness of the boys' condition was what the author 
 sought to illustrate. This is an excellent example of 
 paragraph development by illustration. 
 
 Although the fourth method of paragraph develop- 
 
THE PARAGRAPH 125 
 
 ment might be considered as two separate methods, we 
 group them for convenience. We call it the method of 
 Comparison and Contrast. A very suggestive way of 
 helping one understand what is not known to him is 
 by comparing it with something with which he is famil- 
 iar. In a similar way, clearness results from pointing 
 out differences, or contrasts. In using this method 
 care must be taken to avoid trying to compare things 
 that cannot reasonably be compared or contrasted. 
 
 A variation of this method is sometimes called the 
 use of obverse statement, but for practical purposes this 
 may be considered as a form of contrast. 
 
 Paragraph Developed by Comparison 
 
 "Finally, I will note down those fundamen- 
 tal characteristics which contradistinguish the 
 ancient literature from the modern generally, 
 but which more especially appear in promi- 
 nence in the tragic drama. The ancient was 
 allied to statuary, the modern to painting. In 
 the first there is a predominance of rhythm 
 and melody, in the second, of harmony and 
 counterpoint. The Greeks idolized the finite, 
 and therefore were the masters of all grace, 
 elegance, proportion, fancy, dignity, majesty 
 — of whatever, in short, is capable of being 
 definitely conveyed by defined forms or 
 thoughts : the moderns revere the infinite, and 
 affect the indefinite as a vehicle of the infinite 
 ■ — hence their passions, their obscure hopes 
 and fears, their wandering through the un- 
 known, their grander moral feelings, their 
 
126 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 more august conception of man as man, their 
 future rather than their past — in a word, their 
 sublimity." — Samuel Taylor Coleridge 
 
 Study this paragraph to see how effectively Coleridge 
 has used the method of comparison. 
 
 What do you note about the first and the last sen- 
 tences of this paragraph? 
 
 The following paragraph from Dickens* Oliver Twist, 
 like several other paragraphs preceding and following 
 it, well illustrates the method of developing a para- 
 graph by arranging the details in a series of effects re- 
 sulting from the cause stated in the topic sentence: 
 
 "For now, a vision came before him, as con- 
 stant and more terrible than that from which 
 he had escaped. Those wildly staring eyes, so 
 lusterless and so glassy, that he had better 
 borne to see them than to think upon them, 
 appeared in the midst of the darkness: light 
 in themselves, but giving light to nothing. 
 There were but two, but they were everywhere. 
 If he shut out the sight, there came the room 
 with every well-known object — some, indeed, 
 that he would have forgotten, if he had gone 
 over its contents from memory — each in its 
 accustomed place. The body was in its place, 
 and its eyes were as he saw them when he stole 
 away. He got up, and rushed out into the field 
 without. The figure was behind him. He re- 
 entered the shed, and sank down once more. 
 The eyes were there, before he had laid him- 
 self along."— Oliver Twist: Charles Dickens 
 
THE PARAGRAPH 127 
 
 A combination of two or more of the foregoing meth- 
 ods of development is sometimes more effective than 
 any one method would be if used alone. The following 
 paragraph from A Group of English Essayists, by C. 
 T. Winchester, is an example of development by repe- 
 tition combined with examples: 
 
 " Moreover, the range of his (De Quincey's) 
 critical appreciation was sharply limited. He 
 was as insular as the most hide-bound Briton. 
 The manners of all the Latin races, he says, 
 are based on a want of principle and a want of 
 moral sensibility. He never would admit that 
 anything good came out of France. In speak- 
 ing of the relations of French and English lit- 
 erature he declares that 'no section whatever 
 of French literature has ever availed to in- 
 fluence in the slightest degree or to modify our 
 own'; a statement that betrays either such 
 ignorance or such obstinate prejudice as to 
 discredit whatever he has to say of our eight- 
 eenth-century writers. Nor is it race preju- 
 dice only that narrows his vision. As a critic 
 of poetry, he was deficient in the sense of form, 
 and in spite of the pretensions of his own 
 prose-poetry he was deficient in the sense of 
 rhythm. The music of verse appealed to him 
 only when it was organ-like, Miltonic. In 
 truth, the only two elements in literature he 
 ever really cared much for were the mysterious 
 or recondite, and the sublime; and he liked 
 best that writing in which the two were some- 
 how combined. Those masterpieces of litera- 
 ture which depict broad, simple action, from 
 
128 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 obvious motives, had no interest for him. He 
 lived half his life in Edinburgh, but I find no 
 positive evidence that he ever read his Walter 
 Scott. Even the sublime he did not appreciate 
 unless there were something grandiose or spec- 
 tacular in it, something more properly to be 
 called magnificent. Milton he thought sub- 
 lime; Homer, not at all. I doubt whether he 
 thought the first verse of the chapter of Gene- 
 sis sublime; I can imagine what a rhetorical 
 bravura he would have written upon it. In 
 short, he narrowed greatly the range of his 
 criticism by renouncing at once half the ma- 
 terial out of which the best literature must be 
 wrought — the lucid, obvious truths of life; 
 and then by holding persistently to a concep- 
 tion of rhetoric which tended to confound art 
 with artifice. " 
 
 Note the masterly use of the topic sentence and the 
 summarizing sentence. 
 
 Review Suggestions 
 
 Practice work in paragraphing. 
 
 In all writing, attention should be given to paragraphing, but it 
 should have special attention here at the end of the chapter on the 
 paragraph. 
 
 Review the chapter, heeding especially the discussion upon the 
 topic sentence, the summarizing sentence, the relation of the topic 
 sentence to the method of paragraph development, how to choose 
 the best method to use, and the various methods of developing the 
 topic sentence. Study the illustrative paragraphs. Learn to 
 discover well-developed paragraphs in your reading and to notice 
 how they are made effective. It will not interfere with the pleasure 
 of your reading; it will increase it. 
 
 Turn to the end of the chapter on Exposition and select several 
 of the proverbs there given for topic sentences. Carefully decide 
 
THE PARAGRAPH 129 
 
 which method of development to use. Then develop a paragraph 
 from the topic sentence. 
 
 Find the topic sentence in some good paragraph in a book you 
 are reading. Do not notice how it is developed. Develop it your 
 way. Then compare it with the work of the author. You may 
 not be flattered with the result. Nevertheless, the practice will 
 do you good. Keep it up. After a while you may feel as Benjamin 
 Franklin did when imitating the Spectator Papers, that his work was 
 as well done as that of Addison. 
 
 Practice a series of paragraphs, giving heed to the transitions. 
 Make them appear natural. Avoid monotonous repetition of 
 transition words. Study Burke and Ruskin. 
 
 Test all your paragraphs for unity, coherence, and emphasis. 
 
 Test your whole compositions for orderly arrangement of con- 
 nected paragraphs and for unity, coherence, and emphasis of the 
 whole group of paragraphs. 
 
 Avoid overusing any one method of development. Try all. 
 Try combinations of two or more methods. 
 
 Remember that you are to do your best to make a fin- 
 ished product of effective expression. 
 
CHAPTER V 
 LETTER WRITING 
 
 One of the most important and most practical forms 
 of written composition is letter writing. As oral composi- 
 tion is the kind of expression most frequently employed, 
 so letter writing is the most common form of written 
 composition. The old books on the etiquette of letter 
 writing are now happily taboo, but the loss of those 
 quaint old books of our fathers is more than compen- 
 sated for by the best of the rhetorics of to-day which give 
 due prominence to this exacting form of composition. 
 
 Outside of the schoolroom, perhaps, ninety-five per 
 cent of all the writing done is in the form of letters, 
 and much of it is poorly done. The results are so far 
 from being " finished products of effective expression" 
 that it is high time that this form of composition be 
 given due attention. Almost countless numbers do not 
 even know how to address a letter, and yet they send 
 letters. In one large city alone, ten millions of letters, 
 in one year, were so poorly addressed that they never 
 reached their destination. Mail-order houses have to 
 employ specialists to puzzle out the meaning of the 
 thousands of letters that are unintelligible. What 
 further evidence do we need of the necessity of bring- 
 ing rhetoric to the aid of the letter writer? 
 
 130 
 
LETTER WRITING 131 
 
 To convince the possible doubter who thinks that 
 letter writing, like oral English, in his estimation, will 
 take care of itself, we add more reasons. It is well 
 known that many are so conscious of their defects that 
 they delay to answer their letters until they and others 
 suffer. Letters are the most personal form of literature, 
 and consequently betray one's ignorance and careless- 
 ness even more than his speech. Many an applicant 
 for a position has failed because his letter betrayed him. 
 Not infrequently the bad impression given by one's 
 faulty letter is worse than it should be, for some of 
 good character fail to give any evidence of it in their 
 letters and, on being judged by their letters alone, they 
 cannot reveal good qualities. In consequence, then, of 
 its almost universal use, of its power of handicapping 
 one otherwise fairly competent, of its value as a means 
 of communication in the business and in the social 
 world, letter writing must be considered as a sphere 
 where good diction, grammatical construction, the ap- 
 plication of the principles of rhetoric, paragraphing, 
 and planning, are as essential as in any other form of 
 composition. 
 
 The Place of Letter Writing in Literature. To show 
 the importance of letter writing in the history of the 
 world, it is but necessary to call attention to the fact 
 that it is the oldest form of written expression, and 
 that it forms a great part of the world's most intimate 
 literature. Nearly all literary men, poets, essayists, 
 and novelists, have contributed to this form of litera- 
 ture, and through it have revealed themselves more 
 
132 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 than in their more conscious efforts. The letters of 
 other than literary men have bulked large in the litera- 
 ture of the past. Letters are not only the sources from 
 which most biographies are written; they form a large 
 part, often the best part, of many biographies. The 
 epistolary style of writing novels, begun by Richard- 
 son, has never wholly died out. There is an intimacy 
 about it that will keep it alive as long as men and women 
 like to express themselves in letters. 
 
 It has been said that the art of letter writing has 
 died out, but that is putting it too strongly. When 
 the means of communication were far less easy than 
 now, and when the cost of sending a letter was con- 
 siderable, and when the people had more leisure, it was 
 common to devote much time and care to letter writing. 
 For that very reason, it was the custom, in those days, 
 to publish more letters than now. But we must not 
 jump to the conclusion that letter writing has become 
 a lost art because letters are shorter to-day and less 
 frequently published. Nor must we be misled because 
 to-day so many write letters that there must inevitably 
 be many inferior ones. Letters from the front during 
 the war have amply refuted the idea that good letters 
 are no longer written. The characteristics of good let- 
 ters are not dependent upon their length nor upon their 
 being printed. It is as safe to say that letters of as 
 good literary quality are written now as ever before. 1 
 
 1 For an excellent treatment of the subject consult The Great English 
 Letter-Writers, by William J. Dawson and Conningsby W. Dawson. 
 Harper & Brothers. 
 
LETTER WRITING 133 
 
 Good Form Essential in Letter Writing. Although 
 we may infer that the word " informal" gives a large 
 license in letter writing, the fact remains that even 
 informal letters are subject to quite rigid social regula- 
 tions which cannot be ignored unless one is willing to 
 run the risk of being thought ignorant of good usage 
 in letter writing. It is far better to heed these conven- 
 tions than suffer the inconvenience of making the ex- 
 planations and defense necessary if we neglect them. 
 It is next to impossible to keep fully abreast of the 
 latest custom concerning the most formal of all formal 
 kinds of writing, for they change from year to year. 
 But, inasmuch as these forms are set largely by, the 
 large concerns which engrave the up-to-date invita- 
 tions, we may leave it to them to do the work as it 
 should be. Concerning the other more common mat- 
 ters pertaining to social and business letters, we must 
 know how to write them ourselves. 
 
 In general, it should be remembered that while social 
 letters are largely narrative and business letters largely 
 expository in character, letter writing really embraces 
 all forms of discourse. It should be further kept in 
 mind that a letter is a finished product made from raw 
 material by the same processes used in other composi- 
 tion; that the same qualities of clearness, force, and 
 elegance are to be sought, and by the application of the 
 same principles of unity, coherence, and proportion. 
 Failure to attain the rhetorical qualities will result as 
 disastrously in a letter as in a story or in a thesis on a 
 difficult subject. And, finally, good diction and proper 
 
134 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 paragraphing are as useful here as elsewhere in attain- 
 ing the best results. Letter writing is no place, as we 
 have already shown, for careless and slovenly work. 
 Principles may be applied less mechanically, but should 
 not be used less artistically. 
 
 Social or Friendly Letters. A single glance at the 
 accumulated pile of letters one receives in a single year, 
 or even month, reveals the fact that a very large part 
 of our social intercourse with friends, especially if they 
 reside at a distance, is carried on by means of letters. 
 Friends not only keep in touch with one another in 
 this way; they carry on extended conversations, they 
 "visit" in writing. This means that if a friendship is 
 to be more than merely kept alive, if it is to grow by 
 means of correspondence, letters must be vitally in- 
 teresting and extremely personal. Friendships are con- 
 stantly dying between people who are poor correspon- 
 dents; while, on the other hand, friendships are not 
 only kept alive, but are made to develop in qual- 
 ity between people who "are themselves in their 
 letters." 
 
 In The Art and Attainment of English Letter 
 Writing, an introductory essay in the book al- 
 ready referred to, 1 the following part of a paragraph 
 is illuminating: 
 
 "To write a really good letter requires a 
 combination of qualities at once rare in them- 
 selves and rarer still in their conjunction. 
 
 1 See note on page 132. 
 
LETTER WRITING 135 
 
 Thus the writer must himself be interesting, 
 and have interesting matter to communicate; 
 he must be something of an egoist, to whom 
 his own sensations are noticeable and worthy 
 of notice; he must possess both daring and 
 freedom, for the last place where caution and 
 reticence are required is in the familiar epistle; 
 he must be resolutely sincere, for the moment 
 he begins to pose his magic wand is broken 
 and he becomes tedious and offensive; he 
 must, above all, possess the intimate note, for 
 without it he will produce an essay, but not a 
 letter. Of all these good qualities the last is 
 . the rarest, for a good letter is really a page 
 from the secret memoirs of a man. It may be 
 a memoir of ideas or of events; it does not 
 greatly matter which, so long as it contributes 
 to our knowledge of the man. For this is the 
 first aim of a true letter, self-revelation. In 
 many forms of literature self-revelation is the 
 last thing to be expected; in most it would be 
 a disturbing and offensive element. We do 
 not need it in the historian; we need it only 
 partially in the essayist ; even in poetry, espe- 
 cially of the epic kind, it is not always wanted; 
 but in the letter we want this, and nothing less 
 than this. The man who is not prepared to 
 unlock his heart to us can never write a great 
 letter." 
 
 The letters given below speak for themselves. They 
 are given as illustrations of the friendly letter at its 
 best. You will note that they amply fulfill the require- 
 ments mentioned in the quotation given above. 
 
136 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 Washington, D. C, 
 November 21, 1864. 
 Dear Madam, 
 
 I have been shown in the files of the War 
 Department a statement of the Adjutant- 
 General of Massachusetts that you are the 
 mother of five sons who have died gloriously 
 on the field of battle. I feel how weak and 
 fruitless any words must be, any words of 
 mine which should attempt to beguile you 
 from the grief of a loss so overwhelming. But 
 I cannot refrain from tendering to you the con- 
 solation that may be found in the thanks of 
 the Republic that they died to save. I pray 
 that our heavenly Father may assuage the 
 anguish of your bereavement and leave you 
 only the cherished memory of the loved and 
 lost, and the solemn pride that must be yours 
 to have laid so costly a sacrifice upon the altar 
 of freedom. 
 
 Yours very sincerely and respectfully, 
 Abraham Lincoln. 
 
 (The following letter is from Charlotte Bronte to 
 W. S. Williams, after the death of her sister Emily.) 
 
 December 25th, 1848. 
 
 My dear Sir, — I will write to you more at 
 length when my heart can find a little rest — 
 now I can only thank you very briefly for your 
 letter, which seemed to me eloquent in its 
 sincerity. 
 
 Emily is nowhere here now, her wasted 
 mortal remains are taken out of the house. 
 We have laid her cherished head under the 
 
LETTER WRITING 137 
 
 church aisle beside my mother's, my two sis- 
 ters — dead long ago — and my poor, hapless 
 brother's. But a small remnant of the race is 
 left — so my poor father thinks. 
 
 Well, the loss is ours, not hers, and some sad 
 comfort I take, as I hear the wind blow and 
 feel the cutting keenness of the frost, in know- 
 ing that the elements bring her no more suf- 
 fering; their severity cannot reach her grave; 
 her fever is quieted, her restlessness soothed, 
 her deep, hollow cough is hushed forever; we 
 do not hear it in the night nor listen for it in 
 the morning; we have not the conflict of the 
 strangely strong spirit and the fragile frame 
 before us — relentless conflict — once seen, never 
 to be forgotten. A dreary calm reigns round 
 us, in the midst of which we seek resignation. 
 
 My father and my sister Anne are far from 
 well. As for me, God has hitherto most gra- 
 ciously sustained me; so far I have felt ade- 
 quate to bear my own burden and even to offer 
 a little help to others. I am not ill; I can get 
 through daily duties, and do something to- 
 wards keeping hope and energy alive in our 
 mourning household. My father says to me 
 almost hourly, " Charlotte, you must bear up, 
 I shall sink if you fail me"; these words, you 
 can conceive, are a stimulus to nature. The 
 sight, too, of my sister Anne's very still but 
 deep sorrow wakens in me such fear for her 
 that I dare not falter. Somebody must cheer 
 the rest. 
 
 So I will not now ask why Emily was torn 
 from us in the fullness of our attachment, 
 rooted up in the prime of her own days, in 
 
138 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 the promise of her powers; why her existence 
 now lies like a field of green corn trodden 
 down, like a tree in full bearing struck at the 
 root. I will only say, sweet rest is after labor 
 and calm after tempest, and repeat again and 
 again that Emily knows that now. 
 Yours sincerely, 
 
 C. Bronte. 
 
 Newstead Abbey, Sept. 20, 1814. 
 
 "Here's to her who long 
 
 Hath waked the poet's sigh! 
 The girl who gave to song 
 What gold could never buy." 
 
 My dear Moore, — 
 
 I am going to be married — that is I am ac- 
 cepted, and one usually hopes the rest will 
 follow. My mother of the Gracchi (that are 
 to be), you think too straightlaced for me, al- 
 though the paragon of only children, and in- 
 vested with "golden opinions of all sorts of 
 men," and full of "most blessed conditions' ' 
 as Desdemona herself. Miss Milbanke is the 
 lady, and I have her father's invitation to pro- 
 ceed there in my elect capacity — which, how- 
 ever, I cannot do till I have settled some busi- 
 ness in London, and got a blue coat. 
 
 She is said to be an heiress, but of that I 
 really know nothing certainly, and shall not 
 enquire. But I do know, that she has talents 
 and excellent qualities ; and you will not deny 
 her judgment, after having refused six suitors 
 and taken me. 
 
 Now, if you have anything to say against 
 this, pray do; my mind's made up, positively 
 
LETTER WRITING 139 
 
 fixed, determined, and therefore I will listen 
 to reason, because now it can do no harm. 
 Things may occur to break it off, but I will 
 hope not. In the meantime, I tell you (a se- 
 cret, by the way — at least, till I know she 
 wishes it to be public) that I have proposed 
 and am accepted. You need not be in a hurry 
 to wish me joy, for one mayn't be married for 
 months. I am going to town to-morrow; but 
 expect to be here, on my way there, within a 
 fortnight. 
 
 If this had not happened, I should have gone 
 to Italy. In my way down, perhaps, you will 
 meet me at Nottingham, and come over with 
 me here. I need not say that nothing will give 
 me greater pleasure. I must, of course, reform 
 thoroughly; and, seriously, if I can contribute 
 to her happiness, I shall secure my own. She 
 is so good a person, that — that — in short, I 
 wish I was a better. 
 
 Ever &c. 
 (Lord Byron to Thomas Moore.) 
 
 The following two letters are from well-known Ameri- 
 cans to the author of this book. Although they are 
 partially of a business nature, they are good examples 
 of friendly letters. 
 
 H. v.D. Avalon, 
 
 Princeton, N. J. 
 October 24th, 1907. 
 My dear Mr. Rhodes: 
 
 Your kind letter of October 21st. is at hand, 
 and is welcome as a letter from you always is. 
 I am glad to hear of your happiness and of 
 your success in your work. 
 
140 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 Unfortunately it is not possible for me to 
 accept any more invitations for lectures or 
 readings this winter. The calendar is already 
 full to overflowing. 
 
 I have just received from the A. B. C. Co. 
 my first copies of your "Cranford," and am 
 greatly pleased with it. I am not in the way 
 of receiving any criticisms upon these books, 
 as I do not subscribe to any "literary clip- 
 pings" bureau. I find that to do so distracts 
 one's attention from literature. A represen- 
 tative of the A. B. C. Co. came down to see 
 me this week and reported that he heard the 
 most favorable comments upon the Gateway 
 Series among the teachers in the West and 
 that it is doing very well indeed. 
 
 With best regards, 
 
 Faithfully yours, 
 
 Henry van Dyke. 
 
 Princeton, New Jersey, 
 21 January, 1903. 
 My dear Mr. Rhodes: 
 
 How could a man decline so flattering a 
 compliment as that which the Literary Clinic 
 has paid me? It will give me real pleasure to 
 accept an honorary membership in the Club, 
 and I shall hope that I shall have the good for- 
 tune during some future season to be a guest 
 of the Clinic. 
 
 With much regard and appreciation, 
 Sincerely yours, 
 
 Woodrow Wilson. 
 
 Mr. Charles E. Rhodes. 
 
LETTER WRITING 141 
 
 Titles. When a man has no professional title, use 
 abbreviations for Mister or Esquire (Mr. or Esq.), but 
 never use both. In this country Mr. is preferred to Esq. 
 except in the case of a man of some distinction. 
 
 Where there are titles they should not be repeated 
 after the name when they have been used before it. 
 Do not say, Dr. James Pelton, M.D.; say, Dr. James 
 Pelton, or James Pelton, M.D. 
 
 The distinction between titles and academic degrees 
 should be kept in mind. A clergyman should be ad- 
 dressed as Reverend Charles Simpson if he has no de- 
 gree, but if he is also a Doctor of Divinity, he should 
 be addressed Reverend Charles Simpson, D.D. Some 
 authorities claim that the title Reverend should always 
 be preceded by the article, "The"; it is not necessary, 
 though more formal. Never say, Reverend Simpson. 
 If the Christian name is not used say, "The Reverend 
 Mr. Simpson, or Reverend Mr. Simpson." 
 
 With the exception of "Dr." the name of the title 
 is usually written out in full; e.g., Professor George 
 Thompson, Ph.D. 
 
 Where a man has a business title it should be used 
 in letters to him upon business connected with his firm; 
 e.g., John McGinness, Esq., General Agent. 
 
 Officers of the regular army and navy are addressed 
 by their titles, spelled out in full, and without the civil 
 titles Mr. or Sir; e.g., General Ulysses S. Grant, Ad- 
 miral John Ferguson. 
 
142 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 The President may be addressed in any of the fol- 
 lowing ways: 
 
 To the President, 
 
 The White House, 
 Washington, D. C. 
 Sir: 
 
 To the President of the United States, 
 The White House, 
 
 Washington, D. C. 
 Sir: 
 
 To the Honorable Warren G. Harding, 
 President of the United States, 
 Washington, D. C. 
 Sir: 
 
 To the Honorable Warren G. Harding, President, 
 The White House, 
 
 Washington, D. C. 
 Sir: 
 
 Senators are addressed as follows: 
 
 Honorable William Morgan, 
 Senator from New York, 
 The Senate Chamber, 
 Washington, D. C. 
 Sir: 
 
 Honorable William Morgan, 
 The Senate Chamber, 
 Washington, D. C. 
 Sir: 
 
LETTER WRITING 143 
 
 Senator William Morgan, 
 The Senate Chamber, 
 Washington, D. C. 
 Sir: 
 
 Members of the House of Representatives are ad- 
 dressed : 
 
 Honorable Clement White, 
 House of Representatives, 
 Washington, D. C. 
 Sir: 
 
 Honorable Clement White, M.C., 
 
 Washington, D. C, 
 Sir: (or Dear Sir:) 
 
 Address the Vice-President : 
 
 To the Vice-President of the United States, 
 
 Washington, D, C. 
 Sir: 
 
 Address a member of the Supreme Court: 
 
 To the Honorable Oliver Wendell Holmes, Associate 
 Justice, 
 The United States Supreme Court, 
 Washington, D. C. 
 Sir: 
 
 Forms similar to the above are used in addressing 
 members of the Cabinet. 
 
144 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 Governors are addressed: 
 
 To his Excellency, the Governor, 
 Executive Mansion, 
 Albany, N. Y. 
 Sir: 
 
 Mayors of cities are addressed: 
 
 To his Honor, the Mayor, 
 The City HaU, 
 Buffalo, N. Y. 
 Sir: 
 
 The Honorable George S. Buck, 
 Mayor of Buffalo, 
 The City Hall/ 
 Buffalo, N. Y. 
 Sir: 
 
 "Sir" is preferable in the above cases when address- 
 ing officials officially; otherwise "Dear Sir" is more 
 appropriate. 
 
 Women, whether married or single, are addressed as 
 "Madam" when addressed singly; as "Mesdames" or 
 "Ladies" when addressed in groups of two or more. 
 
 Business firms and institutions should always be 
 given their full titles in addressing them. 
 
 The Robertson-Cataract Electric Company, 
 
 Buffalo, N. Y. 
 Sirs: 
 
LETTER WRITING 145 
 
 Rochester City Hospital, 
 
 Rochester, N. Y. 
 Sirs: 
 
 When an officer of a firm or institution is addressed, 
 show in your address what his title is : 
 
 Dr. James Crosby, Superintendent, 
 Rochester City Hospital, 
 Rochester, N. Y. 
 My dear Dr. Crosby: 
 
 When an employee, not an officer, is addressed, use 
 the following form: 
 
 The Robertson-Cataract Electrical Company, 
 
 Buffalo, N. Y. 
 Attention Mr. Mitchells: 
 
 The Ordinary Conventions of Informal, Friendly Let- 
 ters. Even in informal letters there are certain forms 
 required by good usage, which, however, allows con- 
 considerable option. Keep the following in mind: 
 
 1. The Heading. The heading consists of the ad- 
 dress of the writer and the date upon which the letter 
 is written. Ordinarily the heading is placed at the 
 beginning of the letter, near the right margin, and an 
 inch or an inch and a half from the top of the page, 
 as in the letter from Woodrow Wilson. The heading 
 may occupy two or three lines. When street and house 
 numbers are given, it is better to use three lines. 
 When the letter is to a very intimate friend or near 
 
146 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 relative, it is not always necessary to include the place 
 in the heading. The date, however, must always be 
 given. Each line in the heading, after the first, begins 
 and extends a little further to the right. For example : 
 
 507 Potomac Avenue, 
 Buffalo, N. Y., 
 
 December 6, 1920. 
 
 Each line ends with a comma, except the last, which 
 requires a period. 
 
 The items of the heading may be placed at the end 
 of the letter, in which case it should be on the line 
 below the signature and beginning a little to the right 
 of the initials or the Christian name of the signature. 
 This form is less common than that of placing the 
 heading at the upper right-hand corner of the first 
 sheet. 
 
 It will be noted that the letter from Henry van Dyke 
 varies from the form mentioned as correct, but that 
 letter was on engraved stationery, and with such 
 stationery the name of the place is engraved in the 
 center of the sheet an inch or more from the top. The 
 date is then, as usual, at the right. 
 
 2. The Salutation. The form of the salutation de- 
 pends upon the degree of intimacy existing between 
 the writer and the one addressed. Common sense and 
 good taste are the surest guides. "My dear Miss Sey- 
 mour " is quite formal and indicates formal relations, 
 such as might exist between comparative strangers or 
 between a young person and another considerably 
 older; "My dear Florence " indicates some degree oi 
 
LETTER WRITING 147 
 
 formality, while "Dear Florence " would be appropri- 
 ate in case of intimate friendship. Adjectives between 
 the first and the last words of the salutation are not 
 capitalized. 
 
 Other forms are too intimate and too private and per- 
 sonal to need consideration here. 
 
 A word of caution is added, however, against the too 
 common use of the word friend, and especially against 
 the taboo expression, " Friend John." 
 
 a. Let the salutation be brief, and in good 
 taste. 
 
 b. The position of the salutation is at the 
 left of the sheet, beginning at the marginal line, 
 one inch from the edge of the sheet. It should 
 be on the line below the heading, unless the 
 address is given, in which case it follows the 
 last line of the address. 
 
 c. The punctuation following the salutation, 
 like the form of the salutation, is determined 
 by the degree of intimacy existing between the 
 correspondents. The comma is most informal; 
 the colon the most formal; while the comma 
 and the dash and the colon and the dash indi- 
 cate the intermediate degrees of intimacy. 
 
 3. The Address. The address is usually omitted in 
 friendly letters except where necessity, as in the case of 
 a "new or changed address, requires it. It is usually 
 placed at the end of the letter, below the signature, 
 and at the left and beginning at the margin. It is ar- 
 ranged and punctuated as in the case of the heading. 
 
 Be consistent in the use of the open or the closed 
 
148 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 system of punctuation. Do not mix them. The open 
 system is growing in favor. 
 
 4. The Body of the Letter. The body of the letter is, 
 of course, the important part. It should be remembered 
 that it is to please and to interest the one addressed. 
 This means that there should be no long and useless 
 beginning, no empty and commonplace expressions, 
 such as, "I have some spare time and so will write you 
 a few lines/ ' for that really means discourtesy. Begin 
 at once to say what you have to say and say it in the 
 best way you can command. All the principles of 
 rhetoric should serve you here as in other kinds of 
 composition. Never say, "It's only a letter and does 
 not matter.' ' It does matter. Be yourself and put 
 yourself into your letter. Do not scorn the paragraph 
 in your letter writing. It is as valuable there as else- 
 where. Do not run on and on after you have said 
 what you really want to say. Remember that another 
 is expected to read what you write. Let him want 
 more; do not bore him. If you are answering another's 
 letter, answer it. It is what he expects. You cannot 
 afford to disappoint him. When you have finished, stop 
 with the interest still at its height. Do not say, "I can- 
 not think of anything more to write and so must stop." 
 
 5. The Closing. Here, as in the opening, there is 
 much option as to the form. Again the degree of social 
 intimacy determines whether you say, "Yours respect- 
 fully," "Yours truly," "Yours cordially," "Yours sin- 
 cerely," "Yours affectionately," or whether you may 
 use still stronger terms. These given are all proper and 
 
LETTER WRITING 149 
 
 moderate. Do not, however, say " Yours &c"; it in- 
 dicates an unseemly haste or even indifference. 
 
 If the participial closing, " Hoping to hear from you 
 soon/' and similar expressions are used, use them spar- 
 ingly. It is better to avoid them entirely. They are 
 too reminiscent of old forms that are better forgotten. 
 
 Place the complimentary closing well toward the 
 right of the page on the line next below the last line 
 of the body of the letter. Capitalize only the first 
 word of the complimentary closing phrase. 
 
 In signing your name, use the Christian name only 
 in case of real intimacy. Avoid the use of initials. 
 Where there is any degree of formality, write the name 
 in full. 
 
 After the complimentary closing phrase, use a comma, 
 and after the name use a period, except when using the 
 open system. 
 
 Sign the name, beginning about half an inch farther 
 to the right than the beginning of the complimentary 
 closing words. 
 
 6. The Superscription. The superscription consists 
 of what is necessary to put upon the envelope to insure 
 safe delivery and, in case of failure to reach its destina- 
 tion, to have the letter returned to the sender instead 
 of to the " dead-letter office.'' 
 
 In general, the address on the envelope is arranged 
 and punctuated in the same manner as in the letter 
 and in the heading. 
 
 The name should be placed approximately in the 
 center of the envelope, with the address under it, each 
 
150 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 line beginning a little farther to the right. The order 
 is important: name, street and number, city, state. 
 Uniformity here facilitates delivery. 
 
 If the address, with or without the name of the 
 sender, is placed upon the envelope, it should be in 
 the upper left-hand corner. 
 
 If the letter is sent "in care of" some other person, 
 that fact should be stated in the lower left-hand cor- 
 ner of the envelope. 
 
 Consult the models given below: 
 
 Mr. James Boyd Montgomery, 
 367 Cleveland Street, 
 Chicago , 111. 
 
 Miss Emily Sutherland 
 
 
 916 Aloany Street 
 
 
 New Haven 
 
 
 Connecticut 
 
 
LETTER WRITING 151 
 
 Mr. George Buchanan, 
 
 916 Delaware Avenue, 
 Springfield, Ohio. 
 
 
 
 
 
 Professor Henry Summers, 
 Princeton University, 
 Princeton, N. J. 
 
 
 
 Mr John Henry 
 
 Scott 
 
 156 Claremont 
 
 Avenue 
 
 Rochester 
 
 
 New York 
 
 
 
 John 
 
 Newman Thompson, 
 35 Kent Street, 
 
 Esq., 
 
 
 
 Nashville , 
 
 Tenn. 
 
 In 
 
 care of 
 
 Mr. James Jay. 
 
 
 The forms shown are further accepted for the address 
 upon the envelope. The first, called the block form, is 
 growing in favor because of its pleasing appearance 
 and of the ease in writing or typing it. 
 
152 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 The "open system/ ' which means using the mini- 
 mum of punctuation in the heading, salutation, and 
 address, is also growing in favor. It is used by the 
 New York State Department of English in their letters 
 and upon examination papers. In view of the practice 
 of such high authorities, we predict an increasing use 
 of the "open system" until it becomes an established 
 custom. The "open system" also omits the period in 
 Mr and Mrs. 
 
 While we would not appear so radical as to demand 
 this system, we favor it and recommend it. 
 
 Study the following letter : 
 
 Albany, June 5, 1918 
 
 Mr Charles Elbert Rhodes * 
 Lafayette High School 
 Buffalo, N. Y 
 
 My dear Mr Rhodes: 
 
 The form which you have prepared for re- 
 cording the supplementary reading of individ- 
 ual pupils in your classes seems to me an ad- 
 mirable one. If you have them to spare, please 
 send me twenty or twenty-five copies so that 
 I may have them for distribution. 
 Sincerely yours 
 
 R. T. Congdon 
 RTC-C 
 
 Formal Notes. The strictly formal note is written 
 in the third person and the one addressed is mentioned 
 in the third person. There is no heading, unless en- 
 graved cards are used; and the date is written out in 
 
LETTER WRITING 153 
 
 full, except that the year is commonly omitted, in the 
 lower left-hand corner of the card or sheet of paper. 
 There are few variations in formal notes. Such notes 
 are used principally for invitations and replies to invi- 
 tations, either acceptances or regrets. 
 Note the details of the following: 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. John Henry Terhune request 
 the pleasure of Mr. Charles James Merritt's 
 company at dinner on Saturday evening, June 
 the fifteenth, at seven o'clock. 
 1017 Broad Street, 
 June fifth. 
 
 Mr. Merritt accepts with pleasure Mr. and 
 Mrs. John Henry Terhune's kind invitation 
 to dinner on Saturday evening, June the 
 fifteenth, at seven o'clock. 
 1339 Eighteenth Street, 
 June sixth. 
 
 Mr. Merritt regrets his inability to accept 
 Mr. and Mrs. John Henry Terhune's kind in- 
 vitation to dinner on Saturday evening, June 
 the fifteenth, at seven o'clock. 
 1339 Eighteenth Street, 
 June sixth. 
 
 Do not use the future tense in accepting or declining 
 an invitation. Always use the present tense. 
 
 It is important to repeat the exact words of the in- 
 vitation when accepting or declining. 
 
 In engraved invitations the word "your" may be 
 used because it would be impossible to engrave the 
 
154 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 names of all the guests invited. Sometimes, however, 
 there is a blank left in the engraved invitation to allow 
 the name of each one invited to be written in. 
 
 Business Letters. Business letters require special 
 attention, for they are the means of carrying on busi- 
 ness by mail, and a very large part of the world's busi- 
 ness is so conducted. The two chief aims in business 
 letters are clearness and conciseness; the aim must be 
 to say all that is necessary to make one's meaning per- 
 fectly clear, but to avoid any unnecessary details. 
 
 A few years ago business letters were perfunctory 
 affairs, poorly written, and abounding in something 
 approaching "business slang," and puzzling omissions 
 and abbreviations. To-day, the business world fully 
 realizes that a good business letter cannot be written 
 unless the writer knows how to produce good English, 
 — clear, concise, forceful, and graceful. The large con- 
 cerns have specialists to do their correspondence and 
 the correspondence department trains its members in 
 good English as well as in the details of the business 
 they are to help carry on. The letters between high- 
 grade firms have greatly improved. 
 
 In the case of many large mail-order houses, however, 
 more than half of the correspondence is in the form of 
 orders from illiterate people who cannot make their 
 wants known; who cannot even direct the envelope 
 properly. It will take years of strenuous education 
 to train the general public until they can really express 
 themselves. The writing of properly constructed busi- 
 ness letters, then, becomes of the first importance even 
 
LETTER WRITING 155 
 
 in the grade schools beyond which the great majority 
 never go. 
 
 In the business world, a large part of the advertising 
 and often the most effective part, is done by letters; 
 goods are bought and sold by letters; and errors and 
 claims are adjusted by letters. In advertising, the first 
 essential of all other composition, interest, is found to 
 be just as important as in a novel, a poem, or a play, 
 for unless the advertisement is attractive enough to 
 create interest, which is the first step in creating a 
 demand, it is useless. If it is characterized by some- 
 thing approaching literary charm, if it has real force 
 so as to reach the heart, if it possesses an indefinable 
 telling power, it becomes a most effective finished prod- 
 uct of expression; it creates customers. The salesman 
 must be a man of real power. He must know his busi- 
 ness and he must know human nature. If he knows 
 psychology, as he must if he fully knows human nature, 
 so much the better. He must have a sense of humor 
 and an imagination. The more fully equipped he is in 
 these qualities the better he can do his work. He will 
 be able to write effective letters. He will sell goods. 
 The adjuster of claims must possess the same qualities 
 together with much courtesy and tact. 
 
 The form of the good business letter permits but 
 slight variations. When one receives a business letter 
 he wants to be able to determine, at once and without 
 any delay, who wrote it, where it was written, when 
 it was written, to whom it was addressed, and what it 
 says. The first four of these questions should be an- 
 
156 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 swered in the formal parts of the letter — the heading, 
 the address, and the subscription. The last is the body 
 of the letter. There is no excuse for an error in form. 
 Learn the correct form and then practice using it with- 
 out variations. 
 
 1. The Heading. Most business houses have "letter 
 heads/' so that all that is necessary to insure the head- 
 ing's being right is to fill in the date. It is well to avoid 
 abbreviations, such as 1-5-18, for January 5, 1918. 
 If it is argued that such brief forms save time, we reply 
 that they are confusing. The fact that the Friends, or 
 Quakers, demand that the day be named first, is alone 
 enough to cause errors. Business demands exactness. 
 Doubt as to a date might cause great loss, or even a 
 lawsuit. Then, too, such abbreviations indicate un- 
 seemly haste, which even the rush of the business 
 world does not demand, does not tolerate. 
 
 When writing a business letter on ordinary paper, 
 that is, paper that has no printing on it, the heading 
 should be the same as in the friendly letter, but it 
 should always be complete. 
 
 2. The Inside Address. This is essential in business 
 letters, especially where the letters are placed in the 
 envelopes by clerks who have many of them to handle. 
 The use of the address is a necessary convention. As 
 in the case of the friendly letter, the address should be 
 a space or two below the heading, beginning at the 
 left margin. 
 
 3. The Salutation. This, too, is a mere form, but it 
 is followed from custom. It is placed beneath the ad- 
 
LETTER WRITING 157 
 
 dress and also begins at the left margin. The com- 
 monest salutations are: "Sir," "Sirs," "Gentlemen," 
 "My dear Sir," "Madam," "My dear Madam," and the 
 like. Sometimes an officer of an institution or a member 
 of a firm is addressed, in which case be sure to give the 
 title indicating his official position. (See models.) 
 
 The proper punctuation after the salutation is the 
 colon, or the colon and the dash. 
 
 4. The Body of the Letter. Begin at once. Avoid 
 such expressions as "Yrs of the 26th inst. at hand, and 
 hasten to reply." Nothing is to be gained by their use. 
 They are not good English, nor good sense. Do not 
 be afraid of the pronouns "I" and "We." 
 
 Be brief, yet complete. Be clear. Look after the 
 proportions and emphasis. Use well-developed para- 
 graphs. If you make inquiries, ask real questions. In 
 answering questions do it with care. To insure clear- 
 ness, it may be necessary sometimes to repeat the ques- 
 tions you are answering. 
 
 Always take time to be courteous. 
 
 Remember that the body of your letter should be a 
 composition that will stand the tests of rhetoric and, if 
 need be, of the laws of the state. 
 
 5. The Complimentary Close. This is also a relic of 
 former times, when the close was elaborate. It is much 
 briefer to-day. The participial closing is permitted in 
 business letters. The common and approved forms are : 
 "Yours truly," "Yours very truly," "Yours respect- 
 fully," and the like. Such expressions as "Yrs &c" 
 are taboo. 
 
158 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 6. The Signature. In business letters it is essential 
 to use one's regular or bank-check signature. 
 
 Women sign business letters by using their own name, 
 as "Mary Powers, " or "Mrs. Mary Powers." If a mar- 
 ried woman wishes to indicate that she is married, she 
 signs her name as above, and then at the left hand and 
 a little below the signature, writes, "Mrs. John W. 
 Powers." If the latter is not done the inference would 
 be that Mrs. Mary Powers is a widow. 
 
 The address may be repeated below the signature, if 
 desired, but it is not necessary. 
 
 Pages should be carefully numbered and arranged 
 before folding. 
 
 The following is a typical business letter of the kind 
 known as a sales letter. It is also an advertising letter 
 soliciting trade. 
 
 Joseph N. Goodyear 
 
 HIGH CLASS SHOES 
 
 169 Russell Street, Rochester, N. Y. 
 
 April 16, 1918 
 Mr. William P. Sloan, 
 
 187 Summit Avenue, 
 Rochester, N. Y. 
 Dear Sir: 
 
 If you want to secure style, comfort, 
 quality, satisfaction, and long wear in your next 
 pair of shoes, it will pay you to go through the 
 catalogue recently mailed you of the Johnson- 
 Cochrane shoes carefully and to familiarize your- 
 self with this make of shoes for your own wear. 
 
LETTER WRITING 159 
 
 The Johnson-Cochrane shoes are known the 
 country over for their distinctive style and for 
 the satisfaction they give. They represent the 
 best value in shoes that you can possibly se- 
 cure. In addition, they are thoroughly guar- 
 anteed in all respects — and this feature alone, 
 as you well know, means a great deal to you 
 in shoe satisfaction — for you have only to 
 mention any defects in workmanship or in fit, 
 and your purchase will be made good to you. 
 
 At our shop you will find a complete stock of 
 these most excellent shoes, and among them 
 there is sure to be a pair that was made for 
 your feet and will suit you exactly in leather, 
 style, and fit. When you buy them you will 
 be sure of having a shoe for once in your life 
 that is comfortable, stylish in appearance, and 
 satisfactory in every detail — even the smallest. 
 
 We do not want you to take our word alone 
 for this. Just drop into our shop to-morrow, 
 if you can, or at your first opportunity, and 
 look over our line and convince yourself that 
 you will secure the best possible shoe value 
 by buying your shoes here in the future. 
 
 There are five good reasons why you and 
 every member of your family should buy your 
 shoes here: style, comfort, quality, scientific 
 fitting, and superior service. 
 
 At least come in and see what we have to 
 offer. You will be under no obligation to buy. 
 Our spring styles are just in — some are unus- 
 ually attractive. 
 
 Yours very truly, 
 
 Joseph N. Goodyear, 
 Shoe Specialist. 
 
160 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 An analysis of the foregoing letter reveals the fact 
 that it complies with the requirements for such letters. 
 It is courteous. It seeks to appeal to the person ad- 
 dressed from his point of view and hence makes him 
 feel that the seller really wants to serve him. The letter 
 is coherent. The arguments are such as appeal to men 
 who are careful — quality, good value, guarantee. There 
 are no extravagant statements or exaggerated argu- 
 ments. The beginning and the ending are both well 
 calculated to arouse attention and to make a favorable 
 appeal. The whole tone of the letter is of the sort that 
 inspires confidence and is likely to get results. 
 
 But little need be said concerning the other business 
 forms. Letters making inquiries should be as short as 
 possible, but should be very clear. They should be 
 requests, not demands. Replies to such letters should 
 possess the same characteristics. 
 
 Even in letters of complaint the tone must be kindly 
 and courteous, even though unpleasant things have to 
 be said. Nothing is ever gained by losing one's tem- 
 per. In a letter there is greater need for self-control 
 than in speech. In replying to letters of complaint, 
 remember that, however trivial the complaint may 
 seem to you, it is important to the one who made it 
 and that you should be respectful and patient. The 
 same is true in the case of letters requesting payment 
 and " hurry up" letters, where there has been delay in 
 making shipment — they should be treated respectfully. 
 Tact, common sense, and good judgment will prevent 
 
LETTER WRITING 161 
 
 serious trouble. Even though one side may try to make 
 trouble, the other side may prevent its materializing 
 if it refuses to stoop to the lower level. 
 
 Exercises in Letter Writing 
 
 1. Write a friendly letter to one whom you have not seen for two 
 years and who has gone to the Pacific coast, telling of a striking 
 incident of your last vacation trip. 
 
 2. Write a letter to one in another city whom you want to 
 persuade to go to the same college you have decided to enter. 
 Give reasons why you think he ought to go where you do and 
 answer some objections he may have made. 
 
 3. Write a letter to a distant cousin in England. He has never 
 been to America and has asked you to give a full account of school 
 life here. 
 
 4. Write a letter of congratulation to a friend who has received 
 some high honor. 
 
 5. Write a note of condolence to one who has lost his mother. 
 Be careful to say the right thing and to say it in the best possible 
 way. 
 
 6. Write a courteous and tactful letter to secure the return of a 
 very valuable book which has been borrowed and kept for six 
 months. 
 
 7. Write an application for a position in a bank, where you have 
 heard there is a vacancy. Tell of your education, business experi- 
 ence, references, and wherever else you think wise. Remember you 
 are asking a favor from those who are under no obligation to you. 
 
 8. Write a letter to a stranger in reply to the following adver- 
 tisement : 
 
 WANTED — a boy, between sixteen and eighteen years 
 old, to help in the office of a wholesale grocery store from 
 2 to 6 p.m. Wages, six dollars a week. Persons answer- 
 ing this advertisement must apply in writing and mention 
 satisfactory references. 
 
 The Eureka Grocery Company, 
 117 Jefferson Street. 
 
 9. Write a letter complaining of the delay in receiving an order 
 of goods which should have been received a week ago. 
 
162 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 10. Write a formal invitation in which Mr. and Mrs. John Lloyd 
 Boyd invite Mr. and Mrs. Charles Clifford to dinner at their 
 home, 118 East Sixty-fourth Street, at seven o'clock, Friday, May 
 the sixteenth. 
 
 11. Write an acceptance to the same invitation. 
 
 12. Decline it. 
 
 13. Using the same name, write an invitation to the wedding 
 of their daughter, Mary Louise, to Ensign Robert Charles Frost, 
 U.S.N. 
 
 14. Prepare copy for engraver for formal announcement of the 
 same ceremony. 
 
 15. Write a telegram, limiting yourself to ten words, in which 
 you announce your arrival at some distant city, upon a certain 
 train, and ask to be met at the station to make an appointment 
 for a business engagement. 
 
 16. Write a cablegram of five words announcing your safe 
 arrival in London after a stormy passage. 
 
 17. Write an advertisement for a lost dog. Describe him for 
 identification, telling the name he recognizes. Offer reward. 
 
 18. Write a . news-letter advertisement of one hundred words 
 to create a demand for a vacuum cleaner. 
 
 19. Write a sales letter to interest some one in an insurance com- 
 pany of which you are an agent. 
 
 20. Write a follow-up letter upon the same subject seeking an 
 appointment. 
 
 21. Write a letter complaining to a mail-order house that some 
 goods you have purchased are not as represented in the catalogue. 
 
 22. Write such a letter as the mail-order house might send you 
 to adjust the matter so as to satisfy you and keep your patronage. 
 
 23. Write a letter to a firm expressing your belief that one of its 
 clerks has been guilty of dishonesty in selling you goods at a price 
 in advance of what the firm expected. 
 
 24. Write a letter exonerating an employee whom you believe to 
 have been unjustly accused of fraudulent dealings. Give your 
 evidence or authority for your belief. 
 
 25. Write a letter to the president of the college you hope to 
 enter, the same college your father attended, asking his advice 
 concerning the course you should take. Tell what your aims are. 
 Remember that such a letter should be something between a 
 business and a friendly one. 
 
 26. Write a letter of apology to your teacher to whom you have 
 been discourteous in your speech. 
 
LETTER WRITING i 163 
 
 27. Write a letter exonerating yourself from a false charge of 
 having handed in another's composition as your own. Be sure to 
 give irrefutable proof. 
 
 28. Write a steamer letter to a friend who is to cross the Atlantic 
 for the first time, on the Mauretania, which sails in two weeks. 
 Your friend, as you have reason to know, is likely to be homesick 
 and fears being seasick. Make your letter a real cheery one. 
 
 29. Write a reply, such as your friend might send you, from 
 Stratford-upon-Avon, telling of her first experiences in England 
 and, especially, of her impressions of Stratford. 
 
 30. Write three other letters from the same friend: one giving 
 her impressions of a great cathedral, one of some rural scene in a 
 historic section, and one relating two weeks' sight-seeing in London. 
 
 31. Write a letter to the Post Office authorities in some large 
 city trying to trace a lost parcel. Tell how it was addressed, the 
 place from which it was sent, and the date of sending. 
 
 32. Your house is for sale. An acquaintance living at a distance 
 has written you for a description, terms of sale, etc. Write so as to 
 satisfy him. Give full details. 
 
 33. Give his answer. 
 
 34. Answer an inquiry from a friend, of your own age, who wants 
 to know of the book that has influenced you the most. Give 
 enough details to arouse your friend's interest; but not too many, 
 lest you take away some of his pleasure in reading. 
 
 35. Imagine you have grown up and have been out of college 
 ten years. Write to a classmate whom you have not seen since 
 graduation, giving three reasons why he should attend the decennial 
 class reunion. Use such arguments as to compel his attendance. 
 
 36. Write to a wealthy graduate of your school who is also a 
 graduate of a great university, urging him to establish a scholarship 
 in his university for the benefit of the pupils of his own school. 
 The scholarship is to be won by competition and to be open only 
 to those who could not otherwise go to college. The man to whom 
 you write was a poor boy. 
 
 37. The train upon which you are returning from a vacation 
 visit has been wrecked. What telegram would you send home 
 at once to relieve the anxiety of your parents? What letter 
 would you send the first opportunity you could find for writing? 
 You have been slightly injured. Write both. 
 
 38. Write a series of letters and the replies to them, by means of 
 which you arrange a camping party. Your letters should be to two 
 
 -friends who do not reside in your town; to two or three places to 
 
164 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 secure a camping site; to two or more sporting-goods houses for 
 necessary supplies. Arrange with your distant friends to bring 
 certain supplies. See that all plans are perfect up to the time of 
 starting. 
 
 39. Write a letter from the camp at the end of the first week, 
 telling of your experiences, some of which have been exciting. 
 
 40. Imagine that you have entered college. Write a letter to 
 your school principal telling him in what respects you have found 
 your preparation adequate, and point out two ways in which you 
 would suggest improvements in the school curriculum. Remember 
 you are but a student and that you are writing to your former 
 principal. 
 
CHAPTER VI 
 ORAL COMPOSITION 
 
 The emphasis recently put upon oral composition is 
 most opportune. Only a few years ago, whenever one 
 spoke of composition, he invariably meant composition 
 in writing. People took pains with their writing; they 
 talked without regard to the principles they were care- 
 ful to follow "when they took pen in hand." As a 
 result their speech habits encroached upon their writ- 
 ing, and the writing suffered. Unless one recognizes 
 the fundamental principles of rhetoric in all his attempts 
 to express his thoughts and emotions, he can never be 
 sure of himself. Now, and most wisely, just as much 
 time is supposed to be devoted to oral composition as 
 to written. And the beneficial results are increasingly 
 gratifying. Oral composition is no fad. It has come 
 to stay. 
 
 And why should it not? We speak, perhaps, a hun- 
 dred times as often as we write. Nearly all our com- 
 munication with one another is oral. To talk well 
 should be considered as much of an accomplishment 
 as to write well. The very frequency with which we 
 speak does not argue that speaking should receive less 
 attention than writing, but more. The changing atti- 
 tude toward oral English is well illustrated by a typical 
 
 165 
 
166 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 incident out of the teaching experience of the present 
 writer, who had oral English in his classes several years 
 before it became customary. A young man came back 
 to school a year or so after graduation, and said: "I 
 used to think you the meanest teacher in the school 
 when you made us make impromptu speeches in your 
 English class, but when I had to present the claims of 
 the advertising agency I now represent to the dignified 
 board of directors of one of our largest banks, my heart 
 went out to you in gratitude, for I could not have done 
 it without the aid of oral English in your class." 
 
 Pupils are quick to discover a good thing. The old 
 aversion against oral day is a thing of the past; that 
 day is coming to be one of the best of all, most enjoy- 
 able and most fruitful in results. 
 
 The day will come, as prophesied by a former high 
 official in the New York State Department of English 
 and now the principal of a well-known normal school, 
 when every teacher, in every department, will be a 
 teacher of English, at least oral English. Then people 
 will wonder why it was not done long before. 
 
 As the time of apologizing and explaining oral work 
 is passing, we may put all our energies into making that 
 work count. 
 
 One of the first things to emphasize is the fact that 
 the preparatory work, the gathering of the material, 
 the evaluating process, the organization of the material 
 according to the principles of rhetoric, are the same 
 whether the " effective expression' ' is to be written or 
 spoken. The speaker's aim is identical with the writer's. 
 
ORAL COMPOSITION 167 
 
 Both seek to arouse interest through a finished product 
 characterized by clearness, force, and elegance, and ap- 
 pealing to the intellect, the emotions, and to esthetic 
 sensibilities. Both take into account what they wish 
 to express and how best to do it, so as to influence their 
 audience or their readers. 
 
 The Paragraph in Oral Composition. Some contend 
 that the paragraph is a device peculiar to written com- 
 position. We maintain, on the other hand, that effec- 
 tive speaking, like effective writing, is dependent upon 
 ability to handle the paragraph. If either kind of ex- 
 pression demands more attention to the paragraph 
 than the other, it is oral. Without the paragraph, oral 
 expression is mere rambling talk, convincing no one; 
 getting nowhere. There can be no proper analysis and 
 division of a subject without paragraphing. The lis- 
 tener needs the topic sentence to enable him to follow 
 the speaker; the speaker needs it to get the attention 
 of the listener. Both need the development of the 
 paragraph : one to organize his thoughts ; the other to 
 comprehend them. Above all, introductory, transi- 
 tional, and summarizing paragraphs are essential to 
 hold the attention and to make the thought clear where 
 the reasoning is close. Burke, the master speaker, was 
 also the master of the use of the paragraph. 
 
 For all the foregoing reasons, showing the essential 
 similarity between oral and written composition, both 
 should be studied together and the principles of rhetoric 
 should be presented in the same way, from the same 
 point of view. 
 
168 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 How Oral, Differs from Written, Expression. Having 
 seen what similarity there is between the two forms of 
 expression, we are in a position to appreciate the dif- 
 ferences. 
 
 One difference between oral and written composition 
 is due to the different kind of appeal made by the 
 speaker. He aims at immediate results. When his 
 speech is over his opportunity is gone. When the 
 writer, on the other hand, has finished his product, his 
 opportunity to influence others has just begun. It may 
 go on indefinitely. Every time he has a new reader he 
 has a new chance. If a reader is interested, yet fails to 
 understand fully, he may reread until he does under- 
 stand. 
 
 The speaker, having a single opportunity, must make 
 the most of it. The single opportunity implies, also, 
 the single audience. This enables him to adapt his 
 speech to his audience with the nicest discrimination. 
 Diction, phrasing, connecting, and transitional words 
 and phrases, emphasis, and euphony, may all be made 
 to make the oral appeal effective. The speaker has the 
 added advantage of watching the effect of his speech 
 upon his audience while delivering it. This enables 
 him still further to adapt his speech to his hearers; it 
 enables him to take advantage of the reaction of the 
 audience produced by his words so that he may change 
 his method or his manner during his speech in a way 
 the writer never can do. 
 
 Oral Diction. Oral diction is so important that it 
 demands a word by itself. On the whole, it is simpler 
 
ORAL COMPOSITION 169 
 
 than written diction. A speaker cannot venture to 
 use words with which he has reason to think his hearers 
 are unfamiliar. While he should never "talk down" 
 to his audience, neither should he talk "over their 
 heads." A reader may stop to consult a dictionary; 
 a listener has not that privilege. Hence, use such words 
 as are presumably within the comprehension of the 
 audience. 
 
 Picturesque and figurative words, such as suggest or 
 call up images readily, are very effective in speaking. 
 They enable listeners to visualize scenes as well as to 
 hear what is said. 
 
 Wherever it is possible, use concrete words. They 
 are always more vital, more effective, in oral composi- 
 tion than abstract words. If abstract words must 
 be used, do so sparingly. Make them more alive by 
 the use of figurative expressions, and by concrete 
 illustrations. 
 
 Short, simple, Saxon words are, on the whole, better 
 adapted to oral expression than longer words of Latin 
 derivation. The demand for variety and effectiveness 
 calls for occasional use of the often more euphonious 
 Latin words. When Shakespeare speaks of the blood 
 of Duncan he uses one line of Latin words and then 
 follows it with another of Saxon words : 
 
 "Will rather the multitudinous seas incarnadine, 
 Making the green one red." — Macbeth 
 
 Oral Phrasing. Oral composition is far more exact- 
 ing than written in sentence structure. Long and in- 
 
170 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 volved loose sentences are too confusing to be risked 
 in public speaking. The ordinary mind easily loses 
 the thread of thought; interest first lags, then disap- 
 pears. To prevent this, let short, simple sentences 
 and carefully planned periodic sentences prevail. The 
 periodic sentence is adapted for arousing and sustain- 
 ing the interest of the hearer. Parallel or balanced 
 structure is another aid to the listener in following a 
 line of thought. Recall Burke's words, already quoted : 
 
 " Compare the two. This I offer to give you 
 is plain and simple ; the other full of perplexed 
 and intricate mazes. This is mild ; that harsh. 
 This is found by experience effectual for its 
 purposes; the other is a new project. This is 
 universal; the other calculated for certain col- 
 onies only. This is immediate in its concilia- 
 tory operation; the other remote, contingent, 
 full of hazard." 
 
 Such sentences are clear, forceful, and pleasing. 
 Their parallel structure aids in producing each of the 
 three qualities. 
 
 Remember that compound sentences unite only ideas 
 of equal value. Be careful about an overuse of and, 
 which will lead to the use of compound sentences where 
 you really need a complex one to express ideas of un- 
 equal value with those of lesser value subordinated to 
 those of greater. Guard against complicating sentences 
 unnecessarily. Such a practice is confusing to you, 
 and even more so to those who try to follow your line 
 of thought. Rather than employ too many relative 
 
ORAL COMPOSITION 171 
 
 clauses, break your thought up into more simple sen- 
 tences. Do not, however, neglect the complex sentence 
 altogether. In many cases it furnishes the only way 
 to express your thought relations effectively. Test all 
 sentences for clearness, force, and elegance. 
 
 Transitions. To aid the listener in following you, 
 give special attention to coherence by means of con- 
 nectives. Do not take too much for granted. When- 
 ever your thought deviates from a straight line, indicate 
 the new direction. If you do not, the hearer may con- 
 tinue along the original line after you have left it. 
 When he discovers his mistake he will also find that he 
 has lost something. To prevent this and to hold in- 
 terest, indicate all thought relations between sentences 
 and between paragraphs by adequate transitional 
 words. This is far more important in speaking than 
 in writing. 
 
 Especially important are expressions of casual rela- 
 tions and logical sequences. Not only is it important 
 to use such words as then, therefore, hence, for, and the 
 like, oftener than in writing; it is also well to enumerate 
 a series of arguments, as Burke does in mentioning the 
 six sources of the love of liberty characterizing the 
 American people, the four reasons for not resorting to 
 force, and the four arguments against Lord North's 
 plan. 
 
 Emphasis. One of the advantages the speaker has 
 over the writer is his opportunity to employ the prin- 
 ciple of emphasis more effectively. In short speeches 
 emphasize sufficiently by terse and vital phraseology, 
 
172 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 to get attention and to bring it to the higher plane of 
 interest, then work gradually toward your conclusion 
 expressed in a real climax. Put the strongest point at 
 the end, and, if possible, express it in a periodic sen- 
 tence. In a longer speech, the same principles hold 
 true, together with this: To add new interest and to 
 keep it from waning, plan several lesser climaxes as 
 natural stages by which you approach the final and 
 leading one. Phrase for ease in giving oral emphasis. 
 Remember the value of the rhetorical question and the 
 pause in delivery, as means of securing emphasis. Note 
 the following from Burke's Speech on Conciliation: 
 
 "We see the sense of the crown, and the 
 sense of parliament, on the productive nature 
 of revenue by grant. Now search the same 
 journals for the produce of revenue by imposi- 
 tion — where is it? Let us know the volume 
 and the page — what is the gross, what is the 
 net produce? — to what service is it applied? 
 How have you appropriated its surplus? 
 What can none of the many skillful index- 
 makers that we are now employing find any 
 trace of it? Well, let them and that rest to- 
 gether. But are the journals, which say noth- 
 ing of the revenue, as silent on the discontent? 
 Oh, no ! a child may find it. It is the melan- 
 choly burden and blot of every page." 
 
 Denotation and Connotation in Oral Composition. 
 Denotation and connotation have such bearing upon 
 oral composition as to deserve special consideration. 
 As we have seen, clearness depends upon denotation, 
 
ORAL COMPOSITION 173 
 
 upon using exact words to embody our ideas so as to 
 leave no doubt as to our meaning. It is necessary to 
 apply this principle in writing; it is still more impor- 
 tant in speaking, for the misuse of a single word may 
 so confuse a listener that he will lose the thought and, 
 hence, lose interest. He has no time to stop and think 
 out "what the speaker probably means, but has stated 
 clumsily." Hence, fit your words to your thoughts 
 exactly. Make it easy, and not hard,[for one to follow 
 you. Remember the need of denotation. 
 
 Connotation and Reserve Power. Before attempting 
 to speak, be sure that you have something to say, and 
 know just what you wish to say. Do not feel that you 
 are "not writing, but only speaking, and hence may 
 leave much to the spur of the moment." The tempta- 
 tion to do this is a most insidious one for those who 
 speak easily. They are often inclined to underestimate 
 the need of preparation; of thinking, before beginning 
 to speak. "Fatal fluency " has ruined many who might 
 have become good speakers if they had not been mis- 
 led, by the very ease of talking, into thinking that what 
 they say is not important. The law of connotation is 
 the remedy for this error. 
 
 Connotation tends to brevity; to making one word 
 suffice where you might use two or more. When you 
 condense your language you make the most important 
 words overflow with meaning. What they say pre- 
 cisely they denote; what they suggest beyond that, 
 they connote. The overflow of meaning is the conno- 
 tation. The poorly prepared speaker cannot even de- 
 
174 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 note well; he cannot connote at all. The well-prepared 
 speaker denotes well, and connotes, too. His connota- 
 tion reveals his complete mastery of his subject. What 
 he says suggestively implies what he might still further 
 say, if he chose. It gives a hint of the unused reserve. 
 This always inspires confidence in a hearer. It enables 
 you to take advantage of the power of unsaid things, 
 things which have power because they are an appeal 
 to the imagination of the hearer, a fact which virtually 
 adds to the force of the speaker. Learn to use the secret 
 of the unsaid. Learn the reserve power of connotation, 
 which comes only with full mastery of your subject. 
 
 The truth of this is illustrated by the way Lady Alice 
 speaks to the tempter Comus in the spirited discussion 
 between the two in Milton's Comus. Lady Alice says: 
 
 "I had not thought to have unlocked my lips 
 In this unhallowed air, but that the juggler 
 Would think to charm my judgment, as mine eyes, 
 Obtruding false rules pranked in reason's garb. 
 I hate when Vice can bolt her arguments, 
 And Virtue has no tongue to check her pride. 
 Impostor! . . . 
 
 Shall I go on? 
 Or have I said enow? . . . 
 Fain would I something say — yet to what end? 
 Thou hast nor ear, nor soul to apprehend. . . . 
 Thou art not fit to hear thyself convinced. 
 Yet, should I try, the uncontrolled worth 
 Of this pure cause would kindle my rapt spirits 
 To such a flame of sacred vehemence 
 That dumb things would be moved to sympathize, 
 And the brute Earth would lend her nerves, and shake, 
 Till all thy magic structures reared so high 
 Were shattered into heaps o'er thy false head." 
 
ORAL COMPOSITION 175 
 
 The force of her unsaid, connoted words is felt by 
 the shrewd Comus, for he says: 
 
 "She fables not. I feel that I do fear 
 Her words set off by some superior power; 
 And, though not mortal, yet a cold shuddering dew 
 Dips me all o'er." 
 
 Make every word count. Most speeches are but a 
 few minutes long; in the business world a very few. 
 Eliminate every word that seems desirable, but not 
 absolutely necessary. Remember that when you can 
 gain in connotation at the expense of denotation, it is 
 well to sacrifice the denotation, for it is a gain in force. 
 Let your words be few, vital, concrete, forceful through 
 connotation, apt, and euphonious. 
 
 Planning for Oral Composition. While it is not al- 
 ways advisable to write out one's speeches, lest he 
 should be hampered by trying to remember the exact 
 written words, a definite plan is essential. One cannot 
 make a good plan without analyzing his subject, but 
 the very analysis of the subject furnishes all the neces- 
 sary material for a plan. The making of a plan or out- 
 line enables the speaker to eliminate all irrelevant 
 material, and so secure unity; it enables him to arrange 
 the essential material logically and with the proper 
 subordination of the subheadings to the main headings, 
 and so secure coherence; and it provides the best way 
 to indicate proportion and emphasis. Make the plan 
 as indicated on page 375. 
 
 When the plan is made, study how to develop it 
 orally, bearing in mind what has been said about oral 
 
176 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 diction, oral phrasing, and the paragraph in oral com- 
 position. Study to guard against overdevelopment of 
 any part of the plan at the expense of the other parts. 
 Develop each part in proportion to its relative value, 
 as indicated in the plan. 
 
 These considerations comprise, in a general way, the 
 intellectual preparation in shaping the raw material of 
 ideas and emotions into a speech for oral composition. 
 All this is essential as a start toward the finished prod- 
 uct — a speech — but it is not the finished product. You 
 have something to say and you have a plan according 
 to which to say it. It becomes a speech only when it 
 is spoken, and a good speech only when it is so effec- 
 tively delivered that all within reach of it hear every 
 word, and are impressed intellectually and emotion- 
 ally sufficiently to make them think and feel somewhat 
 as the speaker does. 
 
 We now come to the delivery and what it involves. 
 
 The Essentials of Good Speaking. The essentials of 
 good, effective speaking, are: self-mastery, poise, proper 
 breathing, vocalization, gestures, and an adaptation of 
 the speaker to his audience. 
 
 Self-mastery. The first difficulty to overcome is 
 that best expressed by the word self-consciousness. It 
 is not an easy fault to master, but it must be over- 
 come. As long as one is self-conscious he is mastered 
 by all his bodily parts, which should be under his con- 
 trol and capable of doing his bidding. When the aver- 
 age young person first faces an audience made up of his 
 classmates, he experiences a most uncomfortable com- 
 
ORAL COMPOSITION 177 
 
 plication of feelings. When he goes from his seat to 
 the front of the room, the distance seems miles; when 
 he faces his classmates they appear to have grown in 
 size and in numbers, they seem to be looking quite 
 through him, and he feels sure they are most unkindly 
 critical; he becomes conscious of his feet and does not 
 know what to do with them, so he does the wrong 
 thing — he does not stand upon them, but moves about 
 continually and gets nervous; his hands are in the way; 
 he puts them behind him, in front of him, in his pockets, 
 everywhere, and his nervousness increases; his whole 
 body seems in the way, and he tries to get it out of the 
 way by attempting all sorts of wrong attitudes; and 
 his nervousness increases; thinking so much of himself 
 — feet, hands, body — his mind balks, and the ideas he 
 thought he had disappear, and his nervousness becomes 
 painfully acute. As to his voice, he is not sure that he 
 has any. His nervousness has dried his lips. He has 
 forgotten what he meant to say, and when he speaks 
 he says what does not seem to the point, and probably 
 is not, and he gives up and goes to his seat, a nervous 
 wreck. He has come to the conclusion that oral day is 
 a time of torture which his imagination and his feelings 
 magnify, until he decides he is hopeless as a speaker. 
 He is in a bad way. Fortunate indeed is he who has 
 not had any such experiences; more fortunate still is 
 he who has had them and has learned to look upon 
 them only as a challenge to make him exert himself 
 until he has gained mastery over his unruly members, 
 over himself. And it can be done. 
 
I78 r EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 The secret of self-consciousness and of its attendant 
 evils, as some of us know from painful experience, is 
 timidity. We are afraid. We fear we may fail; we 
 fear criticism; we fear we may be laughed at. And he 
 who fears being laughed at generally is. He invites it. 
 Fear always unfits us for everything. Our whole body 
 is enslaved to fear. We seem partially paralyzed. We 
 cannot act normally. We become the victims of our- 
 selves. "Bashfulness" has been called " panic-stricken 
 conceit." The chief characteristic of the self-conscious, 
 fear-stricken, bashful individual is a loss of will power. 
 
 How can you overcome self-consciousness and gain 
 self-mastery? In the first place, make up your minds 
 that it is shameful to yield to fear and timidity and that 
 you will summon all your common sense and all your 
 will power to become master. The masterful will over- 
 comes all obstacles. Make it a matter of justifiable 
 pride to be, and to appear, yourself. Be natural. You 
 can probably talk among your friends at home. You 
 can say what you want to say. Your classmates are 
 your friends too. They have the same problems that 
 you are trying to solve. If you go about your task 
 naturally, and as if you do not care what others may 
 think so long as they listen, you will soon find that 
 your self -consciousness has gone and that you can com- 
 mand your powers and use them. 
 
 Allowing fear to control one when he has something 
 to do, is really yielding to a very selfish feeling. Such 
 selfishness prevents one from being his best self. It 
 distorts one's view. It magnifies difficulties. It creates 
 
ORAL COMPOSITION 179 
 
 purely imaginary obstacles. It makes one feel like the 
 boy we have described. But if you " think success," 
 have one unwavering aim, believe in your strength, 
 and hold to the truth of the saying that " where there's 
 a will there's a way " ; if you say "I ought, I can, I mill," 
 imaginary obstacles will vanish, magnified difficulties 
 will dwindle and become challenges to spur you on, 
 and your distorted view will become normal and sane 
 and will encourage you. You will succeed, and your 
 success will render your next attempt still easier and 
 more effective. 
 
 Self-mastery, resulting in self-confidence, is abso- 
 lutely essential for successful effort along all lines. The 
 one who magnifies difficulties and then yields to them 
 never amounts to anything in life. The one who gains 
 self-mastery, with a just and reasonable pride, but with- 
 out vanity, has learned the secret of accomplishment in 
 whatever he undertakes. Self-mastery is the first step 
 toward successful speaking. It means that you can 
 use all your powers and succeed. 
 
 Practice in oral expression is the best way to get rid 
 of the pernicious self-consciousness which incapacitates 
 one for doing his best, while at the same time it enables 
 the speaker to concentrate all his energies upon his 
 task and so accomplish it. 
 
 Poise. One of the first things for the speaker to learn 
 is that he does not speak with his voice alone, but with 
 his whole body. However well a speaker may be able 
 to use his voice, he will fail to make a good impression 
 if he stands awkwardly, is slouchy or fidgety. Emer- 
 
180 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 son's words, slightly modified, are to the point: "Your 
 attitude speaks so loud that I cannot hear what you 
 say." Bad attitude discounts one's message at least 
 one half. Let your whole personality speak. 
 
 Poise is the result of self-control. It means what we 
 call a good bearing. Stand erect, both feet on the floor, 
 one slightly in advance of the other. Shift the position, 
 in a natural manner, occasionally. Let your hands 
 hang at your sides. Relax your fingers. Do not twitch 
 or wriggle them; it is a sign of nervousness. Draw 
 your shoulders back; it gives evidence of firmness and 
 independence. Elevate your chest; it aids proper 
 breathing and prevents obtruding the abdomen. Hold 
 your head erect, but slightly inclined forward. Do not 
 look at the floor or the ceiling. Face your audience 
 frankly. Let your whole bearing be earnest, sympa- 
 thetic, sincere, and vital. Do these things and your 
 personality will predispose your audience to listen. 
 You will have won the first step. 
 
 Do not stand upon one foot, with the other twisted 
 around behind it. Do not put your hands into your 
 pockets; do not act as if you were trying to find a place 
 to conceal them. Do not play with your watch chain 
 or anything. Do not loll; lolling indicates laziness, 
 lack of interest and of conviction. Do not throw your 
 head too far back; it indicates haughtiness and antago- 
 nizes your listeners. Do not lean upon anything, or 
 act as if you wanted to. Do not change your attention 
 suddenly from one part of your audience to another; 
 to do so looks as if you were troubled, and the audience 
 
ORAL COMPOSITION 181 
 
 will be tempted to look around and have their interest 
 diverted. Do not do anything to weaken your position 
 or to attract attention to yourself. Do not overdo 
 your efforts to be natural and easy. Conceal your art. 
 Try not to use your handkerchief. Do not scratch 
 your head. If you must glance at the clock, do not 
 advertise the fact. Let your self -control manifest itself 
 in poise. 
 
 Proper Breathing. Poise aids breathing. When one 
 stands erect, with shoulders well back, chest elevated, 
 and chin drawn slightly in, he is in the best attitude 
 for proper breathing. Proper breathing means deep 
 breathing, through the nostrils. " Getting out of 
 breath" is both a cause and a result of nervousness. 
 It means that one does not fill the lungs sufficiently to 
 furnish the air needed for vocalization. One cannot 
 speak without an ample supply of air in the lungs any 
 more than he can play an organ when the bellows are 
 empty. Deep breathing alone enables one to produce 
 rich chest tones. Take deep breaths regularly, making 
 them coincide as far as possible with the natural pauses 
 in speaking, and you will not get out of breath, nor 
 have to resort to short, irregular breaths, which in- 
 variably affect both the quantity and the quality of 
 the vocalization. When one acquires the habit of 
 breathing deeply at all times, he will find no difficulty 
 in breathing properly while speaking. 
 
 Never breathe through the mouth. It means a lack 
 of breath control and it results in dryness of the mouth, 
 rendering speech both difficult and ©f a poor quality. 
 
182 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 Vocalization. While vocalization properly belongs to 
 elocution, a few simple suggestions must here be given. 
 
 Vocalization is actual speaking. It means such a use 
 of the vocal organs as to produce sounds effectively; 
 that is, so that others may hear distinctly and be 
 pleased. The voice is the means of conveying thought 
 from one mind to another orally. The voice is the most 
 wonderful musical instrument in the world. It is ca- 
 pable of marvelous development. When one knows 
 how to use his voice he can impress his hearers far 
 more than a writer can influence his readers. Conse- 
 quently the speaker has a great advantage over the 
 writer. 
 
 What we have already spoken of — the matter of 
 self-control, poise, proper breathing — constitute favor- 
 able conditions for speaking, but nothing more. With- 
 out the actual speaking they are of little avail. 
 
 Some few people are endowed with good voices; most 
 have to train their voices. He who has the good 
 natural voice, of course, has a great advantage over 
 him who has not, but training will accomplish aston- 
 ishing results for all. The child begins with child's 
 talk, naturally, but if he is properly taught he will 
 soon learn to get over such careless expression. The 
 only difficulty is that so many think they can speak 
 when they cannot. They do not begin to use their 
 voices up to their capacity. This is often due to care- 
 lessness and slovenly habits of speaking; sometimes it 
 amounts to having what is called "an impediment" 
 and to stuttering. These defects, generally accompa- 
 
ORAL COMPOSITION 183 
 
 nied by excessive nervousness, tend to make one self- 
 conscious and to exaggerate his defects. He gets dis- 
 couraged. He feels that he can never learn to speak 
 and often gives up trying. But there is no need for 
 discouragement. One needs to take himself in hand, 
 face his problem, exert his will, and gain mastery of his 
 powers of speech. It can be done. 
 
 If one practices clear enunciation and articulation in 
 all his speaking, he will gain control of his voice and 
 learn to speak. If, however, he has allowed himself to 
 fall into bad habits, he will need more strenuous treat- 
 ment. He will need to get away by himself, preferably 
 out of doors, and practice vocal exercises. It has 
 become hackneyed to refer to Demosthenes, but still 
 his overcoming by putting pebbles in his mouth and 
 shouting to the waves of the sea ought to encourage 
 all who would overcome their defects. One of the best 
 teachers of oral expression of a generation ago, a man 
 connected with a leading university, used to take his 
 boys out into the woods far from a house or any sign 
 of civilization, and have them run through the musical 
 scale, pronounce the vowels, then difficult consonants, 
 then difficult words, such as have been called "lip 
 twisters," and finally he would have them speak sen- 
 tences, over and over, until they mastered them, and 
 they could go through a whole speech. That man's 
 pupils learned to speak. Learning to speak is largely 
 a matter of overcoming defects in the use of the vocal 
 organs and then in developing facility and power in 
 the full use of those organs. 
 
184 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 Two Aims in Voice Training. The two aims in voice 
 training are to produce the desired sounds clearly and 
 agreeably. To accomplish the first aim, you cannot do 
 better than follow the example of the teacher men- 
 tioned in the preceding paragraph. The chief cause of 
 the lack of clearness is keeping the mouth too much 
 closed, so that one mumbles, giving forth an indistinct 
 sound instead of a definite one. If the throat is con- 
 tracted, if the jaw is set so that we might call it " heavy " 
 and unwieldy, if the teeth are kept too close together, 
 the column of air coming from the lungs is interfered 
 with and fails to produce the sound it should. The 
 lips, the teeth, the tongue, the palate, all unite in de- 
 termining the kind of sound produced. They might be 
 likened to the stops of an organ. They must be under 
 control, easy and immediate control, or they may hin- 
 der the very thing one wants to produce by their aid. 
 At first do not think of words, but of sounds repre- 
 sented by syllables. Run through the musical scale, 
 the vowels, the alphabet, all conceivable kinds of com- 
 binations of vowels and consonants, always aiming to 
 produce clear and distinct sounds and keeping at it 
 until you can produce not only sounds, but can control 
 and combine them into speech. Sound is produced by 
 the column of air passing between the vocal cords, but 
 it is only sound, differing but little from the sound pro- 
 duced by animals. Man can control, and combine, and 
 accentuate, and modify these simple sounds, until he 
 can produce the elements of speech: vowels and con- 
 sonants. The vowel, or open sounds, are made by 
 
ORAL COMPOSITION 185 
 
 changing the relative positions of the various speech 
 organs, while the consonant sounds are produced by 
 repressing and restricting the vowel sounds. Hence 
 the need of practice to acquire skill and even mastery 
 in producing these primary sounds, the elements of 
 speech, and then in going on until one can master the 
 combination of vowels and consonants into words. 
 After that the combination of words into sentences 
 and the sentences into the larger elements will be com- 
 paratively easy. Manifestly, though, the first step is to 
 limber up the mouth and to learn to change its shape 
 so as to produce, unerringly, the elements of speech. 
 
 Enunciation and Articulation. When we come to 
 words, made of syllables, which in turn are combina- 
 tions of vowels and consonants, we see the need of 
 enunciation and of articulation, which are often used 
 synonymously, but should be distinguished. Enuncia- 
 tion means speaking each syllable distinctly. You 
 enunciate, for instance, a word of one syllable, as 7, a, 
 it. Articulation means the distinct utterance of a series 
 of syllables, in such a manner as to show their combined 
 effect, making them into a word. Proper articulation 
 enables one to give the syllables their full value, and 
 prevents the common error of carelessly slighting some 
 syllables in the middle of the word and, more com- 
 monly, at the end. He who has learned to articulate 
 never says erWy for every, or comiti for coming. 
 
 Pronunciation. Pronunciation goes a step further 
 than articulation, and indicates which syllables are 
 stressed, or accented, by making them more emphatic 
 
186 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 than the rest of the syllables. Pronunciation is partly 
 a matter of law and more a matter of usage, and au- 
 thorities differ concerning the correct pronunciation of 
 many words. The pronunciation favored by any repu- 
 table dictionary, such as the New Standard, the Cen- 
 tury, or Webster's New International, is always sufficient- 
 ly authoritative for all except those finicky persons who 
 speak of the dictionary, meaning the one they know 
 superficially, and who do not know that authorities 
 differ. A most valuable book on pronunciation is 
 Phyfe's 18,000 Words Often Mispronounced. Its chief 
 value is that it gives the pronunciation preferred by 
 the majority of authorities, and where the differences 
 are marked and significant the authorities are given. 
 Phyfe's book has the added advantage of being small 
 and of saving one the trouble of consulting several dic- 
 tionaries. 
 
 Pronunciation, while not a matter of fife and death — 
 since there is no absolute standard — is of sufficient im- 
 portance to receive much more attention than it com- 
 monly does. When one is careless or inconsistent in 
 pronouncing his words, his hearers are likely to infer 
 that he is careless in other matters too. Hearers who 
 stop to question about " queer" pronunciations lose 
 interest in the thought of the speaker. Consequently 
 the matter of pronunciation assumes a greater impor- 
 tance than is at first apparent. It is always safe to 
 take the pronunciation given the preference by Phyfe. 
 It is never wise to use original and bizarre pronuncia- 
 tions for the sake of being different. Such a practice 
 
ORAL COMPOSITION 'l87 
 
 always prejudices an audience against a speaker. Con- 
 sult a good dictionary, or Phyfe, whenever in doubt. 
 Study selected lists of words commonly mispronounced. 
 Remember that usage is constantly changing and that 
 recent authorities are best. Settle once and for all the 
 pronunciation of such common words as interesting; 
 never say interesting ; never say illustrate for illustrate. 
 Remember that the tendency is increasingly in favor 
 of isolate instead of isolate, and of advertisement instead 
 of advertisement. Learn by practice to enunciate sepa- 
 rate syllables, to articulate combinations of syllables, 
 and to pronounce combinations of syllables, by taking 
 note of the one to be specially stressed or accented. 
 
 Practice in enunciation, articulation, and pronuncia- 
 tion will eliminate such hindrances to clearness as 
 breathinesSj which is caused by allowing too much air 
 to escape through the vocal cords. This is due to lack 
 of control of the breathing. Careful breathing, while 
 practicing vocal exercises, will enable one to use just 
 the amount of breath to produce the desired sound. 
 Another hindrance to clearness of vocalization is throati- 
 ness, which is caused by tightening or contracting the 
 throat so as to produce a rasping sound disagreeable to 
 one's hearers and tiring to oneself. This is sometimes 
 called " minister's throat," because so many ministers 
 do not know how to relax and open the throat and pre- 
 vent the tension which wears them out and hinders 
 their clear enunciation. Much throat tension is caused 
 by nervousness. Straining the voice by speaking in 
 an unnatural tone also causes it. The remedy is to 
 
188 ' EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 practice such sounds as tend to open the throat and to 
 make it a passage from the lungs. He who talks from 
 the chest never tires his throat or his audience. Prac- 
 tice syllables and words requiring the prolonging of 
 such vowel sounds as oo. Byron's words are excellent 
 for this purpose: 
 
 "Roll on, thou deep and dark blue Ocean — roll!" 
 
 Another bad habit to overcome in order to secure 
 clearness of tone is called nasality, or the nasal twang. 
 It is produced by any nasal obstruction and by an im- 
 proper use of the palate and tongue. When the soft 
 palate is drawn down, or when the back part of the 
 tongue is raised, the proper use of the nasal cavities as 
 resonators is not secured, and the nasal " twang" re- 
 sults. The way to correct this defect is to practice 
 forming sounds which tend to keep the back of the 
 tongue down. Exercises which give flexibility to the 
 tongue and the lips will aid here. Practice the ng sound. 
 
 So much for clearness in vocalization. Next, notice 
 how to secure the quality of agreeableness. 
 
 The Pleasing Voice. The human voice is an expres- 
 sion of the personality of the speaker. It may be even 
 the reflection of the soul. Everyone knows the im- 
 measurable difference between the voice of the wholly 
 uncultured and vulgar person and the refined and cul- 
 tured. Even in the commercial world one returns to 
 the store where the clerks have a pleasing way of 
 speaking, while he avoids those who are gruff and 
 harsh. The public speaker who succeeds must learn 
 
ORAL COMPOSITION 189 
 
 not only to be heard and understood; he must win by 
 the quality of his voice. He must understand the 
 music of language; he must know the value of tone, 
 and avoid monotony. 
 
 The defects already mentioned as fatal to clearness — 
 breathiness, throatiness, and nasality — are equally dis- 
 pleasing to the ear and the aesthetic susceptibilities of 
 the hearer. Hence the double reason for overcoming 
 them. 
 
 Self-mastery must be carried to the point where it 
 includes such control of the organs of speech that one 
 can speak with ease. The state of mind and of the 
 nervous system have a great effect upon speaking. 
 When one's mind is at ease concerning his speaking, 
 he can be alert, confident, and enthusiastic concerning 
 what he has to say. He can speak attractively, elo- 
 quently, effectively. 
 
 Modulation and Adaptation. We have seen, while 
 studying the qualities of rhetoric, that the quality of 
 elegance, or beauty, depends upon the adaptation of 
 the treatment to the subject. The same holds true 
 here. The first essential of pleasing speech is adapta- 
 tion of the voice to the subject. Most people do adapt 
 their voices to their subject in ordinary conversation. 
 When they speak in public they often become strained 
 and artificial. They do not discriminate between dif- 
 ferent kinds of subjects. They become monotonous 
 and are ineffective. When one is at ease and feels his 
 subject, he naturally adapts himself, voice and all, to 
 it. The careful speaker knows the intellectual value 
 
190 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 and feels the emotional value and the aesthetic value 
 of what he has to say. His purpose is to convey the same 
 values to his hearers. To do so he modulates his voice so 
 that it connotes the emotion back of it. Modulation is 
 changing the tone to make it harmonious with the 
 heart of the speaker and with the subject upon which 
 he is speaking. The good speaker has sufficient range 
 of tone to enable him to express any subject effectively, 
 by making his meaning clear and his emotion forceful. 
 He can put himself in the place of another and express 
 the other's meaning and feelings as if they were his 
 own. He can adapt himself to all kinds of subjects 
 and show it in his tone; he can adapt himself to Ham- 
 let's soliloquy, the Sermon on the Mount, Patrick 
 Henry's speeches, Tennyson's The Brook, Poe's Raven, 
 and to anything else he may find in literature or in his 
 own heart. 
 The following are the commonest qualities of tone: 
 1. The Pure Tone. The pure tone is clear, smooth, 
 and round. It is the ordinary tone of the well-trained 
 voice and of the person of refinement. All the breath 
 is vocalized; there is no breathiness, no harshness, no 
 nasality, no suggestion of unpleasantness. The pure 
 tone is natural in all ordinary expression of thought 
 except where it is accompanied by strong emotion, e.g.: 
 
 "Grow old along with me! 
 The best is yet to be, 
 
 The last of life, for which the first was made: 
 Our times are in his hand 
 Who saith, 'A whole I planned, 
 Youth shows but half; trust God: see all, nor be afraid!'" 
 
ORAL COMPOSITION 191 
 
 2. The orotund tone is the full chest tone, deep and 
 rich. It is appropriate for the utterance of the loftiest 
 emotions. It is speaking " right out" with full force, 
 by means of the open vocal organs used to their fullest 
 extent and yet under complete control. The orotund 
 tone is appropriate for such passages as rise to the 
 heights of eloquence. It is like the tone of the full 
 organ, all stops out. It is like the singing of a grand- 
 opera singer rendering the noblest passage of a grand 
 opera. This grand style should not be attempted 
 unless the occasion is appropriate. There is little 
 occasion for it in the classroom. To use it there 
 leads to ridiculous effects. It becomes mockery. 
 But orations, sermons, great poetry, and impassioned 
 speeches in dramas, offer abundant occasion for its 
 use. Though the occasions are rare, the demand is 
 sufficient to warrant cultivating this tone, so that one 
 can give the fullest utterance of his deepest and his 
 loftiest emotions. 
 
 Note the following passages from the masterful 
 speeches of ex-President Wilson: 
 
 "For us there is but one choice. We have 
 made it. Woe be to the man or group of men 
 that seeks to stand in our way in this day of 
 high resolution, when every principle we hold 
 dearest is to be vindicated and made secure 
 for the salvation of the nations. We are ready 
 to plead at the bar of history, and our flag 
 shall wear a new luster. Once more we shall 
 make good with our lives and fortunes the 
 great faith to which we were born, and 
 
192 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 a new glory shall shine in the face of our 
 people." 
 
 — Woodrow Wilson: Flag Day Address (1917) 
 
 " The world must be made safe for democracy. 
 Its peace must be planted upon the tested 
 foundations of political liberty. We have no 
 selfish ends to serve. We desire no conquests, 
 no dominion. We seek no indemnities for our- 
 selves, no material compensation for the sac- 
 rifices we shall freely make. We are but one 
 of the champions of the rights of mankind. 
 We shall be satisfied when those rights have 
 been made as secure as the faith and the free- 
 dom of nations can make them. ..." 
 
 "It is a distressing and oppressive duty, 
 gentlemen cf the Congress, which I have per- 
 formed in thus addressing you. There are, it 
 may be, many months of fiery trial and sacri- 
 fice ahead of us. It is a fearful thing to lead 
 this great, peaceful people into war, into the 
 most terrible and disastrous of all wars, civili- 
 zation itself seeming to be in the balance. 
 
 "But the right is more precious than peace, 
 and we shall fight for the things which we have 
 always carried nearest our hearts — for democ- 
 racy, for the right of those who submit to au- 
 thority to have a voice in their own governments, 
 for the rights and liberties of small nations, for 
 a universal dominion of right by such a concert 
 of free peoples as shall bring peace and safety to 
 all nations and make the world itself at last free. 
 
 " To such a task we can dedicate our lives and 
 our fortunes, everything that we are, and every- 
 thing that we have, with the pride of those who 
 
ORAL COMPOSITION 193 
 
 know that the day has come when America is 
 privileged to spend her blood and her might for 
 the principles that gave her birth and happiness 
 and the peace which she has treasured. 
 "God helping her, she can do no other." 
 
 — Woodrow Wilson: War Message (April 2, 1917) 
 
 3. A third quality of voice or tone is the tremulous, 
 which is marked by vibrations giving slight variations 
 of pitch in the utterance of a word. It is useful, like 
 the tremulous tone of the violin, to express emotions, 
 and when used with discretion and sparingly it is very 
 effective. It is used to express pathetic sentiments, 
 such as those of grief, pity, sympathy, tenderness, and 
 the like, and also to express excitement, the tones of 
 the aged, and uncontrolled joy. 
 
 It should be used in reading the first stanza of Keats' 
 Eve of St. Agnes : 
 
 "St. Agnes Eve — Ah, bitter chill it was! 
 The owl, for all his feathers, was a-cold; 
 The hare limped trembling through the frozen grass." 
 
 It is appropriate for parts of Arnold's The Forsaken 
 Merman : 
 
 "Call her once before you go — 
 
 Call once yet! • 
 In a voice that she will know: 
 
 ' Margaret ! Margaret ! ' 
 Children's voices should be dear 
 (Call once more) to a mother's ear; 
 Children's voices wild with pain — 
 Surely she will come again!" 
 
 4. The aspirated tone, produced by articulating the 
 breath instead of the voice, is also called the whisper- 
 
194 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 ing quality. It is effective in expressing great intensity 
 of feeling too deep for complete utterance. Contempt, 
 scorn, rage, and sometimes wonder and fear, are best 
 expressed by the aspirated tone where the voice seems 
 hushed almost to silence by the very intensity of the 
 feelings. 
 
 To practice this tone, whisper in a large room, as if 
 trying to reach an imaginary hearer at a distance. 
 With open throat, breathe deeply, and aspirate the 
 voice. 
 
 Use the aspirated tone in uttering the unutterable, 
 the secret, the mysterious, and the like. 
 
 For examples notice: 
 
 To express secrecy and terror, Macbeth used the 
 aspirated tone in the following: 
 
 "I've done the deed! Did'st thou not hear a noise?" 
 
 To express wonder and fear, Poe uses the tone in 
 The Raven: 
 
 "But the silence was unbroken, and the stillness gave no token, 
 And the only word there spoken was the whispered word ' Lenore ! ' 
 This I whispered, and an echo murmured back the word ' Lenore ! ' 
 Merely this and nothing more." 
 
 To express scorn, note Capensacchi's words concern- 
 ing Pompilia in The Ring and the Book: 
 
 "No matter for the sword, her word sufficed 
 To spike the coward through and through: he shook." 
 
 To express an almost inexpressible awe Lanier used 
 the following: 
 
ORAL COMPOSITION 195 
 
 "Ye lispers, whisperers, singers in storms, 
 Ye consciences murmuring faiths under forms, 
 Ye ministers meet for each passion that grieves, 
 Friendly, sisterly, sweetheart leaves." 
 
 5. The guttural tone is the opposite of the orotund, 
 and is appropriate to express hatred, loathing, defiance, 
 and the like. It is used to express the feelings of the 
 low, the stingy, the malevolent, and the fiendish. The 
 guttural tone may be cultivated by practicing the utter- 
 ance of the throat consonants, the g and the k sounds. 
 Practice with words in which these sounds predomi- 
 nate; then, assuming the feelings appropriate, vocalize 
 other words in a guttural way. Such sounds contract 
 the throat and so prevent the utterance of pure tones 
 that are open and resonant. When one is choked with 
 rage, the attempt to utter a word will produce the 
 guttural tone. 
 
 For examples read those passages in which Lady 
 Macbeth speaks of unsexing herself; in which Mac- 
 beth would have "the stars hide their fires and 
 see not his black desires, " etc. Note also Shy lock's 
 words : 
 
 "How like a fawning publican he looks." 
 
 6. The falsetto tone is an unnatural one, in which the 
 voice is used beyond its range, and when it breaks, as 
 in extreme surprise, in screams of pain or abject terror, 
 and in imitating children and the aged. It is the tone 
 marked by lack of mental control, by shrillness, and by 
 artificial^. 
 
196 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 Example: 
 Shylock. "Hath a dog money!" 
 
 "Fair sir, you spit on me on Wednesday last; 
 You spurn'd me such a day; another time 
 You call'd me dog and for these courtesies 
 I'll lend you thus much moneys?" 
 
 Other tones, sometimes mentioned, are the pectoral, 
 which is less constrained than the guttural, and is used 
 to express remorse; and the nasal tone, used in express- 
 ing the peculiarities of the Yankee dialects. 
 
 There is also what is known as the connotative tone, 
 by means of which the speaker intimates that certain 
 words used are to be considered as expressing "more 
 than meets the ear"; that is, that they are used in an 
 unusual sense, possibly with a double meaning, suggest- 
 ing some marked connotation, e.g.: 
 
 The word " courtesies " in the quotation from the 
 Merchant of Venice, illustrates the connotative tone 
 (see above). 
 
 Pitch. Besides tone, it is essential to define and illus- 
 trate pitch, which means the relative position of the 
 voice as measured by the musical scale. Each voice 
 has its normal pitch, and the pitch which is above the 
 normal and that which is below the normal. Pitch is 
 used to give variety and so increase the power of ex- 
 pression and to avoid monotony. The normal pitch 
 is used in ordinary, unemotional conversation, and in 
 any utterance which is commonplace. It indicates 
 calmness and composure. If one uses no other pitch 
 
ORAL COMPOSITION 197 
 
 he cannot hope to be effective, especially if he reads or 
 speaks of emotional matters in the same way. When 
 one feels the emotions of joy, anxiety, enthusiasm, or 
 any passion, the vocal cords vibrate more rapidly and 
 a higher pitch results. Commands naturally suggest a 
 higher than normal pitch. When Cassius says to Bru- 
 tus, for instance: 
 
 "Do not presume too much upon my love; 
 I may do that I shall be sorry for," 
 
 one would read the lines with a rising pitch. 
 
 When, on the other hand, one voices what is serious, 
 grave, solemn, or sad, he naturally lowers the pitch, as 
 in the following: 
 
 "Earth to earth, ashes to ashes, dust to dust." 
 
 "Duncan is in his grave; 
 After life's fitful fever, he sleeps well." — Macbeth 
 
 "I am the resurrection and the life; he that belie veth on me. 
 though he die, yet shall he live." — Bible 
 
 The stronger the feeling the lower the key. 
 
 "It is finished." — Bible 
 
 "The rest is silence." — Hamlet 
 
 "When faith is lost, when honor dies, 
 The man is dead!" — Whittier: Ichabod 
 
 Inflections or Slides. Variations of the pitch of the 
 voice above or below the normal pitch are called inflec- 
 tions or slides. They are the means by which emphasis 
 
198 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 is secured and regulated. One would soon tire of any 
 speaker if he did not constantly vary his pitch of voice. 
 One never finds it easy to listen to monotony of any 
 kind. But it is a delight to hear one speak when he 
 makes himself impressive and at the same time uses 
 melody to bring out the beauty inherent in words and 
 in the voice. He who can properly manage his inflec- 
 tions can both move his hearers and please them. 
 
 Kinds of Inflections. There are three kinds of in- 
 flection, the upward, or rising inflection; the downward, 
 or falling inflection; and the double inflection, which 
 combines the rising and the falling. This is also called 
 the circumflex. 
 
 The rising inflection is an upward movement of the 
 voice during the enunciating of a word. It is indicated 
 by the acute accent mark, ' . The rising inflection de- 
 notes doubt, hesitation, or incompleteness of expression. 
 The voice rises to introduce an idea or to present some- 
 thing for consideration. The rising inflection is gen- 
 erally used upon a word preceding a pause within a 
 sentence, which indicates the incompleteness of mean- 
 ing, and it is used in asking questions. 
 
 "Shall I know your answer?" 
 
 The falling inflection, marked by the grave accent, N , 
 is used to denote decision and completeness of expres- 
 sion. It signifies finality and hence is used on the last 
 word of a declarativo sentence. When used within the 
 sentence, to mark a pause, it also indicates complete- 
 ness, but of a less pronounced degree. This inflection 
 is usually appropriate before pauses marked by semi- 
 
ORAL COMPOSITION 199 
 
 colons and colons as well as periods, and sometimes 
 where there is no punctuation, provided the word so 
 stressed indicates some degree of finality. 
 
 The Circumflex Inflection. The rising and falling, or 
 falling and rising inflection, indicates a double idea. 
 The voice moves uncertainly, up and down, or down 
 and up, to indicate a similar action of the mind. This 
 inflection is used in ironical expressions and wherever 
 there is a double meaning, as in puns. 
 
 "Things have been strangely borne. The gracious Duncan 
 Was pitied of Macbeth: marry, he was dead: 
 And the right-valliant Banquo walk'd too late; 
 Whom you may say, ift please you, Fleance kill'd, 
 For Fleance fled: men must not walk too late. 
 
 How it did grieve Macbeth! did he not straight, 
 
 In pious rage, the two delinquents tear, 
 
 That were the slaves of drink and thralls of sleep? 
 
 Was not that nobly done? Ay, and wisely too." — Macbeth 
 
 The italicized words should be rendered with the 
 circumflex accent to indicate the irony. 
 
 Rate of Speaking. Rate is another means of varying 
 the effect of speaking and of getting away from possible 
 monotony. It has, however, a close relation to force 
 and to pitch, and materially helps in interpretation of 
 the meaning back of the words. There are five rates: 
 the normal, which is used in natural speech; the fast 
 and the very fast, which mark moderate or excessive 
 degrees of excitement and enthusiasm; and the slow 
 and very slow, which mark, respectively, seriousness, 
 dignity, and control; and profound thought, reverie, 
 meditation, and the like. 
 
200 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 The normal needs no illustration. 
 Fast: 
 
 "Oh, to be in England now that April's there." — Browning 
 Very fast : 
 
 "Who will come a-sailing on the dark-blue Forth, 
 Who will come a-sailing when the wind blows North, 
 Beating out from harbor with a three-reefed sail, 
 Reaching to the Eastward in a good half-gale?'' 
 
 — "The Firth of Forth," from Children of Fancy, 
 by Ian B. Stoughton Holborn 
 
 Slow: 
 
 "And all my days are trances, 
 And all my nightly dreams 
 Are where thy gray eye glances, 
 
 And where thy footstep gleams — 
 In what ethereal dances, 
 By what eternal streams." 
 
 — To One in Paradise: Poe 
 
 Very slow: 
 
 "To be or not to be, — that is the question." 
 "Sunset and evening star, and after that the dark." 
 "Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty!" 
 
 However rapidly one speaks, he should not speak the 
 individual words too quickly lest he fail to enunciate 
 properly and so fail to be heard. 
 
 Pauses. Pauses in speaking are like rests in music. 
 They are essential for effectiveness. The ordinary 
 pauses, which mark the grammatical structure, and 
 are indicated by punctuation marks, also indicate 
 emphasis, and so aid in interpretation. Punctuation is 
 
ORAL COMPOSITION 201 
 
 even more necessary in speech than in writing. The 
 various minor pauses within sentences and at the end 
 of sentences, together with the major ones at the ends 
 of paragraphs, help materially in making a listener 
 understand. They also serve as rests and give time 
 for proper transitions to be felt. 
 
 Rhetorical pauses are still more important than 
 grammatical ones, for they are the ones which make 
 the emotional appeals and so add force and proper 
 emphasis. 
 
 The rate of speed must always be determined by a 
 mastery of the thought and emotional content of what- 
 ever is to be given orally. The same is true concerning 
 pauses. It is possible to make them even more effective 
 than the spoken words if properly placed in a speech, 
 as in the case of Mark Antony's speech over the body 
 of Caesar. 
 
 Vocal Emphasis or Force. We have seen that em- 
 phasis is a matter of position and is affected by the 
 kinds of words used and by figures of speech. But one 
 must know how properly to emphasize by the use cf 
 the voice. To fail to do so is to misinterpret what the 
 words are intended to express. Force, or word-empha- 
 sis, is gained by stressing particular words or groups of 
 words. It is closely connected with the quality of the 
 tone. The amount of force used must further be de- 
 termined by the size of the room and the size of one's 
 audience and the occasion. Ordinarily one should use 
 just enough force to be heard without undue effort on 
 the part of his listeners. Shouting is always bad, for it 
 
202 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 gives the impression of a waste of energy, a lack cf 
 control, and it may easily become ranting. On the 
 other hand, a weak, effeminate or affected voice is 
 wholly ineffective. If a speaker knows his powers, 
 knows the psychology of audiences, and has common 
 sense, he can manage the matter of force, provided that 
 he fully understands his subject so that he knows what 
 should be stressed. 
 
 Full force should be used when one would arouse his 
 audience to enthusiasm, make a point emphatic, or 
 carry his listeners along with him at his own pitch of 
 emotion. 
 
 "With dying hand above his head, 
 He shook the fragment of his blade, 
 
 And shouted 'Victory! — 
 Charge, Chester, charge! on, Stanley, on!' 
 Were the last words of Marmion." 
 
 — Scott: Marmion 
 
 "Wha for Scotland's king and law- 
 Freedom's sword will strongly draw, 
 Freeman stand, or freeman fa' 
 Let him follow me!" 
 
 — Burns: Bannockburn 
 
 Subdued force is best where one would give the im- 
 pression of earnest calmness, of reserve, of controlled 
 emotions, of deep sympathy, and the like 
 
 "Eternal Spirit of the chainless Mind! 
 
 Brightest in dungeons, Liberty! thou art, 
 For there thy habitation is the heart — 
 
 The heart which love of thee alone can bind; 
 
 And when thy sons to fetters are consign'd — 
 To fetters, and the damp vault's dayless gloom, 
 Their country conquers with their martyrdom, 
 
ORAL COMPOSITION 203 
 
 And Freedom's fame finds wings on every wind. 
 Chillon! thy prison is a holy place, 
 
 And thy sad floor an altar — for 'twas trod, 
 Until his very steps have left a trace 
 
 Worn, as if thy cold pavement were a sod. 
 By Bonnivard! May none those marks efface! 
 
 For they appeal from tyranny to God." 
 
 — Sonnet on Chillon: Byron 
 
 Care should be taken to make all emphasis appear 
 natural; never artificial or forced. Transitions from 
 one degree of force to another should also be carefully 
 made, avoiding abruptness. Let there be no apparent 
 straining after effect, no melodramatic overdoing of 
 any scene described, no ridiculous interpretations. The 
 matter of poise is important in its relation to emphasis. 
 Poise suggests mastery, reserve, a promise of readiness 
 to rise to any occasion ready to meet it adequately. 
 Let there be no dawdling, but always evidence of 
 vitality. 
 
 In reading poetry one should remember that he is 
 reading poetry, and that there is a more or less recur- 
 rence of stress which aids in the reading. In prose one 
 is put more upon his own resources to find what is to 
 be stressed, and how. But study of the thought and 
 the emotional appeal will help one over the difficulty. 
 Remember, however, that no two speeches are neces- 
 sarily stressed alike. Let there be a study of each by 
 itself, according to its own purpose, taking account of 
 its own peculiarities. And let the same speech be 
 studied anew when it is to be given to another audience 
 under different conditions. Let the whole speech be 
 
204 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 so mastered that its parts may be given their own 
 proportionate force and emphasis, ever remembering 
 that the emphasis of the parts is to be subordinated 
 to the emphasis of the whole speech. 
 
 Gesture. Gesture, like style, is the man. Like style, 
 it becomes ineffective and objectionable when it is 
 mechanical or artificial. Hence, the old method of hav- 
 ing a teacher mark a manuscript indicating just where 
 in a speech gestures were to be used, and what kind, 
 now seems wholly inadequate, for it produces the very 
 results gesturing should prevent. Speaking might far 
 better be wholly unaccompanied by gesturing than by 
 having the artificial and unnatural kind. 
 
 The fact that motion pictures convey so much mean- 
 ing without words is the best possible proof of the power 
 of gesturing when it is well done. There is no doubt 
 but that appropriate gestures have a place in adding 
 to the effectiveness of a speech. 
 
 Effective gesturing is not something added to a 
 speech. It is the whole personality, using the whole 
 body, in a harmonious attempt adequately to express 
 its thoughts and emotions. The voice appeals to the 
 ear, and through the ear to the emotions; but the 
 speaker's hands, feet, face, whole body, have an effect 
 nearly as great upon the eyes, and through the eyes 
 upon the emotional nature, of the listener. Thus, 
 poise is not only a kind of gesturing, but a most com- 
 plex combination of gesturing which cannot be ignored. 
 In this large sense, gesturing is the simplest and often 
 most effective kind of sign language, corroborating 
 
ORAL COMPOSITION 205 
 
 what one otherwise says. Get away from the idea 
 that gesturing is confined to the use of the hands and 
 arms. It is the result of a natural impulse to use the 
 whole body in harmonious action, or repose, to give 
 the fullest possible expression to one's thoughts and 
 emotions. 
 
 Look at the matter negatively, for a moment, if 
 further proof of the value and the power of gesturing 
 is needed. When a speaker makes an inappropriate, 
 or incongruous, gesture, such as pointing down when 
 he is speaking of the opposite direction, or such as 
 standing is a slovenly or lazy way when the nature of 
 his words connotes a position of alertness and forceful 
 dignity, the effect of what he says is more than over- 
 come by his attitude — his gestures. If there is such 
 power in bad gestures to hinder a speech, there must be 
 a corresponding power in good gestures to make a speech 
 effective. There is really no neutral position. Even 
 though one may never move his hands, he gestures 
 with the rest of his body whether he is conscious of it 
 or not. The thing to do, then, is to learn how best to 
 use this power beneficially. 
 
 Gestures are usually grouped in three classes: those 
 of location, those of illustration, and those of emphasis. 
 
 (a) Gestures of location are to indicate the position of 
 an object or an idea. It is the simplest form mani- 
 fested in children when they point to what they want. 
 It should be used rarely. When used naturally and 
 not obtrusively, it is effective. It is ridiculous to carry 
 it so far as to point upward whenever the Deity is 
 
206 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 referred to. On the other hand, it is natural and 
 appropriate to glance upward when one's thoughts take 
 that direction. 
 
 (b) Gestures of illustration are mostly used to show 
 the effect exerted by some one or something upon 
 some one else. Gestures of this sort are most effective 
 when they are the unconscious expression of one's 
 feelings under the reaction of some event, emotion, or 
 other influence. 
 
 (c) Gestures of emphasis, as the word signifies, are to 
 intensify the meaning of words or thoughts. Here the 
 action should accompany the utterance of the word 
 emphasized. In strong assertion and forceful argu- 
 ment what is known as the descending gesture should 
 be used; in expressing lofty sentiments the ascending 
 gesture is appropriate; while in expressing emphasis 
 upon more ordinary sentiments the horizontal gesture 
 is used. 
 
 Common sense, good taste, and real interest in one's 
 subject are, after all, the chief determining factors in 
 the matter of gesture. When one has put away his 
 self-conscienceness and gained self-control, his diffi- 
 culties concerning gesturing, like all other difficul- 
 ties due to awkwardness, will vanish. Know what you 
 want to say, feel it deeply, then say it naturally, putting 
 your whole being into the act, and you will find that 
 the matter of gesturing has been largely settled. 
 
 The last essential of good speaking is to adapt your- 
 self to your audience. A good speaker does this 
 naturally. He feels his audience. Every audience 
 
ORAL COMPOSITION 207 
 
 has a sort of personality of its own which reacts upon 
 the speaker. Some are, as a whole, sympathetic; 
 others antagonistic. Some are predisposed in favor 
 of the speaker and his subject; some are skeptical; 
 others are indifferent. When a speaker finds his 
 audience in sympathy with him and ready to listen, 
 his problem is easy. He is among friends, as it were, 
 and all he has to do is to give his message in a straight- 
 forward manner. 
 
 When, however, the audience is antagonistic there 
 is a real problem. The purpose of the speaker is to 
 win the audience, to arouse their interest, and, if 
 possible, to make his message acceptable. In this case, 
 adapting himself to his audience means that he must 
 not show that he is conscious of their antagonism. 
 He must not show any antagonism toward them, nor 
 even feel any. He must calmly accept their difference 
 of opinion and then in a frank and tactful manner, 
 without too much of an argumentative spirit, give his 
 message. If the message is good and well given, he 
 will at least partially succeed in convincing his hearers 
 of its worth. Frankness and tact are the elements 
 that count in such cases as this. 
 
 The indifferent audience is the hardest to manage. 
 An antagonistic audience is at least negatively inter- 
 ested. They are awake and on the alert, even though 
 it be only to find fault. But that is far better than 
 being indifferent. The indifferent audience must be 
 aroused and thoroughly awakened, shocked if neces- 
 sary, so as to get their attention. When, however, 
 
208 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 attention is secured, the tactful speaker may develop 
 the attention into interest and then proceed to give 
 instruction with fair hopes of having it received. The 
 speaker must be master of the situation and never 
 allow the interest to lag for a moment. There are 
 many instances recorded where those who have "come 
 to scoff, have remained to pray," and where those who 
 thought they had no interest, or did not think about 
 the matter at all, have been aroused into good listeners. 
 A capital illustration, not of a group, but of one person, 
 is the Bible story of the woman of Samaria (St. John 
 4:4-36), where the woman was at first wholly indif- 
 ferent and then antagonistic, but, under the tactful 
 influence of the speaker, she soon not only listened, but 
 accepted the truth of what she heard. 
 
 It is always wise for a speaker to learn all he can about 
 his audience beforehand to enable him to prepare him- 
 self in advance. If he can master the leading principles 
 of the psychology of crowds, so much the better. If, 
 when one faces his audience, he discovers a person, or 
 a group, who are indifferent, it is well to talk directly 
 to them until their attention is secured — until they 
 have been put upon a par with the rest of the audience. 
 The speaker must be "all things to all men," during 
 the first few moments of speaking if he would get the 
 right start to enable him to convince his hearers. 
 
 Practice in Oral Composition. Opportunity for prac- 
 tice in applying the principles of oral composition is 
 offered constantly. All conversation is oral composi- 
 tion. If you are careful to master yourself and to 
 
ORAL COMPOSITION 209 
 
 acquire poise in all your speaking, if you always speak 
 distinctly and agreeably, you will not encounter many 
 difficulties when you have to speak more formally — 
 when you have to "make speeches." If you think of 
 the so-called " speeches" as talks that require a little 
 more care than ordinary conversation they will seem 
 less difficult. There is no good reason why a pupil 
 who can recite well in mathematics or history for three 
 minutes should conjure up difficulties when asked to 
 talk for three minutes on a subject assigned in an oral 
 composition class. One exercise is no more speaking 
 in public than the ctler. Try the method of Samuel 
 Johnson, who felt that whenever he had anything to 
 say he must make it the supreme business of the 
 moment. 
 
 Make every recitation, in every subject, an exercise 
 in oral English. Make every interview with every 
 stranger you have to address an occasion to speak the 
 very best you can. Make every speech you have to 
 give in your society or club an exercise in speaking for 
 results — an experiment in trying your powers. Make 
 all your talk count, and you will find the transition to 
 more formal speaking an easy and natural one — a new 
 challenge to all your powers of expression — and you 
 will gain in the mastery necessary to make new finished 
 products of effective oral expression. 
 
 Reading Aloud. Reading aloud is a neglected kind 
 of expression. Children in grammar schools frequently 
 read tolerably well, but when they reach the high school 
 ihey not only show no improvement, but they often 
 
210 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 seem to deteriorate. This is due to the false notion 
 that reading is a grammar-school affair that, when 
 they reach the higher school, it is to be looked upon as 
 a thing accomplished and of the past only. This 
 indicates a most deplorable state of affairs. 
 
 The high school is not the place to rest satisfied 
 with one's previous attainments in reading; it is the 
 place to study to advance more and more toward 
 perfection in reading. 
 
 Reading aloud is not the simple matter some think — 
 not merely pronouncing words in sequence. Reading 
 aloud is one of the most difficult, complicated, and 
 important functions an educated person can exercise. 
 What is it? This: reading aloud is entering into 
 the atmosphere of a writer, comprehending his mean- 
 ing fully, feeling his emotion sympathetically, and 
 then interpreting it all so adequately as to make a 
 listener understand, feel, and appreciate the author's 
 message. 
 
 The only real reading aloud is interpretative reading. 
 Any other so-called reading is a travesty. The com- 
 monplace, dead-level flatness of much that goes for 
 reading, but which does not fully express the author, 
 is unjust to him, unworthy of the reader, and unfair 
 to the listener. 
 
 It requires study to get the full meaning of the 
 printed page, it requires imagination to read between the 
 lines and get the full connotation and force of a writer's 
 emotional appeal; but many readers go as far as this 
 and yet fail to interpret. They fail because they are 
 
ORAL COMPOSITION 211 
 
 afraid to "let themselves go," to give full expression 
 to their emotions. Consequently they hesitate to read 
 a dramatic passage dramatically. It is another in- 
 stance of self-consciousness hindering self-expression. 
 But all this may be remedied if you heed the instruc- 
 tion given in this chapter. Study to apply the prin- 
 ciples of effective oral expression to your reading aloud 
 and you will find it of very material help in all oral 
 expression. Daily practice in reading aloud is of 
 inestimable value. Read especially poetry and the 
 drama. Make all your reading count. 1 
 
 Declamation. Declamation is a valuable form of oral 
 exercise. It is valuable because it offers an excellent 
 opportunity to give an oral interpretation to another's 
 meaning. Declamation should be cultivated as a part 
 of one's oral training, but the " speaking of pieces" 
 should not stand in the way of the far more valuable 
 exercise of preparing one's own speeches. Outside of 
 school and the entertainment platform, the demand is 
 for original speeches and oral training should em- 
 phasize that more practical kind of work. 
 
 The word recitation seems to be gaining in popularity 
 over declamation, but the most favored word to-day 
 is reading, which has come to connote all the better 
 qualities of the other two and which, for the most part, 
 avoids their artificiality. Dr. Henry van Dyke, one 
 of the most successful teachers of literature as well as 
 producer of literature, once referred to himself as 
 
 1 For a full and adequate treatment of this subject, consult Professor 
 S. H. Clark's Interpretation of the Printed Page. 
 
212 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 "a teacher of reading." It is also true as a great 
 scientist once said, "It is a great thing to be able to 
 read a page of English." 
 
 We now turn to some of the practical forms of 
 original addresses. 
 
 Kinds of Speeches 
 
 Announcements. One of the commonest kinds of 
 short speeches is the announcement of new forms of 
 school activities, coming events, such as a school play, 
 "school paper day," conducted by the English depart- 
 ment, the participation of the school in some public 
 event, and the like. Such speeches offer excellent prac- 
 tice because they necessitate great condensation to 
 keep within the time limit and because they offer op- 
 portunities for earnest and persuasive presentation. 
 Such speeches should be carefully planned and prac- 
 ticed orally before presentation. In planning, keep in 
 mind all the fundamental rhetorical principles; and in 
 delivery be guided by the essentials of good speaking, 
 already explained. 
 
 Introductions. Have a definite plan. Be brief. Keep 
 yourself in the background. Keep in mind the fact 
 that you are to help make the one who is about to 
 speak to get in touch with his audience. Show the fit- 
 ness of the speaker to handle the subject, enlarge upon 
 the subject just enough to whet the appetite of the 
 audience, give some idea of the pleasure in store for 
 the audience, but do not overdo it\ Always seek to avoid 
 fulsome praise and vain flattery. No speaker wants 
 
ORAL COMPOSITION 213 
 
 such an introduction. Even though you might say 
 much in honest praise, leave it to the audience to dis- 
 cover how great a treat they are getting. Be careful 
 to state clearly the speaker's name and subject. The 
 slightest error in such matters is often most embarrass- 
 ing. One to three minutes is all that should ordinarily 
 be taken to introduce the speaker. The audience is 
 always impatient at such times. Do not bore them. 
 
 After-dinner Speeches. Here there is great variety. 
 Subjects differ as much as the kinds of groups which 
 consent to be talked to after having been feasted. For 
 the most part, such groups want to be entertained, and 
 expect speeches of a highly complimentary nature en- 
 livened by humor. The audience is in good humor 
 and will tolerate almost any speech, consequently many 
 have grown careless and seem content to give wholly 
 impromptu speeches that are not worth listening to 
 and which bore even a good-natured audience. A re- 
 action, however, has come, and banqueters are more 
 and more demanding "a feast of reason," something 
 worth while, something carefully prepared, brief and 
 to the point. 
 
 If the banqueting group consists of a number of 
 friends gathered for mutual admiration and a pleasant 
 evening, and if the speech is by one of their own num- 
 ber, any subject of interest to the group, or to several 
 in it, is suitable. It should have sufficient interest to 
 warrant it and should be seasoned liberally with good 
 stories. Good-natured personalities are often accept- 
 able. If, on the other hand, the speaker is a guest of 
 
214 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 honor who has been asked to speak upon an assigned 
 topic, he should prepare most carefully and give a 
 straightforward address worthy of a lecture hall. He 
 may begin with a few pleasantries, but he will use them 
 only as an approach toward his weightier subject. 
 
 It is getting to be more and more the custom to dis- 
 cuss the most important matters around a banquet 
 table and have the best available speakers. During 
 the Liberty Loan campaigns it was the custom in many 
 cities for the committees to do much of their planning 
 and much of their arousing of enthusiasm after noonday 
 luncheons. It proved most effective. Such practices 
 are opening the way for turning to the best of uses a 
 practice that was formerly less worthy. 
 
 The toastmaster has a difficult task. He must be a 
 master of the situation. He must know all the speakers 
 and something about their subjects. He must be of 
 ready wit and possess a large sense of humor. He must 
 present each speaker tactfully so as to connect the vari- 
 ous speeches as he would assemble the various parts of 
 one speech. He must be able to add the spice of variety 
 and to cover any slight unpleasantness that may arise 
 and keep the whole program interesting and attractive. 
 And finally he should bring the speechmaking to a 
 close before his companions are tired out. 
 
 The Oration. Strictly, an oration is the chief speech 
 on some important occasion, a carefully prepared 
 speech of considerable length. The oration generally 
 combines all the forms of discourse, including persua- 
 sion. The exordium is usually explanatory, and the 
 
ORAL COMPOSITION 215 
 
 peroration an appeal for action and an exhortation 
 based upon the argument presented in the body of the 
 oration. Narration and description are used to enrich 
 and embellish the speech. The best oration of the 
 deliberative kind is Cicero's For the Manilian Law, 
 while Burke's Conciliation Speech holds first rank 
 among modern achievements. 
 
 The oration differs from the essay, or long thesis, in 
 that it is carefully planned for oral presentation, by 
 using periodic sentences, parallel constructions, cli- 
 maxes, short sentences, euphonious words, and striking 
 figures of speech such as are capable of strong and 
 effective oral presentation. 
 
 The Lecture. The formal lecture is practically 
 identical with the oration. The informal lecture may 
 be anything from a classroom address to one that 
 barely falls short of being an oration. 
 
 Other Forms of Speeches. Of the many other forms of 
 
 speeches a mere enumeration must suffice: 
 
 Class day address Sales speech (giving atten- 
 Class president's address tion to commodity and to 
 
 Valedictory customer) 
 
 Presentation speech Stump speech (for votes) 
 
 Address of acceptance Nominating speech 
 
 Address of welcome Impromptu speech 
 
 Farewell speech Repeating a story from 
 Inauguration speech memory 
 
 Rally speech Book reports 
 
 In all these exercises plan with care what you want 
 to say, how you can best say it effectively, that is 
 clearly and agreeably, and adapt yourself to your 
 audience, then deliver your speech. 
 
216 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 For practice in oral composition the following exer- 
 cises will be found suggestive in giving variety of in- 
 struction and in arousing sufficient interest to aid both 
 in overcoming self-consciousness and in gaining self- 
 control. 
 
 (a) Conversation, Remember that real conversation 
 does not consist of the constant use of monosyllables 
 and that each one who speaks is supposed to add some- 
 thing of interest to all and something which he, per- 
 haps, can add better than anyone else. Remember, 
 also, that courtesy does not allow anyone to monopolize 
 the conversation; that good listeners are essential to 
 good conversation. Imagine the class to be a group of 
 friends seated around a fireplace with nothing to do 
 but to talk. Let some one begin by recounting his 
 camping experiences and then let all join in conversation 
 upon that subject. (Select another subject if desired.) 
 (Conversational exercises will be found very beneficial 
 for beginners in oral work because it is the form in 
 which one may most easily forget himself and give his 
 attention to the work of the class. This may be made 
 more formal by conducting a symposium.) 
 
 (b) A Club Meeting. Organize the class into some 
 kind of club — literary, scientific, political — and then 
 conduct a meeting. During the business session at- 
 tention should be paid to parliamentary procedure, 
 following some recognized authority, so that every 
 one may learn how to participate in such meetings 
 and bow to preside. Then have a regular program 
 with speeches, declamations, readings, discussion, etc. 
 
ORAL COMPOSITION 217 
 
 Close in regular form with reading and adopting of 
 minutes. 
 
 (c) A Legislative Body. Organize the class into a city 
 Common Council, State Legislature, Congress, or the 
 English Parliament, and proceed to transact business 
 and to pass laws. In each case the procedure should 
 be as near as possible to that of the kind of body the 
 class is imitating. Such exercises may be made to 
 assist in the mastery of such other studies as history 
 and civics. In proposing bills and in discussing them, 
 an excellent opportunity is offered for oratory and 
 debate if the class takes the precaution of dividing itself 
 among the various political parties when it organizes 
 into a legislative body. 
 
 (d) Board of Directors of a Corporation. Where it is 
 possible to obtain information as to methods of proce- 
 dure oral composition work may be made to serve the 
 purpose of giving instruction in business methods 
 while affording training in public speaking. In connec- 
 tion with such a meeting of a board of directors, it is 
 possible to combine practice in salesman's speeches. 
 Have a representative of an advertising agency, an 
 insurance company, or a large manufacturing concern, 
 appear before the board of directors and present his 
 case. 
 
 (e) A School Faculty Meeting. Such a meeting might 
 serve the purpose of discussing vital school affairs 
 from the viewpoint of the pupils and be made most 
 interesting. Discuss courses of study, cases of dis- 
 cipline, interscholastic contests, literary and ath- 
 
218 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 letic, and plans for a school entertainment or for 
 commencement. 
 
 (f) An Editorial Staff of a School Paper. Conduct 
 an imaginary meeting at the beginning of the school 
 year with election of editors for the various positions 
 on the stafi>such as Editor-in-chief, Business Manager, 
 Athletic Editor, Funny Man, etc. Elect new members 
 to the staff after discussion of their qualifications. 
 Discuss the policy of the paper : the number and kinds 
 of departments, exchanges, prize-story contests, ways 
 and means of selling the papers, number of issues, etc. 
 
 (g) A Mass Meeting. Here the class represents the 
 whole school assembled to discuss a school enterprise, 
 such as an appeal to the Common Council for an addi- 
 tion to the building, a new gymnasium, etc., or the 
 advisability of forming new literary societies, the con- 
 trol of fraternities, etc. Here again is an opportunity 
 for drill in parliamentary procedure. 
 
 (h) After-dinner Speeches at a Banquet. Let the ban- 
 quet be that of a club, of the faculty, of the class, or of 
 a patriotic society, such as the Sons of the American 
 Revolution. Be careful to select the right one to pre- 
 side as toastmaster. Let one be the guest of honor 
 with the principal speech. Have other prepared 
 speeches and a few impromptu speeches. Have a pre- 
 sentation speech, presenting a gold watch or a purse 
 of gold to one of the members for some service done 
 the club, etc., and an appropriate speech of acceptance. 
 Do not bar out humorous speeches, but endeavor to 
 have the humor genuine. 
 
ORAL COMPOSITION 219 
 
 (i) A Court. Some one is to be tried for some ridicu- 
 lous and imaginary crime. Elect or appoint a judge, a 
 court clerk, a prosecuting attorney, and a counsel for 
 the defense. Let them be a committee of arrangements, 
 acting with the criminal, to arrange for witnesses, etc. 
 Let the rest of the class act as jury, which should elect 
 its own foreman. Such a class exercise should be care- 
 fully worked up. It furnishes great variety of oppor- 
 tunity for practice in public speaking. 
 
 (j) A Prize-speaking Contest or a Debate. The class 
 conducts the contest. A limited number speak or de- 
 bate; the rest act as judges, or part as judges, and part 
 as visitors. 
 
 (k) The Presentation of a Simple Play. This will re- 
 quire much time for rehearsals and is rather ambitious. 
 For a small class, however, it is recommended for the 
 farewell meeting of the oral composition class. 
 
 (If the suggestions given above are followed there 
 will be little time and little need left for such regulation 
 exercises as reading aloud, at sight, or after prepara- 
 tion; declamations and impromptu speeches; and de- 
 bates. All these are more formal and less capable of 
 arousing interest than the method we have outlined. 
 Besides, all these kinds of practice are included, with 
 the added advantage of being made parts of programs, 
 etc.) 
 
 The following suggestions, formally approved by 
 the New York State Regents, comprise a plan for 
 graded work in oral English for the four years of the 
 high school course. This plan may be used by itself 
 
220 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 in the place of the suggestions already given or as an 
 alternative plan. 
 
 First Year. The aim in teaching oral English in the 
 first year of the high school, is to get pupils to guard 
 their speech against careless enunciation, slang, local 
 and provincial expressions, and other habits charac- 
 teristic of the illiterate and of those who know better 
 but whose practice is not in keeping. 
 
 Emphasize the fact that all speaking should be tested 
 by good usage in oral expression. 
 
 Try to cultivate self-mastery, poise, proper breath- 
 ing, and vocalization, with special attention to speaking 
 clearly and agreeably. Give attention to modulation, 
 to tone, pitch, force, and the rate of speaking. Begin 
 work in interpretative reading. Explain the funda- 
 mental principles of gesturing. 
 
 For specific class work give instruction and personal 
 guidance in simple conversation upon assigned subjects; 
 call for reports of things observed by the pupils, for 
 book reports, newspaper reports of notable events, im- 
 pressions of prominent people; have a series of declama- 
 tions once round the class; have simple oral narratives 
 of personal experiences; descriptions of simple scenes, 
 buildings, games, and people; explanations of simple 
 processes, and preliminary work in informal argumen- 
 tation upon subjects well within the ability of the 
 pupils. 
 
 Make all oral work attractive, so that all will enjoy 
 it, and at the same time see its practical bearing. 
 
 Let first-year oral work prepare for the higher grades. 
 
ORAL COMPOSITION 22i 
 
 Second Year. Narration; original stories. Simple 
 plots, various themes. Personal incidents, humorous 
 and otherwise. Selected anecdotes and jokes. Descrip- 
 tion as involved in narration. Informal description. 
 
 Informal argumentation and persuasion. Proposi- 
 tions relating to matters pertaining to school life; e.g., 
 urging boys to try for athletic teams, for school and 
 interschool intellectual contests, to develop school 
 spirit, improve school order, etc. 
 
 Brief speeches preliminary to written themes on 
 current events within and outside of school. (The use 
 of newspapers; how to find the various things in it, 
 etc.) Oral practice in condensation of long articles, 
 making abstracts, digests, excerpts, etc. 
 
 Reading aloud, after preparation and at sight. 
 
 Descriptions of increasing difficulty, as year advances. 
 
 Throughout the year have occasional conversation 
 days, being careful to explain what constitutes good 
 conversation. 
 
 Third Year. Informal discussion of leading articles 
 in such papers or magazines as The Independent, The 
 Outlook, The Review of Reviews, The Literary Digest, etc. 
 Divide class into groups, with 'group leaders, to divide 
 work among members of group. 
 
 Practice in conducting a meeting in accordance with 
 Parliamentary Law. How to make a motion, speak on 
 a motion made, preside, etc. Begin with simple meet- 
 ings, such as class meetings, literary societies, etc. 
 
 Always emphasize Articulation and Enunciation. 
 
 A few exercises in dramatization of scenes from such 
 
222 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 works as Silas Marner, David Copperfield, A Tale of 
 Two Cities, etc. Have dramatization followed by 
 presentation in class. 
 
 More difficult descriptions, with attention to use of 
 major and minor details, first impressions, etc. Make 
 description effective in narrative. 
 
 More advanced informal discussion, drawing sub- 
 jects from other studies and from current topics. 
 
 Explanation of processes — how to make things and 
 do things. 
 
 Begin more formal discussion, dividing the class into 
 " sides" for discussion of debatable questions. 
 
 Offering resolutions in deliberative bodies, speaking 
 upon the same. Increasingly difficult problems, within 
 the knowledge of the pupils, to be debated and passed 
 upon. 
 
 Review of story-telling with special attention given 
 to arousing interest by making the most of the 
 " point, " keeping ever in mind the application of the 
 fundamental rhetorical qualities — Unity, Coherence, 
 and Proportion. 
 
 Fourth Year. Reading selected poems aloud (after 
 study, outside the class), giving attention the selection 
 by putting a premium upon good, fresh, and vital 
 poems and by discrediting trite and hackneyed ones. 
 
 Occasional declamations or orations drawn from 
 topics connected with the study of literature, or from 
 matters of current interest, but of greater difficulty 
 than those discussed last year. 
 
 Impromptu three to five minute speeches on topics 
 
ORAL COMPOSITION 223 
 
 drawn from larger subjects previously assigned for 
 reading. 
 
 Oral book reviews. A symposium on "Good 
 Reading." 
 
 Continued discussion of magazine articles, if such 
 are used. 
 
 Formal argumentation. Brief -making. Speaking 
 from briefs. Class debates (class divided into two 
 parts) on propositions drawn from Burke's Conciliation 
 Speech and upon school problems. 
 
 More difficult oral assignments in Narration, De- 
 scription, and Exposition suited to the advancing 
 powers of the pupils. 
 
 Informal discussions of large subjects upon some 
 phase of which written essays are to be assigned later, 
 — e.g., "Thrift," Humane Treatment of Animals, the 
 work of the Charity Organization, various public 
 movements, Higher Education, The Large vs. the 
 Small College, Co-Education, Public vs. Private Schools, 
 The Relative Value of Cultural and Industrial Subjects. 
 
 Exercises to show that poetry must be read aloud. 
 
 Exercises in interpretative reading. 
 
 Vocal culture: enunciation, inflection, pronuncia- 
 tion, expression of feeling. 
 
 Dramatic reading. Point of view of characters 
 interpreted, etc. 
 
 More difficult exercises in parliamentary practice. 
 Imaginary meetings of City Council, the State Legisla- 
 ture, trial by jury, mass meetings. Meetings to con- 
 sider and adopt a constitution. 
 
224 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 Addresses of welcome when a distinguished guest 
 comes to town. 
 
 After-dinner speeches; eulogies on men of note; oral 
 reports of addresses in school assembly, giving points 
 and impressions. 
 
 To the Teacher 
 
 Be sympathetic, but remember that sympathy is not 
 to militate against firmness. Give special attention 
 to timid pupils: they need it and probably deserve it. 
 Do not allow the good speakers to monopolize all the 
 time of the class. Help pupils to overcome their self- 
 consciousness by giving them a little psychology. 
 
 Begin your work in each class with conversation, as 
 in a familiar circle, then go on to more formal and 
 more difficult forms of oral composition. Keep ever 
 before the class the practical value of learning to 
 express one's ideas orally. 
 
CHAPTER VII 
 NARRATION 
 
 Everybody loves a good story. From the time when 
 the child asks his mother for a story beginning "once 
 upon a time," and when a fairy tale satisfies, down to 
 reminiscent old age, the story furnishes one of the best 
 forms of entertainment. Stories please because they 
 are about people who are doing things in interesting 
 situations. The human interest and the action give 
 them a compelling force. 
 
 Narration is that form of discourse which relates, 
 concretely, particular events, in a definite order, and 
 in such a manner as to arouse and to hold the interest 
 of the listener or reader. Even if the ultimate aim of 
 a story is to give information, the author's immediate 
 purpose is so to appeal to the feelings and to the imagi- 
 nation as to please. Hence, narration deals with events 
 and with the persons concerned with them, rather than 
 with ideas. It seeks to give impressions of reality 
 through a vital presentation of facts about interesting 
 people. A story is successfully told when it stimulates 
 the imagination to a real interest in the events related; 
 this interest is assured only when the material is handled 
 concretely. 
 
 Kinds of Narration. There are three kinds of narra- 
 
 225 
 
226 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 tion. First, that which relates bare events, just as they 
 occurred, but without any attempt to make them in- 
 teresting, the simple chronicle, for record only. Under 
 this class we have the ship's log, minutes of meetings, 
 and diaries. Second, that which gives information and 
 is best illustrated by the so-called newspaper story, 
 where the point, or climax, is put in the headlines to 
 attract attention. This method suffices in giving news, 
 for many readers are content with the bare headings 
 without details. They get the point in the easiest pos- 
 sible way. The third kind of narration is not content 
 with a mere record; it seeks to state the facts interest- 
 ingly, to give them a semblance of life, and to relate 
 them in language of charm. This is literary narration, 
 and in this form we are especially interested. 
 
 Point of View in Narration. The first thing to settle 
 when planning to tell a story is the point of view of the 
 narrator. In narration, the point of view is the mental 
 attitude of the narrator, and is determined by his rela- 
 tion to the story. The narrator may be the chief char- 
 acter in the story as in Lorna Doone, Treasure Island, 
 or David Balfour; he may be a minor character, as in 
 Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes stories; he may be a 
 power behind all the characters, seeing all they do and 
 even knowing their inmost thoughts and motives, as 
 in The Old Curiosity Shop. This omniscient point of 
 of view, as it has been called, is the natural one for the 
 creator of a story, but it is thought objectionable by 
 some; a fourth point of view may be called that 
 of the compiler or editor. Chaucer uses this method in 
 
NARRATION 227 
 
 The Canterbury Tales. After introducing his characters 
 he has each tell a story which he records. Sometimes 
 the compiler simply collects and arranges a series of 
 letters without comment, as in Smollett's Humphrey 
 Clinker or Jean Webster's Daddy Long Legs. Again, 
 the author may claim to have found an old manuscript, 
 which he edits and gives to the public, as Washington 
 Irving did with Knickerbocker's History of New York. 
 For practical purposes these various methods of telling 
 a story may be reduced to two — the internal or auto- 
 biographical, and the external or author's point of view. 
 
 The important thing for beginners is to select some 
 one definite point of view and then adhere to it through- 
 out his story. The simplest is the autobiographical, 
 but it should not be used exclusively. 
 
 Material of Narration. Narration employs nearly 
 every kind of material, but it uses it sparingly, not as 
 much, but as little as possible. What has been pre- 
 viously said about the selection of material in general 
 must here be reiterated in particular. Nowhere else is 
 it so necessary to plan and select with great care as in 
 telling a story. An observing pupil, who has been asked 
 to write about an experience which he really knows, 
 will invariably make the mistake of giving in his narra- 
 tive a complete record, thereby defeating his purpose. 
 To guard against this we must again emphasize the 
 need of careful selection of striking details. 
 
 Literary narration aims at interest. More than that, 
 it aims at interest culminating in what is called the 
 " point" of the story. The better that " point," 
 
228 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 which is revealed in the climax, is brought out, the 
 better the story. Having the " point" constantly in 
 view, the writer must decide which incidents are 
 significant and essential to lead up to the " point," 
 and then jot them down in a plan of the story. These 
 essential incidents must then be arranged in the best 
 way to show that they inevitably lead to the climax. 
 This may be the chronological order in simple narra- 
 tion or it may be the logical order in more complicated 
 stories. Whichever order promises to secure the best 
 results, should be selected. Incidents that are dramatic, 
 that have in them forces that demand further considera- 
 tion, will always be found the most valuable. Reject 
 all material that does not decidedly lead toward the 
 climax. 
 
 The old ballads best illustrate the kind of stories 
 that endure and it needs but little study to reveal 
 what has made them last for centuries. For instance, 
 take Bonnie George Campbell: 
 
 BONNIE GEORGE CAMPBELL 
 
 "Hie upon Hielands, 
 
 And low upon Tay, 
 Bonnie George Campbell 
 
 Rade out on a day. 
 Saddled and bridled 
 
 And gallant rade he; 
 Hame came his gude horse, 
 
 But never came he! 
 
 "Out came his auld mither 
 Greeting fu' sair, 
 And out came his bonnie bride 
 Rivin' her hair. 
 
NARRATION 229 
 
 Saddled and bridled 
 
 And booted rade he; 
 Toom hame cam the saddle 
 
 But never came he! 
 
 "'My meadow lies green, 
 
 And my corn is unshorn; 
 My barn is too big, 
 
 And my babie's unborn.' 
 Saddled and bridled 
 
 And booted rade he; 
 Toom hame cam the saddle, 
 
 But never cam he." 
 
 This is not a story. It is not a story in the sense of 
 being a completely developed story. In another sense, 
 it is a perfect story, for the pathetic point is made and 
 just enough incidents are graphically given to show 
 why such a climax, with such sad results, had to come. 
 More details might have been used and those that 
 were used might have been developed at almost any 
 length, resulting in a long story. But it would not, of 
 necessity, have been better. As it is, it is a perfect 
 illustration of selection, using enough to make an in- 
 tense appeal to the feelings and suggest a world of 
 material for the imagination to work upon. 
 
 Ballads, which are not the work of single authors, 
 but the unconscious growth from the hearts of the 
 common people, so well illustrate what selection should 
 be, that we refer to another ballad, still better known: 
 Sir Patrick Spens. 
 
 SIR PATRICK SPENS 
 
 "The king sits in Dumferline toune, 
 Drinking the blude-red wine; 
 '0 whar will I get guid sailor, 4 
 
 To sail this schip of mine?' 
 
230 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 "Up and spak an eldern knicht, 
 Sat at the king's richt kne: 
 'Sir Patrick Spens is the best sailor, 
 That sails upon the se.' 
 
 "The king has written a braid letter, 
 And signed it wi' his hand, 
 And sent it to Sir Patrick Spens 
 Was walking on the sand. 
 
 "The first line that Sir Patrick red, 
 A loud lauch lauched he; 
 The next line that Sir Patrick red 
 The teir blinded his ee. 
 
 "'0 wha is this has don this deid, 
 This ill deid don to me, 
 To send me out this time o' the yeir, 
 To sail upon the se! 
 
 "'Mak hast, mak haste, my mirry men all, 
 Our guid schip sails the morne': 
 '0 say na sae, my master deir, 
 For I feir a deadlie storme. 
 
 "'Late, late yestreen I saw the new moone, 
 Wi' the auld moone in hir arme, 
 And I feir, I feir, my deir master, 
 That we will cum to harme.' 
 
 "0 our Scots nobles wer richt laith 
 To wut their cork-heild schoone; 
 Bot lang owre a' the play wer playd, 
 Thair hats they swam aboone. 
 
 "O lang, lang, may their ladies sit, 
 Wi' their fans into their hand, 
 Or eir they se Sir Patrick Spens 
 Cum sailing to the land. 
 
 "0 lang, lang may their ladies stand, 
 Wi' their gold kerns in their hair, 
 Waiting for their ain deir lords, 
 » For they'll se thame na mair 
 
NARRATION 231 
 
 ! Haf owre, haf owre to Aberdour, 
 
 It's fifty fadom deip, 
 And thair lies guid Sir Patrick Spens, 
 
 Wi' the Scots lords at his feit." 
 
 This is one of the most famous of all the old ballads. 
 Why? Because it is so concrete, so definite, so intense, 
 that it makes us throb with interest. The most 
 striking and essential incidents are selected and then 
 so handled as to lead directly to the destined climax. 
 It is easy to see what few details are used; it is almost 
 as easy to imagine what other details might have been 
 employed. If, however, we examine the few used, we 
 at once see that not one of them could have been 
 spared. If we estimate those that might have been 
 used, we readily see that they would not add to the 
 interest sufficiently to warrant their use and, moreover, 
 they readily suggest themselves to the imaginative 
 reader. 
 
 One single, strong impression is far better than a 
 long-drawn-out story which has little or no effect. 
 
 The version of Sir Patrick Spens which we have 
 quoted contains eleven stanzas. It is the generally 
 used version; accepted as the best. There is another 
 version which contains fifteen stanzas more, furnishing 
 other details. It tells why they went to Norway, 
 some trouble they had there, and how they tried to 
 save the ship when the storm struck her, but the 
 story is no better; the impression is not so strong. 
 The shorter version continues to make the greater 
 impression and is the one most often read. Thus we 
 
232 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 see the importance of proper selection and how selec 
 tion means omission — elimination of the unessential. 
 
 Thomas Hardy, the great novelist and author o 
 many novels of unusual interest and power, once tolc 
 the present writer, when asked why he had stoppec 
 writing novels, that he had done so because he nov 
 felt that he could say more in four pages of poetr 
 than in four hundred of prose. Long novels, wit! 
 detailed accounts of many incidents happening in mam 
 places and through a long period of time, have thei 
 place; but it is the short, intense, concrete story o 
 one fundamental intention, that best illustrates tin 
 need of selection of material. 
 
 The Introduction in Narration. Formal beginning; 
 do not improve narration, for they tend to deader 
 interest at the moment when it should be made mos 
 lively. And yet, certain information must be given a 
 the outset if the attention of the listener or reader is t( 
 be aroused. It is always best to give this informatioi 
 naturally, spontaneously, and strikingly. While a se 
 formula soon becomes commonplace and dull, still th< 
 narrator must answer, or at least give a promise of i 
 full answer to be given later, the following four ques 
 tions, called the four "W's," who, where, when, why' 
 The reason for these answers is fundamental and psy 
 chological. The mind must have certain definite things 
 to grasp before it can lend itself to a story about any 
 thing; in a word, give attention. It is well to not< 
 how all successful stories, which do get and hold om 
 attention, begin as we have indicated. After reading 
 
NARRATION 233 
 
 the following " beginnings" you may test their ade- 
 quacy by asking yourself if sufficient interest is aroused 
 to make you desire to continue. 
 The Iliad begins : 
 
 "Achilles' wrath, to Greece the direful spring 
 Of woes unnumber'd, heavenly goddess, sing! 
 That wrath which hurl'd to Pluto's gloomy reign 
 The souls of mighty chiefs untimely slain." 
 
 The Mneid begins: 
 
 ''Arms, and the man I sing, who, fore'd by Fate, 
 And haughty Juno's unrelenting hate, 
 Expell'd and exil'd, left the Trojan shore." 
 
 The Ancient Mariner begins: 
 
 "It is an ancient Mariner, 
 
 And he stoppeth one of three. 
 'By thy long grey beard and glittering eye, 
 Now wherefore stopp'st thou me? 
 
 "'The bridegroom's doors are opened wide, 
 And I am next of kin; 
 The guests are met, the feast is set; 
 May'st hear the merry din.'" 
 
 The Courtship of Miles Standish begins: 
 
 "In the Old Colony days, in Plymouth the land of the Pilgrims, 
 To and fro in a room of his simple and primitive dwelling, 
 Clad in doublet and hose, and boots of Cordovan leather, 
 Strode, with a martial air, Miles Standish the Puritan captain." 
 
 Stevenson thus introduces us to Treasure Island: 
 
 "Squire Trelawney, Dr. Livesay, and the 
 rest of these gentlemen, having asked me to 
 write down the whole particulars about Treas- 
 
234 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 ure Island from the beginning to the end, keep- 
 ing nothing back but the bearings of the is- 
 land, and that only because there is still treas- 
 ure yet to be lifted, I take my pen in hand in 
 the year of grace 17 — , and go back to the 
 time when my father kept the 'Admiral Ben- 
 bow ' Inn, and the brown old seaman with the 
 saber cut, first took up his lodging under our 
 roof." 
 
 Uncle Tom's Cabin begins: 
 
 "Late in the afternoon of a chilly day in 
 February, two gentlemen were sitting alone 
 over their wine in a well-furnished dining par- 
 lor, in the town of P , in Kentucky. There 
 
 were no servants present, and the gentlemen, 
 with chairs closely approaching, seemed to be 
 discussing some subject with great earnest- 
 
 And, finally, Poe begins The Cask of Amontillado in 
 this manner: 
 
 "The thousand injuries of Fortunato I had 
 borne as I best could, but when he ventured 
 upon insult I vowed revenge." 
 
 These introductions are copied at random out of all 
 kinds of stories, long and short, ancient and modern, 
 in prose and in verse, and yet they are all alike in con- 
 taining, or in indirectly suggesting, enough of an answer 
 to the "four W's" to make anyone alive to the doings 
 of human beings in all sorts of conditions, want to read 
 on. 
 
NARRATION 235 
 
 They are ail good introductions, but no better than 
 hundreds of others. But they do more than answer 
 the four questions; they give some hint of what the 
 story is about, of the environment or setting of the 
 story, of the mood of the narrator, and of the possible 
 denouement. In a word, they make us ask more ques- 
 tions than they answer; they arouse our interest, they 
 excite our feelings, and give a promise of something 
 worth while if we continue to read. 
 
 Motivation. There is no use of telling a story unless 
 the reader or listener is made to feel an irresistible im- 
 pulse to follow it to the end. This cannot be left to 
 chance. It must be carefully planned from the outset. 
 In every properly constructed story there comes a 
 point of intensified interest, furnishing the dynamic 
 force which surcharges the whole of the story, increas- 
 ing as the end approaches. The earlier this comes in 
 the story the better. 
 
 There are many ways of describing this moment. 
 Some call it the " incentive moment," but we prefer a 
 stronger statement. It is best considered as the dramatic 
 germ from which all the action grows. It is the motive 
 which is of sufficient power to cause certain definite 
 results to follow. Given such a motive, the results 
 must follow. It is more than incentive, more than ex- 
 citing; it is energizing, it is motivizing. It is the power 
 which sets the story going, and which promises an end- 
 ing that is in keeping. It will set going other motives 
 which, in turn, may repeat the process, but it is the 
 important center of motivation because it starts the 
 
236 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 process. The chief essential of the introduction of a 
 story, then, is its motivation. 
 
 Its very importance may lead some to overdo the 
 statement of it. The motivation must be made evi- 
 dent, so that there is no doubt about its genuineness, 
 but it must be veiled, as it were. It must be a promise, 
 yet somewhat vague and indefinite. It must tell that 
 there is to be a revelation, but it must not reveal too 
 much. There must be an element of suspense to 
 arouse attention, to stimulate it into interest, to in- 
 tensify that interest until nothing but the denouement 
 can satisfy it. Study the wording of the motivation so 
 as to make it a real appeal, a challenge. 
 
 In the quotation from Stevenson's Treasure Island 
 there is motivation in the title itself, Treasure Island, 
 but interest is deepened when it is said that the bearings 
 of the island cannot, for the present, be divulged, and 
 by the mention of the " brown old seaman, with the 
 saber cut." That saber cut seems to suggest things. 
 Its connotation is very large. A better introduction 
 could not be conceived for such a story as Treasure 
 Island. 
 
 Poe's introduction to the Cask of Amontillado is 
 equally good. We now quote the first two paragraphs 
 to give the motivation: 
 
 "The thousand injuries of Fortunato I had 
 borne as best I could; but when he ventured 
 upon insult, I vowed revenge. You, who so 
 well know the nature of my soul, will not sup- 
 pose, however, that I gave utterance to a 
 
NARRATION 237 
 
 threat. At length I would be avenged; this 
 was a point definitely settled — but the very 
 definiteness with which it was resolved pre- 
 cluded the idea of risk. I must not only pun- 
 ish, but punish with impunity. A wrong is 
 unredressed when retribution overtakes the 
 redresser. It is equally unredressed when the 
 avenger fails to make himself felt as such to 
 him who has done the wrong. 
 
 "It must be understood that neither by word 
 nor deed had I given Fortunato cause to doubt 
 my good will. I continued, as was my wont, 
 to smile in his face, and he did not perceive 
 that my smile now was at the thought of his 
 immolation." 
 
 The Cask cf Amontillado is a perfect work of art as 
 far as the construction of the short story goes. Some 
 will not like the theme, but the handling of it is perfect. 
 Here, in these two paragraphs, we have such motiva- 
 tion as sets the reader off in haste to find the fulfillment 
 of the promise vaguely given. Here we have perfect 
 motivation; it suggests much; it conceals much more. 
 
 Simple Narration. Simple narration is relating a 
 series of events growing out of the initial situation 
 when it is so undramatic that it does not lead to other 
 situations. Simple narration usually follows the chrono- 
 logical order. It has no plot; that is, there are no 
 obstacles or other retarding influences. It moves 
 rapidly to an obvious conclusion which can be readily 
 accepted without question or explanation. Anecdotes, 
 minor incidents, brief bngraphical sketches, and 
 
238 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 travelogues, are suitable subjects for simple narratives. 
 In a word, all narratives in which the use of complicat- 
 ing material is avoided are classed under this heading. 
 Such simplicity as leads to perfect clearness is the most 
 notable characteristic. The following anecdote illus- 
 trates simple narration: 
 
 "A Binghamton, N. Y., newspaper tells an 
 amusing anecdote of a German lad recently 
 arrived in this country. Having occasion one 
 day to assert his positive knowledge of some 
 matter under discussion, he declared that he 
 knew it as well as he knew that he was living. 
 'How do you know you're alive?' jokingly 
 asked a friend. 'I know it by my nickles/ 
 replied the young Teuton. The oddity of the 
 reply produced much laughter, especially 
 when it was discovered that by his 'nickles' 
 he meant his five senses." 
 
 Plot Narration differs from simple narration in that 
 it becomes complex by the introduction of obstacles 
 to be overcome. The initial situation is but the first 
 of a series in each of which, up to the turning point, 
 new and more difficult obstacles are found in the way, 
 or in which the various threads of the story get more 
 and more entangled. In plot narration the simple 
 chronological order of events is no longer possible, 
 nor does the story move on toward a foregone con- 
 clusion, foregone as far as the reader is concerned 
 The various threads of the story necessitate a going 
 back over the same period of time to tell different little 
 
NARRATION 239 
 
 stories whose convergence at certain points make new 
 situations, or new knots to be untied. The logical 
 order supersedes the chronological; events are con- 
 sidered not in the order they occurred, but in such a 
 way as to bring out their relation to each other in 
 the light of the law of cause and effect. Having de- 
 termined what the climax is to be, the governing prin- 
 ciple determining what incidents and what situations 
 shall be used, is logic. The word " because " comes 
 into use. Incidents are useful only " because" they 
 are the result of what has gone before, or because they 
 they are the cause of what is to follow, or for both 
 reasons. This is the " logic of events" and is true to 
 life. 
 
 It is easy enough to place obstacles in a character's 
 way. That is not the problem. The problem arises in 
 making him overcome the obstacles while remaining 
 true to his character and without performing miracles. 
 It is easy to have one man's story become confused 
 with that of others; it is difficult for the author to 
 maintain the law of unity and be clear, and to maintain 
 the law of coherence and not lose the thread of the 
 story, while handling conflicting elements. 
 
 The law of proportion must be rigidly observed in 
 plot narration by keeping all minor plots properly 
 subordinated to the major plot, lest they attract to 
 themselves more than their share of attention. Good 
 plot construction demands clear thinking and constant 
 practice. 
 
 Plot Development. It must be kept in mind that the 
 
240 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 plot of a story is the plan by which the writer works in 
 his attempt to produce a certain definite effect upon 
 the reader. The writer knows from the start what the 
 outcome is to be; the reader does not. He reads to 
 find out. If, however, his interest is not aroused very 
 early in the story, if there is not sufficient evidence, 
 motivation, that the story will increase in interest to 
 the end, he will stop reading. The first essential, then, 
 in all narration where the " point" of the story is the 
 reason for telling it, is to develop the plot sanely and 
 artistically. The writer must not take too great liberty,, 
 must not presume too far upon the good nature and 
 patience of his reader. While melodramatic plots 
 may have their place, it is a relatively small one. 
 They are not always "sane," and they often fall short 
 of being artistic, that is, of being well proportioned and 
 of possessing the quality of elegance. 
 
 k prime essential in plot development is to learn to 
 maintain "the fitness of things" in the story If the 
 initial incident has given the story adequate and 
 suitable motivation so that the reader cannot get 
 away from the challenge it contains, if it "sets things 
 going" and leads to even more dramatic situations,, 
 making "confusion worse confounded," there will be 
 abundant action. Here if you are not on your guard, 
 the plot may run away with you. The law of "the 
 fitness of things" will hold you within bounds. It is 
 not "fitting" to complicate the plot too much, employ- 
 ing more incidents, more hard situations, than are 
 necessary. "Hair-breadth escapes" and "thrilling 
 
NARRATION 211 
 
 adventures" should be as rare in stories as they are 
 in the kind of life you are depicting. When they are 
 too freely employed in a story, cheap melodrama is the 
 result. In the "good" story, things are not overdone. 
 There must be that reserve characteristic of good poise 
 •everywhere. A few situations, properly related and in- 
 terrelated, lead logically to the inevitable conclusion. 
 Too many situations and too many minor incidents 
 make the story so drag as to confuse the issue or so 
 overshadow it as to ruin the story. Stop the com- 
 plicating process in plot development before it begins 
 to pall upon the reader. Gradually introduce the 
 resolving forces so that, one after another, the ob- 
 stacles are overcome and the climax and the denoue- 
 ment are so reached as to fulfill the promise given in 
 the motivation. If you have been careful in selection, 
 in arrangement, and in observing the " fitness of 
 things" you will succeed. 
 
 Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice not only il- 
 lustrates the important problem of complicating the 
 plot; it also reveals how even a master may err. The 
 play is a delightful romantic comedy. The main 
 plot is the winning of the hand of Portia by Bassanio. 
 If Bassanio had had money and if Portia's father had 
 not handicapped her by compelling her to rely upon 
 some suitor's luck in choosing the right casket, there 
 would have been no plot, no play. Bassanio would 
 have gone to Belmont, Portia would have accepted 
 Jiim, and, in due time there would have been a wedding. 
 
 How did Shakespeare complicate the plot? First by 
 
242 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 making Bassanio's financial embarrassments drive 
 him to his friend Antonio, who was willing to help 
 him but his money was tied up in his ships and their 
 cargoes. So Antonio goes to Shylock, a Jew money- 
 lender and bitter personal enemy, who sees the oppor- 
 tunity to revenge himself upon Antonio. Hence the 
 matter of the bond — a trap to catch Antonio. 
 
 With the money borrowed from Antonio, who bor- 
 rowed from Shylock, who borrowed from Tubal, Bas- 
 sanio goes to Belmont, where he easily overcomes the 
 other obstacle by choosing the right casket. 
 
 It is a universal law that all subplots should be kept 
 subordinate to the main plot. Shakespeare violates 
 that law, for even Zeus nods, and allows the minor 
 "bond plot" so to overshadow the main plot as to 
 endanger its success. The strong personality of Shy- 
 lock seems to have, for the moment, carried the great 
 dramatist away from his purpose of writing a comedy, 
 and in the trial scene the play verges upon tragedy. 
 But the tragedy is averted. Shakespeare masters the 
 situation by having Portia save the day in a most 
 charming, if utterly impossible, manner. Shakespeare 
 saves the day by a hair's breadth. Shylock departs, 
 defeated. The last act is pure comedy and delightful. 
 
 This is our point : Shakespeare could save the situa- 
 tion. But it is not safe for most people to allow minor 
 plots to overshadow the main plot, lest in trying to 
 save themselves they so lack verisimilitude as to cause 
 their readers to give up in despair. 
 
 Edgar Allan Poe's Requisites of the Short Story. 
 
NARRATION 243 
 
 According to Edgar Allan Poe, the first to formulate 
 the essentials of the short story, the five essentials are: 
 First, totality, by which he meant that it must be so 
 short and compact that it can be read at a sitting, and 
 hence easily comprehended as a whole; second, imme- 
 diateness, by which he meant that it should aim at a 
 single effect and that everything should contribute to 
 that aim; "if the very initial sentence tend not to the 
 outbringing of this effect, then it has failed in its first 
 step"; third, compression. "In the whole composi- 
 tion there should not be one word written of which the 
 tendency, direct or indirect, is not to the one pre- 
 established design"; fourth, it should possess veri- 
 similitude, that is, it should be within the range of 
 possibility; fifth, it must have finality. It must give 
 the impression of beginning with the opening sentence 
 and ending with the last, that when the story is ended 
 the matter is closed. 
 
 Let these suggestions from the master, Poe, guide you 
 in your short story writing. And if you will heed the 
 following words from another critic of the short story, 
 you will find your task easier. "The great artist is he 
 who knows how to interest without fatiguing us; who 
 gives us just enough knowledge of his theme to invest 
 with overwhelming significance what he chooses to 
 reveal; who makes one's imagination the confederate 
 of his own by leaving us to supply much which he only 
 suggests." 
 
 Completing Stories. A good practice in plot con- 
 struction may be found in completing stories. Let the 
 
244 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 teacher read a few pages of some short story that is not 
 known to the pupils. Do not tell the name of the 
 story, or the author, and do not read more than 
 enough to get the story well started with all the 
 principal characters introduced. Then have the 
 class complete the story as they think it should 
 be, or might be completed, in view of the opening, 
 the motivation. 
 
 Poe is said to have figured out the end of Dickens' 
 Barnaby Rudge after reading the first few chapters. 
 Dickens died, leaving one of his greatest novels only 
 half finished, The Mystery of Edwin Drood, and his son 
 and others have since completed it. A few years ago 
 a group of English writers worked upon the same story, 
 each offering his scheme for completing it. This prac- 
 tice has ample warrant. 
 
 The Paragraph in Narration. Strictly speaking, there 
 are no paragraphs in narration. A long narrative, a 
 story, should of course contain expository and descrip- 
 tive paragraphs. But narration does not proceed by 
 paragraphs in the way exposition does. And the reason 
 is evident: exposition deals with thoughts, which can- 
 not be developed without carefully constructed para- 
 graphs; narration deals with incidents which are best 
 related in a less formal way. In fact, narration becomes 
 mechanical when one tries to employ the machinery of 
 the strict paragraph developed from the topic sentence. 
 The semblance of paragraphs used in narration indicates 
 only convenient stopping places and transitions from 
 one incident to another. Consequently these con- 
 
NARRATION 245 
 
 venient, superficially marked-off stages in a story are 
 more numerous and shorter than regular paragraphs; 
 usually are. 
 
 Note the following: 
 
 "The ship began to show the first signs of 
 breaking up : hammered to death by the sea, 
 she discharged the oakum from her opening 
 seams, and her decks began to gape and grin 
 fore and aft. Corpses of drunken sailors 
 drowned between decks now floated up amid- 
 ships, and washed and rolled about among the 
 survivors' feet. These, seeing no hope, went 
 about making up all quarrels, and shaking 
 hands in token of a Christian end. One or two 
 came to Dodd with their hands out. 
 
 "' Avast, ye lubbers!' said he, angrily, 'do 
 you think I have time for nonsense? Folksel 
 ahoy! Axes, and cut away the weather 
 shrouds ! ' 
 
 "It was done: the foremast went by the 
 board directly, and fell to leeward; a few 
 blows of the axe from Dodd's own hand sent 
 the mainmast after it. 
 
 "The Agra rose a streak, and the next wave 
 carried her a little further inshore. 
 
 " And now the man in charge of the hawser 
 reported with joy that there was a strain on it. 
 
 "This gave those on board a hope of life. 
 Dodd bustled, and had the hawser carefully 
 paid out by two men, while he himself secured 
 the other end in the mizzen top; he had left 
 the mast standing on purpose." 
 
 — Very Hard Cash: Charles Reads 
 
246 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 Action in Narration. Since narration deals with in- 
 cidents it must have action or movement. It must get 
 somewhere, and by a definite, though sometimes cir- 
 cuitous, path. The movement may be slow or moder- 
 ate or rapid; and the speed is always determined by 
 the purpose of the narrator. The movement of a story 
 need not be the same throughout, and rarely is, because 
 the purpose varies. Where the purpose is to develop 
 suspense and intense excitement, the speed is naturally 
 accelerated, and short sentences and appropriate words, 
 such as suggest rapid motion, are used, as in the early 
 part of the Ancient Mariner and The Cask of Amon- 
 tillado. In stories of rapid movement, the qualities of 
 unity and coherence are very evident; coherence espe- 
 cially is conducive to speed. 
 
 The following brief paragraph illustrates rapid move- 
 ment in narration: 
 
 "One shove into the current; one short 
 1 coast' as we neared the white spot; one in- 
 stant of grazing the edge of the rock; one 
 leap; two splashes as we cut through the 
 whitecapped waves; a sudden turn to avoid 
 the wall of rock beyond; a landing to empty 
 the canoe, now full of water, and to take in 
 the Small Boy. That is all! We have made 
 the four-foot leap! Time, thirty seconds!" 
 
 — Canoe Stories: Charles Elbert Rhodes 
 
 In a short story of considerable length there must be 
 moments of relaxation, lest the excitement become too 
 intense and defeat the author's purpose. Then the 
 
NARRATION 247 
 
 speed is lessened by bringing in retarding passages 
 descriptive or explanatory in character, and by the use 
 of longer sentences and appropriate words. For in- 
 stance, after the intense murder scene in Macbeth, the 
 porter scene comes as a retarding element, bringing the 
 reader's emotions back to a normal state. Many writ- 
 ers also resort to the practice of carrying the retarding 
 process to the limit by using what is known as retro- 
 spective narrative. This not only reduces the speed 
 until it stops; it goes back to a point previous to that 
 indicated in the opening situation, and brings the story 
 up to the present time. For instance, in Silas Marner, 
 the story begins with an account of Silas in such an 
 awkward situation that our interest and our sympathy 
 are aroused. Then the author, feeling that her readers 
 will want to know the cause of that situation, goes 
 back to an earlier time, and by means of retrospective 
 narrative satisfies the reader and is in a position to 
 continue the story. The same principle of retrospec- 
 tive narrative is illustrated in Lancelot and Elaine, which 
 begins with Elaine admiring the shield of the unknown 
 knight, and then goes back to tell whose shield it is 
 and how it happened to be there. In both cases, it is 
 clear that the author realized that the situation chosen 
 as the initial one was better qualified to arouse interest 
 than an earlier one would have been. 
 
 It must not be inferred that a story of slow move- 
 ment, where there is very lifctle action, is necessarily 
 devoid of interest. Certain kinds of stories are not 
 at all susceptible to rapid movement, and yet are full 
 
248 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 of interest. In Poe's Raven, the movement is slow 
 throughout. Lut such movement exactly suits the 
 subject, and the mode of treatment, the character of 
 the man, and his surroundings. And notice how the 
 slow movement is indicated: 
 
 "Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered, weak and weary, 
 Over many a quaint and curious volume of forgotten lore, — 
 While I nodded, nearly napping, suddenly there came a tapping, 
 As of someone gently rapping, rapping at my chamber door. 
 1 Tis some visitor,' I muttered, 'tapping at my chamber door; 
 Only this and nothing more.'" 
 
 The words suggest a leisurely movement, the repeti- 
 tions do the same, and the uncertainty expressed indi- 
 cates that such a pace suits the subject and the mood 
 of the narrator. 
 
 The skillful story-teller is ever on the alert to acquire 
 a suitable vocabulary to express slow, medium, and 
 rapid movement — leisurely and halting words, repeat- 
 edly retarding the action, for stories of intense interest, 
 but slow progress; neutral verbs, adjectives, and ad- 
 verbs for stories of moderate speed; and action words 
 vividly suggestive of rapid motion. The question 
 of diction has a vital bearing upon effectiveness in 
 narration. 
 
 Characters in Narration. However interesting a 
 situation may be, however alluring the plot, their in- 
 teresting and alluring qualities are due to the human 
 element found in the characters. It is impossible to 
 conceive of either a situation or a plot without charac- 
 ters; so people are, after all, the most essential ele- 
 
NARRATION 249 
 
 ments of narration. People are interesting in them- 
 selves, sometimes, but really to know people we must 
 see them in striking situations and see how they act 
 and hear what they say, and, if possible, learn their 
 thoughts. And as a series of situations, arranged ac- 
 cording to the logic of events and leading to a definite 
 conclusion, constitutes a plot, it is evident that the 
 chief interest of a story is in following the characters 
 through the story and observing how they master 
 situations, or are mastered by them, and how they 
 stand at the end of the story. 
 
 What characters and how many shall be introduced 
 into a story f The principle of unity answers: only 
 those absolutely essential to carry on the story. Need- 
 less characters not only tempt the writer to violate the 
 law of unity; they get in the way of the essential char- 
 acters and tempt the writer to violate the law of 
 coherence as well. And it is equally evident that the 
 law of proportion can tolerate no unnecessary char- 
 acters. Dickens sometimes, as in Our Mutual Friend 
 introduced as many as seventy people into one book, 
 rendering it almost impossible for the reader to follow 
 the thread of the story. On the other hand, drama- 
 tists, especially modern dramatists, give a wholesome 
 example to writers of stories who are willing to learn. 
 Economy necessitates few characters; the result is 
 stronger plays. Charles Reade, the dramatic novelist, 
 wrote strong novels because he conceived them 
 dramatically. 
 
 Introduction of Characters. There are various ways 
 
250 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 of introducing characters, but the method of the 
 dramatist is again the best. Introduce them into the 
 story at the times when they actually enter it. It 
 is far more effective than to line them all up at the 
 beginning before the story commences. 
 
 As to the manner of introduction there is a larger 
 option. A common way, especially with the earlier 
 novelists, is to have the author retard the story by 
 means of elaborate descriptions of the character's ap- 
 pearance and dress that the reader might see how they 
 looked, and by equally elaborate expositions to reveal 
 their inner lives and their motives. This is still done. 
 However, the descriptions and expositions are much 
 more brief and more suggestive. 
 
 Another method is to have the characters describe 
 each other, or at least have some of them do so. This 
 adds variety and often results in various descriptions 
 of the same character, from different points of view, 
 and imposes upon the reader the duty and pleasure of 
 deciding which description is correct. So, Lady Mac- 
 beth describes her husband. 
 
 The third, and perhaps the best, method, is to bring 
 in the character with the briefest possible introduction, 
 such as a few words of running comment, and then 
 develop the character by means of what he says and 
 does. This method has the advantage of being eco- 
 nomical and indirect. The character grows upon the 
 reader, just as in real life, and the reader is more likely 
 to be on the alert to discover the traits of character as 
 they emerge and to be better pleased with the result 
 
NARRATION 251 
 
 than when he is told what a character is by means of 
 long expository paragraphs. 
 
 In using the third method, the writer will naturally 
 select incidents possessing character-revealing quali- 
 ties. This is always the best way to write biographical 
 sketches. And, furthermore, it helps one to avoid the 
 error of creating stationary characters. The only men 
 whose characters have ceased to change, for better or 
 for worse, are dead men. As the experiences of life 
 affect men's character, so must the plot of a story react 
 upon the characters concerned with the plot, as they 
 do in all of George Eliot's novels. 
 
 Another caution to be kept in mind in developing 
 characters is against inconsistency. Let every char- 
 acter always act and speak "in character," as the say- 
 ing is. Keep him human; keep him sane (unless the 
 purpose is to depict an insane person) ; keep him true 
 to himself. Too much care cannot be given to the de- 
 picting and developing of characters if one would make 
 them real persons instead of types or mere personifica- 
 tions without real life, as in the old morality plays. 
 It was the invariable custom of the great dramatist 
 Ibsen to plan out the whole previous life of the charac- 
 ters in his plays even though the play used only a small 
 fraction of the life of the character. Such studious 
 care pays. 
 
 Conversation in Narrative. Most people must talk. 
 The law of silence should not be imposed upon them 
 even in books. If the characters in books do not talk 
 they will seem, and be, unnatural. Let them talk. It 
 
252 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 will advance the story by properly emphasizing the 
 dramatic elements, as it does in the drama. It will 
 reveal character far better than any description. It 
 will break the monotony, add zest and vividness, and 
 make the characters real and lifelike. Conversation is 
 fundamental to good narration. 
 
 So important is it, that we add the testimony of two 
 successful writers. Anthony Trollope says in his Auto- 
 biography : 
 
 Y 1 
 
 "The ordinary talk of ordinary people is 
 carried on in short, sharp, expressive sen- 
 tences, which very frequently are never com- 
 pleted, the language of which even among 
 educated people is often incorrect. The novel 
 writer, in constructing his dialogue, must steer 
 between absolute accuracy of language — which 
 would give to his conversation the air of pedan- 
 try — and the slovenly inaccuracy of ordinary 
 talkers (which, if closely followed, would offend 
 by an appearance of grimace) as to produce 
 upon the ear of his readers a sense of reality. 
 If he is quite real he will seem to attempt to 
 be funny. If he is quite correct he will seem to 
 be unreal. Above all, let the speeches be short. 
 No character should utter above a dozen words 
 at a breath, unless the writer can justify to 
 himself a longer speech by the specialty of the 
 
 In his Backlog Studies, Charles Dudley Warner gives 
 an excellent tribute to the kind of conversation which 
 should be the aim of writers who would be true to life : 
 
NARRATION 253 
 
 " There is no entertainment so full of quiet 
 pleasure as the hearing a lady of cultivation 
 and refinement relate her day's experience in 
 her daily round of calls, charitable visits, shop- 
 ping errands of relief and condolence. The 
 evening's budget is better than the finance 
 minister's. ... I don't mean gossip, by any 
 means, or scandal. A woman of culture skims 
 over that like a bird, never touching it with 
 the tip of a wing. What she brings home is 
 the freshness and brightness of life. She 
 touches everything so daintily, she hits off a 
 character in a sentence, she gives the pith of 
 a dialogue without tediousness, she mimics 
 without vulgarity, her narration sparkles but 
 it doesn't sting, and it gives a new value and 
 freshness to common things. If we could only 
 have on the stage such actresses as we have 
 in the drawing-room!" 
 
 There is no doubt about the popularity of books 
 abounding in conversation. The fact that " skippers" 
 do not skip the dialogue is significant. And while it 
 should not be considered a sufficient reason for using 
 dialogue, it deserves consideration. The following gen- 
 eral principles will help. 
 
 1. Use dialogue whenever it will actually advance 
 the action or reveal character. Never use it for its 
 own sake. Meaningless talk is as bad in a book as in 
 life. 
 
 2. Let all conversation be natural, not forced. Let 
 it be absolutely in keeping with the characters, reveal- 
 ing their literacy or illiteracy, their manners, their 
 
254 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 refinement, or lack of it, their personal peculiarities 
 and hobbies, if they have any; in a word, let their 
 talk reveal as much of themselves as it would naturally 
 be expected to disclose under the circumstances. 
 
 3. Let all conversation be sufficiently striking and 
 valuable to warrant its use. Condense it, lest an exact 
 reproduction tire the reader, or cause the writer to 
 violate principles of unity and proportion. Tone it 
 down, lest some kinds of talk should seem too bad, or 
 too vulgar, or too commonplace. Keep it brief and 
 vital. 
 
 4. Make every speech, however short, a complete 
 paragraph, and be careful to punctuate it correctly. 
 
 5. Avoid the monotonous repetition of the word 
 "said." Increase your vocabulary and improve your 
 diction by learning at least thirty synonyms of "said," 
 so that each speech may be introduced strikingly and 
 with a touch of suggestive description to add vividness. 
 Such words as remarked, remonstrated, echoed, sighed, 
 entreated, expostulated, shrieked, threatened, drawled, 
 hissed, interrupted, murmured-, and growled are among 
 the synonyms suggested. 
 
 When only two speakers are talking, it is effective 
 occasionally to omit the introductory word. 
 
 The Climax in Narration. The fundamental, ob- 
 jective point in narration is commonly called the 
 climax. It is the main incident toward which all the 
 action has progressed, step by step, from the intro- 
 ductory situation. It must be the complete and 
 satisfactory fulfillment of the promise, however vague, 
 
NARRATION 255 
 
 made in the opening situation. In the climax, the 
 interest should reach its height. Suspense gives place 
 to the joy of discovery, the search is over and the 
 treasure is found, the author's fundamental inten- 
 tion becomes the reader's acquisition, the entangled 
 threads are disentangled and the knots are untied, 
 and the story is told. 
 
 Make the climax count. Then stop. A long- 
 drawn-out conclusion mars the effect. When the 
 reader is satisfied, leave him satisfied. 
 
 The Final Tests of Efficiency in Narration. However 
 carefully one may write, he should never consider his 
 work complete until he has applied the acid tests of 
 rhetoric which must always be used before success is 
 assured, the tests of interest, which is secured by a 
 proper combination of clearness, force, and fitness of 
 style, which, in turn, are achieved by means of unity, 
 coherence, and proportion. As the last three are the 
 most fundamental tests, in most cases it will be suf- 
 ficient to apply them in the last examination. 
 
 The Tests of Unity. Has the whole story unity? 
 Has any material which is not essential been used? 
 Are there any digressions which retard the action 
 without a compensating value in necessary informa- 
 tion? Have the paragraphs and the sentences the 
 quality of unity? 
 
 The ability to answer correctly the above questions 
 will suffice on the matter of unity. 
 
 The Test of Coherence. This is the test concerning 
 arrangement. Do the parts, selected according to the 
 
256 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 law of unity, hold together as one undivided whole? 
 Is there an invisible thread binding all the parts to- 
 gether? Do the incidents lead to one another, logic- 
 ally, and continue to do so until the end with ever- 
 increasing interest? Is the relation between the in- 
 cidents clearly indicated by proper connectives and by 
 logical transitions? If the plot is complicated, are the 
 minor elements so subordinated to the major ones that 
 the subordination is clearly evident? Is the arrange- 
 ment such as to produce force? 
 
 The Test of Proportion. Is the law of emphasis 
 rigidly followed so' as to result in a proper balance of 
 parts? Are incidents all so handled as to point forward 
 toward the climax? Are the details developed suf- 
 ficiently, but no more? Are the incidents emphasized 
 by position and elaboration in accordance with their 
 value in the story, irrespective of their intrinsic value? 
 Is the climax the most emphatic point of the whole 
 narrative? Does the whole narrative appeal to you. at 
 first thought, to be well proportioned? 
 
 Dramatization. The drama combines all the forms 
 of discourse, narration, description, explanation, argu- 
 mentation, and persuasion. Inasmuch, however, as it 
 deals principally with action, the proper place to con- 
 sider it is in connection with narration. The drama- 
 tization of scenes from books and from actual life 
 furnishes excellent practice in analysis of material, in 
 plot construction, in character creation, in assembling 
 of parts, and in presentation. Oral presentations of 
 student-made plays are of great value in oral compos-t'on 
 
NARRATION 257 
 
 and in gaining self-mastery. It is always interesting 
 and so furnishes a delightful change from the routine 
 of class work. 
 
 The Essentials of the Drama. The essentials of a 
 play are three : the plot, which is the plan according to 
 which the action takes place; the situation, which fur- 
 nishes the background and the setting; and the char- 
 acters, who by their words and actions tell the story so 
 vividly as actually to reproduce it. The plot outlines 
 what takes place and why; the situation gives the pic- 
 ture and answers the question " Where?"; while the 
 characters give life and answer the question "Who?". 
 
 An interesting plot must contain a series of dramatic 
 situations. A dramatic situation is a crisis demanding 
 skillful dialogue and action on the part of the characters 
 of the play to extricate themselves. When the situa- 
 tion is ridiculous and the characters are merely victims 
 of circumstances, the result is a farce resembling A 
 Comedy of Errors; when there is a superabundance of 
 romantic and abnormally tragic situations, with thrill- 
 ing adventures and hairbreadth escapes, we have a 
 melodrama, like Uncle Tom's Cabin and most drama- 
 tized novels where the scenes are crowded; where the 
 play deals with nearly normal life, without situations 
 involving life and death, and where the humorous ele- 
 ments stop short of the farcical, we have the comedy, 
 like As You Like It; and where we find a severe test 
 of the very soul, often involving the death of the body 
 to remain true to an ideal, we have the tragedy, the 
 highest form of literary art, such as Antigone and Hamlet. 
 
258 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 Dramatic situations offer the motives for the actions 
 of the characters. The best way, then, to construct a 
 play, is to decide upon the scene to give the back- 
 ground, the general line of action you wish to repre- 
 sent, and the characters essential for carrying out the 
 action. Having done this preliminary work, plan a 
 series of striking dramatic situations, bringing the char- 
 acters into relations which demand explanation. As 
 in the story, so here the plot is constructed by placing 
 obstacles in the way of the characters, called compli- 
 cating the plot. Caution is necessary here lest the plot 
 be too much complicated; unless, of course, you are 
 after farcical or melodramatic effects. The real work 
 of the drama is the getting of the characters out of 
 their difficulties by showing how they overcome their 
 obstacles. The climax is the turning point which marks 
 the beginning of the end. In Macbeth, for instance, the 
 turning point is the escape of Fleance, after which 
 Macbeth plays a losing game. The denouement is the 
 final settlement of the points at issue. 
 
 With the exception of the stage directions, plays are 
 entirely in dialogue. In other words, the writer of the 
 play says nothing, aside from giving the necessary 
 directions; he makes the characters describe one 
 another, directly, as Caesar describes Cassius in 
 Julius Ccesar, or indirectly, when the characters de- 
 scribe themselves by their conversation and their ac- 
 tion. If a place is to be described, a character does it 
 in conversation with another. If an opinion is to be 
 expressed or a conclusion is to be drawn, one of the 
 
NARRATION 259 
 
 characters must do it naturally in the course of his 
 conversation. In short, the dialogue and the action 
 tell the story, embellish it, and apply it, if any applica- 
 tion is necessary, to make its meaning or purpose clear. 
 
 By way of getting help from literature, study, or re- 
 view, some of the plays you have had in class to see 
 how Shakespeare selects dramatic situations, how he 
 develops his characters, and how he makes the play 
 grow from his material. Read also some simple one-act 
 plays to observe how plays are made on a minor scale. 
 
 Pageants. Pageants differ from plays in being more 
 spectacular, in making more of processions, tableaux, 
 dancing, music, and the like. They have little or no 
 plot; little or no speaking. They are useful to repre- 
 sent historical and other scenes where much use can be 
 made of effective costuming. The preparing of pag- 
 eants offers a good opportunity for class work in com- 
 position. 
 
 Exercises in Dramatization for Practice 
 
 Simple scenes from ordinary life: Dramatize five of 
 the following situations: 
 
 1. Scene — A drygoods store on bargain day. 
 
 Characters — A clerk, a floorwalker,^ house detective, 
 and three bargain seekers. 
 
 Suggestions for action: The three bargain seekers, 
 two of whom are known to each other, while the third 
 is a stranger to them, excitedly maul over the goods 
 on the counter and quarrel for the possession of one 
 article which all want. In the excitement the floor- 
 
260 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 walker appears and tries to calm the women. By mis- 
 take one has put an article from the counter into her 
 bag, and been seen by the house detective. Make the 
 dialogue suitable, and have the action conform. Make 
 the play something more than child's play; make it a 
 little drama. It should take about seven or eight 
 minutes. 
 
 2. Scene — The principal's office at school. 
 Characters — The principal, his secretary, another 
 
 teacher, and a pupil. 
 
 Suggestions for action: The pupil has been brought 
 before the principal by the teacher for a breach of dis- 
 cipline. The principal asks the pupil what defense she 
 has to offer. The teacher gives her version, which is 
 not wholly in accord with the pupil's narrative, and the 
 principal adjusts the case. The secretary writes down 
 all that is said. Reference is made, once or twice, to 
 the minutes as taken down by the secretary. Time, 
 about seven minutes. 
 
 3. Scene — Any room in which there is a telephone. 
 Character — A boy or girl. 
 
 Suggestion for action: An imaginary conversation 
 with a friend upon some social matter. Make the one- 
 sided conversation lively. It should consist of more 
 than monosyllables and should give ample hints as to 
 what the other person is saying, which, of course, must 
 be inferred. This exercise can be made an interesting 
 monologue of five minutes' duration. 
 
 4. Scene — A home library. 
 Characters — Two girls. 
 
NARRATION 261 
 
 Suggestions for action: The girls are pretending to 
 study, for that has been their pretended object in meet- 
 ing. They try to study for a while, but they wander 
 from their books to a coming dance, sorority meeting, 
 or class picnic, and forget their books. The mantel 
 clock strikes ten; they realize, to their embarrassment, 
 that it is time to part and that their lesson has not been 
 learned. Twelve minutes. 
 
 5. Scene — A doctor's office with paraphernalia, in- 
 cluding X-ray machine. 
 
 Characters — A doctor and a man who is very nervous. 
 
 Suggestions for action: The nervous man has been 
 sent to the doctor to have an X-ray photograph taken 
 of his jaw. He tells of his trouble and what his dentist 
 has told him about the need of an X-ray photograph. 
 He asks all sorts of questions, revealing his fear of the 
 process, for he has heard of X-ray poisoning. The 
 doctor calms him and takes the picture. Ten minutes. 
 
 Think up other scenes and situations for further 
 exercises. 
 
 Dramatizing Poems, Short Stories, and Scenes from 
 Books. Exercises of this kind should be studied with 
 greater care, and the plays should be carefully written 
 out, with full stage directions. The suggestions offered 
 are so graded as to give practice in dealing with simple 
 plays with one situation to more difficult ones with 
 several situations and some complications. 
 
 1. Dramatize Browning's An Incident of the French Camp. 
 
 2. Dramatize Browning's Tray, bringing in all characters. This 
 should be very suggestive and furnish excellent practice. 
 
262 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 3. Dramatize Irving's Legend of Sleepy Hollow. 
 
 4. Dramatize Irving's Rip Van Winkle. 
 
 5. Dramatize scenes from Ivanhoe, Silas Marner, A Tale of 
 Two Cities, David Copperfield, and The House of the Seven Gables. 
 In these cases, be sure to select scenes which offer striking dramatic 
 situations. 
 
 6. Dramatize Burns's The Cotter's Saturday Night. 
 
 7. Dramatize Longfellow's The Courtship of Miles Standish. 
 This poem offers unusual opportunities for dramatization. It has 
 several good situations. 
 
 8. Dramatize the Book of Ruth or the Book of Esther from the 
 Old Testament. 
 
 9. Make careful selection among short stories you have read for 
 one that offers dramatic possibilities. Dramatize it. 
 
 10. Select scenes from Pickwick Papers and dramatize them. 
 
 Exercises in Planning Pageants 
 
 1. Plan a pageant representing the signing of the Declaration 
 of Independence or some other important event in American 
 history. 
 
 2. Plan a pageant for Decoration Day. 
 
 3. Plan a pageant for Arbor Day. 
 
 4. Plan a pageant for Christmas exercises. 
 
 5. Plan a pageant for Class Day. 
 
 6. Plan a pageant representing local history. 
 
 7. Plan a pageant representing America's allies in the Great War. 
 
 8. Plan a pageant representing a scene from some story. 
 
 Description in Narration. Narration, to be effective, 
 must contain some description. Pure narration may 
 appeal to the imagination, but if some description is 
 introduced the appeal is greatly increased. There is 
 also a psychological reason for introducing description. 
 The mind demands more than the mere facts which 
 tell of action; it craves a picture of the place where 
 the action occurs, of the actors themselves, and at least 
 a suggestion of a description concerning all things men- 
 

 NARRATION 263 
 
 tioned in the story. Description, especially impres- 
 sionistic description, helps to create atmosphere; it 
 adds charm, affords background, and produces clear- 
 ness and a sense of reality. As all these things arc 
 essential to narration, it is safe to say that informal de- 
 scription must not only accompany narration, but be 
 woven in as a part of it. Adjectives and most figures 
 of speech, especially metaphors, are descriptive in char- 
 acter. 
 
 The amount of description that may be used with- 
 out unduly retarding the action depends upon the 
 rapidity of the movement. In the opening stanzas of 
 the Ancient Mariner, where the movement is rapid, 
 there is little description, and it is all in the adjectives, 
 which are apt and striking, informal description. 
 
 "It is an ancient Mariner, 
 
 And he stoppeth one of three. 
 'By thy long gray beard and glittering eye, 
 Now wherefore stopp'st thou me? ' " 
 
 In Poe's Raven, on the other hand, a poem with slow 
 movement, we still find adjectives giving most of the 
 descriptive touches, but they are very picturesque and 
 aided by equally suggestive adverbs and by metaphors. 
 
 "Ah, distinctly I remember it was in the bleak December, 
 And each separate dying ember wrought its ghost upon the floor. 
 
 "And the silken sad uncertain rustling of each purple curtain 
 Thrilled me — filled me with fantastic terrors never felt before."" 
 
 The best writers no longer mass their description, as 
 Scott did, for they know their story cannot be much 
 
264 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 retarded without loss of interest. Novels and short 
 stories are now more like plays, in that just enough 
 description is introduced to embellish without imped- 
 ing the action; enough to appeal to the imagination by 
 suggesting pictures to be glanced at without stopping 
 to study them in detail. Use description, then, when it, 
 helps the narration, but never for its own sake. 
 
 Exposition and Narration. Exposition is introduced 
 into narration whenever it is necessary to explain in- 
 tricate situations, characters, and such purely intel- 
 lectual matters as motives, causes, results, and the like. 
 It is useful whenever the author desires to express an 
 opinion or judgment concerning his characters or what 
 they are doing. But this must be done sparingly. 
 While some exposition is valuable, too much is fatal. 
 Thackeray, for instance, often introduces so much ex- 
 planatory matter that page after page of Henry Esmond, 
 for instance, is more expository than narrative, and the 
 story as a story almost comes to a complete halt. 
 Where the reader can draw his own conclusions it is 
 better to let him do so; he saves time and is better 
 pleased with the result. 
 
 The following letter of Carlyle to Lord Houghton 
 illustrates how expository matter may be properly in- 
 troduced into a letter that is largely narrative: 
 
 "Poor Thackeray! I saw him not ten days 
 ago. I was riding in the dusk, heavy of heart, 
 along by the Serpentine and Hyde Park, when 
 some human brother from a chariot, with a 
 young lady in it, threw me a shower of saluta- 
 
NARRATION 265 
 
 tions. I looked up; it was Thackeray with 
 his daughter, the last time I was to see him in 
 this world. He had many fine qualities; no 
 guile or malice against any mortal; a big mass 
 of a soul, but not strong in proportion; a 
 beautiful vein of genius lay struggling about 
 in him. Nobody of our day wrote, I should 
 say, with such perfection of style. I predict 
 of his books very much as you do. Poor 
 Thackeray ! Adieu ! Adieu ! ' ' 
 
 Argumentation in Narration. In informal argumen- 
 tation it is quite common to find passages that are 
 good narrative. This is true where a story, generally 
 a very short one, is used to substantiate a point. On 
 the other hand, parts of narratives are often given an 
 argumentative turn. It often happens that, in the 
 course of a story, the narrator will have to record con- 
 versation which is argumentative, where one character 
 is trying to convince another. These two facts show 
 how common it is to find the various forms of discourse 
 fused together; to find one form borrowing another to 
 aid in accomplishing its purpose. 
 
 The commonest combined use of narration and argu- 
 mentation is when a whole story is used as a single 
 argument, because, as a whole, it helps to convince one 
 in favor of a certain conclusion. For instance, the 
 Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals finds 
 it most effective to use such stories as Black Beauty to 
 enforce the truth they are trying to teach. In such 
 cases, and there are many, the argumentative value o " 
 the story lies in its teaching. 
 
266 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 In a still more notable way fables, fairy tales, para- 
 bles, and allegories, all of which are narrative in char- 
 acter, are used to convince more than to entertain, and 
 for that purpose they were written. Their argumenta- 
 tive value is evident, though they may be far from 
 argumentative in form. 
 
 When parts of a story are intentionally made to serve 
 the purpose of argumentation, such parts are called 
 generalized narration or argumentative narration. For 
 example, note the following argumentative dialogue 
 from Scott's Woodstock: 
 
 ut Alice, my dearest child/ said the doctor, 
 1 bethink you that if I recommend this means 
 of saving the life of the king, at least rescuing 
 him from instant peril, it is because I see no 
 other of which to avail myself. If I bid you 
 assume, even for a moment, the semblance of 
 wrong, it is but in the last extremity, and 
 under circumstances which cannot return. I 
 will take the surest means to prevent all evil 
 report which can arise from what I recom- 
 mend. ' 
 
 "'Say not so, doctor/ said Alice; ' better 
 undertake to turn back the Isis than to stop 
 the course of calumny. The king will make 
 boast to his whole licentious court of the ease 
 with which, but for a sudden alarm, he could 
 have brought off Alice Lee as a paramour. 
 The mouth which confers honors on others 
 will then be the means to deprive me of mine. 
 Take a fitter course — one more becoming your 
 own character and profession. Do not lead 
 him to fail in an engagement of honor by hold- 
 
NARRATION 267 
 
 ing out the prospect of another engagement, 
 equally dishonorable, whether true or false. 
 Go to the king himself; speak to him as the 
 servants of God have a right to speak, even to 
 earthly sovereigns. Point out to him the folly 
 and wickedness of the course he is about to 
 pursue. Urge upon him that he fear the 
 sword, since wrath bringeth the punishment 
 of the sword. Tell him that the friends that 
 died for him on the field of Worcester, on the 
 scaffolds, and on the gibbets, since that bloody 
 day— that the remnant who are in prison, 
 scattered, fled, or ruined on his account — de- 
 serve better of him and his father's race than 
 that he should throw away his life in an idle 
 brawl. Tell him that it is dishonest to venture 
 that which is not his own, dishonorable to be- 
 tray the trust which brave men have reposed 
 in his virtue and in his courage.'" 
 
 Summary of Narration. Having in mind what nar- 
 ration is and what the different kinds are, it will be 
 well to remember the following brief statements con- 
 cerning the chief directions for narrative writing. 
 
 Remember to select a suitable point of view; to de- 
 cide who is to tell the story, whether the chief charac- 
 ter, a minor character, some omniscient outsider or a 
 compiler or editor. Do not change the point of view 
 without good reason and then let it be known that it 
 has been changed. 
 
 Remember that almost anything may be raw mate- 
 rial for narrative writing, but that it must be most 
 
268 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 carefully selected, principally from observation and ex- 
 perience and from the use of the imagination, and then 
 that it must be carefully estimated as to its value for 
 the purpose in view. Organize the material by arrang- 
 ing it according to a definite plan, then test for unity, 
 coherence, and proportion, and above all for interest. 
 Discard all material that is not really necessary to make 
 the narrative interesting and effective. 
 
 Remember the value of beginning right and the im- 
 portance of the setting and the four "Ws." 
 
 Remember the value of the initial situation and that 
 it must lead to other situations by the logic of events. 
 Heed the motivation so that there may be enough of 
 a promise to arouse the interest. 
 
 Remember, concerning Simple Narration, that it 
 must be kept simple. 
 
 Remember, concerning Plot Narration, that it is 
 complicated by the introduction of difficulties and ob- 
 stacles to be removed or overcome, or by temporarily 
 entangling the threads of narration which are later to 
 be disentangled. Remember to be especially careful 
 about the law of coherence while handling conflicting 
 elements. 
 
 Remember, concerning plot development, that there 
 must be constant movement toward an inevitable con- 
 clusion with a " point.' ' Keep in mind the " logic of 
 events" and the law of cause and effect. Study care- 
 fully every step of development, and never forget the 
 law of proportion. 
 
 Remember, that in narration the strictly developed 
 
NARRATION 269 
 
 paragraph is not to be sought, lest a mechanical result 
 should make the story too formal. Let the narrative 
 paragraph mark convenient stopping and transition 
 places, to facilitate the reading of the story. 
 
 Remember that action is the soul of narration, that 
 the movement must be determined by the purpose of 
 the writer and the kind of story he is telling. Study 
 methods of accelerating and of retarding the action. 
 Study the models given in this chapter, giving heed to 
 the value of a suitable vocabulary as a means of con- 
 trolling speed. 
 
 Remember that all the interest centers around the 
 characters and what they do and say. Study the best 
 literature to find the value of characters. Study your 
 own plan and create such characters as are necessary 
 to make the material of your story live. Be careful 
 about the way you introduce and describe your char- 
 acters. Cultivate variety. 
 
 Remember that if your characters are alive they will 
 talk; then make them talk naturally, yet bearing in 
 mind the artist's prerogative of toning down or toning 
 up conversation so as to avoid giving offense. Con- 
 dense the speeches. Paragraph and punctuate with 
 care. Avoid the monotonous repetition of the word 
 "said." Select proper synonyms. 
 
 Remember to make the ending count. Do not miss 
 the great opportunity you have been seeking all through 
 the story. Remove the obstacles; untie the knots; 
 release your reader from suspense; then stop. 
 
 Remember to apply the fundamental rhetorical tests 
 
270 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 once more. for a final correction and for elimination of 
 faults. 
 
 Remember that Description, Exposition, and Argu- 
 mentation may all be used, sparingly, in narration. 
 But do not let any of them overweigh the narrative 
 itself, or unduly retard the action. Use them where 
 actually necessary, but use them wisely, never intro- 
 ducing them for their own sakes. 
 
 Review Questions and Theme Assignments 
 
 (The above reminders of the fundamental facts of this chapter 
 will aid in the matter of review. But teachers will want to add 
 many questions of their own, as they see fit, to help the pupils 
 master narration.) 
 
 Theme assignments should be given to accompany each section 
 of the chapter so as to test the pupil's mastery of the text. Bring 
 literature to bear also by showing how good writers have done 
 what the pupils are striving to master. Study the use of material 
 in ballads, short poems, and short stories, that pupils may learn 
 how to condense, to eliminate, to secure unity, and how to leave 
 just the right things to the imagination. Study opening and 
 closing situations in books. Study plot developed as seen in 
 such masters as Poe, Hawthorne, and others. 
 
 In assigning subjects, from which the pupils may select their own 
 titles after due study, it is well to choose those upon which they will 
 be able to gather material by observation or out of their own 
 personal experience. Class discussion on how to do the work should 
 always precede the actual work of writing. Do not leave the 
 pupils to struggle alone until after some careful guidance. It will 
 be much better in the end. 
 
 The following titles are suggested for assignments for themes 
 where the material is to be drawn from observation, from experience, 
 and from such first-hand information as conversation with people 
 who relate old family traditions and the like. Care should be used 
 to select from the list such titles as are within the range of pos- 
 sibility when the age, or grade, and the environment of the pupils 
 is taken under consideration: 
 
NARRATION 271 
 
 How I Earned My First Dollar. 
 How I Spent My First Dollar (of my own earning). 
 My Discoveries in the Attic of the Old Homestead. 
 How I Selected the First Book I Purchased With My Own 
 Money. 
 
 Our Canoe Trip down the Creek. 
 
 Our Boy Scout Camp. 
 
 When the Catboat Capsized. 
 
 An Incident of Our Botanizing Excursion. 
 
 What Most Impressed Me at the County Fair. 
 
 An Interview with a War Veteran, 
 
 My First Day With My Camera. 
 
 Hunting With a Camera. 
 
 Photographing a Woodchuck. 
 
 An Act of Heroism in Common Life. 
 
 My First Day as a Reporter. 
 
 What I Observed on a Street Car. 
 
 The Unexpected Incident on the Saturday Hike. 
 
 Overheard at the Bargain Counter (Dialogue). 
 
 Bidding at an Auction. 
 
 The Greatest Fright I ever Had. 
 
 The Greatest Surprise of my Life. 
 
 The Proudest Day of my Life. 
 
 My Lucky Day. 
 
 A Strange Coincidence. 
 
 How I was Lost and Found My Way Home. 
 
 The Night of the Fire. 
 
 In assigning the foregoing titles it will be profitable to have 
 such matters as: point of view, opening situation, setting, action, 
 introduction of characters, dialogue, retarding influences, diction, 
 climax, and conclusion clearly in mind. Call attention to topics 
 especially suitable for emphasis, or special treatment, of each of 
 the foregoing essentials. 
 
 The following titles will furnish opportunities for the use of the 
 imagination as the main source of material. Emphasize the need 
 of using the imagination sanely and not running into fanciful 
 vagaries. Urge the pupils to start with facts and, resting upon 
 them as a basis, to enlarge upon them imaginatively: 
 
 What the Old Fireplace Told Me. (Base story on an old 
 tradition.) 
 
272 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 What I Would do if I Were a Millionaire. 
 
 An Imaginary Visit From My Great-great Grandmother. 
 
 A Vision of My Future, as I Should Like It to Be. 
 
 If I Were Principal of Our School. 
 
 What Izaak Walton Told Me, in a Dream. 
 
 What Franklin Would Say if He Saw an Aeroplane. 
 
 A Spiritualistic Seance. 
 
 A Trip to Utopia. 
 
 The Secrets the Mountains Told Me. 
 
 The Autobiography of a Grandfather's Clock. 
 
 An Imaginary Conversation with Hamlet. 
 
 An Imaginary Conversation between Sir Walter Scott and 
 Ivanhoe. 
 
 An Imaginary Conversation Between Sir John Falstaff 
 and Touchstone. 
 
 The Boston Tea Party. (Imagine yourself one of the 
 party.) 
 
 Hunting with Rip van Winkle. 
 
 A Camp-fire Reverie. 
 
 An Ideal Community. 
 
 The Play at an Elizabethan Theater. 
 
 An Evening at Johnson's Club. 
 
 The following titles are suggested for themes on material drawn 
 from books. This list may be enlarged at pleasure: 
 
 Paul Revere. De Soto. 
 
 Evangeline. Beowulf. 
 
 Hiawatha. Sir Philip Sidney. 
 
 Israel Putnam. Sir Walter Raleigh. 
 
 La Salle. Izaak Walton. 
 
 Father Hennepin. Dr. Samuel Johnson. 
 Some Characters in "The Canterbury Tales." 
 
 Any character out of your favorite books, such as Huckle- 
 berry Finn, John Ridd, Uncle Tom, Tom Brown, Judy in 
 "Daddy Longlegs," etc. 
 
 Read Browning's Incident of the French Camp, Tray, Herve Riel r 
 and Phcidippides; see whet centre! incident t!ie writer had in mind 
 
NARRATION 273 
 
 in each case and how he elaborated it. Recall, or invent, incidents 
 of your own and then elaborate them into short stories. 
 
 Develop short stories from the following incidents: 
 
 1. Two orphans are adopted by two families. The children 
 do not meet for twelve years, but then they are accidentally brought 
 together and are struck with the similarity of their looks. They 
 are then told that they are twin sisters. Briefly tell the story 
 of the two girls for the next five years. 
 
 2. A boy goes to a city with his parents and is lost. He is not 
 found for three days. During those days he has been cared for 
 by a kind-hearted widow who has lost her own little boy, whom she 
 had planned to send to college. She offers to send the boy to 
 college if his parents will agree to let him choose a profession under 
 her guidance. Tell the rest of the story until the boy is twenty-one. 
 
 3. A young man is to meet a young lady at a railroad station and 
 endeavors to do so. Before his arrival, however, the young lady, 
 never having seen the man who was to meet her, has made the 
 mistake of addressing another young man who seems to be looking 
 for some one. Straighten matters out for the three by telling 
 what happened next. 
 
 4. A young man has entered his father's office as a junior partner. 
 He soon discovers that his father is guilty of dishonest business 
 practices. A little later his father asks him to do something which 
 he cannot conscientiously do. He is strongly tempted, but he 
 resists. Narrate, with dialogue, the scene in which the son refuses 
 to obey his father and frankly tells him why. Bring about a 
 satisfactory reconciliation. 
 
 5. Relate a conversation between a boy who has been justly 
 accused of cheating in an examination and his teacher who is 
 kind-hearted but firm and who does her best to prevent the boy's 
 cheating again. Make her very tactful and patient. 
 
 6. A taxi is sent for a minister to perform a wedding ceremony. 
 The taxi driver gets the wrong minister, who, being unknown, is 
 taken for a musician. When the expected minister does not 
 arrive and the other minister sees that something is wrong, he is 
 taken home and the expected minister is brought to the house 
 and performs the ceremony. It happens that the ministers are 
 intimate friends. Relate their conversation when they meet and 
 talk it over. Both have a sense of humor. 
 
 7. A t'iree-year-old child presents a member of the French 
 
274 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 Military Band with a handful of flowers. The Frenchman takes 
 the flowers into the house. After fifteen minutes he returns and, 
 with tears in his eyes, shows the child a photograph of a woman 
 and three small children. Make a story out of these facts. 
 
 8. A company of American soldiers attended church at a French 
 village. They knew but little French. The priest was reprimand- 
 ing his people for overcharging the soldiers and frequently referred 
 to six centimes. The soldiers thought they were expected to put 
 that amount in the collection plate and did so. Develop a short 
 story from the incident. 
 
 9. Plan and write a wholly original story with a complicated 
 plot and at least four necessary characters. Motivize with care. 
 Use the element of suspense. 
 
CHAPTER VIII 
 DESCRIPTION 
 
 Description is rarely used alone. As a means of 
 enriching, beautifying, and vitalizing narration, it is 
 commonly employed. Much narration is but a series 
 of suggestive and informal descriptions. Narration 
 without any description is nothing better than dull and 
 dry chronicle. 
 
 The chief purpose of description is to arouse interest. 
 Only in a secondary sense is interest of intellectual 
 value; it is primarily a matter of the heart. Conse- 
 quently the best way to arouse interest in a reader or 
 listener is to awaken sympathy between the speaker or 
 writer and those whom he addresses by stirring the 
 emotions and stimulating the imagination. Trench 
 calls description " passion and imagination embodying 
 themselves in language." Description accomplishes 
 its purpose of arousing interest, by producing, or re- 
 producing, such images, impressions, and emotions as 
 tend to bring the writer or speaker and the reader 
 or listener into sympathetic relations, giving them a 
 common interest. 
 
 We define description broadly and comprehensively 
 to avoid the misleading results which follow when 
 undue emphasis is put upon that kind of description 
 which is suggested by pictures at the expense of ig- 
 
 275 
 
276 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 norance of other and equally important kinds. De- 
 scription is that form of discourse by means of which 
 a writer or speaker seeks to produce the same effects 
 upon the senses and emotions of others, which ob- 
 servation, experience, and the use of the imagination 
 have produced upon him, 
 
 The fact that most of us use our eyesight more than 
 any other sense is not sufficient reason for ignoring 
 the other senses. The impressions we retain of places 
 and events are complex results of what we have seen, 
 heard, felt, smelled, and, sometimes, tasted, together 
 with the reaction produced in us by these various 
 senses as modified by our mood at the time of receiving 
 the sensations. Any one of the senses may predom- 
 inate over the others in producing an impression 
 and some may have no influence whatever, but, in 
 general, we must think of the five senses, and our feel- 
 ings or mood, as the source of our impressions, and 
 look upon description as an attempt to transfer our 
 impressions to others sufficiently imaginative and 
 emotional to react under such a stimulus. 
 
 With the definition of description in mind, study the 
 following : 
 
 "Winter in New York. Low leaden clouds beyond 
 which the eye cannot trace the disk of the sun. Whirl- 
 ing, twisting, rebounding winds that sting the cheek 
 as freezing water bites the hand. The mud of the 
 streets solidified as rock. Roofs, verandas, fences, door- 
 steps; the poles of the telegraph, the posts of gas light 
 and of electric light — all ice-cased, snow-thatched. 
 
DESCRIPTION 277 
 
 Along the city's great avenue by night palaces buried 
 deep in warmth with frosted window-panes; through 
 curtains of damask and of lace dim moonlight radiance 
 glimmers. Waiting chauffeurs with flapping arms 
 buried deep in their furs like Esquimaux. The wide 
 river alongside the city with rhythmic ebb and flow 
 between the sweet tide of the mountains and the salt 
 tide of the sea now quieted under the rigor of the frost, 
 each bank far out toward midstream covered with the 
 fixed ermine and silver of the frost. In the narrow 
 mid-channel the grinding and crushing of loosened 
 blocks of ice by the careful ferry-boats as they barely 
 force their way to the gray-bearded piers. Out on the 
 ocean great mystical steamers coming into port as if 
 bringing tidings of the Ice Age of the earth : their masts 
 and decks spectral with the death of the North, their 
 ice-plated prows tossing aside waters as white as breast 
 feathers of Arctic swans. In the Park under a sky 
 where the shark-rimmed moon rides full and thick 
 stars glisten in diamond ether, all nature snow-hung; 
 nights as still, brilliant, dead, as those of Lapland 
 wastes. Winter in New York." 
 
 — The Heroine in Bronze (The Macmillan Company) : 
 
 James Lane Allen 
 
 (Note that in this excellent description by a master 
 writer, in many cases, you must supply the verbs your- 
 self. This is quite common in poetry and in such prose- 
 poetry as this. The writer simply enumerates what 
 he sees, hears, feels, and imagines. And yet there is 
 perfect order in his enumeration.) 
 
278 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 What parts of the description come from observa- 
 tion, from experience, from the imagination? 
 
 Notice the paragraph structure. 
 
 Point out what parts of the description are furnished 
 by the different senses. 
 
 The paragraph following the one quoted begins, 
 11 Bleaker, darker than the winter in the city, was the 
 winter within me." How far and in what way does 
 the paragraph on " Winter in New York" reveal the 
 " bleaker, darker winter" mood of the author? 
 
 How far does the author, through his description, 
 reproduce in you the mood and the sensations which 
 led him to write such a description? 
 
 The Material of Description. The raw material of 
 description is as broad as the world and as complex as 
 life. The most effective description, however, is always 
 as condensed as possible, using only concrete and vivid 
 material. The day of very long descriptions of single 
 objects and events has passed. Even Sir Walter Scott's 
 excellent stories are too much retarded in action by 
 descriptions so long that, as Robert Louis Stevenson 
 says, they fail in their purpose because the reader can- 
 not keep in mind all the particulars at the same time. 
 L. Lemaitre says: "All description which exceeds 
 fifteen lines ceases to be clearly perceptible, even to 
 the most vigorous intelligence; beyond that the reader 
 has only a series of partial pictures of which the suc- 
 cession is fatiguing and boresome. In short, the whole 
 picture, or impression, must be received at once. Hence 
 only concrete and vitally essential material should be 
 
DESCRIPTION 279 
 
 used and only enough to reproduce or suggest the 
 single definite impression desired. " 
 
 Local Point of View in Description. When describing 
 something seen, or heard, the point of view is the place 
 from which it is seen or heard. It should not be 
 changed unnecessarily, and then the fact should be 
 mentioned. Nothing should be described as seen or 
 heard which is invisible or inaudible from the point of 
 view, or otherwise impossible from it. 
 
 Mental and Emotional Points of View. Since one's 
 mental and emotional attitudes influence the treatment 
 of a subject as much as the physical point of view, they 
 deserve at least as much attention; since they are 
 harder to understand and to control, they require more 
 attention. 
 
 The mental point of view is determined by the com- 
 pleteness of one's knowledge of the object described. 
 Incomplete information can, at best, result in nothing 
 better than vague and general description; while com- 
 plete knowledge enables the writer to select his material 
 with care and to use only such details as are vital and 
 in harmony with his artistic purpose. When one tries 
 to describe what he sees from a great distance in semi- 
 darkness, or from a rapidly moving train, he is con- 
 trolled by an uncertain or a moving point of view, 
 physically, and by a mental point of view characterized 
 by incomplete knowledge; e.g.: 
 
 " Beyond the meadows, ravines sank darkly into 
 abysses. Beyond the ravines blue, misty mountains, 
 soared upward to snow peaks lost in the clouds." 
 
280 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 Note that here the mental point of view is affected 
 by the distance, the mist, the clouds; but the descrip- 
 tion is in keeping. 
 
 In describing a boat at a great distance, a scene 
 vaguely remembered, a night scene in a forest, any 
 scene where details are impossible, one must be careful 
 to avoid the error of violating the mental point of view. 
 It is generally safer, in such cases, to resort to sugges- 
 tive description. 
 
 Where one's knowledge is full he must avoid the 
 tendency to use too many details; he must evaluate 
 and select with great care. 
 
 The emotional point of view is determined by one's 
 feelings or his mood: his love or hatred, his hope or 
 despair, his fear or pleasurable anticipations, his joy 
 or sorrow, his interest or indifference — in a word, his 
 dominant emotional attitude. It is because people 
 differ so much in their emotional reactions from things 
 that they view them so differently. This gives the 
 variety which is the spice of life. Macbeth's attitude 
 toward life was that of a coward controlled by fear and 
 a guilty conscience. At the banquet he was sure he 
 saw the ghost of Banquo, where others saw only an 
 empty stool. Lady Macbeth said, "This is the very 
 painting of your fear." Again, in the sleep-walking 
 scene, Lady Macbeth is represented as so dominated by 
 remorse that, even in her sleep, it controlled her. Her 
 mental and emotional point of view unite in making her 
 say : " Here's the smell of blood still : all the perfumes of 
 Arabia will not sweeten this little hand. Oh! Oh! Oh!" 
 
DESCRIPTION 281 
 
 Poe's stories illustrate the importance of the emo- 
 tional point of view, as in the following paragraph from 
 The Fall of the House of Usher: "To an anamolous 
 species of terror I found him a bounden slave. 'I shall 
 perish/ said he, 'I must perish in this deplorable folly. 
 Thus, thus, and not otherwise, shall I be lost. I dread 
 the events of the future, not in themselves, but in their 
 results. I shudder at the thought of any, even the 
 most trivial, incident, which may operate upon this in- 
 tolerable agitation of soul. I have, indeed, no abhor- 
 rence of danger, except in its absolute effect — in terror. 
 In this unnerved, in this pitiable condition, I feel that 
 the period will sooner or later arrive when I must aban- 
 don life and reason together, in some struggle with the 
 grim phantasm — Fear.' " 
 
 In contrast with the foregoing, see how James Lane 
 Allen, in The Heroine in Bronze, makes his heroine 
 speak from the strong emotional point of view of love, 
 and hope, and interest: "Here (in this book) is the 
 touch upon life, the handling of life, the ideals of life, 
 that face toward immortality. . . . But though this 
 book is not for me, it is the call of a great silver trumpet 
 to me from the heights. Your faith in me turns my 
 face upward. It must be true that love sees best, 
 truest, most; it is not blind. . . . My faith in you now 
 is such that I expect you to do more than succeed; 
 you will wrest victory out of failure, and that is the 
 noblest success a man can win." 
 
 The football enthusiasts, seated side by side, and 
 hence having the same physical point of view of a 
 
282 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 game, may also have an equal knowledge of the game, 
 giving them the same mental point of view. But one 
 is a Princeton man and the other a Yale man and the 
 Orange and Black is winning. The emotional point of 
 view of the two men will be so different that the re- 
 ports the two might write would scarcely be recognized 
 as descriptions of the same game. 
 
 The personality of the writer, expressed in the 
 emotional point of view, is the most important de- 
 termining factor in description. (Read again James 
 Lane Allen's description of Winter in New York, page 3.) 
 
 The First General Impression. The first general 
 impression of color, shape, size is the fundamental con- 
 ception from which a description is developed. It may 
 be looked upon as a topographical view of anything as 
 a whole. It is generally stated early in the paragraph, 
 as the topic sentence, and serves as a guide in select- 
 ing material and in securing unity. It is of great 
 importance. 
 
 When describing anything from an emotional point 
 of view and when the description is to be brief the first 
 general impression is reserved for the end of the 
 paragraph and used as a climax. 
 
 In the following description of the effects of a June 
 storm, from Thomas Hardy's Return of the Native, 
 the first general impression, used as the topic sentence, 
 is italicized: 
 
 "At length Clym reached the margin of a fir 
 and beech plantation which had been inclosed 
 from heathland in the year of his birth. Here 
 
DESCRIPTION 283 
 
 the trees, laden heavily with their new and humid 
 leaves, were now suffering more damage than dur- 
 ing the highest winds of winter, when the boughs 
 are specially disencumbered to do battle with 
 the storm. The wet young beeches are under- 
 going amputations, bruises, cripplings, and 
 harsh lacerations, from which the wasting sap 
 would bleed for many a day to come, and which 
 would leave scars visible till the day of their 
 burning. Each stem was wrenched at the root, 
 where it moved like a bone in its socket, and at 
 every onset of the gale convulsive sounds came 
 from the branches, as if pain were felt. In a 
 neighboring brake a finch was trying to sing; 
 but the wind blew under his feathers till they 
 stood on end, twisted round his little ail, and 
 made him give up his song." 
 
 In the following description of Saul, from Browning's 
 Saul, note how the mentioning of the first general 
 impression is kept in abeyance until the end: 
 
 u 'Till lo, thou art grown a monarch; a people is thine; 
 And all gifts, which the world offers singly, on one head combine! 
 On one head, all the beauty and strength, love and rage (like the 
 
 throe 
 That, a-work in the rock, helps its labour and lets the gold go), 
 High ambition and deeds which surpass it, fame crowning them, — 
 
 all 
 Brought to blaze on the head of one creature — King Saul!" 
 
 The first general impression, however, is only a be- 
 ginning, a suggestion of what may be when details are 
 added. The real work of describing is the selecting 
 and arranging of the details so as to intensify and 
 illuminate the first general impression. Only details. 
 
284 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 that are significant, striking, and characteristic of the 
 thing described should be selected. Too many details 
 weaken the effect of description. When a few signifi- 
 cant details are so grouped and blended as to show 
 relative values and produce one definite effect, the 
 best results are obtained. 
 
 The analogy of the photographer taking pictures is 
 here helpful. Snapshot pictures are usually wholly 
 lacking in artistic effect because they are snapshots. 
 The inexperienced amateur takes no pains to secure 
 " composition' ' in his pictures; what he gets is only 
 a mass of details: flat, lifeless, not a picture at all. 
 Careless writers of description get no better results. 
 They do riot describe. 
 
 When a photographer carefully selects his point of 
 view and studies his subject, he can give prominence 
 to certain details and bring others into properly sub- 
 ordinated relations with them, and so secure artistic 
 effects; " composition," not a mere photograph, but a 
 picture. In like manner the selection of the best pos- 
 sible point of view in writing description aids mate- 
 rially in choosing and in arranging the details into an 
 artistic composition-picture, each detail revealing its 
 relative importance. Minor details often need no more 
 than a slight allusion or the use of a single adjective. 
 
 The method of the painter is even more suggestive 
 than that of the photographer as to the way to select 
 suitable details to appeal to the eye and to stir the 
 emotions. The artist first decides what details he can 
 employ effectively, which are of major and which of 
 
DESCRIPTION 285 
 
 minor importance, and then how best to place them 
 so that their relative values Vill be readily seen. His 
 emotional point of view will largely determine how he 
 estimates the value of the details ; his personality may 
 make him consider some things of major importance 
 which another would count of minor value. 
 
 Take, for instance, Munkacsy's familiar painting, 
 Milton Dictating Paradise Lost. Milton, being the 
 chief character, is given a prominent position in the 
 foreground, in what is technically known as the 
 " point of sight," while all the other details are so 
 grouped that the beholder sees at once their subordina- 
 tion to the central figure and their relative importance. 
 The fact that the daughters are looking toward Milton, 
 seated at the table, directs the eye of the beholder to 
 the same central figure. The first general impression 
 that one gets of this picture is of a man sitting at a 
 table; closer examination reveals, first the major de- 
 tails — the daughters — and then the minor details — the 
 furniture and general appearance of the room. 
 
 In describing a country house which one sees as he 
 passes along a highway, for instance, the writer gets the 
 first general impression when he sees the house from the 
 distance. He notices its color — white with green shut- 
 ters; its general shape, square; and the trees surround- 
 ing it. This first general impression is pleasing, and in- 
 vites a more careful scrutiny when approached. 
 
 Upon closer examination, when the writer has paused 
 directly in front of the house, the details come into 
 prominence. The house itself is still the point of sight, 
 
286 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 the most important detail, but other details are now 
 noticed which are so related to the chief one that the 
 whole view assumes a new and greater interest. The 
 color is still seen to be white, but it is not a good white. 
 It is weather worn. The paint is peeling off. The shut- 
 ters are of a soiled greenish color, and some are hanging 
 by one hinge. Others have fallen to the ground. The 
 shape of the house is square, but now two bay windows 
 are noticed and a small one-story wing is perceived. 
 The character of the porch reveals the style of archi- 
 tecture to be of a modified colonial type. The win- 
 dows, upon careful examination, are seen to be of small 
 oblong panes of glass, some broken, and others covered 
 with cobwebs. The trees are now recognized as maples 
 and pines in front of the house, with a few cherry trees 
 at one side. The lawn is unkempt, the flower beds are 
 full of weeds, while the walks are partly grown over 
 with grass. The fences are leaning and the gate is 
 missing. On one of the gate posts is a weather- 
 beaten sign bearing the scarcely perceptible words 
 "For Sale." 
 
 Such are the details which one would observe when 
 stopping and carefully examining the above-mentioned 
 country house. But while a careless writer might try 
 to make such a mere catalogue of details pass as a de- 
 scription, it is not a description. It is only an inven- 
 tory, furnishing raw material. 
 
 A description made of the above details would natu- 
 rally be used to embellish a narrative of a country 
 drive, as follows: 
 
DESCRIPTION 287 
 
 "As we drove leisurely along a little used and some- 
 what rutty road, our attention was attracted by a large, 
 white house, with green shutters, partly shut off from 
 view by trees. As we came in front we paused for a 
 more careful look, for to tell the truth we were house- 
 hunting. And this is what we saw: A relic of former 
 splendor. The house was white, or had been years 
 before, but now should be called whitish; the shutters 
 had doubtless been green, but at close range they were 
 seen to be only grayish-black, with a mere suggestion 
 of fading green. This house must have been an im- 
 posing structure half a century ago. An architect, and 
 no mere carpenter, must have planned it, with its fair 
 proportions, its attractive bay windows, colonial porch, 
 and that wing, on the left, in perfect harmony with the 
 main building. But time and the elements have, evi- 
 dently, been left in absolute control. And they have 
 done their work. The porch roof has sagged at least a 
 foot at the right end; the intermittent battering of the 
 winds, aided perhaps by a crumbling foundation, has 
 thrown the main building out of plumb ; many window- 
 panes are gone, and others are darkened by an accumu- 
 lation of cobwebs. The once stately trees are dying 
 for want of care, and broken limbs disfigure them. The 
 unkempt lawn, the flower beds now overgrown with 
 weeds, and even the paths upon which the grass and 
 weeds are encroaching, unite to tell the story of the 
 desolation which follows in the train of man's neglect. 
 The leaning fences, and the absence of the front gate, 
 prejudice one against this place in its present condition. 
 
288 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 The " For Sale " sign is so dilapidated that it not only 
 fails to incite to buying, but effectively warns against 
 such folly. A relic of bygone splendor may bring up 
 pictures of the past, but we were seeking a home for 
 present comfort. So we drove on, still house hunting." 
 The above description is fairly typical, and may 
 serve as an example of certain facts about description, 
 to be kept in mind. 
 
 1. There is a natural order in which to deal with 
 details. The first is color, then comes shape or form, 
 and then, as one goes on further with his observation 
 and analysis, individual details stand out with a new 
 prominence and yet are seen in relation to the whole 
 of which they are but minor parts. 
 
 2. The way to give the right value to minor details 
 is to place them in the less emphatic parts of the para- 
 graph and to use fewer words in describing them. The 
 less important of the minor details are best given their 
 relative values by single modifying words, such as 
 " unkempt" and "dilapidated," in the above detailed 
 description. 
 
 3. Even a detailed description, like the one given 
 above, generally makes an appeal to the emotions as 
 well as to the senses, and so either creates, or accen- 
 tuates, an emotional point of view, which in turn affects 
 the description and tends to make it impressionistic in 
 character. The very atmosphere of desolation and 
 decay in the "relic of former splendor," unconsciously 
 moves the beholder and colors his description ac- 
 cordingly. 
 
DESCRIPTION 289 
 
 (Read some work abounding in good description and take note 
 of the author's handling of details both as to selection and grouping 
 according to relative value and importance in the description. 
 Then practice constantly in your own writing until you can deal 
 with the matter of details in a satisfactory manner. Remember 
 that you are to enable another to perceive and feel what you do; 
 emphasize these things and not the intellectual appeal in description.) 
 
 Exact and Artistic Description. There are two gen- 
 eral classes of description : exact and artistic. Exact or 
 technical description is so closely akin to exposition that 
 it is not necessary to examine it here. It is such as is 
 used in guidebooks designed to give information as to 
 what may be seen, rather than to call up images in the 
 mind of the reader. 
 
 It is important to understand such description in 
 order to avoid it, and to cease confusing it with real, 
 artistic description. 
 
 Artistic or Literary Description. The aim of artistic 
 or literary description is to interest and to please, and 
 only incidentally to give information. In selecting 
 material for artistic description one must seek only that 
 which is sufficiently characteristic to insure its adding 
 interest to the whole description. The art comes in in 
 the grouping of the interesting material so as to please 
 the reader. To do this requires skill and much practice. 
 Avoid dull inventories of all sorts of details; compose 
 your picture by picturesque arrangement. 
 
 Kinds of Literary Description. For the sake of clear- 
 ness, literary description is further analyzed and sub- 
 divided into three kinds: detailed, impressionistic, and 
 suggestive or informal. 
 
290 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 Detailed Description. Detailed description, as its 
 name suggests, is complete, using many details. One 
 tells all he sees of a room and its furnishings, a street 
 scene, a landscape. His purpose is more like that of 
 the photographer than the artist. And the result is in 
 keeping with the purpose. The descriptions on pages 
 282 and 287 are of this class. Consult them, and the 
 comments about them, for further information about 
 detailed description. Review also what was said about 
 the first general impression and about major and minor 
 details. 
 
 Note also the following detailed description: 
 
 "The inside of the hut, as it now presented itself, was 
 cozy and alluring, and the scarlet handful of fire, in 
 addition to the candle, reflecting its own genial color 
 upon whatever it could reach, flung associations of en- 
 joyment even over utensils and tools. In the corner 
 stood the sheep-crook, and along a shelf at one side 
 were ranged bottles and cannisters of the simple prepa- 
 rations pertaining to ovine surgery and physic: spirits 
 of wine, turpentine, tar, magnesia, ginger, and castor 
 oil being the chief. On a triangular shelf across the 
 corner stood bread, bacon, cheese, and a cup of ale or 
 cider, which was supplied from a flagon underneath. 
 Beside the provisions lay the flute, whose notes had 
 lately been called forth by the lonely watcher to beguile 
 a tedious hour. The house was ventilated by two round 
 holes, like the lights of a cabin, with two slides. " 
 
 —Far from the Madding Crowd: Thomas Hardy 
 
 Comment upon the localizing of details. 
 
DESCRIPTION 291 
 
 Can you visualize the scene? 
 
 "It was, indeed, some time before Lovell 
 could, through the thick atmosphere, perceive 
 in what sort of den his friend had constructed 
 his retreat. It was a lofty room of middling 
 size, obscurely lighted by high, narrow, latticed 
 windows. One end was entirely occupied 
 by bookshelves, greatly too limited in space for 
 the number of volumes placed upon them, 
 which were, therefore, drawn up in ranks of 
 two or three files deep, while numberless 
 others littered the floor and tables, amid a 
 chaos of maps, engravings, scraps of parch- 
 ment, bundles of papers, pieces of old armor, 
 swords, dirks, helmets, and Highland tar- 
 gets. Behind Mr. Oldbuck's seat (which 
 was an ancient leather-covered easy-chair, 
 worn smooth by constant use) was a large 
 oaken cabinet, decorated at each corner with 
 Dutch cherubs, having their little duck-wings 
 displayed and great jolter-headed visages 
 placed between them. The top of this cabinet 
 was covered with busts and Roman lamps 
 and paterse, intermingled with one or two 
 bronze figures. The walls of the apartment 
 were partly clothed with grim old tapestry, 
 representing the memorable story of Sir 
 Gawaine's wedding, in which full justice was 
 done to the ugliness of the Lothely Lady; al- 
 though, to judge from his own looks, the 
 gentle knight had less reason to be disgusted 
 with the match on account of disparity of out- 
 ward favor than the romancer has given us to 
 understand. The rest of the room was 
 
292 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 panelled or wainscotted with black oak,against 
 which hung two or three portraits in armor, 
 being characters in Scottish history, favorites 
 of Mr. Oldbuck, and as many in tie-wigs and 
 laced coats, staring representatives of his .own 
 ancestors. A large old-fashioned oak table 
 was covered with a profusion of papers, parch- 
 ments, books, and nondescript trinkets and 
 gewgaws, which seemed to have little to 
 recommend them besides rust and the an- 
 tiquity which it indicates. In the midst of 
 this wreck of ancient books and utensils, 
 with a gravity equal to Marius among the ruins 
 of Carthage, sat a large black cat, which to a 
 superstitious eye might have represented 
 the genius loci, the tutelar demon of the apart- 
 ment. The floor, as well as the table and 
 chairs, was overflowed by the same mare 
 magnum of miscellaneous trumpery, where 
 it would have been as impossible to find any 
 individual article wanted as to put it to any 
 use when disco vered." 
 
 — The Antiquary: Sir Walter Scott 
 
 Analyze the description. 
 
 Point out the first general impression, the major 
 and the minor details. 
 
 Impressionistic Description. Impressionistic de- 
 scription seeks to produce, with as few words as pos- 
 sible, some one definite emotional effect. This is ac- 
 complished by selecting a few details which may be 
 classed as causes of the desired effect and by so handling 
 them as to direct the attention of the reader emphatic- 
 ally and repeatedly toward that effect. Impressionis- 
 
DESCRIPTION 293 
 
 tic description appeals far more to the feelings than 
 to the senses. It may reach the feelings through the 
 senses. It may be a by-product of detailed descrip- 
 tion, as in the case of the " Relic of Bygone Splendor" 
 and " Winter in New York." It may even appear 
 along with a piece of narrative where a series of effects 
 of some one cause are strikingly given, as in the first 
 stanza of Keats' Eve of St. Agnes, which we give again: 
 
 "St. Agnes' eve — Ah, bitter chill it was! 
 
 The owl, for all his feathers, was a-cold; 
 The hare limp'd trembling through the frozen grass, 
 
 And silent was the flock in woolly fold: 
 . Numb were the Beadsman's fingers, while he told 
 His rosary, and while his frosted breath, 
 
 Like pious incense from a censer old, 
 Seem'd taking flight for heaven, without a death, 
 Past the sweet Virgin's picture, while his prayer he saith." 
 
 Impressionistic description is the most effective 
 means of arousing definite and strong emotion. Take 
 Keats' La Belle Dame sans Merci, for instance. Note 
 how he pictures in a very few words the utmost desola- 
 tion and despair. 
 
 "Ah, what can ail thee, wretched wight, 
 Alone and palely loitering; 
 The sedge is withered from the lake, 
 And no birds sing. 
 
 "Ah, what can ail thee, wretched wight, 
 So haggard and so woe-begone? 
 The squirrel's granary is full, 
 And the harvest's done. 
 
 "I see a lily on thy brow, 
 
 With anguish moist and fever dew; 
 And on thy cheek a fading rose 
 Fast withereth, too." 
 
294 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 In a similar way Poe describes the ruins of the 
 Coliseum by reiterating a few details so vividly as to 
 produce one definite and striking effect — of ruin, and 
 our consequent harmonious emotions. We quote the 
 fourth stanza : 
 
 "But stay! these walls — these ivy-clad arcades — 
 These mouldering plinths — these sad and blackened shafts — 
 These vague entablatures — this crumbling frieze — 
 These shattered cornices — this — wreck — this ruin — 
 These stones — alas! these gray stones — are they all — 
 All of the famed and the colossal left 
 By the corrosive hours to Fate and me?" 
 
 This kind of description is the only effective means 
 of creating the atmosphere appropriate for the motif 
 of a story, play, or poem. So Shakespeare strikes the 
 keynote of Macbeth by having the play open with the 
 weird sisters crooning their doggerel, thereby indicating 
 that the play is to deal with the powers of the nether 
 world. Poe was a master of this kind of description, 
 using it in most of his stories and in many of his poems. 
 In The Raven we find a capital illustration of his 
 ability to create the atmosphere without which one 
 would fail to feel the alluring charm of the poem. 
 Notice how the midnight hour, his weariness, the time 
 of the year, the dying embers, and the rustling of the 
 silken curtains, all combined to itensify the domi- 
 nant idea of the poem expressed in the raven's croak, 
 " Nevermore." 
 "Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered, weak and weary, 
 
 Ah, distinctly I remember, it was in the bleak December; 
 And each separate dying ember wrought its ghost upon the floor." 
 
DESCRIPTION 295 
 
 In a similar way Poe created the atmosphere of the 
 poem Ulalume in the first stanza: 
 
 "The skies they were ashen and sober; 
 
 The leaves they were crisped and sere — 
 
 The leaves they were withering and sere; 
 It was night in the lonesome October 
 
 Of my most immemorial year; 
 It was hard by the dim lake of Auber, 
 
 In the misty mid region of Weir — 
 It was down by the dank tarn of Auber, 
 
 In the ghoul-haunted woodland of Weir." 
 
 We have illustrated from poetry because of the 
 brevity of the passages, but the same kind of descrip- 
 tion is as commonly used in the best prose stories of the 
 day. Consult Poe's Fall of the House of Usher. Find 
 other examples for yourself for further practice. 
 
 Impressionistic description is analogous to impres- 
 sionistic painting in which some one major detail gives 
 the whole point of the picture at a single glance, while' 
 the few other details are so barely sketched as to be 
 scarcely perceptible. Millet's Angelas is an example. 
 The two figures are placed prominently in the fore- 
 ground; the field is rudely sketched. The only other 
 detail of note is the belfry in the background, whence, 
 we infer, the peasants have heard the call to prayer 
 and have paused to respond. The attitude of the two 
 and the distant belfry tell the whole story and create 
 a feeling of devotion in the beholder. 
 
 Should one attempt to describe the same scene 
 impressionistically he would follow a method closely 
 analogous to that of the painter. With the one definite 
 
296 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 aim of arousing feelings of devotion, he would describe 
 the peasants, pausing from their work and bowing 
 reverently in prayer, tell of the bell tilted from the 
 perpendicular to indicate its ringing, and only suggest 
 the few remaining details. By a few appropriate and 
 striking words the desired emotional effect might be 
 even more emphasized. 
 
 Suggestive or Informal Description. Closely allied to 
 impressionistic description, and yet clearly differen- 
 tiated from it, is the suggestive or informal type. It 
 resembles the impressionistic kind in being brief and 
 in having a definite aim; it differs in that it suggests, by 
 means of a very few details, an image, or sensation, or 
 emotion, to be elaborated by the imagination of the 
 reader. The success or failure of this kind of descrip- 
 tion depends almost entirely upon the activity of the 
 reader's imagination. For all who have enough imag- 
 ination to take a suggestion, for all who can "read 
 between the lines/ ' and for all who resent the use of 
 long detailed descriptions, this suggestive or informal 
 kind comes as a most welcome relief and genuine 
 satisfaction. It possesses the further advantage of 
 fostering close sympathetic relations between the 
 writer and the reader who is always pleased that a 
 writer trusts him to fill in his own details. The use of 
 picturesque words, which suggest more than they tell, 
 increases the effectiveness of such description. A 
 single word of large connotation often suffices. 
 
 This kind of description is also called "informal" 
 because it is frequently used in narration and in 
 
DESCRIPTION -297 
 
 exposition where the descriptive purpose is only inci- 
 dental to that of telling a story or of explaining some- 
 thing. Inasmuch as this kind of description enables 
 one to bring into his writing all necessary descriptive 
 elements without pausing or turning aside for formal 
 description which calls attention to itself by its very 
 formality, its value is most evident. 
 
 In studying the following examples of suggestive and 
 informal description, note how the writers have suc- 
 ceeded in making us see and feel, without pausing in 
 this narrative, what they have experienced. For the 
 sake of indicating the words, which suggest descriptive 
 elements, they are italicized. 
 
 The first is from Kipling's The Undertaker '« House: 
 
 "Neither skj^js he nor is restive, 
 But a hideously suggestive 
 
 Trot, professional and placid, he affects; 
 And the cadence of his hoof-beats — 
 To my mind, this grim reproof beats: — 
 'Mind your pace, my friend, I'm coming. 
 Who's the next?'" 
 
 This is from Kipling's Pagett, M.P. : 
 
 "April began with the punkah, coolies, and prickly-heat, — 
 Pagett was dear to mosquitos, sandflies found him a treat. 
 He grew speckled and lumpy — hammered, I grieve to say, 
 Aryan brothers who fanned him, in an illiberal way." 
 
 The next two quotations are from Browning's Saul: 
 
 "At the first I saw naught but the blackness; but soon I descried 
 A something more black than the blackness — the vast, the upright 
 Main prop which sustains the pavilion: and slow into sight 
 Grew sl figure against it, gigantic and blackest of all. 
 Then a sunbeam, that burst thro' the tent-roof, showed Saul." 
 
298" EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 "Anon at the dawn, all that trouble had withered from earth — 
 Not so much, but I saw it die out in the day's tender birth; 
 In the gathered intensity brought to the gray of the hills; 
 In the shuddering forests' held breath; in the sudden wind thrills; 
 In the startled wild beasts that bore off, each with eye sidling still 
 Tho' averted with wonder and dread; in the birds stiff and chill 
 That rose heavily, as I approached them, made stupid with awe: 
 E'en the serpent that slid away silent, — he felt the new law. 
 The same stared in the white humid faces upturned by the flowers; 
 The same worked in the heart of the cedar and moved the vine- 
 bowers: 
 And the little brooks witnessing murmured, persistent and low, 
 With their obstinate, all but hushed voices — 'E'en so, it is so." 
 
 "Two frowning boys sat in their tennis flan- 
 nels beneath the glare of lamp and gas. Their 
 leather belts were loosened, their soft pink shirts 
 unbuttoned at the collar. They were listening 
 with gloomy voracity to the instruction of a 
 third. They sat at a table bared of its cus- 
 tomary sporting ornaments, and from time 
 to time they questioned, sucked their pencils, 
 and scrawled vigorous, laconic notes. Their 
 necks and faces shone with the bloom of out- 
 of-doors. Studious concentration was evi- 
 dently a painful novelty to their features. 
 Drops of perspiration came one by one from 
 their matted hair, and their hands dampened 
 the paper upon which they wrote. The win- 
 dows stood open wide to the May darkness, but 
 nothing came in save heat and insects; for 
 spring, being behind time, was making up 
 with a sultry burst at the end, as a delayed 
 train makes the last few miles high above 
 schedule speed. Thus it had been since eight 
 o'clock. Eleven was daintily striking now. 
 Its diminutive sonority might have belonged 
 
DESCRIPTION 299 
 
 to some church bell far distant across the 
 Cambridge silence; but it was on a shelf in 
 the room, — a timepiece of Gallic design, repre- 
 senting Mephistopheles, who caressed the world 
 in his lap. And as the little strokes boomed, 
 eight — nine — ten — eleven, the voice of the 
 instructor steadily continued " : 
 — Philosophy Four (The Macmillan Company) : Owen Wister 
 
 The simple narrative just quoted tells where the two 
 boys were and what they were doing; but it does 
 much more. Without perceptibly halting the narrative 
 the author informally describes the boys, their sur- 
 roundings and their mood. 
 
 Some readers, in their hast 3 to reach the end of a 
 story, skip the long formal descriptions; but none can 
 skip informal description which is intricately woven 
 into the meshes of other forms of composition. In- 
 formal description is also more natural than the formal 
 kind. In conversation we narrate and describe, or 
 explain and describe, at the same time. Three fourths 
 of all description now written is informal. Do not be 
 discouraged, then, if, upon looking through many 
 pages for isolated passages of description, you find but 
 few. Since the best writers have come to use more 
 informal description than formal, we cannot go wrong 
 if we follow their example. Nor do we lose in effective- 
 ness. Informal description does describe. Use it when 
 it is sufficient; in the few cases when it seems to fall 
 short, you may always resort to the more detailed kind. 
 
 In the following dialogue between Mr. Murdstone, 
 
300 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 David, and Miss Murdstone note how much description 
 of an informal nature is evident. 
 
 "My mother's lips moved, as if she an- 
 swered, 'Yes, my dear Edward,' but she said 
 nothing aloud. 
 
 "'I was sorry, David, I remarked,' said Mr. 
 Murdstone, turning his head and his eyes 
 stiffly toward me, 'to observe that you are of 
 a sullen disposition. This is not a character 
 that I can suffer to develop beneath my eyes 
 without an effort at improvement. You must 
 endeavor, sir, to change it. We must en- 
 deavor to change it for you.' 
 
 " ' I beg your pardon, sir , ' I faltered. 1 1 have 
 never meant to be sullen since I came back.' 
 
 " i Don't take refuge in a he, sir ! ' he returned 
 so fiercely that I saw my mother involuntarily 
 put out her hand as if to interpose between us. 
 'You have withdrawn yourself in your sullen- 
 ness to your own room. You have kept your 
 own room when you ought to have been here. 
 You now know, once for all, that I require you 
 to be here and not there. Further, that I re- 
 quire you to bring obedience here. You know 
 me, David. I will have it done.' 
 
 "Miss Murdstone gave a hoarse chuckle." 
 
 — David Copper field: Charles Dickens 
 
 Thomas Hardy's description of the execution of Tess 
 of the D'Urbervilles is wholly devoid of details, such as 
 a yellow journalist would have reveled in. After re- 
 lating how Angel Clare and Tess's sister approached 
 the prison, half hidden by the yews and the oaks, and 
 
DESCRIPTION 301 
 
 then watched the building, Mr. Hardy tells the whole 
 of the end of the story in the following short paragraph. 
 But how full of unspeakable suggestion! 
 
 "Upon the cornice of the tower a small staff was 
 fixed. Their eyes were riveted upon it. A few minutes 
 after the hour had struck something moved slowly up 
 the staff, and extended itself upon the breeze. It was a 
 black flag." Then the following few words reveal the 
 effect: "The two speechless gazers bent themselves 
 down to the earth, as if in prayer, and remained thus a 
 long time, absolutely mitionless; the flag continued to 
 wave silently. As soon as they had strength they arose, 
 joined hands again, and went on." 
 
 Mr. Hardy's masterful touch is evident; suggestive 
 description full of connotation. 
 
 What to Describe. What shall we describe? The 
 answer will depend upon our purpose in writing, our 
 mental and emotional points of view, and upon the 
 amount of available material. Furthermore, it must 
 be remembered that no description should be used for 
 its own sake, that it should never be used except when 
 it actually adds interest. One should ask himself how 
 much description can be used effectively, always taking 
 care to be economical rather than prodigal as to the 
 amount. 
 
 Having decided how much description to use, it is 
 still necessary to determine which kind will best serve 
 one's purpose: detailed, impressionistic, or suggestive 
 or informal. Generally speaking, inasmuch as it has 
 a tendency to attract attention to itself, detailed de- 
 
302 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 scription should be sparingly used. A safe rule to fol- 
 low is : Never describe in detail except when absolutely 
 necessary; describe impressionistically whenever the 
 aim is emotional or when the emotional point of view 
 is to be emphasized; and describe suggestively or in- 
 formally whenever the demand for brevity is great and 
 when the occasion seems suitable to leave much to the 
 imagination of the reader. 
 
 In actual practice you will soon gain such proficiency 
 that you can easily and simultaneously decide what to 
 describe, how much to describe, and what form to use. 
 
 For class practice, and for that only, it is sometimes 
 necessary to choose independent subjects, subjects not 
 related to a story or other form of discourse. Land- 
 scapes, buildings, domestic scenes, street scenes, games, 
 animals, and people in all sorts of activities, furnish 
 abundant material. In such cases of independent de- 
 scription the detailed kind will often assume more 
 importance, relative to the other kinds, than in the 
 common and most natural use of description as a means 
 of enriching narration where the nature of the plot or 
 of the characters will often furnish emotional points of 
 view demanding other material than mere details. 
 
 Unity in Description. The principle of unity demands 
 more attention in description than in any other form of 
 discourse. Since description must give one unified im- 
 pression, unity becomes its very basic principle. In 
 selecting details then, the writer must choose those, 
 and only those, which are essential for calling up the 
 desired image in the imagination of the reader, or the 
 
DESCRIPTION 303 
 
 desired emotion in the heart of the reader. The pur- 
 po3e of description being to produce the one definite 
 impression, and the law of unity being the obvious 
 means of attaining that aim, there is no excuse for the 
 one who violates the law. In fact, no careful writer 
 who knows the law and what his aim is, can violate it. 
 And, moreover, if he is careful concerning the point of 
 view as well as of the law of unity, he will have little 
 difficulty in selecting the characteristic and essential 
 details. 
 
 The Grouping of Details — Coherence. The arrange- 
 ment or grouping of the essential details which have 
 been selected, is determined, in the case of things seen, 
 by the natural order of observation from a definite 
 point of view. The First General Impression given by 
 the first hasty view of a scene is produced by the 
 major details only, and the greatest of these would be 
 the first seen and the first called up by the memory in 
 attempting to recall the scene. The major details are 
 characteristic, and hence essential. In description, they 
 must be placed early in the paragraph, and then the 
 other details may be grouped in positions of such im- 
 portance as will show their relation to each other, and 
 especially to the most significant of the major details. 
 We see the objects in a room, for instance, in groups, 
 and we see the most prominent and striking things 
 first. We describe in the same order. 
 
 Follow the order of observation and the graded order 
 of importance in grouping details in description, and 
 coherence will result. 
 
304 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 In impressionistic description the grouping is deter- 
 mined *by the emotional point of view which most fre- 
 quently leads one to place the most important details 
 last for climactic effect. 
 
 Grouping and Wording Important Details for Pro- 
 portion — Emphasis. As a picture without emphasis 
 is flat, so description without proper proportion and 
 emphasis is dull and meaningless. It neither secures 
 attention nor arouses interest. It is not description. 
 
 Since both coherence and emphasis, in description, 
 are closely related to the grouping of details, they are 
 closely related to each other. The writer of description 
 must plan for emphasis at the same time that he groups 
 his details for coherence, both to save time and to se- 
 cure the best effect. The most striking detail which 
 stands out in clear outline in the First General Impres- 
 sion demands emphasis in describing the scene, or 
 object, under consideration. Such a detail may be 
 striking because of its importance, or because of its 
 peculiarity or uniqueness. Either quality would 
 attract the attention of the observer. In describing 
 what he has observed, his problem is to make the same 
 detail as emphatic, because of its importance or 
 uniqueness, to the reader of the description as it is to 
 him. How shall he do it? 
 
 Methods of Securing Emphasis. Emphasis being a 
 matter of proportion and relative value, it may be 
 secured in several ways: 
 
 1. By Position. The emphatic positions in a para- 
 graph are always at the beginning and at the end. A 
 
DESCRIPTION 305 
 
 detail properly placed in either of those positions, or 
 in both, is thereby emphasized. In description, how- 
 ever, this is the least effective means and is rarely used. 
 
 2. By Position Relative to Subordinated Details. 
 Again think of the picture of Milton. One would 
 naturally describe it by placing Milton prominently in 
 the group, saying more about him and less of the other 
 characters, thus making him stand out as the central, 
 emphatic figure. 
 
 3. By the Number of Details Subordinated to the 
 Chief One. The greater the number of legitimately 
 selected details, properly subordinated to the leading one, 
 the greater will be the emphasis upon the leading one. 
 For instance, in describing Mark Antony delivering his 
 speech over the body of Caesar, the larger the multitude 
 standing around the rostrum, in varying degrees of 
 attention, the more would Antony himself be em- 
 phasized. The fact that such a multitude could keep 
 still enough to allow an orator to be heard at all, 
 subordinates every individual in the whole multitude 
 to him and his speech. 
 
 4. By Repetition. Emphasis by reiteration is more 
 effective whether it be by repeating the same word or 
 by repeating its meaning by synonyms. The gradually 
 accumulated force acquired by this method of emphasis 
 is irresistible and its emotional effect is very marked. 
 Read the following with care to discover the poet's 
 method of emphasis by reiteration : 
 
 "I wandered lonely as a cloud 
 
 That floats on high o'er vales and hills, 
 
306 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 When all at once I saw a crowd, 
 
 A host, of golden daffodils, 
 Beside the lake, beneath the trees, 
 Fluttering and dancing in the breeze. 
 
 "Continuous as the stars that shine 
 
 And twinkle on the milky way, 
 They stretched in never-ending line 
 
 Along the margin of the bay: 
 Ten thousand saw I at a glance 
 Tossing their heads in sprightly dance. 
 
 "The waves beside them danced; but they 
 Outdid the sparkling waves in glee: 
 A poet could not but be gay, 
 In such a jocund company: 
 I gazed — and gazed — but little thought 
 What wealth to me the show had brought: 
 
 "For, oft, when on my couch I lie 
 
 In vacant or in pensive mood, 
 They flash upon that inward eye 
 
 Which is the bliss of solitude: 
 And then my heart with pleasure fills, 
 And dances with the daffodils." 
 
 Wordsworth did not name this little poem, so we 
 may call it what we will. If we should seek to name 
 it according to its theme we might call it The Joy of 
 Remembering Beautiful Scenes. The poem might be 
 called meditative, but it is a remarkable bit of im- 
 pressionistic description accomplished by emphasizing, 
 by repetition-, the idea of the daffodils dancing in the 
 breeze, and ending by showing the permanent effect 
 upon his own soul when in solitude. Note how he 
 begins by emphasizing the number of the daffodils: 
 "a crowd, a host, of golden daffodils," "They stretched 
 
DESCRIPTION 307 
 
 in never-ending line," "Ten thousand saw I." But the 
 number is repeatedly emphasized, by striking words, 
 only to aid in emphasizing the joy and gladness of the 
 scene. Notice what the "golden daffodils" are doing: 
 "fluttering and dancing," "tossing their heads in 
 sprightly dance," "they outdid the sparkling waves 
 in glee," "such a jocund company." And then note 
 the climax of the emphasis when the poet says, in 
 conclusion : 
 
 "They flash upon that inward eye 
 Which is the bliss of solitude: 
 And then my heart with pleasure fills, 
 And dances with the daffodils." 
 
 The following little poem by the same writer shows 
 emphasis by repetition: 
 
 "My heart leaps up when I behold 
 A rainbow in the sky; 
 So was it when my life began; 
 So is it now I am a man; 
 So be it when I shall grow old, 
 Or let me die!" 
 
 Strong emphasis is also secured by repetition of a 
 single word with different connotations, throughout the 
 whole description. 
 
 "And Charlemagne appeared; — a Man of Iron! 
 His helmet was of iron, and his gloves 
 Of iron, and his breastplate and his greaves 
 And tassets were of iron, and his shield. 
 In his left hand he held an iron spear, 
 In his right hand his sword invincible. 
 The horse he rode on had the strength of iron, 
 And the color of iron. And all who went before him, 
 
308 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 Beside him and beneath him, his whole host, 
 Were armed with iron, and their hearts within them 
 Were stronger than the armor that they wore. 
 The fields and all the roads were filled with iron, 
 And points of iron glistened in the sun 
 And shed a terror through the city streets." 
 
 — LONGFELLOW 
 
 Here we have emphasis by the combination of two 
 methods: by position and by repetition. The topic 
 sentence states the iron qualities of Charlemagne; but 
 how meager is that emphasis compared with what is 
 further gained by repeating the word "iron" nine times 
 in connection with new details. 
 
 5. By Diction. Provided the words used are apt and 
 concrete, the fewer one uses the greater the emphasis. 
 Wordiness always tends to weakening an impression. 
 The greatest care should be used in selecting adjectives 
 in description; they should be strong, concrete, and 
 suggestive to the point of boldness. Note the following 
 from Byron: 
 
 "Ye stars! which are the poetry of heaven!" 
 
 "Oh Rome! my country! city of the soul! 
 The orphans of the heart must turn to thee, 
 Lone mother of dead empires!" 
 
 "The Niobe of nations! there she stands, 
 Childless and crownless, in her voiceless woe!" 
 
 "Roll on, thou deep and dark-blue ocean — roll! 
 Ten thousand fleets sweep over thee in vain; 
 Man marks the earth with ruin — his control 
 Stops with the shore . . . 
 
 He sinks into thy depths with a bubbling groan, 
 Without a grave, unknell'd, uncoffin'd, and unknown.' 
 
DESCRIPTION 309 
 
 6. By Striking Figures of Speech. The nature of 
 figures of speech makes them emphatic. Exclamation, 
 epithet, personification, aposthophe, inversion, the 
 rhetorical question, hyperbole, climax, antithesis, some 
 metaphors, and irony, have all been used most effec- 
 tively to produce emphasis. The illustrations given 
 under the head of diction may also serve to show the 
 value of figures of speech as a means of securing em- 
 phasis. Most of the figures just mentioned demand 
 choice diction. In all impassioned descriptions figures 
 of speech will be found the best means of securing proper 
 emphasis. Note the following: 
 
 "Ah, Fear! ah, frantic Fear! 
 I see — I see thee near." 
 
 Search through any good anthology for further ex- 
 amples of emphasis by means of vivifying details by 
 the use of striking figures of speech. 
 
 Diction in Description. In no other kind of writing 
 is diction so important as in description. Here is of 
 supreme value. Without choice and masterful diction 
 description falls far short of its purpose — in fact it is 
 impossible. Description demands fine shades of mean- 
 ing; it demands suggestive words which tell more than 
 meets the eye; it calls for vividness and conciseness, 
 for picturesqueness and for emotion; and proper dic- 
 tion supplies all these demands. The greatest masters 
 of description, such as Coleridge, Poe, and Stevenson, 
 have had a "genius for the right word," and much of 
 their success has been due to that quality. They 
 should be studied for legitimate imitation. 
 
310 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 Good description has been said to depend upor cor- 
 rect observation, but without proper diction the obser- 
 vation goes for naught. The use of the right words, 
 words of correct denotation and connotation, preserve 
 the effects of observation for the reader, and are, in 
 short, the finishing touch in good description. 
 
 The act of choosing words must be looked up«»n as 
 quite separate from the process of composition. When 
 one has done his best in selecting and arranging his 
 thoughts, he should go over his work again with the 
 sole purpose of improving his diction. Only so can he 
 hope for the really finished product. In description 
 the words that need special attention are the verbs and 
 the adjectives, for both are of special value where em- 
 phasis and beauty are sought. 
 
 Read carefully the following descriptions, and answer 
 concerning each of them the following questions: 
 
 1. What does it appeal to, my senses or my feelings? What 
 senses? What kind of feelings does it arouse? 
 
 2. Is the description detailed or impressionistic? 
 
 3. Is it pure description, or are there narrative, expository, or 
 argumentative elements in it? 
 
 4. Does the description really make me see or feel as the author 
 intended to make his readers see and feel? How has he succeeded 
 in doing it? 
 
 5. What is the first general impression? . 
 
 6. Are the details subordinated to it? How? 
 
 7. Does the description possess any suggestive elements? Has 
 it any words of large connotation? If so, what are they? 
 
 8. Are there any illustrations of informal description? What 
 are they? 
 
 9. Does the passage stand the test for unity? for coherence? 
 for emphasis? By what means is emphasis secured? 
 
 10. Comment upon the diction. Is it vivid? Is it forceful? 
 
DESCRIPTION 311 
 
 Is it appropriate? Is it concise? Is there any loss of power by the 
 use of general terms where specific ones would be better? 
 
 11. Are you interested in the description as it stands inde- 
 pendent of its context? Do you feel that the description is a suf- 
 ficiently good finished product of its kind to make the context 
 from which it is taken appeal to you? 
 
 "The conversation of Scott was frank, 
 hearty, picturesque, and dramatic. During 
 the time of my visit he inclined to the comic 
 rather than the grave in his anecdotes and 
 stories, and such, I was told, was his general 
 inclination. He relished a joke, or a trait of 
 humor in social intercourse, and he laughed 
 with right good will. He talked not for effect 
 nor display, but from the flow of his spirits, 
 the stores of his memory, and the vigor of his 
 imagination. He had a natural turn for narra- 
 tion, and his narratives and descriptions were 
 without effort, yet wonderfully graphic. He 
 placed the scene before you like a picture; he 
 gave the dialogue with the appropriate dialect 
 or peculiarities, and described the appearance 
 and characters of his personages with that 
 spirit and felicity evinced in his writings. In- 
 deed, his conversation reminded me contin- 
 ually of his novels; and it seemed to me that 
 during the whole time I was with him he talked 
 enough to fill volumes, and that they could not 
 have been filled more delightfully. 
 
 "He was as good a listener as talker, ap- 
 preciating everything that others said, how- 
 ever humble might be their rank or preten- 
 tions, and was quick to testify his perception 
 of any point in their discourse. He arrogated 
 nothing to himself, but was perfectly unas- 
 
312 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 suming. and unpretending, entering with heart 
 and soul into the business, or pleasure, or, I 
 had almost said, folly, of the hour and the 
 company. No one's concerns, no one's 
 thoughts, no one's opinions, no one's tastes 
 and pleasures, seemed beneath him. He made 
 himself so thoroughly the companion of those 
 with whom he happened to be that they forgot, 
 for a time, his vast superiority, and only recol- 
 lected and wondered when all was over that 
 it was Scott with whom they had been on 
 such familiar terms, and in whose society they 
 had felt so perfectly at their ease." 
 
 — Abbots ford: Washington Irving 
 
 "For myself, I could not have been more 
 delighted if I had heard the music of the 
 spheres. Poetry and Philosophy had met 
 together. Truth and Genius had embraced, 
 under the eye and with the sanction of religion. 
 This was even beyond my hopes. I returned 
 home well satisfied. The sun that was still 
 laboring, pale and wan, through the sky, ob- 
 scured by thick mists, seemed an emblem of 
 the good cause; and the cold, dank drops of 
 dew, that hung half melted on the beard of 
 the thistle, had something genial and refresh- 
 ing in them; for there was a spirit of home 
 and youth in all nature that turned everything 
 into good." 
 
 — William Hazlitt on hearing a sermon by Coleridge 
 
 "This was once a house of trade, a center 
 of busy interests. The throng of merchants 
 was here — the quick pulse of gain — and here 
 
DESCRIPTION 313 
 
 some forms of business are still kept up, though 
 the soul be long since fled. Here are still to be 
 seen stately porticoes; imposing staircases; 
 offices roomy as the state apartments in pal- 
 aces — deserted, or thinly peopled with a few 
 straggling clerks; the still more sacred inte- 
 riors of court and committee rooms, with ven- 
 erable faces of beadles, doorkeepers — directors 
 seated in form on solemn days (to proclaim 
 a dead dividend) at long worm-eaten tables, 
 that had been mahogany, with tarnished gilt- 
 leather coverings, supporting massy silver ink- 
 stands long since dry; the oaken wainscots 
 hung with pictures of deceased governors and 
 subgovernors, of Queen Anne, and the first 
 two monarchs of the Brunswick dynasty; 
 huge charts, which subsequent discoverers 
 have antiquated ; dusty maps of Mexico, dim 
 as dreams, and soundings of the Bay of Pan- 
 ama. The long passages hung with buckets, 
 appended in idle rows to walls, whose sub- 
 stance might defy any short of the last con- 
 flagration; with vast ranges of cellarage under 
 all ; where dollars and pieces of eight once lay, 
 an ' unsunned heap/ for Mammon to have 
 solaced his solitary heart withal — long since 
 dissipated, or scattered into air at the blast 
 of the breaking of that famous bubble." 
 Such was the South Sea House. 
 
 — The South Sea House: Charles Lamb 
 
 "What a careless, even deportment hath 
 your borrower ! what rosy gills ! what a beau- 
 tiful reliance on Providence doth he manifest, 
 taking no more thought than the lilies! What 
 
314 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 contempt for money, accounting it (yours and 
 mine especially) no better than dross! What 
 a liberal confounding of those pedantic dis- 
 tinctions of meum and tuuml or rather, what 
 a noble simplification of language (beyond 
 Tooke), resolving those supposed opposites 
 into one clear, intelligible pronoun-adjective! 
 What near approaches doth he make to the 
 primitive community, to the extent of half the 
 principal at least!" 
 
 — The Two Races of Men: Charles Lamb 
 
 "Fall! and everywhere the sights and 
 sounds of falling. In the woods, through the 
 cool, silvery air, the leaves, so indispensable 
 once, so useless now. Bright day after bright 
 day, dripping night after dripping night, the 
 never-ending filtering or gusty fall of leaves. 
 The fall of walnuts, dropping from bare 
 boughs, with muffled boom into the deep 
 grass. The fall of the hickory nut, rattling 
 noisily down through the scaly limbs and 
 scattering its hulls among the stones of the 
 brook below. The fall of buckeyes, rolling 
 like balls of mahogany into the little dust 
 paths made by sheep in the hot months when 
 they had sought those roofs of leaves. The fall 
 of acorns, leaping out of their matted green 
 cups as they strike the rooty earth. The fall 
 of red haw, persimmon, and pawpaw, and the 
 odorous wild plum in its valley of thickets. 
 The fall of all seeds whatsoever of the forest, 
 now made ripe in their high places and sent 
 back to the ground, there to be folded in 
 against the time when they shall arise again 
 
DESCRIPTION 315 
 
 as the living generations; the homing, down- 
 ward flight of the seeds in the many colored 
 woods all over the quiet land." 
 
 — The Reign of Law: James Lane Allen 
 
 "Newstead Abbey is one of the finest speci- 
 mens in existence of those quaint and roman- 
 tic piles, half castle, half convent, which re- 
 main as monuments of the olden times of 
 England. It stands, too, in the midst of a leg- 
 endary neighborhood, being in the heart of 
 Sherwood Forest, and surrounded by the 
 haunts of Robin Hood and his band of outlaws, 
 so famous in ancient ballad and nursery tale. 
 It is true, the forest scarcely exists but in 
 name, and the tract of country over which it 
 once extended its broad solitudes and shades 
 is now an open and smiling region, cultivated 
 with parks and farms, and enlivened with 
 villages." — Abbotsford: Washington Irving 
 
 "One of the pleasantest rooms at Holly well 
 was Mrs. Edmonstone's dressing-room — large 
 and bay-windowed, over the drawing-room, 
 having little of the dressing-room but the 
 name, and a toilet table with a black and gold 
 japanned glass, and curiously shaped boxes 
 to match; her room opened into it on one side, 
 and Charles's on the other; it was a sort of 
 upstairs parlour, where she taught Charlotte, 
 cast up accounts, spoke to servants, and wrote 
 notes, and where Charles was usually to be 
 found, when unequal to coming downstairs. 
 It had an air of great snugness, with its large 
 folding screen, covered with prints and cari- 
 
316 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 catures of ancient date, its book-shelves, its 
 tables, its peculiarly easy armchairs, the great 
 invalid sofa, and the grate, which always 
 lighted up better than any other in the house." 
 
 _ — The Heir of Redely ffe: Charlotte M. Yonge 
 
 u Heaven opened then, indeed. The flash 
 was almost too novel for its inexpressibly dan- 
 gerous nature to be at once realized, and 
 Gabriel could only comprehend the magnifi- 
 cence of its beauty. It sprang from east, west, 
 north, south. It was a perfect dance of death. 
 The forms of skeletons appeared in the air, 
 shaped with blue fire for bones — dancing, 
 leaping, striding, racing around, and mingling 
 altogether in unparalleled confusion. With 
 these were intertwined undulating snakes of 
 green. Behind these was a broad mass of 
 lesser light. Simultaneously came from every 
 part of the tumbling sky what may be called 
 a shout; since, though no shout ever came 
 near it, it was more of the nature of a shout 
 than of anything else earthly. In the mean- 
 time one of the grisly forms had alighted upon 
 the point of Gabriel's rod, to run invisibly 
 down it, down the chain, and into the earth. 
 Gabriel was almost blinded, and he could feel 
 Bathsheba's warm arm tremble in his hand 
 — a sensation novel and thrilling enough : but 
 love, life, everything human, seemed small 
 and trifling in such juxtaposition with an in- 
 furiated universe. " 
 
 — Far from the Madding Crowd: Thomas Hardy 
 
 "Fitzpiers was, on the whole, a finely 
 formed, handsome man. His eyes were dark 
 
DESCRIPTION 317 
 
 and impressive, and beamed with the light 
 either of energy or of susceptivity — it was 
 difficult to say which; it might have been a 
 little of both. That quick, glittering, practi- 
 cal eye, sharp for the surface of things and for 
 nothing beneath it, he had not. But whether 
 his apparent depth of vision was real, or only 
 an artistic accident of his corporeal molding, 
 nothing but his deeds could reveal. 
 
 "His face was rather soft than stern, charm- 
 ing than grand, pale than flushed; his nose 
 — if a sketch of his features be de rigueur for a 
 person of his pretentions — was artistically 
 beautiful enough to have been worth doing 
 in marble by any sculptor not over-busy, and 
 was hence devoid of those knotty irregulari- 
 ties which often mean power; while the 
 double-cyma or classical curve of his mouth 
 was not without a looseness in its close. 
 Nevertheless, either from his readily appreci- 
 ative mein, or his reflective manner, or the 
 instinct toward profound things which was 
 said to possess him, his presence bespoke the 
 philosopher rather than the dandy or maca- 
 roni — an effect which was helped by the ab- 
 sence of trinkets or other trivialities from his 
 attire, though this was more finished and up 
 to date than is usually the case among rural 
 practitioners."— The Woodlanders: Thomas Hardy 
 
 "It was a fair, sweet, and honest country 
 face, reposing in a nest of wavy chestnut hair. 
 It was between pretty and beautiful. Though 
 her eyes were closed, one could easily imagine 
 the light necessarily shining in them as the 
 
318 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 culmination of the luminous workmanship 
 around. The groundwork of the face was 
 hopefulness; but over it now lay, like a foreign 
 substance, a film of anxiety and grief. The 
 grief had been there so shortly as to have ab- 
 stracted nothing of the bloom: it has as yet 
 but given a dignity to what it might even- 
 tually undermine. The scarlet of her lips had 
 not had time to abate, and just now it ap- 
 peared still more intense by the absence of 
 the neighboring and more transient color of her 
 cheek. The lips were frequently parted, with 
 a murmur of words. She seemed to belong 
 rightly to a madrigal — to require viewing 
 through rhyme and harmony/ ' 
 
 — The Return of the Native: Thomas Hardy 
 
 "Norcombe Hill — forming a part of Nor- 
 combe Ewelease — was one of the spots which 
 suggest to a passer-by that he is in the pres- 
 ence of a shape approaching the indestructible 
 as nearly as any to be found on earth. It 
 was a featureless convexity of chalk and soil — 
 an ordinary specimen of those smoothly out- 
 lined protuberances of the globe which may 
 remain undisturbed on some great day of con- 
 fusion, when far grander heights and dizzy 
 granite precipices topple down. 
 
 "The hill was covered on the northern side 
 by an ancient and decaying plantation of 
 beeches, whose upper verge formed a line over 
 the crest, fringing its arched curve against the 
 sky, like a mane. To-night these trees shel- 
 tered the southern slope from the keenest 
 blasts, which smote the wood and floundered 
 
 
DESCRIPTION 319 
 
 through it with a sound as of grumbling, or 
 gashed over its crowning boughs in a weakened 
 moan. The dry leaves in the ditch simmered 
 and boiled in the same breezes, a tongue of air 
 occasionally ferreting out a few, and sending 
 them spinning across the grass. A group or 
 two of the latest in date among this dead mul- 
 titude had remained on the twigs which bore 
 them till this very midwinter time, and in fall- 
 ing rattled against the trunks with smart taps. 
 "Between this half -wooded, half -naked hill, 
 and the vague, still horizon its summit indis- 
 tinctly commanded, was a mysterious sheet 
 of. fathomless shade, the sounds only from 
 which suggested that what it concealed bore 
 some humble resemblance to features here. 
 The thin grasses, more or less coating the hill, 
 were touched by the wind in breezes of dif- 
 fering powers and almost differing natures — 
 one rubbing the blades heavily, another raking 
 them piercingly, another brushing them like 
 a soft broom. The instinctive act of human- 
 kind here was to stand and listen, and learn 
 how the trees on the right and the trees on the 
 left wailed and chanted to each other in the 
 regular antiphonies of a cathedral choir; how 
 hedges and other shapes to leeward then 
 caught the note, lowering it to the tenderest 
 sob ; and how the hurrying gust then plunged 
 into the south, to be heard no more." 
 
 — Far from the Madding Crowd: Thomas Hardy 
 
 "The most striking point about the room 
 was the furniture. This was a repetition upon 
 inanimate objects of the old principle intro- 
 
320 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 duced by Noah, consisting for the most part 
 of two articles of every sort. The duplicate 
 system of furnishing owed its existence to the 
 forethought of Fancy's mother, exercised from 
 the date of Fancy's birthday onwards. The 
 arrangement spoke for itself: nobody who 
 knew the tone of the household could look at 
 the goods without being aware that the second 
 set was a provision for Fancy, when she should 
 marry and have a house of her own. The 
 most noticeable instance was a pair of green- 
 faced eight-day clocks, ticking alternately, 
 which were severally two and a half minutes 
 and three minutes striking the hour of twelve, 
 one proclaiming, in Italian flourishes, Thomas 
 Wood as the name of its maker, and the other 
 — arched at the top, and altogether of more 
 cynical appearance — that of Ezekiel Saunders. 
 They were two departed clockmakers of Cas- 
 terbridge, whose desperate rivalry throughout 
 their lives was nowhere more emphatically 
 perpetuated than here at Godfrey's. These 
 chief specimens of the marriage provision were 
 supported on the right by a couple of kitchen 
 dressers, each fitted complete with their cups, 
 dishes, and plates, in their turn followed by 
 two dumbwaiters, two family Bibles, two 
 warming-pans, and two intermixed sets of 
 chairs." — Under the Greenwood Tree: Thomas Hardy 
 
 Having defined and illustrated description, it is now 
 time to practice until facility is acquired in making 
 finished products in this kind of discourse. All that 
 has gone before should aid in what is attempted here. 
 
DESCRIPTION 321 
 
 Write detailed descriptions upon enough of the fol- 
 lowing to familiarize you with several different kinds of 
 topics. Confine each to a single paragraph. 
 
 A View of a Campfire at Night from a short Distance. 
 A Summer Sunset. 
 
 What I saw during my morning Walk. 
 The Country railroad Station when the evening Train 
 came in. 
 The Group around the Hurdy-gurdy Man. 
 The Grand Stand during the Football Game. 
 The Crowd at the Village Post Office awaiting the Mail. 
 The Group around the Fireplace. 
 The Wreck on the Railroad. 
 In the Wake of the Storm. 
 
 A DrOp of Water as seen through a Microscope. 
 How the Moon looks through a Telescope. 
 The Wrecked Boat on the Beach. 
 The Gypsy Camp. 
 The View from the Church Tower. 
 The Waterfall in the Glen. 
 An Old Cemetery. 
 When the Apple Trees Blossom. 
 From my Window. 
 The Forest Fire. 
 An Iceberg. 
 The Muskrat Mound. 
 A Market Scene. 
 The Arrest of the Tramp. 
 
 Write a detailed and then an impressionistic descrip- 
 tion of five of the following, being careful to show the 
 differences between the two kinds: 
 
 The Fisherman's Hut. 
 The Lumber Camp. 
 
 The College Room of a Slovenly Boy (or Girl). 
 How the Congregation Looked when Lightning Struck 
 the Church Steeple. 
 The Happy Picnic Party at Dinner. 
 
322 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 The Interrupted Sermon. 
 
 The Back Yard before Clean-up Day. 
 
 Moonlight upon the Lake. 
 
 The Family Circle when Hearing Bad News from the Front. 
 
 Shooting the Rapids. 
 
 The Uninvited Guest. (When a tramp invades a tea party 
 in the country.) 
 
 The Empty Sleeve. 
 
 A View in the Park after a Snow Storm. 
 
 When the Circus Went by the School. (Pupils not allowed 
 to go to the window.) 
 
 Single Blessedness. (An old bachelor in his room. De- 
 scribe him and his room.) 
 
 Scene upon the Football Field immediately after the 
 Game. 
 
 Write an illustration for a favorite scene from some 
 book. 
 
 For more difficult exercises in description write upon 
 the following: 
 
 1. What I saw led me to conclude that it was a doctor's office. 
 (Use the foregoing as a topic sentence for a descriptive paragraph. 
 Decide iov yourself whether to use detailed or impressionistic 
 description. Use as few words as possible. Imagine that much 
 depends upon the success of your description; make it count.) 
 
 2. Imagine yourself a reporter on a city paper. Describe, in the 
 way that seems best for your paper, what you saw in a room that 
 had been ransacked by a burglar seeking for jewelry. 
 
 3. In a narrative paragraph of not more than one hundred and 
 fifty words, introduce enough informal description to give a clear 
 view of at least three important characteristics of a man who 
 passes your home, apparently having escaped from a state hospital. 
 Use no formal description. Do not retard the narrative at all. 
 
 4. Imagine a monkey to have escaped from his cage at the Zoo 
 when many people are present. He does no serious damage, but 
 multilates several ladies' hats and terrifies the ladies. Report 
 the scene, using the kind of description you think best. Tell why 
 you select the kind you use. Confine yourself to one hundred 
 words. 
 
DESCRIPTION 323 
 
 5. Describe a harvest scene which appeals to at least four senses, 
 to your feelings, both pleasant and unpleasant, and to your aesthetic 
 nature. Limit yourself to one hundred and twenty-five words. 
 Tell why you describe as you do. 
 
 6. Without pausing in your narrative for formal description,tell 
 informally, or suggestively, enough about a man's appearance and 
 character to prepossess one in his favor while relating some anecdote 
 concerning him. One hundred words only. 
 
 7. Describe one of your classmates informally, without using 
 more than six descriptive words, so that his friends would recognize 
 him. Intersperse this informal description through some hundred 
 words of narration. 
 
 8. A masked man accosts you on a dark night and demands your 
 purse. You are about to comply when a policeman appears and 
 the thief runs away. You are asked to describe him for the sake 
 of identification. Three senses help you out. Describe him suf- 
 ficiently to enable the police to identify him by comparing what you 
 say with what they have on record at headquarters. Limit your- 
 self to eighty words. 
 
 9. In a telegram of ten words inform a stranger you are to meet 
 in Buffalo how he may recognize you at the station, what road you 
 will take, and what time you will arrive. 
 
 10. Write a brief description, about sixty words, of a hot day. 
 Make your readers feel the heat. 
 
 11. Describe a table set for a Christmas dinner so as to make 
 your readers hungry. One hundred words. Impressionistic. 
 
 12. Describe a house impressionistically so as to inspire dread of 
 entering it. About one hundred words. 
 
 13. Describe a group of people engaged in conversation. Do not 
 tell what they are talking about; so describe that you give some 
 general idea of the nature of the subject under consideration. One 
 hundred and fifty words. 
 
 14. Describe a room, giving special attention to "atmosphere," 
 so as to show it to be the abode of a person of poverty, or wealth, 
 or bad taste, or culture. About one hundred and twenty-five 
 words. 
 
 15. A young lady has just received a letter which she reads in 
 your presence. Describe the scene • in such a way as to show 
 why you consider it a love letter, or a business letter, or a milliner's 
 bill. Seventy-five words. 
 
 16. Describe a fellow passenger on a street car. Bring out what 
 you judge his walk in life to be. Take into account his general 
 
324 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 appearance, his bearing, his dress, what he has in his hand, his 
 voice, and any other interesting thing that you specially notice. 
 
 17. Describe, very carefully so as to avoid confusion, an angry 
 person, a lazy man, a busy man, a nervous man, a tramp, a con- 
 tented person, a haughty man, Mr. Micawber, Uriah Heep, the 
 hypocrite, and a Secret Service man. Use only forty words for 
 each. 
 
 18. Describe a bashful boy in society. Eighty words. 
 
 19. Describe the neighborhood nuisance. Give your own con- 
 ceptions, but be careful to give definite characteristics. One 
 hundred words. 
 
 20. Imagine yourself in a very melancholy mood. Describe a 
 wedding ceremony. One hundred words. 
 
 21. Describe the same ceremony from the emotional point of 
 view of a happy man, to be married in a month, who acts as best 
 man at the wedding described. One hundred and fifty words. 
 
 22. Write a dialogue between yourself and a book agent. Bring 
 out during the conversation an informal description of yourself and 
 of the agent. Two hundred words. 
 
 23. Write. a description of the most impressive scene you ever 
 witnessed. Limit yourself to one hundred and fifty words. Be 
 keenly alive to your task. Make every word count. Use words of 
 large connotation. Use some words figuratively. Make your 
 reader see and feel what you describe. Describe; do not explain. 
 
 24. Write a vivid, spirited description of some scene depicting 
 rapid motion and great excitement, like "going over the top." 
 Be careful of your choice of words. One hundred words. Im- 
 pressionistic. 
 
 25. Practice writing descriptions of buildings, landscapes, sea- 
 scapes, object in rest and in motion, animals, people singly and in 
 groups, intimate personal descriptions bringing out inner traits of 
 character, and descriptions showing rapid changes from one emotion 
 to another. 
 
 Concluding Word 
 
 In all descriptive writing be careful to select the 
 best physical, mental, and emotional point of view; 
 to arrange the first general impression and major and 
 
DESCRIPTION 325 
 
 minor details artistically, to use suitable diction, and so 
 produce creditable results. 
 
 Remember that description is chiefly used for en- 
 riching narration and not for its own sake. But do 
 not make the mistake of thinking it is of minor im- 
 portance and can be slighted. Good description is of 
 the greatest value in making other writing effective 
 and it tests the writer's skill more than any other form 
 of discourse. 
 
 Be on the alert, then, to discover things to describe 
 and learn to describe them fully, impressionistically, 
 and suggestively, so that you may be able to employ 
 this form of discourse effectively whenever it may be 
 used to advantage. 
 
CHAPTER IX 
 EXPOSITION 
 
 Exposition is explanation. It will help to appreciate 
 the importance of this form of discourse if we notice 
 how commonly it is used. We at once think of text- 
 books and works on science and philosophy as exposi- 
 tory. But such works constitute only a small part of 
 expository literature. Even the story abounds in ex- 
 planations of situations, in reflections upon the actions 
 of the characters, and in interpretations of their actions 
 and their sayings. Newspaper editorials are wholly 
 expository, while fully half of what we call "news" is 
 of the same class. When the traveling salesman and 
 the clerk behind the counter attempt to sell goods, they 
 use exposition; when the office clerks write business 
 letters they are likewise expository. The preacher, the 
 lecturer, the teacher, and the lawyer, all use more 
 expository discourse than of all the other kinds com- 
 bined. Even in ordinary conversation the same holds 
 true. Whenever one answers questions beginning with 
 "how" or "why," he uses exposition. It is the most 
 practical form of discourse. 
 
 The nature of exposition will be better understood 
 if we compare it with the other forms of discourse. 
 Narration deals with things in motion and in terms of 
 
 326 
 
EXPOSITION 327 
 
 time; description deals largely with things at rest, and 
 in terms of space. Narration and description both deal 
 with things that can be seen, heard, smelled, touched, 
 and emotionally felt; exposition concerns itself with the 
 unseen and the abstract. Narration and description 
 appeal to the senses and to the emotions; exposition 
 appeals to the intellect. The chief function of exposi- 
 tion is to remove ignorance, to give information, to solve 
 problems. Accuracy, clearness, and completeness must 
 always characterize the finished product of exposition. 
 
 The difference between description and exposition 
 will be readily appreciated by comparing the following 
 two paragraphs : 
 
 "The cottage and its gardens were so regular 
 in their arrangement that they might have 
 been laid out by a Dutch designer of the time 
 of William and Mary. In a low, dense hedge, 
 cut to wedge shape, was a door over which the 
 hedge formed an arch, and from the inside of 
 the door a straight path, bordered with clipped 
 box, ran up the slope of the garden to the 
 porch, which was exactly in the middle of the 
 house, with two windows on each side. Right 
 and left of the path were, first, a bed of goose- 
 berry bushes; next, of current; next, of rasp- 
 berry; next, of old-fashioned flowers; at the 
 corners opposite the porch were spheres of box 
 resembling a pair of school globes. Over the 
 roof of the house could be seen the orchard, on 
 yet higher ground, and behind the orchard the 
 forest trees, reaching up to the crest of the 
 hill." — The Woodlanders: Thomas Hardy 
 
328 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 " Method is of advantage to a work, both 
 in respect to the writer and the reader. In re- 
 gard to the first it is a great help to his inven- 
 tion. When a man has planned his discourse 
 he finds a great many thoughts rising out of 
 every head that do not offer themselves upon 
 the general survey of a subject. His thoughts 
 are at the same time more intelligible, and 
 better discover their drift and meaning when 
 they are placed in their proper fights, and fol- 
 low one another in a regular series, than when 
 they are thrown together without order and 
 connection. There is always an obscurity in 
 confusion, and the same sentence that would 
 have enlightened the reader in one part of a 
 discourse perplexes him in another. For the 
 same reason, likewise, every thought in a me- 
 thodical discourse shows itself in its greatest 
 beauty, as the several figures in a piece of 
 painting receive a new grace from their dis- 
 position in the picture. The advantages of a 
 reader from a methodical discourse are corre- 
 spondent with those of the writer. He com- 
 prehends everything easily, takes it in with 
 pleasure, and retains it long." 
 
 — Spectator Paper No. 476: Addison 
 
 In the two examples given above the fundamental 
 distinction between the two forms is sufficiently marked 
 to leave no doubt. The first is to show how a place 
 looks; the second is to explain the advantages of 
 method in writing. It is the difference in purpose 
 which shows the distinction. 
 
 There are many cases, however, when the purpose of 
 
EXPOSITION 329 
 
 the writer seems to be both to describe and to explain, 
 and other cases when one cannot be sure as to which 
 of the two purposes predominates. Even the best 
 writers, such as Thomas Hardy, abound in passages of 
 this sort. When both purposes seem to have been 
 present in the mind of the writer we call his work gen- 
 eralized description, or expository description. The 
 following paragraph from Hardy's The Return of the 
 Native is expository description: 
 
 "The August sun shone over Egdon and 
 fired its crimson heather to a scarlet glow. It 
 was the one season of the year, and the one 
 weather of the season, in which the heath was 
 gorgeous. This flowering period represented 
 the second, or noontide division, in the cycle 
 of those superficial changes which alone were 
 possible here; it followed the green or young 
 fern period representing the morn, and pre- 
 ceded the brown period, when the heath bells 
 and ferns would wear the russet tinges of eve- 
 ning, to be in turn displaced by the dark hue of 
 the winter period representing night.'' 
 
 Another fundamental distinction between descrip- 
 tion and exposition is that description deals with par- 
 ticular objects, while exposition is concerned with 
 groups of objects taken together as a general class. 
 One might describe a game of football so as to make 
 his readers see how that particular game looked as it 
 was played, and the result would be description. Or 
 he might explain the game of football so that his readers 
 could understand the principles of the game. One 
 
330 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 cannot fully understand the game by witnessing it 
 once. If you should wish to instruct another concern- 
 ing football, the natural way would be to explain it to 
 him in general terms and then take him to see a game 
 which you could describe to him in particular terms. 
 Such is the relation between description and exposition. 
 The relation between narration and exposition is not 
 sufficiently close to cause much confusion, but since 
 narration is often used for expository purposes, a word 
 of explanation is necessary. This generalized, or ex- 
 pository narration, is used when a process is explained, 
 by noting the steps in chronological order, as in the 
 following account of making a smudge, from Henry van 
 Dyke's Fisherman's Luck: 
 
 " It would seem as if it ought to be the 
 simplest affair in the world to light up a 
 smudge. And so it is — if you are not trying. 
 
 "An attempt to produce almost any other 
 kind of fire will bring forth smoke abundantly. 
 But when you deliberately undertake to create 
 a smudge, flames break out from the wettest 
 timber, and green moss blazes with a furious 
 heat. You hastily gather handfuls of seem- 
 ingly incombustible material and throw it on 
 the fire, but the conflagration increases. Grass 
 and leaves hesitate for an instant and then 
 flash up like tinder. The more you put on 
 the more your smudge rebels against its proper 
 task of smudging. It makes a pleasant 
 warmth to encourage the black flies; and a 
 bright light to attract and cheer the mos- 
 quitoes. Your effort is a brilliant failure. 
 
EXPOSITION 331 
 
 "The proper way to make a smudge is this: 
 Begin with a very little, lowly fire. Let it be 
 bright, but not ambitious. Don't try to make 
 a smoke yet. 
 
 "Then gather a good supply of stuff which 
 seems likely to suppress fire without smother- 
 ing it. Moss of a certain kind will do, but not 
 the soft, feathery moss that grows so deep 
 among the spruce trees. Half-decayed wood 
 is good; spongy, moist, unpleasant stuff, a 
 vegetable wet blanket. The bark of dead ever- 
 green trees, hemlock, spruce, or balsam, is 
 better still. Gather a plentiful store of it. 
 But don't try to make a smoke yet. 
 
 "Let your fire burn a while longer; cheer it 
 up a little. Get some clear, resolute, un- 
 quenchable coals aglow in the heart of it. 
 Don't try to make a smoke yet. 
 
 "Now pile on your smoldering fuel. Fan 
 it with your hat. Kneel down and blow it, 
 and in ten minutes you will have a smoke that 
 will make you wish you had never been born. 
 
 "That is the proper way to make a smudge. 
 But the easiest way is to ask your guide to 
 make it for you." 
 
 In pure narration you would say concerning the be- 
 ginning of a game of football, "Burton kicked off." 
 In generalized narration for purposes of exposition, 
 you would begin, "Some one kicks off." 
 
 In narration we relate what one does at a definite 
 time; in expository narration we generalize and tell 
 what he does habitually. Note the following general- 
 ized narrative from Irving's Abbotsford: 
 
332 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 "In after years, when Scott began to turn this local 
 knowledge to literary account, he revisited many of 
 those scenes of his early ramblings, and endeavored to 
 secure the fugitive remains of the traditions and song 
 that had charmed his boyhood. When collecting ma- 
 terials for his Border Minstrelsy he used, he said, to go 
 from cottage to cottage and make the old wives re- 
 peat all they knew, if but two lines; and by putting 
 these scraps together he retrieved many a fine, char- 
 acteristic old ballad or tradition from oblivion." 
 
 The next excerpt from Franklin's Autobiography is 
 also narrative in form but expository in effect: 
 
 "In the conduct of my newspaper I care- 
 fully excluded all libelling and personal abuse, 
 which has of late years become so disgraceful 
 to our country. Whenever I was solicited to 
 insert anything of that kind, and the writers 
 pleaded, as they generally did, the liberty of 
 the press, and that a newspaper was like a 
 stagecoach in which anyone who would pay 
 had a right to a place, my answer was that I 
 would print the piece separately if desired, 
 and the author might have as many copies as 
 he desired, to distribute himself, but that I 
 would not take upon me to spread his detrac- 
 tion; and that having contracted with my 
 subscribers to furnish them with what might 
 be useful or entertaining, I could not fill their 
 papers with private altercation, in which they 
 had no concern, without doing them manifest 
 injustice. Now, many of our printers make 
 no scruple of gratifying the malice of individ- 
 
EXPOSITION 333 
 
 uals by false accusations of the fairest charac- 
 ters among ourselves, augmenting animosity 
 even to the producing of duels ; and are, more- 
 over, so indiscreet as to print scurrilous re- 
 flections on the government of neighboring 
 states, and even on the conduct of our best 
 national allies, which may be attended with 
 the most pernicious consequences. These 
 things I mention as a caution to young print- 
 ers, and that they may be encouraged not to 
 pollute their presses and disgrace their pro- 
 fession by such infamous practices, but refuse 
 steadily, as they may see by my example that 
 such a course of conduct will not, on the whole, 
 be injurious to their interests." 
 
 Exposition and Argumentation. Exposition and 
 argumentation are closely akin. They are alike in that 
 both give information; they differ in that exposition 
 gives information upon subjects concerning which there 
 is little or no difference of opinion, while argumentation 
 deals with disputed matters. Like exposition, argu- 
 mentation seeks to instruct; but it goes further and 
 endeavors to secure agreement where there is a dif- 
 ference of opinion. As we shall see in the chapter dn 
 argumentation, exposition plays an important part in 
 formal argumentation. The introduction of a brief is 
 always wholly expository. 
 
 The exposition just given reveals the fact that each 
 of the forms of discourse shades into each of the others 
 and is used to aid the others in making the finished 
 product of composition effective and interesting. From 
 
334 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 this we may infer, further, that the division of all dis- 
 course into the four forms — narration, description, 
 exposition, and argumentation — is but an academic 
 device to aid in understanding the whole subject better 
 than would be possible without such subdivision and 
 analysis. 
 
 Definition of Exposition. In defining exposition we 
 must remember that in the broad sense it includes all 
 the other forms of discourse when they are used more 
 to appeal to the intellect than to the senses and emo- 
 tions; when they are employed in more of a scientific 
 than in a literary sense. The illustrations we have 
 used will aid in appreciating this fact. Formal exposi- 
 tion aims at definite knowledge and so may be termed 
 scientific. In this restricted sense we define exposition 
 as: That form of discourse whose purpose is to satisfy 
 the intellect concerning such abstract and generaj^ 
 things as are not readily perceived by the senses. 
 It deals with the qualities and the nature of things, 
 with causes and results, with meaning and interpreta- 
 tion, and with classification. 
 
 The following quotation from Trench's Study of 
 Words is both a good example of exposition and a 
 valuable appendix to our chapter on Diction: "What 
 a wealth of words in almost every language lies inert 
 and unemployed; and certainly not least in our own. 
 How much of what might be as current coin among us, 
 is shut up in the treasure-house of a few classical 
 authors, or is never to be met with at all but in the 
 columns of the dictionary, we meanwhile, in the midst 
 
EXPOSITION 335 
 
 of all this riches, adjudging ourselves to a voluntary 
 poverty; and often, with tasks the most delicate and 
 difficult to accomplish — for surely the clothing of 
 thought in its most appropriate garment of words is 
 such — needlessly depriving ourselves of a large portion 
 of the helps at our command; like some workman who, 
 being furnished for an operation that will challenge all 
 his skill with a dozen different tools, each adapted for 
 its own special purpose, should in his indolence and 
 self-conceit persist in using only one; doing carelessly 
 what might have been done finely; or leaving alto- 
 gether undone that which, with such assistances, was 
 quite within his reach. And thus it comes to pass 
 that in the common intercourse of life, often, too, in 
 books, a certain limited number of words are worked 
 almost to death, employed in season and out of season 
 — a vast multitude meanwhile being rarely, if at all, 
 called to render the service which they could render 
 far better than any other; so rarely, indeed, that little 
 by little they slip out of sight and are forgotten al- 
 together. And then, perhaps, at some later day when 
 their want is felt, the ignorance into which we have 
 allowed ourselves to fall, of the resources offered by the 
 language to satisfy new demands, sends us abroad in 
 search of outlandish substitutes for words which we 
 already possess at home. It was, no doubt, to avoid 
 so far as possible such an impoverishment of the lan- 
 guage w*hich he spoke and wrote, for the feeding of his 
 own speech with words capable of serving him well, but 
 in danger of falling quite out of his use, that the great 
 
336 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 Lord Chatham had, as we are told, Bailey's Dictionary, 
 the best of his time, twice read to him throughout." 
 
 Note how the above passage satisfies the definition 
 of exposition; how it deals with the qualities of the 
 man of small vocabulary, the cause and effect of his 
 condition, and the interpretation of the case so as to 
 point a lesson against falling into such a state. 
 
 The Means of Exposition. There are two means of 
 exposition: by definition and by analysis. Single 
 words are usually explained by definition; proposi- 
 tions by analysis. Definition is of two kinds: by 
 synonym and by definition proper. 
 
 Exposition by Synonym. The simplest method of 
 defining a single term is by giving a synonym of it. 
 While this method is not sufficient where exactness is 
 sought, it often suffices for ordinary purposes. Care 
 must be taken, however, to use a synonym that is 
 more easily comprehended than the word which it 
 explains. For example, the word exposition is not so 
 common as the word explanation, hence to say that 
 exposition is explanation gives a brief and fairly 
 adequate idea of the meaning of exposition. So we 
 say, "to amputate is to cut off/' "sclerosis is a harden- 
 ing," and the like. This method is common in con- 
 versation; rare in formal discourse. Even in conver- 
 sation it should be used with caution, for synonymous 
 words never mean exactly the same, but something 
 similar. The proper use of synonyms is to give shades 
 of meaning and not to serve as a substitute for 
 definitions. 
 
EXPOSITION 237 
 
 Exposition by Definition. The best method of ex- 
 plaining single words is by definition. It is the syn- 
 thetic method, setting the limits of the meaning of a 
 word. When this is done informally, some of the limits 
 are set and the word is sufficiently identified for 
 ordinary purposes. Hence, to say, " exposition ap- 
 peals to the intellect" differentiates it from narration 
 and description; it is not sufficient to afford a working 
 basis in writing exposition. The formal, logical def- 
 inition is alone adequate for precision. 
 
 The formal definition consists of three distinct 
 parts: the term to be defined, the general class 
 to which it belongs, and its distinguishing char- 
 acteristics. There is little difficulty, as a rule, with 
 the first two parts of the definition if one uses 
 moderate care. Precision, however, is necessary in 
 selecting such characteristics of the term to be defined 
 as will differentiate it from other members of the same 
 general class. Take, for instance, the definition of 
 description: "Description is that form of discourse 
 by means of which a writer or speaker seeks to produce 
 the same objects upon the senses and emotions of 
 others, which observation, experience, and the use of 
 the imagination have produced upon him." Description 
 is the term defined; discourse indicates the general 
 class of forms to which it belongs. "By means of 
 which a writer or speaker seeks to produce the same 
 effects upon the senses and emotions of others, which 
 observation, experience, and the use of the imagination 
 have produced upon him," constitute the characteris- 
 
338 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 tics wherein description differs from the other forms of 
 discourse. 
 
 Enough characteristics must be selected to dis- 
 tinguish the term from other members of its class. 
 The word defined must never' be used in giving the 
 distinguishing characteristics, nor should any word be 
 used which is so difficult as to need definition itself. 
 
 In ordinary exposition informal and imperfect defini- 
 tions are far more common than strictly logical ones. 
 This is seen in the case of exposition by repetition 
 where a series of imperfect definitions is given. It is 
 very effective. It drives the meaning home to the 
 reader until, with all its rephrasing and reiteration, it 
 gains a cumulative effect that is irresistible. Its ad- 
 vantages are clearness and emphasis. Such exposition, 
 though classed under the heading of definition, also 
 partakes partly of the nature of exposition by analysis, 
 to be considered later, for the large number of distin- 
 guishing characteristics given has the effect of an 
 analysis. Such exposition requires a whole paragraph 
 and the following from Charles Lamb's Poor Relations 
 is a capital illustration : 
 
 "A poor relation — is the most irrelevant thing in 
 nature, — a piece of impertinent correspondency, — an 
 odious approximation, — a haunting conscience, — a pre- 
 posterous shadow, lengthening in the noontide of your 
 prosperity, — an unwelcome remembrancer, — a per- 
 petually recurring mortification, — a drain on your 
 purse, — a more intolerable dun upon your pride, — a 
 drawback upon success, — a rebuke to your rising, — a 
 
EXPOSITION 339 
 
 stain in your blood, — a blot on your 'scutcheon, — a rent 
 in your garment, — a death's head at your banquet, — 
 Agathocles' pot, — a Mordicai at your gate, — a frog in 
 your chamber, — a fly in your ointment, — a mote in 
 your eye, — a triumph to your enemy, — an apology to 
 your friends, — the one thing not needful, — the hail in 
 the harvest, — the ounce of sour in a pound of sweet." 
 
 Brief expositions, such as require more than a single 
 sentence and not more than a single paragraph, furnish 
 the best illustrations both of the kinds of paragraph 
 development and the methods of exposition, for it is in 
 exposition that the paragraph is seen in its purest 
 form. The illustration given above, and repeated 
 from the chapter on the paragraph, shows this. 
 
 The following paragraph from Macaulay's Essay on 
 Addison is developed by enumerating a number of de- 
 tails explaining how the spectator trained himself in 
 college, by travel, and by showing how he spent his 
 time. 
 
 "The spectator himself was conceived and 
 drawn by Addison, and it is not easy to doubt 
 that the portrait was meant to be in some 
 features a likeness of the painter. The spec- 
 tator is a gentleman who, after passing a 
 studious youth at the university, has trav- 
 eled on classic ground, and has bestowed much 
 attention on curious points of antiquity. He 
 has, on his return, fixed his residence in Lon- 
 don, and has observed all the forms of fife 
 which are to be found in that great city; has 
 daily listened to the wits at Will's; has smoked 
 
340 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 with the philosophers at the Grecian, and has 
 mingled with the parsons at Child's, and with 
 the politicians at St. James's. In the morning 
 he often listens to the hum of the Exchange; 
 in the evening his face is constantly to be seen 
 in the pit of the Drury Lane Theater. But 
 an insurmountable bashfulness prevents him 
 from opening his mouth, except in a small 
 circle of intimate friends." 
 
 The next paragraph, developed by a series of illus- 
 trations of the truth of the statement made in the topic 
 sentence, is an equally good example of exposition by 
 means of illustrations. 
 
 "I have said that poetry and imagination 
 seek to penetrate everywhere; and this is 
 literally true, for even the hardest, austerest 
 studies cannot escape their influence; they 
 will put something of their own life into the 
 dry bones of a nomenclature which seems the 
 remotest from them, the most opposed to 
 them. Thus in Danish the male and female 
 lines of descent and inheritance are called 
 respectively the sword-side and the spindle- 
 side. He who in prosody called the metrical 
 foot, consisting of one long syllable followed 
 by two short, a dactyl or a finger, with the 
 allusion to the long first joint of the finger, 
 and the two shorter which follow, whoever he 
 may have been — and some one was the first 
 to do it — must be allowed to have brought a 
 certain amount of imagination into a study so 
 I alien to it as prosody very well might appear." 
 — On the Study of Words: Trench 
 
EXPOSITION 341 
 
 Note again how the truth stated in the topic sen- 
 tence is developed and illustrated by giving examples : 
 
 "New necessities, new evolutions of society 
 into more complex conditions, evoke new 
 words; which come forth, because they are 
 required now; but did not formerly exist, be- 
 cause in an anterior period they were not re- 
 quired. For example, in Greece, so long as 
 the poet sang his own verses, singer suffi- 
 ciently expressed the double function; such a 
 singer was Homer, and such Homer describes 
 Demodoccus, the bard of the Phseacians; that 
 double function, in fact, not being in his time 
 contemplated as double, but each of its parts 
 so naturally completing the other that no sec- 
 ond word was required. When, however, in 
 the decision of labor, one made the verses 
 which another chanted, then poet or maker, a 
 word unknown to the Homeric age, arose. In 
 like manner, when physicians were the only 
 natural philosophers, the word covered this 
 meaning as well as that other which it still 
 retains; but when the investigation of nature 
 and natural causes detached itself from the 
 art of healing, became an independent study, 
 the name physician remained to that which 
 was the stock and stem of the art, while the 
 new offshoot sought out and obtained a new 
 name for itself.'' — Study of W ords: Trench 
 
 The following paragraph, developed by comparison, 
 also illustrates the method of comparison as a means 
 of exposition. The effectiveness of such a method is 
 in the fact that light is thrown upon two subjects at 
 
342 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 the same time, thus affording a double chance of arous- 
 ing interest. In the comparison between Dickens and 
 Thackeray, for instance, an admirer of Dickens or 
 an admirer of Thackeray is sure to be interested, 
 while an admirer of both will be doubly interested. 
 Notice how the comparison helps to understand both 
 writers : 
 
 "It is natural that men should compare 
 Dickens and Thackeray; but the two will be 
 found to be curiously unlike when once a cer- 
 tain superficial resemblance ceases to impress 
 the mind. Their ways of treating a subject 
 were not only dissimilar, but were absolutely 
 in contrast. They started, to begin with, 
 under the influence of a totally different phil- 
 osophy of life, if that is to be called a philoso- 
 phy which was probably only the result of 
 peculiarity of temperament in each case. 
 Dickens set out on the literary theory that in 
 life everything is better than in books; Thack- 
 eray with the impression that it is worse. In 
 the one case there was something too much 
 of a mechanical interpretation of everything 
 . for the best in the best possible world; in the 
 other the savor of cynicism was at times a 
 little annoying. As each writer went on, the 
 peculiarity became more and more a manner- 
 ism. The popularity of Dickens was in a great 
 measure due to the fact that he set forth life 
 in cheerful fight and colors. He had, of course, 
 gifts of a far higher artistic value; he could 
 describe anything that he saw with a fidelity 
 which Balzac could not have surpassed; but 
 
EXPOSITION 345 
 
 it must be owned that if Dickens's peculiar 
 " philosophy'' were effaced from his works, 
 the fame of the author would remain a very 
 different thing from what it is at the present 
 moment. On the other hand, it would be pos- 
 sible to cut out of Thackeray all his little cyni- 
 cal, melancholy sentences, and reduce his 
 novels to bare descriptions of life and charac- 
 ter, without effecting in any sensible degree 
 his influence on the reader or his position in 
 literature. Thackeray had a marvelously keen 
 appreciation of human motive and character 
 within certain limits, while Dickens had little 
 or no knowledge of human character, and evi- 
 dently cared very little about the study. His 
 stories are fairy tales made credible by the 
 masterly realism with which he described all 
 the surroundings and accessories, the costumes 
 and the ways of his men and women. . . . Thus 
 it will be seen that these two eminent authors 
 had not only different ideas about life, but 
 absolutely contrasting principles of art. One 
 worked from the externals inward; the other 
 realized the unseen, and left the externals to 
 grow for themselves. Two peculiarities, how- 
 ever, they shared. Each lived and wrote of 
 and for London. Dickens created for art the 
 London of the middle and lower classes; 
 Thackeray did the same for the London of 
 the upper class, and for those who strive to 
 imitate their ways. Neither ever even at- 
 tempted to describe a man kept constantly 
 above and beyond the atmosphere of mere 
 egotism by some sustaining greatness or even 
 intensity of purpose. In Dickens, as in 
 
344 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 Thackeray, the emotions described are those 
 of conventional life merely. But to paint the 
 manners of a day and a class as Dickens and 
 Thackeray have done, is to deserve fame and 
 the gratitude of prosperity. The age must 
 claim a high place in art which could in one 
 department alone produce two such com- 
 petitors. Their effect upon their time was 
 something marvelous. People talked Dickens 
 or thought Thackeray. "—Justin McCaethy 
 
 Closely connected with the method of comparison is 
 that of contrasts. The quotation just given partially 
 illustrates the uses of contrasts along with a series of 
 comparisons. The following, from Charles Lamb's 
 The Superannuated Man, however, will serve further 
 to show how effective a series of contrasts may be made. 
 Lamb shows by a series of contrasts between his con- 
 dition before and after he became a superannuated 
 man, what a great change had taken place. It is an 
 effective method of exposition. 
 
 "For the first day or two I felt stunned, 
 overwhelmed. I could only apprehend my 
 felicity; I was too confused to take it sin- 
 cerely. I wandered about, thinking I was 
 happy, and knowing I was not. I was in the 
 condition of a prisoner in the old Bastile sud- 
 denly let loose after forty years of confinement. 
 I could scarce trust myself with myself. It 
 was like passing out of Time into Eternity — 
 for it was a sort of Eternity for a man to have 
 his time all to himself. It seemed to me that 
 I had more time on my hands than I could 
 
EXPOSITION 345 
 
 manage. From a poor boy, poor in time, I 
 was suddenly lifted up into a vast revenue; I 
 could see no end of my possessions ; I wanted 
 some steward, or judicious bailiff, to manage 
 my estates in Time for me. And here let me 
 caution persons growing old in business, not 
 lightly, nor without weighing their resources, 
 to forego their customary employment all at 
 once, for there may be danger in it. I feel it 
 by myself, but I know that my resources are 
 sufficient; and, now that those first giddy rap- 
 tures have subsided, I have a quiet home feel- 
 ing of the blessedness of my condition. I am 
 in no hurry. Having all holidays, I am as 
 though I had none. If time hung heavy upon 
 me, I could walk it away; but I do not walk 
 all day long as I used to do in those old tran- 
 sient holidays — thirty miles a day, to make 
 the most of them. If Time were troublesome 
 I could read it away, but I do not read in that 
 violent measure with which, having no time 
 but my own candlelight time, I used to weary 
 out my head and eyesight in bygone winters. 
 I walk, read, or scribble (as now) just when 
 the fit seizes me. I no longer hunt after pleas- 
 ure; I let it come to me. I am like the man 
 
 "'That's born, and has his years come to him, 
 In some green desert.'" 
 
 Exposition by the method of giving causes or effects 
 is very near argumentation in which the giving of proof 
 is the principal work of the writer. It is sufficiently 
 differentiated from argumentation, however, to deserve 
 special consideration by itself as a part of exposition. 
 
346 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 In the following quotation the first sentence is given 
 as a good illustration of the use of the last sentence of 
 a paragraph to summarize its meaning and indicate the 
 transition to the next paragraph. The complete para- 
 graph is developed by the method of giving a series of 
 reasons for the truth of the statement made in the topic 
 sentence, Addison is the Spectator. 
 
 "We say this of Addison alone; for Addison 
 is the Spectator. About three sevenths of 
 the work are his ; and it is no exaggeration to 
 say that his worst essay is as good as the best 
 essay of any of his coadjutors. His best 
 essays approach near to absolute perfection; 
 nor is their excellence more wonderful than 
 their variety. His invention never seems to 
 flag; nor is he ever under the necessity of re- 
 peating himself or of wearing out a subject. 
 There are no dregs in his wine. He regales us 
 after the fashion of that prodigal nabob who 
 held that there was only one glass of wine in a 
 bottle. As soon as we have tasted the first 
 sparkling foam of a jest, it is withdrawn, and a 
 fresh draft of nectar is at our lips. On the 
 Monday we have an allegory as lively and 
 ingenious as Lucian's Auction of Lives; on the 
 Tuesday an Eastern apologue, as richly colored 
 as The Tales of Scheherezade; on the Wednesday 
 a character described with the skill of La 
 Bruyere; on the Thursday a scene from com- 
 mon life, equal to the best chapters in The 
 Vicar of Wakefield; on the Friday some sly 
 Horatian pleasantry on fashionable follies, 
 on hoops, on patches, on puppet shows; 
 
EXPOSITION 347 
 
 and on the Saturday a religious meditation, 
 which will bear comparison with the finest 
 passages in Massillon." 
 
 — Essay on Addison: Macaulay 
 
 The next paragraph illustrates the method of 
 exposition by giving a series of effects of the statement 
 made in the topic sentence : " Clarissa is one of the most 
 sympathetic, as she is one of the most lifelike, of all 
 the women in literature." 
 
 "By the universal acknowledgment of 
 novel readers, Clarissa is one of the most 
 sympathetic, as she is one of the most lifelike, 
 of all the woman in literature, and Richardson 
 has conducted her story with so much art and 
 tact, that her very faults canonize her, and her 
 weakness crowns the triumph of her chastity. 
 In depicting the character of Lovelace, the 
 novelist had a difficult task, for to have made 
 him a mere ruffian would have been to ruin 
 the whole purpose of the piece. He is repre- 
 sented as witty, versatile, adroit, the very 
 type of the unscrupulous gentleman of fashion 
 of the period. He expiates his crimes, at the 
 close of a capital duel, by the hands of Colonel 
 Morden, a relative of the Harlowe family, who 
 has seen Clarissa die. The success of Clarissa, 
 both here and in France, was extraordinary. 
 As the successive volumes appeared, and 
 readers were held in suspense as to the fate 
 of the exquisite heroine, Richardson was del- 
 uged with letters entreating him to have 
 mercy. The women of England knelt sob- 
 bing around his knees, and addressed him as 
 
348 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 though he possessed the power of life and 
 death." 
 
 — History of English Literature: Eighteenth Century: 
 Edmund Gosse 
 
 Special Forms of Exposition. Thus far our considera- 
 tion of exposition has been general. We have dealt 
 with the nature of exposition and the methods of 
 securing the best results. We now consider some of 
 the special purposes for which exposition is used and 
 the forms suitable for those purposes. Study the 
 following explanations of these forms and the accom- 
 panying illustrations until you can produce each form 
 yourself. 
 
 Exposition of a Situation in a Story. At the beginning 
 of a story and often during the narration of it the 
 author must explain the various situations in which 
 his characters act out their parts. The more intimate 
 the character study, the more must the situations which 
 affect the characters be explained. For instance, in 
 Thomas Hardy's Return of the Native, Egdon Heath 
 plays such an important part in the story, more 
 important than that of any one character, that the 
 author devotes the entire first chapter to exposition 
 of the meaning of the peculiarities of the heath before 
 he introduces the characters in the second chapter. 
 We quote from the early paragraphs to illustrate how 
 such exposition is used by a master writer. Note 
 how it gives the background of the story its due 
 prominence and also serves to create the atmosphere 
 of the tragedy: 
 
EXPOSITION 349 
 
 "A Saturday afternoon in November was 
 approaching the time of twilight, and the 
 vast tract of unenclosed wild known as 
 Egdon Heath embrowned itself moment after 
 moment. Overhead, the hollow stretch of 
 whitish cloud shutting out the sky was as a 
 tent which had the whole heath for its floor. 
 
 "The heaven being spread with this pallid 
 screen, the earth with the swarthiest of vegeta- 
 tion, their closing line at the horizon was 
 clearly marked. In such a contrast the 
 heath wore the appearance of an installment 
 of night, which had taken up its place before 
 its astronomical hour was come; darkness 
 had to a great extent arrived hereon, while 
 day stood distinct in the sky. Looking up- 
 ward, a furze cutter would have been inclined 
 to continue work; looking down, he would 
 have decided to finish his fagot and go home. 
 The meeting rims of the world and of the fir- 
 mament seemed to be a division in time no 
 less than a division in matter. The face of 
 the heath by its mere complexion added half 
 an hour to eve ; it could in like manner retard 
 the dawn, sadden noon, anticipate the frown- 
 ing of storms scarcely generated, and intensify 
 the opacity of a moonless midnight to a 
 cause of shaking and dread. 
 
 "In fact, precisely at this transitional 
 point of its nightly roll into darkness, the 
 great and particular glory of Egdon, waste 
 began, and nobody could be said to under- 
 stand the heath, who had not been there at 
 such a time. It could best be felt when it 
 could not clearly be seen. Its completed effect 
 
350 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 and explanation lay in this and the succeeding 
 hours before the next dawn; then, and only 
 then, did it tell its true tale. The spot was 
 indeed a close relation of night ; and when the 
 night was beginning to draw near, a certain 
 tendency to gravitate together could be per- 
 ceived between its shades and the scene. The 
 somber stretches of round and hollow seemed 
 to rise to meet the evening gloom in pure 
 sympathy; nay, they anticipated its livery, 
 putting on the obscurity of night while the 
 upper night of the sky was still far in the dis- 
 tance. First, the heath exhaled darkness; 
 next, the heavens precipitated it. The ob- 
 scurity in the air and the obscurity in the 
 land then closed together in a black fraterniza- 
 tion toward which each advanced halfway. 
 "The place became full of watchful in- 
 tentness now. When other things sank brood- 
 ing to sleep, the heath appeared slowly to 
 awaken and listen. Every night its Titanic 
 form seemed thus to await something. What 
 it awaited none could say. It had waited un- 
 moved during so many centuries, through the 
 crises of so many other things, that it could 
 only be imagined to await one last crisis — 
 the final overthrow."* 
 
 The effect of such exposition, which possesses some 
 of the charm of impressionistic description, is fully 
 felt when, a little later, the characters are introduced 
 in such a way as to make them blend perfectly with 
 the evening upon the dark Egdon Heath. 
 
 In another story by the same writer, Far from the 
 
EXPOSITION 351 
 
 Madding Crowd, we find the following exposition which 
 greatly aids us in appreciating the scene which im- 
 mediately follows, for it explains the situation in which 
 Gabriel Oak finds himself: 
 
 "To persons standing alone on a hill during 
 a clear midnight such as this, the roll of the 
 world eastward is almost a palpable move- 
 ment. The sensation may be caused by the 
 panoramic glide of the stars past earthly ob- 
 jects, which is perceptible in a few minutes of 
 stillness, or by a fancy that the better out- 
 look upon space afforded by a hill emphasizes 
 terrestrial revolution, or by the wind, or by 
 the solitude; but whatever be its origin, the 
 impression of riding along is vivid and abiding. 
 The poetry of motion is a phrase much in 
 use, and to enjoy the epic form of that 
 gratification it is necessary to stand on a hill 
 at a small hour of the night, and, first enlarg- 
 ing the consciousness with a sense of differ- 
 ence from the mass of civilized mankind, who 
 are horizontal and disregardful of all such 
 proceedings at this time, long and quietly 
 watch your stately progress through the stars. 
 After such a nocturnal reconnoiter among 
 these astral clusters, aloft from the customary 
 haunts of thought and vision, some men may 
 feel raised to a capacity for eternity at 
 
 For a further illustration of the use of such expo- 
 sition read the first four paragraphs of chapter eleven 
 of Hardy's The Mayor of Casterbridge. 
 
352 ■ EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 In Thackeray's Pendennis we find the following use 
 of exposition to explain a situation. It is typical of 
 many such passages in Thackeray, where he pauses 
 to chat, as it were, with the reader: 
 
 "In these speculations and confessions of 
 Arthur, the reader may perchance see allusions 
 to questions which, no doubt, have occupied 
 and discomposed himself, and which he may 
 have answered by very different solutions to 
 those come to by our friend. We are not 
 pledging ourselves for the correctness of his 
 opinions, which readers will please to consider 
 are delivered dramatically, the writer being 
 no more answerable for them than for the 
 sentiments uttered by any other character of 
 the story; our endeavor is merely to follow 
 out, in its progress, the development of the 
 mind of a worldly and selfish, but not ungen- 
 erous or unkind or truth-avoiding man. And 
 it will be seen that the lamentable stage to 
 which his logic at present has brought 
 him is one of general skepticism and 
 sneering acquiescence in the world as it is; 
 or, if you like so to call it, a belief qualified 
 with scorn in all things extant. The tastes 
 and habits of such a man prevent him from 
 being a boisterous demagogue, and his love 
 of truth and dislike of cant keep him from 
 advancing crude propositions, such as many 
 loud reformers are constantly ready with; 
 much more of uttering downright falsehoods 
 in arguing questions or abusing opponents, 
 which he would die or starve rather than use. 
 
EXPOSITION 353 
 
 It was not in our friend's nature to be able to 
 utter certain lies; nor was he strong enough 
 to protest against others, except with a polite 
 sneer, his maxim being that he owned obedi- 
 ence to all acts of parliament, as long as they 
 were not repealed." 
 
 Exposition of Character. What is commonly called 
 a " character sketch" is to be distinguished from the 
 description of a character. The description of a 
 character is to tell how he looks; the exposition of 
 character goes deeper and deals with one's inner 
 qualities which find expression in his habits. Here, as 
 in all these special forms of exposition, the method 
 used is to be determined by the purpose of the writer 
 and by the available material. Descriptions of people 
 often shade off into character sketches, as in the follow- 
 ing of Gabriel Oak, from Far from the Madding Crowd: 
 
 "When Farmer Oak smiled the corners of 
 his mouth spread till they were within an 
 unimportant distance of his ears, his eyes 
 were reduced to mere chinks, and diverging 
 wrinkles appeared around them, extending 
 upon his countenance like the rays of a rudi- 
 mentary sketch of the rising sun. 
 
 "His Christian name was Gabriel, and on 
 working days he was a young man of sound 
 judgment, easy motions, proper dress, and 
 general good character. 
 
 "On Sundays he was a man of misty views, 
 rather given to postponing treatment of 
 things, whose best clothes and seven-and-six- 
 
354 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 penny umbrella were always hampering him; 
 upon the whole, one who felt himself to occupy 
 morally that vast middle space of Laodicean 
 neutrality which lay between the sacrament 
 people of the parish and the drunken division 
 of its inhabitants — that is — he went to 
 church, but yawned privately by the time 
 the congregation reached the Nicene Creed, 
 and thought of what there would be for dinner 
 when he meant to be listening to the sermon. 
 Or, to state his character as it stood in the 
 scale of public opinion, when his friends and 
 critics were in tantrums, he was considered 
 rather a bad man; when they were pleased, he 
 was rather a good man; when they were 
 neither, he was a man whose moral color was 
 a kind of pepper-and-salt mixture. Since he 
 lived six times as many working days as 
 Sundays, Oak's appearance in his old clothes 
 was most peculiarly his own — the mental pic- 
 ture formed by his neighbors always presenting 
 him as dressed in that way when their imagina- 
 tion answered to the thought, ' Gabriel Oak.' 
 He wore a low-crowned felt hat spread out 
 at the base by tight jamming upon the head 
 for security in high winds, and a coat like 
 Dr. Johnson's, his lower extremities being 
 encased in ordinary leather, leggings and 
 boots emphatically large, affording to each 
 foot a roomy apartment so constructed that 
 any wearer might stand in a river all day long 
 and know nothing about it — their maker being 
 a conscientious man who always endeavored to 
 compensate for any weakness in his cut by 
 unstinted dimension and solidity." 
 
EXPOSITION 355 
 
 As a general rule, character sketches should begin 
 with some descriptive touches revealing personal ap- 
 pearance; then there should be given an explanation 
 of the mental traits — intelligence, cleverness, shrewd- 
 ness, penetration, or their opposites — and finally the 
 moral qualities — honesty, unselfishness, charity, sym- 
 pathy, benevolence — in a word, manliness or womanli- 
 ness, or their opposites. Note the following from 
 Dickens' Oliver Twist: 
 
 "The younger lady was in the lovely bloom 
 and springtime of womanhood; at that age 
 when, if ever angels be for God's good pur- 
 poses enthroned in mortal forms, they may 
 be, without impiety, supposed to abide in such 
 as hers. 
 
 "She was not past seventeen. Cast in so 
 slight and exquisite a mold, so mild and gentle, 
 so pure and beautiful, that earth seemed not 
 her element, nor its rough creatures her fit 
 companions. The very intelligence that shone 
 in her deep blue eye, and was stamped upon 
 her noble head, seemed scarcely of her age or 
 of the world ; and yet the changing expression 
 of sweetness and good humor, the thousand 
 lights that played about the face and left no 
 shadow there; above all, the smile, the cheer- 
 ful, happy smile, were made for home, for fire- 
 side peace and happiness. 
 
 "She was busily engaged in the little offices 
 of the table. Chancing to raise her eyes as the , 
 elder lady was regarding her, she playfully put 
 back her hair, which was simply braided on her 
 forehead, and threw into one beaming look 
 
356 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 such a gush of affection and artless loveliness 
 that blessed spirits might have smiled to look 
 upon her." 
 
 Characterization also includes whole groups of peo- 
 ple. The following illustrates this form: 
 
 "I come last to the character and wa\s of 
 the Americans themselves, in which there is a 
 certain charm, hard to convey by description, 
 but felt almost as soon as one sets foot on their 
 shore, and felt constantly thereafter. They 
 are a kindly people. Good nature, heartiness, 
 a readiness to render small services to one 
 another, an assumption that neighbors in the 
 country, or persons thrown together in travel, 
 or even in a crowd, were meant to be friendly 
 rather than hostile to one another, seem to be 
 everywhere in the air and in those who breathe 
 it. Sociability is the rule, isolation and mo- 
 roseness the rare exception. It is not merely 
 that people are more vivacious and talkative 
 than an Englishman expects to find them, for 
 the Western man is often taciturn and seldom 
 wreathes his long face into a smile. It is 
 rather that you feel that the man next you, 
 whether silent or talkative, does not mean to 
 repel intercourse, or convey by his manner his 
 low opinion of his fellow creatures. Everybody 
 seems disposed to think well of the world and 
 its inhabitants, well enough, at least, to wish 
 to be on easy terms with them in those little 
 things whose trouble to the doer is small in 
 proportion to the pleasure they give to the 
 receiver. To help others is better recognized 
 
EXPOSITION 357 
 
 as a duty than in Europe. Nowhere is money 
 so readily given for any public purpose; no- 
 where, I suspect, are there so many acts of 
 private kindness done — such, for instance, as 
 paying the college expenses of a promising boy, 
 or aiding a widow to carry on her husband's 
 farm — and these are not done with ostenta- 
 tion. People seem to take their troubles more 
 lightly than they do in Europe, and to be more 
 indulgent to the faults by which the troubles 
 are caused. It is a land of hope, and a land of 
 hope is a land of good humor. And they have 
 also — though this is a quality more perceptible 
 in women than in men — a remarkable faculty 
 . for enjoyment, a power of drawing more hap- 
 piness from obvious pleasures, simple and in- 
 nocent pleasures, than one often finds in over- 
 burdened Europe." 
 
 — The American Commonwealth: James Bryce 
 
 The Abstract. One of the commonest and most use- 
 ful forms of exposition is the abstract. It is a sum- 
 mary, a resume, a boiling down, a condensation of a 
 longer composition. Whenever you report a conversa- 
 tion, a lecture, or a sermon; whenever you attempt to 
 tell another what the contents of a book are; whenever 
 you write out an examination paper, you make an 
 abstract. The secret of success in making a good ab- 
 stract is to express substantially the thought of whatever 
 you are condensing in a very few words. To do this with 
 justice to the writer whose exposition you are sum- 
 marizing, it is necessary to master his thought as a 
 whole. To condense each paragraph separately will 
 
358 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 not suffice. It may be necessary to reduce a whole 
 group of paragraphs to a single sentence. To avoid 
 giving a prejudiced view of another's longer composi- 
 tion, it is important to maintain the same balance and 
 proportion used by the other and to emphasize what 
 he has emphasized. Lack of care in this respect de- 
 feats the purpose of writing abstracts and gives wholly 
 wrong impressions. Honesty of purpose must go hand 
 in hand with skill in making the summary say what the 
 longer composition does. 
 
 After mastering the line of thought of the original 
 composition, make a careful outline of the thought, 
 taking special care to discover the main points and the 
 proportionate amount of space devoted to each. In 
 general, the arrangement of the main headings into 
 paragraph form will suffice. If, however, you are 
 allowed more space, you may use minor headings and 
 develop them briefly under their proper main headings. 
 Make your finished product a real exposition — not a 
 bare outline. Test your abstract to see if it contains 
 all that is vital in the original and to see if the pro- 
 portion is the same. 
 
 (A helpful* practice is to make every recitation an 
 exercise in abstract making. When studying a lesson 
 from a textbook or from lecture notes, be sure that you 
 have mastered the vital points; then give them in the 
 recitation, or examination, with as much elaboration 
 as circumstances will permit. Such practice will also 
 develop one's power of discrimination and enable him 
 to evaluate material and use only the best.) 
 
EXPOSITION 359 
 
 For examples of abstracts note the so-called argu- 
 ments at the beginning of the several books of Homer's 
 Iliad, synopses of preceding chapters of serial stories in 
 magazines and newspapers, and summaries of books in 
 histories of literature. 
 
 In Milton's Comus you will find a capital illustration 
 of the way abstracts are made. The attendant spirit, 
 wishing to instruct the audience concerning the en- 
 chanter, Comus, gives a complete account and charac- 
 terization of him. Later in the masque Milton makes 
 the attendant spirit give to the two brothers a brief 
 account of the same story. In the first instance he used 
 thirty-two lines; in the latter eleven. Study the two 
 and note how the latter contains the essential facts of 
 the former, but fewer details. 
 
 u Bacchus, that first from out the purple grape 
 Crushed the sweet poison of misused wine, 
 After the Tuscan mariners transformed, 
 Coasting the Tyrrhene shore, as the winds listed, 
 On Circe's island fell. (Who knows not Circe, 
 The daughter of the Sun, whose charmed cup 
 Whoever tasted lost his upright shape, 
 And downward fell into a grovelling swine?) 
 This Nymph, that gazed upon his clustering locks, 
 With ivy-berries wreathed, and his blithe youth, 
 Had by him, ere he parted thence, a son 
 Much like his father, but his mother more, 
 Whom therefore she brought up, and Comus named: 
 Who, ripe and frolic of his full-grown age, 
 Roving the Celtic and Iberian fields, 
 At last betakes him to this ominous wood, 
 And, in thick shelter of black shades imbowered, 
 Excels his mother at her mighty art; 
 Offering to every weary traveller 
 His orient liquor in a crystal glass, 
 
360 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 To quench the drought of Phcebus; which as they taste 
 
 (For most do taste through fond intemperate thirst), 
 
 Soon as the potion works, their human count'nance, 
 
 The express resemblance of the gods, is changed 
 
 Into some brutish form of wolf or bear, 
 
 Or ounce or tiger, hog or bearded goat, 
 
 All other parts remaining as they were. 
 
 And they, so perfect is their misery, 
 
 Nor once perceive their foul disfigurement, 
 
 But boast themselves more comely than before, 
 
 And all their friends and native home forgot, 
 
 To roll with pleasure in a sensual sty." 
 
 — Milton's Comus: lines 46-77 
 
 "Within the navel of this hideous wood, 
 Immured in cypress shades, a sorcerer dwells, 
 Of Bacchus and of Circe born, great Comus, 
 Deep skilled in all his mother's witcheries, 
 And here to every thirsty wanderer 
 By sly enticement gives his baneful cup, 
 With many murmurs mixed, whose pleasing poison 
 The visage quite transforms of him that drinks, 
 And the inglorious likeness of a beast 
 Fixes instead, unmolding reason's mintage 
 Charactered in the face." 
 
 — Milton's Comus: lines 520-530 
 
 Literary Criticism and Book Reviews. In making an 
 abstract, as we have noticed, nothing is included which 
 was not in the original. As soon as one begins to add 
 opinions of his own he ceases being a maker of abstracts 
 and becomes a critic. Although they are confused in 
 the minds of some there is no vital connection between 
 abstracts and book reviews. A critic of a book may 
 find it necessary to include in his review of a book a 
 very brief summary, but such a practice is only inci- 
 dental to the critic's real purpose. If too full an ab- 
 stract is given it may defeat the critic's purpose. To 
 
EXPOSITION 361 
 
 avoid confusing the abstract with the book review 
 note carefully what the latter is. 
 
 One of the most practical forms of exposition is lit- 
 erary criticism. Its chief value lies in the fact that it 
 enables you to correlate and synchronize your study of 
 literature with composition. The more vou learn to 
 estimate correctly the writings of others the better will 
 you be able to write; the more your power of literary 
 appreciation increases the more your powers of expres- 
 sion will develop. Do not, then, look upon the writing 
 of book reviews as useless drudgery. Consider it, 
 rather, as your best opportunity to improve, at the 
 same time, your power of judging literature and your 
 facility of expression. 
 
 Literary criticism is evaluating a book according to 
 an accepted and worthy standard. Matthew Arnold 
 says it is "a disinterested endeavor to learn and prop- 
 agate the best that is known and thought in the world." 
 For practical purposes in the high school we give this 
 definition: Literary criticism is an intelligent and sym- 
 pathetic estimate of the worth of a book made after 
 careful reading and a thoughtful consideration of its 
 matter and form. 
 
 Suggestions for reviewing a novel, short-story, drama, 
 or narrative poem. 
 
 1. Read the book to be reviewed with care and with- 
 out prejudice. Take brief notes, each note upon a 
 separate slip of paper, concerning the setting or back- 
 ground, the plot development, characters, striking in- 
 cidents or notable passages, and your growing and per- 
 
362 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 haps changing impressions. If possible, find out some- 
 thing about the author. 
 
 2. In a separate paragraph, which is not to be con- 
 sidered a part of your review, give the complete title 
 of the book, the name of the author, the publisher, and 
 (if possible) the price. 
 
 3. Before beginning to write your review study your 
 notes and think through the story to give continuity 
 to your impressions and to plan for your exposition. 
 
 4. As a rule, plan to arrange your material in some 
 such order as this : 
 
 (a.) Begin with a general impression of the book 
 as a whole, comparing it, if possible, with some 
 other book of the same kind or by the same au- 
 thor. 
 
 (b.) Tell enough of the story to arouse the read- 
 ers interest or curiosity, but no more. If it is a 
 story with surprises at the end, mention the fact, 
 but by no means tell what they are. Let the reader 
 of the book have the pleasure of discovering them 
 for himself. 
 
 (c.) For the main body of your review select 
 some feature for fuller development, such as the 
 plot interest, the kind of characters, the style of 
 the author, the diction, fidelity to life, or the evi- 
 dent purpose of the author and the way he has, or 
 has not, carried it out. 
 
 (d.) Select a few passages to quote in substan- 
 tiating whatever claims you have made in dis- 
 cussing the book. 
 
EXPOSITION 363 
 
 (e.) Analyze your impressions further, asking 
 yourself what the book has done for you intellec- 
 tually, aesthetically, and morally, to enable you to 
 make some final recommendation concerning it. 
 (f .) Write your review according to the plan you 
 have made, using from three to five paragraphs 
 and from four hundred to six hundred words. See 
 to it that your finished product has all the requi- 
 sites of good exposition. 
 Cautions. 1. Remember that criticism is judging 
 the merits of a book, and is not to be confused with 
 mere fault-finding, on the one hand, nor with fulsome 
 praise on the other. Avoid mere generalities. Be honest 
 with yourself, the author of the book, and the possible 
 reader. 
 
 2. Beware of the undue use of such words as dull and 
 dry. They are often misused. To apply them to all 
 thoughtful books indiscriminately will not injure them 
 or their writers; the practice will reveal you in an un- 
 enviable light. 
 
 3. Be sure that you have some standard acquired 
 from your previous reading, from a textbook, or from 
 your teacher, to assist and supplement your own per- 
 sonal taste. Get a definite idea of what constitutes a 
 good book and remember that books, like people, may 
 be good in various ways. 
 
 4. To be fair to an author judge his work according 
 to his purpose and the standards of the time the book 
 represents, not according to what you think his pur- 
 pose should have been, and not according to the stand- 
 
364 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 ards of another century. Do not be guilty of such 
 inane statements as that of a woman who said to a 
 famous English actor, after witnessing his Antony and 
 Cleopatra: " Cleopatra may be a very interesting char- 
 acter, but her home life was so different from that of 
 our own dear Queen. " 
 
 5. Do not condemn a book because it is a trageay, 
 or because it has tragedy in it. Learn what tragedy is. 
 Judge a tragedy as a tragedy; do not complain because 
 it is not something else. 
 
 6. Do not condemn a book because it has a villain 
 or unpleasant people in it. Study the author's purpose 
 in putting them into the story. See how he handles 
 them in relation to the other characters. Be fair. 
 
 Suggestions for books other than novels, plays, and 
 narrative poems. 
 
 In criticizing essays, orations, works on criticism, 
 biographies, histories, and the like, one should read 
 with greater care and take fuller notes. Pay more 
 attention to the way an author handles his subject 
 and to his conclusions. In the case of essays, give 
 special attention to style as well. If what you read is 
 controversial, carefully scrutinize the arguments used. 
 
 In criticizing lyric poems it is not safe to be satisfied 
 with one reading. They require careful study. Give 
 attention, especially, to your emotional impressions and 
 to your aesthetic reactions. Take into account such 
 matters as poetic technique, poetic diction, the use of 
 figures of speech, and whatever else should be consid- 
 ered in estimating the quality of the poetry. 
 
EXPOSITION 365 
 
 In criticizing a series of essays or poems, study to 
 find the author's most distinguishing characteristics as 
 illustrated in several of the examples of his work in the 
 volume under consideration. Select one or two for 
 special study. As far as possible, use the inductive 
 method when considering a collection of works. 
 
 Study book reviews in such magazines as, The Book- 
 man, The Atlantic Monthly, The Literary Digest, and 
 The Independent. 
 
 Remember that in writing your book reviews you 
 are to show that you understand and enjoy literature, 
 and that, through your review, you are to help others 
 to do the same. 
 
 His Family. By Ernest Poole. New York: The Macmillan 
 Company. $1.35. 
 
 " After The Harbor we expected Ernest 
 Poole to write more really worth-while novels. 
 In His Family we are not disappointed; it is 
 as significant as The Harbor in its sure touch, 
 in its reality of contact with life, in its large 
 naturalness, that takes it out of the realm of 
 romance into that of realism, but gives it the 
 power to hold within itself the enchantment 
 of romance. 
 
 "The hero of this novel is not a boy, nor 
 again a young man. He is an old man and 
 the father of a family. His wife had said 
 shortly before her death, 'You will live again 
 in the lives of our children/ and so it is that 
 in the struggle to get acquainted with his chil- 
 dren this man is really made to live again long 
 
366 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 after the time when men usually live in an 
 actual sense. 
 
 "The tragedy of this man is the tragedy of a 
 million fathers in America. They do not know 
 their children; they cannot, therefore, share 
 in the ambitions, the aspirations, the sorrows, 
 and the joys of their children. To find a way 
 to do this, the man in question started out all 
 over again after his children were grown, after 
 he was a grandfather, and when his youngest 
 daughter had chosen to marry a man of whom 
 he could not entirely approve. 
 
 "The story is rich in rarely fine charac- 
 ter study. The characters create their own 
 situations, bring about their own climaxes. 
 One gets under the skin of these people and 
 is enabled to read their hearts and to know 
 their minds. For the reader who wants to 
 touch life in his books His Family will come 
 as a real treat."— The Booknews Monthly 
 
 Gaskell's Cranford. Edited by Charles Elbert Rhodes, A.M., 
 Department of English in the Lafayette High School, Buffalo. 
 New York: The American Book Company, 1907; pp. xxv-312. 
 Cloth, 16mo. 40 cents. 
 
 "The editor's work in this edition of Cran- 
 ford has all the marks which Henry van Dyke, 
 the general editor of the Gateway Series of 
 English Texts, to which this volume belongs, 
 tries to make prominent in the editorial equip- 
 ment of this series of English classics for school 
 use — simplicity, thoroughness, shortness, and 
 clearness. Every sentence in the editor's in- 
 troduction is designed to lead to a loving study 
 of Mrs. Gaskell's masterpiece. It is hard to 
 
EXPOSITION 367 
 
 see how a high-schooi student can read the 
 introduction without wishing to enjoy the 
 story itself, for Mr. Rhodes has done all that 
 is possible in way of introductory sketch to 
 lead young readers to appreciate the merits 
 and catch the spirit of a classic like Cranford. 
 He portrays the personality of the author and 
 says just enough of the theme and style of the 
 book itself to arouse the student's interest. 
 Two sets of notes — one at the foot of the page 
 defining difficult words and phrases, and an- 
 other at the end of the book explaining such 
 allusions as are likely to be unknown to the 
 student — and test questions for review are 
 provided. 
 
 "Of the recent additions to the books pre- 
 scribed for college entrance in English, none 
 merits a wider reading in the secondary schools 
 than Cranford, and Mr. Rhodes' admirable 
 edition will unquestionably do much to induce 
 teachers to put this classic into the hands of 
 their classes. We quite agree with the opinion 
 of the critic who always judges of people's 
 literary taste by their estimate of Cranford" 
 — Albert Leonard, Ph.D., in The Journal of Pedagogy 
 
 The New American Drama. By Richard Burton. New York: 
 Thomas Y. Crowell Company. $1.25 net. 
 
 ' ' We have been eagerly awaiting the appear- 
 ance of this book, for we know Dr. Burton, 
 Professor of English literature in the Univer- 
 sity of Minnesota, member of the National 
 Institute of Arts and Letters, and we know 
 how carefully he has been studying the drama 
 for the past few years. Now that the book 
 
368 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 has been read we are not disappointed. It is 
 all we expected, and we could say no more. 
 We read it through at a sitting; there was no 
 putting it down. 
 
 "We count this book worth while because 
 the author speaks with far more than academic 
 authority upon one of the most vital and im- 
 portant problems of the day. It is not filled 
 with platitudes about famous actors or with 
 generalities about elevating the stage. It is. 
 a frank and sincere handling of the subject. 
 The author faces the difficulties; he is not dis- 
 couraged by their magnitude nor by their 
 number. He can read the signs of the times 
 and he does read them in a most sanely opti- 
 mistic way. He believes with most writers 
 upon the subject, in the theater as a means of 
 amusement, but he differs from many in 
 boldly asserting that it must also have a higher 
 constructive and instructive purpose which 
 in no way interferes with its province of giving 
 amusement. 
 
 " A dominant note in the book is the author's, 
 attempt to arouse the better people to see and 
 to feel their responsibility to make the theater 
 better by learning properly to discriminate as 
 to the real merits of plays; then to demand 
 the right kind; and then to show their appre- 
 ciation by supporting them when they are 
 offered. Dr. Burton believes with the Drama 
 League of America, of which he is a vice presi- 
 dent, that the only way to kill bad plays is to 
 keep the good ones alive. He believes people 
 should take their culture and their consciences 
 with them to the (heater. 
 
EXPOSITION 369 
 
 " While the whole book shows a mastery of 
 the subject and reveals conclusions which give 
 evidence of having been reached only after 
 thorough deliberation, we would call especial 
 attention to the chapters on "The Theater 
 and the People/' and "The Theater and Edu- 
 cation." The matter of Technique is handled 
 in an illuminating way in a chapter bearing 
 that title; realism is well treated in the chap- 
 ter called "Truth/' while idealism receives 
 due justice in the chapter called "Romance." 
 There are plenty of people yet living who 
 would do well to read the chapter on "Idea 
 in Drama/' for it would breed thought, and 
 unless they are too strongly bound by preju- 
 dices might lead to some convictions of the 
 right sort. 
 
 "Dr. Burton's book is strictly American 
 and every good citizen should read it, and 
 doubtless many such will find it just what 
 they have been looking for, and then they will 
 reread it and become more sane on many mat- 
 ters so deeply touching life. Dr. Burton's 
 clear and forceful style, not devoid of a real 
 charm, renders the reading of the book a de- 
 light. We note but one omission, an index, 
 which we trust will be added in the second 
 edition, which will surely be called for within 
 the year. 
 
 "We quote the author's closing words with- 
 out comment, for they need none: 'Is there 
 under heaven a more satiric incongruity than 
 the sight of a person bewailing the lack of ex- 
 cellent plays when, by his refusal to attend 
 one at its coming, or his ignorance of the pres- 
 
370 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 ence of one at his door, he is doing all in his 
 power to perpetuate the very condition of 
 things he bemoans. " 
 
 — Charles Elbert Rhodes, in The Chautauquan 
 
 The following words, written by President Wilson at 
 the request of the American branch of the Scripture 
 Gift Mission, and to be placed on the fly leaf of every 
 Bible presented to our soldiers, are not intended as a 
 book review and yet are so pat that they may be given 
 here as an example of some of the things the best book 
 reviews should contain: 
 
 "The Bible is the word of life. I beg that 
 you will read it and find this out for yourselves 
 — read, not little sketches here and there, but 
 long passages that will really be the road to 
 the heart of it. You will find it full of real 
 men and women not only, but also of the 
 things you have wondered about and been 
 troubled about all your life, as men have been 
 always; and the more you read the more it 
 will become plain to you what things are worth 
 while and what are not, what things make 
 men happy — loyalty, right dealing, speaking 
 the truth, readiness to give everything for 
 what they think their duty, and most of all 
 the wish that they may have the real approval 
 of the Christ who gave everything for them — 
 and the things that are guaranteed to make 
 men unhappy — selfishness, cowardice, greed, 
 and everything that is low and mean. When 
 you have read the Bible you will know that 
 it is the Word of God, because you will have 
 
EXPOSITION 371 
 
 found it the key to your own heart, your own 
 happiness, and your own duty." 
 
 The Editorial. A form of exposition few of us will 
 ever engage in, yet should understand, is editorial writ- 
 ing. Most newspapers consist of six kinds of writing — 
 news, editorials, advertisements, stock reports, literary 
 material (often furnished by syndicates), and a humor- 
 ous column. The news are bare reports of the daily 
 happenings given without comment. It is through its 
 editorial column that the managers of a paper seek to 
 shape public opinion by interpreting the news, com- 
 menting upon it, and applying it. One turns to the 
 editorials whenever he wants to learn the attitude of 
 the paper upon any subject. On large subjects of poli- 
 tical importance the paper expresses itself as a whole 
 according to its policy; on less weighty matters the 
 individual editors or, in some cases, special editorial 
 writers, express their own opinion. 
 
 Study the editorials of the best newspapers — espe- 
 cially the better weeklies — to learn how to get large, 
 comprehensive views of subjects. It will help in other 
 kinds of expository work. 
 
 The following editorial may be studied by way of 
 illustration: 
 
 THUS PASSES THE FILIBUSTER 
 
 The President spoke by the card when he said, as the Sixty-fourth 
 Congress came to an end, "The Senate of the United States is the 
 only legislative body in the world which cannot act when its majority 
 is ready for action." The Senate has always had some ridiculous 
 — and mischievous — rules and practises. The most absurd, and at 
 
372 . EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 times the most dangerous, was the absence of any rule by which 
 the body could bring a matter to a vote when the majority believed 
 that it had been debated long enough. Such a rule is indispensable 
 to effective transaction of business in any legislative body. 
 
 The Senate has always clung to the practice of permitting any 
 senator to talk on any measure just as long as his inclination dic- 
 tated and his physical endurance permitted. The result was on 
 occasion the filibuster, which consisted in the "talking to death" of 
 a bill or resolution by a senator or group of senators. Obviously 
 the best time for such a manceuver was the end of a session. If 
 the Senate was obliged by constitutional limitation to adjourn at 
 a certain day and hour, and if a few senators would occupy all the 
 time before adjournment with talk, relevant or irrelevant, wise or 
 foolish, obviously the measure to which they were opposed could 
 be defeated by the simple device of preventing it from coming to a 
 vote. 
 
 This is precisely what happened, in peculiarly disgraceful form, 
 in the session just ended. "A little group of willful men," in the 
 President's phrase, already in a fair way to become historic, pre- 
 vented, by the sheer force of obstinacy and recalcitrance, the over- 
 whelming majority of the Senate from doing what they, the Presi- 
 dent, the unanimous House, and the country wanted done. 
 
 But it never can happen again. The Senate has come to itself 
 with a start and amended its rules. It has made majority rule pos- 
 sible where before minority tyranny was the only certainty. In 
 the future, by a two-thirds vote, an end can be put to debate after 
 each senator has been given an hour to speak, if he wants to. It 
 is hardly a drastic closure rule, since it would permit, in the extreme 
 case, ninety-six hours of debate. But, after all, filibustering is the 
 act of a minority, and generally of a very small minority. Its evil 
 effects appear only when a few men consume vast quantities of time 
 in purely dilatory talk. 
 
 The passing of the filibuster is a consummation devoutly to be 
 welcomed. — The Independent 
 
 Exposition by Analysis. Exposition by definition, 
 which we have considered at length, deals with matters 
 which may be considered as a whole: definitions of 
 single terms, character estimates, explanations of situa- 
 tions in stories, abstracts, book reviews, editorials, and 
 
EXPOSITION 373 
 
 the like, where the explanation requires a single para- 
 graph only or where the subject is so limited and unified 
 that, though more than one paragraph may be used, 
 the synthetic method of definition is still the most ap- 
 propriate. When, however, we come to larger subjects 
 where the method of definition is inadequate, we must 
 use the more elastic and comprehensive method of ex- 
 position by analysis, whereby the subject is divided 
 into its component parts. The expository outline, 
 which is helpful even in book reviews of more than one 
 paragraph, is essential in exposition by analysis. 
 
 Limiting the Subject. When we speak of large sub- 
 jects, we must add the caution that there is danger of 
 attempting to explain subjects that are too large. We 
 again emphasize the need of limiting the subject by re- 
 ducing it to a concise title, one that is definite and 
 manageable. Some of the greatest obstacles in the way 
 of success in composition may be avoided by limiting 
 the subject. The beginner naturally thinks that the 
 larger the subject the easier it will be to gather mate- 
 rial. In a way that is so. But when one begins to apply 
 the test of unity he will find that most of his supposed 
 material is useless. Whereas, with a limited subject, 
 the process of gathering material is really easier, be- 
 cause if one keeps the law on unity in mind he will 
 know definitely what he can use and can more easily 
 recognize its suitable qualities. For instance, if you 
 should attempt to write upon Athletics, you would most 
 likely use a few vague generalities and would succeed 
 in saying nothing worth while. If, on the other hand, 
 
374 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 you should try to write upon The Place of Athletics in 
 School Life, you would find the definite and limited 
 topic to aid you in finding something to say. 
 
 Another reason for limiting the subject is that when 
 you begin the process of analysis of a very large sub- 
 ject, like Literature, you are at once confronted with so 
 many divisions and subdivisions as to be lost in a maze 
 of complexity that even a knowledge of the principles 
 of unity and coherence could not wholly help you to 
 write clearly. When there are too many subdivisions 
 one is tempted either to slight them and treat them 
 superficially or to ignore some altogether. To do either 
 is to fail to explain adequately. To limit the subject 
 by reducing it to a definite title is to avoid that diffi- 
 culty. My Favorite Novel is a title, for instance, easy 
 to be analyzed and treated definitely. 
 
 The Outline in Exposition. The only safe way to 
 analyze a subject is by making an outline. This re- 
 quires careful thinking. Even though it may require 
 study, know your subject. Take stock of your mate- 
 rial. Again use the card catalogue system, with a single 
 note on each card. As you evaluate your material, in 
 the fight of your title, and select what is actually avail- 
 able and most vital for your purpose, you will find that 
 certain parts of it will naturally go together. All you 
 can classify under each separate heading should be 
 placed there. The relative values of the various parts 
 of the material will enable you to subordinate the 
 minor parts to the more important and thus indicate 
 their relation to each other. Then you are ready to 
 
EXPOSITION 375 
 
 formulate your plan or outline. The result will be a 
 framework, or skeleton, analogous to the human skele- 
 ton, which gives form and firmness to the body. Unless 
 the parts are properly articulated, like the bones in a 
 skeleton, the composition will lack flexibility, move- 
 ment, life. If the plan is properly made, the matter 
 of writing will be comparatively easy and the result a 
 finished product of exposition possessing strength, in- 
 terest, and charm similar to that of any well-developed 
 organism. 
 
 Essentials of an Outline. The outline for an exposi- 
 tion of more than one paragraph consists of three parts: 
 the introduction, the body or exposition proper, and 
 the conclusion. The introduction should give, very 
 briefly, the purpose of the writer, together with some 
 suggestion calculated to arouse interest. The body 
 should show at a glance the whole framework of the 
 plan, and indicate the two or more major and correla- 
 tive headings, together with the minor subdivisions 
 under each main heading. The conclusion should show 
 that the purpose stated in the introduction has been 
 accomplished and include such inferences and appli- 
 cations as suit the purpose of the writer. The follow- 
 ing outline plan may serve as a model after which to 
 pattern plans for other subjects. 
 
 The Writings of Edgar Allan Poe 
 Introduction. — Comprehensive view of Poe's writings 
 necessary in justice to him and to us. Necessary in 
 order to classify him and to estimate his value as com- 
 
376 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 pared with other writers. Such a view will surprise 
 some. 
 
 I — Poems: A. Poems expressing Poe's prevailing 
 mood: 
 
 a. To Helen. (Called best by the 
 
 critics.) 
 
 b. Ulalume. 
 
 c. The Raven. (Greatest single 
 
 poem in American literature.) 
 
 d. Lenore. 
 
 e. Ligeia. (From Al Aaraaf.) 
 
 f. For Annie. (Which Poe thought 
 
 his best.) 
 
 g. Annabel Lee. 
 h. The Sleeper. 
 
 B. Poems of morbid psychology, mad- 
 
 ness, etc. 
 
 a. Tamerlane. 
 
 b. The City in the Sea. 
 
 c. The Valley of Unrest. 
 
 d. The Haunted Palace. 
 
 e. The Conqueror Worm. 
 
 C. A Study in Melodies: 
 
 a. The Bells. 
 
 D. A Study in Beauty among Ruins: 
 
 a. The Coliseum. 
 
 E. A Vision of an Angel Poet: (Personal 
 
 touch.) 
 a: Israfel. 
 
EXPOSITION 377 
 
 F. Poe's tribute to his mother-in-law. 
 
 The great poem on the subject, 
 a. To My Mother. 
 
 G. Poe's Swan Song. (Published a few 
 
 days after his death.) 
 a. Eldorado. 
 
 II — The Stories : A. Analytical stories. Mystery sto- 
 ries. First great detective sto- 
 ries: 
 
 a. The Gold Bug. 
 
 b. The Murders of the Rue 
 
 Morgue. 
 
 c. The Mystery of Marie 
 
 Roget. 
 
 d. The Purloined Letter. 
 
 B. Allegorical Tales. (Dual person- 
 
 ality.) 
 
 a. The Black Cat. 
 
 b. The Telltale Heart. 
 
 c. Willirm Wilson. 
 
 C. Tales of extravagant adventure. 
 
 (Pseudo-science. ) 
 
 a. A Descent into the Mael- 
 
 strom. 
 
 b. The Unparalleled Adventure 
 
 of One Hans Pfall. 
 
 c. Narrative of Arthur Gordon 
 
 Pym, of Nantucket. 
 
378 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 D. Stories of Horror. (Stories of 
 
 Atmosphere.) 
 
 a. The Fall of the House of 
 
 Usher. 
 
 b. Ligeia. 
 
 c. Manuscript Found in a Bot- 
 
 tle. 
 
 E. Miscellaneous Tales: 
 
 a. The Masque of the Red 
 
 Death. 
 
 b. The Pit and the Pendulum. 
 
 c. The Cask of Amontillado. 
 
 (Perfect in construction.) 
 
 d. The Assignation. 
 
 Ill — Criticism: A. A student of Coleridge, a con- 
 structive critic laying the foun- 
 dations for literary criticism in 
 America. 
 
 a. Criticism of Longfellow. 
 
 b. Criticism of Hawthorne. 
 
 B. His harshness due to his own view 
 of poetry. 
 
 Conclusion: Sum up very briefly the characteristics 
 revealed in each kind of writing. Show that Poe must 
 be read to be appreciated and that he is worth reading. 
 Show that the best way to settle "The Poe Problem" 
 is to study all of Poe with the aid of such a biography 
 as that of Professor Harrison. 
 
 
EXPOSITION 379 
 
 A SIMPLE PLAN FOR AN EXPOSITORY 
 COMPOSITION 
 
 Trolling for Muskellunge 
 
 Introduction: A brief statement about the charm of 
 such fishing, and the need for great care if one would 
 succeed. 
 Body: 
 
 Paragraph 1 : Getting ready. 
 Polishing the spoons. 
 Filing the hook points. 
 Placing gaff hook and landing net with- 
 in reach, in the boat. 
 Seeing that the lines are not tangled; 
 that the spoons are securely fastened, 
 properly weighted, etc. 
 (Develop paragraph by giving de- 
 tails.) 
 Paragraph 2: Trolling. 
 
 In summer, troll in deep water in places 
 reported good. Row slowly. Watch 
 the lines. Cover the territory well. 
 Occasionally examine the spoons to 
 remove possible floating weeds that 
 may have been caught. 
 In autumn, troll along the weeds. If 
 stakes have been placed to mark the 
 edge of the weeds, keep just outside 
 the stakes. 
 
380 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 Frequently examine the spoons for 
 
 weeds. 
 Paragraph 3 : Landing the fish. 
 
 If the line is fastened to the boat stop 
 
 rowing as soon as the fish strikes; 
 
 play the fish by hand. 
 If line is on a pole, keep on rowing 
 \ slowly. 
 Avoid hurry. 
 Tire the fish. 
 Gradually bring him beside the boat. 
 
 Keep him from striking the side of the, 
 
 boat. 
 Watch opportunity; if he is moderate 
 
 in size net him; if large, gaff him. 
 
 Kill him at once. 
 Conclusion: A brief description of the thrill of ex- 
 citement. 
 
 A STILL SIMPLER PLAN FOR AN EXPOSITORY 
 COMPOSITION 
 
 Trolling for Muskellunge 
 
 Introduction: The charm of such fishing, etc. 
 Body: 
 
 Paragraph 1 : Getting ready. 
 
 a. Care of spoons. 
 
 b. Arrangement of tackle, etc., in boat. 
 
 c. Final inventory to see that all is right. 
 
EXPOSITION 381 
 
 Paragraph 2 : Trolling. 
 
 a. In summer: 1. How to row. 
 
 2. Where to go. Deep. 
 
 3. Avoiding weeds. 
 
 b. In autumn: 1. Where to go. Weeds. 
 
 2. Marking stakes. 
 
 3. Care of spoons. 
 Paragraph 3 : Landing the fish. 
 
 a. If line is fastened to boat. 
 
 1. Stop rowing. 
 
 2. Play fish by hand. 
 
 3. Be patient. 
 
 b. If line on pole. 
 
 1. Keep on rowing, slowly. 
 
 2. Tire fish gradually. 
 
 3. Keep him from side of 
 boat until tired out. 
 
 4. Then, if large, gaff him; 
 if small, net him. 
 
 5. Kill fish as soon as 
 landed 
 
 Paragraph 4: Conclusion. 
 The satisfaction of it all. 
 In all planning remember that the plan is to be the 
 design to guide you in the work of writing. Plan with 
 the utmost care. 
 
 Suggestions for Practice in Expository Writing 
 
 Here, as in all practice writing, keep ever before you the fact that 
 you are to make an interesting finished product of effective expres- 
 sion; that you are to make it out of the available material and 
 
382 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 according to the principles of unity, coherence and proportion and 
 emphasis; and that the finished product must be clear, forceful, 
 and elegant. It is the practice that counts. 
 
 Begin by writing simple explanations of processes or ways of 
 doing and of making things. First attempt those processes with 
 which you are familiar from experience; then try the more difficult 
 ones upon which you must study to get material. 
 
 Such titles as these will be suggestive: 
 
 1. How to Build a Camp Fire under Difficulties. 
 
 2. How to Prepare a Five-minute Speech. 
 
 3. The Proper Way to Read a Newspaper. 
 
 4. How I Learned to Knit Sweaters. 
 
 5. Learning to Skate. 
 
 6. Learning to Swim. 
 
 7. Trout Fishing. 
 
 8. How I Learned to Play Golf. 
 
 9. How Maple Sugar is Made. 
 
 10. How to Enjoy a Play. 
 
 11. How to Get the Most Out of a Novel. 
 
 12. How to Get Strong and Keep Strong. 
 
 13. Developing my Own Pictures. 
 
 14. How to Overcome Bashfulness. 
 
 15. How to Gain Self-consciousness. 
 
 16. How to Meet Difficulties. 
 
 17. How to Profit by Obstacles. 
 
 18. The Best Way to Overcome Fear. 
 
 19. How to Finish One's Own Pictures. 
 
 20. The Mysteries of the Dark Room. 
 
 21. How "Fake" Pictures are Made. 
 
 22. Why Cartoons are Effective. 
 
 23. The Secret of the Power of Satire. 
 
 24. How to Appreciate Music. 
 
 25. How to Appreciate Art. 
 
 26. How War Changes our Views of Life. 
 
 27. How Different I Should be if I had never Read a Book 
 
 28. The Use of Camouflage in War. 
 
 The foregoing list may be indefinitely increased by adding 
 similar titles suggested by your own experiences, your reading, 
 and your other studies. 
 
EXPOSITION 383 
 
 For longer and more difficult expositions, such as require outline 
 plans, consult the following list of titles: 
 
 1. The Study of History. 
 
 2. The Study of Biography. 
 
 3. Fighting the Submarine. 
 
 4. Forest Preservation. 
 
 5. Making Artificial Ice. 
 
 6. Taking Motion Pictures under Water. 
 
 7. The Choice of a Profession. 
 
 8. The Works of (any writer). 
 
 9. The Inspirational Value of Poetry. 
 
 10. How to Read Interpretatively. 
 
 11. The United States Department of Agriculture. 
 
 12. The "Dred Scott Decision." 
 
 13. "The Nullification Act." 
 
 14. "The Right of Search." 
 
 15. "A Scrap of Paper." 
 
 16. The Danger of Premature Specialization in Professions. 
 
 17. The Advantages of Foreign Travel. 
 
 18. "See America First." Defend or refute. 
 
 19. The Value of Systematic Reading. 
 
 20. Short Cuts in Education. 
 
 21. The Drama League of America. 
 
 22. The "Little Theater" Movement. 
 
 23. Is a National Theater Feasible? 
 
 24. The Copyright Laws. 
 
 25. The "Edition-de-Luxe" Fad. 
 
 26. The Value of a Hobby. 
 
 27. The Danger of Overriding a Hobby. 
 
 28. The "Return to the Country." 
 
 29. Why Country Boys Leave Home. 
 
 30. The Fosdick Commission. 
 
 31. The Y. M. C. A. Work for the Soldiers. 
 
 32. The Comic Papers. 
 
 33. Vocational Training. 
 
 34. Vocational Guidance. 
 
 35. How a Great Newspaper is Managed. 
 
 36. The Best System of Physical Culture. 
 
 37. The Charity Organization. 
 
 38. The Value of the Classics. 
 
 39. The Superiority of Humor over Wit. 
 
384 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 40. Kipling's "Barrack-room Ballads." 
 
 41. The Value of Anthologies. 
 
 42. Why I Believe Shakespeare Wrote the Plays Attributed 
 to Him. 
 
 43. The Romantic Movement in English Literature. 
 
 44. The Evolution of the English Drama. 
 
 45. The Evolution of the Novel. 
 
 46. Which Has Done More for the World, Genius or Will 
 Power? 
 
 47. The Difference between an Artisan and an Artist. 
 
 48. Joan of Arc. 
 
 49. America's Debt to France. 
 
 50. The Life Extension Society. 
 
 51. Psychology. 
 
 52. Why I Should Like to Meet (some person of dis- 
 tinction). 
 
 53. Why I Should Like to Visit 
 
 54. The Historical Novel. 
 
 55. The Value of Economy. 
 
 56. Recognizing Opportunities. 
 
 57. Detective Stories. 
 
 58. The American Red Cross. 
 
 59. What America Owes to the British Navy. 
 
 60. The Charm of the "Spectator Papers." 
 
 61. The Study of Sociology. 
 
 62. Our Life-saving Service. 
 
 63. The Responsibilities of a Student. 
 
 64. The Ideal Hero of Fiction. 
 
 65. Arbor Day. 
 
 66. Hallowe'en. 
 
 67. The Custom of Sending Valentines. 
 
 68. The Value of Sane Optimism. 
 
 69. The Joys and Sorrows of Graduation Day. 
 
 70. Are High Schools Worth to a City what they Cost it? 
 
 71. Should Christmas Giving be Restricted? 
 
 72. The Advantages and the Disadvantages of being an 
 Only Child. 
 
 73. The Dangers Attending the Inheritance of a Large 
 Fortune. 
 
 74. The Best Kind of Friend. 
 
 75. The League to Enforce Peace. 
 
EXPOSITION 385 
 
 Interpreting proverbs, epigrams, adages, and Scripture texts is a 
 common and useful kind of exposition. Training in this kind of 
 explanation is valuable in learning the whole subject of expository 
 writing. To begin with, you have an excellent topic sentence so 
 phrased as to suggest development of the paragraph by repetition, 
 illustration, or cause and effect; while the subjects treated are of 
 such a homely and practical sort as to suggest abundant suitable 
 material. 
 
 The following are suggestive: 
 
 1. An Ounce of Prevention is Worth a Pound of Cure. 
 
 2. A Stitch in Time Saves Nine. 
 
 3. Penny wise, Pound foolish. 
 
 4. Haste Makes Waste. 
 
 5. Where there's a Will, there's a Way. 
 
 6. I'll Find a Way, or Make One. 
 
 7. All's Well that Ends Well. 
 
 8. Variety is the Spice of Life. 
 
 9. Don't Count your Chickens Till the Eggs are Hatched. 
 
 10. Brevity is the Soul of Wit. 
 
 11. Faint Heart Never Won Fair Lady. ' 
 
 12. All Work and No Play Makes Jack a Dull Boy. 
 
 13. Necessity is the Mother of Invention. 
 
 14. Sour Grapes Hang High. 
 
 15. Be not Wise in Your Own Conceits. 
 
 16. Take Time by the Forelock. 
 
 17. There is always Room at the Top. 
 
 18. A Bird in the Hand is Worth Two in the Bush. 
 
 19. Work Out your Own Salvation. 
 
 20. Blessed are the Peacemakers. 
 
 21. Go to the Ant Thou Sluggard; Consider her Ways and 
 be Wise. 
 
 22. As the Twig is Bent the Tree is Inclined. 
 
 23. Spare the Rod and Spoil the Child. 
 
 24. Barking Dogs do not always Bite. 
 
 25. A Chain is no Stronger Than Its Weakest Link. 
 
 26. All is not Gold that Glisters. 
 
 27. Time and Tide Wait for no Man. 
 
 28. Never cross a Bridge before you Reach it. 
 
 29. Never Trouble Trouble till Trouble Troubles you. 
 
 30. Do not Cry over Spilled Milk. 
 
386 
 
 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 31. Too many Cooks Spoil the Broth. 
 
 32. It's a long Lane that has no Turning. 
 
 33. It's Never Too Late to Mend. 
 
 34. Least Said Soonest Mended. 
 
 35. Discretion is the Better Part of Valor. 
 
 36. A Word to the Wise is Sufficient. 
 
 37. What is Sauce for the Goose is Sauce for the Gander. 
 
 38. The early Bird Catches the Worm. 
 
 39. Look before you Leap. 
 
 40. Every Cloud has a Silver Lining. 
 
 41. Coming Events Cast their Shadow before. 
 
 42. The Proof of the Pudding is in the Eating. 
 
 43. Do not Lock the Stable after the Horse is Stolen. 
 
CHAPTER X 
 ARGUMENTATION 
 
 Argumentation is to convince. To accomplish its 
 purpose it uses all the other forms of discourse, narra- 
 tion, description, and especially exposition. It might 
 be called a highly specialized form of exposition whose 
 aim is not only explanation, but conviction. It is a 
 full development of one of the methods of developing 
 the expository paragraph, that of cause and effect, or 
 giving proof. It is persuasive exposition. 
 
 Argumentation, however, differs from exposition in 
 that, instead of explaining all about a proposition, it 
 makes a comparison between the two sides and seeks 
 to prove that one side is stronger than the other. This 
 makes argumentation the most formal kind of discourse 
 and demands a study of the science of logic. Since it 
 is designed to overcome the arguments of the opposing 
 side, it must make and use the most perfect finished 
 product of effective expression that can be made. The 
 raw material used must be selected with the greatest 
 possible care, must be evaluated and tested by the 
 processes of logical reasoning, and must be so skillfully 
 arranged as to resist the attacks of opponents. In a 
 word, argumentation is both offensive and defensive 
 
 3S7 
 
388 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 verbal and logical warfare. Facts and inferences from 
 them are drawn up in martial array. 
 
 Informal or Conversational Argumentation. Informal 
 argumentation, popularly called arguing, makes up the 
 burden of most conversation. Opinions differ. Many 
 people argue from force of habit and because they like 
 it. Even a small group will rarely agree concerning 
 matters pertaining to religion, politics, literature, art, 
 social and business customs, and all things concerning 
 which personal views, habit, and prejudice incline them 
 to "take sides." It is a well-known fact that Boswell 
 was in the habit of making apparently casual, but really 
 studied, remarks, to set Johnson going in discussion. 
 But Boswell was no exception. Nearly every group 
 contains both those who delight to arouse contention 
 and those who do not need much persuasion to partici- 
 pate. Good-natured, fair-minded discussion, is the 
 very spice of conversation. It keeps things interesting. 
 
 Everyone knows, however, when he stops to think, 
 that most of the arguing which often monopolizes con- 
 versation is wholly illogical and unconvincing. It is 
 often only an evidence of egotism rather than a desire 
 to get at the truth. Generally, it reveals a carelessness 
 which nothing but a study of the principles of argu- 
 mentation can remove. Such study is necessary both 
 for those who would speak or write with conviction, 
 and for those who would listen or read so as to decide 
 fairly. Good argument is capable of convincing such 
 as are capable of being convinced. 
 
 Concerning informal argumentation but little need 
 
ARGUMENTATION 389 
 
 be said here. The same principles which govern formal 
 and forensic argumentation must also control the more 
 informal kind. The only difference lies in the infor- 
 mality. Informal discussion may be just as logical and 
 just as convincing as a formal debate, if people will only 
 remember that assertions do not constitute proof and 
 that it is not safe to jump at conclusions or make hasty 
 inferences from insufficient data. 
 
 The trouble with most conversational discussion is 
 that it is just talk for talk's sake. That trouble, how- 
 ever, should not exist among educated people. Keep- 
 ing up conversation is not of sufficient importance to 
 warrant one's violating all the laws of induction, de- 
 duction, and analogy. A knowledge of those laws, on 
 the other hand, will enable one to "talk sense," to say 
 something worth while, to give reasons that are reasons 
 for what he believes and for what he does, and to give 
 just and sound reasons why others should or should 
 not do certain things. 
 
 Examine the conversation you find in ordinary novels, 
 especially if they depict life among illiterate but talka- 
 tive people, for examples of conversational argumenta- 
 tion revealing the wrong way to do it. 
 
 For a capital illustration of informal and conversa- 
 tional argumentation, one that all are familiar with, 
 take the dialogue between Cassius and Brutus, in which 
 Cassius argues to win Brutus to the side of the con- 
 spirators. Note that his main purpose is to belittle 
 Caesar in the mind of Brutus and so incite Brutus to 
 turn against Caesar. Cassius's whole line of argument 
 
390 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 is most contemptible, just such as a shrewd and un- 
 scrupulous man will use to gain his ends when he is 
 dealing with one whom he believes to be susceptible 
 to flattery and at the same time stupid enough to accept 
 as argument statements which have no semblance of 
 proof in them. No true man would allow himself to 
 be convinced that another man was weak and danger- 
 ous because he became exhausted after a long swim in 
 the Tiber or because he shook and groaned and called 
 for drink while in the delirium of a fever. And yet 
 Brutus was moved by such a travesty upon reasoning. 
 This example is, hence, a good illustration of the fallacy 
 inherent in much common argumentative talk. 
 
 "Cassius. I was born as free as Caesar; so were you: 
 We have both fed as well, and we can both 
 Endure the winter's cold as well as he: 
 For once, upon a raw and gusty day, 
 The troubled Tiber chafing with her shores, 
 Caesar said to me, 'Darest thou, Cassius, now 
 Leap in with me into this angry flood, 
 And swim to yonder point?' Upon the word, 
 Accoutred as I was, I plunged in 
 And bade him follow: so indeed he did. 
 The torrent roar'd, and we did buffet it 
 With lusty sinews, throwing it aside 
 And stemming it with hearts of controversy; 
 But ere we could arrive the point proposed, 
 Caesar cried, 'Help me, Cassius, or I sink!' 
 I, as iEneas our great ancestor 
 Did from the flames of Troy upon his shoulder 
 The old Anchises bear, so from the waves of Tiber 
 Did I the tired Caesar: and this man 
 Is now become a god, and Cassius is 
 A wretched creature, and must bend his body 
 If Caesar but carelessly nod on him. 
 He had a fever when he was in Spain, 
 
ARGUMENTATION 
 
 301 
 
 And when the fit was on him, I did mark 
 
 How he did shake: 'tis true, this god did shake: 
 
 His coward lips did from their color fly, 
 
 And that same eye whose bend did awe the world 
 
 Did lose his luster: I did hear him groan: 
 
 Ay, and that tongue of his that bade the Romans 
 
 Mark him and write his speeches in their books, 
 
 Alas, it cried 'Give me some drink, Titinius,' 
 
 As a sick girl. Ye gods, it doth amaze me 
 
 A man of such a feeble temper should 
 
 So get the start of this majestic world 
 
 And bear the palm alone. 
 
 Brutus. Another general shout! 
 
 I do believe that these applauses are 
 
 For some new honors that are heap'd upon Caesar. 
 
 Cassius. Why, man, he doth bestride the narrow world 
 Like a Colossus, and we petty men 
 Walk under his huge legs and peep about 
 To find ourselves dishonorable graves. 
 Men at some time are masters of their fates: 
 The fault, dear Brutus, is not in our stars, 
 But in ourselves, that we are underlings. 
 Brutus and Caesar: what should be in that 'Caesar'? 
 Why should that name be sounded more than yours? 
 Write them together, yours is as fair a name; 
 Sound them, it doth become the mouth as well; 
 Weigh them, it is as heavy; conjure with 'em, 
 'Brutus' will start a spirit as soon as 'Caesar.' 
 Now, in the names of all the gods at once, 
 Upon what meat doth this our Caesar feed, 
 That he is grown so great? Age, thou art sham'd! 
 Rome, thou hast lost the breed of noble bloods! 
 When went there by an age, since the great flood, 
 But it was fam'd with more than with one man? 
 When could they say till now, that talk'd of Rome, 
 That her wide walls encompassed but one man? " 
 
 Here we have informal argumentation of a worthy 
 sort: 
 
 "It would be an object worthy of the atten- 
 tion of the historical societies which are spring- 
 
392 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 ing up in various parts of the Union, to have 
 maps executed of their respective states or 
 neighborhoods, in which all the Indian local 
 names should, as far as possible, be restored. 
 In fact, it appears to me that the nomenclature 
 of the country is almost of sufficient impor- 
 tance for the foundation of a distinct society ; 
 or rather, a corresponding association of per- 
 sons of taste and judgment of all parts of the 
 Union. Such an association, if properly con- 
 stituted and composed, comprising especially 
 all the literary talent of the country — though 
 it might not have legislative power in its enact- 
 ments, yet would have the all-pervading power 
 of the press; and the changes in nomenclature 
 which it might dictate, being at once adopted 
 by elegant writers in prose and poetry, and 
 interwoven with the literature of the country, 
 would ultimately pass into popular currency. 
 
 " Should such a reforming association arise, 
 I beg to recommend to its attention all those 
 mongrel names that have the adjective New 
 prefixed to them, and pray they may be one 
 and all kicked out of the country. I am for 
 none of those second-hand appellations that 
 stamp us a second-hand people and that are to 
 perpetuate us a new country to the end of time. 
 Odds my life! Mr. Editor, I hope and trust 
 we are to live to be an old nation, as well as 
 our neighbors, and have no idea that our 
 cities, when they shall have attained to vener- 
 able antiquity, shall be dubbed New York, 
 New London, and new this and new that, like 
 the Pont-Neuf (the New Bridge), at Paris, 
 which is the oldest bridge in that capital, or 
 
ARGUMENTATION 393 
 
 like the Vicar of Wakefield's horse, which con- 
 tinued to be called 'the colt' until it died of 
 old age." — Wolf erf s Roost: Washington Irving 
 
 "Now there can be no doubt that Pope's 
 plan was most ingenious and that he afterward 
 executed it with great skill and success. But 
 does it necessarily follow that Addison's advice 
 was bad? And if Addison's advice was bad, 
 does it necessarily follow that it was given 
 from bad motives? If a friend were to ask us 
 whether we would advise him to risk his all 
 in a lottery of which the chances were ten to 
 one against him, we should do our best to dis- 
 suade him from running such a risk. Even if 
 he were so lucky as to get the thirty thousand 
 pound prize we would not admit that we had 
 counseled him ill; and we should certainly 
 think it the height of injustice in him to accuse 
 us of having been actuated by malice. We 
 think Addison's advice good advice. It rested 
 on a sound principle, the result of long and 
 wide experience. The general rule undoubt- 
 edly is that, when a successful work of the 
 imagination has been produced, it should not 
 be recast. We cannot at this moment call to 
 mind a single instance in which this rule has 
 been transgressed with happy effect, except 
 the instance of the Rape of the Lock. Tasso 
 recast his Jerusalem. Akenside recast his 
 Pleasures of the Imagination and his Epistle to 
 Curio. Pope himself, emboldened no doubt 
 by the success with which he had expanded 
 and remodeled The Rape of the Lock, made the 
 same experiment on the Dunciad. All these 
 
394 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 attempts failed. Who was to foresee that 
 Pope would, once in his life, be able to do 
 what he could not himself do twice, and what 
 nobody else has ever done?" 
 
 — Essay on Addison: Thomas B. Macaulay 
 
 "I received my flOO in advance, with pro- 
 found delight. It was a positive and most 
 welcome increase to my income, and might 
 probably be regarded as a first real step on 
 the road to substantial success. I am well 
 aware that there are many who think that an 
 author in his authorship should not regard 
 money, nor a painter, nor sculptor in his art. 
 I do not know that this unnatural sacrifice is 
 supposed to extend itself further. A barrister, 
 a clergyman, a doctor, an engineer, and even 
 actors and architects, may without disgrace 
 follow the bent of human nature, and endeavor 
 to fill their bellies and clothe their backs, and 
 also those of their wives and children, as com- 
 fortably as they can by the exercise of their 
 abilities and their crafts. They may be as 
 rationally realistic as may be the butchers and 
 the bakers, but the artist and the author for- 
 get the high glories of their calling if they con- 
 descend to make a money return a first object. 
 They who preach this doctrine will be much 
 offended by my theory, and by this book of 
 mine, if my theory and my book come beneath 
 their notice. They require the practice of a 
 so-called virtue which is contrary to nature, 
 and which, in my eyes, would be no virtue if 
 it were practiced. They are like clergymen 
 who preach sermons against the love of money, 
 
ARGUMENTATION 395 
 
 but who know that the love of money is so 
 distinctive a characteristic of humanity that 
 such sermons are mere platitudes called for by 
 customary but unintelligent piety. All mate- 
 rial progress has come from man's desire to do 
 the best he can for himself and those about him, 
 and civilization and Christianity itself have 
 been made possible by such progress. Though 
 we do not all of us argue this matter out within 
 our breasts, we do all feel it ; and we know that 
 the more a man earns the more useful he is to 
 his fellow-men. The most useful lawyers, as a 
 rule, have been those who have made the 
 greatest incomes — and it is the same with the 
 doctors. It would be the same in the church 
 if they who have the choosing of bishops 
 always chose the best man. And it has, in 
 truth, been so too in art and authorship. Did 
 Titian or Rubens disregard their pecuniary 
 rewards? As far as we know, Shakespeare 
 worked always for money, giving the best of 
 his intellect to support his trade as an actor. 
 In our own century what literary names stand 
 higher than those of Byron, Tennyson, Scott, 
 Dickens, Macaulay, and Carlyle? And I think 
 I may say that none of these great men 
 neglected the pecuniary result of their labors. 
 Now and then a man may arise among us who 
 in any calling, whether it be in law, in physic, 
 in religious teaching, in art, or literature, may 
 in his professional enthusiasm utterly disregard 
 money. All honor to his enthusiasm, and if he 
 be wifeless and childless his disregard of the 
 great object of man's work will be blameless. 
 But it is a mistake to suppose that a man is a 
 
396 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 better man because he despises money. Few 
 do so, and those few in doing so suffer a defeat. 
 Who does not desire to be hospitable to his 
 friends, generous to the poor, liberal to all, 
 munificent to his children, and to be himself 
 free from the carking fear which poverty 
 creates? The subject will not stand an argu- 
 ment, and yet authors are told that they 
 should disregard payment for their work and 
 be content to devote their unbought brains to 
 the welfare of the public. Brains that are un- 
 bought will never serve the public much. Take , 
 away from English authors their copyrights, 
 and you would very soon take away from Eng- 
 land her authors. 
 
 — An Autobiography: Anthony TnoLLcrE 
 
 The Raw Material of Argumentation. Before we take 
 up the consideration of formal argumentation, and in 
 order that we may the better understand it when we 
 do, we must consider the special kinds of raw material 
 used in argumentation and the special ways by which 
 they are tested as to their fitness. As in making some 
 machinery where strength and compactness are both 
 required, only the best steel can be used, and then only 
 after it has stood the most rigid tests; so here the only 
 kind of material that is suitable must be strong and 
 compact, for it requires much of the quality of force 
 to convince, and generally the time allowed to do it in 
 is limited. The material used in argumentation is called 
 proof — a very special kind of material. Proof is made 
 from evidence. When sufficient evidence of the right 
 
ARGUMENTATION 397 
 
 kind is properly put together the result is proof. We 
 shall next see how to make it out of evidence. 
 
 Evidence and Not Evidence. To appreciate what 
 constitutes genuine evidence we must learn to recog- 
 nize what is not evidence, and at once rule it out. In 
 argumentation mere assertion of opinion is valueless. 
 We must avoid such expressions as "I think," "It 
 seems to me," "I feel," "I believe," and the like, be- 
 cause when we begin with them we are likely to make 
 assertions which we cannot verify. On the other hand, 
 sweeping negations concerning our opponent's position, 
 are equally valueless. 
 
 Mr. Madison's reply to Mr. Henry on the adoption 
 of the Constitution shows what kind of evidence is 
 really effective, and does it in a way that might well be 
 emulated : 
 
 " We ought, sir, to examine the Constitution 
 on its merits solely. We are to inquire whether 
 it will promote the public happiness ; its apti- 
 tude to produce this desirable object ought to 
 be the exclusive subject of our present re- 
 searches. In this pursuit we ought not to 
 address our arguments to the feelings and pas- 
 sions, but to those understandings and judg- 
 ments which were selected by the people of 
 this country to decide this great question by 
 a calm and rational investigation. 
 
 "I hope that gentlemen, in displaying their 
 abilities on this occasion, instead of giving opin- 
 ions and making assertions, will condescend to 
 prove and demonstrate by a fair and regular dis- 
 
398 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 cussion. It gives me pain to hear gentlemen 
 continually distorting the natural construction 
 of language, for it is sufficient if any human 
 construction can stand a fair discussion." 
 (The italics are ours.) 
 
 Real evidence consists of the facts bearing upon the 
 subject and upon the true inferences from them. By 
 facts we mean statements which may be corroborated; 
 by inferences we mean conclusions drawn from the 
 facts according to the laws of induction. Valuable as 
 facts often are, they cannot, during the short time 
 available for discussion, be even referred to individ- 
 ually. They must be studied collectively before their 
 real value can be determined. This is where the knowl- 
 edge of inductive reasoning helps. 
 
 It frequently happens that facts may be given during 
 a speech and inferences drawn from them at the same 
 time. Burke does this in the Conciliation Speech, after 
 discussing the population of the colonies : 
 
 "Whilst we spend our time deliberating on 
 the mode of governing two millions, we shall 
 find we have millions more to manage. Your 
 children do not grow faster from infancy to 
 manhood than they spread from families to 
 communities, and from villages to nations. 
 
 "I put this consideration of the present and 
 growing numbers in the front of our delibera- 
 tion because, sir, this consideration will make 
 it evident to a blunter discernment than yours 
 that no partial, narrow, contracted, pinched, 
 occasional system will be at all suitable to such 
 
ARGUMENTATION 399 
 
 an object. It will show you that it is not to be 
 considered as one of those minima which are 
 out of the eye and consideration of the law; 
 not a paltry excrescence of the state; not a 
 mean dependent, who may be neglected with 
 little damage and provoked with little danger. 
 It will prove that some degree of care and auc- 
 tion is required in the handling of such an 
 object; it will show you that you ought not, 
 in reason, to trifle with so large a mass of the 
 interests and feelings of the human race. You 
 could at no time do so without guilt, and be 
 assured you will not be able to do it long with 
 impunity." 
 
 Evidence of Fact. To be useful as evidence, a fact 
 must be proved to be true. In a court room, facts are 
 established by the testimony of witnesses who must be 
 competent, unprejudiced, disinterested, and morally 
 trustworthy. Since the debater cannot summon wit- 
 nesses he must do the next best thing — secure his facts 
 from reliable sources, sources that will be accepted as 
 reliable because they are authoritative. He must go 
 to the library and consult encyclopedias, especially 
 such as Bliss' New Encyclopedia of Social Reform, La- 
 lor's Cyclopedia of Political Science, Political Economy, 
 and United States History, and general encyclopedias. 
 Larned's History for Ready Reference is excellent for 
 historical subjects. The Reader's Guide to Periodical 
 Literature (formerly Poole's Index) will put him in 
 touch with the best magazine articles, whose value will 
 depend upon the standing of the magazines and of the 
 
400 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 individual writers. Many annuals or year books will 
 be found helpful, such as the World Almanac, the Ameri- 
 can Year Book, etc. ; the Congressional Record is valuable, 
 but the partisanship of the various speakers must be 
 taken into account. Reports of the government de- 
 partments, state and national, are always reliable, as 
 are also the reports of societies and associations whose 
 purpose is social betterment. It is not enough to secure 
 facts for evidence, nor to say, in a general way, "I have 
 heard," or "I have read somewhere"; one must be 
 able to state definitely the source of his material. 
 
 All we have already said about the importance of 
 gathering material is doubly important in preparing 
 for argumentation. A wider range of reading is here 
 necessary and greater care is required in evaluating 
 the suitable material. 
 
 Because of the very Umited time allowed each 
 speaker in a debate and because a few good arguments, 
 well developed and forcefully handled are better than 
 many loosely handled, the process of sifting, weighing, 
 comparing, and rejecting material should be carried 
 on until one is sure he knows what is best to use, even 
 though he may have had to throw away four-fifths of 
 his notes. Retain only the best, the best to prove your 
 points, the best for its effect upon the audience, the best 
 to enable you to be sincere, courteous, and persuasive 
 in the presentation of your side. 
 
 To refer to an argumentative speech with which 
 most are familiar, Burke 's Conciliation Speech, we need 
 only call attention to the fact that Burke began to 
 
ARGUMENTATION 401 
 
 build up his argument by citing definite statistics bear- 
 ing upon the population, the commerce, the agricul- 
 ture, and the fisheries of the colonies, facts with which 
 all were more or less familiar. Again, when accounting 
 for the character and temper of the American people, 
 he based his argument upon indisputable facts: their 
 descent from Englishmen, their government, the relig- 
 ion in the North, the haughty spirit in the South, then- 
 education in the law, and their remoteness from the 
 mother country. 
 
 Facts are the basis of argument, but they are by no 
 means all there is to argument. The real complication 
 comes when one begins to show the relation of one fact 
 to another, to point out the effect, or probable effect, 
 of facts, to draw inferences from them. People cannot 
 easily dispute the evidence of facts; it is easy to dis- 
 agree about inferences from them, for various infer- 
 ences may be drawn. The real test of the debater 
 comes when he tries to reason from facts to conclusions. 
 If he does not reason correctly, according to the laws of 
 logic, his conclusions are worthless. Hence we must 
 consider : 
 
 Evidence of Inference, or Reasoning from Facts. The 
 matter of drawing inferences, or conclusions, from facts 
 is so important and is so commonly done wrongly, that 
 some knowledge of logic, which is the science of reason- 
 ing, is necessary before we can argue, even informally, 
 with effectiveness. A knowledge of logic enables one 
 to draw sound conclusions from groups of facts, to test 
 his conclusions as to their validity, and also to detect 
 
402 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 flaws in the reasoning of his opponents. The three 
 commonest kinds of reasoning are: induction, deduc- 
 tion, and analogy. 
 
 Induction. Induction is the method of scientists 
 and, in its strictest form, includes an examination of 
 all facts available before making an inference. The 
 result is, then, a perfect induction. It is reasoning from 
 particulars to a general conclusion, which is accepted 
 as a fundamental principle or law. In this inductive 
 way the laws of science have been formulated. It is a 
 synthetic process, combining and classifying all possible 
 data, and then making an inference, or general con- 
 clusion, which is considered as incontestably established. 
 
 It was by this method that the authorities of a cer- 
 tain large city arrived at the conclusion that the use 
 of antotoxin for diphtheria is the best method thus far 
 discovered for fighting that disease. A careful exami- 
 nation of the records of all cases of diphtheria in all 
 the hospitals of the city for a year, when antitoxin had 
 not been used, showed that seventy-seven cases out of 
 every hundred were fatal. That conclusion was reached 
 by induction. An equally careful study of all the cases 
 of the same disease, in the same city, for another year, 
 when antitoxin was used, revealed the fact that seven- 
 teen cases out of every hundred were fatal. This re- 
 sult was reached inductively. In both of these cases, 
 as in all laboratory experiments, the result was a perfect 
 induction. 
 
 Lack of sufficient time, and the inability to examine 
 all data, render it impossible to make perfect inductions 
 
ARGUMENTATION 403 
 
 concerning such matters as we have to deal with in 
 debates. Consequently, we have to get along with 
 those imperfect inductions known as inferences. This 
 brings us into the domain of argument. We must rest 
 content with inferences, but ever endeavor to make 
 the moral certainty they give us as near to absolute 
 certainty as possible. This is our business in formal 
 argumentation : to examine our facts, as many of them 
 as possible, so carefully that our inferences from them 
 are practically irrefutable. We must generalize, but 
 generalize with the utmost care. When Ruskin said 
 in Sesame and Lilies, " There is not one entirely heroic 
 figure in all his (Shakespeare's) plays. ... In his labored 
 and perfect plays you have no hero," he was making a 
 generalization. He does not, in his discussion, examine 
 every character; he examines the principal ones and 
 enough of them to substantiate his statement, so that 
 we are convinced. Again he says, "The catastrophe 
 of every play is caused always by the folly or fault of 
 a man; the redemption, if there be any, is by the wis- 
 dom and virtue of a woman and, failing that, there is 
 none." That, too, is a generalization based upon suffi- 
 cient individual cases to constitute proof. These two 
 illustrations show how inferences from facts become 
 greater evidence to establish proof than facts alone 
 could possibly be. 
 
 The Fallacies of Induction. In order to test the value 
 of our inferences, we must be able to detect the falla- 
 cies, or faults, resulting from a wrong use of the induc- 
 tive process. If we test our evidence we may find our 
 
404 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 own mistakes in time to correct them, before making 
 our brief, and so save the day. If we do not detect our 
 fallacies the debaters of the opposing side will thereby 
 strengthen their side in the same proportion that 
 they weaken ours. The time for testing is while prepar- 
 ing our evidence. 
 
 Children, and even grown people, constantly general- 
 ize from a single experience. A pupil once asked the 
 present writer to use a red instead of a blue pencil in 
 correcting his themes, because he received better marks 
 when a red pencil was used. A blue pencil had been 
 used one day. Generalizing from too few instances is 
 the commonest source of error. Many false proverbs, 
 nonsense jingles, and "wise sayings," are based upon 
 hasty generalizations. Some one observes that some 
 one else does something for two days in succession, and 
 immediately concludes that that person always does 
 that thing, or never does anything else. Always and 
 never should be used with great caution when making 
 inferences. Many popular superstitions, such as those 
 about the number thirteen, Friday, seeing the moon 
 over the left shoulder, a black cat crossing one's path, 
 and the like, are false generalizations from insufficient 
 observation. The commonest fallacy of induction is rea- 
 soning from too few instances. 
 
 To specialize concerning the general statements just 
 made, we call attention to the fact that a cause-and- 
 effect relation is often assumed when there is no such 
 relation. Many so-called " cures" are believed in be- 
 cause credulous people assume causes exist when there 
 
ARGUMENTATION 405 
 
 is only a coincidence. They jump at a conclusion. 
 The superstitions mentioned in the preceding para- 
 graph illustrate this same kind of error. In logic this 
 is called the non causa pro causa fallacy. Closely re- 
 lated to it is the post hoc propter hoc fallacy, which con- 
 sists of assuming that because one thing follows another 
 it is the result of the other. Many political speeches, 
 in which attempts are made to show the benefits or the 
 evil effects of free trade or of protection, abound in 
 fallacies of this kind. The advocates of free trade 
 attribute hard times to the fact that their opponents 
 were in power; while the advocates of protection seek, 
 in a similar way, to arouse public opinion against the 
 upholders of the opposite policy. The popularity of 
 widely advertised patent medicines often depends upon 
 this kind of fallacy. 
 
 Prejudice also leads to false inductions because it 
 prevents some people from examining data which they 
 fear might not favor their side. Whoever allows his 
 preconceived opinions to stand in the way of getting 
 at the truth is guilty of this kind of fallacy in its worst 
 form. Until he gets over that bad habit he need never 
 hope to be a fair-minded debater. The sincere debater 
 is never afraid of the truth. 
 
 Deductive Reasoning. Deductive reasoning is closely 
 related to inductive reasoning, and depends upon it. 
 By induction we infer that what is true of a large num- 
 ber of individuals constituting a class is true of the 
 class as a whole; by deduction we assume, on the other 
 hand, that what is true of a class as a whole is also true 
 
406 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 of each member of that class. Induction argues from 
 facts to principles, from species to genus, from the 
 known to the unknown; it is sometimes called a pos- 
 teriori reasoning; deduction is based upon the uni- 
 formity of the law — the law of cause and effect — is an 
 argument from principles to facts, from genus to spe- 
 cies, from general to particular, accounting for admitted 
 facts; it is sometimes called a priori reasoning. In- 
 duction is the more modern form used in the experi- 
 mental and more progressive sciences; deduction is the 
 more ancient and has to do with mathematics and logic. 
 In view of all these facts, and of the other significant 
 fact that induction furnishes the principles used in 
 deduction, we should not draw too sharp a dividing 
 line between the two kinds of reasoning, but rather 
 keep in mind how they must be considered and used 
 together, calling upon each method according to its 
 fitness in individual cases, to test the validity of our 
 evidence. 
 
 The Syllogism. The deductive method of reasoning 
 employs a very formal device called the syllogism, which 
 means "to reckon or count together, to present in com- 
 pact, unified form." It consists of three propositions 
 called the Major Premise, the Minor Premise, and the 
 Conclusion. The syllogism rests upon the principle 
 that whatever is affirmed or denied of a class must be 
 affirmed or denied concerning every member of that 
 class. In the syllogism, the general principle usually 
 obtained by induction, is always the major premise; 
 the specific statement to be tested by means of the 
 
ARGUMENTATION 407 
 
 general principle is the minor premise; the result is 
 the conclusion. The syllogism is the means whereby 
 we classify statements according to their value and 
 their relation to other statements. In order that this 
 may be done both statements must be true. If either is 
 false the conclusion will be false. Both premises must 
 be of the same class; that is, the minor premise must 
 be a specific instance belonging under the general law 
 laid down in the major premise. When this is true the 
 syllogism is said to stand the premise test. 
 
 The syllogism is also said to have three terms (which 
 must not be confused with the premises), the major, 
 the minor, and the middle term. The major term 
 forms the predicate of the conclusion, the minor term 
 forms the subject of the conclusion, the middle term 
 must be in both premises but not in the conclusion. Of 
 these the middle term is the most confusing, since it 
 does not appear by itself, is not definitely stated, but 
 is only the common quality binding the major and 
 minor terms together. Because it does bind them 
 together it is absolutely essential in a correct syllogism. 
 Note, for example, the following syllogism: 
 
 Major premise : All the pupils in the fourth- 
 hour class passed the examination. 
 
 Minor premise: Richard Burton is in the 
 fourth-hour class. 
 
 Conclusion: Therefore, Richard Burton 
 passed the examination. 
 
 In this syllogism the major term, which must be the 
 predicate of the conclusion, is " passed the examina- 
 
408 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 tion"; the minor term, which must be the subject of 
 the conclusion, is " Richard Burton"; and the middle 
 term, which must appear in both premises, but not in 
 the conclusion, is " fourth-hour class." The major pre- 
 mise is a true statement proved by the inductive method 
 of examining the record of the whole class, hence it is 
 a true major premise. All that is necessary to prove 
 the truth of the third proposition, " Richard Burton 
 passed the examination," is to prove that he was a 
 member of the class, all of whose members passed the 
 examination. The same process of induction shows 
 that he was a member of that class. Consequently, 
 since the syllogism stands all the tests, the conclusion 
 must be true. 
 
 It must not be inferred, because of the simplicity of 
 the foregoing illustration, that deductive reasoning is 
 easy. There are many chances to err, and people do 
 err very frequently in using as a major premise an un- 
 proved statement; in using as the minor premise a 
 statement having no relation to the major premise, 
 and hence failing to include the necessary middle term. 
 For instance, when Burke wished to show that force 
 should not be used against the colonies, he said, " Amer- 
 ica, gentlemen say, is an object well worth fighting for. 
 Certainly it is, if fighting a people is the best way of 
 gaining them." In other words, Burke assumes his 
 opponents to have used, whether consciously or not 
 does not matter, some such syllogism as this : 
 
 Major premise : The best way to gain colo- 
 nial possessions is to use force. 
 
ARGUMENTATION 409 
 
 Minor premise: We must gain the control 
 of our American colonies. 
 
 Conclusion: Therefore we must use force. 
 
 Burke refuted the argument of his opponents by giv- 
 ing four reasons to prove that force was not the best 
 way to gain colonies. He proved the major premise to 
 be false. That was enough. 
 
 The Enthymeme or Incomplete Syllogism. Much 
 confusion concerning the syllogism arises from the fact 
 that it is often used in incomplete form, with one or 
 both of the premises suppressed. This form is known 
 as the rhetorical syllogism, or enthymeme. It is the 
 most compact way in which an argument can be ex- 
 pressed; it is strong because it is brief. 
 
 The use of the syllogism is not artificial nor mechani- 
 cal. It is the natural form in which the reasoning 
 faculty works. Even if the premises are not stated 
 they are present in the mind in the act of reasoning. 
 
 Most of our statements are the results of unconscious 
 deductive reasoning. If they are not true, they are 
 equally the results of deductive reasoning, but deduc- 
 tive reasoning falsely done. One of the commonest of 
 these errors is jumping at conclusions, which means 
 ignoring one of the premises, or even both. The cause 
 of this wrong use of enthymemes is ignorance of the 
 fact that they are, after all, only syllogisms incom- 
 pletely stated. The remedy is to complete the syllo- 
 gism, by supplying the missing premise or premises, 
 when the folly of jumping at conclusions will be readily 
 seen. The only cure for loose thinking is to acquire 
 
410 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 the habit of logical, careful reasoning. For instance, 
 how much less frequently would we hear such expres- 
 sions as "I don't know," or "I cannot," if those who 
 use them would stop to think. A pupil says, "I cannot 
 write the required composition." It is an incomplete 
 syllogism. It is probably a false conclusion, reached 
 by jumping at it, and really expressing the opinion or 
 wish of one who does not want to do the work and is 
 looking for an excuse. It sounds well to say that he 
 has been asked to do an impossibility, so the boy says 
 he cannot do it and tries to shift the blame upon the 
 teacher. But complete the syllogism: 
 
 Major premise : I cannot write difficult com- 
 positions. 
 
 Minor premise : This composition is difficult. 
 Conclusion: There I cannot write it. 
 
 Put it that way before the pupil, and if he has been 
 regularly in the class, done his daily work, and has any 
 self-respect, he will probably withdraw his objections 
 and begin work. Confronted with the syllogism in com- 
 plete form he will be ashamed to admit the truth ex- 
 pressed in the major premise, and not so sure about 
 the truth of the statement assumed in the minor 
 premise. 
 
 Further illustration is unnecessary. If one would 
 overcome the habit of making conclusions carelessly, 
 and so making unwarranted statements, let him learn 
 the good habit of completing his enthymemes. 
 
 Fallacies in Deduction. In testing the syllogism we 
 
 
ARGUMENTATION 411 
 
 have already indicated the common fallacies as to form. 
 We must now point out errors in substance. Including 
 in the major premise what is to be proved is of this 
 sort and is called begging the question, or arguing in a 
 circle. A statement does not prove itself. Such false 
 arguing is assuming what must be proved. When a 
 lawyer, trying to convict a man of murder, speaks of 
 the man on trial as if he were a proved murderer, he is 
 begging the question. Again, when two assertions are 
 made and each is used to substantiate the other, the 
 reasoning is arguing in a circle. Careless debaters and 
 stump speakers frequently use such fallacies. The com- 
 mon use of because without further argument is also 
 begging the question. Such arguing gets nowhere. 
 
 Equivocation, or a confusing of terms by using words 
 in more than one sense, is another form of fallacious 
 reasoning. Such a practice really means trying to force 
 four terms into the syllogism, which must have three, 
 but never more. The words republican and democratic 
 are capable of two meanings, and are often used am- 
 biguously. Such words as right, state, church, and the 
 like, should be specially defined to prevent ambiguity 
 and equivocation. 
 
 Evading the Issue. Evading the issue is also called 
 arguing beside the point and ignoring the question. It 
 may be done carelessly or through trickery. When, for 
 instance, one is arguing that a certain candidate should 
 be elected district attorney, if he expatiates upon the 
 candidate's skill in golf, or his appreciation of music, 
 instead of showing how good a trial lawyer he is, he 
 
412 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 evades the issue. All he says is beside the point. Ma- 
 caulay shows his scorn for such arguing when, referring 
 to Charles, he says: "We charge him with having 
 broken his coronation oath, and we are told he kept 
 his marriage vow!" 
 
 A common form of evading the issue is the argumen- 
 tum ad hominem, which means getting personal. 
 
 OTHER FORMS OF REASONING 
 A Priori, or Reasoning from Cause to Effect. This is, 
 as the name signifies, reasoning from what has gone 
 before. It is a special form of deductive reasoning. 
 The ordinary forms already considered have reference 
 to the present only. The forms we now consider look 
 forward into the future and backward into the past. 
 When it has been repeatedly observed that certain con- 
 ditions have invariably been followed by the same re- 
 sults, we say a priori, "from what has gone before, " 
 that the same causes will again be followed by similar 
 results. The basis of a priori reasoning is the regular 
 sequence of events which amounts to a general law. 
 The general observation, made by induction, furnishes 
 the major premise and we easily construct a syllogism. 
 If we observe that a hard frost in early spring is fol- 
 lowed by disaster to the garden plants, we soon learn 
 to expect disaster to follow such frosts. Most weather 
 signs are based upon a priori reasoning. In fact, it is 
 one of the commonest kinds of reasoning to which we 
 resort in planning our course of action. If we are wise, 
 we take advantage of the regular sequences we have 
 
ARGUMENTATION 413 
 
 observed, and govern ourselves accordingly. If we 
 observe that certain kinds of food do not agree with 
 us we avoid them. In this way we learn to control 
 many things in our lives by controlling the members 
 of the sequence. If we know that certain things always 
 follow certain other things, we can prevent the effect 
 by avoiding the cause. 
 
 A Posteriori reasoning is the reverse of a priori. By 
 means of this form we argue from effect to cause. Here 
 again the reasoning is based upon an observed sequence. 
 To take the same illustration used above — about the 
 frost and the blighted vegetation — if we observe the 
 blighted condition some morning we reason backward 
 to the conclusion that there must have been a frost 
 during the night. This method of reasoning is the one 
 commonly employed by the writers of detective stories. 
 Poe, Conan Doyle, and Arthur Reeve, have done the 
 best work in this line. The real charm of such stories 
 lies in the pleasure of reasoning back to remote causes 
 when, at the first, we have only results. Circumstan- 
 tial evidence is obtained largely by a posteriori reason- 
 ing; by looking for the unknown causes of known 
 events. In the realm of science, too, this kind of rea- 
 soning has accomplished wonders, especially in palaion- 
 tology, by means of which the past of a prehistoric age 
 has been made to give up its secrets. Except in the 
 realms of science, however, this form of reasoning is 
 chiefly valuable as a means of discovering possible 
 causes whose validity must be further tested by other reason- 
 ing processes. 
 
414 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 In diagnosing a case the physician begins by using 
 the a posteriori method; in prescribing a remedy he 
 uses the a priori method of reasoning. 
 
 A priori and a posteriori reasoning are closely related 
 and should be studied with that fact in mind. 
 
 Argument from Sign. Some writers identify argu- 
 ment from sign with a posteriori reasoning, or argument 
 from effect to cause, but we prefer to distinguish be- 
 tween them. It is not always true that a sign is the 
 same thing as a cause. We say it will probably rain, 
 for the barometer has fallen. We do not mean that the 
 falling of the barometer will cause the rain, but that 
 the falling of the barometer is an indication of the work- 
 ing of th£ law which affects the atmosphere and the 
 barometer alike. Again, when we say that school will 
 now be dismissed because the clock has struck three, 
 we are arguing from sign. The regular custom of the 
 school is to dismiss at three. For some reason the school 
 may delay its closing for fifteen minutes. Then the 
 sign fails. The closing of school usually accompanies 
 the striking of the clock; it is not a result of it. Thus 
 we see that argument from sign, while somewhat re- 
 sembling argument from effect to cause, is not the 
 same. It is based more upon the law of the association 
 of ideas than upon the law of cause and effect. It 
 establishes probability, not proof. 
 
 Argument from Example. Argument from example is 
 often effective, especially in questions of policy. It con- 
 sists of giving one or more concrete examples of the 
 application of a certain principle which has been success- 
 
ARGUMENTATION 415 
 
 fully tried under similar conditions. In his Conciliation 
 Speech Burke uses the argument from example when 
 he cites the precedents of Ireland, Wales, Chester, and 
 Durham; in which cases the principle for which he was 
 contending had been successfully applied. The chief 
 caution in using argument from example is to see that 
 the chosen example is really appropriate, that it ex- 
 actly fits the case. While such argument is never 
 wholly conclusive, it is often of great value. 
 
 Argument from Analogy. This form of reasoning 
 must be distinguished from argument from example, 
 which it resembles. Analogy differs from example in 
 that the things compared belong to wholly different classes, 
 between which, however, there is some one strong point of 
 similarity. The dissimilarity in many respects empha- 
 sizes the one similarity, and so helps to drive the truth 
 home. The parable of the sower, for instance, is a 
 comparison between the receptive qualities of the soil 
 and of the minds of men. To try to push the compari- 
 son too far weakens analogy, and should be avoided. 
 
 Argument from analogy, like argument from exam- 
 ple, is valuable by way of illustration to establish 
 probability; but it is not positive proof and should 
 never be used except in connection with other forms of 
 reasoning. A good example of the misuse of analogy 
 is where Brutus argues that Antony should not be killed 
 along with Caesar. He says that since Antony is but 
 the arm of Caesar, and since the arm is powerless with- 
 out the head, " wherefore kill him?" Brutus later saw 
 his error. 
 
416 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 A Fortiori Argument. This form of reasoning resem- 
 bles analogy. The words mean " f or a stronger reason. ' \ 
 The reference to Burke's argument from example is 
 also an illustration of a fortiori reasoning. He said: 
 "Now if the doctrines of policy contained in these pre- 
 ambles, and the force of these examples in the acts of 
 parliament avail anything, what can be said against 
 applying them to America? Are not the people of 
 America as much English as the Welsh? . . . Are not the 
 Americans as numerous? Is America in rebellion? 
 Wales was hardly ever free from it." A fortiori reason- 
 ing is very effective. A simple and capital example is, 
 "If the righteous scarcely be saved, where shall the 
 ungodly and the sinner appear?" 
 
 The value of the foregoing forms of reasoning will 
 appear when we begin to test the evidence we intend 
 to use as proof. The real value of our material is not 
 fully and finally proved until the test of logic has been 
 applied. It is the process of reasoning which enables 
 us to determine whether our statements can be sub- 
 stantiated or not, and if they can, how. The reasoning 
 process also reveals to us the weakness of the side we 
 are upholding, and enables us to fortify our weak 
 places; while at the same time it puts us upon the 
 alert to discover the weaknesses of our opponents and 
 to refute their arguments. Ability to think clearly, 
 closely, logically, and to continue the process until we 
 have thought the whole subject through to the end, is 
 the only thing that insures the strongest possible pres- 
 entation of our material in the form of a brief, which 
 
 
ARGUMENTATION 417 
 
 is the finished product, as far as thought goes, of effec- 
 tive work in argumentation. 
 
 Formal Argumentation. This kind of discourse ap- 
 proaches an exact science more nearly than any other. 
 In narration, description, and exposition, masterful 
 writers are " a law unto themselves "; in argumentation 
 there is no such freedom. Here the method resembles 
 that of geometry. As in geometry, so also in argumen- 
 tation, the writer proceeds from certain known truths, 
 or axioms, to prove new propositions. The first im- 
 portant fact to remember is, that in argumentation 
 mere assertion will not suffice; actual proof is de- 
 manded. Formal argumentation is the presentation of 
 logical proof in such a manner as to result in conviction 
 in the minds of others as to the truth or falseness of 
 the statement made in a proposition. 
 
 Discussion and Debate. In our consideration of 
 argumentation we shall deal principally with the debate, 
 which is very formal, having a definite number of 
 speakers on each side and allowing each speaker a 
 limited time. The discussion is less formal than the 
 debate and more formal than what we have designated 
 as informal argumentation in conversation. A hearing 
 before a city council is a discussion. The council, for 
 instance, announces that there will be a hearing at a 
 certain date upon the general question, The Use of the 
 School Buildings as Social Centers. Anyone may par- 
 ticipate. The discussion may be very close or it may 
 be very one-sided. Everyone takes the side in which 
 he believes; while in a debate some may have to argue 
 
418 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 for the side in which they do not believe. The discus- 
 sion is democratic; the debate is republican. In the 
 one, citizens speak as they desire and if they desire; 
 in the other certain representatives speak. 
 
 The Proposition. The difference between a topic 
 and a proposition is fundamental. A topic need not be 
 a sentence; a proposition must be. One may write an 
 exposition upon the topic Domestic Science, but he could 
 not argue upon it. To bring it within the realm of 
 argumentation a statement must be made about it. 
 Domestic Science should be made compulsory in all high 
 schools, is a proposition, because it is a challenge. Some 
 believe it; others do not. It separates people into two 
 opposing groups. 
 
 The proposition should be stated as simply as pos- 
 sible, preferably in a simple declarative sentence. If 
 a complex sentence is necessary it should not be much 
 involved. Compound sentences should never be used 
 to state propositions. 
 
 State the proposition so as to have the two sides as 
 nearly equal as possible. 
 
 Remember that the whole proposition is to be de- 
 bated. Do not debate about a term in a proposition. 
 
 The Clash and the Issues. In every well-stated 
 proposition there must be ground for difference of opin- 
 ion. This is called the clash. The clash of opinion gives 
 rise to the issues. Without a head-on clash and definite 
 issues there can be no debate. For instance, fifty years 
 ago there was a decided clash over the proposition that 
 public high schools should be maintained at public ex- 
 
ARGUMENTATION 419 
 
 pense. But times have so changed the situation that 
 there is no longer any clash. The question has been 
 settled. There is a clash, however, when it is proposed 
 to use school buildings as social centers; there are 
 definite issues; the question is debatable. 
 
 Finding the Issues. Where there is a real clash the 
 first logical step is to find out what the controversy is 
 about, what is to be settled, what points are at issue. 
 Settling these matters is called finding the issues, and 
 it is fundamental, the first step toward final success. 
 
 Finding the issues necessitates a thorough study and 
 careful analysis of the whole subject concerning which 
 the proposition states one side. One must have an 
 open mind, free from prejudices and foregone conclu- 
 sions, so that he can view both sides impartially and 
 discover the real issues which are inherent in the propo- 
 sition. Find them there. Do not invent issues; it is 
 unfair, illogical, and confusing. Find the real issues 
 and then evaluate them, to separate the main issues, or 
 material issues, from the immaterial ones. One cannot 
 pick out the main issues without first finding all the 
 others of any importance. Finding the issues at the 
 beginning of a debate is as important as finding the 
 issues before undertaking any important work in life. 
 It is getting one's bearings. Reading, thinking, study- 
 ing, comprise the work. 
 
 The easiest way to find the issues is to ask and an- 
 swer a series of questions about the subject treated in 
 the proposition. The questions will vary according to 
 the nature of the subject, but will always be pertinent 
 
/ZO EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 to the subject. For instance, if you are debating con- 
 cerning some profession which has been recommended 
 to you for your life work — say teaching — you will natu- 
 rally ask yourself such questions as these, " Do I possess 
 the natural qualifications requisite in a teacher?" 
 "What are the opportunities for fitting myself for the 
 profession?" "What are the financial rewards?" 
 "What opportunities for promotion in this profession?" 
 "What good can I accomplish in the world through 
 this profession? " Such questions, and others like them, 
 reveal the questioner's mind and show it to be open to 
 conviction. If the questioner tries to answer them 
 fairly he will find the answers fall into two groups — 
 those which indicate reasons why he should choose 
 teaching and those which point the other way. The 
 questions show the issues; the answers to them are 
 contentions (which may be later used as arguments) 
 on the one side or the other. 
 
 Proceed in a similar way with any proposition by 
 asking and answering questions. The more you study 
 the subject the more value your answers will be; the 
 more you study the more questions you can answer. 
 When you have reached the point where no more ques- 
 tions suggest themselves, or where you find that you 
 have already answered them, you may conclude that 
 you have sufficient material and may analyze and ar- 
 range it sufficiently to find the mail* issues. 
 
 Write all points or reasons you have discovered or 
 thought out in two columns called, respectively," Affirm- 
 ative Contentions " and " Negative Contentions." Study 
 
ARGUMENTATION 421 
 
 the two columns to find out if any of the reasons you 
 have written down are so much alike that they may be 
 combined, which are the stronger, which may be included 
 as subordinate arguments supporting the stronger ones. 
 The strongest argument is not the one you can back 
 up with the most proof, but the one your opponent 
 will be the least able to refute. When you have re- 
 duced, by combination and subordination, all the af- 
 firmative contentions to three or four, and done the 
 same for the negative side, you are ready to contrast 
 the opposing contentions and be able , to phrase the 
 main issues. If the process of writing out the conten- 
 tions has been impartially and thoroughly done, it will 
 generally be found that the opposing contentions are 
 practically positive and negative answers to a few im- 
 portant questions which reveal the clash and point out 
 the issues. Ask those questions and they will state 
 the main issues in such a way as to satisfy both sides. 
 This process is well called limiting the subject, and if it 
 is well done it tends to hold both sides to the real 
 points at issue and prevent digressions. 
 
 The more fully to illustrate the process of finding 
 the issues as the first step preparatory to making a 
 brief on both sides of a proposition, let us take the fol- 
 lowing, "Resolved, That Motion Picture Theaters as 
 now conducted are a valuable asset in a Community." 
 We assume a thorough study and analysis of both sides 
 of the subject. 
 
 In the following list of contentions we have omitted 
 the first rough draft, in which the various arguments, 
 
422 
 
 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 intellectual, social, moral, etc., and the minor divisions, 
 would be put down without classification. We do this 
 to save time and space here, and give the contentions 
 as grouped under main headings and with the proper 
 subdivisions, to indicate the next step in advance in 
 rinding the issues. 
 
 Affirmative Contentions 
 
 b. Scientific expedi- 
 
 
 tions. 
 
 The affirmative contends that 
 
 c. Science applied to 
 
 motion-picture theaters, as now 
 
 industries: 
 
 conducted, are a valuable asset 
 
 1. Manufacturing. 
 
 for a community, for 
 
 2. Agriculture. 
 
 I. Motion Picture Theaters 
 
 d. Current events. 
 
 furnish inexpensive amuse- 
 
 e. Nature study. 
 
 ment. (Here you would in- 
 
 f. Interest non-reading 
 
 dicate the proof of the 
 
 class in the world's 
 
 above statement, and, per- 
 
 work. 
 
 haps, compare with more 
 
 Ill . Motion Picture Theaters are 
 
 expensive and less desirable 
 
 socially valuable, for they 
 
 forms of amusement.) 
 
 A. Help form public opin- 
 
 II. Motion Picture Theaters are 
 
 ion on 
 
 of great educational value, 
 
 a. Good government. 
 
 for 
 
 b. Public hygiene: 
 
 A. They supplement school 
 
 1. Pure food. 
 
 work, by illustrating 
 
 2. Clean streets. 
 
 such subjects as 
 
 3. Clean back yards. 
 
 a. History. 
 
 4. Fly pest. 
 
 b. Literature. 
 
 c. Red Cross work. 
 
 c. Geography. 
 
 d. Liberty-bond cam- 
 
 d. Sciences, such as 
 
 paigns, etc., etc. 
 
 1. Physiography. 
 
 IV. Motion Pictures are mor- 
 
 2. Physics. 
 
 ally valuable, for they in- 
 
 3. Biology, etc. 
 
 culcate lessons in 
 
 B. They go further than 
 
 A. Heroism. 
 
 the schools in giving 
 
 B. Patriotism. 
 
 advanced information 
 
 (The slacker.) 
 
 through 
 
 C. Reform, such as 
 
 a. Travelogues. 
 
 a. Liquor traffic. 
 
ARGUMENTATION 
 
 423 
 
 b. Vice. 
 
 c. Dope habit. 
 
 D. Domestic life. 
 
 E. Keeping people away 
 from bad influences. 
 
 Negative Contentions 
 
 The negative contends that 
 Motion Picture Theaters, as now 
 conducted, are a menace to the 
 public welfare, for the following 
 reasons: 
 
 I. They are physically harm- 
 ful, for 
 
 A. They cause eye strain. 
 
 B. Improperly heated. 
 
 C. Poorly ventilated. 
 
 D. Often not equipped with 
 fire escapes. 
 
 II. Intellectually detrimental, 
 for 
 
 A. They do not stimulate 
 clear thinking, but su- 
 perficial thinking or 
 none at all. 
 
 B. Really instructive films 
 are rarely shown. 
 
 C. Films of educational 
 value are used in schools 
 
 / and not welcomed by 
 theater patrons. (On 
 the testimony of theater 
 managers.) 
 
 D. What little information 
 is given is in such a 
 fragmentary and hap- 
 hazard way as to render 
 it useless for instruction. 
 
 III. Motion Picture Theaters are 
 socially harmful, for they 
 persistently represent: 
 
 A. Broken homes. 
 
 B. Divorces. 
 
 C. Wrong ideals of fidelity 
 to 
 
 a. The marriage tie. 
 
 b. The law. 
 
 c. Religion. 
 
 d. Social betterment. 
 
 e. Selfishness. 
 
 D. They overemphasize: 
 
 a. Vulgarity. 
 
 b. Cynicism. 
 
 c. Duplicity and trick- 
 ery. 
 
 d. Smart Aleck esca- 
 pades. 
 
 e. Cheap melodrama, 
 leading to a craze 
 for adventure. 
 
 IV. Motion Picture Theaters are 
 morally harmful, for they 
 often 
 
 A. Suggest evil doings clev- 
 erly, so that only the 
 cleverness is noticed, 
 while the evil is uncon- 
 sciously absorbed. 
 
 B. Frequent representa- 
 tions of crime lead 
 the young into the com- 
 mitting of crime. (On 
 the testimony of police 
 courts.) 
 
 C. Whatever moral lessons 
 some films may contain 
 are missed by the chil- 
 dren, who go "just for 
 fun." 
 
 D. They give a wrong con- 
 ception of love. They 
 cheapen it and degrade 
 it. 
 
424 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 E. They interfere with evil is no longer re- 
 moral and uplifting in- volting. 
 stitutions, such as «• The y become 
 
 a. The church. "regulars" and 
 
 b. The Sabbath. ™ ! on f r dls " 
 
 c. Libraries. . criminate. 
 
 _ _, , , . f c. In the long run they 
 
 F. They are deceptive, for , i 
 
 x ' J r ' take more money 
 
 ..... . from patrons than 
 
 a. Mislead children by they would gpend on 
 
 apparent cheapness. the regu i ar drama . 
 
 b. They corrupt taste, g. The managers confess 
 for that they cater to the 
 1. They constantly opinion of their patrons 
 
 witness question- and not to those who 
 
 able plays until care for public welfare. 
 
 Now, if we examine the series of arguments in the 
 "affirmative-contention" column, and select the strong- 
 est, we shall, of course, be limited to the larger general 
 statements, and we find there are four such: (I) They 
 furnish inexpensive amusement; (II) they have edu- 
 cational value; (III) they are socially valuable, and 
 (IV) they are morally valuable. 
 
 Turning to the " negative-contention" column, we 
 find that, after classifying and subordinating the argu- 
 ments, we have again four general statements : (I) They 
 are physically harmful; (II) they are intellectually 
 detrimental; (III) they are socially harmful, and (IV) 
 they are morally harmful. 
 
 Comparing these two groups of opposing contentions, 
 we find that we have on both sides arguments based 
 upon intellectual considerations, on social effects, and 
 on moral effects. There is also one argument upon 
 each side which has no exact opposite on the other side 
 
ARGUMENTATION 425 
 
 — the affirmative argument for cheap amusement, and 
 the negative one for physical harmfulness. Hence, in 
 seeking the main issues we ignore these two apparently 
 minor arguments and confine ourselves to the three on 
 each side where there is a real definite issue: the in- 
 tellectual, the social, and the moral considerations. 
 The main issues, growing out of the definite clash of 
 opinion revealed by the two sides, stated in question 
 form, as they always should be, are: 
 
 I. Are Motion Picture Theaters, as now con- 
 ducted, an asset to a community intellectually? 
 
 II. Are Motion Picture Theaters, as now con- 
 ducted, an asset to a community socially? 
 
 III. Are Motion Picture Theaters, as now con- 
 ducted, an asset to a community morally? 
 
 It is to be borne in mind that all this work is pre- 
 liminary and, except the results given in the questions 
 stating the main issues, does not appear in the brief. 
 In a debate where different groups work out the issues 
 independently there may not be such agreement, and 
 yet if both sides are equally careful and open-minded, 
 and do not know at first which side they are to defend, 
 there ishould be substantial agreement. If one side 
 studies the subject more thoroughly it will have the 
 advantage in the end because it will have proved its 
 ability to discover the real issues and be in a position 
 to show the minor importance of other issues. The 
 superiority which reveals itself in finding the real issues 
 will stand them in good stead in defending their side. 
 
 Having found the issues, we are now ready to pre- 
 
426 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 pare briefs on both sides of the question. The affirma- 
 tive changes the questions containing the issues into 
 declarative form, and uses them as main arguments to 
 prove the proposition; while the negative changes the 
 questions to declarative form, states them negatively, 
 and uses them to prove the negative side of the 
 proposition. 
 
 The Brief. Now that we have learned what the 
 proposition is and how to state it ; that we have learned 
 what the main issues are, and how to find and to state 
 them so as to have them express the clash of opinion — 
 we must define the brief and its parts and learn how to 
 make it. 
 
 The brief is the most highly specialized, the most 
 complete, the most formal of all the outlines with which 
 we have to deal. Learn the following definition: A 
 brief is a complete outline upon one side of a debatable 
 question, stating the proposition together with the 
 minor propositions upon whose proof the proof of the 
 main proposition depends, together with the reasons 
 for the truth of the minor propositions. All parts of the 
 brief must be so arranged as to reveal, at a glance, the 
 correlation of the minor propositions and the proper 
 correlation and subordination of the reasons for the 
 truth of the minor propositions. Each proposition is a 
 complete, simple, declarative sentence. 
 
 PARTS OF THE BRIEF 
 
 A brief consists of three distinct parts: the introduc- 
 tion, the brief proper, or body, and the conclusion. 
 
ARGUMENTATION 427 
 
 The Introduction of the Brief. The introduction is 
 wholly expository) it must never contain any proof. 
 The six essential parts of the introduction to the 
 brief are: 
 
 I. The Opening. First impressions are always im- 
 portant. Let the first two or three sentences be made 
 as striking as possible in form, so as to win the attention 
 of the audience from the outset. Let these sentences 
 be brief, clear, forceful, convincing. It is well to point 
 out the timeliness of the discussion; its vital importance 
 to the nation, or the city, or whatever group of indi- 
 viduals is concerned; and the effect its decision will, 
 have. Make the opening tell. 
 
 II. The History of the Question. Tell how the ques- 
 tion arose. Point out the history of various phases of 
 the question, if possible, in the history of the nation. 
 For instance, if the question involved some aspect of 
 the Monroe Doctrine, it would be well to tell of the 
 origin of the doctrine, the instances when it has been 
 applied, and enough of its present bearing upon inter- 
 national questions to make the proposed discussion 
 intelligible. The amount of space given to the history 
 must always be brief and the material must be handled 
 with such care as to enable the debater to say much in 
 few words. 
 
 III. Definition. Most questions contain at least one 
 term that may be new to the audience, or which may be 
 capable of different meanings. All such terms must be 
 carefully defined in terms other than those used in 
 dictionaries. The best source of the correct meaning 
 
428 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 of terms is to be found in specialists on the subject 
 under discussion. It is always well to give authorities. 
 
 IV. Limiting the Question. In order to avoid digres- 
 sions in discussion of irrelevant matter and to hold to 
 that which is vital, it is customary to limit the question, 
 and to state how it is done at this point in the introduc- 
 tion. Any admissions, such as the constitutionality of 
 a question, should also be noted. 
 
 V. The Statement of the Main Issues. Here, for the 
 first time, there appears in the brief the result of all 
 the study which has enabled the debater to find the 
 issues. This is the vital part of the introduction, for 
 here we learn precisely what the debate is about and 
 what the method of procedure is to be. State the main 
 issues in the form of questions to show the debatability 
 of the opposition; then restate them in declarative 
 form as the main arguments of the side. 
 
 In this form, when it is shown what each speaker is 
 to do, they give the plan of procedure. 
 
 VI. Plan of Procedure. (The introduction should 
 be limited to four minutes, and to still less if possible. 
 These directions cover all kinds of questions and should 
 not be considered essential in all respects in regard to 
 every question. Define and limit, and give the history 
 cf the question as far as occasion requires, but give heed 
 always to the stating of the main issues, for without them 
 the debate cannot proceed in a manner intelligible to 
 an ordinary audience.) 
 
 The Body of the Brief, or Proof. This is the most im- 
 portant part of the brief, for it is here that the proposi- 
 
ARGUMENTATION 429 
 
 tion is proved by the affirmative, or disproved by the 
 negative. In the body of the brief the main conten- 
 tions, which have already been found to clash with the 
 contentions of the opposing side, are again stated. This 
 time, however, they are stated as supporting, or minor 
 propositions, proving the main proposition. They are 
 stated in the form of complete, simple, declarative sen- 
 tences, and always preceded by the word for or because. 
 
 Do not use too many supporting propositions. Use 
 at least two; rarely more than four. No matter how 
 many arguments may have been used in locating the 
 clash, establishing the issues, and finding the main 
 issues, use but few here. To pile up arguments tends 
 to weaken rather than to strengthen your debate. You 
 will find, however, that all of the really valuable mate- 
 rial found while seeking the issues may be used as 
 reasons to substantiate your supporting propositions. 
 
 In order to avoid the weakening effect of an anti- 
 climax, arrange your substantiating propositions cli- 
 mactically: the weakest first, then the next strong, and 
 so on, reserving the strongest for the last. 
 
 Treat each substantiating proposition in the same 
 manner in which you treat the main proposition; state 
 it; then state its proofs, preceding each proof by the 
 word for or because. 
 
 A well-constructed brief is a good example of deduc- 
 tive reasoning: you begin with your conclusion and 
 then show why it is true, by stating the minor proposi- 
 tions, which are also proved by advancing evidence. 
 Evidence becomes proof when it proves. 
 
430 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 A well-constructed brief shows, at a glance, the whole 
 line of thought, and reads from left to right in such a 
 way as to show how the general statement of the main 
 proposition is made clear and proved by the use of the 
 slightly more specific statement of the substantiating 
 propositions, which are, in turn, clarified by still more 
 specific statements which often include concrete 
 illustrations. 
 
 In testing the value of evidence to see whether 
 or not it may be used as proof, study the para- 
 graphs on "The Evidence of Inference' ' that you may 
 guard against false inferences, wrong deductions, jump- 
 ing at conclusions, begging the question, etc. Clear 
 thinking, actual reasoning, will both enable you to find 
 the best possible evidence, make it prove your conten- 
 tions, and further enable you to state your case so as 
 to make it hard, if not impossible, for your opponents to 
 find flaws in your reasoning. 
 
 Think! Think! Think! 
 
 Do not forget to show the coherence of your brief by 
 preceding each of your proofs by the word for or because. 
 Do not use the words hence or therefore in a brief. To 
 do so would subordinate your main statement to the 
 rest of the brief; whereas your purpose should be the 
 very obverse, to show that all the rest is subordinate to 
 the main proposition. 
 
 To test the body of a brief for coherence substitute 
 the words hence or therefore for the words for or because, 
 and read it backwards— that is from right to left. If 
 your brief is correctly constructed, this reading will 
 
ARGUMENTATION 431 
 
 show the main proposition to be the logical conclusion 
 of the whole series of logical steps of reasoning. In 
 other words, it will be like inductive reasoning start- 
 ing with a large number of concrete facts and ending 
 with the main proposition as the logical inference or 
 generalization from the facts. The laws of unity, co- 
 herence, and proportion, are of the utmost importance 
 in brief making. 
 
 The Conclusion. The conclusion is a restatement of 
 the main arguments. It is permissible to preface the 
 summary by some such words as "We of the affirmative 
 (or negative) have proved our side by advancing the 
 following arguments. ..." No new material should be 
 added. Be brief. Be confident. Be persuasive. 
 A Specimen Brief. 
 
 Resolved, That Motion Picture Theaters are a valu- 
 able Asset in a Community. (Affirmative.) 
 
 Introduction. 
 
 I. Opening. 
 
 A. Timeliness of the question. 
 
 B. Importance of settling the question now. 
 
 a. Much criticism, pro and con. 
 
 b. Only way to stop discussion is to settle 
 
 the matter (Very brief) 
 
 II. History of the question. 
 
 A. Rapid development of Motion Picture The- 
 
 aters. 
 
 B. Changing attitude. 
 
432 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 a. Of the people toward the theaters. 
 
 b. Of the theater managers toward the 
 
 public. 
 
 III. Definition. 
 
 A. Debate is about theaters; not motion pic- 
 
 tures used in schools, etc. 
 
 B. Asset means " unquestioned value." 
 
 IV. Limiting the question. 
 
 A. Both sides admit that the discussion should 
 
 be limited to the M. P. T. as an asset for 
 
 the whole community : 
 
 a. Those who patronize the theaters : 
 
 1. Adults. 
 
 2. Children. 
 
 b. Those who do not patronize them but 
 are influenced; such as: 
 
 1. Those who cannot afford to go. 
 
 2. Those whose work is interfered 
 
 with; such as: 
 
 (1) Churches. 
 
 (2) Schools. 
 
 B. It is admitted that the M. P. T. has great 
 
 potential influence' 
 
 a. For good. 
 
 b. For evil. 
 
 V. The main issues are best expressed in the following 
 
 questions : 
 
 A. Are Motion Picture Theaters, as now con- 
 ducted, an asset to a community intel- 
 lectually? 
 
ARGUMENTATION 433 
 
 B. Are Motion Picture Theaters, as now con- 
 
 ducted, an asset to a community so- 
 cially? and 
 
 C. Are Motion Picture Theaters, as now con- 
 
 ducted, an asset to a community morally? 
 VI. We, of the Affirmative, believe they are an asset to 
 a community because they benefit the community men- 
 tally, socially, and morally, consequently we offer the 
 following proof to substantiate our claims : 
 
 1. Motion Picture Theaters, as now conducted, are 
 
 of great educational value. 
 
 2. Motion Picture Theaters, as now conducted, are 
 
 of great social value. 
 3.. Motion Picture Theaters, as now conducted, are 
 of great moral value. 
 
 Body 
 
 Affirmative 
 
 (Proposition) " Motion Picture Theaters, as now con- 
 ducted, are an asset to a community' ' 
 because 
 I. They are of great educational value, for 
 
 A. They make school work more interesting, 
 because 
 a. They visualize some subjects, such as His- 
 tory, Literature, and such sciences as 
 Geography, Physiography, Physics, 
 Chemistry, and Geology. (See note, 
 next page). 
 
434 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 B. They extend and supplement school work, 
 because 
 
 a. They give travelogues, illustrating life in 
 
 foreign countries, distant parts of our 
 own country (Alaska), ocean trips, etc. 1 
 
 b. They recount scientific expeditions, to 
 
 study geology in special locations, to 
 study deep-sea fauna, to explore Arctic 
 and Antarctic regions. 5 
 
 c. They show the practical application of 
 
 science, in 
 Manufacturing industries, such as 
 Cotton Mills, 1 
 Woollen Mills, 
 Paper Mills, and 
 Agriculture (scientific farming, study 
 
 of soil, rotation of crops, etc. 
 Horticulture (Study of) cause and 
 
 cure of tree diseases). 
 Forestry (reforestation, etc.). 
 
 d. They encourage nature study, for 
 
 1. They show how flowers grow, 
 
 2. They show how cocoons develop, 
 
 3. They make the life processes intelligi- 
 
 ble, etc. 
 
 e. They disseminate news of current events, 
 
 upon 
 
 Industrial activities, 
 
 1 In this case and in similar ones the debater would give dates when 
 the plays were given at several theaters to corroborate statements. 
 
ARGUMENTATION 435 
 
 Foreign events, 
 
 Calamities, labor troubles, etc., 
 
 Political news. 
 
 II. They are of great social value, for 
 
 A. They help form public opinion, for 
 
 a. They teach good citizenship, 
 
 b. They support good government, 
 
 c. They encourage public hygiene, be- 
 
 cause 
 
 1. They show the value of pure 
 
 food and good cooking, 
 
 2. They help promote clean back 
 
 yards (clean-up day), 
 
 3. They help in " swatting the 
 
 fly campaigns." 
 
 d. They promote worthy causes, Red 
 
 Cross drives, Charity drives, etc. 
 
 B. They furnish wholesome amusement for all 
 
 classes. 
 
 (Enlarge, etc.) 
 
 III. They are of great moral value, because 
 
 A,. They inculcate lessons in patriotism, for 
 
 a. They show what patriotism is, and 
 
 b. They emphasize the evils of being un- 
 
 true to one's country, 
 
 c. They show the qualities of real heroism. 
 
 B. They advocate reform, for 
 
 a. They show the evils of drink, drugs, 
 etc. 
 
 C. They tend to keep people away from such 
 
436 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 bad influences as cheap dance halls, pool 
 rooms, etc. 
 D. They help domestic life, for 
 
 a. They keep the family together, for 
 
 1. At the x. y. z. Theater last Satur- 
 day night, there were forty- 
 seven families of at least four. 
 (Further similar facts, etc.) 
 
 Negative 
 
 The introduction would be substantially the same as 
 that for the affirmative, except in the statement of the 
 arguments advanced in proof of the negative side. 
 They might be stated as follows: We of the negative 
 believe that the evils of Motion Picture Theaters exceed 
 the benefits, and in proof of our contention advance 
 the following arguments: 
 
 I. Motion Picture Theaters are physically harmful; 
 II. Motion Picture Theaters are intellectually detri- 
 mental; 
 
 III. Motion Picture Theaters are socially harmful; and 
 
 IV. Motion Picture Theaters, are morally harmful. 
 
 (Body of the brief) 
 
 (Proposition Motion Picture Theaters, as now con- 
 ducted, are not an asset to a commun- 
 munity, because: 
 I. Motion Picture Theaters are physically harmful, for 
 A. They cause eyestrain, which is proved, 
 
ARGUMENTATION 437 
 
 a. The testimony of physicians, ocu- 
 lists, and opticians. 
 (Here, and in similar cases, have exact data for proof.) 
 
 B. They are poorly ventilated, because 
 
 a. Much illness directly traced to low- 
 ered vitality due to breathing poi- 
 soned air, in proof of which is 
 1. The testimony of Dr. X. Y. Z. 
 
 C. The buildings are often poorly heated, for 
 
 a. On such a date Mr. X. took the tem- 
 perature, etc., and his testimony is 
 vouched for by competent wit- 
 nesses. 
 
 D. The buildings are frequently fire-traps, for 
 
 a. The M. Theater was totally destroyed 
 
 on March 2, when the fire com- 
 panies proved useless. 
 
 b. The C. Theater has been condemned 
 
 as unsafe by the Fire Department. 
 II. Motion Picture Theaters are intellectually detrimen- 
 tal, because 
 A. They tend toward superficial thinking, or 
 none at all, for 
 
 a. Such "lines" as stimulate thought 
 
 are lacking, as is proved 
 
 1. By almost any film taken at 
 random. 
 
 b. They overstimulate the imagination, 
 
 which is fatal to thinking, 
 
 1 . Proved by quizzing any ' ' f an. ' ' 
 
438 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 c. They lead people to think seeing a 
 "movie" is equivalent to reading 
 a book, which is proved by the 
 facts that : 
 
 1. They confess that they read 
 
 less, 
 
 2. They convince themselves 
 
 that reading is not neces- 
 sary, until 
 
 3. They stop reading altogether. 
 
 B. Really instructive films are rarely shown, be- 
 
 cause 
 a. They do not pay, because 
 
 1. Movie "fans/' who largely 
 
 support the theaters, do not 
 want them, proved by the 
 fact that 
 
 2. They stay away when they 
 
 know such films are fea- 
 tured. 
 
 3. The managers frankly confess 
 
 that they do not pay. 
 
 C. What little information they do give is com- 
 
 paratively useless, because 
 
 a. It is fragmentary, and 
 
 b. It is given in a haphazard, unsystem- 
 
 atic manner, rendering it useless 
 for instruction. 
 III. Motion Picture Theaters are socially harmful, be- 
 cause 
 
ARGUMENTATION 439 
 
 A. They are hostile to the family (the basis of 
 
 society) because 
 
 a. They feature wrecked homes con- 
 
 tinually, 
 
 b. They exaggerate the commonness of 
 
 divorce (which wrecks homes), 
 
 c. They minimize the evil of divorce, for 
 
 1. Quickly married people are 
 soon divorced, and without 
 any compunctions of con- 
 science, for 
 
 1. See such and such 
 plays. 
 
 d. Love is cheapened and vulgarized 
 
 (leading to prompt divorce). 
 
 e. Elopements are glorified, represented 
 
 as common, and with just a dash 
 of evil to make it attractive to the 
 fast set. 
 
 B. They are hostile to the state, for 
 
 a. They are hostile to the law upon 
 
 which the state rests, for 
 
 1. They belittle the law and all 
 authority, for 
 
 1. They make heroes of 
 lawbreakers, as in, 
 etc. 
 
 b. They are cynical toward agencies 
 
 whose purpose is to uphold law and 
 order, for 
 
440 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 1. They make fun of govern- 
 ment agents trying to en- 
 force the eighteenth amend- 
 ment, etc. 
 C. They are hostile to the ideal culture necessary 
 in a sane and well-ordered community, be- 
 cause 
 
 a. They " feature" plays characterized 
 
 by coarseness and vulgarity, 
 
 1. For example (give names and 
 dates, etc., of plays of the 
 kind referred to). 
 
 b. They "feature" trickery and duplic- 
 
 ity under the guise of cleverness, 
 for 
 
 1. Xyz is a concrete example. 
 
 c. They "feature" "Smart Aleck" es- 
 
 capades, which tend to belittle 
 honest effort and work; for example: 
 1. (Give concrete example with 
 comment.) 
 
 d. They "feature" cheap melodrama, 
 
 often bordering upon burlesque, 
 characterized by silly sentimental- 
 ity on the one hand, and by law- 
 lessness on the other; for example 
 1. (Give examples, as many as 
 possible.) 
 IV. Motion Picture Theaters, as now conducted, are 
 morally harmful, because 
 
ARGUMENTATION 441 
 
 A. They tend to lower ethical ideals concerning 
 
 virtue, true manliness, goodness, true 
 friendship, etc., for 
 
 a. They ridicule them as "old fogyish" 
 
 and out of date, etc., for 
 
 1. (Give concrete examples with 
 dates, etc.) 
 
 b. They often seem to put the stamp of 
 
 their approval upon " pick-up" ac- 
 quaintances and the like, for 
 1. (Give concrete examples.) 
 
 B. They cleverly suggest evil by the most effec- 
 
 tive method of insinuating what they dare 
 not express, for 
 
 a. There are frequently questionable al- 
 
 lusions, 
 
 b. There are suggestions of " double 
 
 meanings. " 
 
 1. For example, etc. 
 
 C. They make crime seem a commonplace oc- 
 
 currence, because 
 
 a. The "fans," being hardened and 
 
 coarsened, are not shocked or re- 
 pulsed by pictures representing 
 crime, 
 
 b. Boys frequently become actual crimi- 
 
 nals, because 
 
 1. Police court judges testify 
 that crimes can be traced 
 to Motion Picture Theaters 
 
442 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 and, definitely, to plays de- 
 picting crimes, for 
 
 1. We have definite evi- 
 dence from Judge 
 Y. Z. X. 
 2. Juvenile courts, which have 
 concrete evidence have tes- 
 tified that youthful crimi- 
 nals got started at theaters 
 where they witnessed plays 
 depicting crimes. 
 
 D. The moral lessons they seek to impart are 
 
 wholly ineffective, for 
 
 a. They are clumsily put, and 
 
 b. Boys especially resent "preaching" 
 • where they go for amusement. 
 
 E. They interfere with institutions and agencies 
 
 whose whole purpose is to be uplifting, 
 because 
 
 a. They have performances at the same 
 
 hours that churches have services, 
 
 b. They frequently ridicule churches 
 
 and ministers unfairly, 
 
 c. They make heroes of truant school- 
 
 boys, etc. 
 
 F. They are hypocritical, deceiving the young, 
 
 for 
 
 a. The apparent cheapness is not real 
 cheapness, but extravagance, for 
 1. Children "get the habit," and 
 
ARGUMENTATION 443 
 
 become " regulars/' and so 
 in a year spend much more 
 than they would for the 
 regular drama. (Give sta- 
 tistics.) 
 
 b. "Regulars " constantly deteriorate, for 
 i 1. The kind of plays they de- 
 mand gets from worse to 
 worse. (Give examples in 
 
 1 several cases.) 
 
 2. Old " regulars" confess they 
 no longer care for the regu- 
 lar drama. (Give concrete 
 examples.) 
 
 c. While professing to stand for the 
 
 best, managers are really influenced 
 in their selection by the perverted 
 taste of the regular patrons, for 
 1.. The managers themselves tes- 
 tify that they do not care 
 for the moral element in so- 
 ciety, but for those who pay. 
 
 Conclusion 
 
 Wherefore, we of the negative, having proved that 
 Motion-picture Theaters are harmful physically, men- 
 tally, socially, and morally, claim that we have satis- 
 factorily answered the questions stating the issues in 
 the Negative, thus showing that Motion-picture The- 
 aters are more harmful than beneficial. 
 
444 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 The Forensic. The forensic is the speech written out 
 in full, according to the brief. It is needless to say that 
 it must follow the brief in every particular, and that 
 especial attention must be given to transitions and to 
 the proper subordination of the minor arguments to 
 the major ones. There is always a tendency to over- 
 state the minor matters, but this tendency must be 
 overcome, for time and space are precious. The brief 
 will insure unity and coherence, but unusual care must 
 be taken to secure the proper emphasis. Make the 
 essential parts of each argument stand out prominently. 
 Make the most of emphatic positions. End strongly. 
 
 In most formal debates the forensic will be written 
 out in three separate parts by the three speakers, who 
 divide the material as nearly as possible into three 
 equal parts. Each one will follow the general instruc- 
 tions given in the preceding paragraph and seek to say 
 all he can as clearly and as strongly as possible in the 
 limited time at his disposal. Let the wording be vital, 
 showing that the writer is fully alive to his subject, full 
 of his subject. 
 
 It is well to write out the forensic even though it is 
 not to be committed to memory. It will help to unify 
 one's thoughts. The forensic should not be read in a 
 debate. 
 
 The Oral Development of the Brief. It is generally 
 conceded that the most effective method of conducting 
 the actual debate is not the memoriter method, for one 
 may forget, and that is fatal, but the oral composition 
 method. The brief should not only be committed to 
 
ARGUMENTATION 445 
 
 memory; it should be so visualized that the debater 
 sees it as a whole and sees all its parts and their rela- 
 tions, all the time. Then let him speak from the topics 
 of the brief. There should be much oral practice to 
 overcome the tendency in oral work to enlarge too much 
 and so fail to cover the ground before the time is up. 
 Team work consists in each debater co-operating with 
 his colleagues to avoid needless repetition and espe- 
 cially in helping properly to articulate his speech with 
 the other speeches. 
 
 Refutation. Many debates are won by the rebuttal 
 speeches. The reason is evident. The kinds of argu- 
 ment we have considered up to this time are construc- 
 tive and direct. They are given as reasons proving 
 the truth of a side. But in the rebuttal, or refutation, 
 parts of a speech, one uses destructive arguments to 
 demolish his opponent's defense. If he can do it, while 
 not suffering his own defenses to be demolished, he can 
 easily win. 
 
 Planning for Rebuttal. The first step in planning for 
 rebuttal is while studying and analyzing the subject 
 to find the issues. If one studies both sides impartially 
 at the beginning, he will discover the most evident line 
 of defense the opposing side will take, and get his an- 
 swers ready. The next thing to do is to watch for weak 
 places in his opponent's armor, revealed during the 
 debate. If one can discover a false inference, an un- 
 proved assertion, or an illogical deduction, in his op- 
 ponent's argument, it will afford a capital opportunity 
 for rebuttal. If one can find any weakness in an argu- 
 
446 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 ment which an opponent especially emphasizes, or which 
 seems to be popular with the audience, so much the 
 better. If he can refute such an argument it will very 
 materially advance his side. 
 
 Do not try to refute every argument of an opponent; 
 there is not sufficient time. What time you have should 
 be used in demolishing the few upon which your op- 
 ponents have relied the most. 
 
 Look out for false analogies. Analogies are not proof, 
 though they often serve as good illustrations. If one is 
 used as proof, point the fact out. 
 
 Look out for irrelevant arguments that have nothing 
 to do with the question under debate. 
 
 Look out for cases of arguing in a circle, or " begging 
 the question." 
 
 Look out for instances of " equivocation," or using 
 words in more than one sense. 
 
 Above all, look out for instances of evading the issue 
 or arguing beside the issue and ignoring the question. 
 
 As a rule, rebuttal arguments should be recorded on 
 cards, each on a separate card, and used in the second 
 speech, which is devoted almost entirely to rebuttal. 
 Occasionally, however, it is well to include in the brief 
 some argument which is of the nature of a rebuttal. 
 For instance, in the brief on motion-picture theaters, 
 the argument of the affirmative, that motion-picture 
 theaters offer cheap amusement, might be assumed as 
 likely to be presented so that the negative argument is 
 really one of refutation when it points out that it is 
 only apparent cheapness, because people go so often 
 
 i 
 
ARGUMENTATION 447 
 
 that they spend more than they would for the drama 
 if attended occasionally. Then there is the fact that 
 over-frequent attendance results in infatuation and get- 
 ting the " movie habit." 
 
 Persuasion. Persuasion is a worthy adjunct to argu- 
 mentation, by means of which a debater may add to 
 the force of his proofs. Like style, persuasion is the 
 man, It depends upon one's personality, his knowledge 
 of human nature, and his ability to reach the emotions 
 of his hearers. It is a special use of the rhetorical 
 quality of force combined with the somewhat different 
 quality of oratorical force which may be said to result 
 from one's voice, his manner, his self-mastery, his mas- 
 tery of his subject, and his interest in his audience. 
 The persuasive speaker knows how to adapt himself to 
 his audience, without condescension, so as to win their 
 confidence. His sincerity must be genuine and evident. 
 He must be in earnest. He must feel what he says so 
 deeply that his hearers will share his feeling. He must 
 use words of large connotation, thus appealing to the 
 imaginations of his hearers through the power of sug- 
 gestion. If a speaker can combine all these qualities 
 Ins manner of delivery will greatly add to his arguments 
 and help him win, if not in the mind of his judges, at 
 least in the hearts of the audience. 
 
 Suggestive Exercises in Argumentation 
 
 I. Practice informal argumentation by finding real arguments 
 for and against commonly discussed theories concerning matters of 
 everyday conversation, such as: proposals for city improvement, 
 enlargement of the school building, municipal control, municipal 
 
448 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 ownership, commission government, etc. Be careful to distinguish 
 between real arguments and mere opinions, prejudices, personal 
 preferences, and the like. 
 
 11. Study the same subjects further and then form debatable 
 propositions upon them. As far as possible, state the propositions 
 so that the sides are equally debatable. State the proposition as 
 simply as possible. 
 
 III. Practice finding the issues by the method already explained 
 and illustrated, preparatory to making briefs for formal argumenta- 
 tion upon the following propositions (change the wording if you de- 
 sire) : 
 
 1. The Pen is Mightier Than the Sword. 
 
 2. The Study of Literature Offers More Cultural Advan- 
 tages Than the Study of History. 
 
 3. In the Highest Sense, Burke's Conciliation Speech Was 
 Successful. , 
 
 4. Separate High Schools for Boys and Girls Should Ee 
 Maintained in This City. 
 
 5. Public Schools Are More in Harmony with Democratic 
 Principles Than Private Schools. 
 
 6. The Demand for Patriotism Has Not Decreased Since 
 the Ending of the Great War. 
 
 7. The Professional Politician is a Detriment to the 
 Nation. 
 
 8. Every Woman Should Be Trained to Earn Her Own 
 Living. 
 
 9. The Study of Poetry is a Safeguard Against the Material- 
 izing Tendencies of Scientific and Industrial Education. 
 
 10. Athletics Should Be So Reorganized as to Make Them 
 a Sport for all instead of a mere Spectacle. 
 
 11. The Death Penalty should be Abolished. 
 
 12. The Jury System should be Abolished. 
 
 13. Divorce Laws should be made Uniform throughout the 
 States. 
 
 14. Spelling Reform should not be Advocated. 
 
 15. The Honor System in Examinations should be confined 
 to the Colleges. 
 
 16. School Initials, or an equivalent, should not be con- 
 fined to Athletics, but should be granted for scholarship, for 
 oratory, for debating, and for general excellence in school 
 activities. 
 
ARGUMENTATION 449 
 
 17. The time is ripe for the United States to develop a 
 Merchant Marine. 
 
 18. The Federal Reserve Bank System has Justified itself. 
 
 19. If a boy has a secondary school education, two years of 
 properly supervised foreign travel would do as much to fit 
 him for life as a college education. 
 
 20. The "Osborne" Prison Reform Movement has Justified 
 itself. 
 
 21. Secret Societies should be debarred from secondary 
 schools. 
 
 22. The Monroe Doctrine has Outlived its Usefulness. 
 
 23. School Athletes should not be given Suits or Sweaters. 
 
 24. The Income from Athletics should be used for all 
 School Activities. 
 
 25. Honor Pupuls (those having an average of 90 per cent.) 
 should be exempted from final Examinations. 
 
 26. School credit should be given for active participation 
 in extra curriculum intellectual activities. 
 
 27. Restricted Vivisection is Justifiable. 
 
 28. Compulsory Vaccination is Justifiable. 
 
 29. Citizens who habitually refuse to vote should be 
 disfranchised! 
 
 30. The Laboratory Method of Teaching civics should be 
 Compulsory. 
 
 The list given above is merely suggestive. Pupils should select 
 topics and put them into debatable form. For the sake of practice, 
 so-called worn-out topics should not be ignored. They are always 
 suggestive. On the other hand, topics of living and present interest 
 should be especially studied to keep abreast of the times and to 
 insure greater interest in argumentation. 
 
 IV. Practice making briefs, using the material gathered in finding 
 the issues, upon at least five of the above propositions. Make briefs 
 for both affirmative and negative sides. 
 
 V. Test your arguments by applying the processes of reasoning. 
 See if you can discover any of the common violations of the in- 
 ductive method. 
 
 Test for errors in deduction, errors in the use of the syllogism and 
 the incomplete syllogism. Look for such violations of logic as 
 " begging the question" or "arguing in a circle," equivocation, 
 evading the issue, and jumping at conclusions. 
 
 When in doubt about an incomplete syllogism, complete it. 
 
450 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 Practice making correct syllogisms, giving especial attention to 
 the middle term. Beware "the undistributed middle." 
 
 Beware of false analogies. 
 
 Read Poe's Mystery of Marie Roget for an excellent example of 
 refutation. Seek other illustrations of refutation. 
 
 Remember that learning to find errors in your own reasoning is 
 the best way to learn to detect the weakness in your opponent's 
 argumentation; that the best kind of refutation is to show the 
 arguments of the opposing side to contain flaws in reasoning. If 
 you can show that your own presentation is free from errors, so 
 much the better. The strongest argument is always the one that 
 your opponent finds it hardest to refute. 
 
 VI. Take any brief argumentative passage from a speech, such 
 as may be found in the World's Famous Orations or in almost any 
 collection of speeches, and construct a brief from the material there 
 found. This method of brief-making will be found most valuable 
 in learning to make your own briefs. Such brief-making from 
 other's speeches, moreover, familiarizes one with a form of exercise 
 common in examinations. 
 
 VII. Test your brief by applying the rhetorical principles, 
 especially coherence and proportion. See that your main headings 
 are properly correlated, — that they all bear the same relation to 
 the main proposition, — and that the minor propositions are prop- 
 erly subordinated to the main propositions and properly correlated 
 with each other. You should acquire such proficiency in brief- 
 making that you can tell, at a glance, that your brief corresponds 
 to the requirements set forth in the definition of a brief. 
 
 VIII. Finally, substitute the word hence for because, in your 
 brief, and read it backward, from right to left, thereby submitting 
 your work in deduction to the inductive test. If the work stands 
 this test it is a good finished product of effective expression in 
 argumentation. 
 
CHAPTER XI 
 THE USE OF FIGURES OF SPEECH 
 
 The aim of rhetoric is to make expression clear, force- 
 ful, and elegant, that it may be interesting. Besides 
 the devices already considered, there remains another 
 of great effectiveness: the use of words in a figurative 
 sense. Whenever a word is used in any other than its 
 plain, matter-of-fact, and literal meaning, it becomes 
 figurative. A figure of speech is any use of a word or 
 group of words in a way other than literal for the sake 
 of greater effectiveness through an appeal to the 
 imagination. 
 
 Such a use of words is not, as might at first seem to 
 be the case, unnatural and affected. The Indians in 
 their savage state abounded in figurative expressions. 
 Such usage is a natural extension of the power of a 
 word. It shows that words derive a large part of then- 
 force from their relations with other words. It gives a 
 large connotation to words. To use figures of speech 
 well one must have an active imagination, quick per- 
 ception, and good judgment. He must see similarities 
 and differences between what he is saying and what he 
 is not saying, but of which he is thinking. Hence the 
 large connotation. 
 
 Figures of speech likewise appeal to the imagination 
 
 451 
 
452 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 of the reader and listener. To imaginative readers and 
 listeners words are immediately seen to go far beyond 
 the bare statement of facts; they accumulate new 
 meanings, larger, and often quite different from what 
 they were supposed to have. They become pictur- 
 esque, suggestive. Some words have been called " faded 
 metaphors'' because of the original picturesqueness of 
 their meaning. The amount of meaning figures have 
 depends upon one's ability to take suggestions and to 
 complete pictures for himself. People of poetic tem- 
 perament are the most susceptible to figurative 
 language. 
 
 While caution must be used to prevent an overdoing 
 of the process of becoming striking and effective by 
 using inappropriate, exaggerated, or mixed figures, 
 there is little danger of this perversion of a great power 
 if one goes about it in the right way. 
 
 Figures of speech, when studied objectively, become 
 mere objects of knowledge, such knowledge as puffs up 
 and makes one self-conscious. The old way of studying 
 this phase of rhetoric was to begin, and often end, with 
 learning definitions of figures of speech and then in try- 
 ing to recognize them in one's reading. After such 
 training, if one tries to use figures of speech, he is apt 
 to be so conscious of his effort that he exaggerates it, 
 becomes affected and unnatural, and so defeats his own 
 purpose. Perchance, he says, "The pale hand of death 
 stalked into our midst last week and fastened its cruel 
 eyes on little Mary," and instead of becoming effective 
 he makes himself ridiculous. It is such a misuse of 
 
THE USE OF FIGURES OF SPEECH 453 
 
 figurative language that has led to the misconception 
 of rhetoric on the part of those who speak of all bom- 
 bastic, over-flowery language, as rhetorical. This mis- 
 take, however, is never made by those who know that 
 all means used by rhetoric are for the sake of those 
 essentials of all expression — clearness, force and ele- 
 gance, and interest. 
 
 The proper way to learn to enrich one's language by 
 making it figurative is to work from within, to stimu- 
 late the imagination, to see and feel all that is suggested 
 by a word, and then speak naturally. Figures of speech 
 will suggest themselves and will probably be apt and 
 appropriate. If good taste and a trained mind are 
 brought to bear upon these figures they will not become 
 11 mixed" nor too numerous. 
 
 The oft-quoted words " comparisons are odious" 
 should not be taken too seriously, for it would mean 
 the destruction of the imagination. In the realm of 
 rhetoric the habit of making comparisons is essential. 
 Dr. McCosh says in his Psychology, "By comparison 
 we discover the relations of things, discover a univer- 
 sal interdependence, and extend our knowledge indefi- 
 nitely, upward and downward, and all around, and 
 still are among realities." The act of making compari- 
 sons is fundamentally psychological. The active mind 
 must compare. The law of association of ideas must 
 assert itself; it will see resemblances or differences, but 
 principally resemblances. The more active one's mind 
 is the more resemblances it will see; the better com- 
 parisons it will make. 
 
454 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 It is through the imagination that this is done. The 
 imagination is the picturing, the reimaging power. One 
 thing calls up something else that has been associated 
 with it, or is like it, or suggested by it. So it naturally 
 follows that poets, who are most imaginative, use more 
 comparisons, use more figures of speech. But prose, 
 too, would lose more than half its force and elegance if 
 such helpful aids as figures of speech were abandoned. 
 
 Since the tendency to make comparisons is such a 
 natural trait of the mind, it is not surprising that most 
 of the commonly used figures of speech are based upon 
 comparisons expressed or understood. It must be noted 
 that the less formal the comparison the more figurative 
 the usage becomes. 
 
 The figures based upon comparisons are simile, meta- 
 phor, allegory, personification, apostrophe, allusion, 
 epithet, and onomatopoeia. As they are defined and 
 illustrated, it will be seen that each, in its own way, 
 stirs the imagination and so secures its aid in helping 
 the understanding of the reader. 
 
 Simile. A simile, from the Latin word meaning 
 "like," is an expressed comparison between unlike 
 things having some characteristic in common. The 
 comparison is usually made with something better 
 known, and is introduced by such words as as, like, so, 
 and the comparative degree of adjectives and adverbs. 
 The simile differs from the literal comparison in that 
 the literal comparison is between things of the same 
 class, while in the simile things of different classes are 
 compared, where there is but one aspect of similarity. 
 
 
THE USE OF FIGURES OF SPEECH 455 
 
 "Like an army defeated 
 The snow hath retreated." — Wordswokth 
 
 "As for man, his days are as grass; 
 As a flower of the field, so he flourisheth." — Psalm ciii 
 "Wisdom is more precious than rubies:" — Prov. iii : 15 
 
 Metaphor. The metaphor does not state a likeness; 
 
 it assumes it. It is an implied comparison between 
 
 things essentially different. It never uses introductory 
 
 words. The metaphor is the commonest of all figures, 
 
 and as a result all figurative language is often referred 
 
 to as metaphorical. Whenever a word is given a new 
 
 meaning, it becomes, for a time, a metaphor. Hence, 
 
 metaphors are generally short, consisting of a single 
 
 word. 
 
 "With its unemptied cloud of gentle rain 
 Is an eternal April to the ground, 
 Making it one emerald." 
 
 — Childe Harold: Byron 
 
 "A sea of glory streams along the Alpine height." 
 
 — Childe Harold: Byron 
 
 "Even yet thou art to me 
 No bird, but an invisible thing, 
 A voice, a mystery; ' ' 
 
 — To the Cuckoo: Wordsworth 
 
 Such expressions as the "game of life," the " social 
 lion," his "voice was a silver stream," and "thy wreck 
 a glory," are metaphors. 
 
 While a series of good metaphors is permissible, cau- 
 tion is necessary lest one so mix them as to make his 
 language ridiculous. Care must also be taken to pre- 
 vent mixing metaphors with literal statements. Do 
 
456 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 not say, "The strong arm of the law is marching 
 through the land breathing out fire and pestilence." 
 
 In selecting metaphors be careful to avoid trite and 
 worn-out expressions, hackneyed ones, grotesque ones, 
 and all such as are too violent or so striking as to at- 
 tract attention unduly to themselves. The metaphor 
 makes an appeal to the imagination, but even the 
 imagination should not be overtaxed. Overdeveloped 
 metaphors, with useless details, should also be avoided. 
 They do not help; they hinder. 
 
 Allegory. The allegory, on the other hand, is a pur- 
 posely and properly extended metaphor. It may take 
 the form of a fable; a parable, as in the Bible; or a 
 whole book, like Bunyan's Pilgrim's Progress or Spen- 
 ser's Faery Queene, or a morality play like Everyman. 
 There is always a "hidden meaning," a deep spiritual 
 or moral truth which does not appear upon the surface, 
 but which is evident upon thought when the meta- 
 phorical character of the story as a whole is taken into 
 account. 
 
 The allegory is, on the whole, going out of use be- 
 cause of its mechanical tendencies. But over against 
 this fact must be set the other, that there has been a 
 marked revival of morality plays which are more or less 
 allegorical in structure. Examples are The Blue Bird 
 and The Servant in the House. 
 
 While the pupil should know what the allegory is he 
 should not be ambitious to employ it. 
 
 Personification. Personification is also closely akin 
 to the metaphor, but it goes further than an ordinary 
 
THE USE OF FIGURES OF SPEECH 457 
 
 metaphor, for it gives life and the attributes of life to 
 inanimate things, and higher life to animate things. 
 Personification is a most natural figure of speech and 
 the first one children employ. They personify their 
 dolls, their pets, and almost everything with which 
 they have to do. Personification is most common in 
 fables, especially animal stories, and is the basis of 
 allegory. By means of personification the most ab- 
 stract conceptions are made to teem with life. Witness 
 Milton's L' Allegro and II Penseroso. Because of the 
 vivifying powers of personification they are most effec- 
 tive. Personified words are often capitalized. 
 Examples of personification : 
 
 " Nature never did betray 
 The heart that loved her;" 
 
 — Tintern Abbey: Wordsworth 
 
 "The Spouseless Adriatic mourns her lord." 
 
 — Childe Harold: Byron 
 
 "But Nature ne'er could find the way 
 Into the heart of Peter Bell." 
 
 — Peter Bell: Wordsworth 
 
 "Praise the good log fire; Winter howls without!" 
 
 — The Tivo Poets of Croisic: Browning 
 
 Apostrophe. Apostrophe is like personification in 
 that it attributes fife to lifeless things; but it goes 
 further in that it addresses, directly and passionately, 
 the absent as if present, the dead as if alive. This 
 figure is used especially in poetry, for which it is pecul- 
 iarly suited because of its strong demand upon the 
 imagination. It is also quite common in prose. Apos- 
 
158 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 trophe means a "turning aside/' and, as one should not 
 turn aside except for a worthy cause, nothing but lofty 
 subjects are suitable to be apostrophized. 
 
 Examples: Two of the most famous apostrophes in 
 literature are Byron's Apostrophe to the Ocean and Shel- 
 ley's To A Skylark. Byron uses the figure, especially 
 in Childe Harold, in his impassioned descriptions: 
 
 "Oh Time, the beautifier of the dead, 
 Adorner of the ruin, comforter 
 And only healer when the heart hath bled!" 
 
 "Oh Rome! my country! city of the soul!" 
 
 "Ungrateful Florence! Dante sleeps afar, 
 Like Scipio, buried by the unbraiding shore." 
 
 — Childe Harold: Byron 
 
 "Come back into memory, like as thou wert 
 in the dayspring of thy fancies, with hope like 
 a fiery column before thee — the dark pillar not 
 yet turned — Samuel Taylor Coleridge — logi- 
 cian, metaphysician, bard!" 
 
 — Essays of Elia: Charles Lamb 
 
 Allusion. Allusion is the figure by means of 
 which a sort of comparison is made by referring 
 to a supposedly familiar name or fact in history or 
 literature. Such reference differs from the use of an 
 illustration in that it is less formal. Poetry abounds in 
 allusions. Milton uses so many that present-day stu- 
 dents are confused at first. It should be remembered, 
 however, that when Milton wrote, classical allusions 
 were the most natural kind to make. Shakespeare, too, 
 uses allusion very frequently. 
 
 
THE USE OF FIGURES OF SPEECH 459 
 
 "There let Hymen oft appear. 
 
 Lap me in soft Lydian airs." 
 
 — V Allegro: Milton 
 
 "Or call up him that left half -told 
 The story of Cambuscan bold, 
 Of Camball, and of Algarsife, 
 And who had Canace to wife." 
 
 — II Penseroso: Milton 
 
 "Listen and appear to us, 
 
 • In the name of great Oceanus; 
 By the earth-shaking Neptune's mace, 
 And Tethys' grave majestic pace; 
 By hoary Nereus' wrinkled look, 
 And the Carpathian wizard's hook; 
 By scaly Triton's winding shell, 
 And old soothsaying Glaucus' spell." 
 
 — Comus: Milton 
 
 "See what a grace was seated on this brow; 
 Hyperion's curls, the front of Jove himself, 
 In eye like Mars, to threaten and command; 
 A station like the herald Mercury." 
 
 — Hamlet: Shakespeare 
 
 "A Daniel come to judgment! yea, a Daniel!" 
 
 — Merchant of Venice: Shakespeare 
 
 "In Lamb's allusions the homely common- 
 place is usually confronted with some fancy, 
 fair or bold; the hard reality of some ideal 
 beauty. The steward who bustles about on 
 the old Margate hoy is like Ariel, 'flaming at 
 once about all the parts of the deck ' ; the burly 
 cripple without legs, who wheels himself about 
 the streets in a go-cart, is ' a grand fragment, 
 as good as an Elgin marble.'" 
 
 Charles Lamb: C. T. Winchester 
 
460 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 Epithet. An epithet is generally a descriptive ad- 
 jective used, not to give more information, but for 
 ornament. "Alfred the Great." Such a figure may be 
 said to compare the person or thing with an ideal. 
 
 Onomatopoeia. Onomatopoeia is a rarely used figure 
 by means of which the writer seeks words whose sounds 
 imitate the sense. It is a comparison between sense 
 and sound. It is especially useful in poetry. Milton 
 speaks of the curfew bell as " swinging slow with sullen 
 roar," and "the waters murmuring," and we uncon- 
 sciously think of bells and murmuring waters. Poe's 
 Bells is, of course, the most famous attempt at using 
 this figure, because he makes the whole poem ono- 
 matopoeic. 
 
 There is a growing tendency to reduce the number of 
 figures by combining those that are quite similar and 
 likely to be confused. This is especially true concern- 
 ing Metonymy and Synecdoche. Metonymy means "a 
 change of name." It is a figure by means of which a 
 thing is referred to in terms of something else closely 
 related to it or associated with it. It is not, how- 
 ever, a comparison. In that respect it differs from 
 a metaphor. In Synecdoche a part is named for the 
 whole, the whole for a part, etc. We consider both 
 metonymy and synecdoche as one under the name of 
 metonymy. 
 
 The many kinds of associations and relations between 
 objects give rise to many varieties of metonymy, so 
 that a further analysis of the figure becomes necessary. 
 Hence we have: 
 
THE USE OF FIGURES OF SPEECH 461 
 
 (a.) The sign for the thing signified. 
 
 "The shot heard around the world." — Concord Hymn: Emerson 
 
 "The sceptre shall not depart from Judah till Shiloh come." 
 
 —Bible 
 
 "If Jonson's learned sock be on." — V Allegro: Milton 
 
 (b.) Material for thing made from it. 
 
 "Silver and gold have I none." — Bible 
 "Born in the purple, born to joy and pleasance." — Longfellow 
 
 (c.) Container for thing contained. 
 "The kettle boils." 
 "In his cups." 
 
 (d.) Cause for effect, and effect for cause. 
 
 " Sickness or sword shall cut thee off from the strength." 
 
 — Beowulf 
 "Gray hairs should be respected." 
 
 (e.) Author for works; maker for his product. 
 I have read Shakespeare and Dickens. 
 He has some fine Wedgewood. 
 
 (f.) Place of production for thing produced. 
 I like Brussels. 
 
 (g.) Abstract for concrete and reverse. 
 
 The pride of the town was there. 
 Garrick again appeared upon our stage. 
 
462 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 (h.) The definite for the indefinite. 
 
 "Ten thousand fleets weep over thee in vain." 
 
 — Childe Harold: Byron 
 
 "Ten thousand saw I at a glance." — Daffodils: Wordsworth 
 
 (i.) A part for the whole. (This is sometimes consid- 
 ered separately, as a distinct figure, and called 
 " synecdoche.") 
 
 "Uneasy lies the head that wears a crown." 
 
 — Henry IV: Shakespeare 
 
 Metonymy is a common and useful figure, as can be 
 seen from the above analysis, in that it directs attention 
 to some one important detail. It is picturesque. Some- 
 times it may be used to soften what would otherwise be 
 too harsh, and it is a figure that is economical, for it 
 makes one word serve where several would otherwise 
 be required. The varieties given above might be easily 
 increased, but enough have been mentioned to serve 
 practical purposes and leave some for the inventive 
 student to work out for himself. 
 
 There are also several figures of arrangement, or sen- 
 tence structure, concerning which but little need be 
 said. 
 
 Antithesis. Antithesis is a figure in which forceful 
 contrasts are brought out by balanced sentence struc- 
 ture. It is useful where pointedness, brevity, and vigor 
 are desired. 
 
 "Man proposes, God disposes." — Proverb 
 "Penny wise, pound foolish." — Proverb 
 "When I am weak, then am I strong." — Bible 
 
THE USE OF FIGURES OF SPEECH 463 
 
 Climax. Climax is a figure, usually contained in a 
 periodic sentence, in which each word, phrase, or clause 
 is more forceful than the one immediately preceding it. 
 It illustrates the principle of development to full 
 maturity. It is very effective if not overused. 
 
 "Duncan is in his grave; 
 After life's fitful fever he sleeps well; 
 Treason has done his worst: nor steel, nor poison, 
 Malice domestic, foreign levy, nothing 
 Can touch him further." — Macbeth: Shakespeare 
 
 Anticlimax. Anticlimax, the opposite of climax, is 
 useful in humorous writing because of the surprise. It 
 is considered an error in discourse unless purposely in- 
 tended to produce a ridiculous effect. A Frenchman, 
 on first seeing Niagara Falls, exclaimed, " Grand, mag- 
 nifique, very fair!" 
 
 "And screams of horror rend th' affrighted skies. 
 Not louder shrieks to pitying Heaven are cast, 
 When husbands or when lap-dogs breathe their last." 
 
 ~-Rape of the Lock: Pope 
 
 Repetition. Repetition of the same word, where in- 
 tended for emphasis or other rhetorical effect, is a 
 figure of speech. Otherwise is an error. 
 
 "Water, water everywhere, 
 Nor any drop to drink." 
 
 — Ancient Mariner: Coleridge 
 
 Parallelism. Parallelism is the repetition of the same 
 idea in similar but slightly different language. It was 
 a common device in Hebrew poetry. 
 
 "Thy kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, And thy dominion 
 endureth throughout all generations." — Psalm cxlv. 
 
464 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 Interrogation. Interrogation, or the rhetorical ques- 
 tion, is not a real question. It does not ask for informa- 
 tion. It emphasizes the idea expressed. It is generally 
 the result of strong emotion breaking out in interroga- 
 tory form, and not waiting for an answer. It is very 
 effective in poetry and in debate. 
 
 "Who by searching can find out God?" — Job 
 
 "Now search the same records for the produce of revenue by 
 imposition. Where is it?" — Burke 
 
 Exclamation. Exclamation expresses sudden and 
 strong emotion, surprise, or irony. 
 
 "My heart leaps up when I behold 
 A rainbow in the sky!" 
 
 — Poems of Childhood: Wordsworth 
 
 "Prophet," said I, "thing of evil! prophet still, if bird or devil!" 
 
 — The Raven: Poe 
 
 "Was this the cottage and the safe abode 
 Thou told'st me of!" — Comus: MiLton 
 
 Alliteration. Alliteration was the chief characteris- 
 tic of Old English poetry before end rhyme was intro- 
 duced by the Normans. While not now so common, it 
 is still used both in poetry and prose. It may be classed 
 as a device for securing emphasis. Some rhetoricians 
 call it a figure of speech. Alliteration consists of having 
 a series of words begin with the same sounds or com- 
 bination of sounds. 
 
 "Layamon fared far among the folk." — Layamon's Brut 
 
 "Alone, alone, all, all alone, 
 Alone on a wide, wide sea." 
 
 — Ancient Mariner: Coleridge 
 
THE USE OF FIGURES OF SPEECH 465 
 
 "Elaine the fair, Elaine the lovable, 
 Elaine the lily maid of Astolat." 
 
 — Lancelot and Elaine: Tennyson 
 
 Hyperbole. Hyperbole is a legitimate exaggeration 
 for the sake of emphasis; not to mislead. 
 
 "Why, man, if the river were dry, I am able to fill it with tears,* 
 if the wind were down, I could drive the boat with my sighs." 
 
 — Shakespeake 
 
 •'Will all great Neptune's ocean wash this blood 
 Clean from my hand? No, this my hand will rather 
 The multitudinous seas incarnadine, 
 Making the green one red." 
 
 — Macbeth: Shakespeare 
 
 Suggestions for review and practice in the use of 
 figures of speech. 
 
 In one's reading it is well to be on the lookout for figures of 
 speech as far as it can be done without interfering with other more 
 important things. It should not be carried so far as to hinder one 
 from getting the meaning of what he reads. Such practice should 
 be looked upon merely as a study of models; too slavish imitation 
 of other's use of figures always results in mechanical writing, always 
 to be avoided. When, however, one cultivates his imagination 
 and learns to observe comparisons which are readily suggested 
 by the raw material he has to work upon, figures will suggest 
 themselves and be natural. At first, to be sure, they may not seem 
 natural and they may be few in number, but practice will soon 
 improve matters. 
 
 For instance, if you wish to describe an automobile coming 
 toward you at a rapid rate, at night, what more natural way 
 could there be of making your impressions vivid than comparing 
 it to some monster, like a dragon, whose fiery eyes glare at you 
 through the darkness. But, if a simile does not suit you, all 
 you have to do is to drop the formal comparison and use an implied 
 comparison, or metaphor. Then you might say: "Speed as you 
 will, fiery monster, you will never catch me, for I can dodge." 
 
466 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION! 
 
 (What figures are illustrated in the above sentence besides the 
 metaphor?) 
 
 Describe an automobile passing at a distance at night, using a 
 different metaphor from the one above. 
 
 Describe a submarine boat, an aeroplane, an exploding sky- 
 rocket, and a sunset, using such figures of speech as most naturally 
 suggest themselves to you. Tell what figures you choose and the 
 mental process by which you came to select them. 
 
 Do not be surprised if at first your results are somewhat fantastic. 
 Overdoing the work is easily remedied. Select and use your best. 
 
CHAPTER XII 
 COMPOSITION IN VERSE 
 
 Even in a book on prose composition, and rhetoric, 
 it is necessary to study poetry. No form of literature 
 so well repays study, because it is the impassioned ex- 
 pression of the deepest and the most sublime emotions 
 man has ever had. Poetry is in a class by itself and 
 should be studied for its own sake; but there are cer- 
 tain poetic qualities which prose shares with her nobler 
 sister, and which make it worth while to study poetry 
 for the enrichment of our prose. While it is unwise for 
 the beginner to attempt to write what is called prose- 
 poetry, he should know what it is and why it possesses 
 a charm which is excelled by pure poetry alone. 
 
 Before attempting a definition of poetry let us notice 
 some of its characteristics. It is only ignorance of these 
 distinguishing characteristics that leads some to ask 
 why people ever write poetry when prose would do 
 just as well or better. As a matter of fact, some sub- 
 jects cannot be at all adequately treated in prose, and 
 many subjects which can be treated effectively in prose 
 may be also far more adequately dealt with in verse. 
 
 The most obvious mark of poetry is that it is emo- 
 tional; it expresses emotions and appeals, primarily, 
 to the emotions. This fact alone reveals how different 
 it is from prose which appeals primarily to the intel- 
 
 467 
 
468 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 lect, and in terms which the intellect alone can com- 
 prehend. While we are intelligent beings and delight 
 in being appealed to as such, we are also emotional, 
 and our emotional susceptibilities crave their own 
 proper delights and suffer unless the craving is satisfied. 
 We feel before we think, and we feel more than we 
 think and, moreover, our deepest thoughts are those 
 which accord with our best emotions. So the emo- 
 tional element in poetry makes a strong claim upon us, 
 a claim we cannot ignore. 
 
 The second characteristic of poetry is that it appeals 
 to the imagination, which is the picturing power where- 
 by we see with our minds more than our eyes can see; 
 whereby we hear with our minds more than we can 
 with our ears. Poetry does not appeal to the unimagi- 
 native; it cannot; it seems foolish to them. But all 
 children are more or less imaginative, and most mature 
 people retain, though it may be dormant, enough poetic 
 feeling and imagination to be developed into real poetic 
 susceptibilities, the power to appreciate poetry. Un- 
 poetic people are like Wordsworth's Peter Bell in the 
 poem by that name, to whom " A primrose by the river's 
 brim, a yellow primrose was to him, and it was nothing 
 more"; while Wordsworth himself is as good an ex- 
 ample of a poet as can be named, for he said : 
 
 "To me the meanest flower that blows, can give 
 Thoughts that do often lie too deep for tears." 
 
 — Ode on Immortality 
 
 A recent writer on poetry has called it "the imagina- 
 tive realization of things," and those words are most 
 
COMPOSITION IN VERSE 469 
 
 expressive. The man of poetic temperament lives more 
 intensely, more really, because he lives in a larger world 
 in which he sees and feels much; in which everything 
 talks to him in a language he can understand. So 
 Shelley speaks to the skylark and makes the cloud tell 
 its own story. 
 
 It is through the use of the imagination that poetry 
 becomes so effective to all who are under the impulse 
 of its power. Poetry abounds in pictures; in fact it 
 largely consists in a picturesque naming of things, so 
 that ever after the specific name given by the poet 
 brings back to one who knows the language of poetry 
 the picture that accompanied the original naming of 
 it by the poet. There is a magic in the right word. 
 Who, for instance, that has ever realized the full mean- 
 ing of Poe's words, "The glory that was Greece, and 
 the grandeur that was Rome," can ever hear those 
 words without again coming, at least partially, under 
 the spell which first moved him? Tennyson speaks of 
 the "flower in a crannied wall," and ever afterward 
 the word crannied reminds the reader of the exquisite 
 naming of the poet in the first instance. 
 
 While we are studying prose composition, strange as 
 it may seem it is one of the best times to consider some 
 of the claims of poetry, for one can best avoid the error 
 of being prosy by drinking often from the living springs 
 of poetry. The best way to cure some too matter-of- 
 fact boys of their persistent aversion for poetry — which 
 often leads them to ask why poets did not say what 
 they had to say in prose — is tactfully and gradually to 
 
470 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 introduce them to poetry by reading good poetry to 
 them until they feel inclined to read it for themselves. 
 Nothing can so enrich one's vocabulary as the reading 
 of good poetry; nothing can so quicken the imagination 
 and develop the power to write briefly, picturesquely, 
 and suggestively, as the study of poetry. It also tends 
 to give that added charm which we call style, which is 
 another name for that essential quality of rhetoric 
 known as beauty or elegance. It is a good practice 
 for all pupils to try their hand at writing poetry, even 
 though their first efforts are far from satisfactory and 
 though they destroy what they write. The most 
 charming English essayist of to-day tells us that before 
 he began to publish his prose works he wrote many 
 hundreds of lines of poetry, just for practice, and then 
 threw them away. 
 
 The only way to enjoy poetry is to read it aloud; 
 such reading soon expels the delusion that it is harder 
 to read than prose. Nevertheless, the only way fully 
 to understand poetry is to learn at least some of its 
 fundamental principles and to master the simpler prob- 
 lems of its technique. 
 
 Beginners often labor under the delusion that the 
 most essential thing about poetry is its rhyme, and this 
 is not strange when we recall that much of the so-called 
 poetry upon which children are brought up — the nursery 
 rhymes — possess no other qualification. The fact is 
 that rhythm and not rhyme is the most fundamental 
 quality of poetry, rhyme being only one of the decora- 
 tive features. This error must, first of all, be eradicated 
 
 
COMPOSITION IN VERSE 471 
 
 by showing the real values and the relative values of 
 both rhythm and rhyme. In short, we must analyze 
 poetry enough to see how a poem is made. 
 
 The first thing to notice about poetry is that it uses 
 a meter, or measure, to secure rhythm. The language 
 of poetry is measured language, differing from that of 
 prose, which is unmeasured. The line, or verse, is the 
 commonest unit of poetry. 
 
 A verse is a definite number of similarly stressed 
 syllables grouped into poetic feet. It should never be 
 used synonymously with stanza. 
 
 A poetic foot is a group of accented and unaccented 
 syllables. In English poetry syllables are accented on 
 account of their force, and in this respect our poetry 
 differs from that of the Latin and Greek languages, in 
 which the length of the syllables was alone taken into 
 account, long vowels being accented and short ones 
 being unaccented. The English method is less 
 mechanical. 
 
 Poetic feet are named according to the number and 
 arrangement of the accented and unaccented syllables. 
 
 The iambic foot consists of two syllables, of which the 
 * second is accented. The iambus is the most natural, 
 and hence the most commonly used foot in English 
 poetry. It is employed in most blank verse and in 
 many other kinds of poetry. It gives a stately and 
 dignified rhythmic motion to the verse. 
 
 While several methods are employed to designate 
 poetic feet, the classic method of marking the syllables, 
 the method of using musical symbols, and the method 
 
472 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 of marking the accented syllable with the acute accent 
 sign, we shall hereafter employ the latter, for it has 
 the advantage of simplicity. The following line is made 
 up of iambic feet: 
 
 "The cur/few tolls/the knell/of part/ing day." 
 
 The trochaic foot is the reverse of the iambic, having 
 the stressed syllable first. It gives a livelier motion to 
 the verse. This is the foot employed in Longfellow's 
 Hiawatha : 
 
 "Should you/ask me/ whence these/st6ries? " 
 
 The dactyl consists of one accented syllable followed 
 by two unaccented ones, or whose accent is but very 
 slight. It imparts an easy, flowing rhythm, to the verse. 
 It is used by Longfellow in the hexameter of Evangeline, 
 but is not common in English poetry except in shorter 
 lines, to vary the monotony of too many trochees. 
 
 This is the/forest pri/meval; the/murmuring/pines and 
 the/hemlocks." 
 
 The anapaest consists of three syllables, the last of 
 which is accented. The anapaest is frequently used in 
 connection with iambic feet. The following line from 
 Woodworth is mostly anapaestic: 
 "How d^ar/to my heart/are the se£nes/of my child/hood." 
 
 This from Tennyson is wholly so: 
 
 "As he stands/on the heights/of his life/ with a glimpse/of 
 a height/ that is higher." 
 
 These four feet are the ones most commonly used in 
 English poetry. The others are: 
 
COMPOSITION IN VERSE 473 
 
 The spondee, consisting of two accented syllables. 
 
 The phyrric, consisting of two unaccented syllables. 
 
 The amphibrach, consisting of one stressed syllable 
 preceded and followed by an unstressed syllable. 
 
 A choriambus, consisting of an accented syllable fol- 
 lowed by two unaccented ones and ending with another 
 accented one. 
 
 A pceon, consisting of an accented syllable followed 
 by three unaccented ones. 
 
 The line, or verse, is named from the prevailing foot 
 used in it, and from the number used; thus a line con- 
 sisting of one iambic foot is called an iambic monometer; 
 one of two iambic feet, an iambic dimeter; one of three, 
 an iambic trimeter; one of four, an iambic tetrameter; 
 one of five, an iambic pentameter (the commonest in 
 English poetry) ; one of six, a hexameter. 
 
 Other lines are similarly named: e.g., the trochaic 
 tetrameter of Hiawatha and the dactyllic hexameter of 
 Evangeline. 
 
 Variations in Rhythm. While seeking, in a scientific 
 manner, to reduce the laws of poetry to a system, it 
 must be remembered that poetry is, after all, an art 
 subject to elastic treatment. A strict following of the 
 rules would reduce poetry to a mechanism when its 
 charm would be lost. Great poets are big enough to 
 break the rules when occasion demands. This is espe- 
 cially necessary and desirable when uniformity of 
 rhythm would not suit the thought, or the emotion, 
 and a variation becomes the only way of escape. 
 
 Substituted Feet. When a sudden change of thought 
 
474 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 or emotion necessitates a change in rhythm, the change 
 is generally to another foot of a similarly placed accent : 
 thus for an iambic foot the natural substitution is an 
 anapaest ; for a trochaic, a dactyl. In Lowell's Vision of 
 Sir Launfal, where the regular foot is the iambic, the 
 poet substitutes two anapaests in the following line. 
 The advantage is readily seen. 
 
 'And what/is so rare/as a day/in June 
 
 !" 
 
 In reading such lines the anapaests are given the same 
 time that is given to the iambics. 
 
 When there is a very marked change in thought or 
 emotion, a trochaic foot may be substituted for an iam- 
 bic, or vice versa; and a dactyl for an anapaest and 
 vice versa. 
 
 Catalectic, Acatalectic, and Hypercatalectic Lines. 
 The commonest variations in rhythm are the omission 
 or the addition of one or two syllables at the end of 
 the lines. A catalectic line is one where there is an omis- 
 sion; an acatalectic line (meaning not catalectic) is a 
 normal line without additions or omissions; a hyper- 
 catalectic line is one with additional feet. It should be 
 noted that the syllables omitted or added are always 
 unstressed syllables. This is the rule: trochaic and 
 dactylic lines may omit unstressed syllables from the 
 end of the line, while iambic and anapaestic lines may 
 add one or two extra syllables at the end of the line. 
 Unstressed syllables may also be omitted from other 
 parts of the line, though this is less common. When 
 omitted from the beginning of the line the change is 
 
COMPOSITION IN VERSE 475 
 
 scarcely perceptible, but when an unstressed syllable is 
 omitted from a foot in the midst of the line it is very 
 noticeable and has the effect of strong emphasis upon 
 the stressed syllables. Note Tennyson's 
 
 "Break, break, break." 
 
 Slurring and elision are technical words indicating 
 two ways of suppressing syllables without actually 
 omitting them. When a vowel within a word is slighted 
 by being combined with the following vowel, it is said 
 to be slurred; e.g., 
 
 "Girt with omnipotence, with radiance crowned." 
 
 In the above line the word radiance, usually trisylla- 
 bic, is made dissyllabic by slurring. Otherwise it would 
 make an anapaest, which is not wanted. 
 
 Whenever a vowel is suppressed at the end of a word 
 it is called elision; e.g., 
 
 "The applause of listening senates to command." 
 
 In the foregoing line the e of the first word is elided 
 with the following a, and the th combined with the a to 
 make one syllable. 
 
 It should be noted that such variations as we have 
 mentioned are never made by great poets except where 
 necessary, but where they are necessary the changes 
 are most effective if skillfully handled. 
 
 Rhythm is the chief essential of poetry viewed from 
 the technical side. Lines having rhythm, however, are 
 not necessarily poetry. They may lack other essentials. 
 Such lines are sometimes called verse. 
 
476 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 Rhythm in a line is discovered and classified by means 
 of scansion, which may be defined as a technical read- 
 ing of poetry in such a way as to indicate its rhythm 
 and meter. Oral scansion is accomplished by giving 
 proper voice stress to the accented syllables while 
 barely sounding the unstressed syllables. Written scan- 
 sion is indicated by marking the syllables, as in the 
 illustrations given under the heading " poetic feet." 
 
 Rests or Caesural Pauses. In verse, as in music, 
 there are rests, called ccesura, used to give variety, and 
 to prevent the rhythm from becoming mechanical and 
 monotonous. The caesural pause may occur almost any- 
 where in the verse and between feet or in the middle of 
 a foot. Its location is usually determined by the sense, 
 as in the following line: 
 
 "This is the forest primeval. The murmuring pines and the 
 hemlocks." 
 
 where it occurs at the natural pause, the end of the sen- 
 tence. Sometimes the pause may take the place of 
 syllables, as in Tennyson's line, 
 
 "Break, break, break," 
 
 where the rest is absolutely essential. 
 
 There are also certain kinds of verse decoration, 
 which, while not essential, often add much to the charm 
 of poetry. Beginners, as has been said, are often mis- 
 led into thinking rhyme, for instance, the chief essential 
 and most distinguishing characteristic of poetry. This 
 is wholly wrong. It is merely a decorative feature and 
 
 
COMPOSITION IN VERSE 477 
 
 is not used at all in one of the principal forms, blank 
 
 verse. 
 
 Alliteration is a repetition of sounds at the beginning 
 
 of syllables. It was common in Anglo-Saxon poetry, 
 
 and one of its chief characteristics, e.g.: 
 
 "A fair field full of folk." 
 
 "In a somer seson when soft was the sonne." 
 
 — Piers Plowman: Langlande 
 
 Rhyme is a similarity of sounds of syllables similarly 
 placed in a poem. 
 
 Ordinarily the rhyming words are only at the ends of 
 the lines, but occasionally they are in the same lines; 
 as, for example, in "The splendor falls on castle walls"; 
 "Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered, weak 
 and weary." The latter is called mid-line rhyme. 
 
 The end-line rhyme consists in having the last words, 
 or syllables, of lines that are adjacent or near each other, 
 rhyme. When two adjacent lines thus rhyme we have 
 the rhymed couplet, so common in Pope and the clas- 
 sical school. 
 
 "Honor and shame from no condition rise, 
 Act well thy part, there all the honor lies" 
 
 Other arrangements of rhyming lines give rise to the 
 various stanzaic structures. The simplest stanza is that 
 most commonly used in the ballad where the first line 
 rhymes with the third and the second with the fourth; 
 
 "Around in sympathetic mirth 
 Its tricks the kittle tries; 
 The cricket chirrups in the hearth; 
 The crackling faggot flies." 
 
 — The Hermit, stanza 14: Goldsmith 
 
478 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 In the old ballads, however, only the second and 
 fourth lines were made to rhyme. 
 
 "High upon Highlands, 
 and low upon Tay, 
 Bonnie George Campbell 
 rade out on a day." 
 
 Coleridge followed the same old ballad style in his 
 Ancient Mariner. 
 
 "He went like one that hath been stunned, 
 And is of sense forlorn: 
 A sadder and a wiser man, 
 He rose the morrow morn." 
 
 A very different and most pleasing effect is secured 
 by Tennyson in his In Memoriam, by using a four-line 
 stanza and making the first line rhyme with the fourth 
 and the second with the third. 
 
 "Ring out, wild bells, to the wide sky, 
 The flying cloud, the frosty light : 
 The year is dying in the night; 
 Ring out, wild bells, and let him die." 
 
 While, as will be seen when studying the stanza, there 
 are several well-established rhyme schemes which give 
 individuality to the stanzas, any poet may, like Tenny- 
 son, adopt an original rhyme scheme of his own and, 
 perhaps, invent a new stanza. In fact, it is only in this 
 way that the later poets may show their originality, 
 except in combining long and short lines to suit their 
 purpose. 
 
 While rhyme is not essential to poetry, it is most 
 valuable, when skillfully used, in adding to the attrac- 
 
COMPOSITION IN VERSE 479 
 
 tiveness and the musical effect of poetry, especially 
 lyric poetry. It increases the emotional effect; the re- 
 currence of similar sounds sometimes has an effect 
 which could be produced in no other way. For instance, 
 Tennyson, in In Memoriam, where the fourth line 
 echoes the sound of the first line, it produces an emo- 
 tional stress which, when carried on through hundreds 
 of stanzas, gives that poem a power which is remarkable. 
 The kinds of rhyme are as follows: masculine, or 
 single, where the syllables that rhyme are the last in 
 each line. 
 
 "Blessings on thee, little man, 
 Barefoot boy, with cheek of ton." 
 
 Feminine, or double, rhyme is where the last two 
 syllables rhyme. 
 
 "The skies they were ashen and sober; 
 The leaves they were crisped and sere, 
 The leaves they were withering and sere; 
 It was night in the lonesome October 
 Of my most memorial year." 
 
 There is also triple rhyme, in the use of which Byron 
 and Browning are masters, but it is used mostly for 
 humorous effect. Lowell, also, employs it in his Fable 
 for Critics. Double, or feminine, rhyme is sometimes 
 used in the same humorous way. 
 
 "But — oh! ye lords of ladies intellectual, 
 Inform us truly, have they not hen-pecked-you all?" 
 
 — Don Juan: Byron 
 
 "The Soldier in breastplate and helmet * 
 Stood frowningly — hail fellow well met — " 
 
 — Pacchiarotte: Browning 
 
480 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 "Unqualified merits, I'll grant, if you choose, he has 'em; 
 But he lacks the one merit of kindling enthusiasm." 
 
 — Fable for Critics: Lowell 
 
 Concerning quadruple and other multiple rhymes 
 nothing need be said; they are literary curiosities found 
 only in the poetry of the East. 
 
 The rules for rhyming are: 
 
 1. The rhyming syllable must be the accented one. 
 
 2. The consonants preceding the final vowel must be 
 different in the rhyming words. 
 
 3. If consonant sounds follow the rhymed vowel, they 
 should be identical. 
 
 It should be noted, however, that perfect rhymes are 
 not considered absolutely essential in our language. 
 Vowel sounds that are not the same, but only similar, 
 are allowed. 
 
 Identical Rhyme. The rhyming of the same word or 
 of words that sound the same though different in mean- 
 ing, is not allowable in modern poetry. Chaucer, never- 
 theless, used it. 
 
 The extent to which rhyme is employed, as well as 
 the pleasurable effect it produces, shows the value it 
 has in our poetry. The caution necessary is to avoid 
 using rhyme too much for its own sake, or where a 
 rhyming word does not make sense. When mere jingles 
 and doggeral result, rhyme should be avoided. 
 
 The Stanza. While rhyme is important as a means 
 of securing tone color, its most important function lies 
 in the fact that it is the organizer of the stanza. Since 
 the introduction into England of both rhyme and the 
 
COMPOSITION IN VERSE 481 
 
 stanza, under Latin and French influences, they have 
 been inseparable. 
 
 As the foot is the smallest unit of verse measure, the 
 stanza is the longest. (The synonym for stanza, strophe, 
 meaning a turning, is significant.) Except in the ode, 
 where variety is allowed, all the stanzas in any poem 
 must be identical in form. 
 
 A stanza is a group of two or more consecutive verses 
 bound together by end rhymes. The fundamental mat- 
 ters to be determined are : the length of the lines, which 
 need not be the same throughout, the number of lines, 
 and the rhyme scheme. 
 
 The kinds of stanza are unlimited, but the more 
 important established forms are: 
 
 1. The couplet, which is a stanza of two lines, or 
 verses, which usually, though not always, rhyme. 
 
 " Softly sweet in Lydian measures, 
 Soon he soothed his soul to pleasures." — Dryden 
 
 "Truth crushed to earth shall rise again; 
 The eternal years of God are hers." — Bryant 
 
 Strictly speaking, a stanza cannot consist of less 
 then three lines, and many writers do not treat the 
 couplet as a stanza at all, but as a part of long stanzas. 
 So, if preferred, the couplet may be defined as two 
 rhymed lines of the same metrical structure. 
 
 The commonest form of the couplet is the heroic, or 
 decasyllabic, consisting of two iambic pentameter lines. 
 It was in common, almost universal, use from Ben 
 Jonson to Samuel Johnson. The tendency to misuse it 
 
482 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 and make it mechanical and monotonous was one of 
 the causes which led to the great reaction culminating 
 in the romantic revival under Wordsworth. 
 
 2. The tercet, or triplet, is a three-line stanza. This 
 
 stanza is not now much used in English poetry, except 
 
 in combinations. All three lines may rhyme, or two of 
 
 them. 
 
 "Like the swell of some sweet tune, 
 Morning rises into noon, 
 May glides onward into June." 
 
 — Maidenhood: Longfellow 
 
 "The true has no value beyond the sham; 
 As well the counter as coin, I submit, 
 When your table's a hat, and your prize, a dram." 
 
 — The Statue and the Bust: Browning 
 
 The terza rima, so characteristic of The Divine Com- 
 edy, is most difficult in English verse, and has been but 
 little tried. Something like it is Shelley's Ode to the 
 West Wind, in which each tercet is united by the rhyme 
 scheme with the preceding one. 
 
 3. The quatrain, or four-line stanza, is very common, 
 perhaps the most common of all stanzas. The regular 
 quatrain is the familiar ballad stanza (verses one and 
 three being iambic tetrameters, and verses two and four 
 being iambic trimeters) where the regular rhyme scheme 
 is that verses one and three generally rhyme and verses 
 two and four always do. The omission of the rhyme 
 in the third line probably indicates that the ballad 
 stanza was once regarded as consisting of two long lines 
 instead of four short ones. 
 
COMPOSITION IN VERSE 483 
 
 "Ye flowery banks o' bonnie Doon, 
 How can ye blume sae fair! 
 How can ye chant, ye little birds, 
 And I sae fu' o' care!" 
 
 — Ye Flowery Banks: Burns 
 
 The above is also called common meter. 
 
 When a quatrain consists of four iambic pentameters 
 rhyming alternately, it is called the elegiac, or the 
 heroic stanza, e.g., Gray's Elegy. 
 
 "The boast of heraldry, the pomp of pow'r, 
 
 And all that beauty, all that wealth e'er gave, 
 Await alike th' inevitable hour: 
 
 The paths of glory lead but to the grave." 
 
 A quatrain of four iambic tetrameters is called long 
 meter. 
 
 A quatrain of four iambic trimeters, with an addi- 
 tional foot added to the third line, makes the stanza 
 known as short meter. 
 
 Common, long, and short-meter stanzas are much 
 used in sacred hymns. 
 
 Tennyson's original use of the quatrain, four iambic 
 tetrameters, in which the first rhymes with the fourth 
 and the second with the third, has given the name 
 Tennysonian to that stanza. (See above.) 
 
 4. The five-line stanza is common in English poetry 
 and has been used by Burns, Wordsworth, Shelley, and 
 many others. Much originality, however, has been 
 shown as to the length of the lines and the rhyme 
 schemes. Study and compare them. 
 
484 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 "Hail to thee, blithe spirit! 
 Bird thou never wert, 
 That from heaven, or near it, 
 
 Pourest thy full heart 
 In profuse strains of unpremeditated art." 
 
 — To a Skylark: Shelley 
 
 5. The six-line stanza is equally common, and ap- 
 pears with many variations. It is seen frequently in 
 sacred poetry and is much used by Mrs. Browning, 
 Burns, Byron, Kipling, and others. It is often the 
 union of three couplets; sometimes of two tercets. 
 
 "And if I should live to be 
 The last leaf upon the tree 
 
 In the spring, 
 Let them smile, as I do now, 
 At the old forsaken bough 
 Where I cling." 
 
 — The Last Leaf: 0. W. Holmes 
 
 "0 wad some Power the giftie gie us 
 To see oursels as ithers see us! 
 It wad frae monie a blunder free us, 
 
 An' foolish notion; 
 What airs in dress an' gait wad lea'e us, 
 An' ev'n devotion!" — To a Louse: Buens 
 
 6. The seven-line stanza is also known as the Chau- 
 cerian stanza, because used by Chaucer, and as Rime 
 Royal, because it was once thought King James used it. 
 It is more likely, however, that the name was of French 
 origin. This stanza was Chaucer's great contribution 
 to the form of English verse, for he wrote some fourteen 
 thousand lines in it. The verse is iambic pentameter. 
 The first four lines form an ordinary quatrain, the fifth 
 rhymes with the last of the quatrain, while the last two 
 form a couplet. 
 
COMPOSITION IN VERSE 485 
 
 7. The eight-line stanza, Ottava Rima, consists of 
 iambic pentameter verses, of which the first six rhyme 
 alternately and the last two form a couplet. Byron 
 used this stanza in Don Juan. The structure is pleas- 
 ing. This stanza is also common in sacred poetry, 
 where different lines are used, such as fit the subject. 
 
 8. The Spenserian stanza consists of nine lines, eight 
 of which are iambic pentameters. The ninth line is 
 iambic hexameter, called also Alexandrine. This stanza 
 was invented by Edmund Spenser and first used by 
 him in The Faerie Queene. There are two regular qua- 
 trains connected by the last line of the first and the 
 first line of the last rhyming, while the eighth and ninth 
 lines also rhyme. The rhyme scheme is ababbcbcc. 
 Besides in the Faerie Queene this stanza is used by 
 Burns in The Cotter's Saturday Night, by Byron in The 
 Childe Harold, by Keats in The Eve of St. Agnes, and by 
 others. Modern poets sometimes take liberties with it 
 and often destroy its original beauty and power. 
 
 "A Gentle Knight was pricking on the plaine 
 Ycladd in mighty arms and silver shield, 
 Wherein old dints of deepe woulds did remaine, 
 The cruel marks of many a bloody fielde; 
 Yet arms till that time did he never wield. 
 His angry steed did chide his foaming bitt, 
 As much disdayning to the curb to yield : 
 Full jolly knight he seemd, and fair did sitt, 
 As one for knightly giusts and fierce encounters fitt. ' ' 
 
 — Faerie Queene:. Edmund Spenser 
 
 9. The Sonnet. While really a complete poem and 
 not a stanza, it seems well to speak of the sonnet here. 
 
486 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 It is a poem of fourteen iambic verses. The Petrarchian, 
 or Italian, sonnet, is the regular form which most Eng- 
 lish poets have followed. Shakespeare and a few others 
 have modified the Italian form enough to give rise to 
 what is known as the English sonnet. The greatest of 
 the English writers of sonnets was Wordsworth, who 
 followed, in the main, the Italian style. Rossetti and 
 Mrs. Browning wrote several excellent ones, but they 
 took great liberties. 
 
 The regular Italian sonnet consists of an octave and 
 a sestet; the octave always consists of two quatrains, 
 while the sestet usually consists of two tercets. The 
 rhyme scheme is, for the octave, abbaabba, and 
 for the sestet, usually, cdecde or cdcdcd. 
 
 The chief characteristic of the Shakesperian sonnet is 
 that it is made up of three quatrains and a couplet, 
 rhyming as follows : ab ab cdcdef ef g g. 
 
 An Italian sonnet: 
 
 "Scorn not the Sonnet; Critic, you have frowned, 
 
 Mindless of its just honors; with this key 
 
 Shakespeare unlocked his heart; the melody 
 Of this small lute gave ease to Petrarch's wound; 
 A thousand times this pipe did Tasso sound; 
 
 With it Cameons soothed an exile's grief; 
 
 The Sonnet glittered a gay myrtle leaf 
 Amid the cypress with which Dante crowned 
 
 His visionary brow: a glow-worm lamp, 
 It cheered mild Spenser, called from Faeryland 
 
 To struggle through dark ways; and, when a damp 
 Fell round the path of Milton, in his hand 
 
 The Thing became a trumpet; whence he blew 
 
 Soul-animating strains — alas, too few!" 
 
 — Scorn Not the Sonnet: Wordsworth 
 
COMPOSITION IN VERSE 487 
 
 "When, in disgrace with fortune and men's eyes, 
 
 I all alone be weep my outcast state. 
 And trouble deaf heaven with my bootless cries, 
 
 And look upon myself and curse my fate; 
 Wishing me like to one more rich in hope, 
 
 Featured like him, like him with friends possest, 
 Desiring this man's art, and that man's scope, 
 
 With what I most enjoy contented least; 
 Yet in these thoughts myself at most despising, 
 
 Haply I think on thee — and then my state, 
 Like to the lark at break of day arising 
 
 From sullen earth, sings hymns at heaven's gate; 
 For thy sweet love remember'd such wealth brings 
 That I scorn to change my state with kings." 
 
 — Sonnet 29: Shakespeare 
 
 KINDS OF POETRY 
 
 There are three kinds of poetry: Epic, Lyric, and 
 Dramatic. 
 
 Epic Poetry. Epic poetry is always narrative. It is 
 elevated in thought, centering around some one great 
 hero, often of superhuman proportions, and hence is 
 often called heroic poetry. It is serious in thought 
 and is always expressed in suitable language. It is very 
 difficult to produce, and but few poets have had suffi- 
 cient power and imagination to rise to epic heights. 
 Consequently the world's great epics are few : Homer's 
 Iliad and The Odssey ; Virgil's Mneid; Dante's Divine 
 Comedy; Milton's Paradise Lost; Beowulf, Alfred 
 Noyes' Drake, comprise about all worthy the name. 
 
 There are, however, other and lesser forms of narra- 
 tive poetry which share some of the elements of the 
 epic: such metrical romances as Scott's Marmion and 
 The Lady of the Lake; Tennyson's Idylls of the King, 
 
488 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 sometimes less accurately called an epic ; and Spenser's 
 Faerie Queene; such metrical chronicles as Layamon's 
 Brut; such metrical tales as Tales of a Wayside Inn, 
 Tarn o' Shanter, and Enoch Arden; and such ballads as 
 the old ones which grew up from folklore, Robin Hood 
 and Chevy Chase, together with made ballads like Cole- 
 ridge's Ancient Mariner and Tennyson's Maud. Under 
 this classification may also be put the pastoral, of which 
 Goldsmith's Deserted Village and Thompson's Seasons 
 are examples, together with the idyll, which is a short 
 pastoral, but usually more polished in form, more de- 
 scriptive, and more highly emotional. Evangeline and 
 The Idylls of the King are illustrations of this class. 
 
 Lyric Poetry. Lyric poetry is highly emotional and 
 usually subjective, expressing all phases of passion from 
 the most ecstatic joy to the bitterest sorrow, all that is 
 noble and all that is base in human feelings. Originally 
 this kind of poetry was meant to be sung to the ac- 
 companiment of the lyre, but the term is now applied 
 to all brief emotional poetry without reference to sing- 
 ing qualities. Lyric poetry must be concise and highly 
 imaginative. Its appeal is most intense. It is the most 
 poetic of all poetry. If one likes lyric poetry he has 
 poetic susceptibilities and will probably learn to like 
 all poetry. Lyric poetry finds one's soul if anything 
 does. • 
 
 The sonnet, meaning "a little song," is the highest 
 type of the lyric poem, and at its best represents the 
 summit of poetic attainment. (See the sonnets quoted 
 above.) 
 
COMPOSITION IN VERSE 489 
 
 The song, which may be sacred or secular, is a short 
 lyric in an easy measure, so that it may be sung. Sa- 
 cred songs are emotional expressions of deep religious 
 feeling, such as Nearer, my God, to Thee and Lead, Kindly 
 Light. Secular songs are patriotic, sentimental, con- 
 vivial, comic. 
 
 The ode is much more elaborate and varied in struc- 
 ture than the song, and rises to great heights in express- 
 ing the poet's enthusiasm. It is not intended to be 
 sung. In it a poet exhausts all the powers of language 
 to voice his best emotions and thoughts, and leaves us 
 with the feeling that much that he would have expressed 
 has " broken through language and escaped." Odes are 
 always exalted in thought. 
 
 Some of the best in our language are Wordsworth's 
 Ode on Immortality; Keats' s Ode to a Grecian Urn; Shel- 
 ley's To a Skylark and The Cloud; Lowell's Commemora- 
 tion Ode; and Henry van Dyke's Ode to Music* 
 
 "Then sing, ye Birds, sing, sing a joyous song! 
 
 And let the young Lambs bound 
 
 As to the tabor's sound! 
 We in thought will join your throng, 
 
 Ye that pipe and ye that play, 
 
 Ye that through your hearts to-day 
 
 Feel the gladness of the May! 
 What though the radiance which was once so bright 
 Be now forever taken from my sight, 
 Though nothing can bring back the hour 
 Of splendor in the grass, of glory in the flower; 
 We will grieve not, rather find 
 Strength in what remains behind; 
 In the primal sympathy 
 Which having been must ever be; 
 In the soothing thoughts that spring 
 
490 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 Out of human suffering 
 
 In the faith that looks through death, 
 
 In the years that bring the philosophic mind." 
 
 — (Last Stanza) Ode to Immortality: Wordsworth 
 
 The elegy, or mournful ode, is a lyric poem expressing 
 sorrow, but it is usually also accompanied by medita- 
 tive reflection by means of which a way of escape into 
 realms of hope of coming victory is offered. Some 
 elegies are veiled in pastoral form for euphemistic effect, 
 such as Milton's Lycidas; Arnold's Thyrsis; Emerson's 
 Threnody. 
 
 Besides these, some of the best elegies are Shelley's 
 Adonais on the death of Keats, Gray's Elegy Written in 
 a Country Churchyard, and Tennyson's In Memoriam, 
 which is much more than an elegy. 
 
 The simple lyric may serve as a designation of those 
 numerous lyrics which are not comprised under the 
 sub-titles — sonnets, songs, odes, and elegies. By sim- 
 ple lyrics we mean those outbursts of emotion, in choice 
 poetic forms, which are so common, such as Words- 
 worth's Daffodils and his My Heart Leaps Up When I 
 Behold, Burns's To a Mouse and To a Mountain Daisy, 
 Milton's U Allegro, etc. 
 
 Dramatic Poetry. Dramatic poetry is that in which 
 action and emotion are represented in dialogue and 
 business, instead of being merely related. It is the 
 most comprehensive form of poetry and in it the great- 
 est masters have produced the best of all literary 
 achievements, the Greek tragedies, and the plays of 
 Shakespeare. 
 
COMPOSITION IN VERSE 491 
 
 Though the drama deals with the past, it represents 
 that past in the present; though it tells a story, the 
 narrative is subordinated to action, which reproduces 
 the story so that it may be seen; though a story is 
 represented in action by an author, the author is not 
 manifest; he speaks only through others, the charac- 
 ters whom he creates to live out the story. Dialogue, 
 only incidental in the epic, is here absolutely essential. 
 
 "All the world's a stage, 
 And all the men and women 
 Merely players," 
 
 said Shakespeare, who also made a character say that 
 the actors "hold the mirror up to nature." 
 
 Briefly, a drama is that literary form in which a story 
 is told by essential characters who so speak and so act 
 in a series of changing situations, arranged so as to de- 
 velop a plot, that the story moves logically and irre- 
 sistibly to a final representation of the action in the 
 denouement which reveals the consequences of all that 
 has gone before. A drama must be characterized by 
 unity of action, so that the main purpose is never long 
 lost from view. All minor matters must be so subordi- 
 nated to the controlling purpose as to aid and not hinder 
 the final working out of that supreme purpose. 
 
 Most dramas are intended for action upon a stage, 
 before an audience which sees as well as hears. The 
 word theater suggests an audience of spectators more 
 than listeners. Action is seen while the words are heard. 
 The power of a drama lies in the fact that it makes a 
 
492 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 double appeal. Every true play must be capable of 
 being acted before an audience. 
 
 Since the drama is ''imitated human action/' it em- 
 ploys scenery and costumes as well as many other con- 
 trivances to help create the illusion of real human life 
 being lived before the audience. 
 
 The chief forms of the drama are: 
 
 1. Tragedy, the highest form of dramatic art. Trag- 
 edy deals with weighty themes, often ethical, is always 
 serious, and represents a passionate struggle of a mortal 
 against fate expressed in human or in divine laws. The 
 conflict may be with external or with internal forces; 
 it may take the form of combating one's environment 
 or of overcoming his baser nature. Tragedy may be 
 defined as a testing of the human soul, a testing which 
 may or may not be accompanied by the death of the 
 body or of the soul or of both. Hence it is wrong to 
 assume that a tragedy is necessarily bloody. The death 
 of the hero is not essential. It often does result because 
 the struggle is too great for human power to endure; 
 but it should be remembered that if the soul stands the 
 test there is a higher victory. All martyrs to great 
 causes win a high spiritual victory by their sacrifice, 
 and hence are successful in the best sense, even though 
 they die physically. This important truth about trag- 
 edy must be heeded if one would fully appreciate this 
 great form of art and not turn from it because it is 
 serious and sad. He who understands the great trag- 
 edies of literature will the better know how to stand his 
 own great tests. To illustrate: In Sophocles' Antigone, 
 
COMPOSITION IN VERSE 493 
 
 Antigone suffers death because she is true to her pro- 
 foundest religious views. Condemned by the laws of 
 the state, she dies; but her very death proves her 
 spiritual victory. She lives in the highest sense. Job, 
 in the great tragedy bearing his name, suffers the great- 
 est possible testing. He loses his property, his children, 
 his friends; he suffers the most excruciating pain from 
 loathesome disease; he is tempted even to curse God; 
 but he holds true to his conscientious principles. He 
 stands the test, and within the scope of the play con- 
 tinues to live physically and spiritually. In the case of 
 Macbeth the testing is no greater, but the power of 
 resistance is wanting. Macbeth dies both spiritually 
 and physically and, moreover, it should be noted that 
 he dies to his higher nature first and after that he finds 
 "nothing serious in mortality." 
 
 The world's greatest tragedies are those of the great 
 Greeks, Sophocles, iEschylus, and Euripides; and 
 among Shakespeare's plays, Hamlet, Lear, Othello, Mac- 
 beth, and Julius Coesar. 
 
 2. Comedy. Comedy represents life in its less serious 
 aspects, and deals with its humors, its accidents, pleas- 
 antries, and follies. It does not involve a testing of the 
 soul and is not, of necessity, ethical, though it often 
 does contain a moral element. While inferior to tragedy, 
 it is essential in order fully to portray human life. 
 Comedy does not deal with victims of circumstances, 
 mere puppets, but with real human beings. Though 
 often humorous, it is not frivolous. It ends happily, for 
 there is no reason for its ending in any other way. It 
 
494 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 employs ridicule and satire. The ending cannot be 
 foreseen, as in the case of tragedy; it comes as a pleas- 
 ant surprise. Though some of the great Shakespearian 
 comedies are in verse, other comedy writers commonly 
 employ prose, since it is nearer the daily life repre- 
 sented. The best poetic comedies are Shakespeare's 
 As You Like It, Twelfth Night, and The Merchant of 
 Venice. The latter is sometimes called tragi-comedy, 
 since it approaches tragedy in some parts. 
 
 3. The Mask. The mask differed from* the regular 
 drama in being more simple in plot, in depending upon 
 music and dancing and elaborate scenic effects, and in 
 employing supernatural characters. It was often like 
 the morality plays in being allegorical and didactic. 
 It was also pastoral in form and romantic. The greatest 
 English mask is Milton's Comus. 
 
 4. Grand Opera. In grand opera we have great 
 tragedy arranged for singing. The best of tragedy and 
 the best of music are joined in the works of Wagner. 
 
 5. Comic opera is of no literary value, since the music 
 so overshadows the words. 
 
 Two other forms of drama are briefly described here, 
 though they rarely are written in poetic form. 
 
 6. Farce. In farce the effects are broad, involving 
 greatly exaggerated situations where the characters are 
 mere victims of circumstances and have no power of 
 rising above them. Shakespeare's Comedy of Errors is 
 not a comedy, but a farce. 
 
 7. Melodrama. Originally, melodrama contained 
 much music and was partly sung; to-day it abounds 
 
COMPOSITION IN VERSE 495 
 
 in highly romantic and exaggerated situations and over- 
 emphasizes the pathetic and the comic elements. The 
 characters lack gradation; are wholly good or wholly 
 bad. Good melodrama, however, is not to be despised. 
 Owing to the necessity for too great compression, dram- 
 atizations of novels are usually melodramas, e.g., Uncle 
 Tom's Cabin and St. Elmo. 
 
 Didactic Poetry. As the name implies, the aim of 
 this kind of poetry is to instruct. Some say it should 
 not be classed as poetry at all. While it is not the high- 
 est form it is an important one. The literary world 
 could not afford to leave it out. Didactic poetry is also 
 called philosophical, reflective, meditative, and moral. 
 It has been used by many great poets. It is written in 
 strict metrical form. The best illustrations are : Pope's 
 Essay on Criticism, Pope's Essay on Man, and Pope's 
 Moral Essays and Epistles; Wordsworth's Prelude. 
 Closely connected with this class of poetry, mention 
 should be made of satirical and controversial verse, 
 such as Dryden's Hind and Panther, Pope's Dunciad, 
 and Lowell's Fable for Critics. 
 
 The best way to study poetry is to begin by reading 
 it until one acquires a taste for it and some power of 
 appreciation; then he will be anxious to know the 
 technique of poetry and find the study of prosody far 
 from burdensome and a means of further appreciation, 
 while the mastery of diction, in the use of figures of 
 speech, and condensation, will all prove their value 
 and will help in prose composition. 
 
CHAPTER XIII 
 THE FINISHED PRODUCT— LITERATURE 
 
 The finished product of effective expression com- 
 prises, at its best, what is known as literature. We 
 shall not here attempt any discussion concerning the 
 exact nature of literature, for it is one of those words 
 whose denotation and connotation are so large that a 
 wholly satisfactory definition is impossible. There are 
 three things, however, that we may mention as essen- 
 tial characteristics of all literature which is genuine 
 and worthy of the name: the content must be worthy; 
 it must be so treated as to be interesting and hence 
 make a definite appeal to the reader; and it must pos- 
 sess a certain charm of style due to the personal touch 
 of the writer. Literature consists of the best of the 
 finished products of the writers of all the ages; those 
 writings which, because of their fitness, have survived 
 until the present. In this brief chapter our purpose is 
 to show the relation of the finished product of all the 
 ages, or literature, to the process of making that prod- 
 uct. Or, more briefly, to show the bearing literature 
 and composition have upon each other. 
 
 The student may naturally say, "You do not expect 
 me to produce literature, do you? I have no ambition 
 to write literature; I want simply to learn to write well 
 enough to satisfy my ordinary demands." We fully 
 
 496 
 
THE FINISHED PRODUCT— LITERATURE 497 
 
 understand that attitude, and for that reason believe 
 we are ready to show that it is fundamentally wrong. 
 We are well aware that the distinction of producing 
 literature is an honor which but few attain; but we are 
 equally sure that a somewhat intimate knowledge of 
 literature in most of its forms is a requisite for all who 
 would write well enough to satisfy the demands of even 
 moderate attainments in education and culture. Liter- 
 acy embraces a knowledge of letters, or what the French 
 call belles lettres, and that can mean nothing else than 
 an appreciation of literature. 
 
 The following paragraph from a pamphlet on The 
 Teaching of English in Secondary Schools, issued by the 
 London Board of Education, puts the case strongly in 
 favor of literature as an aid in composition: 
 
 "The instruction in English in a secondary 
 school aims at training the mind to appreciate 
 English literature, and at cultivating the 
 power of using the English language in speech 
 and writing. These objects are equally important 
 and each implies the other. Without training 
 in the use of language literature cannot be 
 properly understood or properly appreciated. 
 Without the study of literature there can be no 
 mastery over language ; it will not only be loose, 
 incorrect, and awkward, but it will also be in- 
 sufficient for the demands of life. The want 
 of mastery over language, resulting from the 
 absence of training in expression, is among the 
 most serious drawbacks with which those who 
 are engaged in scientific pursuits or practical 
 occupations have to contend, and which ham- 
 
498 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 per them even in the very subjects in which 
 they are most interested and most proficient. 
 Literature supplies the enlarged vocabulary ?, 
 which is the mechanism of the enlarged thought t 
 and for want of which people fall helplessly back 
 upon slang, the base coin of the language. Pure 
 English is not merely an accomplishment, but 
 an index to and a formative influence over 
 character." — W. N. Bruce, 
 
 Principal Assistant Secretary, 
 
 Board of Education, London, England 
 
 Since literature furnishes the models for the student 
 to appreciate and, in a measure, to imitate, while he is 
 learning to make his own finished product, the question 
 arises, "How can one get the most help from litera- 
 ture?" Again the answer is simple: "Real knowledge 
 and appreciation of literature come only from first- 
 hand study of the works of the great writers." The real 
 teachers of literature are the great writers themselves. 
 In the chapter on "Diction" we have shown how true 
 Stevenson found this. What helped Stevenson will 
 help anyone else. From the masters alone can we learn 
 method; the only way to learn from them is to read 
 them, study them, let them master us. 
 
 Here again we have the best of authority in a bulle- 
 tin of the United States Bureau of Education. Concern- 
 ing the ends to be attained by means of teaching litera- 
 ture, it says: 
 
 1. "The literature lesson should broaden, 
 deepen, and enrich the imaginative and emo- 
 tional life of the student. Literature is pri- 
 marily a revelation and interpretation of life; 
 
THE FINISHED PRODUCT— LITERATURE 499 
 
 it pictures from century to century the growth 
 of the human spirit. It should be the constant 
 aim of the English teacher to lead pupils so to 
 read that they may find their own lives imaged 
 in this larger life, and attain slowly, from a 
 clearer appreciation of human nature, a deeper 
 and truer understanding of themselves. 
 
 2. "The study of literature should arouse in 
 the minds of pupils an admiration for great 
 personalities, both of authors and characters 
 in literature. No man is higher than his ideals. 
 Human beings grow unconsciously in the direc- 
 tion of that which they admire. . . . The litera- 
 ture lesson must furnish the material out of 
 which may be created worthy and lasting 
 ideals of life and conduct. 
 
 3. "The literature lesson should raise the 
 plane of enjoyment in reading to progressively 
 higher levels. Reading is still the chief recrea- 
 tion of many people. It should be the aim of 
 the English teacher to make it an unfailing 
 source of joy in the fives of all. To make it 
 yield the greatest pleasure will involve the 
 consideration of literature not only as to its 
 content as a statement of facts and ideas, but 
 as an art. ... 
 
 4. "In order that the reading habit may 
 yield the pleasure and joy of which it is capa- 
 ble, the English lesson should give to the stud- 
 ent such knowledge of the scope and content 
 of literature as will leave him with a sense of 
 abundance of interesting material and a 
 trained ability and desire to find for himself 
 such intellectual and spiritual food as he may 
 need for his growth and his pleasure." 
 
500 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 Another question that may be asked is, "Must we 
 study the classics, or will modern literature suffice? " 
 We answer, "Read both." He who omits the classics 
 entirely simply does not know literature. The classics 
 represent the heights of literature and of life. Without 
 them there can be no raising of the standards of literary 
 taste. Through them one learns to enjoy the things 
 that he thought were beyond him; through them alone 
 can one enter into the richest realm of literature and 
 appreciate life at its best. So at least a few of the 
 classics should be studied carefully. 
 
 But that does not mean that one should confine him- 
 self to the older classics. The best of the present-day 
 writings are classics in the making, and well worthy of 
 the attention of all students. Moreover, the best of 
 the books of the present reflect the life of our own day 
 and so make a more direct appeal. Any literature, old 
 or new, that was worth writing, is worth reading. Some 
 must be read by all who would know life well enough 
 and have their imagination sufficiently quickened to be 
 in a position to write with ease and produce something 
 capable of arousing another's interest. Thus the 
 finished product of others may help us make our 
 finished products more than perfunctory exercises, 
 make them the fullest expressions of our own fives as 
 they grow richer and better. 
 
 Emerson said: 
 
 "That book is good 
 Which puts me in a working mood; 
 Unless to thought is added will 
 Apollo is an imbecile." ^ 
 
THE FINISHED PRODUCT— LITERATURE 501 
 
 And all who have read the best literature know how 
 true the statement is. The best literature inspires, 
 makes people want to do something, puts them in the 
 mood for it, puts the will behind the thought. The 
 study of the finished product, then, gives us facts, the 
 method of the masters, and inspiration. He who is un- 
 familiar with literature does not know life. He who 
 would know life at its best must learn from experience 
 and from literature. Experience and literature together 
 give the broad view and the intimate view so essential 
 to real culture. Experience brings the necessary touch 
 or realism; literature adds the equally essential spirit 
 of idealism. Together they enrich life and make it so 
 interesting as to demand expression. They impress us, 
 and impression, as we have seen, is the necessary 
 prerequisite for expression, the first great preparatory 
 step. 
 
 Since composition is the process whereby the raw mate- 
 rial of thoughts and emotions is made into the finished 
 product of effective expression, since life demands expres- 
 sion in proportion to the number and quality of its 
 thoughts and to the intensity of its emotions, and since 
 literature comprises the best finished product of all 
 who have expressed themselves, their thoughts, and 
 their aspirations, through all the ages, we can do no 
 better than work under the spell of "so great a crowd 
 of witnesses," feeling their inspiration and profiting by 
 their methods. We may profit by their failures and 
 refuse to imitate them; we may profit by their suc- 
 cesses and decline to be satisfied with our own efforts 
 
502 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 until they approach the finished product of the ages — 
 literature. 
 
 There is but one way for us to profit by the literature 
 of the past, and that is to learn it by actually reading 
 it. It will not suffice to know about it. Histories of 
 literature are excellent in so far as they inform us con- 
 cerning the story of the development of literature from 
 the most primitive choral chants, telling of the great 
 movements of men and their books. But histories of 
 literature, unless elaborately illustrated, serve only to 
 introduce us to the makers of literature;, they furnish 
 us with a catalogue knowledge and little more. They 
 are a good first step, but only a first step. 
 
 We must know literature itself and know it inti- 
 mately. The more we know, about the writers and of 
 the historical backgrounds, the better. But it is the 
 intimate, first-hand experience, of literature itself that 
 counts. What and how shall we read? 
 
 To some reading is burdensome; to others it is one 
 of the chief joys of life. If one reads as he should and 
 what he should, reading will not long continue to be a 
 task. The reason it is a task to so many is that they 
 go at it as a task. They look upon it as putting oneself 
 in a position to be preached at or lectured. If, on the 
 other hand, one makes up his mind to enjoy his reading, 
 he will enjoy it if he keeps at it long enough. It is 
 when we read for the pleasure of reading that we get 
 the most benefit from it. Reading, like work, is profit- 
 able in proportion as it is enjoyable. 
 
 There are, as Dr. Richard Burton has pointed out, 
 
THE FINISHED PRODUCT— LITERATURE 503 
 
 two kinds of pleasure to be derived from reading. The 
 first is the pleasure of discovery and of adventure. 
 This comes to the beginner. There is a remarkable 
 fascination about it. It lures him on into new worlds 
 and reveals to him new peoples and new conditions. 
 He learns and he enjoys the process. This kind of 
 pleasure is good; but, after all, it is somewhat juvenile. 
 It cannot last. There is a possibility of its leading to 
 satiety. Then one is tempted to give up reading. 
 
 The second kind of pleasure of reading is that of re- 
 discovery. This kind is of the better. There is no 
 danger of satiety here. This kind takes one into the 
 higher forms of literature, where he comes under the 
 influence of the master minds. The pleasure of re- 
 discovery surpasses that of discovery as the meeting of 
 an old and tried friend is greater than making a new 
 acquaintance. The more one reads of real literature 
 the more he finds allusions to what he has read before; 
 the more he sees that the great conceptions of life are 
 the common property of all thinkers, and he will find 
 a new pleasure in seeing how different writers express 
 them. Different interpretations and applications of 
 the classic stories of mythology will always come with 
 a new charm. He will enjoy the cross currents of lit- 
 erature, revealing the mutual interdependence of writ- 
 ers. He will discover that the domain of literature, 
 and the domain of expression, is boundless. He will 
 find that he has gradually been acquiring a literary 
 taste which, while it is exacting in its demands, at the 
 same time points the way to satisfy the demands. 
 
504 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 There can be no over-satisfaction for such a reader. 
 Life is too short to enable him to explore all the laby- 
 rinths in so rich a paradise. 
 
 Begin, then, with being temporarily satisfied with the 
 primal joy of discovery; continue your reading until 
 you have tasted the higher joy which has perennial 
 power to lead you on and on to the heights of life " with 
 a glimpse of a height that is higher." Then you will 
 know and appreciate literature. Then you will have a 
 new and a stronger motive to seek and to find satis- 
 faction in making out of your thoughts and emotions 
 finished products of effective expression; you will have 
 proved that you cannot do your best until you have 
 learned to bring literature to your aid in composition. 
 
 We have little faith in the value of lists of the "hun- 
 dred best books," " five-foot shelves," and " pigskin 
 libraries." There is no such thing as the hundred best 
 books for everybody. What we purpose to do is simply 
 to offer a few suggestions, with the hope that they 
 guide those who follow them to choose for themselves 
 and to specialize, if they so desire, as they plan for the 
 reading of a lifetime. 
 
 The kinds of literature are four, all of which should 
 be at least partially known before one narrows his 
 reading down to any one class — history (including biog- 
 raphy), poetry, the essay, and fiction. 
 
 1. History and Biography. The least history with 
 which one can hope to understand the allusions in other 
 literature, includes: a general history of the ancient 
 world, a continental history, a history of England, and 
 
THE FINISHED PRODUCT— LITERATURE 505 
 
 an adequate history of America. The latter, to be 
 really adequate, should include the works of Parkman, 
 Prescott, John Fiske, Woodrow Wilson, and James 
 Ford Rhodes. For good measure read the lives of the 
 American statesmen. 
 
 Biography indirectly gives, as a by-product, much 
 historical information, but its chief value lies in its 
 intimate knowledge of the men who have helped shape 
 the world's history and events, who have made litera- 
 ture and reproduced life. Boswell's Life of Johnson is 
 generally considered one of the greatest biographies. 
 Every one should read it not only to appreciate the great 
 literary dictator, but to appreciate the spirit of the 
 eighteenth century. Then read generously from that 
 great series, the English Men of Letters, and other 
 similar series. Biography is most satisfying and it 
 creates an appetite for greater literature. It and his- 
 tory prepare the way for appreciating literature. 
 
 2. Poetry. Poetry registers the high-water mark of 
 literature. It records the best thoughts in the best 
 form. It touches the heart and appeals to the emotions 
 as no other form of literature can. It supplies a human 
 need that nothing else can satisfy. It is the most in- 
 spiring form. It makes the supreme appeal to the 
 imagination. And yet it is the literature that many 
 think they can ignore. But, as we have shown in the 
 chapter on the " Composition in Verse," it is the most 
 fruitful form of expression to study as a preparation for 
 writing. Hence these suggestions: 
 
 Wordsworth tells what poetry is to him, and his 
 
506 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 poems are the proof that the unseen world of the imag- 
 ination is real to those who "see into the life of things." 
 Consequently he is a good poet through whom to learn 
 to appreciate poetry. Read his Lines Written a Few 
 Miles Above T intern Abbey to get his poetic creed, and 
 to appreciate the power of the imagination to perpet- 
 uate and to idealize past experiences. Then read Tine 
 Daffodils, and the sonnet The World Is Too Much With 
 Us, to illustrate the truth learned in Tintern Abbey. 
 Selections from The Prelude outline the " growth of a 
 poet's mind/' and give further corroboration of his 
 thesis. Then if you read the first hundred lines of The 
 Recluse and The Ode on Intimations of Immortality From 
 Recollections of Early Childhood, especially the last three 
 stanzas, you will be in a position to appreciate poetry. 
 
 Read selected poems from such anthologies as : New- 
 comber's and Andrews' Twelve Centuries of English 
 Poetry and Verse, Boynton's American Poetry, or Page's 
 Chief American Poets, and for current poetry, High 
 Tide — Poems of Joy and Vision. 
 
 Read selected poems of individual poets, beginning 
 with Longfellow and Tennyson, who are popular favor- 
 ites, and should be known intimately; after which 
 familiarize yourself with the representative poems of 
 Burns, Scott, Coleridge, Byron, Shelley, and Keats, 
 to appreciate the revival of romanticism. 
 
 Read extensively such American poets as Poe, Lowell, 
 Emerson, Whittier, and Lanier, to know what your own 
 country has contributed to world literature. 
 
 By this time you will be ready for Shakespeare, whom 
 
THE FINISHED PRODUCT— LITERATURE 507 
 
 you cannot really know until you have carefully read 
 at least fifteen of his plays. Milton will now appeal to 
 you, and this is a good time to learn enough of the 
 great world poets — Homer, Dante, Goethe, to under- 
 stand the debt of other poets to them. 
 
 Browning is the greatest of the modern poets — strong, 
 robust, virile, and optimistic. Do not be misled by 
 fears of failure to comprehend him. Begin with his 
 shorter poems. They will thrill you. Then study Rabbi 
 Ben Ezra, Saul, Abt Vogler, for Browning's philosophy. 
 By this time you will hunger for more and be ready for 
 Paracelsus and The Ring and the Book, the epic of the 
 commonplace, and one of the greatest poems of modern 
 times. 
 
 Alfred Noyes and John Masefield are the best of the 
 present-day English poets, and should be read extensively. 
 
 The foregoing suggestions are sufficient to develop 
 the latent poetic susceptibilities for all who will follow 
 them. Alter that they will need no further incentive 
 than their own desire and no further guide than their 
 own taste. 
 
 3. The Essay. The essay, like poetry, seems uninviting 
 to those who view it from afar and with prejudice. As a 
 matter of fact, the essay resembles lyric poetry in that 
 it is the most personal and subjective form of literature, 
 with the single exception of the letter. 
 
 "The essayist is among the freest of literary practi- 
 tioners. There is imposed upon him no limit of either 
 method or theme. There are no imperious or auto- 
 cratic unities to trouble him. There are no conven- 
 
508 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 tions to curtail the liberty of his spirit. He may select 
 any theme, treat it in any way, intrude his own opin- 
 ions or reflections, insist upon his own prejudices, inter- 
 sperse his most serious passages with grotesque humor, 
 pass at will from familiar gossip to impassioned elo- 
 quence, act in all things as he pleases, with a complete- 
 disregard of any will but his own, and no one will com- 
 plain so long as his page is interesting. He is the Ariel 
 of literature, and sometimes even the Puck. That very 
 irresponsibility, which in graver writers would be 
 counted a misdemeanor, in him becomes a charm.' ' 
 — The Genesis of the Essay: William J. and Coningsby W. Dawson 
 
 Representative essays to read: 
 
 The classic essay: Bacon's Love and Studies, Milton's 
 Search After Truth. 
 
 The critical essay: Lowell's Among My Books, Haz- 
 litt's Hamlet, Mabie's Essays on Criticism, Bradford's 
 Friends on the Shelf, Phelps's Essays on Modern Novelists. 
 
 The biographical essay, sometimes called narrative 
 and critical: Macaulay's Addison and Milton, De 
 Quincey's Joan of Arc, Emerson's A Visit to Words- 
 worth, Carlyle's Burns, and Stevenson's Some Aspects 
 of Robert Burns. 
 
 The familiar or informal essay: Addison and Steele's 
 Spectator Papers (mostly familiar, while some are crit- 
 ical and short story essays), Lamb's Christ's Hospital 
 Five and Thirty Years Ago, Grace Before Meat, A Dis- 
 sertation on Roast Pig, Poor Relations; Richard Dow- 
 ling's My Copy of Keats; De Quincey's English Mail 
 
THE FINISHED PRODUCT— LITERATURE 509 
 
 Coach; David Grayson's Adventures in Friendship and 
 The Friendly Road, Henry van Dyke's Days Off and 
 Fisherman's Luck; and Samuel McChord Crothers' The 
 Gentle Reader and Among Friends. 
 
 4. Fiction, the Novel and the Short Story. Here we have 
 the most popular reading in which everyone indulges 
 and concerning which but little need be said. So many, 
 however, are misled into thinking that the only fiction 
 worthy of their attention is that fresh from the press, 
 that a word of caution is necessary. That much very 
 readable fiction is being produced every year is a well- 
 known fact, but it is not worthy to supplant the great 
 novels of the nineteenth century. No one can presume 
 to know literature who does not appreciate the most 
 representative works of Jane Austen, Charlotte Bronte, 
 Scott, Dickens, Thackeray, George Eliot, Charles 
 Reade, Thomas Hardy, and Robert Louis Stevenson. 
 Of these, Dickens, with his humanitarian spirit and his 
 humor, has touched more hearts than any other novel- 
 ist ; Thackeray has depicted a different world from the 
 one Dickens knew, and he has done it with a master 
 hand; George Eliot, the philosopher and psychological 
 analyst, has delved deep into the study of humanity, 
 and her works will always be read by those who want 
 to see the motive behind men's actions; Charles Reade, 
 the dramatic novelist, has written the greatest romance 
 of mediaeval life, The Cloister and the Hearth, and pro- 
 duced even novels of purpose with an abiding interest; 
 Thomas Hardy, the greatest artist of them all, though 
 he deals with tragic themes, has produced many un- 
 
510 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 dying characters and told their stories in The Return 
 of the Native, Far From the Madding Crowd, The 
 Mayor of Casterbridge, The Woodlanders, and Tess of the 
 D'Urbervilles, with a charm of style that few can resist; 
 while Stevenson, in a great variety of ways, has secured 
 a permanent place among novelists. Hardy and Steven- 
 son are the two whose style will prove most helpful for 
 those who are ambitious to write well. 
 
 Hawthorne, James Lane Allen, Mark Twain, William 
 Dean Howells, and Booth Tarkington are the Ameri- 
 cans who are most representative of our best fiction. 
 
 When such novelists as we have mentioned have been 
 widely read, one will have acquired such a criterion of 
 judgment as to enable him to make wise selections from 
 among the many books published each year. 
 
 The Short Story. The short story has come to have 
 a prominent place with fiction readers. While these 
 stories are too short to deal adequately with large 
 themes, they give excellent cross sections of life and 
 picture incidents, and draw minor characters in a way 
 that makes them good reading for busy people. The 
 short story has a place of its own, and a worthy place, 
 but it should not be allowed to crowd out the novel. 
 
 Poe, Irving, and Hawthorne are the pioneers of the 
 short story, which, for reasons it is not necessary to 
 give here, is a distinctly American product. They 
 should be read to appreciate the evolution of this form 
 of literature. The one great English short-story writer 
 is Kipling, and he should be read. Others who have 
 contributed stories worth while are : Bret Harte, Mark 
 
THE FINISHED PRODUCT— LITERATURE 511 
 
 Twain, Mary E. Wilkins Freeman, Mary Raymond 
 Shipman Andrews, Thomas Nelson Page, and O. Henry. 
 
 The more one knows of the principles and qualities 
 required by rhetoric, the more he will appreciate the 
 work of the masters. The more one discovers that 
 which is good in what he reads, and appreciates why it 
 is good, the more that goodness will react upon himself 
 and help him to grow in his ability to write with clear- 
 ness, force, and elegance. Do not think that reading 
 with an eye to an author's style will make your reading 
 mechanical and make you hypercritical. It is far from 
 mechanical and it makes the reader more sympathetic 
 and appreciative. The writer of these words, who has 
 for years been a reader, never enjoyed reading so much 
 as while seeking illustrative material for this book. 
 
 The purpose of this chapter has been to help the 
 writer get all the help possible from his reading, and to 
 suggest what that reading should be and how it should 
 be done. If any have the too common idea that litera- 
 ture consists of all the dull books written by men who 
 died long ago, we trust that Arnold Bennett's very 
 different conception, that literature tells of the " miracu- 
 lous inter estingness of life," will cure them. 
 
 In his Elements of Physics, where we should scarce 
 expect such words, Professor Arnott said: 
 
 "And in a corner of my house I have books! 
 The miracle of all my possessions, more won- 
 derful than the wishing-cap of the Arabian 
 Tales ; for they transport me instantly, not only 
 to all places, but to all times. By my books 
 
512 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 I can conjure up before me, to vivid existence, 
 all the great and good men of antiquity; and 
 for my individual satisfaction I can make them 
 act over again the most renowned of their ex- 
 ploits: the orators declaim for me; the histori- 
 ans recite; the poets sing, and from the equator 
 to the pole, or from the beginning of time un- 
 til now, by my books, I can be where I please." 
 In his Sesame and Lilies Ruskin has shown what 
 reading has required of us and what it does for us: 
 " These (great books) are all at your choice; 
 and life is short. You have heard as much 
 before; yet have you measured and mapped 
 out this short life and its possibilities? Do 
 you know, if you read this, that you cannot 
 read that ; that what you lose to-day you can- 
 not gain to-morrow? Will you go and gossip 
 with your housemaid or your stable boy, when 
 you may talk with queens and kings, or flatter 
 yourselves that it is with any worthy con- 
 sciousness of your own claims to respect that 
 you jostle with the hungry and common crowd 
 for entree here, and audience there, when all 
 the while this eternal court is open to you with 
 its society, wide as the world, multitudinous 
 as its days — the chosen and mighty of every 
 place and time? Into that you may enter 
 always; in that you may take fellowship and 
 rank according to your wish; from that, once 
 entered into it, you can never be an outcast 
 but by your own fault; by your aristocracy of 
 companionship there your own inherent aris- 
 tocracy will be assuredly tested, and the mo- 
 tives with which you strive to take high place 
 in the society of the living, measured as to all 
 
THE FINISHED PRODUCT— LITERATURE 513 
 
 the truth and sincerity that are in them, by 
 the place you desire to take in this company 
 of the dead. 
 
 "The place you desire and the place you fit 
 yourself for, I must also say because, observe, 
 this court of the past differs from all living 
 aristocracy in this — it is open to labor and to 
 merit, but to nothing else. No wealth will 
 bribe, no name overawe, no artifice deceive, 
 the guardian of those Elysian gates. In the 
 deep sense, no vile or vulgar person ever enters 
 there. At the portiers of that silent Faubourg 
 Saint-Germain there is but brief question : Do 
 you deserve to enter? Pass. Do you ask to 
 be the companion of nobles? Make yourself 
 noble, and you shall be. Do you long for the 
 conversation of the wise? Learn to understand 
 it and you shall hear it. But on other terms? 
 No. If you will not rise to us we cannot stoop 
 to you. The living lord may assume courtesy, 
 the living philosopher may explain his thought 
 to you with considerate pain; but here we 
 neither feign nor interpret. You must rise to 
 the level of our thoughts if you would be glad- 
 dened by them, and share our feelings if you 
 would recognize our presence." 
 
 Mrs. Browning also tells us how to read: 
 
 "We get no good 
 By being ungenerous, even to a book, 
 And calculating profits — so much help 
 By so much reading. It is rather when 
 We gloriously forget ourselves, and plunge 
 Soul-forward, headlong, into a book's profound, 
 Impassioned for its beauty, and salt of truth — 
 'Tis then we get the right good from a book." 
 
APPENDIX 
 
 Symbols Used in Marking Compositions 
 
 A. — Ambiguous. Misplacement of phrases, clauses, etc. 
 
 Ant. — Trouble with the antecedent: no antecedent, two or more 
 possible ones, or lack of agreement with antecedent. 
 
 Awk. — Clumsy expression. Awkward. 
 
 Cap. — Use capital. 
 
 01. — Quality of clearness lacking; vague, indefinite, obscure, or 
 ambiguous. Confusion of ideas. 
 
 Coh. — Lacks coherence. Parts do not hang together. S. Con., 
 f Coh., and C. Coh., used respectively to indicate lack of coherence 
 in the sentence, in the paragraph, and in the whole composition. 
 
 Con. — Connection faulty: no connectives, wrong connectives, 
 transitional clause necessary to give proper sequence. 
 
 Condense. — Too many words used, or involved construction. 
 
 Consult. — Consult teacher for fuller criticism. 
 
 Cstn. — Construction faulty; awkward, wrong, involved. Gram- 
 matically and rhetorically bad. 
 
 D. — Consult dictionary for spelling, etymology, meaning, or 
 usage of word indicated. 
 
 E. — Not good English. Unidiomatic, foreign construction, etc. 
 
 Eu. — Inelegant. Principle of euphony violated. Harsh sound. 
 
 Exp. — Expand. Insufficient development for so important an 
 idea. 
 
 Fig. — Error in use of figure. Forced, far-fetched, not in keeping 
 with subject. Mixed figures. 
 
 F. W. — Too pretentious; overdone; entirely out of keeping. 
 
 G. — Good. Meritorious. A commendation. 
 
 Gr. — Grammar bad. Find your error. 
 
 Inv. — Involved. Simplify it. 
 
 514 
 
APPENDIX 515 
 
 Kp. — Out of keeping with subject and proper treatment — e.g., 
 falling into colloquial expressions in dealing with a dignified sub- 
 ject, use of slang, etc. Principle of taste violated. 
 
 1. c. — Change capital to small letter. 
 
 Ms. — Manuscript bad. Not neat, slovenly, poorly written, 
 margins wrong. 
 
 P. — Punctuation wrong or inadequate. 
 
 Pos. — Word or phrase or clause out of proper place. "Only" 
 is a comon offender. 
 
 Quo. — Quotation incorrect, or incorrectly punctuated, or in- 
 applicable. 
 
 R. — Avoid repetition of word or unpleasant repetition of same 
 sound. 
 
 Sent. — Not best kind of sentence. Monotony in use of same 
 kind of sentence. Cultivate variety. Cultivate the periodic 
 sentence. 
 
 SI. — Slang. It indicates carelessness, or worse. 
 
 Sp. — Wrong spelling. 
 
 Sub. — Violation of principles of coordination and subordination. 
 Perhaps a complex sentence would improve matters. Recast 
 sentence. 
 
 Taut. — Tautology. Useless repetition weakens effect; a viola- 
 tion of force and economy. 
 
 Tr. — Transpose sentence for sake of clearness. 
 
 U. — Principle of unity violated. Unrelated or incongruous ideas. 
 
 W. — Weak, commonplace, hackneyed: no force. Applied to 
 words and sentences; sometimes to whole compositions, when 
 nothing worth while is said or when what is said is wholly lacking in 
 interest. 
 
 % — Begin new paragraph here. 
 
 No ^f. — Do not begin a paragraph here. 
 
 8 — Take out. 
 
 [ 1 — Rewrite part inclosed within brackets. 
 
 ( ) — Omit part inclosed. 
 
 O — Close up words wrongly separated. 
 
 ? ? — Statement questioned. Verify it or modify it. 
 
 A — Something evidently omitted. Supply. 
 
 J — Indent. 
 
 When it is desired to suggest an omitted punctuation mark put 
 a caret where it should be, and indicate on the margin opposite 
 what mark to use — e.g., -,',,. 
 
 At the beginning of the composition indicate the general value 
 
516 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 of the composition by the use of such words as Excellent, Good, 
 Fair, Poor, and Very Poor. 
 
 At the end of the manuscript write a brief criticism telling the 
 prevailing faults and pointing out excellencies. Make criticism 
 constructive, such as will help to reduce the faults and to increase 
 the number of excellencies. While on the alert to show errors be 
 equally ready to encourage honest effort. If there is improvement, 
 say so. 
 
 II 
 
 The following quotations are for study in paragraph 
 development. They may also be used to show the 
 overlapping or the combination of the various forms 
 of discourse, and as models of forms of discourse to be 
 identified. 
 
 "Lamb's literary style is unique. If style be meas- 
 ured by the faithfulness with which it reveals the per- 
 sonality of the writer, then Lamb's must be nearly per- 
 fect. To attempt any imitation of it would be to fall 
 into intolerable precosity. In force and compass, of 
 course, he is not to be ranked with the greatest men; 
 but nobody's work is more exquisite. To use a phrase 
 more commonly applied to painters, I should call Lamb 
 one of the Little Masters. His diction is a study in 
 verbal values. He had a nice sense of the significance 
 of words, the aroma of association. He loved to elab- 
 orate a statement slowly, lingering over its details and 
 tasting the flavor of every phrase with deliberate relish. 
 But the charm of his style is due most of all to the 
 constant presence of his imagination. His thought is 
 always concreting itself in illustration or example, and 
 
APPENDIX 517 
 
 in almost every line blossoms into some rare or grace- 
 ful fancy. It is so spontaneous that the reader hardly 
 appreciates its richness; but in reality — if the homely 
 phrase may be pardoned — there is more imagination 
 to the square inch in Lamb's writing than in almost 
 any other modern prose." 
 
 — A Group of English Essayists: C. T. Winchester 
 
 "The berries were not the round and rosy ones of the 
 meadow, but the long, slender, dark crimson ones of 
 the forest. One, two, three; no more on that vine; but 
 each one as it touched my lips was a drop of nectar 
 and a crumb of ambrosia, a concentrated essence of all 
 the pungent sweetness of the wildwood, sapid, pene- 
 trating, and delicious. I tasted the odor of a hundred 
 blossoms and the green shimmering of innumerable 
 leaves and the sparkle of sifted sunbeams and the 
 breath of highland breezes and the song of many birds 
 and the murmur of flowing streams — all in a wild 
 strawberry." 
 
 — Fisherman's Luck, A Wild Strawberry: Henry van Dyke 
 
 " Among all our novelists his (Thackeray's) style is 
 the purest, as to my ear it is also the most harmonious. 
 Sometimes it is disfigured by a slight touch of affecta- 
 tion, by little conceits which smell of the oil; but the 
 language is always lucid. The reader, without labor, 
 knows what he means, and knows all that he means. 
 As well as I can remember, he deals with no episodes, 
 I think that any critic, examining his work minutely, 
 would find that every scene, and every part of every 
 
518 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 scene, adds something to the clearness with which the 
 story is told. Among all his stories there is not one 
 which does not leave on the mind a feeling of distress 
 that women should ever be immodest or men dishonest, 
 and a feeling of joy. How we hate the idle selfishness 
 of Pendennis, the worldliness of Beatrix, the craft of 
 Becky Sharpe! How we love the honesty of Colonel 
 Newcombe, the nobility of Esmond, and the devoted 
 affection of Mrs. Pendennis ! The hatred of evil and 
 the love of good can hardly have come upon so many 
 readers without doing much good." 
 
 — From An Autobiography: Anthony Trollope 
 
 "The congregation was, in those days, of a really 
 rural character. City fashions were as yet unknown, or 
 unregarded, by the country people of the neighborhood. 
 Steamboats had not as yet confounded town with coun- 
 try. A weekly market boat from Tarrytown, the Far- 
 mer's Daughter, navigated by the worthy Gabriel Requa, 
 was the only communication between all these parts 
 and the metropolis. A rustic belle in those days con- 
 sidered a visit to the city in much the same light as one 
 of our modern fashionable ladies regards a visit to 
 Europe — an event that may possibly take place once 
 in the course of a lifetime, but to be hoped for rather 
 than expected. Hence the array of the congregation 
 was chiefly after the primitive fashions existing in 
 Sleepy Hollow; or if, by chance, there was a departure 
 from the Dutch sunbonnet, or the apparition of a 
 bright gown of flowered calico, it caused quite a sen- 
 
APPENDIX 519 
 
 sation throughout the church. As the dominie gener- 
 ally preached by the hour, a bucket of water was prov- 
 idently placed on a bench near the door, in summer, 
 with a tin cup beside it, for the solace of those who 
 might be athirst, either from the heat of the weather 
 or the drought of the sermon." 
 
 — Wolfert's Roost: Washington Ikving 
 
 "He (Byron) died among strangers in a foreign land, 
 without a kindred hand to close his eyes; yet he did 
 not die unwept. With all his faults and errors, and pas- 
 sions and caprices, he had the gift of attaching his 
 humble dependents warmly to him. One of them, a 
 poor Greek, accompanied his remains to England, and 
 followed them to the grave. I am told that, during the 
 ceremony, he stood holding on by a pew in an agony 
 of grief, and when all was over, seemed as if he would 
 have gone down into the tomb with the body of his 
 master — a nature that could inspire such attachments 
 must have been generous and beneficent." 
 
 — Newstead Abbey: Washington Irving 
 
 "The character of Hamlet stands quite by itself. It 
 is not a character marked by strength of will or even 
 of passion, but by refinement of thought and sentiment. 
 Hamlet is as little of the hero as a man can well be; but 
 he is a young and princely novice, full of high enthusi- 
 asm and quick sensibility — the sport of circumstances, 
 questioning with fortune and refining on his own feel- 
 ings, and forced from the natural bias of his disposition 
 
520 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 by the strangeness of his situation. He seems inca- 
 pable of deliberate action, and is only hurried into ex- 
 tremities on the spur of the occasion, when he has no 
 time to reflect, as in the scene where he kills Polonius; 
 and again where he alters the letters which Rosen- 
 crantz and Gildenstern are taking with them back to 
 England, purporting his death. At other times, when 
 he is most bound to act, he remains puzzled, undecided, 
 and skeptical; dallies with his purposes till the occasion 
 is lost, and finds out some pretense to relapse into 
 indolence and thoughtfulness again. For this reason he 
 refuses to kill the king when he is at his prayers, and by 
 a refinement in malice, which is in truth only an excuse 
 for his own want of resolution, defers his revenge to a 
 more fatal opportunity, when he shall be engaged in 
 some act 'that hath no relish of salvation in it.'" 
 
 — The Characters of Shakespeare's Plays: William Hazlitt 
 
 "A round year of the earth's changes enters into the 
 creation of the hemp. The planet has described its 
 vast orbit ere it be grown and finished. All seasons are 
 its servitors; all contradictions and extremes of nature 
 meet in its making. The vernal patience of the warm- 
 ing soil; the long, fierce arrows, of the summer heat, 
 the long silvery arrows of the summer rain; autumn's 
 dead skies and sobbing winds; winter's sternest, all- 
 tightening frosts. Of none but strong virtues it is the 
 sum. Sickness or infirmity it knows not. It will have 
 a mother young and vigorous, or none; an old or weak 
 or exhausted soil cannot produce it. It will endure no 
 
APPENDIX 521 
 
 roof of shade, basking only in the eye of the fatherly 
 sun, and demanding the whole sky for the walls of its 
 nursery." — The Reign of Law: James Lane Allen 
 
 "Here we were crosswise in the rapids, apparently 
 ready to seesaw, using the obstructing stone as a ful- 
 crum, but not in reality, for as we settled back a little 
 and the upper gunwale dropped, the water rushed in, 
 immersing the Small Boy, whereupon the two end men 
 jumped out and hastily beached the canoe for such 
 slight repairs as the imaginative reader can readily con- 
 jecture. This, our only accident, accounts for the fact 
 that we have no pictures as souvenirs of this trip — for 
 immersion is not good for cameras." 
 
 — Canoe Stories: Charles Elbert Rhodes 
 
 " Milton would not have excelled in dramatic writing; 
 he knew human nature only in the gross, and had never 
 studied the shades of character, nor the combinations 
 of concurring, nor the perplexity of contending passions. 
 He had read much, and knew what books could teach, 
 but had mingled little in the world, and was deficient 
 in the knowledge which experience must confer." 
 — The Lives of the Most Eminent English Poets: Samuel Johnson 
 
 ". . . I was once told that the surest aid to the writ- 
 ing of a book was a piece of cobbler's wax on my chair. 
 I certainly believe in the cobbler's wax much more 
 than the inspiration. 
 
 "It will be said, perhaps, that a man whose work has 
 
522 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 risen to no higher pitch than mine has attained, has 
 no right to speak of the strain and impulses to which 
 real genius is exposed. I am ready to admit the great 
 variations in brain power which are exhibited by the 
 products of different men, and am not disposed to rank 
 my own very high; but my own experience tells me that 
 a man can always do the work for which his brain is 
 fitted if he will give himself the habit of regarding his 
 work as a normal condition of his life. I therefore ven- 
 ture to advise young men who look forward to author- 
 ship as the business of their lives, even when they pro- 
 pose that their authorship be of the highest class 
 known, to avoid enthusiastic rushes with their pens, 
 and to seat themselves at their desks day by day 
 as though they were lawyer's clerks; and so let them 
 sit until the allotted task shall be accomplished." 
 
 — An Autobiography: Anthony Trollope 
 
 " Conversation with men of polite genius is another 
 method of improving our natural taste. It is impossible 
 for a man of the greatest parts to consider anything in 
 its whole extent and in all its variety of lights. Every 
 man, besides those general observations which are to 
 be made upon an author, forms several reflections that 
 are peculiar to his own manner of thinking; so that 
 conversation will naturally furnish us with hints which 
 we did not attend to, and make us enjoy other men's 
 parts and reflections as well as our own. This is the 
 best reason I can give for the observation which several 
 have made, that men of great genius in the same way 
 
APPENDIX 523 
 
 of writing, seldom rise up singly, but at certain periods 
 of time appear together and in a body, as they did at 
 Rome in the reign of Augustus, and in Greece about 
 the age of Socrates. I cannot think that Corneille, 
 Racine, Moliere, Boileau, la Fontaine, Bruyere, Bossu, 
 or the Dacieis would have written so well as they have 
 done had they not been friends and contemporaries." 
 — Spectator Paper No. 409: Addison 
 
 "In order to set this matter in a clear light to every 
 reader, I shall, in the first place, observe that a meta- 
 phor is a simile in one word, which serves to convey 
 the thoughts of the mind under resemblances and 
 images which affect the senses. There is not anything 
 in the world which may not be compared to several 
 things, if considered in several distinct lights; or, in 
 other words, the same thing may be expressed by dif- 
 ferent metaphors. But the mischief is that an unskill- 
 ful author shall run these metaphors so absurdly into 
 one another that there shall be no simile, no agreeable 
 picture, no apt resemblance, but confusion, obscurity, 
 and noise. Thus I have known a hero compared to a 
 thunderbolt, a lion, and the sea; all and each of them 
 proper metaphors for impetuosity, courage, or force. 
 But by bad management it hath so happened that the 
 thunderbolt hath overflowed its banks, the lion hath 
 been darted through the skies, and the billows have 
 rolled out of the Libyan Desert." 
 
 — Spectator Paper No. 595: Addison 
 
524 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 " There are many who would laugh at the idea of a 
 novelist teaching either virtue or nobility — those, for 
 instance, who regard the reading of novels as a sin, 
 and those who think it to be simply an idle pastime. 
 They look upon the tellers of stories as among the tribe 
 of those who pander to the wicked pleasures of a wicked 
 world. I have regarded my art from so different a 
 point of view that I have ever thought of myself as 
 a preacher of sermons, and my pulpit as one which 
 I could make both salutary and agreeable to my audi- 
 ence. I do believe that no girl has risen from the 
 reading of my pages less modest than she was before 
 and that some may have learned from them that mod- 
 esty is a charm well worth preserving. I think that 
 no youth has been taught that in falseness and flashi- 
 ness is to be found the road to manliness; but some 
 may perhaps have learned from me that it is to be 
 found in truth and in a high but gentle spirit. Such 
 are the lessons I have striven to teach; and I have 
 thought it might best be done by representing to my 
 readers characters like themselves — or to which they 
 might liken themselves." 
 
 — An Autobiography: Anthony Trollope 
 
INDEX 
 
 Abbottsford, 311; 315; 332 
 
 Abstract, The, 357 
 
 Abt Vogler, 507 
 
 Acatalectic, 474 
 
 Addison, Joseph, 112; 328; 523 
 
 Adonais, 490 
 
 Mneid, The, 233; 487 
 
 Aeschylus, 493 
 
 A fortiori argument, 416 
 
 Alexandrine stanza, 485 
 
 Allegory, 456 
 
 Allen, James Lane, 276; 282; 
 
 314; 510; 521 
 Alliteration, 464 
 Allusion, 458 
 
 American Commonwealth, The, 356 
 American Poetry, 506 
 Amphibrach, 473 
 Anapest, 472 
 Ancient Mariner, The, 233; 246; 
 
 262; 463; 464; 478; 488 
 Andrews, Mary R. S., 511 
 Angelus, The, 295 
 Anglicisms, 68 
 Anticlimax, 463 
 Antigone, 257; 492 
 Antiquary, The, 291 
 Antithesis, 462 
 A -posteriori reasoning, 413 
 Apostrophe, 85; 457 
 Apostrophe to the Ocean, 458 
 A priori reasoning, 406; 412 
 Argumentation, 387-450 
 
 and narration, 265 
 
 formal, 417 
 
 from analogy, 415 
 
 from example, 414 
 
 from sign, 414 
 
 informal, 388 
 
 material of, 396 
 Arnold, Matthew, 193; 490 
 Arnott, Niel, 511 
 
 Articulation, 185 
 As You Like It, 257; 491; 494 
 Austen, Jane, 509 
 Autobiography, 252; 332; 394; 518; 
 522; 524 
 
 Backlog Studies, 253 
 
 Ballads, 228-231; 478 
 
 Bannockburn, 202 
 
 Barbarisms, 56-58 
 
 Barnaby Rudge, 244 
 
 Begging the question, 411 
 
 Bell, Ralcy Husted, 53 
 
 Bells, The, 460 
 
 Ben Ezra, 507 
 
 Beowulf, 461; 487 
 
 Bible, The, 68; 455; 461; 462; 463; 
 
 464 
 Black Beauty, 265 
 Blue Bird, The, 456 
 Bonnie George Campbell, 228 
 Book Reviews, 360 
 Boswell, James, 505 
 Breathing, 181 
 Brief, parts of, 426-431 
 
 body, 428-431 
 
 conclusion, 431 
 
 introduction, 427 
 
 oral development of, 444 
 Bronte, Charlotte, 136-138; 509 
 Browning, Elizabeth B., 484; 
 
 486; 513 
 Browning, Robert, 29; 39; 43; 
 
 194; 297; 457; 479; 482; 507 
 Bruce, W. N., 498 
 Brut, 464; 488 
 
 Bryant, William C, 40-42; 481 
 Bryce, James, 357 
 Bunyan, John, 456 
 Burke, Edmund, 24; 89; 105; 
 106; 107; 113; 116; 398; 408; 
 415; 416; 464 
 
 525 
 
526 
 
 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 Burns, Robert, 202; 483; 484; 
 
 485; 488; 490; 506 
 Burroughs, John, 6 
 Burton, Richard, 367; 502 
 Byron, Lord, 188; 202; 455; 457; 
 
 458; 479; 484; 485; 506 
 
 Caesura, 476 
 
 Californian, 20 
 
 Canoe Stories, 246; 521 
 
 Canterbury Tales, The, 226 
 
 Carlyle, Thos., 264 
 
 Cask of Amontillado, The, 234; 236; 
 
 246 
 Catalectic, 474 
 Changing Values of English Speech, 
 
 The, 53 
 Chapter on Ears, A, 33 
 Characters of Shakespeare's Plays, 
 
 The, 520 
 Chaucer, Geoffrey, 21; 226; 484 
 Chevy Chase, 488 
 Chief American Poets, 506 
 Childe Harold, 455; 457; 458; 462; 
 
 485 
 Chillon, 202 
 Choriambus, 473 
 Clark, S. H., 78 
 Clearness, 17 
 
 quality of, 25-27 
 
 right word for, 79-83 
 Climax, 463 
 
 Cloister and the Hearth, The, 509 
 Cloud, The, 489 
 Coherence, 22; 222 
 
 in description, 303 
 
 in narration, 255 
 Coleridge, Samuel Taylor, 81; 
 105; 125; 233; 246; 263; 463; 
 464; 478; 488; 506 
 Comedy, 493 
 
 Comedy of Errors, 257; 494 
 Comic opera, 494 
 Commemoration Ode, 489 
 Composition, A, 
 
 and rhetoric, 1 
 
 definition of, 3 
 
 in verse, 467 
 
 material for, 6-10 
 Comus, 174; 359; 459; 464; 494 
 Concord Hymn, 461 
 Connotation, 75-79; 172; 173 
 
 Cotter's Saturday Night, The, 485 
 Courtship of Miles Standish, The. 
 
 233 
 Cranford, 80 
 Criticism, 360-371 
 definition of, 361 
 C rot hers, Samuel McChord, 33 
 Cuckoo, To the, 455 
 Curtis, George William, 37 
 
 Dactyl, 472 
 
 Daddy Long Legs, 227 
 
 Daffodils, The, 305; 462; 490; 506 
 
 Dante, 482; 487; 507 
 
 Darwin, Charles, 43 
 
 David Balfour, 226 
 
 David Copperfield, 222; 300 
 
 Dawson, W. J.andC.W., 132; 508 
 
 Death of Thomas Carlyle, 105 
 
 Declaration, 211 
 
 Deduction, 405 
 
 fallacies in, 410-412 
 Denotation, 75; 172; 173 
 DeQuincey, Thomas, 106 
 Description, 275 
 
 definition of, 337 
 
 detailed, 301 
 
 diction in, 309 
 
 exact and artistic, 289 
 
 informal, 296-301 
 
 in narration, 262-264 
 
 kinds of, 290-294 
 
 material of, 278 
 Deserted Village, The, 488 
 Details, The Grouping of, 303 
 Dickens, Charles, 19; 28; 39; 43; 
 108; 126; 222; 226; 244; 249; 
 300; 355; 509 
 Diction, definition of, 52 
 
 oral, 168; 334 
 Dictionaries, 71; 74 
 Discussion and debate, 417 
 Divine Comedy, The, 482, 487 
 Don Juan, 479; 485 
 Doyle, Conan, 226; 413 
 Drake, The, 487 
 Dramatization, 256-261 
 Dryden, John, 87; 481; 495 
 Dunciad, 495 
 
 Editorial, The, 371 
 Elegance, 17 
 
INDEX 
 
 527 
 
 quality of, 36-38 
 right word for, 85 
 
 Elements of Physics, 511 
 
 Eliot, George, 104; 222; 247; 251; 
 509 
 
 Elision, 475 
 
 Emerson, R. W., 74; 461; 490; 
 500; 506 
 
 Emphasis, 471 
 
 methods of securing, 304-309 
 
 English, Course in, Regents, 219- 
 223 
 
 English Humorists of the Eight- 
 eenth Century, 109 
 
 English Literature, History of, 347 
 
 English Men of Letters, 505 
 
 Enoch Arden, 488 
 
 Enthymeme, 409-410 
 
 Enumeration, 185 
 
 Epithet, 460 
 
 Equivocation, 411 
 
 Errors in substance, 411 
 
 Essay on Addison, 339; 346; 393 
 
 Essay on Criticism, 495 
 
 Essay on Man, 495 
 
 Essays of Elia, 122-124; 458 
 
 Essays to read, list of, 506 
 
 Essentials of Good Speaking, The, 
 176 
 
 Euphonious words, 88-90 
 
 Euripides, 493 
 
 Evading the issue, 411 
 
 Evangeline, 472; 473; 476 
 
 Eve of St. Agnes, 193; 293; 485 
 
 Everyman, 456; 488 
 
 Evidence, 397, 399, 401 
 
 Exclamation, 464 
 
 Exercises 
 
 in applying rhetorical principles, 
 
 57 
 in argumentation, 447-450 
 in description, 321-324 
 in diction, 92 
 in dramatization, 259-262 
 in exposition, 381-386 
 in letter writing, 161-164 
 in organizing material, 13-15 
 in paragraph development, 128 
 in planning pageants, 262 
 in theme writing., 270-274 
 in use of figures of speech, 465 
 
 Excursion, 77 
 
 Exposition, 326 
 
 and argumentation, 333 
 
 and narration, 264 
 
 and synonyms, 336 
 
 by analysis, 372 
 
 by cause and effect, 345 
 
 by definition, 337 
 
 characteristics of, 327 
 
 definition of, 334 
 
 differs from description, 327 
 
 of character, 353 
 
 outline in, 374 
 Expository Composition, Plan of, 
 
 379 
 Expression, Impression and, 3 
 
 purpose of, 16 
 
 Fable for Critics, A, 479; 495 
 Fairie Queene, The, 456; 485; 488 
 Fall of the House of Usher, The, 81- 
 
 83; 85; 295 
 Farce, 494 
 Far from the Madding Crowd, 290; 
 
 316; 318; 350; 353; 510 
 Feet, 
 
 poetic, 471 
 
 substituted, 473 
 Figures of Speech, 451 
 Fine writing, 87 
 Finished product, The, 496 
 Fisherman's Luck, 330; 517 
 Fiske, John, 505 
 Flag Day Address, 191 
 Force, 17 
 
 quality of, 27-36 
 
 right word for, 83-85 
 Forsaken Merman, The, 193 
 Franklin, Benjamin, 332 
 Freeman, Mary E. Wiikins, 511 
 Functions of the Chorus in the Greek 
 Tragic Drama, The, 105 
 
 Gaskell, Mrs., 80 
 
 Genesis of the Essay, The, 508 
 
 Gentle Reader, The, 33 
 
 Gesture, 205; 206 
 
 Goethe, von, J. W., 507 
 
 Goldsmith, Oliver, 479; 488 
 
 Good use, 66-69 
 
 Gosse, Edmund, 119-121; 348 
 
 Grand opera, 494 
 
 Gray, Thomas, 472; 483; 490 
 
528 
 
 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 Gray's Elegy, 472; 483; 490 
 Grayson, David, 37 
 
 Great English Letter Writers, The, 
 
 132; 134 
 Green, John Richard, 93 
 
 Group of English Essayists, A, 127; 
 517 
 
 Hamlet, 69; 257; 459; 493 
 Hardy, Thomas, 232; 282; 290; 
 
 315-320; 329; 350; 351; 353; 
 
 509 
 Harte, Bret, 510 
 Haunted Palace, The, 76 
 Hawthorne, Nathaniel, 39; 43; 
 
 510 
 Hazlitt, William, 312; 520 
 Heir of Redclyffe, The, 315 
 Helen, 76 
 Henry, O., 511 
 Henry Esmond, 264 
 Henry IV, 462 
 Hermit, The, 477 
 Heroine in Bronze, The, 276; 281 
 Hiawatha, 472; 473 
 High Tide, 506 
 
 Hind and the Panther, The, 495 
 History of English Literature, 119 
 Holmes, Oliver Wendell, 65; 
 
 484 
 Homer, 233; 487; 507 
 How They Brought the Good News 
 
 from Ghent to Aix, 29 
 Howells, William D., 510 
 Hyperbole, 465 
 Hypercatalectic, 474 
 
 Iambus, 471 
 
 Idioms, 84 
 
 Idylls of the King, 487, 488 
 
 Iliad, The, 233; 487 
 
 II Penseroso, 457; 459 
 
 Immortality, Ode on, 468; 489 
 
 Impression 
 
 and expression, 3 
 
 the first general, 303 
 Improprieties, 58-66 
 Induction, 402 
 
 fallacies of, 403, 404 
 Inflection, 198 
 In Memoriam, 478; 479: 490 
 Interest as a result of Force, 332 
 
 Interpretation of the Printed Page T 
 
 78 
 Interrogation, 464 
 Intimations of Immortality, 
 
 ode on, 506 
 Irving, Washington, 37; 311; 
 
 315; 331; 393; 510; 519 
 Issues, 
 
 clash and, 418 
 
 finding, 419 
 
 Johnson, Samuel, 481; 521 
 Jonson, Ben, 481 
 
 Julius Ccesar, 258; 390; 415; 493 
 
 Keats, John, 193; 293; 485; 489; 
 
 506 
 Kennedy, Charles R., 456 
 Kilmer, Joyce, 38 
 King Lear, 493 
 Kipling, Rudyard, 297; 484; 510 
 
 U Allegro, 457; 459; 461; 490 
 La Belle Dame sans Merci, 293 
 Lamb, Charles, 33; 34; 122-125; 
 312; 313; 338; 344; 458; 
 459 
 Lancelot and Elaine, 247; 465 
 Langlande, 477 
 Lanier, Sidney, 506 
 Last Leaf, The, 484 
 Lay a mo n, 464; 488 
 Lead, Kindly Light, 489 
 Letter writing, 130-164 
 
 business letters, 154-159 
 
 formal notes, 152-154 
 
 friendly letters, 134-152 
 
 good form in, 133 
 
 place of, 131 
 
 titles, 141-145 
 Life of Johnson, 505 
 Limiting the subject, 373 
 Lincoln, Abraham, 136 
 Literary Clinic Papers, The, 37 
 Literature, 92-103; 504-513 
 
 essay, the, 507-509 
 
 fiction, 509-511 
 
 history and biography, 504 
 
 poetry, 505 
 Little Dorrit, 18- 
 Lives of the Poets, The, 521 
 Local point of view, 279 
 
INDEX 
 
 529 
 
 Longfellow, Henry W., 233; 307; 
 
 461; 472; 473; 476; 482; 488 
 Lord Byron to Thomas Moore, 138 
 Lorna Doone, 226 
 Louse, To a, 484 
 Lowell, J. R., 474; 479; 489; 495; 
 
 506 
 Lycidas, 490 
 Lyric, the simple, 490 
 
 McCarthy, Justin, 342 
 McCosh, James, 453 
 Macaulay, T. B., 90-100; 102; 
 
 113; 339; 346; 393; 412 
 Macbeth, 28; 247; 257; 280; 463; 
 
 465; 493 
 Madison, James, 397 
 Maeterlinck, Maurice, 456 
 Maidenhood, 482 
 Marmion, 202; 487 
 Masefield, John, 507 
 Mask, the, 494 
 Maud, 488 
 Mayor of Casterbridge, The, 315; 
 
 510 
 Melodrama, 494 
 Merchant of Venice, The, 241; 459; 
 
 494 
 Metaphor, 85; 455 
 Metonymy, 460; 462 
 Milton, John, 37; 38; 174; 351; 
 
 457; 458; 460; 461; 464; 487; 
 
 490; 494 
 Moral Essays and Epistles, 495 
 Morgan, Angela, 44 
 Music, Ode to, 489 
 My Heart Leaps Up, 490 
 Mystery of Edwin Drood, The, 244 
 
 Narration, 225; 
 
 action in, 246 
 
 characters in, 248 
 
 climax in, 254 
 
 conversation in, 251 
 
 kinds of, 225 
 
 material of, 227 
 
 motivation in, 2g5 
 
 point of view in, 7226 
 
 plot, 238 
 
 simple, 237 
 National use, 67-68 
 Nearer, My God, to Thee, 489 
 
 Newcomber and Andrews, 506 
 Newman, John Henry, 92-103; 
 113; 489 
 
 Newstead Abbey, 519 
 Noyes, Alfred, 37; 487; 507 
 
 Observation, correct, 310 
 
 Ode, the, 489 
 
 Ode on a Grecian Urn, 489 
 
 Odyssey, The, 487 
 
 Old Curiosity Shop, The, 226 
 
 Oliver Twist, 108; 126; 355 
 
 Onomatopoeia, 460 
 
 Open system, 152 
 
 Oral composition, 165 
 
 differs from written, 168 
 
 paragraph in, 167 
 
 planning for, 175 
 
 practice in, 208 
 Oral phrasing, 169 
 Othello, 493 
 
 Our Mutual Friend, 249 
 Outline, an, essentials of, 375 
 
 Pacchiarotte, 479 
 
 Paeon, 473 
 
 Page, Thomas Nelson, 511 
 
 Pageants, 259 
 Pagett, MXP., 297 
 Paradise Lost, 287 
 Paragraphs, 93 
 
 definition of, 93 
 
 development of, 107-111 
 
 in narration, 244 
 
 introductory, 105 
 
 isolated, 103 
 
 length of, 93-96 
 
 necessity for, 93 
 
 related, 104 
 
 summarizing, 106 
 
 topic sentence, 96, 103 
 
 transitional, 105 
 Parallelism, 463 
 Parkman, Francis, 505 
 Parliamentary Law, 221 
 Pendennis, 352 
 Personal touch, the, 38 
 Personification, 85; 456 
 Persuasion, 447 
 Peter Bell, 457; 468 
 Philosophy Four, 298 
 Phyrric, 473 
 
530 
 
 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION 
 
 Piers Plowman, 477 
 Pilgrim's Progress, 456 
 Pitch, 196 
 
 Plot Development, 239 
 Poe, Edgar Allan, 76; 81-83; 85; 
 194; 234; 236; 243; 246; 248; 
 263; 294; 413; 460; 464; 469; 
 506; 510 
 Poems of Childhood, 464 
 Poet, The, 41 
 Poetry, 487 
 
 didactic, 495 
 
 dramatic, 490-497 
 
 epic, 487 
 
 lyric, 488-490 
 Poise, 179 
 Poor Relations,- 338 
 Pope, Alexander, 463; 477; 495 
 Prelude, The, 495; 506 
 Premise, major and minor, 407 
 Prescott, William H., 505 
 Present use, 68 
 Pronunciation, 185 
 Proportion, 222 
 
 and emphasis, 23-25 
 
 in narration, 255 
 Proposition, the, 418 
 Psychology, 453 
 Purpose of this book, 3 
 
 Quaker's Meeting, A, 34 
 Qualities of the finished product, 
 25-37 
 
 Races of Men, The Two, 313 
 
 Rape of the Lock, 463 
 
 Raven, The, 248; 263; 294; 464 
 
 Reade, Charles, 245; 509 
 
 Reader's Guide, The, 9 
 
 Reading aloud, 209, 210 
 
 Rebuttal, 445-447 
 
 Recluse, The, 506 
 
 Redundancy, 88 
 
 Reeve, Arthur, 413 
 
 Refutation, 445 
 
 Reign of Law, The, 521 
 
 Repetition, 463 
 
 Reputable use, 67 
 
 Requisites of the short story, 242 
 
 Return of the Native, The, 282; 
 
 317; 329; 349; 510 
 Reviewing a novel, 361 
 
 Revision, 49 
 Rhetoric, 
 
 composition and, 1 
 
 definition of, 2 
 Rhodes, Charles E., 246; 521 
 Rhodes, James F., 505 
 Rhyme, 470; 477; 480 
 Rhythm, 470; 475 
 
 variations in, 473 
 Rime Royal, 484 
 Ring and the Book, The, 507 
 Robin Hood, 488 
 Roget, P. M., 81 
 Rosetti, D. Gu 486 
 Ruling Passion, The, 52 
 Ruskin, John, 37; 66; 89; 512 
 
 Saul, 283; 297; 507 
 
 Scarlet Letter, The, 39 
 
 Scorn Not the Sonnet, 486 
 
 Scott, Sir Walter, 202; 266; 291; 
 
 487; 506; 509 
 Seasons, The, 488 
 Second Speech on Copyright, 98 
 Self-mastery, 176, 189 
 Sermon on Coleridge, 312 
 Servant in the House, The, 456 
 Sesame and Lilies, 512 
 Shakespeare, William, 28; 31- 
 
 32; 37; 38; 54; 64; 68; 194; 
 
 241; 247; 257; 258; 259; 294; 
 
 380; 390; 415; 458; 462; 463; 
 
 465; 487; 490; 491; 493; 494 
 She Dwelt Among Untrodden Ways r 
 
 76 
 Shelley, Percy Bysshe, 458; 469; 
 
 482; 483; 484; 489; 490; 506 
 Sherlock Holmes, 226 
 Short story, the, 510 
 Silas Marner, 222; 247 
 Simile, 454 
 Sir Patrick Spens, 229 
 Sketches Old and New, 19 
 Skylark, To a, 458; 484; 489 
 Slang, 63 
 Slurring, 475 
 Smith, F. Hyatt, 37 
 Solecisms, 66 
 Song of England, A, 37 
 Sonnet, The, 29; 485-487; 488 
 Sophocles, 257; 492; 493 
 South Sea House, The, 312 
 
INDEX 
 
 531 
 
 Spectator Papers, 112; 328; 523 
 Speech on Conciliation with Amer- 
 ica, 24; 107; 398; 408; 415; 416 
 Speeches, kinds of, 212-215 
 
 after-dinner, 213; 218 
 
 announcements, 212 
 
 conversation, 216 
 
 introductions, 212 
 
 lecture, 215 
 
 oration, 214 
 Spenser, Edmund, 456; 485; 488 
 Spondee, 461 
 St. Elmo, 495 
 Stages in process of learning to 
 
 write, 118 
 Stanzas, 471; 480 
 
 definition of, 481 
 
 kinds of, 481-487 
 Statue and the Bust, 482 
 Stevenson, Robert Louis, 90- 
 
 92; 226; 233; 236; 509 
 Story-telling, 222 ' 
 Stowe, Harriet Beecher, 233; 258 
 Study of Words, On the, 34; 40; 341 
 Style, 38 
 
 Suggestive description, 296-301 
 Superannuated Man, The, 344 
 Syllogism, 406-409 
 Synecdoche, 460 
 
 Tale of Two Cities, A, 28; 222 
 Tales of a Wayside Inn, 488 
 Tarn O'Shanter, 488 
 Tarkington, Booth, 510 
 Tautology, 89 
 Teaching of English in Secondary 
 
 Schools, The, 497 
 Tennyson, Alfred, 247; 465; 469; 
 
 472; 475; 476; 478; 479; 487; 
 
 488; 490 
 Tess of the D' Urbervilles, 510 
 Testing work, 44-50 
 Thackeray, W. M., 109; 264; 352; 
 
 509 
 Thesaurus, 81 
 Thompson, James, 488 
 Threnody, 490 
 Thyrsis, 490 
 T intern Abbey, 457; 506 
 Titles in letter writing, 141-145 
 
 subject and, 11 
 To a Mouse, 490 
 
 To a Mountain Daisy, 490 
 
 Tone, 189-196 
 
 Topic sentence, the, 96-103 
 
 Tragedy, 492 
 
 Treasure Island, 226; 233; 236 
 
 Trial of Warren Hastings, The, 106 
 
 Trochee, 472 
 
 Trollope, Anthony, 252; 396; 
 
 518; 522; 524 
 Twain, Mark, 19; 96; 510 
 Twelfth Night, 494 
 Twelve Centuries of English Poetry 
 
 and Verse, 506 
 Two Poets of Croisic, The, 457 
 
 Ulalume, 295 
 
 Uncle Tom's Cabin, -233; 258; 495 
 Under the Greenwood Tree, 320 
 Undertaker's House, The, 297 
 United States Bureau of Educa- 
 tion, 498 
 Unity, 18; 222 
 in narration, 255 
 
 Value of an adequate dictionary, 
 
 the, 71-74 
 Van Dyke, Henry, 37; 52; 89; 
 
 140; 146; 330; 489; 517 
 Verbosity, 88 
 Verse, 471 
 
 Very Hard Cash, 245 
 Virgil, 233; 487 
 Vision of Sir Launfal, The, 474 
 Vision of Sudden Death, 106 
 Vital words, 83 
 Vocabulary building, 70 
 Vocalization, 182 
 Voice training, 184; 189; 190; 191 
 Vulgarisms, 57 
 
 Wagner, Richard, 494 
 
 War Message, 192 
 
 Warner, Charles Dudley, 252 
 
 Webster, Jean, 227 
 
 West Wind, Ode to the, 482 
 
 What method to use, 112-128 
 
 What We Are Fighting For, 26 
 
 Whitman, Walt, 105 
 
 Whittier, J. G., 506 
 
 Wilson, Woodrow, 26; 140; 145; 
 
 191; 192; 193; 505 
 Winchester, C. T, 127; 459; 517 
 
532 
 
 EFFECTIYE EXPRESSION 
 
 Wister, Owen, 298 
 
 Wolf erf s Roost, 391; 519 
 Woodlanders, The, 316; 327; 510 
 Woodstock, 266 
 Woodworth, Samuel, 472 
 Wordsworth, William, 6; 52; 76; 
 
 77; 305; 306; 445; 457; 464; 
 
 468; 483; 486; 489; 490; 495; 
 
 505; 506 
 
 Work, 44 
 
 World Is Too Much With Us, The, 
 
 506 
 Writer's problem, the, 69 
 Writings of Edgar Allan Poe, The. 
 
 375 
 
 Ye Flowery Banks, 483 
 Yonge, Charlotte M., 315 
 

IB 36967 
 
 
 4G0972 
 
 UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LIBRARY