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Style – how to understand it

September 13, 2009 by Roy Johnson

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Style – definition

style Style is a particular set of characteristics in the use of language.

redbtn These characteristics are the result of choices which may be made consciously or unconsciously.

redbtn The results are speech or writing which may be efficient, idiosyncratic, identifiable, or memorable.


Examples

redbtn The following are examples of good style in instructional writing and prose fiction:

Instructional writing
When approaching a roundabout, watch out for traffic already on it. Take special care to look out for cyclists or motorcyclists ahead or to the side. Give way to traffic on your right unless road markings indicate otherwise; but keep moving if the way is clear.

Prose fiction
Lolita, light of my life, fire of my loins. My sin, my soul. Lo-lee-ta: the tip of the tongue taking a trip of three steps down the palate to tap, at three, on the teeth. Lo. Lee. Ta.


Use

redbtn The term ‘style’ is usually used in a positive sense to praise what are seen as good qualities.

redbtn Even bad style may be identifiable – if it is consistent.

redbtn Good style is often easy to recognise, but quite difficult to analyse.

redbtn It may be used and perceived – unconsciously.

redbtn NB! We all use a variety of language styles every day, especially in speech.

redbtn One very important feature of good style is that it must be entirely appropriate for the task it is performing.

redbtn This means that the author must take into account [even if unconsciously!] audience, form, and function.

redbtn Style might be good, yet hardly noticeable – because it is concentrated on effective communication. This is sometimes known as ‘transparent’ good style.

redbtn The first of the examples above is from The Highway Code.

When approaching a roundabout, watch out for traffic already on it. Take special care to look out for cyclists or motorcyclists ahead or to the side. Give way to traffic on your right unless road markings indicate otherwise; but keep moving if the way is clear.

redbtn This is writing which is makes its points as simply and as clearly as possible. The vocabulary is that of everyday life, and in manner it is speaking to a general reader without trying to make an impression or draw attention to itself in any way.

redbtn This writing is entirely free of literary effects or decoration.

redbtn In most writing however, ‘good style’ is normally associated with verbal inventiveness and clever manipulation of the elements of literary language.

redbtn The second example is from Vladimir Nabokov’s famous novel Lolita:

Lolita, light of my life, fire of my loins. My sin, my soul. Lo-lee-ta: the tip of the tongue taking a trip of three steps down the palate to tap, at three, on the teeth. Lo. Lee. Ta.

redbtn This is writing which is deliberately setting out to be impressive. It relies very heavily on decoration and ornament.

redbtn In this extract Nabokov uses lots of alliteration – the repetition of the ‘l’ and ‘t’ sounds, metaphor – ‘light’ and ‘fire’ – and onomatopoeia – ‘trip’, ‘tap’ – as well as such fancy wordplay as the orthographic and semantic parallels between ‘life’ and ‘fire’.

redbtn Good style in speech and writing – like that in clothes or other matters involving taste – can go in and out of fashion.

redbtn Style in context. Style, in any kind of speech or writing, is extremely important to the overall function of communication. In most cases, a consistency of features produces what we understand as a pleasing style. That is, the style is appropriate to the context in which it occurs.

redbtn A discordant style is produced by the inclusion of some feature which does not fit with the stylistic context of the piece. In other words, the feature is out of place.

redbtn An example of this might be found in a personal letter which is signed ‘Yours faithfully’ or an aristocratic character in a novel speaking street slang for no good stylistic reason.

Self-assessment quiz follows >>>

© Roy Johnson 2004


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Written style in essays

August 25, 2009 by Roy Johnson

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1. For most essays your written style should be plain, clear, and straightforward. You should avoid sloppiness and a casual manner. Don’t try to be ‘impressive’, flowery, or emotive. Remember that an essay is an academic exercise, not a piece of ‘creative writing’.

2. Keep in mind that speech and writing are two different forms of communication. Avoid the use of a chatty or conversational tone when writing essays.

3. Avoid the use of contractions such as ‘isn’t’, ‘can’t’, ‘don’t’ which occur in speech but should not be used in formal writing. These terms should be written out in full as ‘is not’, ‘can not’, and ‘do not’.

4. Avoid the use of common abbreviations such as ‘etc.’, ‘e.g.’, ‘&’, ‘i.e.’. If you need to use these expressions, write out the terms in full, as ‘for example’, ‘and’, ‘that is’. [There is a good argument for never using ‘et cetera’: it can easily suggest that you are being lazy.]

5. Avoid using unnecessary jargon (technical terms), clich&eacute (‘leave no stone unturned’), vogue words (‘situation’ or ‘ongoing’), and slang (‘far-out’).

6. Avoid using metaphors you are used to seeing in print or figures of speech which are currently popular. For instance: ‘the bottom line’, ‘a ballpark figure’. (This is one of George Orwell’s rules for avoiding a tired style.)

7. Remember that the common word order (the syntax) of a simple sentence written in English is as follows. If in doubt, adopt this pattern.

subject – verb – object

The cat eats the goldfish
We are the best team

8. Avoid starting sentences with words such as ‘Again’, ‘Although’, ‘But’, ‘And’, ‘Also’, and ‘With’. These words are conjunctions, which belong in the ‘middle’ of a sentence, not at its beginning.

9. Good style is usually connected with the need for precise punctuation and clearly expressed ideas. The following example shows a sloppily written argument transformed by just the removal of two commas and the addition of a full stop. This creates two shorter but clear sentences instead of one which is very confused.

bad
Smoking became as socially acceptable as drinking, in all classes of society, mostly associated with men until the second world war when women began to smoke openly, in public shocking older members of their sex.

better
Smoking became as socially acceptable as drinking in all classes of society. It was mainly associated with men until the Second World War when women began to smoke openly in public, shocking older members of their sex.

10. Try to avoid the awkward ‘he or she’, the ugly ‘he/she’, and the crass ‘s/he’. These formulations are sometimes used to solve the problems of gender references.

awkward
Candidates should note that any employer is obliged to follow Equal Opportunities policies when he/she is interviewing applicants.

11. The simple solution to this problem is to use the plural form:

better
Candidates should note that all employers are obliged to follow Equal Opportunities policies when they are interviewing applicants.

12. An essay which is written in a sparkling and attractive style will obviously be more interesting to read than one which plods along in a dull manner. However, you should be very cautious about creative or decorative flourishes in academic writing. Jokes, bold metaphors, and even figures of speech can easily seem mannered. If in doubt, stick to clear, plain language.

© Roy Johnson 2003

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Filed Under: Writing Essays Tagged With: Academic writing, Essays, Reports, Study skills, Style, Term papers, Writing skills, Writing style

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