Paul's Style Response 1
From Mizzou Wiki
This is exactly what the assignment calls for. Good work.
The author begins by stating two basic principles of the book. The first, “it is good to write clearly”. The second principle is that anyone can write clearly. However, he points out that good writing is not as simple as being clearly written. Writing must be organized in a logical manner that an audience can understand, but it must also hold a readers attention. Many professional writings tend to over complicate the language, obscuring the main ideas. When people must read writing whose meaning has been obscured, they either adapt (possibly adopting a similar manner of writing, continuing the problem), or are unable to understand the text and give up. Writers complicate their writing because many people think complicated sentences indicate deep thought. Writers may also use bloated speech to cover their misunderstanding of the topics of their writing. The first chapter also covers revision. Williams points out that the best way to write may be to simply get the basics of your paper written, and then to revise it for your audience.
The book seems to be written for anyone who is interested in improving their writing. The author refers to different levels of writing skill, and points out that some people may have more difficulty grasping certain concepts than others. The first chapter does a good job of explaining some of the causes of over complicated writing, and how that kind of writing can obscure the text’s meaning. The chapter also contained many relevant quotes, demonstrating how obscured writing can have a negative effect on the understanding of material (specifically, in respect to scientific, legal, and medical text).
I think the author’s two basic principles seem almost too simple, but they do make sense. I was able to relate to his discussion of writers obscuring the meaning their writing with unnecessarily complex writing. I’ve had many text books that used convoluted language to try to get across a simple idea. The section about the causes of unclear writing was interesting too. I’m sure I’ve written something unclear about a subject I had difficult understanding, it’s probably something almost everyone has done if they had to write about something they didn’t fully understand. So far, the book seems pretty insightful.
