Though still revered, the classic text, The Elements of Style [by Will Strunk and E.B. White] is a little dated now, and just plain wrong about some things. Strunk and White are famously clueless for example, about what constitutes the passive voice. Their book also has some of the hectoring, preachy tone that creeps into so many of the discussions about writing, though it's not as extreme as Lynne Truss's Eats, Shoots & Leaves, which declares that people who misuse apostrophes "deserve to be struck by lightning, hacked up on the spot and buried in an unmarked grave."
Charles McGrath, "Omit Needless Rules," The New York Times Book Review, October 19, 2014
Charles McGrath, "Omit Needless Rules," The New York Times Book Review, October 19, 2014
Okay, I have to say sonething.
ReplyDelete"deserve to be struck by lightening..."
All right, who wrote this? What renowned writing expert wrote "lightening" instead of "lightning"? Lynne Truss or Charles McGrath?
(If it was you, Mr. Fisher, just delete my comment. Because you haven't set yourself up as a expert on writing!)
Sincerely Yours, Etc.
Oops, that was me.
ReplyDeleteWell, as I said, if it was you that's okay. You do not act like you are The World's Foremost Authority on Writing, whom all of us lesser folk must emulate!
ReplyDelete