I want to turn now to some problem areas in the realm of style: emphasis, transitions, rhythm, and drama.
Emphasis.
Sometimes a sentence is awkward, but you cannot figure out why. The principle here is the same as in the rest of writing: when in doubt, refer to your exact meaning. Just as in your article as a whole you refer to your theme as your standard, so in any particular sentence that seems awkward, refer to what precisely you want to say.
The variety of grammatical structures possible in English permits you to put the emphasis where you want it. The same words combined into a grammatical sentence will yield a different emphasis depending on how you arrange them. Therefore, if you have corrected any obvious problems and a sentence still seems awkward, your emphasis is probably misplaced. For instance, I once heard a beautiful line of poetry that went something like this: "Because you smiled at me, I was happy all day." If it was: "I was happy all day because you smiled at me," its emphasis, and thus its meaning, would be different. (Both arrangements are grammatically permissible.) In the line from the poem, the emphasis is on the fact that the speaker"s happiness is owed to the smile of his beloved. In the other version, the emphasis is on his happiness; the cause is incidental.
In an article once in Esquire, Esquire, a number of people (myself included) were asked what the Apollo 11 astronauts should say when they land on the moon. One comedienne suggested: "Miami Beach, it isn"t." a number of people (myself included) were asked what the Apollo 11 astronauts should say when they land on the moon. One comedienne suggested: "Miami Beach, it isn"t."40 Now if you said, "It isn"t Miami Beach," the meaning would be different. It is not simply the somewhat Yiddish word structure, but the misplaced emphasis. In the form the comedienne used, the thought is on Miami Beach-that is what she expects, and her first reaction is: "Well, it isn"t Miami Beach." Therefore, she is not interested. But the other version-"It isn"t Miami Beach"-has no particular meaning, because it also isn"t New York and it isn"t Paris; so it does not communicate the same thought that was achieved by that odd construction. Now if you said, "It isn"t Miami Beach," the meaning would be different. It is not simply the somewhat Yiddish word structure, but the misplaced emphasis. In the form the comedienne used, the thought is on Miami Beach-that is what she expects, and her first reaction is: "Well, it isn"t Miami Beach." Therefore, she is not interested. But the other version-"It isn"t Miami Beach"-has no particular meaning, because it also isn"t New York and it isn"t Paris; so it does not communicate the same thought that was achieved by that odd construction.
For examples of this kind of manipulation of emphasis by means of word placement, read Time Time magazine. For instance, I remember magazine. For instance, I remember Time Time describing some ambitious, energetic man with the words: "No slouch, he." This is typical of the magazine. The practice is not fully permissible grammatically, though it is clear and achieves a certain emphasis. If you wrote, "He is no slouch," it would not be as strong. Incidentally, although the style is amusing, describing some ambitious, energetic man with the words: "No slouch, he." This is typical of the magazine. The practice is not fully permissible grammatically, though it is clear and achieves a certain emphasis. If you wrote, "He is no slouch," it would not be as strong. Incidentally, although the style is amusing, Time Time ruins it by using it constantly. Once you become accustomed to a distortion, it is simply a distortion and it loses emphasis. So use this sort of trick sparingly. ruins it by using it constantly. Once you become accustomed to a distortion, it is simply a distortion and it loses emphasis. So use this sort of trick sparingly.
Finally, note that whenever there are several grammatically permissible alternatives, the smoothest will be the one that carries your exact emphasis.
Transitions.
There is a great deal of misunderstanding about transitions. Some believe you should always indicate a transition from paragraph to paragraph-but in fact you could not make a worse mistake. If it were true, you would also need a transition from sentence to sentence-but then what would be the transition from a sentence to a transition ? Transitions are not necessary if your sentences follow one another logically. logically. Logic is the link between sentences, paragraphs, chapters, and volumes. Logic is the link between sentences, paragraphs, chapters, and volumes.
When discussing a certain aspect of your subject, if you proceed to the next paragraph and are still discussing that aspect, that is a logical transition and no special bridge is necessary. A transition is needed only when you switch to a different aspect of your subject. If its connection to the immediate discussion is not clear, you need a transition. But if in a certain discussion each sentence follows from the preceding one, and each paragraph follows from the preceding one, then you can rely on your reader"s own power of integration. You must a.s.sume your reader can hold a progression in mind. If your presentation is clear and logical, but your reader cannot keep in mind what you were discussing in paragraph #1, and why #2 and #3 follow, then he cannot read the article anyway, and no transition would help. Do not write on the premise that you must lead the reader by the hand every time you move to a new paragraph.
A paragraph serves the same function as a period. It is a pause, which un.o.btrusively makes the reader realize that he is coming to the end of something and that the author is starting on some new, though connected, development. The reader has to integrate this quickly and automatically.
As you edit your article, be the reader"s guide. If you introduce a certain idea and in the next five paragraphs discuss various aspects of it, then, when you begin the next sequence, you should perhaps remind your reader of your main idea. (This is not really a transition, but a reminder.) Judge whether a progression is too long for the reader to keep in mind. But aside from these reminders, provide transitions only when there is a specific change of direction or aspect for which the reader cannot immediately see the need.
In fiction writing, transitions must be hidden. But in nonfiction, the more openly and simply you indicate a (necessary) transition, the better, because hidden transitions here are confusing and artificial. For example, suppose you were talking about the politics of a mixed economy and now want to discuss economics. Simply say: "Now let us consider the economics of a mixed economy," or: "Turning to economics." Take the reader into your confidence. If your indication is brief and logical, he will know automatically that you are changing aspects, and he will integrate them.
If you fail to include a necessary transition, your reader will begin the new paragraph, pause, read the next sentence, and then return to the preceding paragraph to establish the transition himself. In effect, he thinks: "Oh, I see. He is now discussing economics instead of politics." Never force your reader to do that.
The simplest and most open transition is best. But suppose you say: "Now that we have discussed the politics of a mixed economy, we will next turn to the economics of a mixed economy." This kind of repet.i.tion is annoying, unnecessary, and confusing. The reader operates on the a.s.sumption that everything the author does is for a purpose. If you offer the reader unnecessary recapitulations, he will ask himself what he missed-why this purposeful writer finds it necessary to repeat something. The result is that you momentarily lose the reader.
It is sometimes necessary to number the subdivisions of an issue. For instance, if you are discussing the bad consequences of a mixed economy and want to make sure your reader remembers them all, then number each of the consequences. If you use this method occasionally, it will help to integrate your material. The numbers remind the reader that these points are all part of one development. And if it is a lengthy discussion, by the time the reader finishes with consequence #5, he can easily refer back to the beginning of the sequence and remind himself of the others. But do not abuse this method. If at several places you use a sentence followed by a series of numbers, it becomes too hard to follow.
When you use the numerical method, be sure to indicate clearly when you are beyond your numbered points. Often the content will do this, but sometimes you need a transitional sentence to indicate that you have finished with consequence #5 and are proceeding to the next development. There are many ways of doing it, but the simplest form of this transition is something like: "Such are the consequences of a mixed economy."
Sometimes the sentence structure itself provides a transition from one development to another. Since this is a complex method, I want to ill.u.s.trate it from my article "What is Romanticism?" Here are the first two paragraphs: Romanticism is a category of art based on the recognition of the principle that man possesses the faculty of volition.Art is a selective re-creation of reality according to an artist"s metaphysical value-judgments. An artist recreates those aspects of reality which represent his fundamental view of man and of existence. In forming a view of man"s nature, a fundamental question one must answer is whether man possesses the faculty of volition-because one"s conclusions and evaluations in regard to all the characteristics, requirements and actions of man depend on the answer.
First, I give a generalized definition of Romanticism. (Of course, I will have to validate that definition.) Moving to a wider abstraction, I next define art. I indicate how an artist presents his fundamental view of man and of existence, and that with respect to man, a fundamental question is whether or not he possesses volition.
This abstract information lays the foundation for what follows. But I must return to how this affects the nature of Romanticism. Here is my next sentence (the third paragraph): "Their opposite answers to this question const.i.tute the respective basic premises of two broad categories of art: Romanticism, which recognizes the existence of man"s volition-and Naturalism, which denies it." The sentence structure provides the transition, which is in the first part of this sentence.
Observe that I could have omitted this transition and begun the third paragraph with: "There are two broad categories of art," etc. That would be clear, but there would still be a slight jump. So instead I make a verbal bridge, which I include in the sentence structure in place of a separate transition. Instead of declaring, "There are two categories," I say, "Their opposite answers to this question"-I have not yet said who "they" are-"const.i.tute the respective basic premises of two broad categories of art," and then I name them. In this way I form a transition from the generalized abstract discussion, which merely indicated the foundation, to the specific subject of the article. I make the transition to the discussion of Romanticism by tying it verbally, within the same sentence, to the preceding development. That makes for smoother reading. It forms a connection in the reader"s mind, and it indicates why I provided the abstract foundation. It also indicates why I divide art into these two broad categories and what their essentials are. Before I go into any further discussion of the two categories, I indicate that they have opposite answers to a question which is fundamental to any art. Thus, I kill several birds with one sentence.
I call this a sentence-structure transition, in that I do not use a separate statement to indicate that I am going from the abstract to the concrete subject of this article.
It would be awkward, however, to start an article that way. If "Their opposite answers," etc. were the first sentence, a series of unanswered questions would immediately arise: Why am I putting something in reverse? Why do I start without indicating what the fundamental question is? Why do I want to discuss two broad categories before I have named them?
Stylistically, a smooth flowing presentation depends especially on the inner logic of the progression of thought. If you follow this logic and do not pause too much between sentences, the result (after some editing) will be a smooth, logically connected presentation. A presentation which strikes you as awkward or jumpy, by contrast, is the result of a writer"s uncertainty. Either he is not following the inner logic himself, or he has not fully integrated the progression of thought even in his own mind. Thus he writes at random, or, more frequently, he tries to write by his conscious mind, sentence by deliberate sentence. (This is one bad consequence of attempting to write by a conscious method, without subconscious integration.) Rhythm.
Rhythm is such a tricky problem area that, in effect, I advise you to leave it alone.
In poetry, the rhythm of a sentence is formalized; when you use one type, you know what category it belongs to, so it is not a problem. But the rhythm of a prose sentence is a complex issue. Rhythm, after all, pertains primarily to the realm of music music, not concepts. It has to do with the way certain sounds register in our brain. Rhythm is the progression and timing of sounds, and the intervals between them. Therefore, the trouble here is the same as with music: we do not yet have an objective vocabulary of music, and thus we cannot say objectively why a certain combination of sounds affects us in a certain way.41 At present, it is impossible to define precise principles by which to determine whether or not a given sentence is rhythmical. At present, it is impossible to define precise principles by which to determine whether or not a given sentence is rhythmical.
Rhythm involves not only psychology, but neurology. It involves the way sensations reach our brain, along with the timing of, and the relationships among, these sensations. This is not a mystical, but a perceptual sense-a sense pertaining to the development of our organ of hearing.
So do not worry about this issue, and do not aim consciously at "good rhythm." Let it come naturally. As you write, you will develop your own sense of rhythm. Whenever you begin to feel you need an extra word or syllable, you are developing a sense of rhythm, and you would do well to observe it. In this issue, as in music, ultimately it is each man for himself. For the time being, you must rely on your own sense of rhythm. Go by whatever your own ear senses as smooth or awkward. (There is, however, a lot of agreement about what const.i.tutes a good or bad sentence rhythmically.) There is a correlation between rhythm and emphasis. Whenever your sentence is wrong in emphasis, chances are it will also be awkward in rhythm. It will sound uneven or unfinished somehow. Similarly, there is a correlation between rhythm and precision. A sentence may also sound uneven if it includes unnecessary words-but this is not a guaranteed correlation.
To give you an example of good and bad rhythm, consider a line from my article "What is Romanticism?" I write: "Man cannot live without philosophy, and neither can he write." I think this is properly rhythmical. But now suppose I had written: "Man cannot live without philosophy, and he cannot write much." The problem is not simply content (though the content is slightly different in each case, which ill.u.s.trates the connection between rhythm and precision); the sentence is bad rhythmically. It sounds chopped off-as if it had no business ending on that particular syllable.
When we hear sounds, our integrating mechanism requires a certain balance. Musical sequences are usually divided into equivalent phrase groups. The logic of the structure thus requires that the sequence be fulfilled; if it is not, one feels unsatisfied and somewhat agitated. There is a feeling of something incomplete or unbalanced. An unfinished musical phrase is awful, and the same issue is involved in the rhythm of sentences.
Be sure to avoid rhymes. "Poems" without rhymes are neither prose nor poetry-they are nothing. For the same reason, a rhyme in a prose sentence is out of place, and thus distracts your attention by taking your mind to another medium. Moreover, it sounds artificial. If a rhyme occurs in prose, it can create all kinds of confusion.
If you ever have to choose between rhythm and clarity, sacrifice rhythm. Short of that, always adjust bad rhythm, because it is important to a good style. Generally, this is not difficult. The extra word or syllable can usually be found.
When and if someone defines what const.i.tutes rhythm (and this will take a neurologist, a psychologist, and an esthetician), we will have more exact principles to work with. But it is not necessary to be omniscient on this subject. It is appropriate to go by your own sense of rhythm. If you have not developed one, that is not necessarily a writing flaw. So do not worry much about rhythm.
Like everything else about style, rhythm must never be aimed at consciously. More than any other aspect of style, it must come about naturally, by means of subconscious integration.
Drama.
In nonfiction, drama is a way of capturing or holding the reader"s interest. With rare exceptions, drama belongs not in theoretical, but in middle-range articles. It involves an indirect approach which must be brief and which consists of saying something unexpected or intriguing. It usually involves starting out of context, or uttering something a couple of paragraphs earlier than the logical progression requires.
To give an extreme example, suppose a writer begins an article: "You are a murderer whether you know it or not." That is a dramatic opening, and it is certainly intriguing. It arrests your attention immediately. The author then proceeds to explain that the article is about the welfare state, and that if you ever voted for any welfare measures, you are responsible for an unknown amount of destruction-and maybe even for deaths. He concludes by saying that you are as bad as a murderer if you vote for liberals. The above is an exaggeration, but it ill.u.s.trates the method by which one achieves drama.
Do not aim at drama consciously (particularly if you are a beginning writer). If you do, the result will be not dramatic but artificial. Let any drama grow out of your material. When you are at home with a straight, logical presentation, then touches of drama might occur to you spontaneously-in which case, they will often be just right and will add a colorful, attention-arresting element to your material. But do not try to force this. Remember, drama is not the essence of nonfiction writing, contrary to what some writing courses teach.
Finally, as in all issues of style, if there is ever a clash between drama and clarity, sacrifice drama.
I want next to compare two different styles. I will present pa.s.sages from two journalistic articles that treat the same material, and will thereby make the different stylistic elements clear. Observe here the choice of content and the choice of words, and how different basic premises affect the presentations.
Both articles cover the launching of Apollo 11 in 1969, and each pa.s.sage consists of (1) a description of the crowd in t.i.tusville (the closest town to the launch site, about ten miles away) the night before the launch, and (2) a description of Apollo 11 at night from across the river.
From "Apollo 11" by Ayn Rand42On the sh.o.r.e of the Indian River, we saw cars, trucks, trailers filling every foot of s.p.a.ce on both sides of the drive, in the vacant lots, on the lawns, on the river"s sloping embankment. There were tents perched at the edge of the water; there were men and children sleeping on the roofs of station wagons, in the twisted positions of exhaustion ; I saw a half-naked man asleep in a hammock strung between a car and a tree. These people had come from all over the country to watch the launching across the river, miles away. (We heard later that the same patient, cheerful human flood had spread through all the small communities around Cape Kennedy that night, and that it numbered one million persons.) I could not understand why these people would have such an intense desire to witness just a few brief moments; some hours later I understood it.It was still dark as we drove along the river. The sky and the water were a solid spread of dark blue that seemed soft, cold, and empty. But, framed by the motionless black leaves of the trees on the embankment, two things marked off the ident.i.ty of the sky and the earth: far above the sky, there was a single, large star; and on earth, far across the river, two enormous sheaves of white light stood shooting motionlessly into the empty darkness from two tiny upright shafts of crystal that looked liked glowing icicles; they were Apollo 11 and its service tower.From "Apollo"s Great Leap for the Moon" by Loudon Wainwright43All along the shoulders of U.S. Highway #1 and packed solid to the river that ran near it were thousands of trailers, camping vans, tents, makeshift shelters of all kinds. People lolled in the gra.s.s, infants were sleeping in cradles on the hoods and tops of cars, fathers and sons were setting up telescopes, bands of the young in trunks and bikinis ran everywhere. Clearly visible through the night about 10 miles away was the Apollo 11, bathed in searchlights, a tiny stalk of light in the darkness, and this vast picnic crowd had gathered to see the booster belch out its tremendous power, and hurl likenesses of themselves at the Moon.By morning there were many more-campsites, beaches, jetties, every place of viewing s.p.a.ce was jammed with the watchers, and it was extraordinary indeed to drive past miles of faces staring toward 30 seconds of history.
The main point to observe, stylistically, is showing showing versus versus telling telling.44 I am not a reporter by profession, but in my article I operated on a premise that reporters do not use today (if they did, they would be giants of journalism)-namely, to be a literal reporter. I I am not a reporter by profession, but in my article I operated on a premise that reporters do not use today (if they did, they would be giants of journalism)-namely, to be a literal reporter. I show show you the scene, I do not tell you about it. If you want your readers to feel as if they were there, then concretize the event selectively. Stay away from generalities. I tried to reconstruct the event exactly as I saw it, almost deliberately omitting any editorial interference. I gave my editorial viewpoint by means of concretes; whether the reader accepts it or not, he feels he has seen the event. The typical reporter, however, merely tells you about an event. you the scene, I do not tell you about it. If you want your readers to feel as if they were there, then concretize the event selectively. Stay away from generalities. I tried to reconstruct the event exactly as I saw it, almost deliberately omitting any editorial interference. I gave my editorial viewpoint by means of concretes; whether the reader accepts it or not, he feels he has seen the event. The typical reporter, however, merely tells you about an event.
Observe how this is done. For instance, I write: "On the sh.o.r.e of the Indian River, we saw cars, trucks, trailers filling every foot of s.p.a.ce on both sides of the drive, in the vacant lots, on the lawns, on the river"s sloping embankment." Wainwright writes: "All along the shoulders of U.S. Highway #1 and packed solid to the river that ran near it were thousands of trailers, camping vans, tents, makeshift shelters of all kinds." His big mistake stylistically is "of all kinds." It was unnecessary. He lists all the different types of vehicles and where they were placed, as do 1. But I tell you they were in every available foot of s.p.a.ce and provide some examples of the kinds of s.p.a.ce. I give you enough concretes so that you get the impression that it is a large crowd. I did not make any generalized estimates. It is sufficient to say there were cars, trucks, trailers. The reader can project that those are not the only kinds of vehicles. But when Wainright adds "makeshift shelters of all kinds," that is improper abstraction. It destroys the reality of the concretes, because you cannot, in reality, see such a thing as "of all kinds." He destroys the firsthand perception of the scene, giving the reader instead an editorial summation.
Similarly, he writes that "bands of the young in trunks and bikinis ran everywhere." "Ran everywhere" involves the same mistake. He cannot literally mean everywhere, so it is a sloppy way of saying, "I saw many of them." Such an exaggerated generality destroys the concrete reality of the sight.
His best line is: "it was extraordinary indeed to drive past miles of faces staring toward 30 seconds of history." He combines and condenses the concretes by means of a wide abstraction. So even though faces cannot literally stare at history, the expression is appropriate. He makes it original because he combines miles of faces staring in one direction, which gives you a visual concrete, with the fact that it lasted only thirty seconds. He is referring to the blastoff itself, but says that the thirty seconds represent history. This dramatically condenses several complex thoughts into one image.
Since n.o.body can include literally every detail, what you choose to include becomes very significant. I discuss this issue in "Art and Sense of Life."45 I begin the article with a description of a painting of a beautiful woman who has a cold sore, and use it to make the point that everything in a work of art is significant by reason of its inclusion. The same principle applies to nonfiction writing. You cannot be a verbal photographer who includes everything. Therefore, the total effect is achieved by the kind of concretes you do include, even in a journalistic account. Wainwright and I are both describing the same scene. But I select only relevant details-and in the case of the crowd, only details relevant to one overall image: its purposefulness, and the difficulties people were willing to endure. Take, for instance, the half-naked man in the hammock. It is an uncomfortable position, and reveals his ingenuity and determination. I begin the article with a description of a painting of a beautiful woman who has a cold sore, and use it to make the point that everything in a work of art is significant by reason of its inclusion. The same principle applies to nonfiction writing. You cannot be a verbal photographer who includes everything. Therefore, the total effect is achieved by the kind of concretes you do include, even in a journalistic account. Wainwright and I are both describing the same scene. But I select only relevant details-and in the case of the crowd, only details relevant to one overall image: its purposefulness, and the difficulties people were willing to endure. Take, for instance, the half-naked man in the hammock. It is an uncomfortable position, and reveals his ingenuity and determination.
Wainwright"s worst selection was "bands of the young in trunks and bikinis ran everywhere." I saw no one in trunks or bikinis, or running around. What Wainwright probably did was combine (through sheer inattention) sights from the night before the launch with what he saw right after it. There was an unbearable traffic jam along the road after the launch, and you did see a lot of trunks and bikinis. It would be appropriate to mention them if you were describing the terrible heat during the day, after the launch. But what you saw the night before was immobility. There was no place to run around, since everything was tightly packed. Even if there were a boy in trunks and a girl in a bikini running for a sandwich or to visit a friend in another car, you should not include this, because it would be a purely accidental, atypical element. Wainwright"s choice of such nonessentials suggests falsely a circus atmosphere. If you are describing a huge crowd that came from everywhere, attracted by a great event, you do not introduce bikinis. If you mention them at all, it should be in some unflattering contrast to what is important. But he picks that as an essential part of the atmosphere.
Everything I select adds up to a total and is purposeful. My mind does not wander to some boy"s trunks or girl"s bikini. But he has no hierarchy of values, and thus no conscious purposefulness. I know what is accidental and what is typical of the crowd. For instance, take the man in the hammock. He might have been the only one, but this was typical of the kind of adjustments to discomfort that people were making. Therefore, I included him as an individual. If I had seen many girls running in bikinis for some reason, whether contributing to the event or distracting from it, 1 would have included that fact. But one girl doing so is an accident. Further, Wainwright does not project the mood of the crowd; if anything, he detracts from it. He uses words like "people lolled" and "they ran everywhere," so you do not know whether it is a picnic, as he calls it, or something else. His description adds up to nothing.
There are situations in which you want to describe a purposeless crowd. In those cases you do what he did: select random, contradictory bits. But he was trying to describe a purposeful event-a crowd gathered for a specific purpose. The mood of the event was visually perceptible-you could tell people took it seriously. But he does not project that.
A different approach to an event dictates a different way of writing about it. I give the view of Apollo 11 at night a whole paragraph. He makes it one subsidiary sentence. His focus is on the crowd, not on the rocket. I say as much about the people as he does, but they never steal the stage. In my article, the crowd serves to feature the importance of the event. That is how my mind organized the material. This is how basic premises direct your choice of content-of what aspect of the event you present in what manner-and you cannot calculate that consciously.
If you want subtler streaks of style which create a certain impression, observe the following: "There were tents perched at the edge of the water; there were men and children sleeping on the roofs of station wagons, in the twisted positions of exhaustion; I saw a half-naked man asleep in a hammock strung between a car and a tree." This is a choppy description. "There were" is not very elegant-it is too direct and easy. But I use it to give the reader the feeling (since Frank and I were driving past) of a montage. Again, I appeal to actual visual perception. I did not see a flowing progression, but s.n.a.t.c.hes of typical sights. Therefore, I wanted choppiness in my description. What holds it together is the fact that the concretes are all part of the same scene; they add up to an impression of the size, discomfort, and exhaustion of the crowd. Later, when I say, "the same, patient cheerful flood," it would have been a bad editorial estimate had I not already given you the concretes. Had I presented a smooth, flowing sentence, that too would have been an editorial summation, whereas I wanted to show what I saw. Always try in such cases to reconstruct for the reader, by means of essentials, what you perceived.
Now consider this line of Wainwright"s: "this vast picnic crowd had gathered to see the booster belch out its tremendous power and hurl likenesses of themselves at the Moon." It is disgusting. First, notice the choice of words, and keep in mind my discussion of connotation. I would use a word like "belch" only if I wanted to degrade something. While that was not his intention, it is a very inappropriate word here. And "likenesses of themselves" provides a disgusting glimpse of his ideas about human motivation.
Observe also the mixture of time elements. He is describing the night before the launch. The next paragraph begins: "By morning there were many more." So the preceding sentence about the belching and hurling is, in his mind, part of the night before. That is undercutting. He projects what he saw later and makes it part of the description of the night before, and then returns to the next morning. Therefore, his readers do not know where they are. He is trying to tell you how he imagined, that night, what the crowd was going to see. Not only is this confusing, but nothing could be more anti-climactic and more presumptuous than projecting a great event that is going to happen. He had no business doing it. This approach would be bad enough if it described a small event, because it produces an anticlimax. But considering the grand nature of this event, his presumption is dreadful.
If there is an unprecedented sight of such importance that a million people come from far away and endure terrible discomfort to see it, and the reporter says, "I know what will happen, there will be fire belching and likenesses hurled," that is presumptuous. He sees no difference between a description of the event and his own imaginary bromides about it. I would not dare do this. Every literary and philosophical premise in me would stop me. If I think the event is big, I let it speak for itself.
Had I been disappointed-which I was not, it was greater than anything I could have imagined-! would say, "I expected a big burst of fire and it fizzled." One could properly write that about some event that, for example, was oversold by press agents.
Do not project in images what you think think an event is going to be like. Always stay behind the event. If you have any values to project (which I did), do it by means of the concretes you select, never by means of your own imaginary constructs. an event is going to be like. Always stay behind the event. If you have any values to project (which I did), do it by means of the concretes you select, never by means of your own imaginary constructs.
Here are some more problems with Wainwright"s choice of words. He said, "People lolled in the gra.s.s." n.o.body lolled that night. But even if he saw, for instance, somebody sitting in the gra.s.s, the verb "lolled" destroys the description. n.o.body would loll on a lawn if he had to stay awake all night in dreadful heat. If you saw those people, you would never think of a lightweight verb pertaining to relaxation. Similarly, he should not have used "picnic" as he did. Again, watch the connotations of the words you use.
His worst mistake with respect to word choice comes in his description of Apollo 11 at night: "Clearly visible through the night about 10 miles away was the Apollo 11, bathed in searchlights, a tiny stalk of light in the darkness." More than anything else, this made me furious. I had gone through the process of working to convey that tremendous visual sight. Then to see somebody with the same problem dismiss it in this way-it was most telling. "Bathed in searchlights" is a bromide. You could say "dripping with light" or "wet with light" (as I once said in The Fountainhead) The Fountainhead); that says something. But "bathed in light" is a bad choice of words; even if somehow you had to use that bromide, it more appropriately describes something indoors (e.g., "a drawing room bathed in light"). But Wainwright uses an inexact bromide about a sight that had enormous grandeur, instead of struggling to describe accurately those huge lights coming out of the two small figures. I almost felt like a proletarian angry at the idea of a bourgeois who does not earn his income. Wainwright did not work at it-he was inadequate to the task.
Moreover, they were not search searchlights, because searchlights move. They were huge batteries of light installed around Apollo 11 and its service tower. This is a good example of the difference between showing and telling. He uses an inappropriate conceptual summation-"searchlights"-instead of giving you the actual sight and letting you conclude that they were searchlights or some other kind of lights. He sums up, rather than showing you what he saw. because searchlights move. They were huge batteries of light installed around Apollo 11 and its service tower. This is a good example of the difference between showing and telling. He uses an inappropriate conceptual summation-"searchlights"-instead of giving you the actual sight and letting you conclude that they were searchlights or some other kind of lights. He sums up, rather than showing you what he saw.
Earlier I said that you can improve your ability to write by identifying a bad pa.s.sage and why it is bad; you thereby learn the abstract principles involved. I hope this comparison clarifies what I meant by that advice.
9
Book Reviews and Introductions
Reviewing books is a valid profession, if practiced properly. Its purpose is twofold: to report on and to evaluate what is published. A reviewer functions as a reporter and scout, since n.o.body can read everything that is published.
There used to be reviewers who had personal followings, because they were reliable. They had definite viewpoints, and you knew by what standards they praised or panned a book. I observed through the years that as these people lowered their standards and recommended bad books, they lost their followings. Today, no reviewer has a following, because none has any standards. Some openly admit the fact that they follow their feelings, while most evade it. But even the worst irrationalist will not be guided by somebody else"s feelings forever. Therefore, reviewers have no function today, even among people who agree with them. If anyone reads them, it is for the reason I do: to discover what the book is about, ignoring the reviewer"s estimate. That is the best reviewers can do today, and it is a disgrace to the profession.
In The The Objectivist Objectivist, we do not review bad books, because there are enough bad ideas floating around, and it would not be worthwhile to my readers to be told how many bad books are published. Not only would it have no value, but we could not keep up with them.
The special purpose of our book reviews is to help those who agree with Objectivism acquire relevant knowledge. A philosophy provides the basic principles that apply to all of existence, but it does not tell you everything. There are many discoveries and arguments, particularly in the social sciences, which are relevant to philosophy and necessary to know. For example, it is not enough to be for free enterprise on moral grounds. You must also know the historical case for it, and be able to answer the questions being raised about it today.
A corollary purpose is to help worthwhile books against the blockade of liberals on the left and religionists on the right. Little of value is published today. But those books of value that are are published may never be heard of, given the present state of reviewing. I dread to think of how many good books have been published but went unknown. Of course, personally, that is my battle. So a secondary purpose of book reviewing in published may never be heard of, given the present state of reviewing. I dread to think of how many good books have been published but went unknown. Of course, personally, that is my battle. So a secondary purpose of book reviewing in The Objectivist The Objectivist is to let an interested audience know that these worthwhile books exist. Few books are fully on our side; but any book whose virtues, ideologically, outweigh its errors is worth supporting. This does not mean we have to praise every book we review. It means we do not review the books we cannot praise. Since we are not a general information magazine, but one with a certain viewpoint, we are not obligated to review everything that appears. is to let an interested audience know that these worthwhile books exist. Few books are fully on our side; but any book whose virtues, ideologically, outweigh its errors is worth supporting. This does not mean we have to praise every book we review. It means we do not review the books we cannot praise. Since we are not a general information magazine, but one with a certain viewpoint, we are not obligated to review everything that appears.
A magazine with a general cultural viewpoint, however, is so obligated, though such magazines seldom fulfill that obligation. A general reviewer of books should review the whole field of books, and only differentiate between books of greater and lesser importance (by the length of the reviews and, in general, by the attention given the books). This is a legitimate undertaking, though magazines today never do it. But that is their problem and their immorality.
A magazine that undertakes to review the whole field of books requires negative book reviewing. The responsibility for a.s.signing books is the editor"s, not the reviewer"s. For example, the policy of The New York Times The New York Times is to give left-wing books to sympathetic left-wing reviewers, and right-wing books to left-wing reviewers as well. That is dishonest and non.o.bjective. But suppose a magazine"s policy were fair, and you received a book to review, which you found was bad. It is appropriate to write a negative review. is to give left-wing books to sympathetic left-wing reviewers, and right-wing books to left-wing reviewers as well. That is dishonest and non.o.bjective. But suppose a magazine"s policy were fair, and you received a book to review, which you found was bad. It is appropriate to write a negative review.
There are three basic requirements for a book review: ( 1 ) to indicate the nature of the book; (2) to tell the reader what its value is; and (3) to tell him briefly what its flaws are, if any. (I am speaking now of nonfiction books; I will cover reviews of fiction later. )
Point 1: The nature of the book. Do not give a full synopsis. Do not report every salient point or the exact progression of a book. This is a mistake beginning reviewers often commit. Indicate the nature of the book, but do not recapitulate it. There is an old joke where one intellectual asks another: "Have you read any good book reviews lately?" That used to be the literati"s custom, and you should avoid it. Do not give a full synopsis. Do not report every salient point or the exact progression of a book. This is a mistake beginning reviewers often commit. Indicate the nature of the book, but do not recapitulate it. There is an old joke where one intellectual asks another: "Have you read any good book reviews lately?" That used to be the literati"s custom, and you should avoid it.
Always indicate the author"s general theme. You need not describe all of his reasoning or material; merely indicate the overall direction by saying the author claims A, B, and C, and such is the theme of the book. Whether you agree with him or not is a separate separate issue (which comes under points 2 and 3). issue (which comes under points 2 and 3).
As a reviewer, you must be skillful enough to isolate the book"s essentials, and present only those. State the subject and give some idea of the author"s development of that subject-the highlights and key points. (And even here you need not include everything.) But never include nonessentials while omitting key points, because that const.i.tutes a misrepresentation. This can happen when you are in a hurry: if your s.p.a.ce is limited, and you have not prepared a good outline, you might start listing the first points that come to your mind, although they are nonessential. But to be fair, you must include what is essential to the author"s theme.
Always include some quotations that are typical of the author. This is important on two counts: ( 1 ) it gives the reader, firsthand, an idea of the author"s approach, and (2) it gives an idea of his style (which is important, even in nonfiction). In a certain sense, a reader has to take you on faith. You are the middleman, and the more quotations you provide, the better you are as a reporter, because it is by means of these that the reader can judge you as well as the book. He can see whether what you allege about the book is actually supported by the quotations. I frequently read reviews in which the quo- . tations do not fit the reviewer"s evaluation (and often they are much more interesting than what the reviewer tells you). Therefore, whenever you use quotations-and use them appropriately-you provide objective evidence of your own reliability.
The difficulty is finding brief brief quotations, because a review made up predominantly of quotations ceases to be a review. It becomes a sampling, like a movie trailer, and does not tell the reader what the book is about; he does not know what there is between those quotations. So preserve a balance. quotations, because a review made up predominantly of quotations ceases to be a review. It becomes a sampling, like a movie trailer, and does not tell the reader what the book is about; he does not know what there is between those quotations. So preserve a balance.
Obviously, your selection of quotations must not be distorted. If you read today"s reviews, you will notice that anything can be supported by ellipses and the out-of-context quotation, which is immoral. If you cannot support a particular contention of yours by means of quotes, do so without them. It can be difficult, especially in nonfiction books, to find a quotation which is brief, yet distinctive enough to indicate the author"s viewpoint and the quality of his writing.
In all writing, the principle of selectivity operates by implication. The reader will necessarily think, to the extent he trusts you, that if you select a quotation, it is representative and fair. Your selection carries weight by the fact of being selected, so be sure it lives up to your purpose-namely, to indicate the essentials of the author"s approach and style. There is no profession immune from the rules of objectivity. If you are not objective in reviewing books, you will lose your following. And every writer should want a following, in the sense of having his readers satisfied rationally and having them trust him.
Suppose you review a book that has many different aspects. If the author is particularly interested in one aspect, but you focus on another which you find more interesting, that is not improper, provided you indicate both the author"s interest and your own. You need not share the author"s main interest in order to write a fair review.
Suppose somebody were reviewing Atlas Shrugged Atlas Shrugged (to take an example from fiction). If he consulted me, I would say the most important aspects to cover are: esthetically, the presentation of man the hero; and philosophically, the book"s ethics and epistemology. But suppose the reviewer, who agrees with the novel"s philosophy, is particularly interested in its political aspects, which he stresses. That would not please me, but I would not consider it dishonest, so long as he indicates that my theme is wider than politics. His approach would be all right, because that aspect is in the book, only it is not as important to me as it is to this reviewer. Such a review is fair, because you cannot expect a reviewer to agree with you on every aspect of your book and to have the same hierarchy of values. (to take an example from fiction). If he consulted me, I would say the most important aspects to cover are: esthetically, the presentation of man the hero; and philosophically, the book"s ethics and epistemology. But suppose the reviewer, who agrees with the novel"s philosophy, is particularly interested in its political aspects, which he stresses. That would not please me, but I would not consider it dishonest, so long as he indicates that my theme is wider than politics. His approach would be all right, because that aspect is in the book, only it is not as important to me as it is to this reviewer. Such a review is fair, because you cannot expect a reviewer to agree with you on every aspect of your book and to have the same hierarchy of values.
It would be inappropriate, however, if one had a totally different motive. Suppose you are reviewing a book on esthetics, in which the author presents a new theory of art. But you are primarily interested in capitalism, and thus in the single section of the book that discusses the plight of the artist in society. You then take the book as a springboard for presenting something quite different from its actual subject and theme. That would be misleading.
Fairness is always possible. The secret is to identify the facts, and then explicitly identify to yourself and to your readers what you are doing. In that way, you can be perfectly fair to an author, even when you disagree with major aspects of his book.
Point 2: The value of the book. I can state this point briefly. Indicate what is good or informative about the book, i.e., what the reader will learn from it. Here you can follow a simple rule: if you think the book is valuable, ask yourself what I can state this point briefly. Indicate what is good or informative about the book, i.e., what the reader will learn from it. Here you can follow a simple rule: if you think the book is valuable, ask yourself what you you learned from it. Select what is most important, and indicate that to the reader. learned from it. Select what is most important, and indicate that to the reader.
Point 3: The flaws of the book. Briefly indicate the book"s philosophical and stylistic flaws. This is especially important in regard to nonfiction books of mixed premises, which are the best an Objectivist can recommend today. There will always be books of mixed premises which are valuable, but their mistakes must be indicated. Briefly indicate the book"s philosophical and stylistic flaws. This is especially important in regard to nonfiction books of mixed premises, which are the best an Objectivist can recommend today. There will always be books of mixed premises which are valuable, but their mistakes must be indicated.
If you do not indicate the book"s flaws, you bewilder your reader. It is unfair not to tell the reader the aspects of the book with which you disagree. But do not argue with the author. For example, some inexperienced Objectivist writers believe you should use a book review to spread Objectivism. But the same considerations [discussed in chapter 4] apply here, only more so. When you report on a book, you are not selling your philosophy. You are merely selling the particular values which the reader can find in this book. It is not your job to save the soul of the author. And more importantly, you must not use his book to present your your ideas. That is what too many of today"s reviewers do. Whether they do it to show off their intelligence or to proselytize for their own philosophy, it is a mistake. ideas. That is what too many of today"s reviewers do. Whether they do it to show off their intelligence or to proselytize for their own philosophy, it is a mistake.
As a reviewer, you must express your opinion. But be sure to keep your estimate separate from your report on the book. When you find flaws, it is important to indicate them and, if the issue is serious enough, to indicate what the truth is on that issue. But do not begin to argue for the correct view. Merely indicate what the truth is about some error by the author, and give a reference to where the reader can look up the proof of your point, if necessary.
In effect, your policy should be: "This book has values A, B, C, and D, which make the book worthwhile, but it has flaws Y and Z. Here is why I regard them as flaws ..." But be sure you present the author"s ideas correctly. If the author is good on certain points, do not exaggerate them and make him out to be better than he is. Likewise, if there are points which contradict your own viewpoint, do not denounce him and exaggerate his flaws. A review is not a polemic.
A polemical article has its place. One can take a book with a wrong viewpoint and write an article denouncing it and explaining why it is wrong. Even in such an article you must present the author"s viewpoint fairly, so as to avoid attacking a strawman. But that is not a book review-it is a discussion of ideas for which the particular book you are attacking serves as the springboard.