CHAPTER 3 Grammar,Usage,and Mechanics Purpose,strategy,and style are decided by you.But the de- cision must be made within limits set by rules over which you have little control.The rules fall into three groups:grammar, usage,and mechanics. Grammar Grammar means the rules which structure our language.The sentence "She dresses beautifully"is grammatical.These var- iations are not: Her dresses beautifully. Dresses beautifully she. The first breaks the rule that a pronoun must be in the sub- jective case when it is the subject of a verb.The second vio- lates the conventional order of the English sentence:subject- verb-object.(That order is not invariable and may be altered, subject to other rules,but none of these permits the pattern: "Dresses beautifully she.") Grammatical rules are not the pronouncements ofteachers, editors,or other authorities.They are simply the way people
CHAPTER 3 Grammar, Usage, and Mechanics Purpose, strategy, and style are decided by you. But the decision must be made within limits set by rules over which you have little control. The rules fall into three groups: grammar, usage, and mechanics. Grammar Grammar means the rules which structure our language. The sentence "She dresses beautifully" is grammatical. These variations are not: Her dresses beautifully. Dresses beautifully she. The first breaks the rule that a pronoun must be in the subjective case when it is the subject of a verb. The second violates the conventional order of the English sentence: subjectverb-object. (That order is not invariable and may be altered, subject to other rules, but none of these permits the pattern: "Dresses beautifully she.") Grammatical rules are not the pronouncements of teachers, editors, or other authorities. They are simply the way people
14 INTRODUCTION speak and write,and if enough people begin to speak and write differently,the rules change. Usage Usage designates rules of a less basic and binding sort,con- cerning how we should use the language in certain situations. These sentences,for instance,violate formal usage: She dresses beautiful. She ain't got no dress. Sentences like these are often heard in speech,but both break rules governing how educated people write.Formal usage dic- tates that when beautiful functions as an adverb it takes an -ly ending,that ain't and a double negative like a in'tgot no or haven't got no should be avoided. Grammar and usage are often confused.Many people would argue that the sentences above are "ungrammatical." Our distinction,however,is more useful.Grammatical rules are implicit in the speech of all who use the language.Usage rules,on the other hand,stem from and change with social pressure.Ain't,for example,was once acceptable.The adver- bial use of an adjective like beautiful was common in seventeenth-century prose.Chaucer and Shakespeare use double negatives for emphasis. The fact that usage rules are less basic than grammatical ones,however,and even that they may seem arbitrary,does not lessen their force.Most of them contribute to clarity and economy of expression.Moreover,usage applies to all levels of purpose and strategy,to informal,colloquial styles as well as to formal ones.For example,grammatically incomplete sentences (or fragments),frowned upon in formal usage,are occasionally permissible and even valuable in informal com- position.(Witness the two fragments in the student paragraph on marriage on page 8.)So is regarded in formal English as a subordinating conjunction which ought not to introduce a
14 INTRODUCTION speak and write, and if enough people begin to speak and write differently, the rules change. Usage Usage designates rules of a less basic and binding sort, concerning how we should use the language in certain situations. These sentences, for instance, violate formal usage: She dresses beautiful. She ain't got no dress. Sentences like these are often heard in speech, but both break rules governing how educated people write. Formal usage dictates that when beautiful functions as an adverb it takes an -ly ending, that ain yt and a double negative like a in't got no or haven't got no should be avoided. Grammar and usage are often confused. Many people would argue that the sentences above are "ungrammatical." Our distinction, however, is more useful. Grammatical rules are implicit in the speech of all who use the language. Usage rules, on the other hand, stem from and change with social pressure. Ain't, for example, was once acceptable. The adverbial use of an adjective like beautiful was common in seventeenth-century prose. Chaucer and Shakespeare use double negatives for emphasis. The fact that usage rules are less basic than grammatical ones, however, and even that they may seem arbitrary, does not lessen their force. Most of them contribute to clarity and economy of expression. Moreover, usage applies to all levels of purpose and strategy, to informal, colloquial styles as well as to formal ones. For example, grammatically incomplete sentences (or fragments), frowned upon in formal usage, are occasionally permissible and even valuable in informal composition. (Witness the two fragments in the student paragraph on marriage on page 8.) So is regarded in formal English as a subordinating conjunction which ought not to introduce a
GRAMMAR,USAGE,AND MECHANICS IS sentence.But in a colloquial style,it may work better than a more literary connective like consequently or therefore. Mechanics In composition mechanics refers to the appearance of words, to how they are spelled or arranged on paper.The fact that the first word of a paragraph is usually indented,for example, is a matter of mechanics.These sentences violate other rules of mechanics: she dresses beautifully She dresses beautifuly. Conventions of writing require that a sentence begin with a capital letter and end with full-stop punctuation (period, question mark,or exclamation point).Conventions of spell- ing require that beautifully have two ls. The rules gathered under the heading of mechanics attempt to make writing consistent and clear.They may seem arbi- trary,but they have evolved from centuries of experience. Generally they represent,if not the only way of solving a problem,an economic and efficient way. Along with mechanics we include punctuation,a very com- plicated subject and by no means purely mechanical.While some punctuation is cut-and-dried,much of it falls into the province of usage or style.Later,in the chapter on punctua- tion,we'll discuss the distinctions between mechanical and stylistic uses of commas,dashes,and so on. Grammar,Usage,and Style Grammar,usage,and mechanics establish the ground rules of writing,circumscribing what you are free to do.Within their limits,you select various strategies and work out those strat- egies in terms of words,sentences,paragraphs.The ground rules,however,are relatively inflexible,broken at your peril
GRAMMAR, USAGE, AND MECHANICS I 5 sentence. But in a colloquial style, it may work better than a more literary connective like consequently or therefore. Mechanics In composition mechanics refers to the appearance of words, to how they are spelled or arranged on paper. The fact that the first word of a paragraph is usually indented, for example, is a matter of mechanics. These sentences violate other rules of mechanics: she dresses beautifully She dresses beautifuly. Conventions of writing require that a sentence begin with a capital letter and end with full-stop punctuation (period, question mark, or exclamation point). Conventions of spelling require that beautifully have two Is. The rules gathered under the heading of mechanics attempt to make writing consistent and clear. They may seem arbitrary, but they have evolved from centuries of experience. Generally they represent, if not the only way of solving a problem, an economic and efficient way. Along with mechanics we include punctuation, a very complicated subject and by no means purely mechanical. While some punctuation is cut-and-dried, much of it falls into the province of usage or style. Later, in the chapter on punctuation, we'll discuss the distinctions between mechanical and stylistic uses of commas, dashes, and so on. Grammar, Usage, and Style Grammar, usage, and mechanics establish the ground rules of writing, circumscribing what you are free to do. Within their limits, you select various strategies and work out those strategies in terms of words, sentences, paragraphs. The ground rules, however, are relatively inflexible, broken at your peril
16 INTRODUCTION It is not always easy to draw the line between grammar and usage or between usage and style.Broadly,grammar is what you must do as a user of English;usage,what you should do as a writer of more or less formal (or informal)English;and style,what you elect to do to work out your strategies and realize your purposes. "Her dresses beautifully,"we said,represents an error in grammar,and "She dresses beautiful,"a mistake in usage. "She dresses in a beautiful manner,"however,is a lapse in style.The sentence breaks no rule of grammar or of usage, but it is not effective (assuming that the writer wants to stress the idea of"beauty").The structure slurs the emphasis,which should be on the key word and which should close the state- ment-"She dresses beautifully." Most of our difficulties with words and sentences involve style.For native speakers,grammar-in our sense-is not likely to be a serious problem.Usage (which includes much of what is popularly called "grammar")and mechanics are more troublesome.But generally these require simply that you learn clearly defined conventions.And having learned them,you will find that rather than being restrictive they free you to choose more effectively among the options available to you as a writer. Style is less reducible to rule,and more open to argument. No one can prove "She dresses in a beautiful manner"is poorer than "She dresses beautifully."(One can even imagine a context in which the longer sentence would be preferable.) Even so,it violates a principle observed by good writers;use no more words than you must. You may think of that principle as a "rule"of style.We shall discuss and illustrate that and other stylistic "rules,"but remember:they are generalizations about what good writers do,not laws dictating what all writers must do
16 INTRODUCTION It is not always easy to draw the line between grammar and usage or between usage and style. Broadly, grammar is what you must do as a user of English; usage, what you should do as a writer of more or less formal (or informal) English; and style, what you elect to do to work out your strategies and realize your purposes. "Her dresses beautifully," we said, represents an error in grammar, and "She dresses beautiful," a mistake in usage. "She dresses in a beautiful manner," however, is a lapse in style. The sentence breaks no rule of grammar or of usage, but it is not effective (assuming that the writer wants to stress the idea of "beauty"). The structure slurs the emphasis, which should be on the key word and which should close the statement—"She dresses beautifully." Most of our difficulties with words and sentences involve style. For native speakers, grammar—in our sense—is not likely to be a serious problem. Usage (which includes much of what is popularly called "grammar") and mechanics are more troublesome. But generally these require simply that you learn clearly defined conventions. And having learned them, you will find that rather than being restrictive they free you to choose more effectively among the options available to you as a writer. Style is less reducible to rule, and more open to argument. No one can prove "She dresses in a beautiful manner" is poorer than "She dresses beautifully." (One can even imagine a context in which the longer sentence would be preferable.) Even so, it violates a principle observed by good writers; use no more words than you must. You may think of that principle as a "rule" of style. We shall discuss and illustrate that and other stylistic "rules," but remember: they are generalizations about what good writers do, not laws dictating what all writers must do
PART The e Writing Process Writing in its broad sense-as distinct from simply putting words on paper-has three steps:thinking about it,doing it, and doing it again (and again and again,as often as time will allow and patience will endure). The first step,"thinking,"involves choosing a subject,ex- ploring ways of developing it,and devising strategies of or- ganization and style.The second step,"doing,"is usually called "drafting";and the third,"doing again,"is "revising." The next several chapters take a brief look at these steps of the writing process. First a warning.They're not really "steps,"not in the usual sense anyway.You don't write by (1)doing all your thinking, (2)finishing a draft,and then (3)completing a revision.Ac- tually you do all these things at once. If that sounds mysterious,it's because writing is a complex activity.As you think about a topic you are already beginning to select words and construct sentences-in other words,to draft.As you draft and as you revise,the thinking goes on: you discover new ideas,realize you've gone down a dead end, discover an implication you hadn't seen before. It's helpful to conceive of writing as a process having,in a broad and loose sense,three steps.But remember that you
PAR T I The Writing Process Writing in its broad sense—as distinct from simply putting words on paper—has three steps: thinking about it, doing it, and doing it again (and again and again, as often as time will allow and patience will endure). The first step, "thinking," involves choosing a subject, exploring ways of developing it, and devising strategies of organization and style. The second step, "doing," is usually called "drafting"; and the third, "doing again," is "revising." The next several chapters take a brief look at these steps of the writing process. First a warning. They're not really "steps," not in the usual sense anyway. You don't write by (1) doing all your thinking, (2) finishing a draft, and then (3) completing a revision. Actually you do all these things at once. If that sounds mysterious, it's because writing is a complex activity. As you think about a topic you are already beginning to select words and construct sentences—in other words, to draft. As you draft and as you revise, the thinking goes on: you discover new ideas, realize you've gone down a dead end, discover an implication you hadn't seen before. It's helpful to conceive of writing as a process having, in a broad and loose sense, three steps. But remember that you