"The Elements of Style" Celebrates 50 Years; But What it's Missing is a Deathblow to Your Writing

The book was originally written in 1918 and published by Cornell University professor William Strunk Jr., and was first revised with the help of Edward A. Tenney in 1935. In 1957, it came to the attention of E.B. White at The New Yorker. White had studied under Strunk in 1919 but had since forgotten the book which he called a "forty-three-page summation of the case for cleanliness, accuracy, and brevity in the use of English."

Some critics have panned it as "not underpinned by a proper ground in English grammar" (Geoffrey Pullman) or an "aging zombie of a book [...] a hodgepodge, its now-antiquated pet peeves jostling for space with 1970s taboos and 1990s computer advice" (The Boston Globe).

But April 16th is its 50th anniversary. It's still popular after all these years. But why?

Why is it still so popular? Some say because it's concise, accessible, brief (100 pgs.) But there's a lot of brief, accessible, concise writer's handbooks out there. As a matter of fact, there are some that are briefer, more concise and accessible, if "accessible" means the reader doesn't want to be bogged down with lots of challenging reading.

Certainly in this day-'n-age there are other books that could substitute for The Elements of Style but people generally go with the tried and true, very rarely if ever going off course to the new and, in some cases, improved. And many pass on this book as a good one just because that's what they've heard but do not know why or do not do so from a very informed perspective.

But if you're looking for grammar; mechanics; spelling rules; MLA, Chicago, APA formatting, and more, you've come to the wrong place. This is the basics about, as the title says, style. Most who get the book don't know the difference between one handbook and another. Those big, thick handbooks have most if not all you need to write and write well. They will inform you about composition in its whole, paragraph development (unified, coherent, well-developed), transitions between and within paragraphs and sections, purpose and audience, idea generation, pre-writing, drafting, editing, and much, much, more. The Elements of Style, however, is limited and works with the intangibles or mostly non-technical.

It gives you style for sure: be concise, stay in the active voice, omit needless words, don't overwrite or overstate. The rest is punctuation and mechanics. So if you're looking for anything else about writing you'll have to go to those big books over 100 pages. You know, the ones that aren't so concise, brief, or, dare we say, accessible.

But some of the suggestions are rather outdated and not what many today would consider good advice. One suggestion, "prefer the standard to the offbeat" is probably general commentary meant for a more conservative time. But it also depends on who you're writing for and to. If I'm writing for Time I'll stick to this advice. If I'm writing for Spin or Rolling Stone, maybe not.

Another suggestion is that one should "not interject opinion." OK, good luck. Today's student can't seem to do so without going into convulsions. But once again, it depends on who your writing for and to.

Then we've got the rather quaint suggestions "Avoid fancy words," "Do not affect a breezy manor," and such. Certainly good advice if you know what "fancy" and "breezy" mean, but what is missing from the book is an explanation of audience and purpose; even if you figure out what "fancy" and "breezy" mean to what situation does this advice apply? Every? A select few?

So, yes, it is brief (pages have gone from 85 to 100, but still brief), concise, and accessible, but so what? There's more that needs to be known than what this little book gives.

It has remained popular, and in reading some of the testimonies and reviews at Amazon as to why people have bought it, it becomes clear and also points out inherent problems with the text.

"The condition of the book was good and the size is great because is so small that you can put it anywere [sic]." (This person needs the larger handbook that covers spelling)

"I purchased this book after my instructor stressed "I pick up a copy". You'll find the book easy to read and incorporate into everyday use." (Even instructors are dazzled by its fame; but keep in mind here that not every writer or writing instructor has adequate technical know how)

"This has been a long-standing guide for writing. This book was recommended during the current writing class." ("long-standing" the key phrase here)

"Strunk and White['s], Elements of Style has an excellent reputation as a classic in the field of basic grammar and composition. However, I found that the tone and composition of the book lends itself to an audience of insiders,' those who are already well-versed in the basic principles. It is not of much use in teaching those who are confused or need more clarity on the subject." (My point exactly)

"If one could have only a single book on english [sic] grammer [sic], this is that book." (Another one that needs to at least pay attention to his spell check and who needs to look up the term grammar, for the book only touches upon the subject)

"I didn't find this book very useful at all. The rules and rules of what is correct writing just didn't help me. It is good to know rules, but the inflexible manner of this book was not very useful. For instance, some books have to be grammatically incorrect. Sentence fragments, run-on sentences, etc. all can build tension or a feeling in a book, but this isn't allowed according to Strunk and White." (Because the book doesn't explain enough about audience and purpose, those without that background leave reviews like this which speaks to the books incompleteness)

"It is a good book, but you might find some styles are repeating with other books ( ?). It is good to learn from this author, but I also suggest to learn more from other authors, too." (My point exactly, and I hope this student does read other books to clear up his language)

"This is one of the greatest guides I've ever laid eyes on. If you write anything, grocery lists, post it note memos, parking tickets... you need this book. It's short, straight to the point, and effective." (OK, we can toss this recommendation. The Elements of Style for post-it memos? parking tickets? grocery lists? Whoops!)

"In my opinion, the biggest draw of this new edition is the cover. It's black and professional looking; The perfect compliment for your shelf of writing books." (It will go great with all those other books I don't read)

"It's nice for Strunk and White to come out with a 50th anniversary edition, but I still have nearly all of the content in this book in previous editions. Don't get me wrong...I hope they make the money they deserve for fifty years of help to writers." (I'm sure they are listening in their graves; this review a testament to the book's main draw--its fame and little else)

"Well, I wanted to give this five stars just by virtue of being The Elements of Style , but I have to say that while it looks nice to put on a shelf and never open, this isn't what I would turn to when I'm actually looking something up. This is nice to have just to look at, but I'm always going to turn back to the little paperback edition I have sitting next to me." (Yes, goes great with my other books, but it's incomplete)

Well, you can see that fame breeds fame. The main reason most go to The Elements of Style is because of its notoriety. It certainly has its shortcomings, is out dated, and leaves the inexperienced asking more questions than it can answer.

My advice? Get it, but before you do, get one of those big handbooks and learn all the rules. Yes, I know, you'll have to do some work, but, sorry, no shortcuts here.

Here's a few I suggest to help you learn about audience, purpose, pre-writing, drafting, grammar, mechanics, paragraphing, transitions, coherence, and so forth, then you can get your Elements of Style for, well, the basics on style, of course. But don't just rely on EOS's popularity as cause for ignoring comprehensive handbooks, such as those suggested below.

Almost anything Diana Hacker. I've used her in my classes for years. Very standard and comprehensive. Two I've used are Rules for Writers and A Writer's Reference . If you're concerned about how they'll look on your bookshelf, they'll do. I like the look, color, and design of the handbooks inside and out.

P.S

If you think I've been harsh, read Geoffrey Pullman's article "50 Years of Stupid Grammar" at the Chronicle of Higher Education (chronicle dot com). He's the head of linguistics and English at the University of Edinburgh. He knows too much and goes into too much detail and goes into too much smacking upside the head of the authors. If Stunk and White were alive now . . . well, ouch! I guess if you have a big degree from a big university and teach at the same you can, well . . . pound away with some big blows. Once again . . . ouch! Poor Strunkie and White. Duck fellas!