What is style – without me peeking at the books
01 Jul 2010 Leave a Comment
One of the fun tasks of taking a short summer course is making sure you have your books in time. Well, I got part of it right. I got the books, just not at the right time. Of course they arrive the day I receive the assignment. Just in time to write about my understanding about “writing style.”
So what do I do? Fresh on my mind, do I pop open my books and do a quick scan to see if I’m on the right track? Oh so very tempting! However, it seems a bit untrue to heart of the assignment. So for the thrill seeker in me, I shall proceed ever so humbly and without the aid of my text. I know. I know. I’m a madwoman. But hey if you can’t throw caution to the wind every once in a while, what’s the point. Right?
So here it is:
My down and dirty version of style is that it is the contributing element for how language is delivered. For example, everyone that is familiar with the American Psychological Association (APA) knows just what font size to use as well as the various grammatical structures that conform from this very structured style of writing. In stark comparison we have extreme liberty when using dialect in a piece of writing. In a work such as Huckleberry Finn, Mark Twain brilliantly contorted the English language to give the perception that we were actually listening to good ol’ Huck sitting in St. Petersburg.
Another mainstay in my personal application of style is to “know thy audience.” In order to serve it’s purpose successfully, the written piece must be constructed in a way that is accepted and understood. Understanding the wants and needs of an audiance can make or break the piece of writing.
There it is, my generic view of style. However, do not be disheartened as I feel that my understanding of style is about to expand at least 2 text books worth.
*As a side note: I would say that my style or tone used in this blog is what I would classify as “intelligently casual.” I certainly can substantiate the latter.
-Heather T.
