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The author of this essay is also the co-author of The Cambridge Grammar of the English Language http://www.cambridge.org/uk/linguistics/cgel/ http://www.cambri

by kqr2 17y ago

The author of this essay is also the co-author of The Cambridge Grammar of the English Language http://www.cambridge.org/uk/linguistics/cgel/ http://www.cambridge.org/uk/linguistics/cgel/ Unfortunately, the author doesn't recommend a good alternative to Strunk & White's Elements of Style.

houseabsolute 17y ago
I think the last paragraph of the article demonstrates that he believes such a thing does not exist.
- kqr2 17y ago
  It is much too important to be reduced to a bunch of trivial don't-do-this prescriptions by a pair of idiosyncratic bumblers who can't even tell when they've broken their own misbegotten rules. He says that grammar can't be reduced to a bunch of trivial rules, but that doesn't mean there can't be a good alternative to Strunk & White for teaching grammar to students.
- gjm11 17y ago
  Elsewhere (on the excellent "Language Log" blog) he recommends two books: for grammar/usage, the Merriam-Webster Concise Dictionary of English Usage; for style, Joseph Williams's "Style: toward clarity and grace". The first recommendation I ever saw for Williams's book, FWIW, was from Richard Gabriel (founder of Lucid Inc., author of the paper commonly but misleadingly known as "worse is better" and of "Patterns of Software", and these days concentrating on poetry rather than software).
- elblanco 17y ago
  I think it's more that none of the commonly or widely accepted guides to grammar offer advice that is correct.
nat 17y ago
He's written articles pretty similar to this before, and I think in the last one, he did mention the the Cambridge Grammar. Half the comments were people jumping down his throat for having a conflict of interest.
liquidcool 17y ago
I can offer a great alternative: Style: Lessons In Clarity and Grace by Joseph Williams http://www.amazon.com/Style-Lessons-Clarity-Grace-10th/dp/0205747469/ http://www.amazon.com/Style-Lessons-Clarity-Grace-10th/dp/02... This book is a simple, step by step guide to making you a better writer. By chapter 2 you're already writing much clearer prose. It's one of those books you want to read every couple of years. I'd also recommend the essay "Politics and the English Language" by George Orwell: http://www.mtholyoke.edu/acad/intrel/orwell46.htm http://www.mtholyoke.edu/acad/intrel/orwell46.htm

by kqr2 17y ago

houseabsolute 17y ago

I think the last paragraph of the article demonstrates that he believes such a thing does not exist.

kqr2 17y ago
It is much too important to be reduced to a bunch of trivial don't-do-this prescriptions by a pair of idiosyncratic bumblers who can't even tell when they've broken their own misbegotten rules. He says that grammar can't be reduced to a bunch of trivial rules, but that doesn't mean there can't be a good alternative to Strunk & White for teaching grammar to students.
gjm11 17y ago
Elsewhere (on the excellent "Language Log" blog) he recommends two books: for grammar/usage, the Merriam-Webster Concise Dictionary of English Usage; for style, Joseph Williams's "Style: toward clarity and grace". The first recommendation I ever saw for Williams's book, FWIW, was from Richard Gabriel (founder of Lucid Inc., author of the paper commonly but misleadingly known as "worse is better" and of "Patterns of Software", and these days concentrating on poetry rather than software).
elblanco 17y ago
I think it's more that none of the commonly or widely accepted guides to grammar offer advice that is correct.

nat 17y ago

He's written articles pretty similar to this before, and I think in the last one, he did mention the the Cambridge Grammar. Half the comments were people jumping down his throat for having a conflict of interest.

liquidcool 17y ago

I can offer a great alternative: Style: Lessons In Clarity and Grace by Joseph Williams http://www.amazon.com/Style-Lessons-Clarity-Grace-10th/dp/0205747469/ http://www.amazon.com/Style-Lessons-Clarity-Grace-10th/dp/02... This book is a simple, step by step guide to making you a better writer. By chapter 2 you're already writing much clearer prose. It's one of those books you want to read every couple of years. I'd also recommend the essay "Politics and the English Language" by George Orwell: http://www.mtholyoke.edu/acad/intrel/orwell46.htm http://www.mtholyoke.edu/acad/intrel/orwell46.htm