Other editions of book The Elements of Style

The Elements of Style is the most influential American English practical style guide on improving writing skills. Written originally in 1918, by William Strunk Jr., a professor of English at the Cornell University, and later revised and enlarged by his former student E. B. White, it is a comprehensive text covering elements of English language style, usage, and composition also focusing on misused and misspelled words. The version revised by E.B. White, was named by Time in 2011 one of the top 100 most influential English books since 1923.The book contains "elementary composition principles, "elementary rules of usage", "matters of form", commonly misused expressions and words, and a list of often misspelled – these all make for a rather small, but comprehensive volume in a few dozen pages that covers a lot of style and grammar issues and pays tribute to classic high-end English.The message that came with this work is to ensure an efficient and clean communication style by omitting needless, parasitic words and expressions, by using active voice, and parallel construction on parallel concepts. It also has tips on how to develop an effective and natural style. Among other recommendations are:avoid qualifiers, be concise, do not overdo with explanations, avoid adverbs, avoid dialect, do not insert opinion, use the standard rather than the unconventional and new (the author even lists a bunch of trendy words which, according to him,would lose popularity very rapidly by the time the book is published).Writing is also about pleasing yourself and aiming for that moment of sublime satisfaction from the conveyed message and the way it is done.According to Strunk, “vigorous writing is concise”, implying that a sentence must be stripped off of any unnecessary parts,which can obscure its structure and flow.

The Elements of Style is the definitive text and classic manual on the principles of English language read by millions of readers. The 18 main topics are organized under the headings, "Elementary Rules of Usage," "Elementary Principles of Composition," "A Few Matters of Form," "Words and Expressions Commonly Misused," and "Words Often Misspelled."The Elements of Style is a prescriptive American English writing style guide in numerous editions. The original was composed by William Strunk Jr., in 1918, and published by Harcourt, in 1920, comprising eight "elementary rules of usage", ten "elementary principles of composition", "a few matters of form", a list of 49 "words and expressions commonly misused", and a list of 57 "words often misspelled". E. B. White greatly enlarged and revised the book for publication by Macmillan in 1959. That was the first edition of the so-called "Strunk & White", which Time named in 2011 one of the 100 best and most influential books written in English since 1923.

'The Elements of Style' (1918), by William Strunk, Jr., is an American English writing style guide. It is the best-known, most influential prescriptive treatment of English grammar and usage, and often is required reading and usage in U.S. high school and university composition classes. This edition of 'The Elements of Style' details eight elementary rules of usage, ten elementary principles of composition, 'a few matters of form', and a list of commonly misused words and expressions.

The Elements of Style is an American English writing style guide. It is one of the most influential and best-known prescriptive treatments of English grammar and usage in the United States. It originally detailed eight elementary rules of usage, ten elementary principles of composition, and "a few matters of form" as well as a list of commonly misused words and expressions. Updated editions of the paperback book are often required reading for American high school and college composition classes.

THE FIRST writer I watched at work was my stepfather, E. B. White. Each Tuesday morning, he would close his study door and sit down to write the "Notes and Comment" page for The New Yorker. The task was familiar to him— he was required to file a few hundred words of editorial or personal commentary on some topic in or out of the news that week — but the sounds of his typewriter from his room came in hesitant bursts, with long silences in between. Hours went by. Summoned at last for lunch, he was silent and preoccupied, and soon excused himself to get back to the job. When the copy went off at last, in the afternoon RFD pouch — we were in Maine, a day's mail away from New York — he rarely seemed satisfied. "It isn't good enough," he said sometimes. "I wish it were better."

Cornell University English professor William Strunk, Jr. wrote The Elements of Style in 1918 and privately published it in 1919, for in-house use at the university. (Harcourt republished it in 52-page format in 1920.) Later, for publication, he and editor Edward A. Tenney revised it as The Elements and Practice of Composition (1935). In 1957, at The New Yorker, the style guide reached the attention of E.B. White, who had studied writing under Strunk in 1919 but had since forgotten "the little book" that he described as a "forty-three-page summation of the case for cleanliness, accuracy, and brevity in the use of English". Weeks later, White wrote a feature story about Strunk's devotion to lucid English prose. Macmillan and Company subsequently commissioned White to revise The Elements for a 1959 edition (Strunk had died in 1946). White's expansion and modernization of Strunk and Tenney's 1935 revised edition yielded the writing style manual informally known as "Strunk & White", the first edition of which sold approximately two million copies in 1959. In the ensuing four decades, more than ten million copies of three editions have been sold. Mark Garvey relates the history of this writing manual in Stylized: A Slightly Obsessive History of Strunk & White's The Elements of Style (2009). Maira Kalman, who provided the illustrations for The Elements of Style Illustrated (2005, see below), asked Nico Muhly to compose a cantata based on the book. It was performed at the New York Public Library in October 2005.

This classic reference is a must-have for any student or writer. In this brief handbook, Strunk identifies the principal requirements of proper American English style and concentrates on the most often violated rules of composition. Authoritative and engagingly written, this is simply the greatest book of its kind. "The Elements of Style," by William Strunk, is a prescriptive American English writing style guide comprising eight "elementary rules of usage," ten "elementary principles of composition," "a few matters of form," a list of forty-nine "words and expressions commonly misused," and a list of fifty-seven "words often misspelled." This reprint reproduces the text of the 1920 edition. This authoritative and engagingly written manual retains its immediacy and relevance. Strunk begins with the basic rules of usage, offering explanations of correct punctuation and grammar. Covers grammar, diction, syntax, sentence construction and other basic writing essentials.

Complete and unabridgedThe Elements of Style is a prescriptive American English writing style guide in numerous editions. The original was composed by William Strunk Jr. in 1918, and published by Harcourt in 1920, comprising eight "elementary rules of usage", ten "elementary principles of composition", "a few matters of form", a list of 49 "words and expressions commonly misused", and a list of 57 "words often misspelled". E. B. White greatly enlarged and revised the book for publication by Macmillan in 1959. That was the first edition of the so-called "Strunk & White", which Time named in 2011 as one of the 100 best and most influential books written in English since 1923.From Wikipedia.