The Elements of Style
What began as a private classroom "little book" became the definitive blueprint for American prose.
What began as a private classroom "little book" became the definitive blueprint for American prose.
In 1918, Cornell professor William Strunk Jr. printed a 43-page manual for his English students, focusing on "cleanliness, accuracy, and brevity." Decades later, his former student—the celebrated essayist E.B. White—resurrected and expanded the text for Macmillan. This 1959 collaboration, popularly known as "Strunk & White," transformed a localized teaching tool into a national bestseller that has sold millions of copies.
The book’s evolution mirrors the professionalization of American writing. While the original was a rigid set of classroom "exhortations," White’s additions introduced a more philosophical "Approach to Style." It moved from telling students where to put commas to advising writers on how to achieve "one moment of felicity" by writing to please themselves.
The guide’s core philosophy is an aesthetic of austerity that treats sentences like efficient machines.
The guide’s core philosophy is an aesthetic of austerity that treats sentences like efficient machines.
The manual is famous for its "elementary rules of usage" and "principles of composition," but its most enduring legacy is the command to "Omit needless words." Strunk argued that a sentence should contain no unnecessary words for the same reason a drawing should have no unnecessary lines and a machine no unnecessary parts. This "machine-shop" approach to English prioritized the active voice and parallel structure above all else.
This prescriptive nature isn't just about grammar; it’s about a specific mindset. The authors argue that vigorous writing is concise by design. By stripping away "bullshit" (as Stephen King later described it), the writer forces every word to "tell." This philosophy turned the book into a staple of mid-century modernism, favoring clarity and directness over Victorian flourish.
Despite its status as a "holy text" of writing, modern linguists dismiss it as technically flawed and "toxic."
Despite its status as a "holy text" of writing, modern linguists dismiss it as technically flawed and "toxic."
While writers like Stephen King and Dorothy Parker have championed the book as essential, the linguistic community has been less kind. Geoffrey Pullum, a prominent professor of linguistics, famously labeled it a "toxic mix of purism, atavism, and personal eccentricity." Critics argue that Strunk and White frequently flouted their own rules and, more significantly, fundamentally misunderstood grammatical concepts like the passive voice.
The controversy stems from the tension between "prescriptivism" (dictating how people should speak) and "descriptivism" (observing how they do). Critics argue the book’s "uninformed bossiness" has created generations of writers who feel "vaguely anxious" about perfectly natural English usages, such as split infinitives or starting sentences with "however," without understanding why they are supposedly wrong.
The manual remains the most assigned text in American universities, even as it adapts to modern social norms.
The manual remains the most assigned text in American universities, even as it adapts to modern social norms.
According to the Open Syllabus Project, The Elements of Style is the most frequently assigned book in US academic syllabuses, appearing in over a million analyzed courses. Its brevity and "no-nonsense" tone make it an attractive tool for educators attempting to standardize student writing across various disciplines.
To maintain this relevance, the book has undergone significant "modernization" regarding gender and inclusivity. The 1999 fourth edition finally walked back Strunk’s original advice to use masculine pronouns ("he") for indefinite antecedents, acknowledging that many readers find the practice "limiting or offensive." Even the audiobook versions have been edited to resolve "gender issues," ensuring the "little book" survives in a culture far removed from 1918 Cornell.
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