The Elements of Style

In progress

Strunk and White’s book is so concise and popular it hardly needs a summary. Still, I try here to condense their condensation. Split into five parts, the book starts with (1) elementary rules of usage and (2) principles of composition. It briefly touches on (3) a few matters of form and then it dives into (4) words and expressions commonly misused. The last part shows you the secret sauce. William Strunk provides the reader with (5) an approach to style and a list of reminders, not rules.

Part one addresses punctuation

Write Charles’s not Charles’. In a normal sentence, separate all items in a list with commas. Before you put a parenthetic expression (a clause) between commas, check whether it's restrictive (i.e. it defines the noun preceding it like William the Conqueror) or nonrestrictive (i.e. it just adds to the noun preceding it). Only when it is nonrestrictive, where, like here for instance, I am adding to nonrestrictive rather than defining it, do you want to enclose in commas.

Wherever you have a conjunction like if, and, or but separating independent clauses (standalone sentences), place a comma before the conjunction. If you’re not using a conjunction, a semicolon or period is more suitable. The only case where independent clauses can be joined without a conjunction using a comma is when the clauses are short or conversational as in “here today, gone tomorrow.” Replace the comma with a period only when you are certain that the emphasis is warranted as in “again and again he called out. No reply.“

Use colons to separate a subtitle from a title, a minute from an hour, a letter from a salutation, or a quote or list from an independent clause. A dash is stronger than a comma, less formal than a colon, and more relaxed than parentheses. Use it therefore to set off an abrupt break or interruption or to announce a long appositive or summary.

Let the number of the subject determine the number of the verb. Note however a few caveats: when singular subjects are connected by and they become plural whereas when they are connected by with, as well as, in addition to, except, together with, or no less than the subject remains singular.

To use the proper case of pronoun, you must know what is proper. There are subjective (possessive) and objective cases governing which pronouns should be used around gerunds (“my asking”) and “understood” verbs (“better than I”). There are many nice examples that I don't mention here.

Let participial phrases refer to the grammatical subject. Not doing so yields ridiculous sentences like “being in a dilapidated condition, I was able to buy the house very cheap.“ The house should come after the comma because the author is unlikely to be dilapidated.

Part two addresses style