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Title: How to Speak and Write Correctly
Author: Joseph Devlin
Release Date: September, 2004 [EBook #6409] [Yes, we are more than one year ahead of schedule] [This file was first posted on December 8, 2002] [Date last updated: May 2, 2006]
Edition: 10Language: English
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*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK HOW TO SPEAK AND WRITE ***
Produced by Tom Allen, Charles Franks and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team. HOW TO
SPEAK AND WRITE CORRECTLY
JOSEPH DEVLIN, M.A.
Edited by
THEODORE WATERS
THE CHRISTIAN HERALD BIBLE HOUSE
NEW YORK
Copyright, 1910, by
THE CHRISTIAN HERALD NEW YORK
CHAPTER I
REQUIREMENTS OF SPEECH
Vocabulary. Parts of speech. Requisites.
CHAPTER II
ESSENTIALS OF ENGLISH GRAMMAR Divisions of grammar. Definitions. Etymology.
CHAPTER III
THE SENTENCE
Different kinds. Arrangement of words. Paragraph.
CHAPTER IV
FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE
Figures of speech. Definitions and examples. Use of figures.
CHAPTER V
PUNCTUATION
Principal points. Illustrations. Capital letters.
LETTER WRITING Principles of letter writing. Forms. Notes.
CHAPTER VII
ERRORS
Mistakes. Slips of authors. Examples and corrections. Errors of redundancy.
CHAPTER VIII
PITFALLS TO AVOID
Common stumbling blocks. Peculiar constructions. Misused forms.
CHAPTER IX
STYLE
Diction. Purity. Propriety. Precision.
CHAPTER X
SUGGESTIONS
How to write. What to write. Correct speaking and speakers.
CHAPTER XI
SLANG
Origin. American slang. Foreign slang.
CHAPTER XII
WRITING FOR NEWSPAPERS
Qualification. Appropriate subjects. Directions.
CHAPTER XIII
CHOICE OF WORDS
Small words. Their importance. The Anglo-Saxon element.
CHAPTER XIV
ENGLISH LANGUAGE
Beginning. Different Sources. The present.
CHAPTER XV
MASTERS AND MASTERPIECES OF LITERATURE Great authors. Classification. The world's best books.
In the preparation of this little work the writer has kept one end in view, viz.: To make it serviceable for those for whom it is intended, that is, for those who have neither the time nor the opportunity, the learning nor the inclination, to peruse elaborate and abstruse treatises on Rhetoric, Grammar, and Composition. To them such works are as gold enclosed in chests of steel and locked beyond power of opening. This book has no pretension about it whatever,--it is neither a Manual of Rhetoric, expatiating on the dogmas of style, nor a Grammar full of arbitrary rules and exceptions. It is merely an effort to help ordinary, everyday people to express themselves in ordinary, everyday language, in a proper manner. Some broad rules are laid down, the observance of which will enable the reader to keep within the pale of propriety in oral and written language. Many idiomatic words and expressions, peculiar to the language, have been given, besides which a number of the common mistakes and pitfalls have been placed before the reader so that he may know and avoid them.
The writer has to acknowledge his indebtedness to no one in _particular_, but to all in _general_ who have ever written on the subject.The little book goes forth--a finger-post on the road of language pointing in the right direction. It is hoped that they who go according to its index will arrive at the goal of correct speaking and writing.
CHAPTER IREQUIREMENTS OF SPEECH
Vocabulary--Parts of Speech--Requisites
It is very easy to learn how to speak and write correctly, as for all purposes of ordinary conversation and communication, only about 2,000 different words are required. The mastery of just twenty hundred words, the knowing where to place them, will make us not masters of the English language, but masters of correct speaking and writing. Small number, you will say, compared with what is in the dictionary! But nobody ever uses all the words in the dictionary or could use them did he live to be the age of Methuselah, and there is no necessity for using them.
There are upwards of 200,000 words in the recent editions of the large dictionaries, but the one-hundredth part of this number will suffice for all your wants. Of course you may think not, and you may not be content to call things by their common names; you may be ambitious to show superiority over others and display your learning or, rather, your pedantry and lack of learning. For instance, you may not want to call a spade a spade. You may prefer to call it a spatulous device for abrading the surface of the soil. Better, however, to stick to the old familiar, simple name that your grandfather called it. It has stood the test of time, and old friends are always good friends.
To use a big word or a foreign word when a small one and a familiar one will answer the same purpose, is a sign of ignorance. Great scholars and writers and polite speakers use simple words.
To go back to the number necessary for all purposes of conversation correspondence and writing, 2,000, we find that a great many people who pass in society as being polished, refined and educated use less, for they know less. The greatest scholar alive hasn't more than four thousand different words at his command, and he never has occasion to use half the number.
In the works of Shakespeare, the most wonderful genius the world has ever known, there is the enormous number of 15,000 different words, but almost 10,000 of them are obsolete or meaningless today.
Every person of intelligence should be able to use his mother tongue correctly. It only requires a little pains, a little care, a little study to enable one to do so, and the recompense is great.
Consider the contrast between the well-bred, polite man who knows how to choose and use his words correctly and the underbred, vulgar boor, whose language grates upon the ear and jars the sensitiveness of the finer feelings. The blunders of the latter, his infringement of all the canons of grammar, his absurdities and monstrosities of language, make his very presence a pain, and one is glad to escape from his company.
The proper grammatical formation of the English language, so that one may acquit himself as a correct conversationalist in the best society or be able to write and express his thoughts and ideas upon paper in the right manner, may be acquired in a few lessons.
It is the purpose of this book, as briefly and concisely as possible, to direct the reader along a straight course, pointing out the mistakes he must avoid and giving him such assistance as will enable him to reach the goal of a correct knowledge of the English language. It is not a Grammar in any sense, but a guide, a silent signal-post pointing the way in the right direction.
THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE IN A NUTSHELLAll the words in the English language are divided into nine great classes. These classes are called the Parts of Speech. They are Article, Noun, Adjective, Pronoun, Verb, Adverb, Preposition, Conjunction and Interjection. Of these, the Noun is the most important, as all the others are more or less dependent upon it. A Noun signifies the name of any person, place or thing, in fact, anything of which we can have either thought or idea. There are two kinds of Nouns, Proper and Common. Common Nouns are names which belong in common to a race or class, as _man_, _city_. Proper Nouns distinguish individual members of a race or class as _John_, _Philadelphia_. In the former case _man_ is a name which belongs in common to the whole race of mankind, and _city_ is also a name which is common to all large centres of population, but _John_ signifies a particular individual of the race, while _Philadelphia_ denotes a particular one from among the cities of the world.
Nouns are varied by Person, Number, Gender, and Case. Person is that relation existing between the speaker, those addressed and the subject under consideration, whether by discourse or correspondence. The Persons are _First_, _Second_ and _Third_ and they represent respectively the speaker, the person addressed and the person or thing mentioned or under consideration.
_Number_ is the distinction of one from more than one. There are two numbers, singular and plural; the singular denotes one, the plural two or more. The plural is generally formed from the singular by the addition of _s_ or _es_.
_Gender_ has the same relation to nouns that sex has to individuals, but while there are only two sexes, there are four genders, viz., masculine, feminine, neuter and common. The masculine gender denotes all those of the male kind, the feminine gender all those of the female kind, the neuter gender denotes inanimate things or whatever is without life, and common gender is applied to animate beings, the sex of which for the time being is indeterminable, such as fish, mouse, bird, etc. Sometimes things which are without life as we conceive it and which, properly speaking, belong to the neuter gender, are, by a figure of speech called Personification, changed into either the masculine or feminine gender, as, for instance, we say of the sun, _He_ is rising; of the moon, _She_ is setting.
_Case_ is the relation one noun bears to another or to a verb or to a preposition. There are three cases, the _Nominative_, the _Possessive_ and the _Objective_. The nominative is the subject of which we are speaking or the agent which directs the action of the verb; the possessive case denotes possession, while the objective indicates the person or thing which is affected by the action of the verb.
An _Article_ is a word placed before a noun to show whether the latter is used in a particular or general sense. There are but two articles, _a_ or _an_ and _the_.
An _Adjective_ is a word which qualifies a noun, that is, which shows some distinguishing mark or characteristic belonging to the noun.DEFINITIONS
A _Pronoun_ is a word used for or instead of a noun to keep us from repeating the same noun too often. Pronouns, like nouns, have case, number, gender and person. There are three kinds of pronouns, _personal_, _relative_ and _adjective_.
A _verb_ is a word which signifies action or the doing of something. A verb is inflected by tense and mood and by number and person, though the latter two belong strictly to the subject of the verb.
A _preposition_ serves to connect words and to show the relation between the objects which the words express.
A _conjunction_ is a word which joins words, phrases, clauses and sentences together.
An _interjection_ is a word which expresses surprise or some sudden emotion of the mind.
THREE ESSENTIALS
The three essentials of the English language are: _Purity_, _Perspicuity_ and _Precision_.
By _Purity_ is signified the use of good English. It precludes the use of all slang words, vulgar phrases, obsolete terms, foreign idioms, ambiguous expressions or any ungrammatical language whatsoever. Neither does it sanction the use of any newly coined word until such word is adopted by the best writers and speakers.
_Perspicuity_ demands the clearest expression of thought conveyed in unequivocal language, so that there may be no misunderstanding whatever of the thought or idea the speaker or writer wishes to convey. All ambiguous words, words of double meaning and words that might possibly be construed in a sense different from that intended, are strictly
forbidden. Perspicuity requires a style at once clear and comprehensive and entirely free from pomp and pedantry and affectation or any straining after effect.
_Precision_ requires concise and exact expression, free from redundancy and tautology, a style terse and clear and simple enough to enable the hearer or reader to comprehend immediately the meaning of the speaker or writer. It forbids, on the one hand, all long and involved sentences, and, on the other, those that are too short and abrupt. Its object is to strike the golden mean in such a way as to rivet the attention of the hearer or reader on the words uttered or written.
CHAPTER II ESSENTIALS OF ENGLISH GRAMMARDivisions of Grammar--Definitions--Etymology.
In order to speak and write the English language correctly, it is imperative that the fundamental principles of the Grammar be mastered, for no matter how much we may read of the best authors, no matter how much we may associate with and imitate the best speakers, if we do not know the underlying principles of the correct formation of sentences and the relation of words to one another, we will be to a great extent like the parrot, that merely repeats what it hears without understanding the import of what is said. Of course the parrot, being a creature without reason, cannot comprehend; it can simply repeat what is said to it, and as it utters phrases and sentences of profanity with as much facility as those of virtue, so by like analogy, when we do not understand the grammar of the language, we may be making egregious blunders while thinking we are speaking with the utmost accuracy.
DIVISIONS OF GRAMMARThere are four great divisions of Grammar, viz.:
_Orthography_, _Etymology_, _Syntax_, and _Prosody_.
_Orthography_ treats of letters and the mode of combining them into words.
_Etymology_ treats of the various classes of words and the changes they undergo.
_Syntax_ treats of the connection and arrangement of words in sentences.
_Prosody_ treats of the manner of speaking and reading and the different kinds of verse.
The three first mentioned concern us most.
LETTERS
A _letter_ is a mark or character used to represent an articulate sound. Letters are divided into _vowels_ and _consonants_. A vowel is a letter which makes a distinct sound by itself. Consonants cannot be sounded without the aid of vowels. The vowels are _a_, _e_, _i_, _o_, _u_, and sometimes _w_ and _y_ when they do not begin a word or syllable.
SYLLABLES AND WORDS A syllable is a distinct sound produced by a single effort of [Transcriber's note: 1-2 words illegible] shall, pig, dog. In every syllable there must be at least one vowel.
A word consists of one syllable or a combination of syllables.Many rules are given for the dividing of words into syllables, but the best is to follow as closely as possible the divisions made by the organs of speech in properly pronouncing them.
THE PARTS OF SPEECHARTICLE
An _Article_ is a word placed before a noun to show whether the noun is used in a particular or general sense.
There are two articles, _a_ or _an_ and _the_. _A_ or _an_ is called the indefinite article because it does not point put any particular person or thing but indicates the noun in its widest sense; thus, _a_ man means any man whatsoever of the species or race.
_The_ is called the definite article because it points out some particular person or thing; thus, _the_ man means some particular individual.NOUN
A _noun_ is the name of any person, place or thing as _John_, _London_, _book_. Nouns are proper and common.
_Proper_ nouns are names applied to _particular_ persons or places.
_Common_ nouns are names applied to a whole kind or species.
Nouns are inflected by _number_, _gender_ and _case_.
_Number_ is that inflection of the noun by which we indicate whether it represents one or more than one.
_Gender_ is that inflection by which we signify whether the noun is the name of a male, a female, of an inanimate object or something which has no distinction of sex.
_Case_ is that inflection of the noun which denotes the state of the person, place or thing represented, as the subject of an affirmation or question, the owner or possessor of something mentioned, or the object of an action or of a relation.
Thus in the example, "John tore the leaves of Sarah's book," the distinction between _book_ which represents only one object and _leaves_ which represent two or more objects of the same kind is called _Number_; the distinction of sex between _John_, a male, and _Sarah_, a female, and _book_ and _leaves_, things which are inanimate and neither male nor female, is called _Gender_; and the distinction of state between _John_, the person who tore the book, and the subject of the affirmation, _Mary_, the owner of the book, _leaves_ the objects torn, and _book_ the object related to leaves, as the whole of which they were a part, is called _Case_.
An _adjective_ is a word which qualifies a noun, that is, shows or points out some distinguishing mark or feature of the noun; as, A _black_ dog.
Adjectives have three forms called degrees of comparison, the _positive_, the _comparative_ and the _superlative_.The _positive_ is the simple form of the adjective without expressing increase or diminution of the original quality: _nice_.
The _comparative_ is that form of the adjective which expresses increase or diminution of the quality: _nicer_.
The _superlative_ is that form which expresses the greatest increase or diminution of the quality: _nicest_.
_or_
An adjective is in the positive form when it does not express comparison; as, "A _rich_ man."
An adjective is in the comparative form when it expresses comparison between two or between one and a number taken collectively, as, "John is _richer_ than James"; "he is _richer_ than all the men in Boston."
An adjective is in the superlative form when it expresses a comparison between one and a number of individuals taken separately; as, "John is the _richest_ man in Boston."
Adjectives expressive of properties or circumstances which cannot be increased have only the positive form; as, A _circular_ road; the _chief_ end; an _extreme_ measure.
Adjectives are compared in two ways, either by adding _er_ to the positive to form the comparative and _est_ to the positive to form the superlative, or by prefixing _more_ to the positive for the comparative and _most_ to the positive for the superlative; as, _handsome_, _handsomer_, _handsomest_ or _handsome_, _more handsome_, _most handsome_.
Adjectives of two or more syllables are generally compared by prefixing more and most.Many adjectives are irregular in comparison; as, Bad, worse, worst; Good, better, best.
PRONOUN
A _pronoun_ is a word used in place of a noun; as, "John gave his pen to James and _he_ lent it to Jane to write _her_ copy with _it_." Without the pronouns we would have to write this sentence,--"John gave John's pen to James and James lent the pen to Jane to write Jane's copy with the pen."
There are three kinds of pronouns--Personal, Relative and Adjective Pronouns._Personal_ Pronouns are so called because they are used instead of the names of persons, places and things. The Personal Pronouns are _I_, _Thou_, _He_, _She_, and _It_, with their plurals, _We_, _Ye_ or _You_ and _They_.
_I_ is the pronoun of the first person because it represents the person speaking._Thou_ is the pronoun of the second person because it represents the person spoken to.
_He_, _She_, _It_ are the pronouns of the third person because they represent the persons or things of whom we are speaking.
Like nouns, the Personal Pronouns have number, gender and case. The gender of the first and second person is obvious, as they represent the person or persons speaking and those who are addressed. The personal pronouns are thus declined:
First Person. M. or F.Sing. Plural. N. I We P. Mine Ours O. Me Us Second Person.
M. or F.Sing. Plural. N. Thou You P. Thine Yours O. Thee You
Third Person. M.Sing. Plural. N. He They P. His Theirs O. Him Them
Third Person. F.Sing. Plural. N. She They P. Hers Theirs O. Her Them
Third Person. Neuter.Sing. Plural. N. It They P. Its Theirs O. It Them
N. B.--In colloquial language and ordinary writing Thou, Thine and Thee are seldom used, except by the Society of Friends. The Plural form You is used for both the nominative and objective singular in the second person and Yours is generally used in the possessive in place of Thine.
The _Relative_ Pronouns are so called because they relate to some word or phrase going before; as, "The boy _who_ told the truth;" "He has done well, _which_ gives me great pleasure."
Here _who_ and _which_ are not only used in place of other words, but _who_ refers immediately to boy, and _which_ to the circumstance of his having done well.
The word or clause to which a relative pronoun refers is called the _Antecedent_.The Relative Pronouns are _who_, _which_, _that_ and _what_.
_Who_ is applied to persons only; as, "The man _who_ was here."
_Which_ is applied to the lower animals and things without life; as, "The horse _which_ I sold." "The hat _which_ I bought."
_That_ is applied to both persons and things; as, "The friend _that_ helps." "The bird _that_ sings." "The knife _that_ cuts."
_What_ is a compound relative, including both the antecedent and the relative and is equivalent to _that which_; as, "I did what he desired," i. e. "I did _that which_ he desired."
Relative pronouns have the singular and plural alike._Who_ is either masculine or feminine; _which_ and _that_ are masculine, feminine or neuter; _what_ as a relative pronoun is always neuter.
_That_ and _what_ are not inflected.
_Who_ and _which_ are thus declined:
Sing. and Plural Sing. and Plural
N. Who N. Which P. Whose P. Whose O. Whom O. Which
_Who_, _which_ and _what_ when used to ask questions are called _Interrogative Pronouns_._Adjective_ Pronouns partake of the nature of adjectives and pronouns and are subdivided as follows:
_Demonstrative Adjective Pronouns_ which directly point out the person or object. They are _this_, _that_ with their plurals _these_, _those_, and _yon_, _same_ and _selfsame_.
_Distributive Adjective Pronouns_ used distributively. They are _each_, _every_, _either_, _neither_._Indefinite Adjective Pronouns_ used more or less indefinitely. They are _any_, _all_, _few_, _some_, _several_, _one_, _other_, _another_, _none_.
_Possessive Adjective Pronouns_ denoting possession. They are _my_, _thy_, _his_, _her_, _its_, _our_, _your_, _their_.
N. B.--(The possessive adjective pronouns differ from the possessive case of the personal pronouns in that the latter can stand _alone_ while the former _cannot_. "Who owns that book?" "It is _mine_." You cannot say "it is _my_,"--the word book must be repeated.)
THE VERBA _verb_ is a word which implies action or the doing of something, or it may be defined as a word which affirms, commands or asks a question.
Thus, the words _John the table_, contain no assertion, but when the word _strikes_ is introduced, something is affirmed, hence the word _strikes_ is a verb and gives completeness and meaning to the group.
The simple form of the verb without inflection is called the _root_ of the verb; _e. g. love_ is the root of the verb,--"To Love."Verbs are _regular_ or _irregular_, _transitive_ or _intransitive_.
A verb is said to be _regular_ when it forms the past tense by adding _ed_ to the present or _d_ if the verb ends in _e_. When its past tense does not end in _ed_ it is said to be _irregular_.
A _transitive_ verb is one the action of which passes over to or affects some object; as "I struck the table." Here the action of striking affected the object table, hence struck is a transitive verb.
An _intransitive_ verb is one in which the action remains with the subject; as _"I walk,"_ _"I sit,"_ _"I run."_Many intransitive verbs, however, can be used transitively; thus, "I _walk_ the horse;" _walk_ is here transitive.
Verbs are inflected by _number_, _person_, _tense_ and _mood_.
_Number_ and _person_ as applied to the verb really belong to the subject; they are used with the verb to denote whether the assertion is made regarding one or more than one and whether it is made in reference to the person speaking, the person spoken to or the person or thing spoken about.
TENSEIn their tenses verbs follow the divisions of time. They have _present tense_, _past tense_ and _future tense_ with their variations to express the exact time of action as to an event happening, having happened or yet to happen.
MOODThere are four simple moods,--the _Infinitive_, the _Indicative_, the _Imperative_ and the _Subjunctive_.
The Mood of a verb denotes the mode or manner in which it is used. Thus if it is used in its widest sense without reference to person or number, time or place, it is in the _Infinitive_ Mood; as "To run." Here we are not told who does the running, when it is done, where it is done or anything about it.
When a verb is used to indicate or declare or ask a simple question or make any direct statement, it is in the _Indicative_ Mood. "The boy loves his book." Here a direct statement is made concerning the boy. "Have you a pin?" Here a simple question is asked which calls for an answer.
When the verb is used to express a command or entreaty it is in the _Imperative_ Mood as, "Go away." "Give me a penny."When the verb is used to express doubt, supposition or uncertainty or when some future action depends upon a contingency, it is in the subjunctive mood; as, "If I come, he shall remain."
Many grammarians include a fifth