Syntax, Structure, Detail, Diction Intro to Style Syntax, Structure, Detail, Diction

What is Style? The Style of a text refers to its use of Language Conventions such as: Diction (word choice) Punctuation Structure (sentence type and form) If we look carefully at these Language Conventions, we can determine the overall purpose, aesthetic beauty, and the rhetorical arguments present in the piece.

Syntax (Not a tax on sinful purchases) Refers to the Structure of the language. Length of sentences Order of parts of speech Inclusion of subordinate clauses Type of sentence

Clauses (Other than Santa) Independent clause: stand alone idea with a subject & verb, a complete idea. Dependent clause: fragment used to clarify, add to, or qualify the main idea.

Types of Sentences Declarative: states a fact or opinion Interrogative: asks a question Exclamatory: emphatic statement Imperative: indirect or direct command

Types of Sentences Parallel Structure—where a set of information is listed with similar structure. Correct Usage: I like running in the park, sleeping late, and making home videos. Wrong Usage: I like to run in the park, sleeping late, and it's also fun to make home videos.

Types of Complex Sentences Periodic Sentence Loose Sentence Interrupted Sentence

Types of Complex Sentences Periodic Sentence—Where the sentence is not complete until the final clause. Effect: Saves punch for the end, reader kept in suspense. "Democracy is that system of government under which people, having 60,000,000 native-born adults to choose from, including thousands who are handsome and many who are wise, pick out a Coolidge to be head of state. It is as if a hungry man, set before a banquet prepared by master cooks and covering a table an acre in area, should turn his back upon the feast and stay his stomach by catching and eating flies." (H. L. Mencken, "The Comedian")

Types of Complex Sentences Loose Sentence—contains a complete sentence followed by subordinate clauses. I let my mind wander. After a moment I may notice that I’m trying to decide whether or not I am too old for orthodontia and whether right now would be a good time to make a few calls, and then I start to think about learning to use makeup and how maybe I could find some boyfriend who is not a total and complete fixer-upper and then my life would be totally great and I’d be happy all the time, and then I think about all the people I should have called back before I sat down to work, and how I should probably at least check in with my agent and tell him this great idea I have and see if he thinks it’s a good idea and see if he thinks I need orthodontia—if that is what he is actually thinking whenever we have lunch together. Anne Lamott, Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life

Types of Complex Sentences Interrupted Sentence—where the complete thought is broken up by dependent clauses. The heron, egret, and stork colonies in Everglades National Park that once each contained tens of thousands of birds whose bustling extravagance helped inspire the founding in 1905 of the National Association of Audubon Societies (later the National Audubon Society) have shrunk by 95 percent since the1930s. Norman Boucher, "Back to the Everglades," Technology Review

Diction Diction refers to the word choice of the writer. The particular choice of words reveals an attitude or illustration: She bought a _______ green Ford Mustang. Emerald, Jade, Pea, Apple, Forest, Booger, Baby-puke, Moldy

Diction High, Elevated, Formal, Professional, Didactic, Highly-Educated Diction. Medium, Middle-road, Semi-formal, Educated (not low but also not grandiloquent) Low, Conversational, Colloquial, Slang, Dialect, Informal, Popular, Internet

Detail Descriptive words and phrases that contribute to the imagery, tone, style, and overall diction of a text.

So… how well were you listening? True or False: Syntax has to do with word order ____ Slang is: high, medium, or low diction? ________ is an author’s word choice. True or False: If we look carefully at Language Conventions, we can determine the overall purpose, aesthetic beauty, and the rhetorical arguments present in literature. ________