THINKER'S ALMANAC - December 17

How can you state a rule for effective writing while at the same time violating the rule?

Subject:  Paradox - Fumblerules

Event:  Birthday of  William Safire, 1929  

The curious paradox is that when I accept myself just as I am, then I can change. -Carl Rogers

Today is the birthday of New York Times columnist William Safire (1929-2009). On November 4, 1979, Safire published an article on the “Fumblerules of Grammar.”  Each of Safire’s fumblerules states a rule while at the same time breaking it, such as:

Never use prepositions to end sentences with.

                                                                Image by Shotkitimages from Pixabay 

Several years after Safire’s column appeared, he wrote a book based on his collection of fumblerules called How Not to Write: The Essential Misrules of Grammar.  In the book, Safire includes 50 chapters, one for each of his fumblerules.  After stating each “misrule,” he provides a brief essay with examples and explanations of the right way to write.

In the first ten chapters of the book, Safire features the following essential fumblerules:

No sentence fragments.

Avoid run-on sentences they are hard to read.

A writer must not shift your point of view.

Do not put statements in the negative form.

Don’t use contractions in formal writing.

The adverb always follows the verb.

Make an all-out effort to hyphenate when necessary but not when un-necessary.

Don’t use Capital letters without good REASON.

It behooves us to avoid archaisms.

Reserve the apostrophe for it’s proper use and omit it when its not needed. (1)

A key element of any fumblerules is paradox, a logically self-contradictory statement.  In order to grasp a fumblerule, readers must hold two contradictory ideas in their mind, both the rule that’s being stated and the rule that at the same time is being violated.

Recall, Retrieve, Recite, Ruminate, Reflect, Reason:  Explain how an essential feature of a Fumblerule is a paradox.

Challenge - Recover the Fumblerule:  What is your favorite fumblerule — a writing or grammar rule that states a rule while at the same time breaking it?  Select your single favorite fumblerule, and write an explanation of how it relates to effective writing.  Use the fumblerule as your title, followed by a paragraph where you explain how the rule relates to legitimate writing.  

Sources:

1- Safire, William.  How Not to Write:  The Essential Misrules of Grammar.  New York:  W.W. Norton & Company, 1990.

THINKER'S ALMANAC - November 4

How can thinking about fishing make us better persuaders?

Subject: Persuasion - Roger’s Fish Hook

Event: Birthday of Will Rogers, 1879

. . . you need to convince your audience that the choice you offer is the most “advantageous” — to the advantage of the audience, that is, not you.  This brings us back to values. The advantageous is an outcome that gives the audience what it values. -Jay Heinrichs

On this day in 1879, American humorist, actor, and cowboy Will Rogers was born.  Rogers made 71 films and wrote more than 4,000 nationally syndicated newspaper columns (1).  In all the thousands of words that Rogers spoke or wrote, one line stands out as perhaps one of the greatest analogies of all time, an analogy that sums up the reasoning and psychology behind successful persuasion:   “When you go fishing you bait the hook, not with what you like, but what the fish likes.” 

Image by Christo Anestev from Pixabay

Roger’s analogy brilliantly sums up an ancient persuasive principle known as “the advantageous.”  When trying to persuade, resist the temptation to appeal to your own advantage; instead, frame your message in a way that appeals to your audience’s advantage.  In other words, instead of focusing on what is good for you, climb into your audience’s skin and try to see things from their point of view -- what’s good for them.

The advantageous is taught in narrative form in the opening chapters of Harper Lee’s novel To Kill a Mockingbird when Scout recounts her first day of school.  Seemingly everything that could go wrong, goes wrong for Scout, especially when it comes to her relationship with her teacher, Miss Caroline. As Scout tearfully recounts her run-ins with her teacher to her father, she declares that she doesn’t ever want to return to school again.

At this point, Scout’s father, Atticus Finch, shares a valuable lesson with her:

`First of all,' he said, 'if you can learn a simple trick, Scout, you'll get along a lot better with all kinds of folks. You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view — until you climb into his skin and walk around in it.' (2)

Atticus, a lawyer, understood that winning over a jury requires more than just arguing your case; instead, it requires understanding your audience’s point of view -- their beliefs, expectations, and desires. 

Recall, Retrieve, Recite, Ruminate, Reflect, Reason:  How does Will Rogers compare effective fishing with effective persuasion, and what does this analogy have to do with the advantageous?

Challenge - A Correctly Baited Hook:  What is an example of speech where the speaker employs the advantageous?  Do some research on important speeches.  When you find one that you like, analyze the relationship between the speaker and his or her audience to determine and explain how the writer appeals to the audience’s interest.

ALSO ON THIS DAY:

November 4, 1918: Poet Wilfred Owen dies in battle. (See THINKER’S ALMANAC October 4.)

November 4, 1979:  On this day New York Times columnist William Safire (1929-2009) published an article on the “Fumblerules of Grammar.”  Each of Safire’s fumblerules states a rule while at the same time breaking it, such as:

Never use prepositions to end sentences with (see THINKER’S ALMANAC - December 17).

Sources:  

1-Will Rogers Biography.  Biography.com 4 Nov. 2019.

2-Lee, Harper. To Kill a Mockingbird. 40th Anniversary ed. New York: HarperCollins Publishers, 1999.