The selection of words, the arrangement of sentences, and cadence are primary determinants of classical English style. In contrast to catechism which seek to avoid mistakes via brevity, the author outlines patterns which create forceful prose.
• English is an amalgam of multi-syllable, formal Latin words and shorter, ‘common sense’ Saxon ones. Contrast is therefore readily achieved. Latin is frequently better for complex sentiments, Saxon for plain truth – particularly at the end of sentences. Alternately, Latinate for the false, Saxon for truth
• Express concrete metonyms (surrogate images) in Saxon, the associated abstraction in Latin. Again, movement between the two arrests attention
• Sentences expand ‘to the right’ when detail follows the predicate, and to the left when detail precedes. Expanding to the right creates a crush of action, to the left tension, mystery, surprise. Sometimes the preamble is the main point after all. Branching too can be paired for effect
• So too varied sentence length. One long sentence can support a succession of shorter ones. Also, sentences without adverbs will call attention to those with
• Rhetorical power is created by opposition and movement between poles; simplicity is overrated
• The passive voice gets the narrator / author ‘off the stage’
• Inviting the reader to try something (‘look for’, ‘show me’) enlists him in the author’s project
• Cadence, premised on the pattern of weak and strong syllables, is a way of training the reader’s expectations. A strong ending is decisive, a weak one can be a flourish, and so on
• Detail can add verisimilitude to hyperbolic claim or intent