At the same time,
if we have mastered our thought perfectly, and yet express it in
language not understood by the persons to whom and for whom we write or
speak, our style will not be clear to them, and we shall have failed in
conveying our thoughts as much as if we had never mastered them.
Force is required to produce an effect on the mind of the hearer.
He must not only understand what we say, but have some emotion in regard
to it; else he will have forgotten our words before we have fairly
uttered them. Force is the appeal which words make to the feeling,
as clearness is the appeal they make to the understanding.
Elegance is required only in writing which purports to be good
literature. It is useful but not required in business letters, or in
newspaper writing; but it is absolutely essential to higher literary
art. It is the appeal which the words chosen and the arrangement
selected make to our sense of beauty. That which is not beautiful has
no right to be called "literature," and a style which does not possess
the subtle elements of beauty is not a strictly "literary" style.
Most of us by persistent effort can conquer the subject of clearness.
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