Re: Use of the First Person

Subject: Re: Use of the First Person
From: Bruce Byfield <bbyfield -at- AXIONET -dot- COM>
Date: Thu, 5 Feb 1998 21:49:11 -0500

Stuart Burnfield <slb -at- FS -dot- COM -dot- AU> wrote:

I *can* read dull, long-winded writing, but it's not an efficient path
to understanding. I *can* run uphill in skis, but it's not an efficient
means of transportation.

I find it interesting that, despite these standards, science writers
like Stephen Jay Gould (who prides himself - rightly - on clarity of
expression) are celebrities both in and out of academia. Of course,
Gould is prominent in his field (evolution theory), but I doubt he would
have the same acclaimif he was a dull writer.

Too bad tech-writers can't hope for the same acclaim for clarity :-)
--
Bruce Byfield, Outlaw Communications
(bbyfield -at- axionet -dot- com) (604) 421-7189 or 687-2133 X. 269
www.outlawcommunications.com (updated 02 Feb 1998)

"Good or bad, give me credit for what I have done. I would rather go
honestly to Hell, admitting that I leaped knowingly into error and
folly, than enter into the sweetest Heaven men can dream of by whining
that I had been pushed."
--Steven Brust and Emma Bull, "Freedom and Necessity"




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