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Subject:Is Grammer Important? From:Katherin King <kking -at- BROOKTROUT -dot- COM> Date:Thu, 21 May 1998 12:43:46 -0400
In the book, "Mightier Than the Sword," C. Edward Good says:
"The grammatical causes of a foggy style are easy to identify. Certain
grammatical constructions actually hinder communication. Certain types
of words get in the way of the message. Much professional jargon seeks
to exclude the outsider. Once writers understand these constructions and
see how they do indeed cloud communication-and ultimately lose
arguments-they can, with practice, cut through the fog and develop
instead a style that wins...They slowly begin to see the connection
between long-forgotten rules of grammar and the very real and current
problem of writing a readable report."
Grammar has EVERYTHING to do with effective communication, technical or
otherwise. I don't know where this study came from or what they were
trying to prove, but they are dead wrong. I admit that I may not be able
to explain what a dangling participle is, but I do know how to write
well. Don't be fooled by those who are too lazy to work at learning the
ground rules for good, clear, concise, effective writing.
Kathy Stanzler
Technical Writer
Brooktrout Technology Inc.
Southborough, MA
(508) 786-9182
kking -at- brooktrout -dot- com
