Composition-Rhetoric. Stratton D. Brooks

have a new idea, find out how best to express it, and when you meet with a new word, add it to your vocabulary.

      It is necessary to distinguish between our reading vocabulary and our writing vocabulary. There are many words that belong only to the first. We know what they mean when we meet them in our reading, but we do not use them in our writing. Our speaking vocabulary also differs from that which we employ in writing. We use words and phrases on paper that seldom appear in our speech, and, on the other hand, many of the words that we speak do not appear in our writing. There is, however, a constant shifting of words from one to another of these three groups. When we meet an unknown word, it usually becomes a part of our reading vocabulary. Later it may appear in our written work, and finally we may use it in speaking. We add a word to our reading vocabulary when we determine its meaning, but we must use it in order to add it to our writing and speaking vocabulary. A conscious effort to aid in this acquisition of words is highly desirable.

      A limited vocabulary indicates limited ideas. If one is limited to awfully in order to express a superlative; if his use of adjectives is restricted to nice, jolly, lovely, and elegant; if he must always abominate and never abhor, detest, dislike, or loathe; if he can only adore and not admire, respect, revere, or venerate—then he has failed, indeed, to know the possibilities and beauties of English. Such a language habit shows a mind that has failed to distinguish between ideas. The best way to study the shades of meaning and the choice of words is in the actual production of a theme wherein there is need to bring out these differences in meaning by the use of words; but some help may be gained from a formal study of synonyms and antonyms and of the distinction in use and meaning between words which are commonly confused with each other. For this purpose such exercises are given in the Appendix.

      +22. Choice of Words.+—Even though our words may express the proper meaning, the effect may not be a desirable one unless we use words suited to the occasion described and to the person writing. Pupils of high school age know the meaning of many words which are too "bookish" for daily use by them. Edward Everett Hale might use expressions which would not be suitable for a freshman's composition. Taste and good judgment will help you to avoid the unsuitable or grandiloquent.

      The proper selection of words not only implies that we shall avoid the wrong word, but also that we shall choose the right one. A suitable adjective may give a clearer image than is expressed by a whole sentence; a single verb may tell better how some one acted than can be told by a lengthy explanation. Since narration has to do with action, we need in story telling to be especially careful in our choice of verbs.

      What can you say of the suitability of the words in the following selection, taken from an old school reader?

      Mrs. Lismore. You are quite breathless, Charles; where have you been running so violently?

      Charles. From the poultry yard, mamma, where I have been diverting myself with the bravado of the old gander. I did not observe him till he came toward me very fiercely, when, to induce him to pursue me, I ran from him. He followed, till, supposing he had beaten me, he returned to the geese, who appeared to receive him with acclamations of joy, cackling very loud, and seeming actually to laugh, and to enjoy the triumph of their gallant chief.

      Emma. I wish I had been with you, Charles; I have often admired the gambols of these beautiful birds, and wondered how they came by the appellation of silly, which is generally bestowed on them. I remember Martha, our nursery maid, used often to call me a silly goose. How came they to deserve that term, mamma? they appear to me to have as much intelligence as any of the feathered tribe.

      Mrs. Lismore. I have often thought with you, Emma, and supposed that term, like many others, misapplied, for want of examining into the justice of so degrading an epithet.

      +23. Improbability.+—Up to this point we have been concerned with relating events that could exist, though we knew that they did not. We may, however, imagine a series of events that are manifestly impossible. There is a pleasure in inventing improbable stories, and if we know from the beginning that they are to be so, we enjoy listening to them. Such tales are more satisfactory to young persons than to older ones, as is shown by our declining interest in fairy stories as we grow older.

      By limiting the improbability to a part of the story, it is possible to give an air of reality to the whole. Though the conditions described in a story about a trip to the moon might be wholly impossible, yet the reader for the time being might feel that the events were actually happening if the characters in the story were acting as real men would act under similar circumstances. In stories such as those of Thompson-Seton, where the animals are personified, the impossibilities are forgotten, because the actions and situations are so real. In fairy stories and similar tales neither characters nor actions are in any way limited by probability.

      +Theme X.+—Write a short story suggested by one of the subjects below. Make either the characters or their surroundings seem real.

      1. A week in Mars.

       2. Exploring the lake bottom.

       3. The cat's defense of her kittens.

       (a) As told by the cat. (b) As told by the dog. 4. How the fox fooled the hound. 5. Diary of a donkey. 6. A biography of Jack Frost.

      (Correct with reference to meaning and clearness and two other points to be assigned by the teacher.)

      +24. How to Increase One's Vocabulary.+—In your daily work do what you can to add words to your reading vocabulary, and especially to increase your writing vocabulary. In the conversation of others and in reading you will meet with many new words, and you should attempt to make them your own. To do this, four things must be attended to:—

      1. Spelling. Definite attention should be given to each new word until its form both as written and as printed is indelibly stamped upon the mind. In your general reading and in each of the subjects that you will study in the high school you will meet unfamiliar words. It is only by mastering the spelling of each new word when you first meet it that you can insure yourself against future chagrin from bad spelling. A part of the time in each high school subject may well be devoted to the mastering of the words peculiar to that subject.

      2. Pronunciation. The complete acquisition of a word includes its pronunciation. In reading aloud and in speaking, we have need to know it, and faulty pronunciation is considered an indication of lack of culture.

      3. Meaning. This includes more than the ability to give the definition as found in the dictionary. It is possible to recite such definitions glibly without in reality knowing the meaning of the word defined. It is necessary to connect the word definitely and permanently in our mind with the idea for which it is the symbol and to be able to distinguish the idea clearly from others closely related to it.

      4. Use. The actual use of a word is very important. If a word is to come into our speaking and writing vocabulary, we must use it. It is important that the spelling, pronunciation, and meaning be determined when you first meet the word, and it is equally important that the word be used soon and often.

      +Theme XI.+—Write a short story suggested by one of the following subjects. It may be wholly improbable, if you choose.

      1. The good fairy. 2. Mary's luck. 3. The man in the moon. 4. The golden apple. 5. A wonderful fountain pen. 6. The goobergoo and the kantan.

      (Correct with reference to meaning and clearness and two other points to be assigned by the teacher.)

      SUMMARY

      1. The clear expression of the ideas connected with our daily experiences is of greater importance to most of us than is the production of literature.

      2. Ideas furnished by imagination may be advantageously used for

       composition purposes, because—

       a. They are your own. b. They offer free choice of language. They are less desirable than those gained from experience, because— a. They generally