| Measuring
Style Statistically
In Tough, Sweet, and
Stuffy, Walker Gibson notes that most types of writing
fall into one of three loose categories. He refers to these
as follows:
"tough"
(concise and straight-forward, but mostly formal in tone--the
sort of writing one expects from Hemingway)
"sweet"
(informal and friendly, the sort of writing one expects
in an advertisement)
"stuffy"
(ultra-formal, intentionally vague, the sort of bad writing
one expects in jargon, government documents, and "legalese")
Statistically broken down,
the numbers look like those in the chart below (click here
to download a PDF version):
The
Style Machine: Criteria
for Measuring Style
(Taken
from Walker Gibson, Appendix A, page 13 of Tough, Sweet,
and Stuffy, Bloomington: Indiana UP, 1966).
| |
TOUGH
(or plain) |
SWEET |
STUFFY |
| 1. Monosyllabic words |
over 70% |
60-70% |
60% or less |
| 2. Words of three syllables and more |
under 10% |
10-19% |
20% or more |
| 3. First and second person pronouns |
1 I
or we per 100 words |
2 you
per 100 words |
no 1st or 2nd person pronouns |
| 4. Subjects: neuters versus people |
1/2 or more people |
1/2 or more people |
2/3 or more neuters |
| 5. Finite verbs |
over 10% |
over 10% |
under 10% |
| 6. To be forms of finite verbs |
over 1/3 of verbs |
under 1/4 of verbs |
under 1/4 of verbs |
| 7. Passive
voice verbs |
less than 1 in 20 verbs |
none |
more than 1 in 5 verbs |
| 8. True adjectives |
under 10% |
over 10% |
over 8% |
| 9. Adjectives modified |
fewer than 1 per 100 words |
1 or more |
fewer than 1 |
| 10. Noun adjuncts |
under 2% |
2% or more |
4% or more |
| 11. Average length of clauses |
10 words or less |
10 words or less |
more than 10 words |
| 12. Clauses, proportion of total words |
1/4 or less |
1/3 or less |
over 40% |
| 13. "Embedded" words |
less than 1/2 S/V combinations |
less than half |
more than twice as many S/V combinations |
| 14. The definite article the |
8% of total words |
under 6% |
6-7% |
| 15. Contractions and fragments |
1 or more per 100 words |
2 or more per 100 words |
none |
| 16. Parentheses and other puncutation |
none |
2 or more per 10 words |
none |
Most readers (and I) prefer
reading the "tough" style. That means little or
no passive voice, no obscure vocabulary, and no stacked adjectives.
However, a good writer is perfectly capable of switching back
and forth from one style to another. For instance, some research
papers may require a slightly "stuffier"
style in order to convey a formal tone. A useful exercise
is to take a memo and rewrite it three ways--plain, sweet,
and stuffy. Be as extreme as possible when using each style.
That exaggeration will help you "feel" the differences
between each one.
For instance, consider
the memo below:
Faculty
and staff may register their motor vehicles with the
college for 2006-2007 beginning August 1, 2002. Each faculty
and staff member should have a valid
Carson-Newman decal
on his/her vehicle prior to August 20, 2006. This decal
will be valid through August 15, 2007.
A
registration fee of fifty dollars ($50) will be required
for each motor vehicle registered with the college. The
individual faculty or staff member, or his/her spouse,
must come by the traffic office to register the motor
vehicle.
Registration plate number and a valid operator's license
must be provided for the registration process.
A
faculty or staff member with delinquent assessments for
parking violations will not be permitted to register
a motor
vehicle until all assessments are paid. Failure to register
a motor vehicle that utilizes college property, owned
or leased, for parking privileges will subject the vehicle
to immediate towing.
Prompt
registration is encouraged in order to prevent unnecessary
delays by registering at the last minute. This office is
open Monday through Friday, 8:00 am to 11:45 p.m. and 1:00
p.m. to 4:00 p.m.
What does this memo look like in a
(1) plain and personal style,
(2) stuffy style or (3) sweet
style? Click on each one to compare the styles. |
