Word Choice in English Composition and Literature

Word Choice in English Composition and Literature The words a writer chooses are the building materials from which he or she constructs any given piece of writing- from a poem to a speech to a thesis on thermonuclear dynamics. Strong, carefully chosen words (also known as diction) ensure that the finished work is cohesive and imparts the meaning or information the author intended. Weak word choice creates confusion and dooms a writers work either to fall short of expectations or fail to make its point entirely. Factors That Influence Good Word Choice When selecting words to achieve the maximum desired effect, a writer must take a number of factors into consideration: Meaning: Words can be chosen for either their denotative meaning, which is the definition youd find in a dictionary or the connotative meaning, which is the emotions, circumstances, or descriptive variations the word evokes.Specificity: Words that are concrete rather than abstract are more powerful in certain types of writing, specifically academic works and works of nonfiction. However, abstract words can be powerful tools when creating poetry, fiction, or persuasive rhetoric.Audience: Whether the writer seeks to engage, amuse, entertain, inform, or even incite anger, the audience is the person or persons for whom a piece of work is intended.Level of Diction: The level of diction an author chooses directly relates to the intended audience. Diction is classified into four levels of language: Formal which denotes serious  discourseInformal which denotes relaxed but polite conversationColloquial which denotes language in everyday usageSlang which denotes new, often highly informal words and phrases that evolve as a result sociolinguistic constructs such as age, class, wealth status, ethnicity, nationality, and regional dialects. Tone: Tone is an authors attitude toward a topic. When employed effectively, tone- be it contempt, awe, agreement, or outrage- is a powerful tool that writers use to achieve a desired goal or purpose.Style: Word choice is an essential  element in the style of any writer. While his or her audience may play a role in the stylistic choices a writer makes, style is the unique voice that sets one writer apart from another. The Appropriate Words for a Given Audience To be effective, a writer must choose words based on a number of factors that relate directly to the audience for whom a piece of work is intended. For example, the language chosen for a dissertation on advanced algebra would not only contain jargon specific to that field of study; the writer would also have the expectation that the intended reader possessed an advanced level of understanding in the given subject matter that at a minimum equaled, or potentially outpaced his or her own. On the other hand, an author writing a childrens book would choose age-appropriate words that kids could understand and relate to. Likewise, while a contemporary playwright is likely to use slang and colloquialism to connect with the audience, an art historian would likely use more formal language to describe a piece of work about which he or she is writing, especially if the intended audience is a peer or academic group. Choosing words that are too difficult, too technical, or too easy for your receiver can be a communication barrier. If words are too difficult or too technical, the receiver may not understand them; if words are too simple, the reader could become bored or be insulted. In either case, ​the message falls short of meeting its goals . . . Word choice is  also a consideration when communicating with receivers for whom English is not the primary language [who] may not be familiar with colloquial English. (From Business Communication, 8th Edition, by A.C. Krizan, Patricia Merrier, Joyce P. Logan, and Karen Williams. South-Western Cengage, 2011) Word Selection for Composition Word choice is an essential element for any student learning to write effectively. Appropriate word choice allows students to display their knowledge, not just about English, but with regard to any given field of study from science and mathematics to civics and history. Fast Facts: Six Principles of Word Choice for Composition Choose understandable words.Use specific, precise words.Choose strong words.Emphasize positive words.Avoid overused words.Avoid obsolete words.(Adapted from Business Communication, 8th Edition, by A.C. Krizan, Patricia Merrier, Joyce P. Logan, and Karen Williams. South-Western Cengage, 2011) The challenge for teachers of composition is to help students understand the reasoning behind the specific word choices theyve made and then letting the students know whether or not those choices work. Simply telling a student something doesnt make sense or is awkwardly phrased wont help that student become a better writer. If a students word choice is weak, inaccurate, or clichà ©d, a good teacher will not only explain how they went wrong but ask the student to rethink his or her choices based on the given feedback. Word Choice for Literature Arguably, choosing effective words when writing literature is more complicated than choosing words for composition writing. First, a writer must consider the constraints for the chosen discipline in which they are writing. Since literary pursuits as such as poetry and fiction can be broken down into an almost endless variety of niches, genres, and subgenres, this alone can be daunting. In addition, writers must also be able to distinguish themselves from other writers by selecting a vocabulary that creates and sustains a style that is authentic to their own voice. When writing for a literary audience, individual taste is yet another huge determining factor with regard to which writer a reader considers a good and who they may find intolerable. Thats because good is subjective. For example, William Faulker and Ernest Hemmingway were both considered giants of 20th-century American literature, and yet their styles of writing could not be more different. Someone who adores Faulkners languorous stream-of-consciousness style may disdain Hemmingways spare, staccato, unembellished prose, and vice versa.