Page:The Virginian, a horseman of the plains.djvu/450

 Elements of Comp)osition By Profeisor HENRY S. CANBY, Sheffield Scientific School, Yale University, and Mr. JOHN B. OPDYCKE, High School of Commerce, New York City aath, 12mo, 593 pages, $1,00 The characteristic feature of this book is that the authors see '»be end from the becinninc and never lose sight of it. That end is the ability on the part of the pupil to write clearly, correctly, and intelligently. From start to finish the appeal b to the intelli- gence rather than to mere form. The fact that before all else there must be something to say is emphasized in the first two chapters on Composition and Shaping the Material. The remainder of the book is simply a study of different ways and the best ways of sa3dng what you want to say. The manner of approach is psychological. Part I contains (i) choice of subject; (2) arrangement of what you want to say; (3) the use of the sentence as the expression of a single thought; (4) the use of the paragraph; (5) the structure of the whole com* position; (6) the choice of the right word to express meaning nicely. Part II is a study of the recognized forms of composition, exposition, argument, description, narration, the story. In Part III, Aids to Composition, there are given for reference necessary details concerning spelling, punctuation, capitalization, grammatical forms, figures of speech, etc. Throughout the book there are abundant exercises and illustrative excerpts that serve to emphasize the point under consideration. The book is a unit, the plan works. THE MACMILLAN COMPANY Vublishers 64-66 Kfth Areime N«w Toirig'^