Joseph M. Williams (1933-2008) was a revered professor of English at the University of Chicago whose work on rhetoric and style has influenced generations of writers. His seminal book, Style: Toward Clarity and Grace (later retitled Style: Lessons in Clarity and Grace), has become a cornerstone of writing instruction. Joseph Bizup, a professor at Boston University, has become the careful steward of Williams's legacy, updating and co-authoring recent editions of the book, ensuring its principles remain relevant. Their combined work champions the idea that clear, elegant prose is not an innate gift but a skill that can be learned through conscious, deliberate practice.

Part 1: The Core Principles of Clarity

At the heart of their teaching is a simple but revolutionary idea: make your sentences about characters and their actions.

  1. "Readers are likely to feel that they are reading prose that is clear and direct when (1) the subjects of the sentences name the cast of characters, and (2) the verbs and predicates that go with those subjects name the crucial actions those characters are part of." This is the single most important principle in the book.
  2. "A sentence is a story about characters doing things." This metaphor simplifies the complex task of sentence construction.
  3. "The two principles of clear writing are: make the subjects of your sentences the characters in your story, and make the verbs of your sentences the actions of those characters."
  4. "Diagnosis is the most important step in revision." Before you can fix a sentence, you must understand why it's weak.
  5. "The professional's mantra is not 'Write it right the first time,' but 'Get it down, then get it right.'" This frees the writer from the paralysis of perfectionism in the drafting stage.
  6. "Your readers want to see characters in your subjects and their actions in your verbs."
  7. "Nominalizations are nouns that are created from verbs or adjectives." (e.g., decision from decide, failurefrom fail). They are the primary cause of unclear, abstract prose.
  8. "To revise sentences with too many nominalizations, turn the nominalizations back into verbs and adjectives."
  9. "Look for the real action. It is probably not in the main verb of the sentence." In weak sentences, the action is often hidden in a noun.
  10. "Don't just write. Revise, revise, revise." Clarity is achieved through thoughtful revision, not brilliant first drafts.

Part 2: Cohesion and Coherence – The Flow of Ideas

Williams and Bizup teach that sentences must not only be clear individually but must also connect logically to one another.

  1. "Begin sentences with information that is familiar to your readers." This "old-to-new" principle creates a sense of flow and makes your writing easier to follow.
  2. "End sentences with information that is new, complex, and important." This is the "stress position" of the sentence, where you should place the information you want to emphasize.
  3. "The beginning of the sentence is the topic position. It should state what the sentence is 'about.'"
  4. "A paragraph is coherent when its sentences seem to flow from one to the next without bumps or gaps."
  5. "Cohesion is the sense of connection that readers feel among the parts of a whole."
  6. "Readers expect the topic of a paragraph to be introduced in the first sentence or two."
  7. "Maintain a consistent string of topic words throughout a paragraph to keep it focused."
  8. "The 'old-to-new' principle is the most important principle of cohesion."
  9. "Coherence is a sense of the whole. It is the feeling that a piece of writing is unified and focused."
  10. "Every sentence should be a logical bridge from the one before it to the one after it."

Part 3: Emphasis and Conciseness

Clear writing is also powerful and direct. This means trimming unnecessary words and structuring sentences to highlight key ideas.

  1. "The most emphatic part of a sentence is its end." This is where you should place your most important information.
  2. "To create emphasis, move the words you want to emphasize to the end of the sentence."
  3. "Clutter is the disease of American writing. We are a society strangling in unnecessary words, circular constructions, pompous frills and meaningless jargon." (This is often attributed to William Zinsser but is a core tenet of Williams's philosophy).
  4. "Delete meaningless words." (e.g., kind of, actually, really, basically).
  5. "Delete doubled words and redundant categories." (e.g., full and complete, terrible tragedy).
  6. "Replace a phrase with a word." (e.g., change the reason for to why; due to the fact that to because).
  7. "Change negatives to affirmatives." (e.g., not different to similar; not often to rarely).
  8. "A sentence is concise when it communicates its meaning in the fewest words possible without sacrificing clarity or grace."
  9. "Don't be afraid of the word 'I.' It is often more direct and concise than passive constructions."
  10. "Good writers are not born. They are made through practice and a conscious understanding of the principles of style."

Part 4: The Ethics of Prose

Williams and Bizup extend the principles of clarity to the ethics of communication, arguing that obscure writing is often a tool for evading responsibility.

  1. "The passive voice is often used to hide the agent of an action." (e.g., "Mistakes were made" instead of "We made mistakes").
  2. "Ethical writers take responsibility for their actions by naming themselves as the agents of those actions."
  3. "Clarity is a moral issue. When we write unclearly, we are not just being confusing; we are often being evasive."
  4. "Bureaucratic and academic prose often suffers from a kind of willed obscurity."
  5. "Write to others as you would have them write to you." This is the Golden Rule of writing.
  6. "The first question to ask yourself as a writer is, 'Who is my reader?'"
  7. "Don't write to impress; write to express."
  8. "Complex ideas do not require complex prose. In fact, the more complex the idea, the clearer the prose should be."
  9. "When you write clearly, you show respect for your reader's time and intelligence."
  10. "The goal of writing is not just to be understood, but to be impossible to misunderstand." (This is often attributed to Quintilian but perfectly captures the spirit of their work).

Part 5: Achieving Elegance and Grace

Beyond just clarity, the authors provide guidance on making prose not just functional, but beautiful.

  1. "A graceful sentence is one that is balanced, rhythmic, and pleasing to the ear."
  2. "Use parallelism to create a sense of rhythm and balance." (e.g., "We will not tire, we will not falter, and we will not fail.").
  3. "The length of your sentences should vary. A long sentence followed by a short one can create a powerful effect."
  4. "A well-placed subordinate clause can add complexity and nuance to a sentence."
  5. "Elegance is the final stage of the writer's craft. It is the ability to write with a sense of effortlessness and grace."
  6. "Don't overdo it. The goal is to be elegant, not ornate."
  7. "Read your prose aloud. Your ear will often catch what your eye misses."
  8. "The best writers are also the most dedicated readers. Read widely and pay attention to the style of the writers you admire."
  9. "Grace is the result of a thousand small choices, made with care and attention to detail."
  10. "Style is not just about the words you choose, but about the kind of person you are."

The vast majority of these principles and concepts are drawn from the various editions of their foundational book.

  • Primary Source Book:
    • Style: Lessons in Clarity and Grace, 12th Edition by Joseph M. Williams and Joseph Bizup. This is the most current and comprehensive version of their work.
      • Available on Amazon and at major booksellers.
  • Supporting Academic Resources:
    • The University of Chicago Writing Program: The principles championed by Williams are deeply embedded in the curriculum and resources of the UChicago Writing Program, which he helped shape.
    • Purdue Online Writing Lab (OWL): While not a direct source, many of the Purdue OWL's resources on sentence clarity, conciseness, and cohesion are based on the Williams/Bizup model.
  • Online Summaries and Guides:
    • Numerous online summaries and university writing center guides distill the core lessons of Style. Searching for "Joseph Williams Style principles summary" will yield many helpful resources that break down the key concepts. These can be useful for quick reference and reinforcement of the book's main ideas.