Nik’s rendering of George Orwell’s famous rules for writers, from Politics and the English Language. These aren’t Orwell’s exact rules. For instance, he says never to use technical, foreign or jargon (which need not be technical) phrases, if you can think of an everyday English equivalent. Obviously there will be times when you can’t. Similarly, he says to never use a metaphor, “simile, or other figure of speech”, which you are used to seeing in print.
They are certainly in the spirit of Orwell, though. Take note, obscurist writers. You’re not impressing anyone.
This reduces the classic essay on bad (academic) writing to a list of proscriptive maxims. Here is why this list is problematic to me: maxim (2) overlooks the special connotations of big words and the existence of short difficult words; maxim (3) is too broad, denying special cases where exceptions are inevitable and preferable; plus, it overlooks oddball cases like middles and inherently passive verbs; maxim (4) is inchorent and outlandish given the essentially necessity of foreignisms in political contexts; moreover, it ignores that jargon usually serves as shorthand for complicated ideas; and maxim (5) is impossible.
I think Grice’s principles are better guides for writing (expect a later post).
