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| Reviews | | Anonymous | A Nuanced Rejoinder AGAINST Minimalism
Advocates for minimalism and 'plain language' often cite this article, as if it were their ally (or founding manifesto). A few passages, such as Orwell's 'rule 2' at the end of the essay would seem to bear this out: 'Never use a long word where a short one will do.' However, if you read the essay, you'll see that it uses extraordinarily nuanced and carefully chosen diction, not within the limited vocabulary of most 'plain language' proposals, and in fact argues for something other than plain language. This essay in fact calls for readers' attentiveness to laziness and sloppiness in writing and speech (particularly political speech, which he argues is heavily laden with cliches in order to inspire passivity in the political realm.) It's not an argument for plain language at all, but an argument for active reader response to poor rhetoric. |
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