CHAPTER II SHAPING THE MATERIAL The Plan in Nature. Everything in the world about us appears in parts or divisions. The day, the month, the seasons, all fall into divisions with which we are perfectly familiar. Nature is always regular and ordered. To be haphazard, irregular, "mixed up," is unnatural. We are creatures of nature, and everything we do must follow her laws. If we are impressed by a certain rural scene, and contemplate it for a moment, we see that it is constituted of certain parts. There are hills, valleys, verdure, buildings, etc. It is impossible for us to think of a scene without being conscious in our thought of certain landmarks that stand out prominently in the scene. If we think of the ocean, we immediately" sub-think " water, color, waves, etc. If we contemplate a bridge, we at once image arches, spans, approaches, ironwork, etc. We could multiply these illustrations ad infinitum, but it is not necessary, because the truth of the statement is so obvious. In the most trivial affairs of our lives from our rising on Monday morning to Saturday's ball game we have a definite plan of procedure in mind all the time. We cannot get away from the plan-habit if we would. Laws of Planning. — Unity. —But since plan making is natural, it is governed naturally by certain laws. Let us suppose for a moment that we are writing upon baseball and have chosen for title, "The Baseball Diamond." In stantly the subject begins to split into divisions or topics: the ground, the size, the shape, the bases, etc. But if we are thinking loosely, other topics related to our subject, but not a part of it, will intrude themselves. Shall we begin with a long introduction about the state of the weather at the time of the last big game? Should we say something about the fielders? Of course not, though we must clearly explain and picture the field. Shall we mention the batsman? No, but we must of course explain the home plate. We must reject every item that does not pertain to the subject suggested in our title "The Baseball Diamond." Sticking to the subject will give to our finished work a quality which no good work can be without; namely, oneness or unity. In other words, all of our topics must bear upon the subject and we must omit no one that belongs to it. There must be Unity in our completed work. Indication of Unity. - But we must do more than secure Unity; we must show that we have secured it. In order to make the oneness of our discussion clear, it is allimportant that every topic should state definitely its relation to the subject. Accept a little counsel here which, although it may seem irksome, will save you endless trouble and your reader endless confusion. Represent every topic by a complete sentence, with subject and predicate. A sentence has to state something; and thus you will have to state in your topic what part of your subject you are there treating. This caution, if observed, will almost in itself guarantee the observance of Unity, and will make it certain that each of your sections in the written-out theme will show just where it belongs in the article. Unnumbered difficulties in articles, in textbooks, in letters, as well as in school compositions, follow upon a failure to say just what it is that you are trying to bring out in a given topic, a failure to indicate Unity. For example, if instead of writing the plan of your composition on "The Baseball Diamond" as follows: 1. The ground. 2. The size. 3. The shape. 4. The bases. 5. The catcher's box, etc., you should put it this way: 1. The ground must be in proper condition. 2. The size must be that given in the rules of the game. 3. The shape must be square. 4. The bases must be four in number. 5. The catcher's box must be placed directly behind the home plate, etc., you will be much more sure to stick to your subject, and to tie up, so to speak, each paragraph to your title. In a more difficult subject, as, for example, "The Advantages of Underground Railroads in Great Cities," this practice is even more advantageous. Think out your topics in good sentences. Write them down as such. EXERCISES I. Outline orally or in writing one or more of the following subjects, taking pains to preserve Unity, and to indicate the connection between each heading and the title: Why I Came to School. What I Hoped to Accomplish in School. How I Learned to Play Football (or Basketball). The Best Way to Spend a Saturday Evening. II. Criticize this list of topics for its Unity and for the indications of Unity in the headings: HOW TO CHOOSE A CAREER 1. How I felt when I found that I had to write a composition. 2. The choice of a career should be determined by your capabilities and your opportunities. 3. Mechanical ability. 4. Much manufacturing in some cities. 5. Some go to college, others do not. 6. Civil engineers in great demand just now. 7. If your father is in business and has an opening for you, it would be well for you to prepare for a business career. 8. The career should fit the woman or the man. 9. The management of the home is the noblest and most difficult of all careers. III. Rewrite and revise this list of topics. Coherence. While "The Baseball Diamond" is still just a group of topics in the writer's mind, ready to be either written or "talked," another principle of composition forces itself upon your attention. There is a natural way of grouping these topics, and there is an unnatural way. In our illustration, for instance, we would not write or speak about the field and then about the catcher's box; about the third base and then about the batter's box. This would be awkward. No, we would at the very outset write of the ground, its size, shape, and condition. Then we would arrange perhaps to talk about the three important positions-pitcher's box, batter's box, and catcher's box. Then, perhaps, we would discuss all the bases together; and later, the fielders' positions. In other words, we should aim to group like elements together and to place near one another in our composition those parts of our subject that are close together in reality. We recognize when we see things that there is a certain natural relation among their parts. In telling about these things, then, we will naturally observe the same strict relations among these parts, unless ignorance or carelessness prevents. It is not enough to "stick to our subject"; we must do more than this we must see that the different parts or divisions of our subject "stick together" properly, relate to one another gracefully and not haphazardly. In other words, we must see that the parts "co-here," that they have Coherence. This is a second great law of composition. Emphasis. But further than this, you and I are perfectly aware that all the units in our observation and thought are not of equal importance. We know full well that some stand out distinctly and vividly as compared to others; that some are vastly more important than others. Suppose we look for the first time at a great waterfall. Well, we may be conscious at first of certain kernels of thought: water, light, roar, power, mist, swiftness, and perhaps others, according as the impressions made upon individuals differ. But we know at the same time that there is one of these divisions or parts of our observation that stands out more strikingly than the rest. Some people, upon seeing Niagara for the first time, are impressed by the huge volumes of water; others are held in awe by the awful roar; still others see the power of it all more than anything else, and so on. There is always something that stands out most vitally. So it is with the elements of any object, any event; and in composing to explain or picture or tell a story, we must see to it that this difference of value is clearly indicated. We must, in short, accent certain parts and keep others in the background. We know that the vital positions on the diamond are the pitcher's, the batter's, and the catcher's. Around these strategic points all the mechanism of the game is set going, and all the rest of the diamond is gauged by and from them. We must, therefore, give them a prominent place in our discussion of The Baseball Diamond." In other words, we must em |