Rules of Style

Rule #18: Use Figures of Speech Sparingly
Strunk and White's eighteenth rule in The Elements of Style, "Use figures of speech sparingly" has two facets. The first point is to avoid using figures of speech too close together because it distracts the reader. The second is that, when using figures of speech, make sure that they do not become mixed up. When creating my design for my project, it was important that I be able to illustrate both of these elements. Also, I wanted to use a metaphor as the concept for my design, considering my rule.

The metaphor for my design concept is ingredients for a recipe as the figures of speech and the final concoction as the metaphor for a final document. This was prompted by the word "sparingly" in the rule, which often is associated with cooking and foods. I placed images of various types of ingredients into the image, particularly ingredients that have strong flavors that would conflict with each other. This is able to illustrate both of the aspects of the rule.

The first point--not to use too many figures of speech--is shown by the abundance of ingredients. All of these ingredients, used together, would not make a good final product and would confuse and overwhelm the palette, much like too many similes in a work would confuse a reader. However, several of the ingredients used together sparingly, such as the garlic, tomato, and chives, could mix together well and create something delicious. The second part of the rule is illustrated by the many flavors represented. Mixing these different flavors together, like the onion with the grapefruit, would be repulsive. This represents the similar result that mixed metaphors create.

The final design element of my document is the text of the rule. I chose the font Occidental which is a very elaborate serif font. The use of serif makes the design formal, while the round-ness of the letters creates a historic appearance which harks to an old recipe book. I replaced the "p" of sparingly with an image of measuring cups to again play on the word "sparingly" as an instruction of measurement.

All of these elements come together to create a physical representation of Strunk and White's rule "Use figures of speech sparingly." Like the opera created out of The Elements of Style and the illustrations of the rules, this is another way to be creative and create something beautiful out of grammar rules, something that could be seen as mundane and boring.