Chapter IV: The Whole Composition

“Whole composition” is the name given to a completed piece of writing.

PRELIMINARIES

Go out and gather the material.

Write the first draft as fast as you can.

Revise everything you have written until the following requirements have been met.

=100. Indicate within the first few sentences what the composition is about.=

Some of the more common devices used by experienced writers in beginning a composition are listed below. You can begin almost anything you will be called upon to write in one of these ways or in a combination of two or more of them. Use a different beginning for each composition you write until you have tried a considerable number of them. After some practice you can quickly select the one beginning that is most appropriate both to your material and to your reader.

1. Make one or more startling assertions.
2. Ask one or more questions.
3. Say something clever.
4. Make one or more suppositions.
5. Contrast one thing with another.
6. Use direct discourse.
7. Use an incident.
8. Sketch in the background.
9. Introduce one of the characters.
10. Employ a preliminary summary.
11. Plunge your reader into suspense.
12. State the conclusion the reader is to reach.
13. Give personal details about yourself.
14. Talk about your reader.
15. State your reflections on the subject.
16. Explain why you are writing.
17. Invoke aid in accomplishing your purpose.
18. Quote a familiar saying.
19. Parody a familiar saying.
20. Quote what someone has said or written.
21. Quote what purports to be what someone has said or written.

=101. Keep the same point of view throughout.=

_Wrong._ If one wishes to enter a canoe safely, he should grasp
both gunwales and lower himself to the seat. You should then
push off from the shore.

_Better._ To enter a canoe safely, grasp both gunwales and
lower yourself to the seat before pushing off from the shore.

_Wrong._ As he stood looking down the river he saw a house-boat
plowing along; while behind him a fleet of coal barges sent
ripples toward the shore.

_Better._ As he stood looking down the river he saw a
house-boat plowing along. Turning around he noticed a fleet of
coal barges sending ripples toward the shore.

_Wrong._ The taxi driver has an excellent opportunity to
observe the life about him. All kinds and conditions of men and
women make use of him at all hours of the day and night. Some
think him merely a part of the machine he drives, some consider
him no better than the dirt under their feet, and some—to
be sure they are not many—treat him as if he were a living,
breathing human being like themselves.

_Better._ The taxi driver has an excellent opportunity to
observe the life about him. All kinds and conditions of men and
women make use of him at all hours during the day and night. He
finds that some treat him as if he were no better than the dirt
under their feet, and some—to be sure they are not many—as if
he were a living, breathing human being like themselves.

=102. Include everything that the reader will need for a thorough understanding of your subject.=

_Wrong._

THE THEATER IN AMERICA

Between the years 1750 and 1814 many events took place which
either helped or hindered the establishment of a permanent
theater in America.

One of the big events that helped establish the theater in
America was the coming of the Hallam company of actors. This
company was made up of English actors who came from the West
Indies. The company consisted of twelve adult members and three
children. Every member of the group had ability as an actor,
and, consequently, the company was successful. They first
played at Yorktown, Virginia, in 1752. Then, after a season in
Philadelphia, they went to New York. After a three months’ stay
in New York, they returned to the West Indies, where Mr. Hallam
died. Here a Mr. Douglas reorganized the company and with them
returned to this country.

Douglas, often called the “theater builder,” did much for the
future theater. He was a man of great strength and courage.
Besides being a capable manager, he was also a good actor.
Douglas built the first theater in America at Williamsburg,
Virginia, and the first permanent theater at Philadelphia. He
also built theaters at Annapolis and at Newport.

The greatest difficulty which the play companies had to
overcome was the increasing opposition of some of the people
toward the theater. Throughout the country people were
fighting against the theater. Especially was this true of
the people of the North. The Southerners were fun-loving and
pleasure-seeking, and the theater offered them a place of
amusement. In many towns, however, laws were passed against
acting. The opposition of the people was not directed so
much toward the theater itself as toward the gambling and
immorality which accompanied the theater of that day. Folders
were distributed among the people explaining why the theater
was not approved of and gradually the gambling and immorality
disappeared. After this the theater improved and theater-going
became better thought of throughout the country.

_Better._

AN EARLY INFLUENCE IN THE AMERICAN THEATER

In the year 1752 the theater in America received a great aid
through the coming of the Hallam company of actors....

The condition of the theater prior to this time left much to be
desired....

The nature of the company was such that its influence was
decidedly good....

Naturally the effect of this kind of player was toward the
betterment of the theater....

=103. Omit anything that will distract the reader’s attention.=

_Wrong._

SCORING IN BASKETBALL

A score in basketball is made every time a player throws
the ball into one of the baskets placed at each end of the
court. In the West Branch High School the gymnasium is well
equipped with everything the students need for their athletic
contests....

_Better._ A score is made in basketball every time a player
succeeds in throwing the ball into the basket guarded by his
opponents. If this goal, as it is called, is made from the
field, it counts two points. Sometimes, however, one team is
given a free throw at the basket as the result of a foul’s
being made. If the ball is caged under this circumstance, the
foul goal, as it is called, counts one point.

=104. Writing that is serious in tone or purpose should include nothing that will destroy its seriousness.=

_Wrong._ Gypsies are a peculiar, wandering race of people
that appeared in eastern Europe in the fourteenth century
and that has now spread out into Asia, America, and parts of
Africa. These people are easily distinguished from those among
whom they rove by appearance, by language, and by behavior.
In appearance they are slight, though very strong; in color,
somewhat tawny. In language they are thought to resemble some
long-lost Hindu tribe. In behavior they are _sneaky_, and a
number of them are not above _chicken stealing_.

_Better._ Gypsies are a peculiar, wandering race of people....
In behavior they are _untrustworthy_, and a number of them are
not above _petty thievery_.

=105. Writing that is light in tone or purpose should include nothing that will destroy its lightness.=

_Wrong._ Many different types are in evidence around
Fitzgerald’s boathouse in the spring. The type most frequently
discovered, perhaps, is the lover. He comes, accompanied by
his inamorata, in quest of a canoe, in which presently the two
are drifting idly upon the ample bosom of Turtle creek. It is
strange that lovers should sojourn here, for Turtle creek is
anything rather than a background for romance.

_Better._ Many different types are in evidence around
Fitzgerald’s boathouse in spring.... Muddy water, sand dredges,
a railway construction gang at work near at hand, the whole
background is unheeded by the lovers—romance needs no setting.

=106. Arrange your ideas in some orderly sequence.=

Following are various kinds of sequence.

=107. Arrange ideas in chronological order.=

All day long we were happy as a wedding party.... Early in the
morning.... When noon came.... At night....

=108. Arrange the divisions of the composition according to the relative position of the objects treated.=

As we entered the garden.... On the right.... On the left....
Directly before us.... Upon going into the house....

=109. Work from the abstract to the concrete.=

Freedom may be defined as the state of being free, but to how
many of us is this actually illuminating? Let us take, for
example, a man who has just been released from prison, where he
has been closely guarded for more than ten years. What would be
his idea of freedom?

=110. Work from summary to detail.=

When once the mania for news gathering claims its victim,
everything he sees becomes potential news.

He looks for it on his way down town in the morning....

The restaurant at which he lunches is combed unconsciously for
items....

In the lobby of hotels and theaters....

Even his relatives and close friends become his prey....

=111. Work from what is of most importance to what is less so.=

Mohammed VI, the Turkish sultan, fled from Constantinople on a
British warship, bound for Malta, today. The sultan declared
he was not abdicating, but was merely removing himself from
immediate danger. He was accompanied by....

=112. Work from the familiar to the unfamiliar.=

Everybody has noticed the way a cat’s claws are incased in
tiny sheaths, but how many of us know why they should be?
In the first place, the cat is descended from a wild animal
whose way of obtaining food was to kill its prey and then
tear it to pieces. Naturally when this animal struck into the
dead body with its claws, the claws, being hook-like, would
tend to remain fast. But nature found a way of overcoming the
difficulty by incasing the claws in sheaths so that while
the paw of the animal is still inside the carcass, the claw
can be withdrawn into the sheath and the paw removed without
hindrance. Perfection in nature extends even to such trifles as
this.

=113. Work up to a climax.=

Now, as always before, it is the custom to give way to great
manifestations of joy when the football team wins over a
university that is much older and much better established. Just
as soon as the report comes in that Drake is gaining, feeling
begins to run high; when it is said that Drake is ahead, we
begin to hold our breath; but when the report spreads that
Drake has won, excitement breaks out like a vast tidal wave and
sweeps everything before it.

=114. Weld paragraph to paragraph so that they will obviously be parts of the whole instead of separate units.=

Following are various methods of accomplishing this welding:

=115. Weld paragraph to paragraph by word connectives.=

On a summer evening the shores of Lake Tiberias are thronged
with strange and interesting people.

Here are caravans from across the Arabian desert....

Above them a Bedouin drives his flocks....

Not far away a rich Arabian farmer....

Around him, around everyone, in fact, little Arabian boys....

Then, as the last rays of the sun disappear behind the Mountain
of Beatitudes, ...

=116. Weld paragraph to paragraph by repetition.=

... Thus it is that I came to believe in ghosts.

But ghosts are not all that I came to believe in that summer....

=117. Weld paragraph to paragraph by recapitulation.=

... Guns, horses, motors, men, all thundered along the road,
then, like dogs of war let loose at Armageddon.

The hunt was up; the scent was on the air—Germany was
unchained....

=118. Weld paragraph to paragraph by announcing the divisions.=

The most attractive flower to me among all those that grow in
my garden is the sweet pea, chiefly, I think, because of the
delicacy of its color, form, and fragrance.

=119. Give each idea the space it deserves.=

_Wrong._ As the sun climbed higher, the spell of the dawn was
broken, and the camp came to life. Soon the surface of the lake
was dotted with bobbing heads. Upon the crests of the low hills
farmers were seen beginning to plow. Milk carts rattled along
the roads toward the creamery. All was in harmony to foretell a
perfect day.

_Better._ As the sun climbed higher, the spell of the dawn was
broken, and the camp began to come to life. Soon the surface
of the lake was dotted with bobbing heads as the campers
splashed about taking their dip before breakfast. There was
much laughter and merry shouting; everybody was ready to have
as much fun as he could. Across the lake the farmers were
commencing to plow. And from the road behind came the rattle of
milk carts on their way to the creamery. It was morning; the
world was awake.

=120. Give each idea the position it deserves.=

_Wrong._ Here and there the long, shiny body of a fish shot
out of the water and fell back with a faint splash. The lake
changed from the deep blue reflected from the clear sky to all
the brilliant colors of the sunset. The sun began to set long
before it should have, according to the campers’ ideas. Canoes
crept out without a sound from the shore, and the campers
enjoyed to the fullest their favorite time of the day. Gulls
called back and forth and settled for the night on jutting sand
bars.

_Better._ The sun began to set long before it should have,
according to the campers’ ideas. The lake changed in color
from the deep blue that had been reflected from the clear sky
to all the brilliance of the sunset. Here and there the long,
shiny body of a fish shot out of the water and fell back with a
gentle splash. Gulls called back and forth to one another and
began to settle for the night on jutting sand bars. Now canoes
crept from the shore without a sound, and the campers enjoyed
to the full this their favorite hour of the day.

=121. End with whatever will give an impression of a well-rounded whole.=

... With all these hints of prospective fun, how easy it is to
bang the books back upon the table and let the world go hang—on
Friday night.

=122. Choose a title that will indicate in a word or a phrase what the composition is about. Be sure not to refer to the title in the body of the composition as if it were an integral part of the composition.=

_Wrong._

FRIDAY NIGHT

This is the night of all the week to which I looked forward
with the most pleasure.

_Better._

THE BEST NIGHT IN THE WEEK

There is one night in the week that is, to me, more pleasant
than any other. You know which one it is as well as I do, for
it is your best friend, too.

=123. Plan long compositions as you gather the material.=

Use cards or slips of paper of uniform size for making notes while reading. During the early stages of your reading, the various topics which you will discuss will begin to make their appearance. Make only one note on each card. After writing the note, write one or two words in the upper left-hand corner to indicate the topic treated in that note. As you accumulate notes, keep them sorted according to the topics.

When all the available sources of material have been utilized and all the notes taken, arrange the various stacks—one stack for each topic—by first spreading them out upon a table so that you can see readily all the topics at once. Then move the stacks about, thus trying out various arrangements until you have made one which seems logical and complete. You will then have a plan for your composition.

=124. Revise for arrangement and development by making a plan of the composition after it is finished.=

By outlining the composition you have written, you will be able to see just how certain ideas bear upon the subject and are related to one another. Again, the outline will show you whether or not the ideas follow any orderly sequence. But best of all, perhaps, it will enable you to judge whether the composition omits anything that is vital for complete understanding, or contains something that distracts the reader’s attention.

Following is a method for making a plan of the composition:

STROKES MOST COMMONLY USED IN TENNIS

Idea to be developed: In order to be a good tennis player one
must master certain strokes.

I. The service stroke
A. Position of body
1. Poised so that weight be added to stroke
a. Leans away from toss
b. Follows racket in striking
B. Tossing ball
1. Ball at arm’s length from shoulder
2. Held somewhat before body
3. Thrown lightly three or four feet in air
C. Striking ball
1. Racket raised to strike as ball descends
2. Force necessary
3. Accuracy necessary
a. Ball must strike court within bounds
I´. Dimensions of receiver’s court.

Etc.

=125. Exercise.=

Following is a composition that is very poorly put together.

1. Make an outline of the whole, using only the topic sentence in each paragraph.

2. Strike out any topic which does not help to express the central idea. Reword any topic which can be made to serve its purpose better. Add any other topics which will aid in developing more fully the central idea. Combine topics that explain almost the same thing.

3. Make changes in the arrangement of topics so that each topic will stand in its proper relationship to every other.

4. Make an outline of every paragraph, using every sentence.

5. Shift sentences into positions where they will serve better to develop the topic. Strike out any that do not directly apply. Reword any that can be improved by rewording. Insert additional sentences where they are needed.

6. Shift sentences from one paragraph to another if they can thus be made to serve their purpose better.

7. Copy the material in the regulation form for a composition, taking care that there is proper transition from sentence to sentence, and from paragraph to paragraph.

8. Apply these admonitions to one of your own compositions and rewrite accordingly.

WHY TAKE BOXING?

Boxing is a very interesting sport. When the child of
kindergarten age first attends school he has his first
experience with fighting. This happens at every meeting of boys
and continues into the teens. Nearly every real American boy
wants to learn how to protect himself, and a course in boxing
is the best way to learn defense. In boxing, the individual
learns where the best blows are planted and also how to ward
off these blows. If a boy knows these punches he will not be
imposed upon by his companions. Even in later life men often
become quarrelsome and come to blows, but the man who has
learned the fundamentals of boxing always comes out in the
lead. If every man knew how to box, robberies would be less
frequent because the victims would be less timid and would give
battle to the bandits instead of allowing themselves to be held
up by highwaymen. Thus, defense is an important element in
boxing.

Moreover, boxing, besides aiding in defense, is a healthful
sport. The body is developed greatly after one goes out for
boxing as is shown by the increase or decrease in weight,
as the case may be. The weight decreases if one has been
in the habit of taking no exercise as he begins training,
but the weight soon increases again as the body makes the
proper readjustments. Persons who are fleshy soon lose their
superfluous fat. With the adjustment of weight the muscles
are developed. The arms and shoulders with their continuous
exercise in delivering punches and warding off blows are highly
developed. The muscles of the body are developed to a great
extent by the continuous twisting and bending of the body. The
legs become firmer and carry the body with ease after practice
in boxing because of the rapid forward, backward, and side
movements necessary.

Again, the body is developed in quickness by the practice of
boxing. The boxer’s mind is made more alert by the habitual
practice. The muscles of the body also increase in quickness.
They respond instantly to the will of the mind and thereby
increase the ability to advance and retreat rapidly, to
deliver and ward off punches. When the boxer has developed
this quickness of sensory and muscular organs, he can grasp
the intent of his opponent’s actions more quickly and govern
himself accordingly.

Boxing is a very well-known sport. It is widely popular both
in Europe and in America. It originated several centuries ago.
The main reason for the popularity of boxing is that it is a
very interesting sport. The spectator is held by the rapid
action of the boxers. In the early days of boxing the men were
slow and relied chiefly upon strength, but the modern boxer
has developed speed and uses short, quick blows. If the boxer
of the past should fight the boxer of the present, the affair
would be very one-sided, because the latter would soon tire out
his opponent by his quickness.

Besides being interesting because of the violent action that
is a natural part of the sport, it is also interesting from
the point of view of the money-maker. Thousands of dollars
are spent every year in developing winners. This was shown in
our latest match, the Dempsey-Carpentier fight, in which many
thousands of dollars were involved. An international spirit
also prevails when boxers from two countries meet. This was
indicated in the same match when all the Americans yelled for
Jack and all the foreigners for Georges.

Boxing has grown in popularity through the ages because of its
aid to health and because of its interesting features.