Re:On Making Oneself Less Unreadable
by Bobbleoxs on Wednesday December 06, 2017 @08:07AM
(#15860781)
Think that's deliberate.
PS; you need to consider the context, the author is an heir to Samuel Johnson and was active in late 1800 to 1930s. For that period, I think his entries were probably considered 'plain' English.
> the title of the article itself was confusing
Isn't it a joke?
Ah, maybe. But I think a title is a risky thing to make into a joke, especially in this day and age (clicks), if it obfuscates its own meaning.
Still, as someone who runs a couple of services to help people write more concisely, I agree with most of his advice.
And although it has nothing to do with Fowler, the title of the article itself was confusing. I almost didn't click on it because I thought it was talking about personality, not writing (since it mentions "oneself," not one's writing). Then the double-negative.
A better title would be something like "On Making Your Writing More Readable."
But then it wouldn't be accepted for publication in The Paris Review, would it..."literary critics’ words" (!).