3. In what ways do paragraphs 4-6 serve to illustrate the main idea of paragraph 3?
Answer: Paragraphs 4-6 use examples to back up the main point. Zinsser uses an example
of the president of his university using a very cluttered sentence, then he uses an example
from Franklin D. Roosevelt simplifying directions, and finally he backs it up with a quote
from Thoreau.
4. In paragraph 11, Zinsser says that writers must constantly ask themselves some
questions. What are these questions and why are they important?
Answer: The questions Zinsser says that writers must constantly ask themselves are
What am I trying to say?, Have I said it?, and Is it clear to someone
encountering the subject for the first time? These questions are important because,
number one, you have to know what you are trying to say before anyone else can.
Number two, if you havent said it, then you will need to reword. Number three,
because it is easy to forget that not everyone knows as much as you do about certain
subjects, so it is important to make sure you have written simply in a way anyone can
understand.
5. How to Zinssers first and last paragraphs serve to introduce and conclude his essay?
Answer: Zinssers first paragraph introduces the topic of clutter in our writing. He
concludes his essay by stating how difficult it is to unclutter.
6. What is the relationship between thinking and writing for Zinsser?
Answer: Zinsser believes you must be clearheaded to be clear in your writing. So that
ones thinking is in close relation to ones writing.
Reflection
One of my favorite readings was Simplicity because the author states that you should
make your writing as simple as possible. This was not expressed to me in school, but
it makes a lot of sense. Most of my school experience has been teachers encouraging
the class to write with complex words and sentences. The hard part of the study and
discussion was number 2, which asked to identify the main idea in each paragraph.
Some paragraphs were simpler than others; really the hardest part was trying to stay
focused on analyzing every paragraph for one question. If I were the teacher I would
say that this section is important to read, because simplicity is an important part of the
reader understanding your writing.