The Sense of Style: The Thinking Person's Guide to Writing in the 21st Century

Steven Pinker

Sep 2014 · Penguin UK

About this ebook

Bad writing can't be blamed on the Internet, or on 'the kids today'. Good writing has always been hard: a performance requiring pretense, empathy, and a drive for coherence. In The Sense of Style, cognitive scientist and linguist Steven Pinker uses the latest scientific insights to bring us a style and usage guide for the 21st century. What do skilful writers know about the link between syntax and ideas? How can we overcome the Curse of Knowledge, the difficulty in imagining what it's like not to know something we do? And can we distinguish the myths and superstitions from rules that enhance clarity and grace? As Pinker shows, everyone can improve their mastery of writing and their appreciation of the art (yes, 'their').

Ratings and reviews

I am currently keen to improve the clarity of my writing, without becoming a linguistics researcher. This book couldn't have come at a better time. Pinker provides a really helpful contemporary commentary: on basic issues for writers to consider for clear communication. I found his core chapters particularly enlightening (chapters 2-5). They seem to give a reasonably representative set of ideas for inexperienced writers to try out, practice, and adapt. One odd point however, was Pinker's frequent usage of somewhat obscure terms in his explanations. For a book on clear communication, the level of 'light jargon' was surprising high for me. I did learn a number of new interesting words however :) For many reasons, I would highly recommend this book as a rich resource to go to, and come back to in the future. For fellow travelers in the ongoing journey towards clear, strong, and beautiful prose.

I picked this book up after watching a lecture Pinker gave at the Royal Institute on Youtube. This is the first style guide I have ever read, and Steven did a wonderful job of showing me how to think more critically about my writing.

About the author

Steven Pinker is one of the world's most influential thinkers and writers on the human condition. His popular and highly praised books include The Better Angels of Our Nature, The Sense of Style, The Stuff of Thought, The Blank Slate, How the Mind Works, and The Language Instinct. The recipient of several major awards for his teaching, books, and scientific research, Pinker is Harvard College Professor and Johnstone Family Professor of Psychology at Harvard University. He also writes frequently for The New York Times, the Guardian and other publications. He has been named Humanist of the Year, Prospect magazine's "The World's Top 100 Public Intellectuals," Foreign Policy's "100 Global Thinkers," and Time magazine's "The 100 Most Influential People in the World Today."