POINT OF VIEW

Point of view defines the position, the point of focus, a writer assumes in relation of his subject. It embraces matters of tone, person, tense, number, and voice. Maintaining a consistent point of view is essential to paragraph coherence. If, for example, you are discussing a subject in the third person, you should stay in the third person unless you have good reason for shifting to first or second person. The same principle applies to tense, number, tone, and voice. A reader is likely to become confused if you change from the past to the present tense, from an objective, matter-of-fact tone to a subjective one, or from the active to the passive voice of the verb.

TONE

Tone refers to the attitude a writer takes toward his subject and reader. It can vary widely, depending on his purpose, subject, audience, and interests. A student writing about his roommate might assume an informal, personal, even whimsical tone. If he were discussing the advisability of tax reform, however, his tone would probably be more serious and objective.

The problem of tone is complex, but a knowledge of the distinctive qualities of the formal and the informal tone should be helpful. Formal writing uses a more extensive and exact vocabulary; it frequently alludes to historical and literary events; its sentences are usually longer and more carefully structured than those used in general conversation; and it follows the traditional conventions of English grammar carefully, avoiding contractions, omissions and abbreviations. Informal writing permits the use of colloquial words and phrases. Its vocabulary is less extensive and its sentence less elaborate, with more of a conversational rhythm. Informal writing also permits the use of first-and second-personal pronouns (I, you, we) and contractions (I'm, you're, he's).

The writing demanded of a college student frequently involves the discussion of serious issues thus requires the more formal, impersonal approach. But whatever tone you adopt, be careful not to shift from an impersonal, serious treatment of your subject to a breezy, colloquial tone, and vice versa, unless there is a good reason for doing so and your reader has been adequately prepared for the shift.

INCONSISTENT CONSISTENT

In the treatment of serious psychological disorders, the psychological disorders, the therapist seeks to establish rapport therapist seeks to establish with his patient so that he can be rapport with his patient so induced to take it easy and that he can be induced to discuss his problems freely. relieve his tensions and discuss his problems freely.

Rocko McNally was a gutty fighter. Rocko McNally was a gutty He could take it as well as dish it fighter. He could take it as out. His capacity for absorbing well as dish it out. His ability punishment was however, to take a punch was, exceeded during a match with however, exceeded in his Kid McGuff. In that contest, he was match with Kid McGuff, rendered unconscious in the sixth who flattened him with a round by his opponent's right fist. right in the sixth round.

PERSON

Pronouns and verbs can be classified according to person, a form whose change indicates whether a person is speaking(first person), is being spoken to (second person), or is being spoken about (third person). A shift in person, as indicated earlier, disrupts continuity. Be careful, therefore, not to change person carelessly from sentence to sentence as you develop your paragraph. Whether you decide to use the informal first or second person (I, we, you) or the more formal third person (he, they), maintain a consistent point view throughout.

INCONSISTENT CONSISTENT

To get the most from a lecture, a To get the most from a student should listen carefully and lecture, listen carefully and take notes. You should not, however, take notes. Don't try to try to record everything your record everything your instructor says. Limit your notes instructor says, however, to the important point of the limit your notes to the discussion. important point of the discussion.

TENSE

A verb undergoes changes in form to show the time of its action or state of being - the past, present, or future. These changes in verb forms are called tenses. Once you have determined the tense you will use in developing your topic, avoid shifting this tense unless you have prepared your reader for the change.

INCONSISTENT CONSISTENT

After a delay of thirty minutes, After a delay of thirty the curtain came down, and the minutes, the curtain came orchestra begins to play. Then the down, and the orchestra house lights dim, and the audience began to play. Then the grows quiet. house lights dimmed, and the audience grew quiet.

As noted above, if tense changes occur, the reader must be prepared for them. When he is, they do not violate the principle of consistency. In the following passage the writer maintains a consistent point of view with regard to time even though he changes tense.

The original settlement of Paris was founded by a Gallic tribe in the first century B.C. Paris is thus about 2000 years old. During these years it has become perhaps the most beautiful and cultured city in Europe. In fact, in the opinion of many travelers, it is the most beautiful city in the world.

The writer begins in the past tense to establish a point of reference for his remarks. In the second sentence he moves into the present tense to state a fact about Paris at the present time. In the third sentence he shifts to the present perfect tense with has become, but this shift does not violate the consistency of tense either, for the verb reports a condition - the beauty and sophistication of Paris - that began in the past and continues into the present. And in the last sentences the writer returns to the present tense, again to express a current opinion about his subject.

NUMBER

Number refers to the changes in a word that indicates whether its meaning is singular or plural. As you read over your writing, make certain that you have not shifted number needlessly. If the meaning of a word is singular is one sentence, do not make it plural in subsequent sentences.

INCONSISTENT CONSISTENT

The student who want to improve The student who wants to his writing can, in the majority of improve his writing can, in cases, do so if he puts his mind the majority of cases, do so seriously to it. If they are not if he puts his mind willing to make this effort, however, seriously to it. If he is not the results will be minimal. willing to male this effort, however, the results will be minimal.

VOICE

Voice refers to the form of the verb that indicates whether its subject acts or is acted upon. If the subject of the verb acts, the verb is said to be in the active voice :

Larry won the election.

If the subject is acted upon, the verb is said to be in the passive voice :

The election was won by Larry.

The active voice is used more often than the passive voice, the latter being reserved for occasions when the doer of the action is either unknown or unimportant or when the writer wishes to stress the important of the receiver of the action. Examine your sentences carefully to make certain that you have read the appropriate voice.

INCONSISTENT CONSISTENT

In September of his freshman year, In September of his Harvey decided to work thirty hours a freshman year, Harvey to week in order to buy a car. After thirty hours a week in order conferring with his counselor to buy a car. After about his program, however, the plan conferring with his was abandoned by him. counselor about his program however, he abandoned his plan.

Exercise 13

A. Underline the words and phrases in the following paragraphs that reveal an inconsistency in point of view. In the blanks following the paragraph, identify the error more specifically as one of inconsistency of person, tense, number, or tone; and then correct the error.

1. In an article in "The Ladies' Home Journal," June, 1958, Dorothy Thompson makes a spirited defense of college education for women. Mrs. Thompson argued that the purpose of education is to train the mind and character, not to teach a specific marketable skill. Women, according to Mrs. Thompson, have as great a need as men to obtain an education. The purpose of education, Mrs. Thompson continues, "is to help create a personality capable of performing the duties of life with intelligence and sagacity...not to get a diploma." She blasts the notion that a college should function as a training center for industry. If industry needs training centers, she maintains, they should support then themselves and lift the load from the taxpayer's aching back. In short, the primary purpose of college education as Mrs. Thompson sees it is to "liberate and civilize," not to enable men to earn a buck.

2. A hot rod is a stock automobile that has been rather severely altered to increase its speed potential. The builder of a rod, or iron, as it is sometimes called, concentrates on the engine, the body, and the wheels to transform the original automobile into a low-slung, shiny, beautifully finished "bomb". The engine is the heart of a rod. To increase its power, the builder usually adds two, and sometimes three, extra carburetors, enlarges the cylinder walls, and replaces the old pistons with shorter ones. You can get greater compression and hence more power from a motor when you do this. Next, they will "channel," or cut down the body and weld it to the frame, shaping the body line to a smooth contour with lead and body putty. To increase traction at the rear wheels (and thus increase acceleration when he wishes to "dig out" from an intersection light), he replaces the original rear tires with oversized tires and the first wheels with smaller wheels. As a final touch you cover the body with a dazzling lacquer finish, chrome plate the engine, and paint the under parts green or white. The result of all these labors, in the opinion of the builder, is a poetically beautiful hunk of machinery, a thing of beauty and a joy forever.

B. Revise the following sentences to make the point of view consistent.

1. No matter how hard one tries, you can never please some persons.

2. The accident had been serious. A new Buick had caromed off a stalled truck and, after it had left the road, smashed into a fire hydrant. The driver of the Buick was bleeding profusely from cuts on his face and neck,. His left hand had been severed by the front window. Man, what a mess! Finally, I couldn't take it any longer, and I beat it.

3. One usually feels depressed after taking one of Professors Bradley's exams. You wonder why he considers details, rather than concepts, so important.

4. In the 1930's radicals of the far left advocated extreme measures to solve the problems caused by the depression. In the nineteen sixties the kooks on the far right also suggested radical solutions to national and international problems.

5. In the summer he enjoyed surfing at the beach; in the winter skiing at Squaw Valley was enjoyed by him.

6. The successful politician must know the difference between a skirmish and a battle. That is, they know when to settle for less than what they want in a piece of legislation and when to fight hard for an important principle.

7. When Henry Martin calls the assembly to order, the students stopped talking and gave him their attention.

8. Spade the soil thoroughly and rake it smooth. Then the manure should be spread evenly, one bag to a hundred square feet.

9. Whenever I arose to speak, a heckler in the back row begins to interrupt me.

10. Congress is the legislative body of the government of the United States. Some critics, however, that they spend too little time legislating and too much time procrastinating.