Adjectives

An Element of Fiction

The adjective, the elaborator and highlighter and prettifier of nouns, has come under fire more than once, though I, for one, believe often unfairly so.

To wit: “The adjective is the enemy of the noun,” according to Arthur Brisband.

Voltaire says, “Adjectives are frequently the greatest enemies of the substantives.”

Harper Lee also agrees because “Atticus told me to delete the adjectives and I’d have the facts.”

And the seasoned view of Henry James: “Adjectives are the sugar of literature and adverbs the salt.”

Mark Twain has this to say: “I notice that you use plain, simple language, short words, and brief sentences. That is the way to write English — it is the modern way and the best way. Stick to it; don’t let fluff and flowers and verbosity creep in.”

He then goes on to add, “When you catch an adjective, kill it. No, I don’t mean utterly, but kill most of them — then the rest will be valuable. They weaken when they are close together. They give strength when they are far apart.”

Of course, I agree. Find the precise noun and you won’t need the adjective, but even so, that perfect noun might have nuances you intend that only the adjective (or a simile or metaphor) can supply. As in “precise noun” above.

Fortunately for me, J.I. Rodale sheds some light: “The adjective has come to have a somewhat unsavory reputation. Not because there is anything inherently bad about it, but because it is the one part of speech first seized upon and worked to death by novices and inferior writers.”

True that.

Anne Carson elaborates: “What is an adjective? Nouns name the world. Verbs activate the names. Adjectives come from somewhere else. The word adjective (epitheton in Greek) is itself an adjective meaning ‘placed on top,’ ‘added’, ‘appended,’ ‘foreign.’ Adjectives seem fairly innocent additions, but look again. These small imported mechanisms are in charge of attaching everything in the world to its place in particularity. They are the latches of being.”

E.B. White sheds more light: “The adjective has not been built that can pull a weak or inaccurate noun out of a tight place. This is not to disparage adjectives and adverbs; they are indispensable parts of speech…. In general, however, it is nouns and verbs, not their assistants, that give good writing its toughness and color.”

Now, if you have decided to use an adjective, J.I. Rodale advises, “The simple adjective is almost always preferable to the unusual adjective.”

My friend William Zinsser says: “Most adjectives are unnecessary. Like adverbs, they are sprinkled into sentences by writers who don’t stop to think that the concept is already in the noun.”

And then adds, “Make your adjectives do work that needs to be done.”

So, if there is no better noun, and the one you have needs help, then choose wisely, that would be my advice.

I’ll let Roger Rosenblatt have the final word on this, “If you need three adjectives to describe something, then you’ve probably chosen the wrong something.”

© Wolfstuff

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