HOW TO WRITE A GREAT SENTENCE | The Art of Writing | Hemingway | Faulkner | Amis | Provost | Summary and Q&A

TL;DR

The distinct styles of writers Faulkner and Hemingway reflect their differing moralities and judgments of the world, with Faulkner's ornate and biblical prose contrasting Hemingway's concise and modernist writing.

Key Insights

• 🎭 Style and content are inseparable in literature. Amos argues that style is morality and judges various aspects of writing such as creative devices, diction, and tone.
• 📚 Literary feuds, like that between Faulkner and Hemingway, differentiate writers with contrasting styles and moralities. Faulkner's writing is ornate and shaped by his Southern Christian upbringing, while Hemingway's is concise and influenced by the fast-paced modern world.
• 🌇 Hemingway's style reflects the speed of urban life, while Faulkner's captures the socio-economic aspects of the southern town. Despite writing about different settings, their styles still reflect their moral judgments.
• 💬 Faulkner and Hemingway exchanged criticisms about their writing styles - Faulkner accused Hemingway of not using challenging language, while Hemingway argued that big emotions don't require complex words.
• 📝 Faulkner's writings often feature long, convoluted sentences, like the 1288-word sentence from "Absalom, Absalom!" Hemingway, in contrast, uses shorter, descriptive sentences to capture scenes.
• 🔠 The sentence is considered the fundamental unit of literature, capable of expanding and unfolding chosen meanings. A well-crafted sentence can engage readers and create a harmonious rhythm.
• 🎵 A varied sentence structure in writing creates a musical quality and prevents monotony. The use of short, medium, and long sentences builds energy and impetus, capturing the reader's attention.
• 🌍 A healthy and vibrant morality in literature, reflecting the complexities of the world, is essential for creating a better world. Gray areas and diversity are key to a more Earthly and exploratory morality.

Transcript

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Questions & Answers

Q: How did Faulkner and Hemingway's different writing styles reflect their moral perspectives?

Faulkner's ornate and convoluted prose reflected a morality influenced by his Southern Christian upbringing, while Hemingway's concise and pithy style reflected a modernist, cosmopolitan morality that captured the fast pace of the city and technological development.

Q: What were the main differences in the writing styles of Faulkner and Hemingway?

Faulkner's writing was known for its long, intricate sentences and purple prose, while Hemingway's style was characterized by short and concise sentences, influenced by the modernist movement.

Q: How did the cultural and geographical backgrounds of Faulkner and Hemingway influence their writing styles?

Faulkner, with his Southern Christian upbringing, incorporated elements of the southern heat and socio-economic context into his writing, while Hemingway's cosmopolitan lifestyle and associations with modern figures like Picasso and Joyce influenced his fast-paced and modernist writing style.

Q: Why did Faulkner criticize Hemingway for not using complex words in his writing?

Faulkner believed that big emotions in writing can only be conveyed through big words, and he criticized Hemingway for his simplistic style that he perceived as lacking depth and complexity.

Q: How did the sentence structure in Faulkner and Hemingway's works differ?

Faulkner was known for his long and meandering sentences, often filled with detailed descriptions, while Hemingway favored short and concise sentences that reflected the fast-paced tempo of modern life.

Q: What does the paragraph from Gary Provost's writing guide illustrate about writing style and its relationship to morality?

The paragraph demonstrates that varying sentence lengths and creating a musical rhythm in writing can bring vitality and creativity to the morality of the text, suggesting that a more exploratory and diverse morality is needed for a better world.

Summary & Key Takeaways

• Faulkner and Hemingway, two renowned writers, had starkly different styles that reflected their moral perspectives and judgments of the world.

• Faulkner's writing was characterized by long, ornate sentences influenced by his Southern Christian upbringing, while Hemingway's style was pithy and concise, influenced by the modernist movement and his cosmopolitan lifestyle.

• Despite their stylistic differences, elements of the southern heat and socio-economic context can be felt in Faulkner's writing, while Hemingway's style reflects the speed of technological development and the pulse of the city.