universally condemned.

It is the duty of every speaker and writer to labor after a pleasing
style. It gains him an entrance where he would otherwise be debarred.
Often the interest of a subject depends as much on the way it is
presented as on the subject itself. One writer will make it attractive,
another repulsive. For instance take a passage in history. Treated by one
historian it is like a desiccated mummy, dry, dull, disgusting, while
under the spell of another it is, as it were, galvanized into a virile
living thing which not only pleases but captivates the reader.


DICTION

The first requisite of style is _choice_ of _words_, and this comes under
the head of _Diction_, the property of style which has reference to the
words and phrases used in speaking and writing. The secret of literary
skill from any standpoint consists in putting the right word in the right
place. In order to do this it is imperative to know the meaning of the
words we use, their exact literal meaning. Many synonymous words are
seemingly interchangeable and appear as if the same meaning were applicable
to three or four of them at the same time, but when all such words are
reduced to a final analysis it is clearly seen that there is a marked
difference in their meaning. For instance _grief_ and _sorrow_ seem to be
identical, but they are not. _Grief_ is active, _sorrow_ is more or less
passive; _grief_ is caused by troubles and misfortunes which come to us
from the outside, while _sorrow_ is often the consequence of our own
acts. _Grief_ is frequently loud and violent, _sorrow_ is always quiet
and retiring. _Grief_ shouts, _Sorrow_ remains calm.