1. Words and expressions
*词典为Collins与Merriam Webster
① inkling: an indirect suggestion; slight indication;hint; a vague idea or notion; suspicion
If you have an inkling of something, you have a vague idea about it.
② loom: a frame or machine for interlacing at right angles two or more sets of threads or yarns to form a cloth
③ preliminary: something that precedes or is introductory or preparatory: such asa:a preliminary scholastic examination
④ amenity: something that helps to provide comfort, convenience, or enjoyment; the quality of being pleasant or agreeable
⑤ profuse:exhibiting great abundance
⑥ bugaboo: an imaginary object of fear
⑦ fuss with: to move or handle (something) in a nervous or uncertain way:to fiddle with (something)
⑧ drudgery: dull,irksome, and fatiguing work:uninspiring ormeniallabor
⑨ far-flung: widely spread or distributed; remote
⑩ commerce: social relations and exchange, esp of opinions,attitudes, etc
sanguinary: accompanied by much bloodshed；bloodthirsty；consisting of,flowing, or stained with blood
rune 古代诗歌，神秘文字
2. Highlights
① This is the personal transaction that's at the heart of good nonfiction writing. Out of it come two of the most important qualities that this book will go in search of: humanity and warmth.
② But the secret of good writing is to strip every sentence to its cleanest components.
③ Franklin D. Roosevelt's translation section:
"Tell them," Roosevelt said, "that in buildings where they have to keep the work going to put something across the windows."
3. Remarks
从introduction开始，作者一直在强调即使如今技术发展的确促进了写作的发展，但是这种发展多停留在写作的工具层面，而非认知水平。无论是在中国，还是美国，孩子们从小被灌输了一种“写作能力应该是专业人员才拥有的，甚至是天赋，我还是算了吧”的思想。我小学的时候，学校开设了一门写作兴趣班，多是教授所谓的写作技巧，对，我们称之为技巧。他们教会我们堆砌华丽的辞藻，从大量的阅读中获取丰富的形容词和副词。然而从来没与人告诉我们写作应当遵循简单明了的原则。
书中举了罗斯福总统修改一小则政府备忘录的例子来证明“说人话”的重要性。Blackout order看上去和GRE阅读长句没有区别，也符合政府公文的规范，但是加大了读者的理解难度，从而降低阅读效率。我想作者并不只是希望借此强调“简约”有多么重要，而是“让人理解甚至共情”才是至高水准。瓦尔登湖的那段踱步漫谈就是最好的佐证，几乎没有超过三个音节的单词，没有从句套从句，但是读者不由自主跟随文字一起思考essential parts of life。
这也就是作者在开头提到的，需要我们去追寻的两个特质：人文关怀与温暖。写作从来不是容易事，文字只是承载每一个写作者对于人类和宇宙认知的管道。它不应该喧宾夺主。
作者：ShellyUni
链接：http://www.jianshu.com/p/ab1636069bcc
來源：
著作权归作者所有。商业转载请联系作者获得授权，非商业转载请注明出处。