Adverbs and Adjectives: Do they Preclude Powerful Prose?
September 24th 2011 08:49
The Adverb: A "Very" Unpopular Intensifier!
Mark Twain once said, "Substitute 'damn' every time you're inclined to write 'very'; your editor will delete it and the writing will be just as it should be." Clever quote. However, aside from the fact that few of today's editors would actually delete this substitute, I do agree with Twain that "very" usually makes a weak modifier (or "intensifier") for an adjective. I'd much rather use adverbs like these to add color to my prose:
extremely, intensely, incredibly, fully, wholly, emphatically, entirely, deliriously, deliciously, delectably, horribly, crazily, refreshingly, luxuriously, inveterately, totally, absolutely, singularly, uniquely, incontrovertibly, impeccably, impressively, quite, most, indeed, purely, truly, or supremely ...
Adverbs in General: An "Evil" Habit?
Of course, Stephen King would disagree with me, apparently. To King, "The road to hell is paved with adverbs." (I imagine that must be why Twain suggested we substitute 'damn' for 'very.') I do agree with King, however -- to a point. Using an adverb to liven a weak verb rarely works. Far better to omit the adverb and select a stronger, more vibrant verb instead. Yet, when used to modify -- or as mentioned above, "intensify" -- an adjective, the widely underappreciated adverb can definitely handle the task.
Adjectives: Effective Tools When Used Judiciously
Whether we should be using adjectives in the first place, however, has also been addressed by Twain: "As to the adjective, when in doubt, strike it out." Again, as in the adverb/weak verb discussion above, the same principle applies to adjectives and weak nouns: If you're using an adjective purely to slip in a colorless noun, while depending on the adjective to spruce it up, it's probably better to skip the adjective and pull a more expressive noun from your literary quiver. If more writers did this, the much-maligned adjective would command greater respect.
After all, words are the tools of our trade, and using them with power and precision is our crowning achievement.
Here's to powerful prose!
Jeanne
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Comment by Anonymous
Thank God for Copy Writers like you! Linda :
Comment by Jeanne Dininni
Writer's Notes
Gotta love it when some of it sinks in "accidentally"!