Summarizing Non-Fiction<br/> 
Deanna Schaper-Kotter<br/>
English 1213 A1<br/>

A Glance at the Problems with our Language<br/>

	According to the George Orwell, author of Politics and the English Language, the English 
	language is constantly being destroyed. Today, most writers are buying into the bad habits of 
	Modern English. Writers are trying to construct their points with words that are meaningless 
	and hard to understand. Some writers have also gotten into the habit of using words that did 
	not originate from the English language, this makes it very difficult for the reader to make 
	sense of the main points that the writer is trying to emphasize.  George Orwell helps us begin 
	to address this issue by suggesting a few simple steps for writers to follow.<br/>
	The five examples of bad writing that the author chooses to use in Politics and the English Language 
	support his argument very well. These examples are able to give the reader a clear image of the 
	problems with Modern English today. It is clear that all five passages suffer from staleness and 
	contain words that are meaningless. Writers are trying to use long and difficult words to make 
	their piece sound more professional when they should be using shorter and simpler words to make 
	it easier for the reader to understand.<br/>
	Bad writing habits of Modern English can be avoided by eliminating dying metaphors, operators 
	or verbal false limits, pretentious diction, and meaningless words. Many authors believe that 
	metaphors help give readers a visual image. In reality, metaphors can be unclear and sometimes 
	ruin the readers clarity of the piece. Verbal false limbs include simple verbs and nouns that 
	are being substituted for longer, more confusing words. Bad writers are using a lot of unnecessary 
	Latin and Greek words, this is an example of pretentious diction. Another problem with bad writers 
	today is the use of meaningless words. The author of Politics and the English Language uses the 
	example of democracy to describe the effect of meaningless words. Today, the word democracy is used 
	in so many different ways that it does not have an agreed meaning.<br/> 
	The biggest problem with Modern English writing is the putting together long sequences of words 
	that have already been set by someone else.  It is much easier and quicker for writers to use 
	ready-made phrases rather than look for long, difficult and meaningless words to fill their phrases. 
	Many public speakers have this problem, they spend so much time trying to find long, intelligent 
	words to make their piece sound more professional when they are actually making it harder for 
	the listeners to follow.<br/> 
	Writers can begin to kick their bad habits with a couple simple questions. They should ask 
	themselves what they are trying to say, and what words will express it? They should also ask if 
	there is a certain image that will make their idea clearer, and will it have an effect on the reader? 
	The author can also ask themselves if there is any way they can get their point across more shortly, 
	or has there been anything said that is unnecessary? Once authors can get in the habit of asking 
	themselves these questions, their mind will start to construct sentences on their own using ready-made phrases. 
	Politics and the English Language proves that English is continually deteriorating. 
	The reason for this decline is mostly due to fact that writers are trying to get their point 
	across in ways that are hard to follow. Politics and the English Language is summarized with some 
	elementary school rules. Writers should never use a metaphor, simile, or other figure of speech 
	which you are used to seeing in print. Writers should use short words when they can, and cut out unnecessary words. 
	They should never use passive when they can use active and should never use a foreign phrase, 
	scientific word, or a jargon word if it can be substituted for an everyday English equivalent.