On the Art of Writing · Chapter
Lecture V: Interlude: On Jargon explained
The lecturer breaks the order of his argument to denounce 'Jargon'—a kind of writing that passes for prose but is not prose at all.
What happens
The lecturer breaks the order of his argument to denounce 'Jargon'—a kind of writing that passes for prose but is not prose at all. He distinguishes Jargon from Journalese, tracing its origins to caution and indolence rather than artistic zeal. Through numerous examples, he illustrates how Jargon uses abstract words, circumlocutions, and clichés to evade direct statement, and contrasts it with vivid, concrete writing from authors like Dr. John Donne and Robert South. He concludes that the choice between abstract and concrete words goes deeper than language, affecting reason and character, and exhorts his audience to prefer the concrete and direct.
Themes in this chapter
Critique of Jargon
The entire lecture is a sustained critique of Jargon, defined as sham prose that uses abstract words and circumlocutions to evade direct statement.
Style and Personality
The lecturer argues that 'the Style is the Man,' linking the choice of concrete or abstract words to character and intellect.
Precision and Clarity
Jargon is condemned for its lack of precision, as it walks around its target instead of hitting it directly; vivid, concrete language is praised for its clarity.
Literature as a Living Art
The lecture contrasts the dead, mechanical quality of Jargon with the vivid, life-giving writing of authors like Donne and South.
Characters to notice
- Unknown
The lecturer delivering the interlude on Jargon.
- John Jenkins
Mentioned in an example of Jargon from a Board of Guardians minute.
- Carlyle
Quoted on Goethe's emblematic intellect and his transformation of feeling into shape.
- Goethe
Referenced by Carlyle for his emblematic intellect and ability to give form to feeling.
- Cicero
Mentioned in connection with the phrase 'cui bono?' which Jargon misuses.
- Tennyson
Referenced in a letter about his 'In Memoriam' as an example of direct writing.
- Byron
Listed among the 'tawdry ornaments' of Jargon (e.g., 'the martyr of Missolonghi').
- Shakespeare
Hamlet's soliloquy is remoulded into Jargon as an illustration.
Key passages
“The answer to the question is in the negative.”
No.
Example of Jargon in parliamentary language, where a simple 'no' is replaced by a pompous circumlocution.
“In the case of John Jenkins deceased the coffin provided was of the usual character.”
John Jenkins's coffin was of the usual kind.
Example of Jargon from a Board of Guardians minute, using 'in the case of' and 'of the usual character' unnecessarily.
“To be, or the contrary? Whether the former or the latter be preferable would seem to admit of some difference of opinion; the answer in the present case being of an affirmative or of a negative character according as to whether one elects on the one hand to mentally suffer the disfavour of fortune, albeit in an extreme degree, or on the other to boldly envisage adverse conditions in the prospect of eventually bringing them to a conclusion.”
To be, or not to be? That is the question: whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune, or to take arms against a sea of troubles and by opposing end them.
The lecturer remoulds Hamlet's soliloquy into Jargon to illustrate how abstract terms and circumlocutions destroy vividness.
