Standard Written English: A Guide

Using illustrative examples, this manual explains a form of the English language which is both distinct and common to the whole of the English-speaking world: Standard Written English (SWE). The first part covers the elements of the language: vocabulary, grammar, usage and so on. Common mistakes are described, and cures are offered. Part Two shows how these elements can be put together in the formal written language. Parts Three and Four contain examples of SWE in actual use, with commentaries. Part Four is also a collection of 50 case studies in the use of the language, arranged by subjects as autobiography, journalism, literary and criticism, and technology and computing. The book ends with an article on the history of the English language by the lexicographer R.W. Burchfield.