do it.” (Williams, 1.)King will mention rule 17 as well. In one of his three forewords, he promises to try and follow it in his own book on writing. He will not go into any great length about omitting the needless word, however, and after reading Williams you won’t need him to. Instead, King is more concerned with another rule that Strunk & White provided us with. “14. Use the active voice.” (Strunk & White, 18.) King makes it plain not only that he agrees with this rule, but also offers a series of examples to explain why it is important to use the active voice. He will even suggest why the passive voice can be so popular in writing. “The passive voice is safe. There is no troublesome action to contend with … unsure writers also feel the passive voice somehow lends their work authority…” (King, 123.) His opinion of such an idea is clear. “If you find instruction manuals and lawyers torts majestic, I guess it does.” (King, 123.)Williams will also provide some good examples on the uses of active vs. passive voice. Though Williams claims not to be writing for imaginative writers (Williams, x.) his suggestion that the passive voice may still be of use is not one to be dismissed. “Often, we avoid stating who is responsible for an action, because we don’t know or don’t care, or we’d just rather not say … In sentences like these, the passive is the natural and correct choice…” (Williams, 38.) The examples he provides when using these voices, along with King’s examples, will not only clearly explain what is meant by the terms, but may go a long way toward convincing you of the validity of the rule itself. The most effective demonstration of passive vs. effective voice I’ve ever seen is found on page 36 of Style.Active: The partners * broke * the agreement.Passive: The agreement * was broken * by the partners.Willi...
