Dancing to the same tune

Vanity of vanities, all is vanity.

The music box began to scatter its melodies abroad. To complete the sum of splendid attractions wherewith it presented itself to the public, there was a company of little figures, whose sphere and habitation was inside the music box, and whose principle of life was the music which the contraption made it its business to grind out.

In all their variety of occupation—the cobbler, the blacksmith, the soldier, the lady with her fan, the toper with his bottle, the milk-maid sitting by her cow—this fortunate little society might truly be said to enjoy a harmonious existence, and to make life literally a dance. You turned a crank; and, behold! every one of these small individuals started into the most curious vivacity.

The cobbler wrought upon a shoe; the blacksmith hammered his iron, the soldier waved his glittering blade; the lady raised a tiny breeze with her fan; the jolly toper swigged lustily at his bottle; a scholar opened his book with eager thirst for knowledge, and turned his head to and fro along the page; the milkmaid energetically drained her cow; and a miser counted gold into his strong-box—all at the same turning of a crank. Yes; and, moved by the self-same impulse, a lover saluted his mistress on her lips!

Possibly some cynic, at once merry and bitter, had desired to signify, in this pantomimic scene, that we mortals, whatever our business or amusement—however serious, however trifling—all dance to one identical tune, and, in spite of our ridiculous activity, bring nothing finally to pass. For the most remarkable aspect of the affair was, that, at the cessation of the music, everybody was petrified at once, from the most extravagant life into a dead torpor. Neither was the cobbler's shoe finished, nor the blacksmith's iron shaped out; nor was there a drop less of brandy in the toper's bottle, nor a drop more of milk in the milkmaid's pail, nor one additional coin in the miser's strong-box, nor was the scholar a page deeper in his book. All were precisely in the same condition as before they made themselves so ridiculous by their haste to toil, to enjoy, to accumulate gold, and to become wise.

Saddest of all, moreover, the lover was none the happier for the maiden's granted kiss! But, rather than swallow this last too acrid ingredient, we reject the whole moral of the show.

—Adapted from Nathaniel Hawthorne, House of the Seven Gables

Painting: Edgar Degas, Dancers in Pink

Composition 101

Random Thoughts, Great Ideas and the Elements of Style

The writing process, by any other name, is the series of steps that takes the writer from a goal to a collection of related ideas, to organized drafts and to a finished piece. If a term paper, an office memo or a blog post is your goal, the process is the same. The exercise is called “composition.”

Good writing has an aim, is structured and must be composed. The purpose, or aim, of a written piece can be any number of things. Some examples are: to instruct, to lay out an argument that persuades, to describe an experience, to flesh out a point of view or to tell a story. To begin writing, you need ideas.

Let’s Collect Our Thoughts. If we were paid for our thoughts, we’d all be millionaires. Our minds are either at work or wandering in aimless thought. It can take great effort to quiet the mind. Yogis spend years practicing meditation so they can still the mind and achieve a state of restful alertness.

It’s easy for us to imagine likely events in the life of the quarrelsome couple who was with us in line at the supermarket. We may have a vivid idea what our boss or spouse will say and do if we can’t keep the big appointment. We know firsthand the unbridled joy of a child’s laughter.

Maybe in some future time, a computer will be able to capture our thoughts, reduce them to writing and save them to a searchable database. This would be an invaluable service for writers. Unfortunately, we’re not there yet.

Let’s Distill Our Best Ideas. It’s a pity how often we dismiss a thought as trivial and unworthy of daylight only to admire the same thought when it falls from the lips of someone we respect. How often do we wonder in amazement to see a sliver of our own notion, or of our own experience, recounted in the writings of another?

Artists Compose. The task of a composer is to organize his ideas into a pleasing and self-sustaining whole, using the elements of his art. The painter is concerned with lines, shapes, figures, contrast and color. The composer of music is concerned with notes, chords, tempo, harmonies and melodies.

Writers also Compose. Most of us can recall a class or an assignment of English Composition. I don’t remember it being explained to me this way, but the goal of composition is to create a piece by organizing related parts.

The most basic unit in writing is an idea in the form of a sentence. A writer's ideas can take the form of facts, impressions, anecdotes and arguments. The writer begins with a list of related ideas, builds on a theme and sub-themes and organizes it into a framework.

Like the composer of music, the goal of the writer is to create a final piece that develops its theme harmoniously and can stand on its own merit.

I always had trouble with the self-sustaining part in elementary school. When asked why I didn’t mention a crucial point in an essay, my very serious reply was, “I thought the teacher knew that.”

The First Draft is Never a Masterpiece. Arriving at the final piece involves time and effort invested in rewriting. The first few drafts can always be improved. Grammar and usage may have to be corrected. Your story may need tweaking to evoke the right mood and to strike the proper emphasis. The argument may need to be restated and made to sound more convincing. You may need to clarify an important point that is glossed over. You may have to reorganize your thoughts so that a unifying theme stands out more clearly for the reader.

Follow Rules and Conventions. It is no coincidence that the most graceful ballerina will be found among those who have mastered the basics of their art. Don’t look at rules and conventions as stifling constraints; rather, use them to elevate your art form. Your talent will shine if you master the basics.

William Shakespeare used iambic pentameter to structure verses in his plays and sonnets. It elevated his art. No one suggests that his adherence to convention limited his art. And no one suggests that he used this meter as a crutch because he didn’t have enough talent.

Painting: Jean-Marc Nattier, Terpsichore, Muse of Music and Dance, Circa 1789

What has your experience with English Composition been like?