I see manuscripts and books that are spoiled for the literary reader because they are one long stream of top-of-the-head writing, a writer telling a story without concern for precision or freshness in the use of language. Some of this storytelling reads as if it were spoken rather than written, stuffed with tired images that pop into the writer's head because they are so familiar. The top of the head is fit for growing hair, but not for generating fine prose.
Interpretation
This quote emphasizes the importance of precision in writing and the avoidance of clichéd expressions.
Sol Stein critiques the quality of writing that lacks thoughtfulness and originality, suggesting that successful prose requires more than just spontaneous ideas. He argues that good writing should avoid tired clichés and strive for fresh, precise language that engages the reader more effectively, rather than merely rambling in a casual, unrefined manner.
In practice
This quote can be used in a writing workshop to encourage participants to focus on originality.
A treatment method or an educational method that will work for one child may not work for another child. The one common denominator for all of the young children is that early intervention does work, and it seems to improve the prognosis.
Working with children is the easiest part of educating for democracy, because children are still undefeated and have no stake in being prejudiced.
One of the biggest complaints readers have about my work is that I don't tell them often enough what they can do. I do think this is an area where journalism sometimes falls short. We describe a really grim situation but don't really explain to people what they can do about it.
I read a lot, I write a lot, and I have conversations with people I think are intelligent and wise.
To go back and read Swift and Defoe and Samuel Johnson and Smollett and Pope - all those people we had to read in college English courses - to read them now is to have one of the infinite pleasures in life.
Today, the fundamental global objective of all education aspiring not only to progress but to the survival of humanity is to Civilize and Unify the Earth and Transform the human species into genuine humanity The education of the future should teach an ethics of planetary understanding.
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