This thoughtful, epigrammatic book by a scholar at Saint Mary’s College of California encourages us all to write not simply to communicate with others but to shape ourselves. “Writing changes us,” writes Arndt, author of Arendt on the Political (2019). “In a way, it is similar to practices such as athletics for the body or meditation for the mind: just as the practice of physical exercise changes the body, so the practice of writing changes the soul.” This book goads us into writing well: not just by developing a style but by considering the very ethics of our work, our needs, and our responsibilities to be true and honest to ourselves and others. Marcel Proust offers one guide: We should not “model writing on conversation but on solitary meditation,” Arndt writes. Good writing leads to wisdom: The order of words in the sentence, the structure of the paragraph, and the arc of the essay all contribute to a form of knowing. The first sentence should arrest attention. Rousseau: “Man is born free, and everywhere he is in chains.” There’s high philosophy here, and there’s blunt advice: “Don’t futz around.” Be concise. Organize your argument. Find the right word. In the end, writing well is about conveying truth beautifully, to “effect some sort of good.” Read this book and you’ll never think of freshman composition in the same way again.
