Dear Comrade:
In logic, we have two ways of reasoning, from the general to the
particular and from the particular to the general. In other words, we
may take a certain number of facts and reason to a conclusion; or we may
go the other way about and start with our conclusion and reason back to
the facts which produce the conclusion. Scientists use the former
method. They gather together all the facts which they possibly can and
from these facts they reach their conclusions.
This was what Karl Marx did for the social problems of his day. He
analyzed these problems. He gathered together all of the facts which he
could obtain concerning conditions of his day and from these facts he
reached certain conclusions. He foretold the rise of capitalism and
outlined present day conditions so perfectly that had he lived long ago
among superstitious people, they would probably have called him a
prophet.
This mastery of analysis, of marshaling our facts and from them reaching
conclusions, is a wonderful power to possess, and this is exactly what
we are doing in our English work. We are analyzing our sentences,
finding the elements of which they are composed, and then building the
sentence; and since neither the thought nor the sentence can be really
studied except in connection with each other, this analysis of sentences
gives us an understanding of the thought. The effort to analyze a
difficult sentence leads to a fuller appreciation of the meaning of the
sentence. This, in turn, cultivates accuracy in our own thought and in
its expression.
So do not slight the analysis of the sentence or this work in sentence
building. You will find it will help you to a quicker understanding of
that which you are reading and it will also give you a logical habit of
mind. You will be able to think more accurately and express yourself
more clearly. After a little practice in analysis you will find that in
your reading you will be able to grasp the author's meaning quickly. You
will see at a glance, without thinking about it consciously, the subject
and the predicate and the modifiers in the sentence. Then you will not
confuse the meaning. You will not have to go back and reread the passage
to find out just what the author was talking about; and when you come to
write and speak yourself, you will have formed the habit of logical
expression. In this way you will be able to put your thought in such a
manner that your listener can make no mistake as to just what you mean.
Now, no habit comes without practice. You cannot do a thing
unconsciously until you have done it consciously a great many times. So
practice this analysis of sentences over and over. It really is an
interesting game in itself, and the results which it will bring to you
are tremendously worth while.
Nothing is too much trouble which will give us the power to think for
ourselves and to put that thought into words.
Yours for Freedom,