16-16
Suggestions for good writing
A group of school boys from poor farm families in Italy has written a powerful
book called Letter To A Teacher. * In this book, ihey point out that “the peasants
of Italy were left out when a school for them was being planned.” The boys state
their reasons for feeling that “school is a war against the poor.” They say the school
system often makes the children of the poor feel worthless, lazy, or stupid. These
Italian school boys join hands with the children of the world, saying:
“In Africa, in Asia,
in Latin America,
in southern Italy,
in the hills, in the
fields, even in the
cities, millions of
children are waiting
to be made equal.
Shy like me; stupid
like Sandro; lazy like
Gianni. The best of
humanity.”
These farm boys have taught themselves to write well, and in doing so have
found a strong means of self-defense. Their immediate goal is “to understand
others and to make oneself understood.” Their rules of good writing should be a
help to any group working on a news sheet or trying to develop writing skills.
RULES OF GOOD WRITING (by the school boys of Barbiana):
• Have something important to say,
something useful to everyone, or at
least to many.
• Know tor whom you are writing.
• Gather all useful materials.
• Find a logical pattern with which to
develop the theme.
• Eliminate every useless word.
• Eliminate every word not used in
the spoken language.
• Never set time limits.
Wrile with a
pencil and
eraser,
not a pen.