In the last few weeks of my senior year AP Literature class, my teacher, Ms. Goodman, talked for 40 minutes a day about how much she hated the passive voice. She went on and on about how students don’t understand the importance of the active voice and how the use of the active voice can strengthen both an argument and a writer’s voice overall.
Ms. Goodman, if you’re reading this for some reason, don’t read this paragraph. The whole lesson seemed unnecessary. I was a good writer. I received A’s in English my entire life without giving this “passive voice” a second thought. I didn’t get it, I was bored, I didn’t understand why I had to read anything by Tolstoy at age seventeen (unrelated, but I really didn’t), and I just wanted to graduate.
(You can start reading again, Ms. Goodman.) As I read Dr. McCoy’s suggestions to improve my most recent essay, my high school English teacher’s weeks of rants echoed in my mind. Suddenly, it clicked. I was finally, finally able to fully realize how important it is to write in an active voice. I could almost hear a sigh of relief coming all the way from Long Island.
The passive voice, which, as mentioned in class, can be explained with the example “Walker is saying” leads to wordiness – a lack of conciseness that makes a piece especially challenging to follow. Instead of using the phrase “Walker is saying,” one can use “Walker says,” or “Walker questions,” or “Walker claims.” Taking out passive state of being verbs does not only lead to cutting out a word or two, but, honestly, sounds smarter.
As an English major and a lover of the English language, my written voice is very important to me. I want to make sure I’m consistently putting my best foot forward in my writing and the way I am communicating with my readers. If working with the active voice and avoiding the passive voice at all costs will bring strength to my argument and my writing (and I’ve seen that happen), I know that I need to put as much time and energy as I can into developing my understanding of the active voice.
While my road to using the active voice will definitely be a journey and a learning experience, I understand now that active voice is an essential part of being a good writer and communicating in the most effective, accessible way.
Also, I’m very grateful that I had to read Tolstoy. Anna Karenina was so great.
Elaine,
This is was a funny, well-written post. I can really identify with what you’re saying, especially that grind of AP Lit. senior year. In regards to the passive voice, I really felt the same way. Thanks for articulating it so nicely.
Last semester, when I had my first McCoy-edited essay, she mentioned the passive voice and other wordiness to me, as well. I had a similar watershed moment, and have been working on eliminating that wordiness ever since. It is difficult. I catch myself sometimes, but not as much as I’d like. One big problem for me is that when we speak, those little words mean something. For example, I almost wrote (right above here), “I do catch myself sometimes, but….” To me, that little emphasis makes sense, yet it’s seen as too wordy. As a language nerd, I really appreciate the nuance the passive voice can give. Making someone the agent or subject of a sentence is a little game to me, because it can drastically change a phrase. Alas, I’m getting over myself. Refining a voice is tricky, and it’s good to see someone thinking in a similar vein.