Succor: Parallel Structure (my Authors Incognito September Newsletter Writing Tip)

Reading is to the mind what exercise is to the body. ---Joseph Addison

Addison's memorable phrase is an introductory example of parallelism. Parallelism is writing a grammatical pattern where two or more words, phrases, clauses, or ideas are grammatically matched. For example, the first phrase, “reading is to the mind”, matches the grammatical structure of the second phrase, “exercise is to the body”.

The following paragraph is a sophisticated example of the effective use of parallelism. It is taken from an editorial by Maureen Dowd preceding a speech given by President George W. Bush on September 7, 2003. Highlighting guides the eye:

Tonight will be a stomach-churning moment for Mr. Bush, and he must be puzzling over how he got snarled in this nightmare, with Old Europe making him beg, North Korea making him wince, the deficit making him cringe, the lost manufacturing jobs making him gulp; with the hawks caving in to the U.N. and to old Saddam Baath army members who want to rebuild a security force; with Representative David Obey demanding the unilateral heads of Rummy and Wolfie, so that “Uncle Sam doesn't become Uncle Sucker”; with the FBI warning that more Islamic terrorists who know how to fly planes may be burrowing into our neighborhoods.

First, the highlighted words add clarity and rhythm to the paragraph. Second, they make two or more ideas equal in importance.

Parallel patterns make it easier for the reader to follow the writer's lead. A command pattern, such as the simple list below, is one method of keeping the reader's attention:

Get Up
Get Dressed
Wash Your Face
Eat Breakfast

However, if 'Wash Your Face' changes to 'Washing Your Face is Required for Clear Skin', that signals a pattern change to the reader. This shift in structure could distract the reader and cause a misunderstanding in meaning.

Another example, written by an author whose name I could not locate, occurs when some sentences end with a set of prepositional phrases or phrases:

I see it now – the wide sweep of the bay, the glittering sands, the wealth of green infinite and varied, the sea blue like the sea of a dream, the crowd of attentive faces, the blaze of vivid colour – the water reflecting it all, the curve of the shore, the jetty, the high-sterned outlandish craft floating still, and the three boats with the tired men from the West sleeping, unconscious of the land and the people and of the violence of sunshine.

And we all nodded at him; the man of finance, the man of accounts, the man of law, we all nodded at him over the polished table that like a still sheet of brown water reflected our faces, lined, wrinkled; our faces marked by toil, by deceptions, by success, by love; our weary eyes looking still, looking always, looking anxiously for something out of life, that while it is expected is already gone—has passed unseen, in a sigh, in a flash—together with the youth, with the strength, with the romance of illusions.

The following examples show parallel and non parallel structuring. Highlighting guides:
Parallel:
Nichole drives her car skillfully, safely, and defensively.
Not Parallel:
Nichole drives her car skillfully, safely, and in a defensive manner.

Parallel (Clauses):
Christine expected that she would present her manuscript to her agent, that she would have time to show her trailer, and that the agent would answer her questions.
Not Parallel:
Christine expected that she would present her manuscript to her agent, that she would have time to show her trailer, and that all her questions would be answered by her agent.

Parallel (After a colon):
AI can be useful for the following reasons: to gain information, voice preferences, make announcements, and build friendships.
Not Parallel:
AI can be useful for the following reasons: to gain information, voice preferences, make announcements, and for building new friendships.

Graceful writing is a goal worth pursuing. Parallelism can help. As noted in the following sentence, parallelism can make writing memorable:

Ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country. --John F. Kennedy