Increasingly in today’s writing you see what is known as bureaucracy, the use of a dark and pedantic vocabulary. It can be found in government, corporate, and academic reports where it appears to be to impress rather than to inform. Pick any government report, corporation memorandum, or academic thesis and you will find this type of writing.
It would seem that this type of writing is intended more to confuse, confuse and avoid clear, concise and precise writing. Often referred to as “gibberish,” it rarely does little to clarify, illuminate, and elucidate the writer’s thoughts.
Maybe it’s not meant to.
If a writer wants to reach the best readers, they should stick to the simplest word, uncomplicated sentence, simple paragraph, and shortest composition to convey the idea, point, or action. Writing for the Internet has made this design more prevalent than ever because it is for the masses, the common reader, so it must be accurate, specific, and clear; Today’s readers don’t have time to figure out the bureaucracy.
As always, good writing is simple and clear; if a simple word can replace a dark word, it should be used; If a simple sentence can substitute for a compound-complex sentence, then it should; If a simple paragraph can supplant a complicated one, then it must. Verbiage and long sentences and paragraphs should be avoided.
The old adage “Keep it simple, stupid” should apply to all writing.