Meeting an old friend
Meeting a bore
A conversation you have overheard
When Myrtle eavesdropped
When the girls didn't know Algy was in the parlor
A public happening that interests you
An incident you have read in the papers
An incident from your favorite novel
Backward Ben at the party
Something that happened to you today.

9. Describe ...

For the mood or general "atmosphere":

Anything you deem suitable in Activity 8 in EXERCISE - Connotation.
An old, deserted house
Your birthplace as you saw it in manhood
The view from an eminence
A city as seen from a roof garden by night
Your mother's Bible
A barnyard scene
The lonely old negro at the supper table
A new immigrant gazing out upon the ocean he has crossed
The downtown section at closing hour
A scene of quietude
A scene of bustle and confusion
A richly colored scene
A scene of dejection
A scene of wild enthusiasm
A scene of dulness or stagnation.

With attention to homely detail:

The old living-room
My aunt's dresses
Barker's riding-horse
The business street of the village
A cabin in the mountains
The office of a man approaching bankruptcy
The Potters' backyard
The second-hand store
The ugliest man.

For general accuracy and vividness:

The organ-grinder
The signs of an approaching storm
The arrival of the train
Mail-time at the village post office
The crowd at the auction
The old fishing-boat
A country fair (or a circus)
The inside of a theater (or a church)
The funeral procession
The political rally
The choir.

<4. Mastery through Adapting Discourse to Audience>

For convenience, we have heretofore assumed that ideas and emotions,
together with such expression of them as shall be in itself adequate and
faithful, comprise the sole elements that have to be reckoned with in the
use of words in combination. But as you go out into life you will find
that these things, however complete they may seem, are not in practice
sufficient. Another factor--the human--must have its place in our
equation. You do not speak or write in a vacuum. Your object, your
ultimate object at least, in building up your vocabulary is to address men
and women; and among men and women the varieties of training, of stations,
of outlooks, of sentiments, of prejudices, of caprices are infinite. To
gain an unbiased hearing you must take persistent cognizance of flesh and
blood.

In adapting discourse to audience you must have a supple and attentive
mind and an im