author
Marian Wharton
A teacher, editor, and activist, she wrote with the goal of making language useful to ordinary people. Her best-known work, Plain English, turns grammar and style into practical tools for workers and beginning students.
1 Audiobook
Plain English
by Marian Wharton
About the author
Born in 1877, Marian Wharton was an American writer and educator whose work was closely tied to socialist and working-class education. She helped lead the People's College in Fort Scott, Kansas, serving on its advisory board and editing its newsletter, and she played a role in shaping the school's English curriculum.
Her best-known book, Plain English (1917), was created for the education of workers and presented writing as something clear, practical, and empowering rather than overly formal. The book was published by the People's College and was aimed especially at readers without easy access to traditional higher education.
Wharton died in 1954. Though not widely known today, her writing stands out for its belief that strong communication belongs to everyone, not just specialists or elites.