I finally got around to reading this instructive book "Clear and Simple as the Truth" by Thomas and Turner. It mentions eight different styles of writing: 1) Practical : delivers information with minimal distraction; it assumes the reader shares some knowledge that the writer is trying to convey. 2) Plain : This is a scaled-down version of classic style, without ornamentation. 3) Classic: what you describe above. The writer assumes he/she has full knowledge and is forcefully leading the reader to an inevitable conclusion. 4) Contemplative : The writer presents an experience first and then provides an interpretation. The reader is being pursuaded as he/she is led through various arguments. 5) Romantic : The writer is presenting his own unvarnished experience - a mixture of thought, sensation and emotion. There is no intent to present the truth. It is akin to poetry. 6) Prophetic : The reader is being made to believe in the writer's pronouncements and has no way to make an independent verification. 7) Oratorical : The intent is to unite readers who share some similar experiences. 8) (Self-)Reflexive : The writer mixes his/her own personal experience with the topic which is being described. Interestingly enough, the book mentions that it was Green and Latin writers who developed the contemplative style and as we know, Sri Aurobindo was proficient in both languages. Coming to the topic at hand, we can say that Sri Aurobindo was describing a certain philosophy of life and the best style for this purpose would have been contemplative. It follows that this style would require periodic sentences, or some variation thereof, to convince the reader using "rational persuasion". This may provide some justification from the literary perspective and one could add, from the Yogic standpoint, that Sri Aurobindo had reached the point where speech and idea were unified and therefore, all writing poured down from above the mind. In the ordinary mind, by contrast, speech comes after thought. This is where we can refer to the theory of Vak. I suppose if one were writing a biography, this would have been the proper way to "critique" Sri Aurobindo's writing style.