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1、Section 1 Correct Use of Sentences in Grammar:Avoiding Syntactical Faults1. Key to the Exercise1. Why is correct use of words in grammar important in writing? What are the common grammatical faults to be eliminated in cognitive writing?Find the answer(s) in the lecture.2. Comment on the use of sente
2、nce fragments in the following paragraphs from the sample text.The sentence in the first paragraph of the sample text has been revised by the compiler. The original one runs like this：Drury University has a wide array of talented staff members, but many students may be unaware that there is one teac
3、her, Dr. Carlyle Sharpe, both an accomplished musician and a published composer.The subordinate clause “one teacher, Dr. Carlyle Sharpe, both an accomplished musician and a published composer” is a fragment one that lacks a verb “there is” and an attributive clause modifying “one”，thus seriously aff
4、ecting the clarity of the meaning of the sentence.The first sentence in the fourth paragraph is a typical sentence fragment. It may add some but very slight emphasis to the expression of ideas. In a piece of cognitive writing like this, a complete sentence here will be clearer in meaning and more na
5、tural in speech flow.3. Revise the following comma splices and fused sentences.1) Many places are inflicted by natural disasters in this country. This has caused great food problem for the people.2) I forgot to take an umbrella with me, so Ive got great trouble in the rains.3) It is very easy to ope
6、rate, and you dont have to trouble the others.4) Throughout history different nationalities in the country have been living in harmony. There was little conflict between them.5) The head of state and the religious leader were often the same person so that all power rested in one ruler.6) I have rece
7、ived your good news, and I am very happy.4. Revise the following run-on sentence in five possible ways: separate the clauses with a period, join the clauses with a semicolon, use a semicolonIn fact, you can improve your writing quite a bit by paying attention to basic problems like misplaced modifie
8、rs and dangling modifiers.Misplaced WordsIn general, you should place single-word modifiers near the word or words they modify, especially when a reader might think that they modify something different in the sentence. Consider the following sentence:WRONG After our conversation lessons, we could un
9、derstand the Spanish spoken by our visitors from Madrid easily.Do we understand the Spanish easily, or do the visitors speak it easily? This revision eliminates the confusion:RIGHT We could easily understand the Spanish spoken by our visitors from Madrid.It is particularly important to be careful ab
10、out where you put limiting modifiers. These are words like “almost,” “hardly,” “nearly,” “just,” “only,” “merely,“ and so on. Many writers regularly misplace these modifiers. You can accidentally change the entire meaning of a sentence if you place these modifiers next to the wrong word:WRONG Randy
11、has nearly annoyed every professor he has had. (he hasnt nearly annoyed them)WRONG We almost ate all of the Thanksgiving turkey, (we didnt almost eat” it)RIGHT Randy has annoyed nearly every professor he has had.RIGHT We ate almost all of the Thanksgiving turkey.Misplaced Phrases and ClausesIt is im
12、portant that you place the modifying phrase or clause as close as possible to the word or words it modifies:WRONG By accident, he poked the little girl with his finger in the eye.WRONG I heard that my roommate intended to throw a surprise party for me while I was outside her bedroom window.WRONG Aft
13、er the wedding, Ian told us at his stag party that he would start behaving like a responsible adult.RIGHT By accident, he poked the little girl in the eye with his finger.RIGHT While I was outside her bedroom window, I heard that my roommate intended to throw a surprise party for me.RIGHT Ian told u
14、s at his stag party that he would start behaving like a responsible adult after the wedding.Squinting ModifiersA squinting modifier is an ambiguously placed modifier that can modify either the word before it or the word after it. In other words, it is “squintingn in both directions at the same time:
15、WRONG Defining your terms clearly strengthens your argument. (does defining clearly strengthen or does defining clearly strengthen?)RIGHT Defining your terms will clearly strengthen your argument. OR A clear definition of your terms strengthens your argument.Split InfinitivesThe infinitive form of t
16、he verb consists of the word to” followed by the base form of the verb: C6to be,“ “to serve,” “to chop J etc. Inserting a word or words between the to and the verb of an infinitive creates what is known as a split infinitive. Prescriptive grammarians, who knew Latin grammar better than English, once
17、 decreed that a split infinitive was an error, but now it is growing increasingly acceptable even in formal writing. Nevertheless, some careful writers still prefer to avoid splitting infinitives altogether.In general, you should avoid placing long, disruptive modifiers between the “to and the verb
18、of an infinitive. However, you must use your judgment when it comes to single-word modifiers. Sometimes a sentence becomes awkward if a single-word modifier is placed anywhere but between the elements of the infinitive:WRONG The marketing team voted to, before they launched the new software, run an
19、anticipatory ad campaign. (disruptive - the infinitive should not be split)RIGHT The marketing team voted to run an anticipatory ad campaign before they launched the new software.Dangling ModifiersThe dangling modifier, a persistent and frequent grammatical problem in writing, is often (though not a
20、lways) located at the beginning of a sentence. A dangling modifier is usually a phrase or an elliptical clause a dependent clause whose subject and verb are implied rather than expressed - that functions as an adjective but does not modify any specific word in the sentence, or (worse) modifies the w
21、rong word. Consider the following example:Raised in Nova Scotia, it is natural to miss the smell of the sea.The introductory phrase in the above sentence looks as if it is meant to modify a person or persons, but no one is mentioned in the sentence. Such introductory adjective phrase, because of the
22、ir position, automatically modify the first noun or pronoun that follows the phrase in this case, it. The connection in this case is illogical because “it” was not raised in Nova Scotia. You could revise the sentence in a number of ways:For a person raised in Nova Scotia, it is natural to miss the s
23、mell of the sea. (the phrase no longer functions as an adjective)Raised in Nova Scotia, I often miss the smell of the sea. (the phrase functions as an adjective but now automatically modifies I, a logical connection)A dangling modifier can also appear when you place an elliptical clause improperly:A
24、lthough nearly finished, we left the play early because we were worried about our sick cat.The way this sentence is structured, the clause Although nearly finished” illogically modifies “we, the pronoun directly following the clause. An easy way to rectify the problem is to re-insert the subject and
25、 verb that are understood in the elliptical clause:Although the play was nearly finished, we left early because we were worried about our sick cat.2. Guide 2Dangling Modifiersby Lee Masterson“Having been thrown into the air, the dog caught the ball.”The only real way to describe a dangling modifier
26、is to show you a really exaggerated example, like the one above. Im sure the writer of this sentence did not mean that the dog was thrown into the air, but to a reader the meaning is not immediately clear.In this sentence, the subject (the dog) is the doer of the main clause - or action - (caught th
27、e ball). In the modifing part of this sentence having been thrown into the air) the doer of the main clause is not clearly stated. It does not directly relate to the subject of the main clause, and so, it would be considered a dangling modifier.Revision 1: When the ball was thrown into the air, the
28、dog caught it.The modifying phrase is now a dependant clause. The meaning is clear.Revision 2: The dog caught the ball that had been thrown into the air.Now the phrase and main clause have been turned into a simple sentence.What is a Dangling Modifier?A modifier is a word or phrase that describes, c
29、larifies, or gives more detail about something else. It is usually placed as closely as possible to what it describes.A dangling modifier is a phrase or clause that modifies a word not clearly stated in the sentence, or that does not connect grammatically with what it is intended to modify.Many dang
30、ling modifiers occur at the beginning of sentences - often as introductory clauses or phrases, but can also appear at the end.In English sentences, the doer must be the subject of the main clause that follows.Dangling Modifiers at the Beginning of SentencesExample 1: Having finished eating, the dog
31、stalked out the door.vHaving finished states an action, but does not name the doer of that action. In this example, the dog is logically the subject doing the action of stalking out the door, so this sentence does not have a dangling modifier.Always try to find the first noun following the modifier.
32、 In this example, the dog is the first noun to follow the modifier. As the two logically fit together, a reader will be able to easily discern the meaning of this sentence.Example 2: After eating the dog chow, the bowl was empty.f,The subject of the main clause here - the bowl - did not eat the dog
33、chow, so this sentence has a dangling modifier.A possible revision for this sentence could be: After eating the dog chow, the dog saw that the bowl was emptyThe doer of the action is now the dog and the modifier makes sense.Another possible revision could be: The dog ate the dog chow and the bowl wa
34、s then empty：Dangling Modifiers at the End of SentencesExample: The closet was empty, having packed everything into the suitcase.The closet - the subject of the main clause - is not supposed to have put anything in the suitcase.To revise this sentence, name the appropriate or logical doer of the act
35、ion as the subject of the main clause. In this example, the closet is the subject. Then, change the phrase that dangles into a complete introductory clause by naming the doer of the action in that clause.Possible Revision: Aydan emptied the closet, having packed everything into the suitcaseI admit t
36、his sentence does sound a little awkward, but it is technically coiTect. Lets combine the phrase and main clause into one.Possible Revision: uAydan emptied the contents of his closet into the suitcase.Spotting a Dangling Modifier1. Check your sentences to see if you have inserted any modifying phras
37、es.2. If you find one, pinpoint ihe first noun that follows. This will be the noun that is being modified.3. Make sure the modifier and noun go together *logically*. If they dont, chances are you have a dangling modifier4. Revise the sentenceUsing the guide above, can you tell whether the following
38、example has a dangling modifier?Example:(iHaving jumped up into the air too late to catch it, the ball fell to the ground.vRevising a Dangling ModifierL Name the appropriate or logical doer of the action. The doer will be the subject of the main clause.2. Change the phrase that dangles into a comple
39、te introductory clause by naming the doer of the action in that clause.3. Combine the phrase and main clause into one.Now we have some ways to amend the above example, lets take another look at it.aHaving jumped up into the air too late to catch it, the ball fell to the ground.This sentence says tha
40、t the ball jumped up too late to catch it. To revise this sentence, decide who actually jumped up into the air.Revision 1: Having jumped up into the air too late to catch it, the dog let the ball fall to the ground.The main clause now identifies the person (the dog) who did the action in the modifyi
41、ng phrase (jumped up).Revision 2: The dog jumped into the air too late to catch the ball and he let it fall to the ground.The phrase and main clause have now been merged into one.3. Guide (3)Comma-splices/fused sentences(run-ons)Big Dogs GrammarHere youre going to need to know something about clause
42、s, since comma-splices and fused sentences deal with two clauses that are incorrectly punctuated. (Some people call them run-ons.) Look at the following:1. I leave muddy paw prints on the kitchen floor I get in trouble.2. I leave muddy paw prints on the kitchen floor, I get in trouble.Neither of the
43、se is correct. The first runs two main clauses together without any kind of punctuation. This is a fused sentence. The second joins two main clauses together with only a comma. This is a comma-splice. Both will get your instructors attention!Whats the problem? Each main clause expresses a complete t
44、hought. If you run two or more complete thoughts together without the right punctuation, they tend to blur. And the whole idea behind any kind of communication is to get your point across clearly, right? Anything that takes away from that should be avoided.Whats the solution? Dont do it! How you Don
45、 7 do it! is really pretty easy, since there are four ways to get rid of comma-splices or fused sentences. Find the problem clauses and separate them with a period (.).I leave muddy paw prints on the kitchen floor. I get in trouble. join them with a coordinating conjunction.I leave muddy paw prints
46、on the kitchen floor, and I get in trouble. separate them with a semicolon (;).I leave muddy paw prints on the kitchen floor; I get in trouble. subordinate one clause.When I leave muddy paw prints on the kitchen floor, I get in trouble.Which is best? Theyre all correct, so the choice is up to you. J
47、ust decide which way sounds the best with the rest of the sentences around the problem.Thats all you need to know about comma-splices and fused sentences.4. Guide (4)Avoiding Comma Splices, Fused Sentences,and Run-OnsComma splices, used sentences, and run-ons occur because two complete sentences (in
48、dependent clauses) are joined incorrectly.Comma spliceComma splices are two complete sentences that are joined with only a comma.Many income tax forms provide a space for indicating contributions to tne wildlife fundthis generates revenue for preserving our natural resourcesFused sentenceFused sentences are two sentences joined together with nothing between them.The construction of the new library will be finished on June 29ththen the downtown renovation will be completeRun-onRumons