Composition Rhetoric by Stratton D. Brooks
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Stratton D. Brooks >> Composition Rhetoric
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near nearer { nearest
{ next
old { older { oldest
{ elder { eldest
The following words are used as adverbs or prepositions in the positive
degree, and as _adjectives_ in the other two degrees:--
(forth) further furthest
(in) inner { innermost
{ inmost
(out) { outer { outermost
{ utter { utmost
{ uttermost
(up) upper { upmost
{ uppermost
+48. Cautions concerning the Use of Adjectives.+
1. When two or more adjectives modify the same noun, the article is
placed only before the first, unless emphasis is desired: [He is an
industrious, faithful pupil].
2. If the adjectives refer to different things, the article should be
repeated before each adjective: [She has a white and a blue dress].
3. When two or more nouns are in apposition, the article is placed only
before the first: [I received a telegram from Mr. Richards, _the_ broker
and real estate agent].
4. _This, these, that_, and _those_ must agree in number with the noun
they modify: [_This kind_ of flowers; _those sorts_ of seeds].
5. When but two things are compared, the comparative degree is used:
[This is the more complete of the two].
6. When _than_ is used after a comparative, whatever is compared should
be excluded from the class with which it is compared: [I like this house
better than any other house; not, I like this house better than any
house].
7. Do not use _a_ after _kind of, sort of_, etc.: [What kind of man is
he? (not, What kind of _a_ man)]. _One_ man does not constitute a class
consisting of many kinds.
+49. Constructions of Adjectives.+--Adjectives that merely describe or
limit are said to be _attributive_ in construction. When the adjective
limits or describes, and, at the same time, adds to the predicate, it is
called a _predicate adjective_.Predicate adjectives may be used either as
attribute or objective complements: [The sea is _rough_ to-day (attribute
complement), He painted the boat _green_ (objective complement)].
+50. Equivalents for Adjectives.+--The following are used as equivalents
for the typical adjective:--
1. A noun used in apposition: [Barrie's story of his mother, "_Margaret
Ogilvy_," is very beautiful].
2. A noun used as an adjective: [A _campaign_ song].
3. A prepositional phrase: [His little, nameless, unremember'd acts _of
kindness_ and _of love_].
4. Participles or participial phrases: [We saw a brook _running_ between
the alders. Soldiers _hired to serve a foreign country_ are called
mercenaries].
5. Relative clauses: [This is the house _that Jack built_].
6. An adverb (sometimes called the _locative_ adjective): [The book _here_
is the one I want].
VERBS
+51. Uses of Verbs.+--A _verb_ is the word or word-group that makes an
assertion or statement, and it is therefore the most important part of the
whole sentence. It has been already shown that such a verb as _speaks_
serves the double purpose of suggesting an activity and showing relation.
The most purely _relational_ verb is the verb _to be_, which is called the
_copula_ or _linking verb_, for the very reason that it joins predicate
words to the subject: [The lake _is_ beautiful]. _To be_, however, is not
always a pure _copula_. In such a sentence as, "He that cometh to God must
believe that He _is_," the word _is_ means _exists_.Verbs that are like
the copula, such as, _appear, become, seem_, etc., are called _copulative_
verbs. Verbs that not only are relational but have descriptive power, such
as _sings, plays, runs_, etc., are called _attributive_ verbs. They
attribute some quality or characteristic to the subject.
+52. Classes of Verbs.+--According to their uses in a sentence verbs are
divided into two classes: _transitive_ and _intransitive_.
A _transitive_ verb is one that takes a following substantive, expressed
or implied, called the _object_, to designate the receiver or the product
of the action: [They seized the _city_. They built a _city_]. The
transitive verb may sometimes be used _absolutely_:[The horse eats]. Here
the object is implied.
An _intransitive_ verb is one that does not take an object to complete its
meaning; or, in other words, an intransitive verb is one that denotes an
action, state, or feeling that involves the subject only: [He ran away.
They were standing at the water's edge].
A few verbs in our language are always transitive, and a few others are
always intransitive. The verbs _lie_ and _lay, rise_ and _raise, sit_ and
_set_, are so frequently misused that attention is here called to them.
The verbs _lie, rise_, and _sit_ (usually) are intransitive in meaning,
while the verbs _lay, raise_, and _set_ are transitive. The word _sit_ may
sometimes take a reflexive object: [They sat _themselves_ down to rest].
The majority of verbs in our language are either transitive or
intransitive, according to the sense in which they are used.
[The fire _burns_ merrily (intransitive).
The fire _burned_ the building (transitive).
The bird _flew_ swiftly (intransitive).
The boy _flew_ his kite (transitive).]
Some intransitive verbs take what is known as a _cognate object_: [He died
a noble _death_.] Here the object repeats the meaning of the verb.
+53. Complete and Incomplete Verbs.+--Some intransitive verbs make a
complete assertion or statement without the aid of any other words. Such
verbs are said to be of _complete predication_: [The snow melts].
All transitive verbs and some intransitive verbs require one or more words
to complete the meaning of the predicate. Such verbs are said to be
incomplete. Whatever is added to complete the meaning of the predicate is
termed a _complement_. The complement of a transitive verb is called the
_object complement_, or simply the _object_: [She found the _book_].
Some transitive verbs, from the nature of their meaning, take also an
_indirect_ object: [I gave _her_ the book]. When a word belonging to
the subject is added to an intransitive verb in order to complete the
predicate, it is termed an _attribute complement_. This complement may be
either a noun or an adjective: [He is our _treasurer_ (noun). This rose is
_fragrant_ (adjective)]. Among the incomplete intransitive verbs the most
conspicuous are the copula and the copulative verbs.
+54. Auxiliary Verbs.+--English verbs have so few changes of form to
express differences in meaning that it is often necessary to use the
so-called _auxiliary_ verbs. The most common are: _do, be, have, may,
must, might, can, shall, will, should, would, could_, and _ought_. Some of
these may be used as principal verbs. A few notes and cautions are added.
_Can_ is used to denote the ability of the subject.
_May_ is used to denote permission, possibility, purpose, or desire. Thus
the request for permission should be, "May I?" not "Can I?"
_Must_ indicates necessity.
_Ought_ expresses obligation.
_Had_ should never be used with _ought_. To express a moral obligation in
past time, combine _ought_ with the perfect infinitive: [I ought _to have
done_ it].
_Should_ sometimes expresses duty: [You should not go].
_Would_ sometimes denotes a custom: [He would sit there for hours].
Sometimes it expresses a wish: [Would he were here!]. For other uses of
_should_ and _would_, see Appendix 60.
+55. Principal Parts.+--The main forms of the verb--so important as to be
called the _principal parts_ because the other parts are formed from them--
are the _root infinitive_, the _preterite_ (_past_) _indicative_, and the
_past participle_ [move, moved, moved; sing, sang, sung; be, was, been].
The _present_ participle is sometimes given with the principal parts.
+56. Inflection.+--As is evident from the preceding paragraph, verbs have
certain changes of form to indicate change of meaning. Such a change or
_inflection_, in the case of the noun, is called _declension;_ in the
case of the verb it is called _conjugation_. Nouns are _declined_; verbs
are _conjugated_.
+57. Person and Number.+--In Latin, or any other highly inflected
language, there are many terminations to indicate differences in person
and number, but in English there is but one in common use, _s_ in the
third person singular: [_He runs_], _St_ or _est_ is used after _thou_ in
the second person singular: [_Thou lovest_].
+58. Agreement.+--Verbs must agree with their subjects in
person and number. The following suggestions concerning
agreement may be helpful:--
1. A compound subject that expresses a single idea takes a singular verb:
[Bread and milk _is_ wholesome food].
2. When the members of a compound subject, connected by _neither ... nor_,
differ as regards person and number, the verb should agree with the nearer
of the two: [Neither they nor I _am_ to blame].
3. When the subject consists of singular nouns or pronouns connected by
_or, either ... or, neither ... nor_, the verb is singular: [Either this
book or that _is_ mine].
4. Words joined to the subject by _with, together with, as well as_, etc.,
do not affect the number of the verb. The same is true of any modifier of
the subject: [John, as well as the girls, _is_ playing house. One of my
books _is_ lying on the table. Neither of us _is_ to blame].
5. When the article _the_ precedes the word _number_, used as a subject,
the verb should be in the singular; otherwise the verb is plural: [_The_
number of pupils in our schools _is_ on the increase. _A_ number of
children _have_ been playing in the sand pile].
6. The pronoun _you_ always takes a plural verb, even if its meaning is
singular: [You _were_ here yesterday].
7. A collective noun takes a singular or plural verb, according as the
collection is thought of as a whole or as composed of individuals.
+59. Tense.+--The power of the verb to show differences of time is called
_tense_. Tense shows also the completeness or incompleteness of an act or
condition at the time of speaking. There are three _primary_ tenses:
_present, preterite_ (_past_), and _future_; and three _secondary_ tenses
for completed action:_present perfect, past perfect_ (_pluperfect_), and
_future perfect_.
English has only two simple tenses, the present and the preterite: _I
love, I loved_. All other tenses are formed by the use of the auxiliary
verbs. By combining the present and past tenses of _will, shall, have,
be_, or _do_ with those parts of the verb known as infinitives and
participles, the various tenses of the complete conjugation of the verb
are built up. The formation of the _preterite_ tense, and the consequent
division of verbs into _strong_ and _weak_, will be discussed later.
+60. The Future Tense.+--The future tense is formed by combining _shall_
or _will_ with the root infinitive, without _to_.
The correct form of the _future tense_ in assertions is here given:--
SINGULAR PLURAL
1. I shall fall 1. We shall fall
2. Thou wilt fall 2. You will fall
3. He will fall 3. They will fall
_Will_, in the _first_ person, denotes not simple futurity, but
determination: [I will (= am determined to) go].
_Shall_, in the _second_ and _third_ persons, is not simply the sign of
the future tense in declarative sentences. It is used to denote the
determination of the speaker with reference to others.
Notice:--
1. In clauses introduced by _that_, expressed or understood, if the noun
clause and the principal clause have _different_ subjects, the same
auxiliary is used that would be used were the subordinate clause used
independently: [I fear we _shall_ be late. My friend is determined that
her son _shall_ not be left alone].
2. In all other subordinate clauses, _shall_, for all persons, denotes
simple futurity; _will_, an expression of willingness or determination:
[He thinks that he _shall_ be there. He promises that he _will_ be there].
3. In questions, _shall_ is always used in the first person; in the second
and third persons the same auxiliary is used which is expected in the
answer.
(NOTE.--_Should_ and _would_ follow the rules for _shall_ and _will_.)
+61. Tenses for the Completed Action.+
1. To represent an action as completed at the _present_ time, the past
participle is used with _have_ (_hast, has_). This forms the _present
perfect_ tense: [I _have finished_].
2. To represent an action as completed in _past_ time, the past participle
is combined with _had_ (_hadst_). This forms the _past perfect_, or
_pluperfect_, tense: [I _had finished_].
3. To represent action that will be completed _in future_ time, _shall
have_ or _will have_ is combined with the past participle. This forms the
_future perfect_ tense: [I _shall have finished_].
+62. Sequence of Tenses.+--It is, in general, true that the tense of a
subordinate clause changes when the tense of the main verb changes. This
is known as the Law of the Sequence (or _following_) of Tenses: [I know he
means well. I knew he meant well].
The verb in the main clause and the verb in the subordinate clause are not
necessarily in the same tense.
[I think he _is_ there. I thought he was there.
I think he _was_ there. I thought he had been there.
I think he _will be_ there. I thought he would be there.]
In general, the principle may be laid down that in a complex sentence the
tense for both principal and subordinate clauses is that which the sense
requires.
General truths and present facts should be expressed in the
present tense, whatever the tense of the principal verb: [He
believed that truth _is_ unchangeable. Who did you say _is_ president
of your society?].
The _perfect infinitive_ is used to denote action completed at
the time of the main verb: [I am sorry _to have wounded_ you].
+63. Mode.+--A statement may be regarded as the expression of a fact, of a
doubt or supposition, or of a command. The power of the verb to show how
an action should be regarded is called _mode (mood_). In our language
there is but a slight change of form for this purpose. The distinction of
mode which we must make is a distinction that has regard to the thought or
attitude of mind of the speaker rather than to the form of the verb.
The _indicative_ mode is used to state a fact or to ask questions of fact:
[I shall write a letter. Shall I write a letter?].
The _subjunctive_ mode indicates uncertainty, unreality, and some forms of
condition: [If she were here, I should be glad].
The _imperative_ mode expresses a command or entreaty: [Come here].
+64. The Subjunctive Mode.+--The subjunctive is disappearing from
colloquial speech, and the indicative form is used almost entirely.
The verb _to be_ has the following indicative and subjunctive forms in the
present and preterite:--
IND. SUBJ. IND. SUBJ.
{ I am I be { I was I were
{ Thou art Thou be { Thou wast Thou were
PRESENT { He is He be PRETERITE { He was He were
{ We are We be { We were We were
{ You are You be { You were You were
{ They are They be { They were They were
In other verbs the indicative and subjunctive forms are the same, except
that the second and third persons singular subjunctive have no personal
endings.
INDICATIVE Thou learnest He learns
SUBJUNCTIVE Thou learn He learn
The subjunctive idea is sometimes expressed by verb phrases, containing
the auxiliary verbs _may (might), would_, or _should_. _May, would_, and
_should_ are not, however, always subjunctive. In "I _may_ go" (may = am
allowed to), _may_ is indicative. In "you _should_ go" (= ought to),
_should_ is indicative.
The subjunctive mode is used most frequently to express:--
1. A wish: [The Lord be with you].
2. A condition regarded as doubtful: [If it be true, what shall we
think?], or a condition regarded as untrue: [If I were you, I should go].
When condition is expressed by the subjunctive without _if_, the verb
precedes the subject: [Were my brother here, he could go with me].
3. A purpose: [He studies that he may learn].
4. Exhortations: [Sing we the song of freedom].
5. A concession,--supposed, not given as a fact: [Though he be my enemy, I
shall pity him].
6. A possibility: [We fear lest he be too late].
The tenses of the subjunctive require especial notice. In conditional
clauses, the _present_ refers either to present or future time: [Though
the earth be removed, we shall not fear].
The _preterite_ refers to present time. It implies that the supposed case
is not a fact: [If he were here, I should be much pleased].
The _pluperfect_ subjunctive expresses a false supposition in past time:
[If you had been here, this would not have happened].
The phrases with _may, might, can, must, could, would_, and _should_ are
sometimes called the _potential mode_, but the constructions all fall
within either the indicative or the subjunctive uses, and a fourth mode is
only an incumbrance.
+65. The Imperative Mode.+--The imperative is the mode of command and
entreaty. It has but one form for both singular and plural, and but one
tense,--the present. It has but one person,--the second. The subject is
usually omitted. The case of direct address, frequently used with the
imperative, should not be confused with the subject. In, "John, hold my
books," the subject is _you_, understood. Were _John_ the subject, the
verb must be _holds_. _John_ is, here, a compellative, or vocative.
+66. Voice.+--Verbs are said to be in the _active_ voice when they
represent the subject as acting, and in the _passive_ voice when they
represent the subject as being acted upon. Intransitive verbs, from their
very nature, have no passive voice. Transitive verbs may have both voices,
for they may represent the subject either as acting or as being acted
upon.
The direct object in the active voice generally becomes the subject in the
passive; if the subject of the active appears in the passive, it is the
object of the preposition _by_: [My dog loves me (active). I am loved by
my dog (passive)].
Verbs of calling, naming, making, and thinking may take two objects
referring to the same person or thing. The first of these is the direct
object and the second is called the objective complement: [John called him
_a coward_]. The objective complement becomes an attribute complement when
the verb is changed from the active to the passive voice: [He was called
_a coward_ by John].
Certain verbs take both a direct and an indirect object in the active:
[John paid him nine _dollars_]. If the indirect object becomes the subject
in the passive voice, the direct object is known as the _retained object:_
[He was paid nine _dollars_ by John].
+67. Infinitives.+--The infinitive form of the verb is often called a
verbal noun, because it partakes of the nature both of the verb and of the
noun. It is distinguished from the _finite_, or true, verb because it does
not make an assertion, and yet it assumes one. While it has the modifiers
and complements of a verb, it at the same time has the uses of a noun.
There are two infinitives: the _root infinitive_ (commonly preceded by
_to_, the so-called _sign_ of the infinitive), and the _gerund_, or
_infinitive in -ing_.
1. Root infinitive: [_To write_ a theme requires practice].
2. Gerund: [_Riding_ rapidly is dangerous]. In each of these sentences
the infinitive, in its capacity as noun, stands as the subject of the
sentence. In 1, _to write_ shows its verb nature by governing the object
_theme;_ in 2, _riding_ shows its verb nature by taking as a modifier the
adverb _rapidly_.
Each form of the infinitive is found as the subject of a verb, as its
object, as an attribute complement, and as the object of a preposition.
The root infinitive, together with its subject in the objective case, is
used as the object of verbs of knowing, telling, etc.: [I know _him to be
a good boy_]. See also Appendix 85 for adjective and adverbial uses.
The infinitive has two tenses: the _present_ and the _perfect_. The
_present_ tense denotes action which is not completed at the time of the
principal verb: [He tries _to write_. He tried _to write_. He will try _to
write_]. The _perfect_ infinitive denotes action complete with reference
to the time of the principal verb: [I am glad _to have known_ her].
+68. Participles.+--Participles are verbal adjectives: [The girl _playing_
the piano is my cousin]. _Playing_, as an _adjective_, modifies the noun
_girl_; it shows its _verbal_ nature by taking the object _piano_.
The _present participle_ ends in _-ing_. When the _past participle_ has an
ending, it is either _-d, -ed, -t_, or _-en_. The _perfect participle_ is
formed by combining _having_ with a past participle; as, _having gone_.
There is danger of confusing the present participle with the gerund, or
infinitive in _-ing_, unless the adjective character of the one and the
noun character of the other are clearly distinguished: [The boy, _driving_
the cows to pasture, was performing his daily task (participle). _Driving_
the cows to pasture was his daily task (gerund)].
Participles are used to form verb-phrases. The present participle is used
for the formation of the progressive conjugation; the past participle, for
the formation of the compound or perfect tenses. Participles are also used
in all the adjective constructions.
One especial construction requires notice,--the _absolute_ construction,
or the _nominative absolute_, as it is called: [_The ceremony having been
finished_, the people dispersed]. The construction here is equivalent to a
clause denoting _time_ or _cause_ or some _circumstance_ attendant on the
main action of the sentence. The participle is sometimes omitted, but the
substantive must not be, lest the participle be left apparently belonging
to the nearest substantive; as, Walking home, the rain began to fall. As
the sentence stands, _walking_ modifies _rain_.
+69. Conjugation.+--The complete and orderly arrangement of the various
forms of a verb is termed its conjugation. Complete conjugations will be
found in any text-book on English grammar.
The passive voice must not be confused with such a form as the progressive
conjugation of the verb. The passive consists of a form of _to be_ and a
_past participle_: [I am instructed]. The progressive tenses combine some
form of _to be_ with a _present_ participle: [I am instructing].
It may be well to distinguish here between the passive voice and a past
participle used as an attribute complement of the verb _be_. Both have the
same form, but there is a difference of meaning. The passive voice always
shows action received by the subject, while the participle is used only as
an adjective denoting condition: [James _was tired_ by his day's work
(passive voice). James was _tired_ (attribute complement)].
+70. Weak and Strong Conjugations.+--Verbs are divided into two classes as
regards their conjugations. It has been the custom to call all verbs which
form the preterite and past participle by adding _-d_ or _-ed_ to the
present, _regular_ verbs [love, loved, loved], and to call all others
_irregular_. A better classification, based on more careful study of the
history of the English verb, divides verbs into those of the _weak_ and
those of the _strong_ conjugations.
The _weak verbs_ are those which form the preterite by adding _-ed, -d_,
or _-t_ to the present: _love, loved_. There is also infrequently a change
of vowel: _sell, sold_; _teach, taught_.
All verbs which form the preterite without the addition of an ending are
_strong verbs_. There is usually a change of vowel. The termination of the
past participle in _-n_ or _-en_ is a sure indication that a verb is
_strong_. Some verbs show forms of both conjugations.
A complete list of _strong_ verbs cannot be given here, but a few of the
most common will be given, together with a few _weak_ verbs, in the use of
which mistakes occur.
PRESENT PRETERITE PAST PARTICIPLE
am was been
arise rose arisen
bear bore borne, born[1]
begin began begun
bid (command) bade bidden
bite bit bitten
blow blew blown
break broke broken
bring brought brought
burst burst burst
catch caught caught
choose chose chosen
climb climbed climbed
come came come
do did done
drink drank drunk[2]
drive drove driven
drown drowned drowned
eat ate eaten
fall fell fallen
fly flew flown
freeze froze frozen
get got got
give gave given
go went gone
grow grew grown
have had had
hide hid hidden
hurt hurt hurt
know knew known
lay laid laid
lie (recline) lay lain
lead led led
read read read
ride rode ridden
ring rang rung
run ran run
see saw seen
shake shook shaken
show showed shown
sing sang sung
sink sank sunk
sit sat sat
slay slew slain
speak spoke spoken
spring sprang sprung
steal stole stolen
swell swell { swelled
{ swollen
swim swam swum
take took taken
tear tore torn
throw threw thrown
wear wore worn
wish wished wished
write wrote written
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