Синтаксис английского языка от слова к тексту = A Students’ Guide to English Syntax from Word to Discourse. Учебное пособие

Chapter III. Composite sentence as a polypredicative construction

As soon as I saw Susan I stopped noticing my surroundings. You can stay here as long as you want.

2. Adverbial clauses of place.

An adverbial clause of place shows the place of the action expressed in the principal clause. Adverbial clauses of place are introduced by the conjunctions where and wherever (где бы ни,

куда бы ни).

e.g. She never puts things where they belong.

The street singers and players were making their nightly pilgrimage, pausing, wherever they saw a lighted window or a dark figure on a balcony.

NOTE. One should not confuse the conjunction where introducing adverbial clauses of place with the adverb where introducing subject clauses, predicative clauses, object clauses, and attributive relative clauses.

e.g. The father placed himself where he could see the kids well

(adverbial clause of place)

This must be where my sister lives. This is where she came for a temporary lodging, soon after her divorce (predicative clause).

Everybody wondered where they were going (object clause).

He turned immediately towards the hearth where the nurse sat lulling the child (attributive clause).

3. Adverbial clauses of cause.

An adverbial clause of cause (reason) shows the cause of the action expressed in the principal clause. Adverbial clauses of cause are introduced by the conjunctions as, because, since, for fear (that); in official style they may also be introduced by the conjunctions on the ground that, for the reason that and some others.

e.g. As he had a liking for the spot, he seldom let a week pass without paying it a visit.

Letters are infrequent in contemporary world because everyone prefers to use electronic devices.

4. Adverbial clauses of purpose.

Adverbial clauses of purpose state the purpose of the action expressed in the principal clause. They are introduced by the conjunctions that, in order that, so that, lest (чтобыне) and some others

e.g. I kept my back to the wall of the gallery lest I could be seen. He got up early so that he was able to come in time for the meeting.

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Ю. М. СЕРГЕЕВА, И. О. СЫРЕСИНА. СИНТАКСИС АНГЛИЙСКОГО ЯЗЫКА: ОТ СЛОВА К ТЕКСТУ

YULIA SERGEEVA, IRINA SYRESINA. A STUDENTS’ GUIDE TO ENGLISH SYNTAX: FROM WORD TO DISCOURSE

5. Adverbial clauses of condition.

Adverbial clauses of condition state the condition which is necessary for the realization of the action expressed in the principal clause. They are introduced by the conjunctions if, unless, suppose, in case, on condition that, provided (при условии, что), etc.

e.g. If he is not here by the end of the week, I shall go after him.

I do not wish you to be my wife unless you are bound to me by love.

Adverbial clauses of condition can be joined to the principal clause asyndetically. In this case we find inversion in the subordinate clause. e.g. Should Frank marry some girl tomorrow, I shall have no ground

for blaming him.

Had she been less exhausted, I would have guessed her to be near fifty.

6. Adverbial clauses of concession.

An adverbial clause of concession denotes the presence of some obstacle which, nevertheless, does not hinder the action expressed in the principal clause. Adverbial clauses of concession are introduced by the following conjunctions and connectives: though, although, as, no matter how, however, whoever, whatever, whichever. In official style they may also be introduced by the conjunctions notwithstanding that, in spite of the fact that.

e.g. I enjoyed that day, though we travelled slowly, though it was cold, though it rained.

The conjunction as introduces adverbial clauses of concession in which the predicative occupies the initial position, i.e. partial emphatic inversion is used.

e.g. Troubled as he was, he never exposed his difficulties to her. Ignorant as they were, they began making friends and enemies.

7. Adverbial clauses of result.

Adverbial clauses of result denote the result of the action expressed in the principal clause. Very often adverbial clauses of this type have an additional meaning of degree.

Adverbial clauses of pure result are introduced by the conjunction so that; they are usually separated from the principal clause by

acomma.

e.g. Darkness had fallen and a keen blizzard was blowing, so that the streets were nearly deserted.

Adverbial clauses of result with an additional meaning of degree are introduced by the conjunction that; in these cases we find the adverb so or the demonstrative pronoun such in the principal

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clause. Such clauses are not separated from the principal clause by

acomma.

e.g. He is so weak physically that he can hardly move.

8. Adverbial clauses of manner.

Adverbial clauses of manner characterize in a general way the action expressed in the principal clause. They are usually introduced by the conjunction as. In adverbial clauses of manner the idea of comparison is often implied.

e.g. She did exactly as I told her.

Joe left the house as he had entered it – quietly and stealthily.

9. Adverbial clauses of comparison.

Adverbial clauses of comparison denote an action with which the action of the principal clause is compared. They are introduced by the conjunctions than, as, as… as, not so… as, as if, as though.

e.g. Mr. Tailor’s broken wrist healed sooner than he desired.

She could see his lips moving, from time to time, as though he were talking to himself.

NOTE. Some of the conjunctions introducing adverbial clauses are polysemantic and can introduce different types of them. For instance, the conjunction as may introduce adverbial clauses of time, cause, manner, and comparison.

e.g. As he spoke there was a sharp ring at the doorbell (adverbial clause of time).

As the morning was fine, he crossed the river by the ferry, and strolled along a footpath through some meadows (adverbial clause of cause).

The dog did as it was ordered (adverbial clause of manner).

She saw now that she did not love him as some women love their husbands (adverbial clause of comparison).

The conjunction since introduces adverbial clauses of time and cause. e.g. It was a long time since I had been to the States (adverbial clause

of time).

Since the lunchroom was full, she sat at our table, and reached out for the bill of fare (adverbial clause of cause).

The composite conjunction so that introduces adverbial clauses of result and purpose.

e.g. They were rich and I was poor, so that it was no easy matter for me to follow them (adverbial clause of result).

I turned away, so that Mum should not see my face (adverbial clause of purpose).

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YULIA SERGEEVA, IRINA SYRESINA. A STUDENTS’ GUIDE TO ENGLISH SYNTAX: FROM WORD TO DISCOURSE

The analysis of a complex sentence

As he was walking along the street he came across an agitated crowd.

It is a complex sentence.

The principal clause is he came across an agitated crowd. The subordinate clause is As he was walking along the street.

It is an adverbial clause of time.

The clauses are joined syndetically by means of a conjunction as.

The woman who ran this place was very cheerful.

It is a complex sentence.

The principal clause is The woman … was very cheerful.

The subordinate clause is who ran this place.

It is an attributive clause – relative and restrictive. It modifies the subject of the main clause (the woman) as its antecedent.

The clauses are joined syndetically by means of the relative pronoun who.

The Compound-Complex Sentences

A compound-complex sentence is a sentence consisting of two or more coordinate clauses one of which is a complex sentence with one or several subordinate clauses.

e.g. There was a song in every heart; and if the heart was young the music issued at the lips.

There was a song in every heart – the leading clause of the compound sentence which is represented by a simple sentence;

and – copulative conjunction which joins two clauses of a compound sentence;

if the heart was young the music issued at the lips – the sequential clause of the compound sentence which is represented by a complex sentence;

if the heart was young – the subordinate clause of condition; the music issued at the lips – the principal clause.

It proves that in the hierarchy of structural types of sentences compound sentence occupies a higher position than a complex one.

By way of conclusion we can state that a composite sentence is a unit of communication, grammatically organized into a polypredicative construction, which is a name of a complex situation or a situational event. The composite sentence is the ultimate unit of syntax, which together with the simple sentence participates in the formation of the text and its constituents.

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3.3. SEMI–COMPOSITE SENTENCE

As a polypredicative construction the semi-composite sentence has two predicative lines expressed in a fusion. One predicative line can be identified as the leading: it is fully exposed by means of the subject and the predicate. The other predicative line is not structurally explicit: it is a semi-predicative expansion or complication. The leading semi-clause is said to express primary predication, while semi-predicative expansions express secondary predication.

Structurally, the semi-composite sentence is derived from two simple sentences, and as such can be decomposed into base syntactic units.

e.g. I heard my neighbors talking loudly in the yard.

I heard my neighbors. They were talking loudly in the yard.

The second sentence has been transformed into a participial phrase and combined with the first sentence. The two predicative lines blend, overlapping around the common element, neighbors, which performs the function of the object of the leading, fully predicative clause. Thus we have a semi-composite sentence where complex object with Participle I serves as a semi-predicative expansion.

Semantically, the semi-composite sentence reflects the speaker’s presentation of two interconnected events: one of the events (usually, the one in the semi-predicative semi-clause) is presented as a byevent, as a background situation in relation to the other, dominant event (usually, the one in the fully predicative semi-clause).

The semi-composite sentences are further subdivided into semicompound sentences, built on the principle of coordination (parataxis), and semi-complex sentences, built on the principle of subordination (hypotaxis).

The semi-compound sentence is built by two or more base sentences, which have an identical subject or an identical predicate (or both):

e.g.I was unwell and went home early (I was unwell + I went home early). James, not Richard, is responsible for the project (James is responsible

for the project + Richard is not responsible for the project).

Semi-complex sentences include the leading semi-clause and a certain semi-predicative complication which can be expressed by verbal complexes of different types:

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YULIA SERGEEVA, IRINA SYRESINA. A STUDENTS’ GUIDE TO ENGLISH SYNTAX: FROM WORD TO DISCOURSE

1)Complex object with the infinitive or the participle: e.g. They won’t let you have this information.

I saw a car crawling along the street. Susan had her hair dyed raven black.

2)Complex subject with the infinitive or the participle: e.g The spaceship is announced to have landed safely. They are unlikely to come today.

He was caught stealing valuables from the safe. He turned out to be a cheat and a liar.

3)Gerundial or half-gerundial complex:

e.g. Is there any chance of his/him coming in time?

They kissed without their parents’/parents spotting them. My only trouble is your/you being far away from me.

4)For + to Infinitive construction: e.g. For you not to know it is a shame.

Have you brought something for me to eat?

5)The Absolute Participial Construction:

e.g. Money permitting, Jane will buy a new car this month. He walked along the street, (with) his dog following him. My wallet stolen, I had to ask a stranger for help.

Thus, the semi-composite sentence can be defined as a syntactic construction of an intermediary type between the composite sentence and the simple sentence. On the “surface”, in its syntactic structure, it is similar to a simple sentence, because it contains only one fully predicative line. In its “deep”, semantic structure it is similar to a composite sentence, because it is derived from two base sentences and reflects two dynamic situations.

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EXERCISES TO CHAPTER III

Exercise 1. Consider the following compound sentences. Comment on their structure and syntactic meaning. Distinguish between syndetic and asyndetic connection of their coordinate clauses.

1. Robert’s idea was to ease the tension, but the official threw him a glance of caution. 2. Linda’s step was more dancing than walking and in spite of her black dress there was nothing but joy in her whole attitude. 3. The movie star has no children or near relations to be spared, so she does not fear publicity. 4. There was nothing offensive in her words, but the boy didn’t like her change of tone. 5. There’s something awfully consoling about you, you make things so simple. 6. I offered him my mobile phone and he accepted it with huge thanks. 7. Vincent ripped open the envelope, and a thick enclosure fell out on the table. 8. Jane’s remarks were always witty, or so they seemed to us. 9. The purple stair-carpet won’t go with the blue upholstery, nor will it go with the brown woodwork. 10. The villain ought to be punished, but the cost has to be reckoned. 11. A broad grin showed itself on the man’s lips, however he remained silent. 12. Either Susan had already recovered from the panic of the night, or she pretended to have. 13. Mary’s father doesn’t seem to remember anybody’s name; she finds it so irritating sometimes.14. Either you haven’t read the document carefully, or you haven’t seen the implication of it. 15. There were a few moments of suspense, then he turned round, saw me and came straight over. 16. These phenomena are treated in greater detail in chapter Three, therefore they will not be dwelt upon here. 17. There was a vague understanding of the issue in his eyes, and I found it rather alarming. 18. The afternoon had made them tranquil for a while, and it gave them a memory for the long parting the next day promised. 19. What she does is clever, but it’s monkey cleverness: she has photographic memory and a box of tricks. 20. Teresa is very attractive, still she does not have a boyfriend; could there be something wrong with her?

Exercise 2. Consider the following compound sentences. Comment on their structure and syntactic meaning. Distinguish between syndetic and asyndetic connection of their coordinate clauses.

1. He was sitting beside Mrs. Ramsay and he had nothing in the world to say to her. 2. I fully agree that a partnership sounds very

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YULIA SERGEEVA, IRINA SYRESINA. A STUDENTS’ GUIDE TO ENGLISH SYNTAX: FROM WORD TO DISCOURSE

attractive – but frankly my interests lie in other directions. I’m quite willing to invest in your business, but I just have not the time to take over the administrative side. 3. All the time she was talking to me, this crazy desperate resolve was inside her, and I didn't see.

4.The Sun does not go round the Earth, the Earth goes round the Sun!

5.My new computer does lots more things than my old one, and it doesn’t crash. 6. My dad doesn’t have any qualifications, yet he has a really good job. 7. Emperor penguins live in the Antarctic. The sea provides all their food, so they are good swimmers. 8. I saw that he was fit for the job, or else I wouldn’t have hired him. 9. Each time a man fell it was with a firm belief that he would rise no more; yet he did rise, and again, and again. 10. We tried to do our bit of work together but soon we decided to divide it for each other to do their part separately. 11. It was late and everybody felt tired, so we agreed to break till tomorrow. 12. Much was said in favour of the project, thus it was adopted unanimously. 13. Jim was about to give in, but in another moment he was running down the street, Tom was whitewashing with vigour, and Aunt Polly was returning home with a slipper in her hand and triumph in her eyes. 14. The arrangement was simple: every day she was to arrive at a quarter to ten, open his correspondence and take his instructions from ten to a quarter past.

15.Let there be no mistake; a serious housing shortage exists, but this is not surprising when one considers the devastation caused by the war.

Exercise 3. Translate into English using various forms of compound sentences or related constructions.

1. Дождь прошел, и стало совсем тепло. 2. Предложение тур- оператора мне не понравилось, мои родители тоже не проявили к нему особого интереса. 3. Ричард давно не занимался этим вопросом, следовательно, был совсем не подготовлен к беседе с начальством. 4. Нам нужно приехать в офис до полудня, иначе мы не застанем менеджера по продажам. 5. Ее губы улыбались, а глаза оставались печальными. 6. Мне его поведение в этой си- туации тоже не понравилось, однако я не высказаласьтак кате- горично, какты. 7. Онапересталаотвечатьнамоиписьма, ияна- чал беспокоиться, что что-то могло случиться. 8. Его замечания былиразумнымиилинамтакказалось: онвсегдаобладалдаром

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убеждения. 9. Он не лечился, но как-то вскользь, за бутылкой вина, поговорил с приятелем доктором, и тот посоветовал ему провести весну и лето в деревне. 10. Ясное звездное небо и тер- мометр пророчили мороз к утру, а между тем садовник уехал

вгород и поручить заботу о саде было некому. 11. Я не женщи- на и не художник; я мало смыслю в мужской красоте, но этот господин своею наружностью произвел на меня впечатление. 12. Солнцебылоблизкокзакату, ножаридухотадавалиещесебя чувствовать. 13. ШекспировскийтеатрвСтрэтфордебылоткрыт

в1879 году, но в 1926 году здание сгорело, и только через шесть лет было построено ныне существующее здание. 14. Извините меня, я не хотел вас беспокоить, но мое дело безотлагательное и я не могу ждать до начала приема. 15. Либо мы решаем эту проблему вместе, либо я прошу о помощи кого-нибудьдругого.

Exercise 4. Consider the following complex sentences. Comment on their structure and syntactic meaning.

1. What she wanted was a person with whom she could share her joy or her pain. 2. I doubt that you can tell me what happened in history after the Tudors. 3. A good rest in a quiet place may be just what I want now. 4. One advantage of being a medical practitioner is that you can usually tell when people are lying to you. 5. I wish that the mission hadn’t fallen to you. 6. It is not at all clear how they will accept the proposal. 7. The fact is there is growing suspicion of foul play on their part. 8. We saw that the old man had finished his scotch.

9.It annoyed the editor-in-chief that Pete hadn’t reported at once.

10.How he managed to be so calm in such a situation surprised me a lot. 11. It was our impression that things were not quite that bad.

12.That this charming young woman accepted political life with enthusiasm was a real surprise to me. 13. I asked her if there was any chance of refusal on the part of the publishers. 14. That there were other problems to be solved sounded rather discouraging. 15. It is quite natural that he should act like this. 16. Her voice sounded as if she had shouted for a long time. 17. That a man of his age should be so active and full of vitality is something extraordinary. 18. He knew by heart where every file was stored. 19. It was understood that the parties had come to the agreement. 20. I am certain this treatment will help you a lot.

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YULIA SERGEEVA, IRINA SYRESINA. A STUDENTS’ GUIDE TO ENGLISH SYNTAX: FROM WORD TO DISCOURSE

Exercise 5. Form a complex sentence with a subject clause out of each pair of questions, choosing the pattern of the first one for a subordinate clause and the pattern of the second one for a principal clause. Give two parallel versions of the construction – respectively, non-anticipatory and anticipatory.

Model: What does he mean? Is it his own business? What he means is his own business.

It is his own business what he means.

1.Why did he say it? Is it beyond my comprehension?

2.What does he suggest? Is it always taken into account?

3.When will they be through with their talk? It is all the same to me, isn’t it?

4.What will they decide about the new project? This is important, isn’t it?

5.Why have Nell and Snider quarreled? Does it worry you?

6.Might he still present his paper on Ancient Egyptian culture? Is it out of the question?

7.Has Dad returned from his business trip? Can it be true?

8.What did he say? Was it funny?

9.Why didn’t she come? Is it known?

10.What does she want? Is it a doll?

Exercise 6. Make up complex sentences with predicative clauses out of the following pairs of utterances. Choose conjunctive words from the guiding question, otherwise use «that», «whether», «if», «as if», «as though».

Model: 1. What is the condition? Must Mr. Halloway take part in the conference?

The condition is that Mr. Halloway should take part in the conference.

2. How did he look? Was he about to raise an objection? He looked as if he were about to raise an objection.

1.Where can you find the man? Is this the puzzle?

2.What is the reason of Jim’s sulky look? Has he quarreled with

Rosy?

3.Was the house deserted? How did it look?

4.How long will it take them to finish the calculation? Is this the point?

5.What is the question? Has he formed a definite opinion of this matter?

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