Nadina Visan Syntax

NADINA VIAN
SENTENCE PROCESSES

Curs de sintaxa frazei pentru nvmntul la
distan

Universitatea din Bucureti
Editura CREDIS
2006

CONTENTS:

ONE INTRODUCTION________________________________________ 7
1.1. Constituent Phrase ______________________________________________9
1.2. Syntactic, Semantic, Pragmatic ____________________________________9
1.3. Auxiliary verbs________________________________________________10
1.4. Insertion _____________________________________________________10
1.5. The Distribution of an Element ___________________________________11
1.6. Complementary distribution _____________________________________11

TWO SENTENCE NEGATION ________________________________ 13
2.2. Assertive non-assertive ________________________________________15
2.3. Full local negation____________________________________________17
2.4. Negative vs. affirmative sentences. Tests for negativity ________________20
2.5. Instances of Negation___________________________________________24
2.6. Polarity Items _________________________________________________30
2.7. Negative concord / Non-negative concord___________________________35
2.8. Conclusion. Key terms. _________________________________________36

THREE QUESTIONS_________________________________________ 45
3.1. Direct / Indirect Questions _______________________________________47
3.2. Quirks Classification of Direct Questions __________________________51
3.2.1. Yes / No Questions ______________________________________________ 52
3.2.2 Wh questions__________________________________________________ 55
3.2.3. Alternative questions_____________________________________________ 57
3.3. Minor Types of Questions _______________________________________61
3.3.1. Tag Questions __________________________________________________ 61
3.3.2. Echo Questions _________________________________________________ 65
3.4. Instead of Conclusions__________________________________________68

FOUR COORDINATION______________________________________73
4.1 Syndetic vs. Asyndetic Coordination_______________________________ 75
4.2 Coordination & Subordination____________________________________ 76
4.3 Sentence vs. Phrase Coordination _________________________________ 80
4.4. Coordinating Conjunctions ______________________________________ 86
4.5 Verb Agreement with Compound Subjects __________________________ 92
4.6. Key Concepts ________________________________________________ 94

FIVE THE COMPLEX SENTENCE A CLASSIFICATION OF
DEPENDENT CLAUSES ______________________________________99
5.1 The Functional Criterion of Classification__________________________ 101
5.2 The Structural Criterion of Classification __________________________ 106
5.3 A Cross-Classification of Dependent Clauses _______________________ 111
5.4. Key Concepts _______________________________________________ 114

SIX RELATIVE CLAUSES ___________________________________119
6.1. Relative Clauses and Other Kinds of Relatives _____________________ 121
6.2. The Co-reference Condition - a discussion of attributive relatives_______ 121
6.3 The Classification of Relative Clauses ____________________________ 125
6.4 Restrictions Imposed On The Relative Clause by the Determiner of the
Antecedent _____________________________________________________ 129
6.5 Relative Clause Introducers _____________________________________ 131
6.5.1. Relative Pronouns _______________________________________________132
6.5.2 Relative Adverbs: when, where, while, why, how, etc. ___________________135
6.5.3. Relative THAT _________________________________________________136
6.5.4. Other relative introducers _________________________________________138
6.6. Pied Piping and Preposition Stranding ____________________________ 144
6.7 Key Concepts ________________________________________________ 146

SEVEN THAT COMPLEMENTS ______________________________151
7.1 Syntactic Properties That Characterize That Complements __________ 153
7.1.1 Extraposition ___________________________________________________153
7.1.2. Topicalization __________________________________________________158
7.1.3. Clause Shift____________________________________________________160
7.2. The Distribuition of That Complements ___________________________163
7.2.1. That Complements as Direct Objects _______________________________ 164
7.2.2. That Complements as Subjects ____________________________________ 165
7.2.3. That Complements as Prepositional Objects __________________________ 168
7.2.4. That complements as Predicatives ________________________________ 169
7.2.5. That Complements as Attributes__________________________________ 170
7.2.6. That complements as Adverbials _________________________________ 171
7.3 That Deletion________________________________________________175
7.3.1. When Can We Delete That? _____________________________________ 175
7.3.2. When is That Obligatory?_______________________________________ 176
7.3.3. When is That Deletion Obligatory? _______________________________ 176
7.4. The Sequence of Tenses in Object That Clauses _____________________177
7.5 Key Concepts ________________________________________________185

EIGHT INFINITIVE COMPLEMENTS _______________________ 191
8.1. What Are Infinitive Complements________________________________193
8.2. A Classification of Infinitives ___________________________________196
8.3 The Distribution of PRO - TO Constructions _______________________205
8.4 The Distribution of FOR TO Constructions _______________________206
8.5 Syntactic Functions of PRO-TO and FOR-TO Constructions ___________207
8.6 Verbs of Obligatory Control _____________________________________211
8.7 The Distribution of the Nominative + Infinitive Construction ___________213
8.8 The Distribution of the Accusative + Infinitive Construction ___________214
8.9 Key Concepts ________________________________________________218

NINE ING COMPLEMENTS _________________________________ 223
9.1. The Participle________________________________________________225
9.1.1. Participial Constructions _________________________________________ 225
9.1.2. Characteristics of Participial Forms ________________________________ 231
9.2. The Gerund _________________________________________________236
9.2.1. A Classification of Gerundial Forms________________________________ 236
9.2.2. Characteristics of Gerunds _______________________________________ 237
9.2.3. Participles vs. Gerunds __________________________________________ 239
9.3. The Verbal Noun _____________________________________________243
9.4. ING Forms and Infinitives. _____________________________________246
9.5. Key Concepts ________________________________________________253

TEN REVISION EXERCISES ________________________________261
Exercise 1 __________________________________________________________263
Exercise 2 __________________________________________________________264
Exercise 3 __________________________________________________________265
Exercise 4* _________________________________________________________268
Exercise 5 __________________________________________________________271
Exercise 6* _________________________________________________________275
Exercise 7* _________________________________________________________281
Exercise 8*:_________________________________________________________282
Exercise 9*:_________________________________________________________283
Exercise 10*:________________________________________________________284

KEY TO PRACTICE ________________________________________285
KEY TO CHAPTER ONE PRACTICE INTRODUCTION _____________ 285
KEY TO CHAPTER TWO PRACTICE - SENTENCE NEGATION _______ 286
KEY TO CHAPTER THREE PRACTICE - QUESTIONS _______________ 300
KEY TO CHAPTER FOUR PRACTICE - COORDINATION ____________ 311
KEY TO CHAPTER FIVE PRACTICE - THE COMPLEX SENTENCE A
CLASSIFICATION OF DEPENDENT CLAUSES _____________________ 317
KEY TO CHAPTER SIX PRACTICE - RELATIVE CLAUSES___________ 323
KEY TO CHAPTER SEVEN PRACTICE - THAT COMPLEMENTS ______ 331
KEY TO CHAPTER EIGHT PRACTICE - INFINITIVE COMPLEMENTS _ 346
KEY TO CHAPTER NINE PRACTICE - ING COMPLEMENTS _________ 353

References __________________________________________________369

5

CUVNT NAINTE:

Aceast carte se adreseaz studenilor din programul de
nvmnt la distan, cu specialitatea romn englez i
abordeaz problema proceselor sintactice care au loc n interiorul
frazei: negaia, interogaia, coordonarea i subordonarea.

Sentence Processes este organizat pe capitole, fiecare dintre
acestea compunndu-se din explicaii teoretice i exerciii. Am
preferat s aleg o variant care s faciliteze procesul de nvare
i nelegere a structurilor mai complicate din limba englez,
motiv pentru care exerciiile nu sunt plasate la sfritul fiecrui
capitol, ci imediat dup fiecare problem prezentat. La finalul
fiecrui capitol sunt oferite exerciii cu grad sporit de dificultate,
marcate cu un asterisc. Tot pentru a uura munca studentului, am
reluat explicaiile, condensndu-le n tabele i n final
rezumndu-le ntr-o scurt seciune intitulat Key Concepts
(Concepte de baz).

Cursul este special conceput pentru a fi utilizat de studenii care
nu pot urma cursurile cu frecven, motiv pentru care aproape
toate exerciiile care nsoesc explicaiile teoretice sunt nsoite

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de rezolvri, pe care studentul este invitat s le consulte dup ce
a parcurs materia i a rezolvat individual respectivele exerciii.

Dei principalii beneficiari sunt studenii programului de
nvmnt la distan, materialul prezentat aici poate constitui o
baz i pentru profesorii de limba englez din nvmntul
preuniversitar n vederea pregtirii pentru examenele de
definitivat, titularizare i grad.

7

ONE
INTRODUCTION

Aim of this unit: to introduce several key concepts that will facilitate a better
understanding of the next units
Objectives: to help students revise notions already discussed in previous
linguistics classes.

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C
o
n
t
e
n
t
s
:

1.1. Constituent Phrase
1.2. Syntactic/Semantic/Pragmatic
1.3. Auxiliary verbs
1.4. Insertion
1.5. The Distribution of an Element
1.6. Complementary distribution

Unit one Introduction

9

This unit is devoted to a brief revision of some concepts that will be crucial
for every section in this course. We will therefore have to remember the
meaning of such terms as:

1.1. Constituent Phrase

Constituent (phrase) any part of a sentence which is regarded as forming a
distinct syntactic unit within the overall structure of the sentence.

For instance, if we were to take the following example:

(1) Susan loves her mother very much.
(Susan i iubete foarte mult mama.)

we can identify the following constituents: Susan, loves, her mother, very
much.

Each of the above identified elements can be said to form a distinct syntactic
unit, since it has a certain semantic and structural autonomy inside (1).
Consequently, sequences of the kind her mother very, or Susan loves her
cannot be considered constituents, since they do not have a structural and
semantic unity. They are just strings, that is sequences fragmented at random.

1.2. Syntactic, Semantic, Pragmatic

Syntactic relates to the structure of sentences
Semantic relates to the meaning of words, sentences
Pragmatic relates to the function of a sentence (utterance) inside discourse
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In the following example,

(2) Give Susan the money and then send her away!
(D-i banii lui Susan i apoi trimite-o de aici!)

syntactically we are dealing with a compound sentence (where two main
clauses are coordinated by and), semantically the two sentences are perceived
as sequential (the event in the first sentence is followed by the one in the
second) and pragmatically, we are dealing with a directive (i.e. an order given
to an interlocutor).

1.3. Auxiliary verbs

Auxiliary verbs one of a small set of lexical items having certain properties
in common with verbs but also exhibiting a number of other distinct
properties. The English auxiliaries are usually divided into the modal
auxiliaries (such as may, must, should, etc.) and the non-modal auxiliaries
(such as have, be).

1.4. Insertion

Insertion a procedure by which some element not previously present in a
structure is added to it. An example is the insertion of the element do in
sentence (3):

(3) She told me the secret.
(Mi-a spus secretul.)

Unit one Introduction

11
As a consequence of the insertion of do in (3) we obtain the following
emphatic structure:

(4) She did tell me the secret.
(Mi-a spus ntr-adevr secretul.)

1.5. The Distribution of an Element

The distribution of an element represents the full range of environments in
which a lexical or grammatical form can occur.
Consider, for instance, the following sentence:

(5) There is a cat on the mat.
(Pe preul de la intrare se afl o pisic.)

This sentence has a special subject, an empty there subject, which does not
have a similar correspondent in Romanian. This element cannot appear in any
kind of context. It normally is allowed in combination with be or with other
similar verbs such as appear, live, etc. These are the contexts in which there
subjects are possible in English, and the set of these contexts can be referred
to as the distribution of there subjects.

1.6. Complementary distribution

Complementary distribution it might be the case that two rather similar
elements are in complementary distribution, that is they are so close in
meaning and function that they cannot appear together in the same context.
One of the best known such pairs is that of the definite article the and the
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demonstrative pronoun this/that. If the given context is the one under (6), lets
check if these two elements are in complementary distribution or not:

(6) __________ book
(7) *the this book
(8) the book
(9) this book

As you can see, both (8) and (9) are correct structures, whereas (7) is not, as
the star indicates. Sentence (7) proves that the two elements cannot appear in
the same given context. This means that these elements are indeed in
complementary distribution.

Pratice

Activity 1
Define and illustrate, using your own examples: insertion,
auxiliary verb, distribution, complementary distribution,
semantic, syntactic, pragmatic.

Activity 2
Identify the constituents in the following sentences:
Margaret was anxious to settle on a house before they left town
to pay their annual visit to Mrs. Munt. He was informed on
Saturday at noon that he was going to be fired. How much, apart
from his distress for parents, this would really hurt, he had not
yet been able to estimate.

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TWO
SENTENCE NEGATION

Aim of this unit: to offer a brief presentation of the main issues related to
sentence negation.
Objectives: to help students understand the differences between English
and Romanian with respect to this process (negation). To
help students learn how to correctly formulate negative
sentences in English.

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C
o
n
t
e
n
t
s
:

2.1. Key terms
2.2. Assertive non-assertive
2.3. Full local negation
2.4. Negative vs. affirmative sentences. Tests for
negativity
2.5. Instances of negation
2.6. Polarity Items
2.7. Negative concord non-negative concord
languages
2.8. Conclusion. Key terms

Unit two Sentence negation

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2.2. Assertive non-assertive

We need to make a distinction between assertive and non-assertive sentences.
For instance, a sentence of the form:

(1) He offered her some chocolates.
(I-a oferit bomboane de ciocolat.)

is said to be an assertion, in the sense that it states something, it asserts
something. This example can be compared to:

(2)a. He didnt offer her any chocolates.
(Nu i-a oferit bomboane de ciocolat.)
b. Did he offer her chocolates?
(Oare i-a oferit bomboane de ciocolat?)

The difference between example (1) and the examples under (2) is that the
latter examples are non-assertive, in that they do not state anything.

Consequently, a sentence can be non-assertive if it is negative or if it is a
question. We do not therefore have two independent systems:
- Positive vs. Negative
- Declarative vs. Interrogative
but rather an interrelated system in which assertion involves both positive
and declarative while non-assertion has a subsystem either negative or
interrogative. The relationship can be represented as follows:

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- assertion - positive and declarative (e.g. They told her the
secret.)
- positive ( e.g. Did they tell her the
secret? )
- interrogative
- negative (e.g. Didnt they tell her
the secret?)
- non-assertion - negative (They didnt tell her the secret.)
sentence
- other (if clauses, comparison, subjunctive)

Pratice

Activity 1
Which of the following sentences are assertive and which are
non-assertive?
They like her a lot. / Are you listening to me? / Arent you
listening to me? / He never listens./ We didnt come here just to
talk. / Come with me./ Dont do that./ If you like her, dont
bother her./ She cant wait to read that book. / She finally
admitted, didnt she? / Hasnt she arrived? / If you like jazz,
listen to this. / She is more interesting than anyone I have ever
seen. / It is odd that you should like Sartre so much.

The distinction assertive / non-assertive brings us to one of the main questions
we need to answer in this section: when is a sentence negative and how do we
distinguish between various forms of negation? We shall answer the second
question in the following subsection.

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2.3. Full local negation

The first distinction to draw between various forms of negation is that of
sentence vs. word negation.
For example, the sentences under (3) are considered instances of syntactic
(sentence) negation, whereas those under (4) are considered to be forms of
word negation:
(3) a. Susan doesnt like her friends.
(Lui Susan nu-i place de prietenii ei.)
b. John is not happy.
(John nu e fericit)
(4) a. Susan dislikes her friends.
(Lui Susan nu-i place de prietenii ei.)
b. John is unhappy.
(John e nefericit.)

It is obvious that sentences under (3) are structurally different from those
under (4) in that they are marked by the presence of the negative word not. In
the case of the sentences under (4), we can speak more of a negative meaning
than of a negative structure, since the negative word not is not present there.
There is also a difference in meaning between the two examples, since it is
obvious that the meaning of (3) is not really equivalent to that of (4).

A second distinction to be drawn here is between such examples as:

(5) Not long ago, I met a girl named Susan.
(Nu demult, am ntlnit o fat pe nume Susan.)

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In this case, just like in the case of word negation, we speak about local
negation in the sense that the negative word not does not influence more than
the first part of the sentence, more precisely the phrase it is part of. In other
words, the whole sentence under (5) has an affirmative dimension and it is
only the phrase not long ago that has a negative connotation. This is also
called an instance of phrasal negation, since the negative meaning is
restricted to one constituent only. Example (6) gives us however reason to
speak about full negation, namely the whole sentence is negative and the word
not influences the whole meaning of the sentence:

(6) I didnt meet a girl named Susan long ago.
(N-am ntlnit o fat pe nume Susan demult.)

An interesting problem is posed by such examples as:

(7) a. She was not an unattractive woman.
(Nu era o femeie neatrgtoare.)
b. He was not without intelligence.
(Nu era lipsit de inteligen.)
c. I was not a little worried.
(Nu mic mi-a fost ngrijorarea.)

The meaning of all these examples is a positive one: (7a) implies that she was
an attractive woman, (7b) implies that the guy there was quite intelligent,
whereas (7c) states that I was very worried about something. In other words,
these sentences look negative, since the negative word not is present inside
them, but their meaning tells us a different story. We can say that we are
dealing with a combination of word and phrasal negation, where the word

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negation (unattractive, without intelligence, a little worried) is cancelled by
the presence of not: not unattractive = attractive.

Another name for the distinction between full negation and local (that is
word and phrasal) negation is supplied by the opposition syntactic vs.
semantic negation. By syntactic negation we mean negation at the level of the
sentence (i.e. the whole meaning of the sentence is negative). Semantic
negation will consequently refer to sentence bits with a negative meaning.

Pratice

Activity 2
Which of the following sentences exhibit forms of semantic/
syntactic negation?
His observation is non-scientific and it is also irrelevant./ Bill
isnt interested in syntax and his friends are not interested in
syntax./ He disapproves of mothers going out to work./ He
doesnt approve of mothers going out to work./ Nikitas
unpleasant face appeared on TV last Thursday night./ Nikitas
unpleasant face did not appear on TV last Thursday night./
Nikitas not very unpleasant face did not appear on TV last
Thursday night./ Nikitas not very unpleasant face appeared on
TV last night./ Nikitas not very unpleasant face didnt appear on
TV last night.

Activity 3
Translate the following sentences into English, paying attention
to the distinction between full and local (that is word or
phrasal) negation:
Nu era lipsit de graie i de frumusee. / Cnd a aflat vestea, nu
s-a simit deloc ncntat. / Nu cu mult vreme n urm, toat
lumea cltorea cu trsura. / I-a trebuit nu puin iscusin s
rezolve problema. / Nu l prefer pe John n mod special. / l
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prefer pe John, dar nu n mod special. / Nu era neobinuit de
detept. / Era neobinuit de mecher. / Era el destul de iste, dar
nu neobinuit. / Deloc interesat de conferin, domnul Jones s-a
ridicat i a plecat din sal. / Domnul Jones nu era deloc interesat
de discuiile din sal. / Nu tocmai convini de ceea ce auziser,
cei doi frai i-au luat inima n dini i au protestat. / Nu erau
nelmurii, ci doar indecii. / Nu neg c aceast culoare m
prinde de minune. / A negat cu trie orice legtur cu crima
comis cu o sear nainte. / Nu mic i-a fost mirarea s vad ct
de bine se nelegeau cei doi.

Since this course is an attempt to clarify matters related to syntax we restrict
the term negative sentences only to those sentences that qualify as
syntactically negated. This means that negative sentences need to have a
negative word present inside them that will influence the whole meaning of
the respective sentences.

2.4. Negative vs. affirmative sentences. Tests for negativity

In this subsection we are going to answer two questions:
a) What is the difference between negative and affirmative (positive)
sentences?
b) How do we tell when a sentence is syntactically negative? Are
there any ways of checking on the sentences negativity?

Let us start with the first question: the difference existing between
negative and positive sentences is not only a semantic one (that is the fact that
they express opposite truth values) but also a syntactic and pragmatic one:

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As we were saying, syntactically negative sentences are marked by the
presence of a negative structure (such as the word not, etc.) and sometimes by
other syntactic changes. Compare (8) to (9):

(8) I went there.
(M-am dus acolo.)
(9) I didnt go there.
(Nu m-am dus acolo.)

The second sentence has undergone certain syntactic changes, such as do
insertion. (see subsection 1.1.).

Let us now discuss the pragmatic differences between positive and negative
sentences: basically, whenever we utter a negative sentence in a discourse, we
imply the existence of its affirmative counterpart. For instance, in a
negative sentence such as:

(10) Harry didnt attack the government.
(Harry nu a atacat guvernul)

the implicit affirmative sentences existing in correlation to the negative
sentences could be: - Harry did something to the government (but he didnt
attack it)
- Someone attacked the government (but it wasnt Harry).
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Pratice

Activity 4
Which are the implied affirmative sentences with the following
negative sentences?
They did not tell Susan the truth about Jim. / Susan did not get
married to Jim. / I dont like her very much. / We dont come
here often. / Susan was not bitten by a dog. / She does not hate
animals./ They didnt leave.

The second question that springs to ones mind is: but how do we tell when a
sentence is negative, since sometimes examples can be so misleading?

An efficient way of doing that was offered by Klima (1964) who distinguishes
between four tests of negativity:

1. Tag-questions a sentence is syntactically negative if it allows for the
presence of an affirmative tag question (with a falling intonation):

(11) Susan does not like her friends, does she?
( Lui Susan nu i place de prietenii ei, nu-i aa?)
(12) Susan dislikes her friends, *does she?
(13) Susan dislikes her friends, doesnt she?

Sentence (11) qualifies as negative, since it is followed by an affirmative
question tag, whereas the sentence under (12) does not: the star placed at the
beginning of the tag question indicates that the structure is ungrammatical,
incorrect. The sentence allows only for a negative question tag (see example
(13)) and is syntactically affirmative.


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2. Not even-tags a sentence is syntactically negative if it allows for the
presence of a not even-tag :

(14) Susan does not like her friends, not even the smart ones.
(Lui Susan nu-i place de prietenii ei, nici mcar de cei detepi.)
(15) Susan dislikes / likes her friends, *not even the smart ones.
(16) Susan dislikes/ likes her friends, even the smart ones.

Example (14) is syntactically negative, as is demonstrated by the presence of
the not even tag. Compare this example to those under (15) and (16), which
exhibit samples of affirmative sentences, since the not even tag cannot be
applied to them.

3. Either conjoining a sentence is syntactically negative if it can be
followed by another negative sentence and the adverb either:

(17) Susan does not like her friends, and they dont like her either.
(Lui Susan nu i place de prietenii ei i nici lor nu le place de ea.)
(18) Susan dislikes / likes her friends, * and they dont like her either.

Sentence (17) is syntactically negative because the either conjoining is
possible, which does not happen in the case of (18), which is ungrammatical.

4. Neither tags a sentence is syntactically negative if it can be followed by
a neither tag:

(19) Susan doesnt like her friends, and neither do they like her.
(Lui Susan nu i place de prietenii ei i nici lor nu le place de ea.)
(20) Susan likes / dislikes her friends, *and neither do they like her.
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Sentence (19) is syntactically negative since it can be combined with a neither
tag, whereas sentence (20) is syntactically affirmative since its combination
with neither is obviously impossible.

In conclusion, whenever one wishes to check whether a certain sentence is
negative from a syntactic point of view, they need to refer to these tests of
negativity. By applying these tests to the sentence in question, one can tell if
the sentence is negative or not.

Pratice

Activity 5
Say whether the following are instances of local or sentence
negation by using the tests for negativity above:
I dont know much about him. / I can hardly understand what
they are saying. / You have never met her. / I havent ever seen
such a thing. / Should they not have told her the truth? / Not
infrequently, they go skiing in the mountains. / In no time he was
able to solve the problem. / At no time was he able to solve the
problem. / Not always a witty interlocutor, Jim felt rather at a
loss for words. / They caused us no problems. / No problems
were caused after all. / This boy is no good. / Few of them
stayed behind. / A few of them stayed behind.

2.5. Instances of Negation

We shall now attempt to offer a classification of the various instances of
negation present in English. The criterion we employ has to do with the
position of the negative word inside the negative sentence:
a) negative insertion (the negative word not is inserted in the auxiliary):

25
(21) John has not come.
(N-a venit John).
(22) Susan could not go to the theatre.
(Susan nu s-a putut duce la teatru)

The negative word not has been inserted inside the sentences under (21) and
(22). This kind of negation is the most frequent one in English. A variation to
this instance of negation is offered by those sentences in which the negative
word is attached to the auxiliary verb by means of contraction:

(23) John hasnt come.
(24) Susan couldnt go to the theatre.

b) negative incorporation (the negative word is incorporated in a determiner,
a pronoun or an adverb):

(25) I saw no student.
(N-am vzut nici un student)

In example (25) negation is incorporated in the determiner (that is the article )
of the direct object.

(26) I saw nobody.
(N-am vzut pe nimeni).

In this case negation is incorporated in the pronoun.

(27) a . I went nowhere.
(Nu m-am dus nicieri)
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b. I never went to his place.
(Nu m-am dus niciodat la el.)

In sentence (27) the negative word has been incorporated in the adverb of
place.
All the sentences discussed here are variants for :

(28) a. I didnt see any student.
(N-am vzut nici un student.)
b. I didnt see anybody.
(N-am vzut pe nimeni.)
c. I didnt go anywhere. / I didnt ever go to his place.
(Nu m-am dus nicieri. / Nu m-am dus niciodat la el.)

c) negative attraction (the negative word is attracted by the nominal phrase
in the first position of the sentence; no incorporation takes place.)

(29) a. Not all that glitters is gold.
(Nu tot ce strlucete e aur.)
b. Not a day passed without me thinking of him.
( N-a trecut o zi fr s m gndesc la el.)

It is obvious that in such examples the negative word not has been attracted
by the nominal phrase in sentence initial position. The sentences under (29)
may be paraphrased by means of negative insertion or incorporation:

(30) a. All that glitters is not gold.
b. No day passed without me thinking of him.

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The fact that these sentences may be paraphrased by means of other negative
sentences makes us believe that the process of attraction is optional not
obligatory.

Pratice

Activity 6
Distinguish between the sentences which exhibit negative
insertion or contraction, negative attraction and negative
incorporation:
They didnt send many students abroad. / I showed him nothing.
/ Not many women are famous opera composers. / Not a word
fell from her lips. / She said not a word when I spoke to her. / It
didnt take him a minute to tell her the secret. / Not a minute did
it take him to tell her the secret. / No one ever listens to her. /
None of them liked house music. / Not one of them came to meet
her./ They didnt come to meet her. / I saw nobody. / I didnt see
anybody./ They never went there./ They didnt ever tell her what
bothered them. / He should not be released.

- incomplete negation (negation in the sentence is made by means of
the so-called incomplete negators such as hardly, scarcely, barely,
seldom, rarely, etc.) the sentences that contain these negators are
also considered syntactically negative, because they pass all the tests
for negativity presented in 1.4.:

(31) I hardly met this man, did I?
(Nu l-am cunoscut pe omul acesta.)
(32) They barely read any novels, not even short ones.
(Nu citesc romane, nici mcar din alea scurte.)
(33) We seldom watch T.V, and we dont go to the theatre either.
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(Ne uitm rar la televizor, i nu mergem nici la teatru.)
(34) They rarely talked to their friends, and neither did their friends talk to
them.
(Vorbeau rar cu prietenii i nici prietenii nu vorbeau cu ei.)

Pratice

Activity 7
Paraphrase the following instances of incomplete negation by
means of negative insertion, negative attraction or negative
incorporation:
I can barely look him in the eye. / I could hardly wait to hear the
news. / This is hardly the time to buy yourself a new fur coat. / I
scarcely ever see her. / Hardly anybody liked him. / Youve
eaten hardly anything. / I seldom look at her like that. / Few
people came to see her. / You can hardly blame me for your
mistakes. / I hardly ever look at those paintings.
- emphatic negation (emphasis is laid by placing the negative word or
the incomplete negator in the first position inside the sentence, which
triggers inversion):
(35) a. Never have I met a more horrible person.
(Niciodat n-am cunoscut un om mai ngrozitor.)
b. Rarely have I done such a stupid thing.
(Rareori am fcut un lucru aa de prostesc.)
c. Hardly have they heard a thing like that.
(N-am mai auzit aa ceva.)
d. Not for the world would I do such a thing.
(Pentru nimic n lume n-a face una ca asta.)

29

Pratice

Activity 8
Rephrase the following sentences making them emphatic:
I shall never, never trust a man again. / One can have peace in
life only by avoiding them altogether. / A truer word has seldom
been spoken! / This nation scarcely ever in the past faced so
great a danger. / There is rarely an opportunity for us to serve the
community in this way. / Nothing like that ever happened in our
street before./ We seldom receive such generous praise. / Ann
gave him the use of her flat and lent him a car as well. / She had
no idea he was a man on the run from the police./ We never
thought he was that sort of fellow. / We little suspected when we
started our holiday that it would be like this. / You rarely see
such an outstanding bargain. / You shouldnt wander away from
the path under any circumstances. / I didnt leave the office at
any time. / You must on no account touch this machinery. / She
could rely on nobody but him. / We not only ran into the fog but
it began to rain. / The keys couldnt be found anywhere.

- negative transportation (the negative word is transported to the main
clause from a subordinate that clause where it originates and belongs
semantically):
For instance, sentence (36) becomes (37):
(36) They think that he doesnt like them.
(Ei cred c lui nu-i place de ei.)
(37) They dont think that he likes them.
(Ei nu cred c lui i place de ei.)
by undergoing a process of negative transportation. As you can see from the
translation of these examples, the phenomenon is the same in Romanian. The
difference between (36) and (37) is a pragmatic one, in the sense that the
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30
original sentence (36) is stronger from the point of view of its negative force.
In sentence (37), the negative meaning is less strong.

Negative transportation is optional and may appear with verbs of opinion,
intention, probability, etc.: think, believe, imagine, suppose, guess, expect,
seem, appear, look like, sound/feel like, intend, choose, want, be probable, be
likely, be supposed to, ought to, should be desirable, advise, suggest, etc.

Pratice

Activity 9
Reformulate the sentences below in such a way that they become
instances of negative transportation:
John claims that Susan doesnt trust him. / I suppose she doesnt
care, does she? / Its likely that he wont help her. / I expect he
wont come here again. / I thought I didnt have to do it myself. /
They believe she does not like them. / They suggested that she
should not meet Jim. / He reckoned he would not win her over.

2.6. Polarity Items

Sometimes a negative sentence is characterized not only by the existence of a
negative word (such as not or hardly, barely, etc.) but also by the existence of
certain elements that, although not negative in meaning, cannot appear in an
affirmative context. For example, we can very well say something like:

(38) a. She didnt lift a finger to help me.
(N-a micat un deget s m ajute.)
b. She doesnt like our chairman at all.
(Nu-i place deloc de presedinte.)


31
In the above examples, I underlined the phrases (not) to lift a finger and at all
that are specific for the negative context. They are not usable in an affirmative
environment, and sentences such as:

(39) a.*She lifted a finger to help me.
b. *She likes our chairman at all.

are clearly not grammatical. This means that the negative word not is so
powerful that it literally imposes the presence of certain elements (such as lift
a finger or at all) in its vicinity.

These elements that can appear only in non-assertive contexts (see section1.2.
for the definition of assertive/ non-assertive) are called negative polarity
items. They are lexical items (that is words and phrases) and are sensitive to
the polarity of the sentence (namely to the assertive or non-assertive nature of
the respective sentence).
The phenomenon is not restricted to English only as one can come up with
examples of such items from Romanian:

(40) Nu e chip s vorbeti cu el.
(41) N-am vzut nici picior de ho prin preajm.
The fact that the italicized phrases above are indeed negative polarity items is
demonstrated by their inadequacy in an assertive context. It is incorrect to say:

(42) * E chip s vorbeti cu el.
(43) * Am vzut picior de ho prin preajm.

Negative polarity items are sometimes paralleled by Affirmative Polarity
Items, that is by items that can appear only in assertive contexts. That is
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exactly why, we can speak of pairs of Negative and Affirmative Polarity
items:

Any vs. some (I havent any money. / I have some money.)
At all vs. somehow/ somewhat (I dont like him at all. / I somehow like him.)
Yet vs. already (I havent seen him yet. / I have already seen him.)
Any more vs. still (I dont love you any more. / I still love you)
Either vs. too (I dont like it, either. / I like it , too.)
Hardly ever vs. most of the times ( I hardly ever eat caviar. / I eat caviar
most of the times.)
Until vs. before (He didnt arrive until 5. / He arrived before 5.)
Much vs. a lot (I dont like you much. / I like you a lot.), etc.

Pratice

Activity 10
Give the negative / positive counterpart of the following
sentences; identify the polarity items:
We have already had some snow this winter. / They say he once
had someone very close. / Come on, you can still do something
about it. / We will see them again somewhere sometime. / We
were somehow surprised by that sudden appearance. / Well, I
hope hes somewhat wiser now. / I somewhat like his proposal. /
I think I can help him (to) some (extent). / Dont worry, it will
stop hurting before tomorrow. / Susan got a passing grade in
English and her friend did, too. / Alice doesnt live here any
longer/ more. / I dont feel any better for having had a holiday. /
Well, Im afraid her husband was never any good. / You neednt
send her anything. / She hardly ever comes here. /This
experiment has revealed something of importance already. / Bob
is still living at that address. / I can understand both of these

33
sentences./ I can understand all of these ten English words. /
Hundreds of students can find somewhere comfortable to live /
Some of the questions on this test he knew how to answer. / Peter
knows some English and so does John./ Both John and Peter
have pretty wives. / Daddy drinks a lot of coffee as he always
has. / I nearly always have to clean it myself. / Almost everyone
of them did well on that exam. / You must pay that fine. / You
must be telling lies.

Activity 11
Translate into English, paying attention to the following
Negative Polarity Items:
Budge, flinch, bat an eye(lid), give a damn/darn, find a trace,
hear a peep, hurt a fly, last a minute, crack a smile, turn a hair,
sleep a wink, touch a drop, leave a stone unturned, lift/raise/ stir
a finger, lay a finger on someone, touch her/him with a ten-foot
pole, move a muscle, see/ feel/ remember a thing, tell/ ask/speak
to a soul, say / breathe/ understand a word, know a single
person, have a care/ friend in the world, have/be worth a red cent.

Ion nu e prea detept, de fapt nimeni din familia lor nu e prea
detept. / N-a putut face el aa ceva! Nu e el chiar aa de detept!
/ Nu tiu ce s-a ntmplat cu ea; n-am vzut-o de ani de zile. /
Ajut-m, te rog! Nu pot s clintesc din loc pietroiul sta. / Se
spune c acest doctor n tiine n-a studiat niciodat nimic
nicieri. / Nou nu ne-a spus nimeni nimic, nici unuia dintre noi.
/ Sunt convins c Mark nu s-a deranjat s telefoneze. / Jim e
att de curajos! Nici n-a clipit mcar o dat. N-a zis nici ps cnd
doctorul i-a pansat rana. / Ari att de obosit azi! -Nu e de
mirare, n-am nchis un ochi toat noaptea (n-am lipit gean de
gean). / A: Bei un pahar de vin? B: Nu, mulumesc, de cnd cu
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ulcerul sta, nu mai pun pictur n gur nainte de mas. / A: Te-
a afectat desigur foarte mult plecarea lui. B: Ai, nu-mi pas
ctui de puin dac se ntoarce sau nu. / Poliia a scotocit peste
tot, n-a lsat cotlon necercetat, ncercnd s prind criminalul. /
Hotrt lucru, i se ntmplase ceva ngrozitor, dar ea nu-i mai
amintea absolut nimic i nu scotea o vorb. / Nu tiu de ce
plnge, nu e vina mea, n-am atins-o nici cu un deget! / Era
singurul care ar fi putut s-o fac, dar n-a micat un deget s-i
salveze! / Era un om tare, a primit vestea morii fiului su fr s
clipeasc! / E un om fericit. N-are nici o grij pe lume, dar nici
para chioar n buzunar. / Nu te lua dup el! Prerea lui nu face
nici dou parale! / Scena era att de caraghioas, nct nu-i
putea ine rsul. / S fiu al naibii dac mai vorbesc cu el
vreodat! / A: A sunat clopoelul? B: Nu, n-a sunat nc.

Activity 12
Translate into Romanian, paying attention to Polarity Items:
No fool like an old fool. / Never trouble trouble till trouble
troubles you. / Never is a long word. / No man is wise all the
time. / No sooner said than done. / Nothing succeeds like
success. / He wont make old bones. / Not to put too fine an edge
point on it, hes a pig. / I had no end of trouble. / He is no end of
a fellow. / No hands wanted. / No admittance. / No entry. / These
guys never know whether theyre coming or going. / I couldnt
make head or tail of it. / Nothing doing! / Sorry! No harm
done! / Nothing daunted, he left the room. / No trouble at all. /
Not that I care, but you really should do something about it.

As you have noticed from the exercises above, there are cases when Polarity
Items work in pairs (such as still and any more) and cases when there are only
Negative Polarity Items (lift a finger, budge, etc) or Affirmative ones (would

35
rather). Normally, Negative Polarity Items (NPI) are more numerous than
Affirmative ones (API), and this is helped by the fact that they can appear in
any context that is non-assertive: they can appear in negative sentences, but
also in interrogative ones (Have you seen anyone?) or in If-clauses (If you
have anything to say, say it.)

Pratice

Activity 13
Identify the contexts that allow for Negative Polarity Items:
a) He admitted saying something to some of the people present. /
He denied ever saying anything to anyone. b) I love asking some
funny remarks. / I hate making any commitments. c) He is
anxious to say something. / He is reluctant to ever say anything.
d) He is wrong / unwilling / unable to say anything about it. e)
She is the cutest girl anyone has ever seen.

2.7. Negative concord / Non-negative concord

This subsection attempts to draw a distinction between negative concord
languages (such as Romanian) and non-negative concord ones (such as
English). Compare the following sentences:

(44) I did not see anyone./ I saw no one.
(45) N-am vzut pe nimeni.

In the case of the sentence under (44) there are two negative words in
concord, which is not the case of the sentence under (45). Romanian is
therefore a negativeconcord language and we can safely say that
Substandard English that uses double negation exhibits negative concord,
as well:
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36

(46) I cant get no satisfaction. (The Rolling Stones)

The examples of double negation that are so frequent in Substandard English
need not be, however, mistaken for the so-called ample negatives, that are
instances of Standard English:

(47) A: You cant really like this poem.
B: Not this poem, I dont.
(A: Doar nu-i place poezia asta.
B: Nu, nu-mi place, nu poezia asta.)

The example above is a sample of Standard English, in that it does not in fact
contain two negative words in the same sentence. The second negation is
somehow independent, it is just a copy of the first one for the sake of
emphasis. The sentence under (47) is a rephrased emphatic variant of:

(48) No, I dont like this poem.
(Nu, nu mi place poezia asta.)

2.8. Conclusion. Key terms.

One of the most important issues discussed in this chapter is that of the
negative status of a sentence. We have drawn a distinction between
affirmative and negative sentences, from a syntactic point of view.

Syntactic negation refers to those sentences that have a negative word/
phrase inside them that modifies the whole content of the sentences.


37
Semantic negation is related to the meaning of a sentence or phrase only,
without taking into consideration form and structure.

The second issue discussed here is connected to the changes performed on
affirmative sentences when one needs to transform them into negative ones.
From this point of view, it is crucial for one to understand the problem of
Polarity Items.

Negative Polarity Items are those elements that can appear only in non-
assertive contexts.

Affirmative Polarity Items are those elements (fewer in number) that appear
only in assertive contexts.

The third issue tackled here refers to the difference between negative concord
and non-negative concord languages:
English non-negative concord (does not allow for double negation)
Romanian negative concord (negation is made up of two parts)
Substandard English negative concord

Pratice

Activity 14*
Translate the following into English and comment upon any
difficulties of translation you can think of in relation to
negativity:
Exist un mare pericol: s nu degenerezi i s ajungi s vezi
viaa altfel de cum este. / i era team s nu plece el mai
devreme i s uite valiza acas. / Stau i pzesc cldirea i
am grij s nu izbucneasc vreun foc la parter. / Trebuie s te
fereti s nu se ntmple ceva ru. / N-a venit acas mai
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38
devreme pentru c nu tia dac el n-o s vrea s mnnce n
ora.
Abia cnd m-am pomenit btnd n poarta Mgurenilor,
ncet, slab, fr prea mult hotrre, au nceput s mi se
hipertrofieze brutal n minte dimensiunile aventurii n care
m vrsem. Nu-mi fcusem mari iluzii, nu m ateptam s
obin ceva de la Carol, dup cum nu crezusem c voi fi
bruscat, expediat afar. (A. Buzura, Feele tcerii)
Oricum distana care o ineau fa de mine nu-mi convenea,
mi se prea amenintoare. N-aveam mai nimic comun, nu
ne lega o singur amintire, ntmplare, ceva, nu mi se ivise
prilejul s dovedesc, intr-un fel sau altul, c sunt om bun, cu
nevoi ca ei. (A. Buzura, Feele tcerii)
Cu nici unul dintre acetia N.S. nu se gsea n relaii deosebit
de norocoase, ceea ce nsemna c ei nici nu-i vorbeau i nici
binee nu-i ddeau. (L. Blaga, Peisaj i amintire)
Nici o clip nu-mi trecuse prin minte c venind aici, la
mnstire, a avea nevoie n bagajele mele de un frac. De
fapt, nici nu doream s iau parte la petrecere. (t. Agopian,
Tache de catifea)
Pe locul hotrt se adunase, nc pn a nu se face ziu, atta
lume, ct frunz i iarb, de nu se mai putea mica; i
btrnul cu copiii abia gsir i ei un colior la o parte de
unde s se poat uita i ei. N-apucar s se aeze bine i
auzir un sunet de fluier. (P.Ispirescu, Basme)
Era rndul meu s spun ceva, nu-mi aminteam ns unde
rmsesem, de aceea fusesem obligat s-mi mrturisesc
deruta: n realitate, nu neleg nimic din acest caz; povestea

39
dumitale, sau ceea ce am priceput eu din ea mi se pare c m
depete cumva Eu o cred cel puin anacronic, o restan
din alte vremuri A fi bucuros s fie aa.Din pcate, mi-e
greu s-mi dau seama n ce lume trieti, rspunse el imediat,
cu mult superioritate. Altfel arat lumea, nu cum i-o
nchipui. Nu teoriile i celelalte, nu vorbele, ci faptele din
orice moment, bune i rele, clare i nenelese, asta e lumea.
Trebuie s o judecm aa cum este, nu cum am vrea s fie ori
mai tiu eu. Gndeti cu totul greit, am putut s m
conving (Augustin Buzura, Feele tcerii)
Dup agitaia matinal, cnd nu ndrznea s-mi repete
invitaia, dar nici nu prea s renune la ideea de a pleca i eu
n B., Radu se linitise, sttea alturi, pe bancheta din fa,
urmrind aproape indiferent peisajul monoton de pe malul
rului. (Augustin Buzura, Feele tcerii)
Nu-mi dau seama ce i-am vorbit asear, dac ai priceput ce-
am vrut s-i spun. Eram somnoros i obosit, iar nervii nici
nu-i mai pun la socoteal. M-ai scos din srite, sta-i
adevrul, i atunci mi-au venit n minte acei prieteni, singurii
de altfel, i, de plcerea mea, m-am plimbat cu ei, mi-am
fcut damblaua. Am mai vrut s-i spun c te simi om abia
dup ce-i achii datoriile de orice fel. Uite, mergem, n
curnd vom ajunge n ora, dac vei vrea, te vei duce la Ursu,
dei eu nu cred, m-ai fi ntrebat ceva, oricum, te privete, nu
in s-i calci pe contiin: o ai, e a ta, faci cum crezi, ine-o
curat, clcat, exact cum ne purta pe noi Baciu, nu m bag.
Un lucru m ntrebam aa, venind cu hodorogul sta de tren:
nu-i vorba sut la sut de tine, dei i se potrivete, oare n
spatele vorbelor mari, preioase, n spatele contiinei tale i
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40
aa mai departe, nu se gsete cumva frica, incapacitatea de a
aciona, lenea chiar? Eu zici tu mai demult, m
ascundeam dup arm i dup pumni; dar tu i Melania, voi,
ai ieit sau ieii n fa, la btaie, sau totui v pitii i voi?
Arma nsemna putere, ea rezolva ncurcturile, v cura
drumul, din hrtoape v-a fcut asfaltul Chiar dac nu
omorai neaprat, dumanul i tia de fric, i avea de ce. Fr
for nu vd cum te-ai putea crede stpn, nu tiu cum ai
inspira respect. (Augustin Buzura, Feele tcerii)
Aadar, ce s fi neles tata? Cum s-i fi explicat lui toate
astea, eu, care nu eram capabil s-mi explic mai nimic, eu,
care pn atunci n-am reuit s spun mcar o dat, din
ntmplare, cu convingere, da sau nu? Nu voiam s-l mint,
dar nici s m mint, aa c ateptam resemnat s se oboseasc
ori s schimbe subiectul, dei era foarte dificil, deoarece
Iuliu, pentru a se distra, l irita mereu, lansa cte o ntrebare
stupid sau i aducea aminte cu mult elegan c nu i-am
rspuns nc. (Augustin Buzura, Feele tcerii)
Ce nedreptate cumplit: nici nu te nati bine, nici nu reueti
s deschizi suficient ochii, i, iat, trebuie s mori imediat.
(Augustin Buzura, Feele tcerii)
Popa Mitrea mi-a povestit mai trziu c, de fric s nu tie
unde sunt, nici n-a desfcut plicul i, imediat ce l-a predat, s-a
dus acas i dou zile nu s-a mai trezit din beie. Lumea,
uimit, o punea pe seama preotesei, a altor femei, treptat ns
a nceput s se obinuiasc i cu asta, satul nu era grozav de
religios, oamenii ncercai de necazuri nu se fereau de
butur, ea i fcuse mai indulgeni, faptele mrunte, chiar i
adulterele sau btile, nu mai intrau n sfera interesului

41
general. (Augustin Buzura, Feele tcerii)
mi desprinsei privirea de pe faa btrnului, hotrt s nu-i
rspund imediat, dar nu pentru c nu a fi avut ce vorbi ci din
simplul motiv c ntrebrilor lui nu reuisem s le gsesc o
justificare logic. (Augustin Buzura, Feele tcerii)

Activity 15*
Choose the correct answer(s):
a) In Not many people came to dinner there is an instance of
1. Negative dislocation 2. Negative attraction 3. Negative
insertion
b) Which is the correct sentence? 1. She wont be able to come
back home before tomorrow. 2. She will be able to come back
home before tomorrow. 3. She wont be able to come back home
until tomorrow.
c) In She didnt have a red cent in her pocket there is an
instance of : 1. Semantic negation 2. Syntactic negation 3.
Emphatic negation
d) Which is correct? I have ordered the pizzas but none of them
1. has yet arrived 2. have arrived yet 3. has not arrived yet
e) In the sentence It isnt likely that he will lift a finger to help
her, will he? there is an instance of 1. Negative raising
(transportation) 2. Semantic negation 3. Negative attraction
f) Which is correct: 1. She doesnt admire Susan or Jane nor
Mimi. 2. She admires neither Susan nor Jane nor Mimi. 3. She
admires neither Susan nor Jane.
g) The sentence No one has found a solution to any of these
problems is an instance of: 1. Negative transportation (raising)
2. Negative incorporation 3. Negative attraction
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Activity 16*
Identify and comment upon the (Negative and Affirmative)
Polarity Items in the text. Translate the fragments:
a) Sympathy was the last thing she wanted. She didnt have the
faintest clue as to what she would do about herself. One thing she
knew: she couldnt do without Jim and, yet, she couldnt marry
him, either. (Iris Murdoch The Black Prince, slightly adapted)
b) But it was rather late. Charlotte was no use to anybody any
more. She could hardly move and so she didnt stir. Her stillness,
her lack of motion would have to do; she couldnt be more right
about it. No one should know to what torture she was subjected.
(ibid.)
c) He felt no spring of interest in her, which meant that he almost
felt resentment at seeing her now. His spirit was too tired, too
troubled, not happy at all. He could not at this moment lift a
finger for anybody, much less for her. (ibid.)
d) I would not give in one bit. I would make not the tiniest haste
nor hint at the faintest urgency nor by any slightest gesture depart
from what I once was. (ibid.)
e) At length, and not a little unsteadily, he made his way to the
screen; there wasnt a soul around and still, his heart was beating
fast. (Salman Rushdie, The Satanic Verses, slightly adapted)
f) The women inside were entirely unimpressed by these
devotions, and gave no encouragement whatsoever to the suitors
at their barred gates. (ibid.)
g) He saw that she hadnt aged so much as a day since he last
saw her; if anything, she looked younger than ever, which gave
credence to the rumours which suggested that her witchcraft had
persuaded time to run backwards for her within the confines of
her tower room. (ibid.)

43
h) C. told himself that what all this sex-talk revealed was the
weakness of their so-called grand passion because there was
nothing else about it that was any good; there was simply no
other aspect of their togetherness to rhapsodize about. (ibid.)
i) What did C. care if the school were willing to treat him, on any
visits he cared to make, as a visiting Head of State? That sort of
thing appealed to Cs vanity, but his father would have none of it.
The point was, the school wasnt budging; the gift was useless,
and probably an administrative headache as well. He wrote to his
father refusing the offer. It was the last time his father tried to
give him anything. Home receded from the prodigal son. (ibid.)

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44

45

THREE
QUESTIONS

Aim of this unit: to offer a brief presentation of the main issues related to
interrogation in English
Objectives: to help students understand and identify the differences
between English and Romanian with respect to an
important grammatical process (i.e. interrogation). To help
students learn how to correctly formulate interrogative
sentences in English.

46

C
o
n
t
e
n
t
s
:

3.1. Direct vs. Indirect Questions
3.2. Quirks Classification of Direct Questions
3.2.1 Yes/No Questions
3.2.2 Wh- Questions
3.2.3 Alternative Questions
3.3. Minor Types of Questions
3.3.1 Tag Questions
3.3.2 Echo Questions
3.4. Key Terms. Optional Exercises

Unit three Questions

47

3.1. Direct / Indirect Questions

Like Romanian, English makes use of two main types of questions:
- direct questions (Did Susan give Tom the parcel? Why havent
you done your homework yet? How long are you going to sulk?)
- indirect questions (He asked if Susan had given Tom the parcel.
Bill asked his son why he hadnt done his homework yet. Bill
asked Susan how long she was going to sulk.)

We shall leave the problem of indirect questions aside, for a subsequent
section. This section will only deal with the opposition between direct and
indirect questions, focusing on direct questions mainly.

If we try to analyze the examples above, it appears that direct questions are
characterized by:
a) the placing of an auxiliary in front of the subject (this phenomenon is also
called subject auxiliary inversion):
(1) Will Jane meet the president today?
(O s fac Jane cunotin cu preedintele azi?)
b) the initial positioning of an interrogative or wh element
(2) Who will Jane meet?
(Cu cine o s se ntlneasc Jane?)
(3) What is she talking about?
(Ce spune acolo?)
c) rising question intonation
(4) Can you do it?
(Poi face asta?)

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As is obvious from the translation of the examples under (1), (2), (3) and (4),
all the features that characterize interrogation in English are to be found in
Romanian as well. However Romanian learners have difficulty in formulating
Present and Past questions, due to the fact that:
a) Romanian does not have do-insertion
Compare the following examples:
(5) Do you know English?
(6) tii englez?

b) unlike English, Romanian can drop the subject in a sentence since the
verbal ending is sufficient enough for a speaker to know what kind of person
it is that performs the action (e.g. the verbal form tii has an inflection that
tells us that the subject is a second-person singular one)

Due to these differences, Romanian students somehow have trouble
formulating correct interrogative sentences in English.

Pratice

Activity 1
Translate the following questions in English, paying attention to
the characteristics of interrogative sentences mentioned above:
Unde eti, Bill?/ Pe cine iubeti mai mult i mai mult, pe mama,
sau pe tata?/ Oare a plecat spre cas sau este nc acolo?/ Cnd v-
ai cstorit?/ Cum ai ajuns aa de repede?/ Ct a costat fusta cea
nou?/ Oare de ce nu se mulumesc cu ct ctig?

It can be said that the interrogative force of direct questions is provided by
two of the characteristics we mentioned: the fact that the subject changes
places with the auxiliary, by means of Subject Auxiliary Inversion, and the
specific rising intonation a speaker attaches to the sentence he utters.

49

Unlike direct questions, indirect ones do not make use of Subject Auxiliary
Inversion, and their intonation is not rising (and this is obvious even
graphically, since we do not use a question mark with indirect questions). In
the case of indirect questions, the interrogative force we were speaking about
has been taken over by the main verb that introduces the indirect question.
Compare:
(7) Where are you going?
(Unde te duci?)
to
(8) He asked her where she was going.
(A ntrebat-o unde se duce)

The fact that the meaning of indirect questions is tightly linked to the main
verb that introduces them is reinforced in English by the necessity that the
tense within the indirect question should correspond to the tense in the main
clause ( that is, the rules of the sequence of the tenses need to be observed: in
example (5), the Past Tense in the main clause matches the Past Continuous in
the subordinate). It would be therefore incorrect to say something like:
(9) He asked her *where she is going.
because, in this case, the sequence of the tenses is violated.
Likewise, it would be wrong to say (in standard English):
(10)He asked her *where was she going.

Since the question is not direct any more, Subject Auxiliary Inversion is not
required, and the sentence would be deemed grammatically wrong.

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Pratice

Activity 2
Analyse the following sentences in terms of the opposition
direct/indirect questions; identify the incorrect sentences.
What is going on? / What have you two been up to? / What you
two have been up to? / I wonder what have you two been up to? /
I wonder what is going on. / I wonder: what is going on? / I
wonder: what have you two been up to? / I wonder what you two
have been up to. / I dont know whom she fancies. / Who does
she fancy? / I dont know who does she fancy. / Who is she? / I
dont know who is she. / I dont know who she is. / He asked me
who she is. / He asked me who she was. / He asked me: who is
she?

Activity 3
Translate the following texts in English, paying attention to
indirect questions:
a) i, ca s fie limpede despre ce-i vorba, i povestete foarte
amnunit ce fel de trup are, ce culoare are pielea, cum merge
ea de obicei i cum merge dac se tie privit.
b) N-ar fi drept s spun ce prere are el despre dragoste i
despre felul de a fi al femilor ntruct experiena lui n
materie e modest.
c) tii ce, spune la un moment dat femeia, am s-i dau numele
i adresa mea. Am s in minte numele i adresa ta. Nu tiu
ct mai putem sta de vorb.
d) Brbatul spune un nume i o adres. Femeia spune cum o
cheam i unde locuiete, sau mai bine zis, unde locuia
nainte s fie arestat.
(Tudor Octavian Zid ntre un brbat i o femeie)


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3.2. Quirks Classification of Direct Questions

A first possible classification of questions is related to whether these
questions are long or short. Short questions tend to lose some of their content,
being typical of spoken language. Compare for instance:
(11)What do you want?
(Ce vrei/pofteti?)
to
(12)What?
(Ce?)
or
(13) Where are you going?
(Unde te duci?)
to
(14) Where to?
(ncotro?)

Pratice

Activity 4
Transform the following long sentences into short ones:
Is there any trouble? / Do you like my new T.V set? / Do you
want me to come along? / What is it that you want? / Why dont
you join us? / Would you like to have dinner with me? / Have
you heard from her lately? / Are there any bad news? / Is there
any mail for me today? / What should I do that for?

Another criterion of classification is, as Quirk shows, the type of answer the
respective question requires. In this case, one can speak of three classes of
questions: those questions that need a yes/no answer, those that need an
elaborate answer and those that need an alternative answer. Let us provide
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examples and a short presentation of each of the aforementioned types of
direct questions.

3.2.1. Yes / No Questions

As their name suggests, yes/ no questions are those particular questions that
receive a yes/ no answer.

Here are a couple of examples:
(15) Have you read Great Expectations?
(Ai citit Marile Sperane?)
(16) Did you go to the party?
(Te-ai dus la petrecere?)

Pratice

Activity 5
Form questions and say which of them are Yes/No questions:
1. (you / pick up the children from school) ?
2. ( you / lend me some money) ?
3. (which / you like best) ?
4. (who / talk to last night)?
5. (you / hear from her these days) ?
6. (what time / shops close today) ?
7. (you / keep a secret) ?
8. (when / the accident happen) ?
9. (how long / wait for me?)
10. (what / you do lately) ?

Since questions qualify as non-assertive contexts, one would expect them to
make use of Negative Polarity Items:

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(17) Did anyone call last night?
(M-a cutat cineva asear?)
(18) Has the boat left yet?
(A plecat deja vasul?)

Those yes / no questions that prefer to use Affirmative Polarity Items, instead
of Negative Polarity ones, are said to be positively oriented, that is the
answers to these questions are supposed to be positive:
(19) Did someone call last night?
(M-a cutat cineva asear?)
Yes, they did.
(Da).
(20) Has the boat left already?
(A plecat deja vasul?)
Yes, it has.
(Da).

A sub-type of yes/ no questions is represented by the so-called declarative
questions, which are so named because they are not characterized by Subject
Auxiliary Inversion. The declarative question is a type of question which is
identical in form to a statement, except for the final rising question intonation:
(21) You realize what the RISKS are?
(i dai seama de riscuri?)
(22) He didnt finish the RACE?
(N-a terminat cursa?)

Another sub-type of yes / no questions is supplied by negative questions:
(23) Didnt you know she was my Mum?
(Nu tiai c e mama mea?)
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(24) Cant you be more patient?
(Nu poi s ai i tu mai mult rbdare?)
(25) Wont you tell me who you went out with?
(Nu-mi spui i mie cu cine te-ai ntlnit?)

Pratice

Activity 6
In the following dialogues, make negative questions using the
words given and decide if the expected response would be Yes or
No, as in the example:
1. A: Youre still in your pyjamas. Arent you supposed to be
getting ready? (supposed to / get ready)
B: No. Ive still got plenty of time.
2. A: Your mother is shouting for you. ? (hear her)
B: . , but I want to play basketball a little longer.
3. A: Youve been learning German for years. ..
. (speak yet)
B: ., but Im too shy to try in front of strangers.
4. A: What a lovely hairdo! . (tell me who
does it for you)
B: .., because you always copy everything I do!
5. A: Why arent you coming to the party? (feel
like getting out)
B: , but Ive got to babysit tonight.
6. A: You look down. ? (enjoy
the film)
B: . It was the kind of film that really
depresses me.
7. A: She had her tenants evicted. ..?
(a mean thing to do)

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B: .. . Shes got a reputation for being
heartless.
8. A: That was a rather tactless thing to say.
(realise she was Anns sister?)
B: .. . You could have mentioned it
earlier.
9. A: There was a terrible car crash.
.? (see it on the news)
B: . I didnt get home until late last
night.
10. A: Its past your bedtime. ? (be in
bed by now)
B: .. . Im allowed to stay up late at the
weekend.

3.2.2 Wh questions

Wh- questions are formed with the aid of one of the following simple
interrogative words:
Who/ whom/ whose, what , which
When, where, how, why

The wh-phrase appears in sentence-initial position and Subject Auxiliary
Inversion takes place:
(26) a. On what did you base your prediction? (formal)
b. What did you base your prediction on? (informal)
(Pe ce i bazezi pronosticul?)

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Pratice

Activity 7
Ask questions where the word/phrase in bold is the answer:
Pete works for British Telecom./ Sara owns two cars. / Shes tall
and fair. / Its nearly seven oclock./ I have French lessons twice
a week. / I went to Hawaii on holiday. / There are six students in
my class. / I wasnt at work today because I was ill. / Davids car
was stolen. / Shakespeare wrote King Lear./ Weve lived here
for ten years. / My new car cost 10,000dollars. / Kays gone out
shopping. / Shirley got married to Ben. / Thats my pen. / She
lives in the suburbs./ She dropped her glasses.

Activity 8
Write questions in which the bold type words are the answers:
So I was glad for the company of Rosalie. As more old buildings
are demolished I must constantly shift about the city, trying to
find places where I resided in life, places where a shred of my
soul remains to anchor me. There are still overgrown bayou
islands and remote Mississippi coves I visit often, but to give up
the drunken carnival of New Orleans, to forsake human
companionship (witting or otherwise) would be to fully accept
my death. Nearly two hundred years, I cannot do that. (Poppy Z.
Brite Short Stories)

Note that there is a group of informal intensificatory wh words (who ever,
what ever, why ever, etc) that convey to the question an emphatic meaning:
(27) What ever did you do that for?
(De ce oi fi fcut tu asta?)
(28) Why ever didnt he tell me?
(De ce oare nu mi-o fi spus?)
There are, of course, other forms of intensification available:
(29) Who on earth did this?

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(Cine o fi fcut una ca asta?)
(30) Who the hell does he think he is? (impolite)
(Cine naiba se crede?)
(31) Why in heavens name did you say that? (impolite)
(Pentru numele lui Dumnezeu, de ce ai spus aa ceva?)

Pratice

Activity 9
What is the syntactic function of the wh phrase in the following
examples?
Whoever opened my letter? / Which toys did they buy? / Whose
card is this? / How large did he build his boat? / When do you
meet Susan? / How long did that last? / Where shall I put these? /
Why are you doing this?/ How did you solve the problem? /
What job does he have?/ Who did he turn to be?

There are certain cases where there are two wh phrases present in the
question:
(32) Susan has hidden something somewhere.
What has she hidden where?
(Ce a ascuns i unde l-a pus?)
Where has she hidden what?
(Unde i ce a ascuns?)

3.2.3. Alternative questions
Alternative questions are those questions that receive an alternative answer:
(33) A: Would you like to smoke a cigarette or a pipe?
B: A cigarette.
(A: Fumezi o igar sau o pip?
B: O igar.)
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Any positive yes/no question can be converted into an alternative one by
adding the phrase or not, or a matching negative clause:
(34) Yes / no question: Are you coming?
Vii?
(35) Alternative question: Are you coming or not?
(Vii sau nu?)
Are you coming or arent you?
(Vii sau nu vii?)

Pratice

Activity 10
Find the word which should not be in the sentence:
1. Could you mind come a bit earlier tomorrow?
2. How far is it the cinema?
3. He used to work in a bank, didnt use he?
4. Didnt they not go to the concert last night?
5. Would you like have a piece of cake?
6. Lets stay for another few days, shall we stay?
7. How long is she be spending in America?
8. Could you mind come a bit earlier tomorrow?
9. How far is it the cinema?
10. He used to work in a bank, didnt use he?
11. Didnt they not go to the concert last night?
12. Would you like have a piece of cake?
13. Lets stay for another few days, shall we stay?
14. How long is she be spending in America?
15. What Anne does she plan to do in the summer?
16. There was a fax for you this morning, wasnt it there?
17. Who did left the gate open?
18. You cant be serious, can you be?

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19. Would you mind to photocopying this letter for me?
20. Dont forget to take some spare socks, will you not?
21. That was Jeremys brother, wasnt it he?
22. John goes jogging every morning, doesnt he go?
23. Would you mind to picking some things up at the
supermarket?
24. Thats your car, isnt it this?
25. How long have you be lived in London?
26. Dont forget to ring the dentist, will you not?
27. How long time does it take to get there?
28. Would you to like a cup of coffee?
29. Didnt you not see him yesterday?
30. Who did told you about the problem?
31. Whose it is this book?
32. What did he say it about the assignment?

Activity 11
Translate the following, paying attention to the different types of
questions:
A. Ani ntregi, uneori disperat, n-am fcut altceva dect m-am
strduit s ngrop urmele de durere n mine, am ncercat s-
mi repar deformaiile, s-mi nfrng frica, nelinitea infantil.
Toate vechi, deci, acum ns parc m-am pierdut; particip la
povestea asta cu sentimentele i nu cu raiunea. Pot reveni,
deci, oricnd la vechile triri? Sau vreau doar s strng
documente despre un univers tulbure, plin de germeni
viruleni, despre o lume dur, necrutoare? Cui i-ar folosi
ele? Cei ce vin au n spate zeci de secole de istorie, la fel ca i
cei ce se duc, ca i cei ce au fost, dar cum nici lor nu le-a
folosit experiena altora la nimic, nu vd cui i-ar folosi
documentele mele? i cine-i judectorul, dac prin absurd
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exist? ntotdeauna vor exista stadii evolutie, iar protii,
inactivii, laii, mediocritile vor fi majoritari si vor avea
grij s condamne la anulare orice idee nou, strin
priceperii lor, vor amna-o n cel mai fericit caz. Atunci? S-
mi argumentez ideea c oamenii se afl in preziua unui nou
salt evolutiv? Dar i fr nite biografii n plus am aceast
certitudine. Trebuie s se ntmple ceva () Poate m aflu n
stadiul definitivrii unui drum propriu i, naiv, visez c odat
cu mine se va schimba i lumea. Drumdar ce drum? Am
multe anse pentru a m schimba, a ncepe ntr-un fel viaa de
la capt, indiferent de risc. Riscul? Ratarea, pe care oricum
am simit-o, i tiu gustul.
B. Nu-mi amintesc din ntreaga poveste dect un singur lucru:
stteam n cancelarie n faa mesei directorului i pe fa mi
se proiecta lumina unei uriae lmpi de bioru: Unde ai fost?
Ce-ai fcut pn la 12 noaptea?Cu cine ai avut ntlnire?
Recunoate, c altfel i spunem noi! Nu-l vedeam din cauza
luminii care m orbea, ghiceam doar unde se afl. Spune!
striga el. Uit-te la mine dac ai curaj. Cu cine ai avut
ntlnire? Lumina m ameea, simeam c nu m voi putea
mica din cauza tranpiraiei. Ai fost n parc noaptea. Cu cine
ai avut ntlnire, ce legturi ai? n ce scop?
C. M obsedeaz mereu ansa pe care generos mi-am acordat-o
atunci, dar i drumul, lung, negru, pe sub bolile din care,
nentrerupt, picur apa roietic, murdar, obolanii trecnd
indoleni prin faa mea i curenii de aer cald, umed, puturos.
i, de atunci, n afar de faptul c mi-am acordat mereu cte
o ans, m ntreb, contaminat desigur i de cinismul
inteligentului meu unchi: La ci zei te poi opune ntr-o

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via, domnule profesor, cnd armele tale sunt rudimentare i
trupele decimate? i Carol, nu se poate, exclus, absolut
exclus s nu fi simit n secunda aceea uria atrnat
deasupra lui, golul alb, orbitor, care i-a determinat alegerea,
viaa? Oare e drept, e cinstit s-i obosesc degeaba, cnd nu-i
pot face nici un bine, cnd n-am cum s-l ajut? i, la urma
urmei, chiar cnd prin absurd a putea, ar avea rost s le fac
dreptate? La ce le-ar folosi, cnd aceast cutare ncpnat
a dreptii i mai ine n via?
(Augustin Buzura Feele tcerii)

3.3. Minor Types of Questions

There are two minor types of questions we would like to mention in the
following subsections: tag questions and echo questions.

3.3.1. Tag Questions

Tag questions, or disjunctive questions are mostly typical of spoken English.
They can be attached to:
an imperative
(36) Open the door, will you?
Deschide ua, da?
(37) Lets go there, shall we?
(Hai s mergem acolo, da?)
but the most frequent kind of tag questions are the ones attached to:
declarative sentences
(38) She went to Prague, didnt she?
(S-a dus la Praga, nu-i aa?)
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We shall deal with the latter type in more detail. Depending on whether they
match the polarity of the main sentence or not, tag questions can be:
constant polarity tags
Constant polarity tags have the same polarity as the host sentence (i.e. if
the host or main sentence is affirmative, the tag is affirmative too; if
the host sentence is negative, the tag is negative too). The suggestion is
that in this case, the speaker using the tag disagrees with what the main
sentence states. In this way, constant polarity tags can be a means of
expressing irony, sarcasm; this is why constant polarity tags have also
been called reactive tags, or comment tags, since they reveal the
speakers reaction to the situation he comments upon:
(39) John: And Sue hasnt graduated yet.
(i Sue nu i-a dat nc licena)
Harry: She hasnt graduated yet, hasnt she?
(Aha, deci nu i-a dat licena, hm?)
(40) A: Wheres the rest of the money?
(Unde e restul de bani?)
B: Im afraid its all spent.
(Din pcate, au fost cheltuii.)
A: Oh, its all spent, is it?
(Deci, au fost cheltuii, hm?)
reversed polarity tags
Reversed polarity tags are those tags that are negative when the host
sentence is affirmative and vice versa.
Depending on whether the intonation of the respective tag is rising, or
falling, reversed polarity tags can be split in their turn into two categories:
with a rising intonation, the speaker is not sure about what he
says and he expects an answer:
(41) Theyre moving, arent they?

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(Se mut, nu?)
with a falling intonation, the speaker is sure about what he says
and doesnt really expect an answer:
(42) He caused the accident, didnt he?
(El e cel care a cauzat accidentul, nu?)

Pratice

Activity 12
Fill in the appropriate question tag:
You have got enough money. / Surely you have enough money. /
He will be on time. / There is enough food for everyone. / She
used to talk a lot. / Everyone felt happy about it. / I am dressed
smartly enough. / Thats your car over there. / You will pick me
up, after all. / You will pick me up at 7. / Lets eat dinner now. /
Dont leave without me. / Be a nice girl and bring me that stick. /
You have been invited. / There are a lot of cars on that street. /
She left an hour ago. / He hates his wife. / He simply hates empty
words. / That was your father. / Tell me,/ Let me know, /
Ann cant speak French. / She has a brother. / I am older than
you. / I must go now. / I may not see you tomorrow. / I may see
you tomorrow. / You ought not to smoke. / The boy never
watched his sister. / The boy often watched his sister. / He hasnt
any money in his pockets. / He had his tooth filled two weeks
ago. / He has to marry Susan. / There are sure to be two books in
that drawer. / There happened to be a spare seat in the back of the
room. / Few people like her. / A few people like her. / Each of us
is staying. / I dont think you like my music. / I think you dont
like my music. / I think you like my music. / They said he liked
music.
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Activity 13
Discuss the differences in meaning or emphasis (if any) between
the sentences:
1. He used to play squash, didnt he?/ He used to play squash,
did he? / Didnt he use to play squash? / Did he use to play
squash?
2. Isnt this a great party? / This is a great party! / This is a great
party, isnt it? / Is this a great party, or what?
3. Didnt she do well in her exam! / She did very well in her
exam. / How did she do in her exam?/ Didn t she do well in
her exam? / Did she do well in her exam?
4. Isnt it strange that everyone thinks they are experts on
education? / Its strange that everyone thinks that they are
experts on education.
5. So you enjoyed my talk, did you? / So you didnt enjoy my
talk? / So didnt you enjoy my talk? / So did you enjoy my
talk?

Activity 14
Add question tags to these sentences; then rewrite 1 to 4 as
negative questions:
Wed better stop work soon./ Im right about this. / Youd
rather stay in bed than get up early / Anyone can apply for the
scholarship / If we dont get a move on, there wont be much
time left / Lets have a rest / Nobody anticipated what
would happen / Do try to relax. / He never used to study so
hard.. / They ought to work much harder

Activity 15
a) Rewrite each sentence so that its meaning remains unchanged,
using a question tag at the end. The passive is required in each
one.
b) Then rewrite each of your newly formed passive sentences as
negative questions:

65
Experts are finding new ways of using the computers all the
time. / New uses
One day robots and computers will do all our work for us. / All
our work
I dont think that computers could be installed in every
classroom. / Computers
No one has yet invented a robot teacher. / No robot teacher
The government should pay teachers on results. / Teachers
Students parents often support them. / Students
Student loans might replace grants. / Grants

3.3.2. Echo Questions

Quirk discusses two categories of echo questions:

2.3.2.1. Recapitulatory echo questions - questions which repeat part or all of
the message, as a way of having its content confirmed
In their turn, recapitulatory echo questions can be further split into:
a) general echo questions characterized by the fact that they have
the same order as declarative questions (see 2.2.1.) but a rising
intonation (instead of a falling one, as is the case with declarative
questions):
(43) A: I didnt like that meat.
(Nu mi-a plcut friptura aia.)
B: You didnt like it?
( Nu i-a plcut?)
(44) A: My husband speaks Chinese.
(Soul meu tie chinez.)
B: Chinese?
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(Chinez?)

b) special echo questions the wh- word can be placed in sentence
initial position or not. If the wh- phrase is fronted, Subject Auxiliary
Inversion takes place, accompanied by rising intonation:
(45) A:I saw Bill yesterday.
(Ieri l-am vzut pe Bill.)
B: You saw WHOM yesterday?
(Pe cine ai vzut ieri?!)
(46) A: Switch that light off.
(nchide lumina aia.)
B: Switch WHAT off?
(Ce s nchid?!)
(47) A:We went to Amsterdam.
(Ne-am dus la Amsterdam.)
B: WHERE did you go?
(Unde ai fost?!)
(48) A: He is an astronaut.
(E astronaut)
B: WHAT is he?
(Ce e?!)
Such sentences often express surprise, consternation, disbelief,
misunderstanding:
(49) A:My husband eats bugs.
(Soul meu mnnc insecte.)
B: He eats WHAT?
(Ce mnnc_?!)
2.3.2.2. Explicatory Echo Questions ask for the clarification, rather than
the repetition, of something just said. The difference between recapitulatory

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and explicatory echo questions lies in the type of intonation they possess: as
we have seen, with recapitulatory echo questions, intonation is rising, whereas
with explicatory echo questions, intonation is falling:
(50) A: Take a look at this.
(Uit-te la asta.)
B: Take a look at WHAT?
(La ce s m uit?)
(51) A: Oh, dear, Ive lost the letter.
(Vai, am pierdut scrisoarea.)
B: WHICH letter have you lost? (i.e. which letter do you
mean, rather than did you say, you have lost?)
(Ce scrisoare ai pierdut?)
Pratice

Activity 16
Formulate echo questions in relation to the underlined word and
comment on their meaning:
My sister dyed herself green. / I think Ive found a solution. / I
think Ive found a hair in my soup./ We are looking for a purse. /
We are looking for a pixie. / He is interested in music./ He is
interested in blue movies.
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3.4. Instead of Conclusions
ANEXA
questions
indirect (I asked her when she would come.)
direct
major
minor
yes/ no (Do you know the story?)
wh - (Where is the book?)
alternative (Do you want the steak or the omelette?)
tag
echo
constant polarity tags (So, she knows about it, does she?)
reversed polaritz tags with rising intonation
(They are moving, arent they? ) Speaker = certain
with falling intonation
(Th i t th ? ) S k t i
recapitulatory
explicatory (Take a look at this book.
Take a look at WHAT? )
general
(I actually enjoyed the concert.
Y did?)
special (surprise)
(I enjoyed the concert.
Y j d WHAT? )

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Pratice

Activity 17*
Translate the following:
1.Nu tiam unde m duce, dar mi ddeam seama c avea o int:
dup ce tcuse atta timp asupra a ceea ce a fi vrut s aflu,
acuma sporoviala. ntre ce ani fusese student? Terminase
oare facultatea? Cum ajunsese caseri, aa, n general, i la
Oraca ndeosebi? Cine erau prinii ei? Fusese mritat? (nu, nu
purta verighet, dar) Care fusese anturajul ei n acei ani cnd
eu i Ion Micu frecventasem braseria? Venise i ea acolo des? Cu
cine? i n ce sens era geloas pe noi doi? mi reteza, ca s zic
aa, din fa dorina de a-i pune aceste ntrebri i o fcea cu o
capacitate de a vorbi i a nu spune nimic enorm prin cumul de
cuvinte, care ascundeau un humor secret Ce? parc spunea, nu
e amuzant c nu e amuzant ceea ce povestesc? Ei, da, era!
(Marin Preda Cel mai iubit dintre pmnteni)
2. Crezi tu, cumnat Fenia, c iepuoara asta de Vica, care e
fata lui Andrei Mortu, i care s-a aciuat, stricata, n satul nostru,
crezi tu c nu e ea n legtur cu houl de Andrei, cu ta-su?
Ferete-l, Fenio, pe Condrat de Vica, numai la oameni buni le-a
sucit capul cu dragostea ei pctoas: lui Petre Litr, lui Stavre
Pici, lui Chizlinski, lui Luca Horobe, oameni aezai, cu o cas
de copii. Are gust de oameni blnzi, erpoaica, s se
ncolceasc mai bine, dup pofte. Degeaba crezi c a luat-o
Condrat n ceata lui la pescuit, ast-toamn? Ferete-l Fenio,
avei i aa numai necazuri, i apoi Vica ce zice, acum pun mai
bine mna pe Condrat, c tot trebuie s plece pe front. ()

i de la Bogdaproste, unde crezi c a rsrit Vica? La Babadag!
Ora mare, cu cale ferat i cu geamie. i cum crezi c-a rsrit
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70
Vica-n Babadag? n stamb nflorat, rou i galben, pn la
clcie, i n cap cu piepteni albatri. n picioare i-ai gsit s
mai umble cu tlpile goale! umbla-n sandale de catifea alb cu
catarmi rotunde. i cui crezi c i-a sucit capul n Babadag? Lui
Hogea, popa al ttarilor i al turcilor. L-a scos din geamie.
Hogea, tinerel de aptezeci i opt de ani, curat ca pereii de
Pati. Oamenii de la Babadag oameni subiri, de ora s-au
fcut n-aude n-a vede de obrazul Hogii.
(tefan Bnulescu Iarna brbailor)
3. De asta erai, deci, att de sigur pe tine? De asta ai lsat s
treac sesiunea de var i ai continuat s-i vezi de munca aia
simpl i grea din care mai ales ea nu vedea ce plcere poi
obine? i o lsai s vin la tine o dat la dou sptmni? i ea
credea c ai i renunat la facultate. Cum putea cineva s fie aa
de sigur pe un examen de admitere n sesiunea din toamn, cnd
ea fcea pe ea i la un biet colocviu pe an? i de asta rdeai cu
superioritate acolo, sus, pe tren i-l ndemnai s vorbeasc pe
tipul care s-ar fi ntors totui la C i ar fi cutat-o din nou pe
Hertha, sau cum o chema, i i-ar fi spart la orice falca lu domnu
Grasu, pe care l njurai i tu cu plcere, dei nici nu-l cunoteai?
Pe urm i-a mai venit i o alt idee. Ai zis: dar Grasu sta n-are
i el vreo fat?! i i-ai vzut deodat transfigurai.
(Mircea Nedelciu Proz scurt)
4. Nu mai are chef s fac nimic pn disear. Chiar i pn la
geam se duce fr chef, abia trndu-i picioarele. Pentru c ce o
s vezi i acolo? Chiocul cu iedera, scaunele de rchit de sub
nuc Aaaa! Cum de nu este Sophie la mansard s ngrijeasc
glcile lui Grigore? Cum de a aprut aici? Ai putea crede c a
ieit s-i controleze straturile de trandafiri, dar cum se face c a

71
ales tocmai ora aceasta fierbinte? i ce exagerare s te mbraci
aa! Ce voit epatant inut de grdin: cu plria de pai veche i
fusta puin suflecat! Nu cumva are i saboi n picioare? Ai
putea crede c a ieit s ude florile, dar de ce s uzi florile pe
zpueal? i un ageamiu tie c nu se face! C i-a pierdut
capul, se vede prea bine, furtunul curge n netire i a inundat
aleile, niciodat n-a fcut grdinarul o asemenea mocirl! Dar
oare cnd o fi avut vreme s fi cobort Sophie de la mansard? i
pe unde? Pe scara de serviciu? i oare cum de a ajuns plria de
panama pn n mijlocul grdinii?
(Gabriela Adameteanu Diminea pierdut)

72

73

FOUR
COORDINATION

Aim of this unit: to define coordination in English, to offer a description of
the various instances of coordination
Objectives: to offer students a guide on how to correctly formulate
coordinated sentences in English

74

C
o
n
t
e
n
t
s
:

4.1.Syndetic and Asyndetic Coordination
4.2.Coordination and Subordination
4.3.Sentence and Phrase Coordination
4.4.Coordinating Conjunctions
4.5.Verb Agreement with Compound Sentences
4.6.Key Concepts
Unit four Coordination

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4.1 Syndetic vs. Asyndetic Coordination

Before we proceed to discuss the notion of coordination, some comment is in
order: the term coordination is going to be used mainly in relation to what
some grammarians call syndetic coordination, i.e. that type of structure
where there are explicit indicators that there are two more elements linked by
coordination. This type is placed in opposition to asyndetic coordination,
where there is no indication other than a comma, that elements are
coordinated. Consider example

(1) He looked at them sadly and reproachfully.
(S-a uitat la ei cu tristete si repros.)
which is an instance of syndetic coordination.

Example (2), on the other hand, is an illustration of the asyndetic type:

(2) He looked at them sadly, reproachfully.
(S-a uitat la ei cu tristete, cu repros.)

Example (1) exhibits coordination by means of and, which is a coordinating
conjunction or a coordinator. The terms linked by the coordinator are called
conjuncts.
We will use the term coordination in reference to the first type mentioned
above, where a coordinator is overtly expressed (i.e. present) in the sentence.
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76

4.2 Coordination & Subordination

By definition, coordination (or conjoining) is a syntactic operation that puts
together constituents of the same rank. Conversely, subordination (or
Embedding) is a syntactic operation that involves rank-shifting, namely one
constituent is subordinated to a higher-rank constituent.

Consider the following examples where one can look at the same situation
expressed differently from a syntactic point of view:

(3) Hit my wife and youll die.
(O lovesti pe sotia mea si vei muri.)
(4) If you hit my wife, you will die.
(Daca o lovesti pe sotia mea, vei muri.)

Such examples, that have a lot in common from a semantic point of view, led
grammarians to believe that coordination is the basic structure wherefrom
subordination originated. Example (3) is an instance of coordination where
constituents of the same rank are linked by means of the coordinating
conjunction and. In example (4) one can notice a more complex structure,
where the subordinating conjunction if plays a major part. We will come back
to example (3) in a subsequent subsection.

From the previously mentioned examples, we can already make at least two
important remarks:

a) that from a formal point of view, coordination differs from subordination
in that it is realized by means of coordinating conjunctions.

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b) that there might be important semantic similarities related to examples
exhibiting coordinated, respectively subordinated constituents.

However, we need to specify that, from a logical & semantic point of view, a
major difference between coordination and subordination is that the
information in subordinate clauses is not asserted, but presupposed.

Compare:

(5) John came back and gave her a piece of his mind.
(John s-a intors si i-a spus vreo doua.)
(6) John gave her a piece of his mind after he came back.
(John i-a zis vreo doua dupa ce s-a intors.)

Unlike in the case of (5) where we are dealing with assertion, the subordinate
adverbial clause of time contains a presupposition: We presuppose that the
event of Johns coming back happened.

c) from a pragmatic point of view it is to be remarked that example (3) will
be found more frequently in instances of dialogue and spoken language as
it is obviously characterized by a rather informal tone.

Pratice

Activity 1
Coordination and style
The following two passages are straightforward descriptive
paragraphs taken from narrative works. The first is a vivid
description of a sequence of actions; the second, a static
description of a small town in nineteenth-century Ireland. The
student will notice the almost complete absence of subordinate
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78
clauses from both passages. In the first, this adds to the graphic
effect of the movement in the passage. In the second, the
comparative looseness of the sentence construction is admirably
suited to the evocative informality of description.

Passage 1: The black cloud had crossed the sky, a blob of dark
against the stars: The night was quiet again, Tom stopped into
the water and felt the bottom drop from under his feet. He
threshed the two strokes across the ditch and pulled himself
heavily up the other bank. His clothes hung to him. He moved
and made a slopping noise; his shoes squished. Then he sat
down, took off his shoes and emptied them. He wrung the bottom
of his trousers, took off his coat and emptied them. He wrung the
bottoms of his trousers, took off his coat and squeezed the water
from it.
John Steinbeck, The Grapes of Wrath

Reconstruct the paragraph, combining as many of the simple
sentences as you feel reasonable into compound sentences with
subordinate clauses. How does the effect of your passage differ
from Steinbecks?

Passage 2: Castlebar had preserved the appearance of a feudal
town. Though the castle had vanished, on its site fortifications
still frowned above steep and narrow streets, the houses were
beautiful and ancient, built, with enormous solidity, of cut gray
stone, adorned with cornices, stone-wreathed windows and
carved doorways. In the late eighteenth century a Mall had been
added to the town, with formal walks under rows of trees, but the

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streets tailed off abruptly into mud cabins, curlews wheeled and
cried in the centre of the town, and the walkers in the Mall had
bare feet.
Cecil Woocham Smith, The Reason Why

Compare the previous two passages with the following in point
of complexity of structure and formality of tone. Note that the
more intricate construction of the third passage is correlated by
the author to the difficult journey the character in the passage has
to make:

Passage 3: The Canon dressed and, waving the remonstrances of
his housekeeper aside, left the house. Before him was a climb
that would take at least three hours, over some of the roughest
ground in the country. He walked up to the top of the village
street and struck off up a boreen that went for a bit and then
petered out as if discouraged. After that he had to make do with
the narrow rocky footpath when he could see it or stumble a
while over the tangled scrub and sharp stones till he found it
again. The unwonted exercise made his heart pound and his head
swim, and his clothes stuck damply to him: darkness fell before
he was half-way up and although he had a torch the way in front
was so strange and featureless he thought he should never arrive
at his goal. His feet pained him from continually stubbing against
the bits of rock: in spite of the long dry spell the mountain was
soaking, and as the way is with Irish mountains, the higher he
went the wetter it grew, until he found the water gurgling about
his ankles and seeping over the top of his boots; and more than
once he missed his footing and measured his length on the
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80
prickly ground.
Honor Tracy The Straight and Narrow Path

4.3 Sentence vs. Phrase Coordination

Compare the following sentences:

(7) I saw him yesterday and I had seen him the day before yesterday.
(L-am vazut ieri si l-am vazut si alaltaieri.)
(8) I saw him yesterday and the day before yesterday.
(L-am vazut ieri si alaltaieri.)

Example (7) is an instance of sentence coordination, the result of which is a
COMPOUND SENTENCE. A compound sentence is to be placed in
opposition to a COMPLEX SENTENCE, where there is a main clause and
one or more subordinate clauses, as shown in (9).

(9) If the authors and publishers of Dick Deadshot and such remarkable
works were suddenly to make a raid on the educated class, were to take
down the name of every man, however distinguished, who was caught at a
University Extension lecture, were to confiscate all our novels and warn
us to correct all our lives, we should be seriously annoyed.
(G.K. Chesterton A Defence of Penny Dreadfuls )

Example (8) exhibits an instance of Phrasal Coordination, where we are
dealing with a compound constituent, yesterday and the day before yesterday.

As one can easily notice, this constituent can be considered to be the result of
compressing the longer and much less economical compound sentence from

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example (7). This phenomenon of compression and reduction is called
ellipsis.

Pratice

Activity 2
Distinguish between sentence coordination and phrasal
coordination; argue that both are basic, but phrasal
coordination may also result from reduction of coordinated
sentences:
1.Bob entered the room and immediately the telephone rang. 2.
They are living in Italy or they are spending a vacation there. 3.
Jane might sing but I dont think she will. 4. John is ready and
Mary is ready. 5. John and Mary are ready. 6 John sang and
Mary danced. 7. John and Mary are the newly married couple. 8.
Her pet kitten is black and white. 9. Our flag is red, yellow and
blue. 10. His speech was coherent and understood by almost
everybody.

Activity 3
Read the following examples and state whether they have
undergone ellipsis or not:
My colleague failed, and I passed, our respective examinations. /
Peter and John played football. / Bob and George are admired by
their students. / Peter, but not John, plays football. / Joan plays
many games, and even tennis. / John both composed the music
and wrote the words.

Ellipsis can be of two types:
a) the so called forward ellipsis, when it operates on the second conjunct in
the structure:
(10) a. John writes poetry and Bill writes prose.
(John scrie poezii si Bill scrie proza.)
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82
b. John writes poetry and Bill prose.
(John scrie poezii si Bill proza.)
In (10a) the second conjunct has been wiped out, or deleted, as can be
seen in (10b).

A deletion of the first conjunct would have been impossible in this case:

(10) c. *John poetry and Bill writes prose.

b) backward ellipsis when it operates on the first conjunct in the structure:
(11) a. John loves cigars and Bill hates cigars.
(Lui John ii plac trabucurile iar Bill le uraste.)
b. John loves and Bill hates cigars.
(Lui John ii plac iar Bill uraste trabucurile.)
c. * John loves cigars and Bill hates.

Example (11b) predicts the correct deletion of the first conjunct, whereas
(11c) shows the ungrammaticality of a deletion of the first conjunct in this
case.

Pratice

Activity 4
Rewrite the following sentences by using ellipsis:
1. The message was ambiguous and was difficult to comprehend.
2. A burglar must have broken in and he must have stolen the
jewels. 3. Why did you give a gold watch to your secretary and
why did you give a pair of gloves to your wife? 4. Bob may have
been listening to music and he may have been humming the tune.
5. Bob seems to be trying hard to get along with Jane and John
seems to be trying to get hard to get along with Susan. 6. Jane

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forced John to shave himself and Susan forced John to wash
himself. 7. Father begged Susan to get married and mother
begged Jane to get married. 8. Bob thought of his girlfriend and
Tom dreamed of his girlfriend. 9. Yesterday large flags were
flying and this morning small flags were flying. 10. We can
demand payment and we will demand payment.

Besides ellipsis, substitution is another reduction operation that can be applied
to compound sentences.

Consider the following:
(12) I was advised to buy a pair of shoes and I bought a pair of shoes.
(Am fost sfatuit sa cumpar o pereche de pantofi si am cumparat o pereche
de pantofi.)

The common element, i.e. the predication buy a pair of shoes, can be reduced
by substitution, as can be seen in
(13) I was advised to buy a pair of shoes and I did so/it.
(Am fost sfatuit sa imi cumpar o pereche de pantofi si asta am si facut.)

These two reduction methods can operate within compound sentences due to
the fact that sometimes it is more economical to use a reduced structure, than
a longer repetitive one. So, these syntactical processes, having to do with a
change performed in the structure of a sentence, are in fact motivated by a
pragmatic principle, the so-called Principle of Economy, that favours
concision and efficiency in the use of language.
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84
Pratice

Activity 5
Match the following two columns so as to obtain correct
elliptical phrases:

this book and Johns
her son and his
your work and the other
her idea and those
that method and others
your proposal or little
many guests or few
much satisfaction and mine

Note that the following idioms are built on the same principle as
the phrases above: one way or another, some reason or
another, one or (the) other method.

Activity 6
In certain cases, ellipsis may be a fruitful source of ambiguity,
since one may interpret the compound noun phrase or sentence in
question as having undergone ellipsis or not. Consider the
following phrases and find as many possible interpretations for
them as you can:
1. the old men and women
2. simple books and magazines for children
3. George and Jane are separated.
4. George and Jane went back to their parents.

Activity 7
Translate the following sentences, using reduced structures:
1. S-a rastit la el si l-a palmuit. 2. Prefer propozitiile de mai jos
ori de pe pagina urmatoare. 3. A citit, interpretat si tradus opera
contemporanului sau. 4. Ii plac si are grija de toate pisicile

85
vagaboande de langa bloc. 5. Intotdeauna am luptat si voi lupta
pentru progres. 6. Daca si cand se hotaraste sa plece in Noua
Zeelanda este o problema mai veche. 7. Psiholingvistica si
sociolingvistica sunt materii importante. 8. I-a invitat de ziua lui
pe gineri si pe nurori.

Activity 8
Some idiomatic phrases are in fact compound phrases, like: salt
and pepper, fish and chips, sweet and sour, Marks and Spencers.
Fill the gaps in these sentences with suitable expressions from
the list below:
1.I searched .. for my wallet. 2. Can we discuss the
.. of your proposals later on? 3. Can you show me the
to support your argument? 4. Shes a wonderful
storyteller: always the of the party. 5. They get on
quite well together, even though they have their little ..
6.You gain some things and you lose others; its a case of
7. The police are responsible for maintaining
. 8. Ive tidied up my room and now its 9. It
was whether the rescuers would get there in time. 10
Theyve shared a lot of experiences: theyve been through
together. 11. You cant claim on insurance for
, only for damage. 12. I need another 100$ .. the
amount Ive already saved up. 13. Nuclear physicists who are
also best-selling writers are .. 14. A pendulum swings
.. 15. He makes a little money out of writing but teaching
is his . . 16. After all their adventures, they reached
home.

bread and butter / facts and figures / few and far between / high
and low / law and order / life and soul / over and above / pros
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86
and cons / safe and sound / spick and span/ swings and
roundabouts / thick and thin / to and fro / touch and go / ups and
downs / wear and tear.

4.4. Coordinating Conjunctions

We can distinguish between three classes of coordinators:

a) Copulative: and / both and /at once and / neither nor / as well as
/ no less than / not only but also, etc. We should also mention here
rarer copulative coordinators, such as: alike and / nor nor / nor
or :
(14) His job is at once judicial and political
(Slujba lui este si juridica si politica.)
(15) She went to sleep alike thankless and remorseless.
(A plecat la culcare si nerecunoscatoare si lipsita de remuscari.)
(16) Nor sun, nor wind will strike to kiss thee.
(Nici soare si nici vint nu te-or atinge cu vreun sarut.)

There are, of course, semantic restrictions on the types of clauses that can be
coordinated. For instance, one cannot couple two sentences with completely
different semantic content, as in:
(17) a. *Lions are mammals and Tom bought a car.
b. *I hate plumbers and you learn syntax.

In fact, the expressive function of coordination is, more often than not, to
emphasize (semantic) parallelism or contrast, which is the case with

b) adversative coordinators: but, and

87
(18) I gave her the money but I didnt feel happy about it.
(I-am dat banii, dar nu am fost multumit de asta.)

c) disjunctive coordinators: or, either or
(19) She can either have the money or she can have the clothes.
(Poate primi ori banii ori hainele.)
Some of the aforementioned coordinating conjunctions have correlatives
(either or, both and , etc); some of them allow ellipsis of the subject
(and, or ; sometimes but, too):
(20) a. I may see you tomorrow or (I) may phone later in the day.
(S-ar putea sa te vad miine sau sa iti telefonez mai incolo.)
b. He went to the safe and (he) took out the money.
(S-a dus la seif si a scos banii.)
c. I gave her the money but (I) didnt feel happy about it.
(I-am dat banii dar nu mi-a convenit de loc.)

In certain cases, the ellipsis of the subject is even required (see e.g. 20 (b)). If
the coordinating conjunction links two subordinate clauses, where the
subordinator is repeated, ellipsis of the subject is no longer accepted:

(21)* I didnt object to his proposal since it was very apropiate and since
apealed to me.

Another property some of the coordinators above share is the fact that they
can link more than two clauses:
(22) They both liked Susan and respected her, and cherished her.
(Ei o placeau pe Susan, o respectau si o indrageau.)

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An important property shared by coordinating conjunctions has to do with
the fact that sometimes, these coordinators can impose a subordinating shade
of meaning upon the conjunctions, like in the example we discussed at the
beginning of this section:
(3) Hit my wife, and youll die.
(O lovesti pe sotia mea si ai sa mori.)

In example three one can read a conditional meaning behind the lines. In
this case, if we were to rewrite the example , we could not say something like:
(23) *Youll die, and hit my wife.

Whenever the coordinating conjunction adds a subordinating tinge of
meaning to the conjuncts, the order of these conjuncts is fixed.
From this point of view, one can differentiate between

a) a symmetric use of coordinators where the order of the conjuncts is
reversible:
(24) a. I like and admire her.
(Imi place si o admir.)
b. I admire and like her.
(O admir si imi place.)

b) an asymmetric use of coordinators where the order of the conjuncts is
irreversible:
(25) a. I washed and ironed my pants.
(Mi-am spalat si calcat pantalonii.)
b.* I ironed and washed my pants.

Lets cast a swift glance at the asymmetric uses some conjunctions may have:

89

1. assymetric AND can impose different shades of subordinative
meaning within the compound sentence:
- chronological sequence (temporal implications)
(26) He sliced and fried the potatoes. (First he sliced them and then he fried
them)
(A taiat cartofii si i-a prajit.)
- cause-effect relation
(27) He heard an explosion and (therefore) phoned the police.
(A auzit o explozie si a sunat la politie.)
(28) He didnt pay the rent and he was evicted from their apartment.
(<Because he didnt pay, he was evicted)
(N-a platit chiria si a fost dat afara din apartament.)

- if-then relation (supported by proper intonation)
(29) Give me the money and youll walk away safely. (If you do that, you
will be safe)
(Da-mi banii si poti pleca nevatamat.)
- concessive meaning (plus suitable intonation)
(30) John worked hard for the exam and he failed (Although he worked
hard, he failed).
(John a muncit din greu pentru examen si l-a picat.)
- while/whereas interpretation
(31) Dr. Smith experiments with guinea pigs and Dr. Brown experiments
with humans.
(Doctorul Smith face experiente pe cobai iar doctorul Brown face
experiente pe oameni.)
(While Dr. Smith performs his experiments with guinea pigs, Dr. Brown does
it with humans)
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90

2. Assymetric BUT implies a contrastive effect like in the case of
symmetric BUT but this effect results from an unexpected
consequence. Compare

(32) a. Jim is brave but John is a coward. (symmetric use)
(Jim e viteaz dar John e un las.)
b. Jim likes computers but John hates them.
(Lui Jim ii plac computerele dar John nu le suporta.)
to
(33) Jim is jobless but he is happy.
(asymmetric use)
(Jim n-are serviciu dar e fericit.)
3. Asymmetric OR implies again an if-then relationship:

(34) a. You leave my daughter alone, or Ill break your neck.
(Ori imi lasi fata in pace, ori iti rup gitul.)
b. Stop that noise, or youll be punished.
(Incetezi cu zgomotul, ori vei fi pedepsit.)

This use is to be contrasted with the symmetric use of OR, which is in its
turn of two types

exclusive OR
(35) You can eat lobster, or you can eat caviar.
(Poti sa mananci homar sau poti sa mananci caviar.)
inclusive OR
(36) If you have enough money you can eat lobster, or you can have caviar
or both.

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(Daca ai destui bani poti sa mananci homar sau poti sa comanzi caviar
sau din amindoua.)

Pratice

Activity 9
Distinguish between symmetric and asymmetric uses of
conjunctions:
1. John smoked cigarettes and Bill smoked a pipe. 2. John lit a
cigar and Mary left the room. 3. John went to the cinema and saw
a movie. 4. John cooked the steak and he ate it. / John ate the
steak and he cooked it, too. 5. I am a professional man of letters
and a typewriter is essential to my work. 6. That dog is very
aggressive and he has never bitten me so far. 7. Lay a hand on
me and youll scream. 8. Love me and Ill marry you. 9. John
likes opera but Jim hates it. 10. John is good-looking but Kim is
unattractive. 11. We slept late but we caught the train. 12. We
want to buy a car but we have not enough money. 13. They killed
him but he came back as a ghost. 14 (Either) we are visiting Aunt
Susan or were staying home. 15. John might take them by car,
(or) Mary might go with them by bus, or I might order a taxi for
them. 16. People envy me for having a cellular phone, or they
regard me as eccentric. 17. You must be kidding or else youre
out of your mind. 18. Mary was sound asleep or (at least) she
pretended to be. 19. Let go off me or Ill scream. 20. This is an
early Rembrandt or it is an excellent Rubens. 21. It must be a
Rubens or it would be in a museum. 22. I overslept and I arrived
late at my office, and John was no longer there and (so) I had to
deal with Mr. Brown alone.

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4.5 Verb Agreement with Compound Subjects

We shall discuss verb-agreement with compound subjects depending on the
conjunction that is used:

AND the compound subjects correlated by and are generally used with
plural verbs:
(37) a. Semantics and syntax are interrelated.
(Semantica este strins legata de sintaxa.)
b. Both your fairness and your kind nature have been appreciated.
(Au fost apreciate atit corectitudinea ta cit si bunatatea ta.)

When the verb appears before the subject, both plural and singular forms are
generally accepted. The singular form is however restricted to informal
speech:
(38) There was/were a man and a woman in the room.
(In camera erau un barbat si o femeie.)
There are cases when the compound subject is not made up of the two
semantically distinct conjunctions any more:

(39) a. The hammer and the sickle was flying from the flagpole.
(Secera si ciocanul fluturau sus pe steag.)
b. Fish and chips is my favorite food.
(Pestele cu cartofi prajiti este felul meu de mincare preferat.)

In (39) the subject contains two conjuncts that are perceived as one semantic
unit, hence the singular form of the verb.


93
OR, EITHER OR, NOT (ONLY) BUT ALSO compound subjects are
subject to the rule of agreement by proximity: the verb agrees with the
nearmost conjunct:
(40) a. Not John, but his two brothers are to blame.
(Nu John este de vina, ci cei doi frati ai lui.)
b. Not Johns brother but he is to blame.
(Nu fratele lui John, ci el este de vina.)

NEITHER NOR compound subjects accept both the singular and the plural
form of the verb since from a syntactical point of view Neither nor
resembles either or, but semantically it is the negative counterpart of both
and:
(41) Neither he nor his wife have/has arrived.
(N-au ajuns nici el si nici sotia lui.)

Pratice

Activity 10
Insert the appropriate verb form:
a.1. Cathy and David (have arrived. 2. The bread and the butter
(be) both more expensive this year. 3. The bread and butter (be)
scattered on the floor. 4. The green and blue blanket (be) also to
be washed. 5. The red and the blue shirts (be) washed yesterday.
6. My aim and object (be) to make the theory clear for all. 7. A
carriage and a pair (be) standing at the door. 8. His friend and
legal adviser (be) present at the funeral. 9. My son and heir (be)
safe. 10. My son and daughter (be) twins.
b. 1.There (be) a table and some chairs in the room. 2. There (be)
some chairs and a table in the room. 3. Both the houses and the
garden (be) damaged by the fire. 4. Not only the houses but also
the garden (be) damaged by the fire. 5. Not John but his two sons
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94
(be) to blame. 6. A traffic warden or a policeman (be) always on
the watch in this street. 7. Either Peter or John (have) had
breakfast already. 8. Either the child or the parents (be) to blame.
9. Neither he nor his wife (be) here. 10. Neither Isabel nor I (be)
timid people.

4.6. Key Concepts

Coordination is defined in opposition to subordination, as being a syntactic
process where elements of the same rank are conjoined. This section also
attempts to draw attention upon certain points of similarity between
coordination and subordination, especially those related to the asymmetric
uses of coordinating conjunctions.

As shown, certain compound sentences can be reformulated as complex ones,
namely as a main clause plus a subordinate one.

Emphasis is also laid on the reductive methods that can be applied to
compound sentences or to compound phrases: ellipsis (or deletion) and
substitution.

Pratice

Activity 11*
Translate the following, making use of the theoretical framework
offered above:
(1) 1. Sunt doctori i doctori pe lumea asta. 2. Frate nefrate, tot
am s-i cer bani pentru medicamente. 3. O s stm mpreun, la
bine i la ru. 4. Nu-i nici cal, nici mgar. 5. Sper c scrisoarea
mea te gasete bine, sntos. 6. Cum o mai duci? N-am murit
nc, mulumesc de ntrebare. 7. Soul ei e de mult mort i-

95
ngropat. 8. Au venit la mine cu cel i cu purcel. 9. Interzis
consumul de alcool la volan. 10 S-a dus la culcare cu tot cu haine
pe el. 11. Tr, grpi, tot am s termin lucrarea.

(2) 1. Nu era nchipuit i nu se credea frumos, dar un instinct de
conservare fizic l fcea s-i umfle bicepii i coul pieptului i
s fandeze plastic cu piciorul drept inainte, pentru a obine
maximul de volum al pulpei.
2. Vru s-i ncerce puterea braelor rezemndu-se cu toat
greutatea trupului pe speteaza unui scaun, dar acesta trosni aa de
tare, nct spre a evita un accident, Jim renun i se mulumi s
boxeze arcurile desfundate ale canapelei i pernele din pat.
3. Bunica i bunicul au trit fr baie-n cas i a fost bine! Ai
venit dvs. mai cu mo!
4. -Ce stai de vorbeti? Se scandaliza baba. Cum s-aduc eu
stropitoarea n cas?
-S mi-o aduci, altfel nu e de trai cu mine!
5. Jim sttu puin s se gndeasc, fiindc nu vedea nc modul
de ntrebuinare. S atrne stropitoarea de cuiul din tavan i apoi
s-i dea nclinare deasupra capului, n-avea nici cu ce-o lega i i
era team s nu se surpe cumva tavanul. S toarne apa n lighean,
ligheanul era prea mic.
6. Silivestru rmase i scrbit de platitudinea cugetrilor, dar i
mirat de o precocitate pe care el n-o cunoscuse.
7. Doamn, iu s v declar c n-am venit dect s v cer
nvoirea de a ne cstori i de a pleca apoi unde vom crede de
cuviin. Nu numai c nu trebuie s v ngrijorai, dar v cer
permisiunea de a m ocupa eu n chip exclusiv de acest
eveniment i favoarea de a nu se mai vorbi de chestiuni
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96
materiale.
(G. Clinescu Cartea Nunii )

(3) 1. Dat dracului fusese madam Ioaniu la viaa ei, i pe ce
punea mna-I ieea, odat ea era-n zor mare s termine o rochie a
Ivonei, i-ntr-o doar I-a dat i lu madam Ioaniu s-I surfileze. i
ce s vezi ? De cum a pus mna pe ac, foarte frumos i ngrijit
surfila ; d-atunci I-a tot dat, surfila madam Ioaniu n fotoliu ei i-
I tot povestea, e-hei, cte trise ! Doi brbai avusese la viaa ei,
i p-amndoi i ngropase ! i brbatu dinti fusese ditamai
Profesoru, i cnd venise nemii-l bgase la zdup, ei tia unde-l
bgase. Nu-l inuse mult, da el se-ntorsese neom, vezi c era mai
btrior, i ce boal o mai fi avut, c repede-repede p-urm
dduse ortu-popii.
2. l va asculta deci, ca de fiecare dat, cu un sentiment de triumf,
a reuit, n fine, s-l aduc pe acest teren bine cunoscut, care este
doar al lor. Pe acesta este convins nu-l mai mparte cu nici
una dintre cele care I-au otrvit existena. La fel ca i acum
treizeci de ani, el i deschide ochii asupra vieii, iar ea l ascult,
cu expresie de atenie ncordat pe fa. Uneori chiar se gndete
n alt parte ns l aprob din ochi, la intervale de timp egale.
Din cnd n cnd i mai arunc o ntrebare ajuttoare, aa cum
celandrul care se gudura pe lng Tudor venea de fiecare dat
cu mingea n gur. Aducea mingea anume ca biatul s o arunce
din nou, el s alerge spre ea n salturi mari, s se opreasc la
jumtate de metru, o clip s stea nemicat i s miroas asfaltul,
pe urm s ia din nou mingea, s-o duc, supus, la picioarele lui
Tudor, iar la cel mai mic gest de mngiere al lui, s sar nalt,
ncordat ca un arc.

97
(Gabriela Adameteanu Diminea pierdut)

Activity 12
Read the following and comment on the conjunctions that link the
phrases below; try to rewrite those phrases:
A pleasant if talkative child / a shabby though comfortable
armchair / a simple yet devout prayer / He looked at me kindly if
somewhat skeptically / He drove quickly yet safe / an intelligent
albeit rash leader (albeit rare, formal conjunction) / He spoke
firmly albeit pleasantly.
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99

FIVE
THE COMPLEX SENTENCE A
CLASSIFICATION OF DEPENDENT
CLAUSES

Aim of this unit: to introduce the two main criteria of classification employed
in classifying dependent clauses
Objectives: to help students get an overall picture related to
correspondences between various categories of dependent
clauses

100

C
o
n
t
e
n
t
s
:

5.1 The Functional Criterion of Classification
5.2 The Structural Criterion of Classification
5.3 A Cross-Classification of Dependent Clauses
5.4 Key Concepts

Unit five The complex sentence a classification of dependent clauses

101

As previously shown, the complex sentence is made up of at least one main
clause and a dependent or a subordinate one. Unlike in the case of compound
sentences - which are based on coordination - the complex sentence relies
heavily on the process of subordination. This is the reason why a
classification of subordinate clauses should be in order.

Nota bene!
The complex sentence is made up of main clauses and other subordinate
clauses.
e.g. If you want to listen to Bohemian Rhapsody, turn on the stereo
and you will hear the most amazing combination of sounds which
will certainly delight you.

5.1 The Functional Criterion of Classification

Classifying dependent clauses will employ two main criteria:

- the FUNCTIONAL one which, as the name suggests it, takes into
consideration the syntactic function of the respective clause.
From the functional point of view, subordinates can be classified into:

a) subject clauses

(1) Whoever did that was a genius.
(Cel care a fcut acest lucru a fost un geniu.)
(2) It seems that he is not your friend.
(Se pare c nu i este prieten.)

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102
b) object clauses this class includes direct objects, indirect objects and
prepositional objects:
(3) I believe that he is not here. (Direct Object)
(Cred c nu este acolo.)
(4) I am afraid that he wont come (Prepositional Object)
(Mi-e team c nu o s vin.)
(5) I gave this to whomever wanted it. (Indirect Object)
(Am dat asta cui a vrut-o.)

At this point we need to provide some further explanation. An OBJECT refers
to only those items (phrases, sentences) required by the verb (or, in certain
cases, by an adjective + preposition, such as proud of, for example). They
have the feature [+ obligatory] and, even on the rare occasions when they can
be omitted, they are still presupposed by the speaker.

For instance, the verb give is always accompanied in our mind by its
obligatory complements (direct and indirect objects):
(6) He gave the book (DO) to her (IO).
(I-a dat cartea.)

Whenever we think of this particular verb, we associate it with these objects.
In a way, we presuppose their existence in connection with the presence of the
verb give in a sentence. We do not presuppose however something like, for
instance, an adverbial item, such as a manner adverbial: with
pleasure/willingly.
(7) He willingly gave the book to her.
(I-a dat cartea de bun voie.)


103
In (7) we can identify the verbs obligatory objects (the book, to her) and one
extra-item, an additional one, which is the adverbial willingly. These non-
obligatory items are called adjuncts. The term comes from the verb to adjoin,
i.e. to add something. Thus, a phrase such as willingly is adjoined to the verb
and its obligatory objects. In other words, it is added to the verbal phrase in
order to provide extra information.

A second observation, related to example (4), has to do with why we consider
the subordinate that he wont come to be a prepositional object. The
explanation is simple: this subordinate can be easily replaced by a phrase
preceded by a preposition, and this preposition is in fact required and
presupposed as accompanying the adjective afraid:
(8) a. I am afraid of his not coming/of this fact.
(Mi-e team c n-o s vin.)
b. I am afraid that he wont come.
(Mi-e team c n-o s vin.)

The example under (8a) is the basic structure: an adjective and the
prepositional object it selects. The second example, under (8b) represents the
derived structure: the prepositional object is replaced by a that clause. The
subordinating conjunction THAT has completely replaced the preposition,
since English no longer allows for a conjunction and a preposition to be put
together:
(9) *I am afraid of that he wont come.

We presuppose that the preposition of has been deleted, but its effect remains
even after its wipeout. That is why we choose to call prepositional object
the that-clause following the adjective afraid.

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104
Last but not least, we need to draw attention to the important fact that direct
objects are normally required by transitive verbs, such as want, like, make,
etc. So, before you decide on what label to stick on an object, please check
what particular item requires its presence in the sentence. If it so happens that
the object appears after a transitive verb, then you have your typical case of
direct object.

So far we have discussed subject clauses and object clauses. The third class is
made up of

(c) adjuncts those clauses (or phrases) whose presence is not obligatorily
required by a verb or an adjective. They normally have an adverbial
(circumstantial) interpretation:
(10) Before she left the room she closed all the windows.
(nainte s plece din camer, a nchis toate ferestrele.)
(11) If you dont marry me, Ill die.
(Dac nu te nsori cu mine, am s mor.)

(d) attributes or modifiers those clause (or phrases) that characterize
nominal phrases:
(12) The woman who was wearing red was sitting next to him on the
platform.
(Femeia n rou sttea lng el pe peron.)
(13) The red-wearing woman was sitting next to him on the platform.
(Femeia n rou sttea lng el pe peron.)

105

To sum up so far, the functional criterion we employed has helped us classify
subordinate clauses as follows:
SUBORDINATE CLAUSES
[+ obligatory] [- obligatory]
SUBJECTS
e.g. Whoever did
that was a genius.
OBJECTS
a) Direct: I
believe that he
is smart.
b) Indirect: Give
this to
whomever
wants it.
c) Prepositional:
He was afraid
that she might
come back.
ADJUNCTS
e.g. They came to
an agreement
because they
wanted to go
home.
MODIFIERS
e.g. The book that
you gave me was
very boring.

Pratice

Activity 1
Which of the following underlined items are obligatory and
which are not?
1.She came to him of her own will. 2. I cannot tell you what I
heard about you. 3. Susan disappeared without saying a word. 4.
Shes aware of his rage and that he might punish her. 5. She told
whomever wanted to listen about her problems at home. 6. After
I told her the story, she looked at me sadly.
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106

Activity 2
Read the following and identify the subordinate clauses, stating
their function:
1.He took an intelligent interest in her, which, though it was
largely politeness, was a novelty to Mitzi. 2. When Mitzi bought
the house in Brook Green she offered Austin the best rooms, but
he declined, as he had just found the little Bayswater which he
inhabited still. 3. At this time we know that we are mortal beings
with but a short span of days and that our end as our beginning
belongs to God. 4. Sometimes she thought that her own failure to
marry Mathew was actually the cause of Austins marrying
Dorina. 5. You must know that if you do not meet it right here at
home, you are choosing exile from what you are fortunate
enough to call your homeland. 6. You suggestion that we should,
at our age, remove our home yet again seems to us merely
thoughtless.
(Iris Murdoch An Accidental Man)

5.2 The Structural Criterion of Classification

The second criterion we employ to differentiate between various subordinate
clauses is the STRUCTURAL one. We classify dependent clauses according
to what introductory element they exhibit:
a) complement clauses mainly those clauses introduced by THAT,
WHETHER, FOR, etc. (the term complement is a false friend: it does not
have the same meaning as the one we use in Romanian. The Romanian
term is translated by object in English. As you can see, in example (16)
the complement for him to leave fulfills the function of subject, not
object.)

107

(14) I knew that he liked me.
(tiam c m simpatizeaz.)
(15) I didnt know whether he would visit me in jail.
(Nu tiam dac o s m viziteze la nchisoare.)
(16) It is advisable for him to leave.
(E de dorit s plece.)
(17) I wanted to leave immediately.
(Am vrut s plec imediat.)

b) wh-complements those clauses introduced by a wh-word/phrase (such as
what, who, where, when, how, which, why, etc.)
These include:
indirect questions
(18) I didnt know who had killed him.
(Nu tiam cine l-a ucis.)
relative clauses
(14) I was afraid of what he might say.
(Mi-era groaz de ce ar putea spune.)
cleft sentences
(15) It is John who did it.
(John este cel care a fcut asta.)
pseudo-cleft sentences
(16) a. Who did it was John.
(Cel care a fcut asta este John.)
b. Where he went is London.
(Locul n care s-a dus este Londra.)

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108
(c) adverbial clauses those clauses subordinated by such adverbial
conjunctions as: although, if, before, etc.

Unlike complement clauses, these ones are introduced by subordinating
conjunctions with a distinct semantic charge. Compare, for instance, the
following two clauses:
(17) She told me that I was a fool.
(Mi-a spus c sunt un prost.)
(18) She told me this before she left.
(Mi-a spus aceasta nainte s plece.)

In (17) the meaning of the subordinate clause is imposed by the verb in the
main clause. The subordinating conjunction that is abstract in meaning, and
this is why it is the verb that has to dictate the sense of its object. In (18),
however, the meaning of the subordinate (that of a time adverbial clause) is
offered and imposed by the subordinating conjunction not by the main clause
verb.

In conclusion, consider the following table, which sums up this classification,
done from a structural point of view, that is function of the subordinating
conjunction/adverb/pronoun that introduces the respective clause. As you will
see, the categories are reduced to only three in this case. But we are going to
show that we can trace correspondences between the classes of embedded
clauses mentioned under 4.1. and the ones we are characterizing in the table
below:

109

SUBORDINATE CLAUSES
COMPLEMENT
CLAUSES
Introduced by that, for,
whether:
e.g. I dont know
whether he will come
back.
WH-
COMPLEMENTS
Introduced by wh
words:
e.g. I will come back
when I feel like it.
ADVERBIAL
CLAUSES
Introduced by adverbial
conjunctions/adverbs
such as because, as,
before, after, etc.:
e.g. I will go there
because I feel like it.

Pratice

Activity 3
Read the texts below and try to identify subordinate clauses from
a structural point of view:
a) My dearest son,
Your father has suggested that I should write to you so that you
can be sure that he and I are of one mind in this matter. I am not
very good at this sort of letter and I did not earlier write because
the discussion was between yourself and your father, you
understand. Dear Ludwig, I cannot express to you how much we
miss you. To say that I think of my dear son every day says little.
I think of him every minute and remember what times in our day
and night are his bed-time and his getting-up-times, and every
night and indeed always in my thoughts I pray for him that he
may be protected and guided to do the right. () Even leaving
aside the concern which I know you have for our feelings, surely
you cannot sincerely believe, at your young age, that you will
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110
never want to set foot in the US in your life again. We so much
fear that you will suddenly decide to come later when it will all
have such terrible consequences. (Iris Murdoch An
Accidental Man)
b)1.The day Monroe had died was in May. Late that afternoon,
Ada had prepared to go out for a time with a box of watercolors
and a piece of paper to paint the newly opened blossoms on a
rhododendron by the lower creek. As she left the house, she
stopped to speak to Monroe, who sat reading a book in a striped
canvas campaign chair under the pear tree. He seemed tired and
said that he doubted he had vitality even to finish the page he
was on before he dropped off to sleep, but he asked her to wake
him when she returned, for he did not want to lie sleeping into
the damp of the evening. Too, he said, he feared he was just
beyond the age at which he could rise unassisted from so low a
chair.
2.It was with a familiar delicious tingle of pleasure, a tightening
in her breathing, that she realized she was now similarly hidden
away, that anyone walking from the gate to the porch would
never know she was there. If one of the ladies from the church
made an obligatory visit to see about her welfare, she could sit
motionless as they called her name and knocked at the door. She
would not come out until long after she had heard the gate latch
clack shut. But she thought that no one would call again. The
visits had tapered off in the face of her indifference to them.
(Charles Frazier Cold Mountain)


111

5.3 A Cross-Classification of Dependent Clauses

Now that we have seen two possible ways of classifying subordinate clauses,
let us try and look at how these two types of classification can be fit in the
same picture. As you have probably noticed already, the four classes
discussed under the first classification do not completely correspond to the
three classes discussed under 4.2. However, a correspondence can be traced.
Consider the following table:

SUBORDINATE CLAUSES
[+ obligatory] [- obligatory]
SUBJECTS OBJECTS ADJUNCTS. MODIFIERS
Complements
can be subjects:
e.g. That he loved
her was clear.

Wh
Complements
can be subjects:
e.g. Whoever did
that was a genius.

Complements
can be objects:
e.g. I know that he
likes her (Direct)/
I was afraid that
she knew the truth
(Prepositional)

Wh
Complements
can be objects:
e.g. I dont know
what you want
(Direct)/ I am
interested in what
Wh
Complements
can be adjuncts:
e.g. I helped her
whenever she
asked me to.

Adverbials can
be adjuncts: e.g. I
told her
everything after
she arrived.

Wh
Complements
can be modifiers
(or attributes): e.g.
The book which/
that you left on
the table is very
interesting.

Nota bene!
Relative that is not the
same as Complement
that, since they are
translated differently in
English: care vs. c
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112
you know
(Prepositional)/ I
gave this to
whomever wanted
it (Indirect).

This table makes a few things obvious: firstly, none of the three classes we
have mentioned under 5.2., i.e. complements, wh complements and adverbials
can fulfill all the functions we introduced in the table under 5.1.

Secondly, the only category that can fulfill any syntactical function is the one
containing wh complements. So, whenever you identify a wh- complement,
you will have to choose from the four possible functions mentioned here. We
will come back to that in the next chapter.

Thirdly, that complements are not the same as relative that complements:
there is a clear-cut distinction between a sentence like

(19) I think that she likes me.
(Cred c m place.)
and
(20) The girl that likes me is pretty.
(Fata care m place e frumuic.)

The translation of the word that in Romanian disambiguates between these
two readings. This problem will also be the topic of the next chapter.

In the fourth place, adverbial clauses can only be adjuncts. This means that
adverbial clauses are the easiest to identify, whereas wh complements are the

113
hardest to figure out. A very good reason for that is the fact that in the case of
adverbials, their introductory elements (e.g. after, because, before, etc) give
very clear information about the function and meaning of the subordinate they
introduce.

Nota bene!
Wh Complements can have any syntactical function.
Adverbials can only be adjuncts.

Pratice

Activity 4
Consider the following text. Identify subordinate clauses and
state their type (the structural classification) and function (the
functional classification):
a) Those were the abilities that she marked down in her favour.
None of them seemed exactly to the point when faced with
the hard fact that she now found herself in possession of
close to three hundred acres, a house, a barn, outbuildings,
but no idea what to do with them. It gave her pleasure to play
on the piano, but she did realize that she could not weed a
row of young bean plant without pulling half of them out
along with the ragweed.
b) She blew the paper to dry it and then scanned over what she
had written with a critical eye. She mistrusted her
handwriting, for no matter how she tried, she had never
mastered the flowing whorls and arcs of fine penmanship.
The characters her hand insisted on forming were instead
blocky and as dense as runes.
c) I am coming home one way or another, and I do not know
how things might stand between us. I first thought to tell in
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114
this letter what I have done and seen so that you might judge
me before I return. But I decided it would need a page as
broad as the blue sky to write that tale, and I have not the will
or the energy. Do you recall that night before Christmas four
years ago when I took you in my lap in the kitchen by the
stove and you told me you would forever like to sit there and
rest your head on my shoulder? Now it is a bitter surety in
my heart that if you knew what I have seen and done, it
would make you fear to do such again.

5.4. Key Concepts

We classify dependent (i.e. subordinate or embedded) clauses according to
their function into subjects, objects (which are always obligatorily required by
a verb or adjective), adjuncts and attributes (or modifiers, because they
modify, offer a plus of meaning to the nominal they accompany).

According to a structural criterion, which regards the introductory
conjunction / pronoun/ relative adverb of the subordinate, these clauses can
be complements, wh-complements and adverbials (which normally
correspond to he Romanian complement circumstanial).

Dont forget three important points made in this chapter:
there is no correspondence between the Romanian complement and the
English one, since the English term has nothing to do with syntactical
function.
English makes use of prepositional objects that are normally required by
the fact that the main verb/adjective is accompanied by an obligatory

115
preposition (e.g. think of, look at, interested in, etc.) We use the term
prepositional object even for those cases when the preposition imprinted
in the lexical entry of the verb is not visible: I thought that he was smart.
The Romanian term complement indirect (i.e. indirect object) is only
available in English for Dative objects, answering the question to whom?
So, be very careful to use this term correctly, since it is not as frequent in
English as it is in Romanian.

A complete syntactic analysis of a sentence will have to take into
consideration both criteria we have discussed in this chapter.

Pratice

Activity 5*
Translate the following, making use of the information on
subordinate clauses supplied by this chapter:
1. Cu cteva luni naintea rzboiului Anton Modan nu tia c de
mult nu mai era om ndrzne, att de demult nct n ziua cnd
afl nici mcar nu se mai trudi cu gndul s se ntoarc napoi i
s-i dea seama de cnd.
Nevasta secera n tcere, fr s-i ridice spinarea, i din
micrile ei se putea nelege c e stpn pe un gnd care o inea
mereu ncordat i ndrjit. Anton se uita la ea i se ntreba, ce o
fi avnd. Tot timpul dimineii o vzuse c tace.
Cnd Anton ls secerea unii se uitar la soare s-i dea seama
dac mai e mult pn la prnz. () M, dar devreme mai
mnnc Anton sta! gndir ei. Alii, ns, care i vzuser pe
Anton i nevast-sa cum stteau cu secerile n mn i se uitau
unul la altul, i spuseser c Anton, dup ce c are gru puin,
nici pe la nu-l secer ca lumea.
O zbughi napoi, dar dup ce alerg vreo douzeci de pai,
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116
simind c nu s-a luat nimeni dup el, se opri i se uit s vad ce
isprav a fcut.
Toat lumea nelesese c, de fapt, ameninarea aceasta semna
mai mult cu o flacr care rmne o clip n aer, dei paiele de
dedesubt sunt cenu, dect cu ameninare adevrat. Fiindc un
on ndrzne nu se clatin pe drum, sau dac se clatin se ntoarce
ndrt i nu mai amenin, fiindc i s nghii nu e puin, i
pentru asta i trebuie curaj.
(Marin Preda ndrzneala)
2. Nici acum, timp de un ceas, ct omul din mlatin urmri atent
ntoarcerea acas a acestei familii, nu se zri nici prin apropiere
i nici prin curte umbra unui brbat sau mcar a unui btrn.
Unui lupttor nu numai atenia lui ncordat i semnele exterioare
vizibile i semnaleaz prezena inamicului, ci l ajut i mirosul
su pe ci mai ascunse, pe care el nu se bizuie n ntregime, dar
nici nu le dispreuiete. Nang nvase s afle msura potrivit i
n anumite mprejurri sfida pericolul, iar n altele era de o
pruden exagerat. n cazul de fa avu acest sentiment c nu-l
pndete nici o primejdie; nti, devenise limpede faptul c nu
mai exista la acest punct de trecere peste ru nici un bac i c n
general circulaia era ntrerupt total pe aceasta arter. Ct
privete viaa acestei familii, izolate de sat, avea s vad la
cderea nopii ce era cu ea i n ce msur i putea fi de folos.

(Marin Preda Friguri)
3. Cu privire la mutarea lor la Brila, Costel de curnd scrisese
acas c n-ar fi defel potrivit s se mute i c se mir c
dumnealor struiesc si nu pricep. N-avea el dreptate? era destul
s te uii la Ana, ct de bolnav era, i erau attea alte motive

117
Nu-i da ns seama c pn deunzi n toate scrisorile insista
asupra putinei de a obine un post bun la Brila. Roise de necaz
cnd mam-sa i rspunsese c se mir cum azi zice una i mine
alta i i tot sucete ca pe ppui.
Nu! El nu era ctui de puin sucit. Numai c avea subt ochi pe
Ana, pe cnd dumnealor vorbeau de la deprtare. Ana nu putea
suferi o mutare acum.
Era bine de tiut, dei cam trziu, dup ce tatl lui si ea
alergaser peste tot dup un post pentru el dar nu face nimic;
acum sunt desluii, rmne totul balt i pace.
Pace nu era. Costel nu nelegea nici s rmn totul balt, dei
deocamdat n-ar fi vrut cu nici un pre s se mute din Bucureti.
l supra i tonul mamei, aa de oetit. Pentru a o pedepsi si
pentru c nu prea tia el singur ce vrea i nici ce s-i rspund,
amnase scrisul.
(Hortensia Papadat Bengescu Logodnicul)
4. Iat, de pild, aceast ntie zi cnd a nceput nelinitea mea,
din cauza lui G Anioara, care ntr-un fel avea mania
excursiilor n band, a cror promiscuitate mie mi fcea sil, a
hotrt ca de Sfntul Constantin i Elena (cdea acum ntr-o
smbt, iar luni era o alt srbtoare) s facem o excursie de trei
zile la vie, la nite prieteni comuni, la Odobeti, cu automobilele
unora dintre ei. De vreo dou-trei ori ne aranjasem n cele trei
maini i de dou-trei ori ne-au schimbat, cci era cineva
important care nu se simea bine plasat. n realitate, femeile
cutau s se gseasc la un loc cu brbaii care le interesau, iar
cnd nu izbuteau de la nceput, stricau totul, sub pretexte dintre
cele mai neserioase. Partea dezagreabil era c urcam i coboram
fr s tim de ce, iar asta ni se comunica simplu de ctre cei
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118
mbufnai i iniiai sumar.
- Iar ne dm jos? Dar ce e, frate, nu se mai termin?
Aci rspundeau ridicturi din umeri plictisite, ale celor care se
aranjaser bine i acum se temeau s nu li se strice socotelile.
(Camil Petrescu Ultima noapte de dragoste, ntia noapte de
rzboi)

119

SIX
RELATIVE CLAUSES

Aim of this unit: to provide a classification of relative clauses, accompanied
by a characterization of the introductory elements for these
clauses
Objectives: to provide students with useful information on relative
clauses that will help them correctly use relative clause
introducers (e.g. whose, of which, etc), subject relative
clauses, etc.; the students will be able to identify the type
and function of a relative clause as part of a complex
sentence.

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C
o
n
t
e
n
t
s
:

6.1. Relative Clauses and Other Kinds of Relatives
6.2. The Co-reference Condition
6.3. The Classification of Relative Clauses
6.4. Restrictions Imposed on the Relative Clause
by the Determiner of the Antecedent
6.5. Relative Clause Introducers
6.6. Pied Piping and Preposition Stranding
6.7. Key Concepts
Unit six Relative clauses

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6.1. Relative Clauses and Other Kinds of Relatives

By relative clauses we understand:
a) all the wh-complements mentioned in the previous section.
b) other kinds of relative clauses such as
that relatives (those relative clauses introduced by THAT)
(1) This is a gift that you fully deserve.
(Acesta este un cadou pe care l merii pe deplin.)
participial relatives
(2) The fellow wearing those odd clothes is Janes husband.
(Brbatul n haine ciudate este soul lui Jane.)
infinitival relatives
(3) I need some tools with which to fix the car.
(Am nevoie de unelte cu care s repar maina.)

We will mainly focus on wh-complements leaving aside other kinds of
relatives and cleft sentences.

6.2. The Co-reference Condition - a discussion of attributive relatives

As we shall see, relative clauses can have more than one syntactical function.
The best-known function normally associated with relative clauses is that of
modifier (or attribute). This section deals with relative clauses functioning as
attributes. We have chosen to start this chapter with this particular topic
because attributive relative clauses are considered the most basic kind of
relative clause. It is therefore by explaining the mechanism that lies at their
foundation that we will be able to extend our discussion towards other type of
relative clauses.
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These relative clauses represent a type of subordination that is based on the
fact that the main clause and the subordinate clause share a nominal
constituent. Consider the following:

(4) I met a woman. John loves that woman.

By combining these two clauses, we obtain:

(5) I met a woman whom John loves.
(Am cunoscut o femeie pe care o iubete John.)

What has happened? The common element woman appears in the main clause
only and is resumed, reinforced by the relative pronoun introducing the
second clause. We presuppose that the phrase the woman in the second clause
under (4) has been transformed into a relative constituent (it has been
relativized) and moved at the beginning of the clause to link it to the previous
one. The place where the phrase the woman used to stand has remained
empty, like a gap:

(6) I met a woman whom John loves _____.

Since the phrase a woman and the relative pronoun whom under (6) refer to
the same object, we can co-index them (that is we place the same index under
each of them):

(7) I met a woman
i
whom
i
John loves _____.


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But how do we mark the fact that the verb loves used to have a direct object
right after it that has been moved up front?
We place the same index under the letter t (that stands for trace):

(8) I met a woman
i
whom
i
John loves t
i
.

This way, we can clearly indicate that the co-reference condition that
stipulated the necessity of a shared nominal for the main clause and the
relative attributive clause has been observed.

The relative pronoun preserves its function of a direct object within the
relative subordinate. But there are other functions that the relative pronoun
may fulfill. Let us supply an example where the relative pronoun functions as
a prepositional object:

(9) I met a woman. John offered flowers to that woman.

The common element woman is present, so the co-reference condition (that
the two clauses should have co-referring elements) is observed. The resulting
structure can have two forms:

(10) a. I met a woman
i
who
i
John had offered flowers to t
i
b. I met a woman
i
to whom
i
John had offered flowers t
i

In point of terminology, we call the nominal that the relative clause refers to
the antecedent of the relative clause. The element that has been moved in
front position and transformed into a relative pronoun is called the relativized
constituent.

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124
The mechanism that allows for the appearance of relative attributive clauses is
movement: the movement of the relativized constituent in initial position, by
leaving behind a trace.
Is there a difference between (10a) and (10b)? Grammar books of usage show
that the example under (10b) is the more formal one, frequently used in
written language, whereas the first sentence is mainly used in dialogue,
therefore in spoken English.

Pratice

Activity 1
Combine the following sentences so as to get relative attributive
clauses (some of the sentences can be combined in two ways):
1. She came to London. I went to London, too. 2. John told his
friend a story about the king. The king was just passing by. 3.
They met those students. None of the students agreed with them.
4. I bought Jim a book. He liked that book. 5. I introduced him to
Jim. He told Jim everything about his plans. 6. Susan wants to
meet Jane. She doesnt know anything about Jane. 7. I had a
book. I lost the books cover. 8. This is my husband. I love my
husband very much. 9. The students like their teacher. Any of the
students would answer to questions. 10. The students like their
teacher. All of them would answer their teachers questions.

Activity 2
Write a sentence as similar as possible to the given one. Use the
word in capitals without changing it:
1. Whose is the car which is blocking the street? WHOM
2. This is the town in which Charles Dickens was buried.
WHERE
3. It was silly of him to tell her the secret. WHICH
4. Hes the author who received the prize. WHO
5. These are people about whom we cannot tell much. WHO

125
6. That couple had their child abducted by terrorists.
WHOSE
7. It was such a pity that you couldnt join the party.
WHICH
8. To whom are you writing this letter? WHO
9. This is the guy that they first met in Monte Carlo.
WHOM
10. These are the tulips that were awarded the big prize. TO
11. A lot of tourists went on a trip to Delphi; most of them
were from England. WHOM

6.3 The Classification of Relative Clauses

According to the criterion of form, relative clauses are divided into
1. dependent relative clauses (clauses that have an overt antecedent, i.e.
whose main clause contains a nominal that can be co-indexed with the
introducing relative pronoun)
(11) This is the man
i
whom
i
I love.
(Acesta este brbatul pe care l iubesc.)

Under (11) the relative subordinate finds its antecedent in the main clause: the
phrase the man.

2. independent relative clauses or Free Relative Clauses (those clauses which
lack an overt antecedent, that do not have an expressed antecedent in the
main clause)
(12) Who breaks pays.
(Cine stric platete.)
(13) Whoever swims in sin shall swim sorrow.
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126
(Cine pctuiete mult va suferi.)

Example (12) is an instance of a relative clause (introduced by a wh-element)
whose antecedent has been deleted, is no longer overtly expressed, unlike in
the case of (14), where we are looking at a more obsolete (i.e. far-fetched)
form of the same sentence:
(14) He
i
who
i
breaks pays.
(Cel care stric pltete.)

So, in a manner of speaking, we can assume that Independent or Free Relative
Clauses must have originated from dependent ones; only their antecedent is
no longer expressed, it is covert. Unlike their sisters, these relatives cannot
function as attributes, they currently fulfill the function of subjects or
objects, as follows:
Subject Free Relative Clause
(15) Whoever touches pitch shall be defiled.
(Cine se atinge de smoal va fi ntinat.)
Direct Object
(16) I would like to know what you need.
(A dori s tiu ce vrei.)
Indirect Object (the only clauses that can have this function in fact)
(17) He gave whoever came to the door a winning smile.
(Oferea un zmbet cuceritor oricui venea la ua lui.)
Prepositional Object
(18) You should vote for whichever candidate you think best.
(Trebuie s votezi cu candidatul pe care l consideri cel mai potrivit.)
Predicative
(19) This was what she intended.
(Asta era ceea ce voise ea.)

127
Adjunct
(20) Go wherever you want.
(Du-te unde pofteti.)

The second criterion that further classifies relative clauses has to do with
meaning and is restricted to dependent relatives only. They can be thus
divided into:
1. defining or restrictive relative clauses (those dependent relative clauses
that identify an antecedent; they offer crucial information about this
antecedent, they define it).

(21) The man who came to woo me was a god.
(Cel care a venit s ma peeasc era un zeu.)
(Only that particular man that was my suitor looked like a god)

2. non-defining or non-restrictive or appositive relative clauses (those
dependent relative clauses that do not offer crucial information about the
antecedent. They only provide supplementary information about it.)

(22) Mercury, who is the god of commerce, is my favourite god.
(Mercur, care este zeul negoului, este zeul meu favorit.)
(Mercury, who incidentally is the god of commerce, is my favourite
god)

The function of non-restrictive relative clauses is that of Appositive attributes.
Their meaning is also reinforced by orthography, and by the intonation the
speaker uses in uttering the whole sentence.

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128
In conclusion, a diagram would sum up the types of relative clauses
discussed:
Restrictive/defining
The man who came to see me is a genius.
Dependent
Non-restrictive/non-defining
That man, who came to see me, is a genius.
Relative clauses
Independent
(free)
I dont know what you want.
Whoever came to see me was a genius.

A good way of identifying restrictive relative clauses is to look at their
syntactic function. As we were saying, this type of relative clauses, i.e.
restrictive relative clauses, can only function as attributes (or modifiers).

Nota bene!

If it is a restrictive relative clause, then it is an attribute.

Pratice

Activity 3
Identify the relative clauses stating their type in the sentences
below:
1.This is the village where I spent my youth. 2. Did he mention
the time when the plane will take off? 3. Did they tell you the
reason why they all left? 4. Shakespeare, who is a genius, is a
great playwright. 5. The advantage of the supermarket is that you
can buy what you want at a place where you can park your car. 6.
On the day on which this occurred I was away. 7. He cannot have
been more than twenty when we first met. 8. I have met him
where I least expected. 9. She, on whom nobody could depend,
was the one we all welcomed and admired. 10. They are what

129
their parents made them, however sad this may be.

6.4 Restrictions Imposed On The Relative Clause by the
Determiner of the Antecedent

This section is dedicated to those relative clauses with a more special kind of
antecedent. We shall look at what happens for instance to the relative clause
when its antecedent is a proper noun, etc. Consider the following points of
discussion:

1. When the antecedent has no determiner, it can only be followed by a non-
defining relative clause (an apposition):

(23) Freddie Mercury, who died a few years ago, composed The
Bohemian Rhapsody.
(Freddie Mercury, care a murit acum civa ani, a compus The
Bohemian Rhapsody.)

When combined with a restrictive relative clause, the proper name is re-
categorized into a common name and receives its own determiner (the, a,
etc.):

(24) The Freddie Mercury I knew was a rock-star.
(Freddie Mercury pe care-l cunoteam eu era vedet rock.)
(25) I know a Freddie Mercury who gives piano lessons.
(Cunosc un Freddie Mercury care d lecii de pian.)

2. First and second person pronouns do not normally take restrictive relative
clauses. They can be followed only by non-restrictive ones (appositions):
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130

(26) I, who am your son, can see your shortcomings only too well.
(Eu, care-i sunt fiu, i vd prea bine defectele.)
(27) Anybody else would have done something except myself, who am not
a woman, but a peevish, ill-tempered, dried-up old maid.
(Oricine ar fi fcut ceva, numai eu nu, care nu sunt o femeie, ci o fat
btrn morocnoas, iritabil i uscat.)
(28) They come to me, who neither work nor am anxious.
(Ei apeleaza la mine, care nici nu muncesc i nici nu sunt ngrijorat.)

Third person pronouns however do accept restrictive relative clauses:

(29) He who laughs last laughs best (archaic).
(Cine rde la urm rde mai bine.)

Pratice

Activity 1
Translate the following, paying attention to the restriction
imposed by antecedent determiners on relative clauses:
1. Acesta nu este Bucuretiul pe care-l tiu eu. 2. Dintre toate
personajele prezente, prinul a ales-o pe Cenureasa, care era
cea mai frumoas fat din sal. 3. Dintre toate persoanele de fa
a trebuit s m alegi pe mine s vorbesc, care nu tiu s leg nici
dou cuvinte. 4. Cine nu muncete nu izbndete. 5. Voi care v
credei mari i tari, poftii n fa. 6. Cu toii doreau s-l aud pe
acel Luciano Pavarotti care ncntase mii de iubitori de oper. 7.
Mie, creia nu-mi plcea s las lucrurile neterminate, nu-mi
convenea o astfel de situaie.


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6.5 Relative Clause Introducers

Relative clause introducers are usually placed at the beginning of the relative
clause. In literary English they may sometimes be found later in the sentence:
after a present participle
(30) saying which he left the room
( care lucruri fiind spuse, prsi camera.)
after an infinitive
(31) The African queen issued forth upon the Lake to gain which they had
run such dangers and undergone such toils.
(Regina african se npusti spre lac sa redobndeasc cele pentru care
trecuser prin attea pericole i avuseser parte de atta trud.)
As the object of a preposition and after than:
(32) He consulted his watch at 10-minute intervals, in spite of which the
service finished late.
(Se uita la ceas din zece n zece minute, i cu toate acestea slujba s-a
terminat trziu.)
(33) He was a railway fanatic, than whom few more can be more crashing.
(Era un fanatic al mersului cu trenul, i puini oameni l ntreceau la
asta.)
Sometimes the preposition can have partitive value:
(34) He was prone to an inevitable series of moods, each of which has
evolved its own system of harmony.
(Era nclinat spre stri schimbtoare, i fiecare din aceste stri i
dobndise propriul sistem de armonie.)
(35) The compositions of Cardan, some of the last notes of whose harp he
heard, were now in his possession.
(Compoziiile lui Cardan, ale cror ultime note de harp le auzise, erau
acum n posesia lui.)
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132

Aside from these marginal examples, relative clause introducers retain their
clause initial position. We shall briefly have a look at the most important
ones.

6.5.1. Relative Pronouns
Who [+human] with its case forms whom [+human] and whose [
human] :
(36) a. The woman who came to see my painting was the Queen itself.
(Femeia care a venit s mi vad tabloul era Regina nsi.)
b. The woman to whom you showed the painting was the Queen.
(Femeia creia i-ai artat tabloul era Regina.)
c. The woman whose painting I sold was very young.
(Femeia al crui tablou l-am vndut era foarte tnr.)
d. The painting whose buyer she was looked marvelous.
(Tabloul al crui cumprtor era arta minunat.)

Whose appears as the appropriate genitive form for both [+human] and [-
human] objects, as can be seen in (36d). The genitive form with which is still
in use, too, but it is typical of the formal, literary style:

(37) a. The book whose cover I lost was very expensive.
(Cartea a crei copert am pierdut-o era foarte scump.)
b. The book the cover of which I lost was very expensive.
(Cartea a crei copert am pierdut-o era foarte scump.)

(37b) is an example of relative clause introduced by a genitival pronoun
where there is a form of inversion imposed by the presence of the genitive

133
form of which. There are situations when inversion is not obligatory, but these
ones are even more infrequent than those illustrated under (37b):

(38) as if she were being gradually cornered by a cruelty of which he
was the almost unconscious agent.
(Iris Murdoch, An Accidental Man)
( de parca era incet-incet incoltita de o cruzime al carei agent
aproape inconstient era el.)

Which [-human]
(39) The story which he claimed to have told was too fantastic for my taste.
(Povestea pe care pretindea c a spus-o era prea fantastic pentru gustul
meu.)

There are a few exceptions when which can acquire the feature [+human]:
When which has a partitive value:

(40) Which of the two men is nicer?
(Care dintre ei este mai drgu?)

However in rhetorical question who is still preferred:

(41) Who of us will stain his hands with murder?
(Cine dintre noi i va mnji minile cu o crim?)

with archaic value:
(42) Our Father, which art in Heaven
(Tatl nostru carele eti n ceruri)

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134
When a personal denotation refers not to an individual, but to a type or a
function:
(43) a. Shaw is commonly regarded more as a funny man than as the
revolutionary which at bottom he is.
(Shaw este n general privit mai degrab ca un tip hazliu dect ca
revoluionarul care este n esen.)
b. Freud is the analyst which we must enjoy.
(Freud este psihanalistul pe care trebuie s-l citim)
c. He is not the man which he used to be.
(Nu mai este omul care era odat.)

When its genitive form is used to give a very formal tone to the passage
(but this is very infrequent):
(44) Livia had just been delivered of twin boys, of which, by the way,
Sejanus seems to have been the father.
(Livia tocmai nscuse doi baiei gemeni, al cror tat se pare c era
Sejanus.)

Both who and which are used for:

collective nouns
(45) a. This was a tribe who moved from the Baltic Sea.
(Acesta era un trib care venise de la Marea Baltic.)
b. Asiatic tribes and American tribes which resemble each other.
( triburile asiatice i amer-indiene care seamn ntre ele.)

states, animals, ships (that can be personified)
(46) a. Italy, which entered the war in May 1915
(Italia care a intrat n rzboi n mai 1915)

135
b. France, whom it concerned most closely, did however take certain
precautions
( Frana, pe care o privea direct, i-a luat totui nite precauii)

what can normally introduce only free relative clauses:
(47) I didnt know what they wanted.
(Nu tiam ce vor.)

On the rare occasions when what functions as an introducer of restrictive
relative clauses, the use of this pronoun is:
a) archaic
(48) It is rich what gets the peaches,
It is poor what gets the punches.
(Cei bogai primesc onoruri, cei sraci se aleg cu ponoasele.)
b) dialectal
(49) a. the bloke what signs our books
(tipul la de ne semneaz crile)
b. One cant expect foreigners to ave the same ideas what we ave.
(one cannot expect foreigners to have the same ideas that we have)
(Nu poi s te atepi ca strinii s aib ce idei avem noi.)

6.5.2 Relative Adverbs: when, where, while, why, how, etc.
When they introduce restrictive relative clauses, their antecedents are nouns
expressing places, time, reason, etc. and can be replaced by prepositional
phrases with adverbial function:
(50) a. Poland is the place where Christine was born.
(Polonia este locul in care s-a nascut Christine.)
b. Poland is the place in which Christine was born.
(Polonia este locul in care s-a nascut Christine.)
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136
(51) a. Ten oclock is the time when they have lunch.
(Ora zece este momentul cind ei iau prinzul.)
b. Ten oclock is the time at which they have lunch.
(Ora zece este momentul cind ei iau prinzul.)

When they introduce free relative clauses, no antecedents are required:
(52) a. He went where he had been before.
(S-a dus unde mai fusese.)
b.They left when they decided it was proper to.
(Au plecat cind s-a hotarat ca este potrivit.)

There are cases when these adverbs can appear in their older forms (in archaic
passages):
(53) a. The place whither he goes is unknown.
(Locul catre care merge este necunoscut.)
b. They returned to the land whence they had come.
(S-au intors in tara din care venisera.)
c. A system where by a new discovery will arise.
(Un sistem prin care va aparea o noua descoperire)
d. A dark forrest wherein dangers lurk.
(O padure intunecata in care ne pandesc primejdiile.)
e. This is the place wherefrom they came.
(Acesta este locul din care au venit.)

6.5.3. Relative THAT
Relative THAT normally appears as the introducer of restrictive relative
clauses:
(54) This is the book that pleased her most.
(Aceasta este cartea care o ncnta cel mai mult.)

137

It is invariable, never preceded by prepositions and requires an antecedent
with the exception of archaic idiomatic contents:
(54) Handsome is that handsome does.
(Only the person that behaves in a handsome way can be considered
handsome).

Moreover, the relative introducer THAT unlike its pair that introduces
complement that-clauses can have almost any syntactic function within the
relative clause:
Subject
(55) Did you see the letter [that came today?]
(Ai vzut scrisoarea care a sosit azi?)
Direct Object
(56) Did you get the books [that I sent you?]
(Ai primit crile pe care i le-am trimis?)
(57) That is the man [that I was talking about.]
(Acesta este cel despre care vorbeam.)
Predicative
(58) He is not the man [that he was.]
(Nu este omul care era odinioar.)
Adverbial
(59) Tuesday was the day [that he left.]
(Ziua n care a plecat a fost o mari.)

When do we prefer to use THAT instead of WHICH/WHO?
When the antecedent is a compound nominal that refers to a human and a
thing:
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138
(60) The children were the parcels that filled the car.
(Copiii erau pachetele ce umpleau maina.)

With a superlative antecedent

(61) She is the prettiest girl that I have ever seen.
(Este fata cea mai frumoas pe care am vzut-o vreodat.)

With an antecedent preceded by determiners such as: all, every, any, not
any, much, little:
(62) That ugly little house was all the home that I have ever had.
(Csua aceea urt era singurul cmin pe care l-am avut vreodat.)

When the rule of euphony must be observed

(63) a. Who that knew her would help loving her?
(Cine dintre cei care o cunoteau se puteau mpiedica s n-o
iubeasc?)
b.* Who who knew her could help loving her?

6.5.4. Other relative introducers

There are of course other relative clauses introducers, but they are used very
infrequently: as, but
in standard language
(64) a. Honest man as he was, it went against the grain with him to step into
his shoes.
(Cinstit cum era, era contrar naturii sale s l urmeze.)
b. Ill get you such things as you may want.

139
(O sa i dau acele lucruri pe care le doreti.)
c. This is the same one that/as you had before.
(Este la fel cu cel pe care l-ai avut.)

in dialect
(65) a. Uncle George, him as was in China
(Uncle George, who had been in China )
(Unchiul George, l de fusese in China)
b. Theres not many asll say that.
(There arent many who will say that)
(Nu-s muli s spuie asta)

archaic use
(66) a. There is no man but feels pity for starving children. (There isnt a
man who doesnt feel pity )
(Nu e om care s nu simt mil fa de copiii care mor de foame)
b. There is no one of us but wishes to help you.
(Nu este nimeni dintre noi care s nu vrea sa te ajute.)
c. I never had a slice of bread
Particularly long and wide
But feel upon the sandy floor,
And always on the buttered side.
(Niciodat nu s-a ntmplat, cnd am avut o bucat de pine mricic,
s nu mi cad pe podeaua murdar, i ntotdeauna pe partea uns cu
unt.)

Sometimes in colloquial or dialectal English, the relative clause introducer is
omitted:
(67) a. Its the dry weather does it.
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140
(Its the dry weather that is to blame.)
b. It was me made her think that was the best thing to do.
(It was me who made her think)

This phenomenon is usually met with cleft relative clauses such as those
under (67).

This remark brings us to another important question to ask: When can we
delete relative clause introducers? The answer to this question is rather
straight: relative introducers can be deleted whenever THAT can be used as
an alternative to the respective relative introducer. For instance in

(68) The man whom John met lives in Boston.
(Omul pe care l-a ntlnit John locuiete n Boston)

The relative pronoun whom can indeed be replaced by that:
(69) The man that John met lives in Boston.

This means that both whom and that can be deleted without the sentence
losing its grammaticality:
(70) The man John met lives in Boston.

Note that deletion is impossible in
(71) The man whom John spoke to is an idiot.
(Cel cu care vorbete John este un idiot.)


141
since a replacement of the relative phrase with that cannot be performed in
view of the fact that the relative introducer that cannot preceded by
preposition (see subsection 5.5.3):
(72) a. * The man to that John spoke is an idiot.
b.*The man John spoke to is an idiot.

When the preposition appears at the end of the clause, the replacement is
allowed and deletion is indeed an option:
(73) a. The man who John spoke to is a genius.
(Cel cu care vorbete John este un geniu.)
b. The man that John spoke to is a genius.
c. The man John spoke to is a genius.

Pratice

Activity 5
Analyse the function of the relative clause and of the relative
pronoun that introduces it:
1. What Im saying is, we all have to come to some terms. 2. This
is where we talk money. 3. What Inman remembered was this
passage, which Monroe had repeated four times at dramatic
intervals throughout the sermon: That which shows God in me,
fortifies me. That which shows God out of me, makes me a wart
and a wen. 4. The words of the hymn seemed to look with
passionate yearning to a time when they would be immersed in
an ocean of love. 5. It was one job of his to think about why man
was born to die. 6. Where he was from, the word river meant
rocks and moss and the sound of white water moving fast under
the spell of a great deal of collected gravity. 7. It seemed a thing
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142
of such wonder to Ada, who had not witnessed many dawns.
8.When Ada remarked that at least they could rest when winter
came, Ruby said, Oh, when winter comes well mend the fence
and piece quilts and fix whats broke around here, which is a lot.
9. The rudeness of eating, of living, thats where Ruby seemed to
aim Ada every day that first month. 10. Ruby counted her first
victory when Ada succeeded in churning cream to butter. Her
second victory was when she noted that Ada no longer always
put a book in her pocket when she went out to hoe the fields. 11.
It was not until Ruby was nearly grown that it occurred to her to
wonder what kind of woman her mother had been to have
married such a man as Stobrod. 12. Whatever his fate was, he
had left Ruby high and dry. 13. Ruby said she had learned what
little she knew in the usual way. () Partly, though, she claimed
she had just puzzled out in her own mind how the worlds logic
works.

Activity 6
Comment upon the grammaticality of the following:
a)The man who(m)/*which/that/ we saw was nice. b) The book
*who(m)/which/that/ I read last night surprised me. c) The
woman who/*whom/*which/that/ came to dinner was very late.
d) The book*whom/which/that/* deals with this problem is
very good. e) The man for whom/*who/*which/*that/* we are
looking is not here. f) The man who(m) I *which/that/ we are
looking for is not here. g) The book for *whom/which/*that/*
we are looking is in my bag. h) The book *who(m)/which/that/
we are looking for is in my bag.

143

Activity 7
Read the following and notice the literary effect caused by the
phenomenon of recursiveness (repeated embeddings of sentences
that become relative clauses) in the passage; try to translate the
Romanian text using the same technique.
This is the horse that kicked the policeman, that I saw trying to
clear away the crowd that had collected to watch the fight that
the short man had started.
(Iris Murdoch, The Accidental Man)

Guturaiul. Cumnatul meu avea, pe linie paterna, un var primar,
al carui unchi pe linie materna avea un socru, al carui bunic pe
linie paterna se-nsurase in a doua casatorie cu o tanara bastinasa,
al carei frate intalnise intr-una din calatoriile sale o fata de care
se indragostise si cu care a avut un fiu, care s-a casatorit cu o
farmacista curajoasa, care nu era altceva decat nepoata unui
subofiter de marina din marina britanica si al carui tata adoptiv
avea o matusa care vorbea curgator spaniola si care era, poate,
una din nepoatele unui inginer, mort de tanar, nepot la randul lui
al unui proprietar de vie din care se obtinea un vin modest, dar
care avea un var de-al doilea, vasnic, plutonier, al carui fiu se
insurase cu o tanara foarte frumoasa, divortata, al carei prim sot
era fiul unui patriot sincer, care s-a priceput sa-si creasca una din
fete in dorinta de a face avere si care a reusit sa se marite cu un
vanator, care-l cunoscuse pe Rothschild si al carui frate, dupa ce-
si schimbase de mai multe ori meseria, s-a casatorit si a avut o
fata, al carei strabunic, pirpiriu, purta niste ochelari pe care-i
primise de la un var.al lui, cumnatul unui portughez, fiu natural
al unui morar, nu prea sarac, al carui frate de lapte luase de
nevasta pe fiica unui fost medic de tara, el insusi frate de lapte cu
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144
fiul unui laptar, la randul lui fiul natural al unui alt medic de tara,
insurat de trei ori la rand, a carui a treia sotie
(Eugen Ionescu, Teatru)

6.6. Pied Piping and Preposition Stranding
If you go back to our discussion in 5.2, regarding the mechanism that licenses
the formation of relative clauses, you will remember that a relative clause
such as that in
(74) She was the woman [who everybody listened to]
(Ea era cea care pe care o ascultau toi.)

appeared as a result of movement:
(75) a. She was a woman. Everybody listened to that woman.
b. She was the woman
i
who
i
everybody listened to______ .
c. She was the woman
i
who
i
everybody listened to t
i
.

The phenomenon by means of which the relativized prepositional phrase is
moved in clause initial position but leaves its preposition behind is called
preposition stranding: the preposition has been stranded at the end of the
sentence.

The opposite phenomenon, by means of which the whole phrase is moved up
front (preposition and all) bears the name of pied piping, where the wh-word
is the pied piper that drags after it another element:
(75) She was the woman
i
to whom
i
everybody listened.

By extension, another case of pied piping is offered by the movement of the
genitival phrase at the beginning of the relative clause:
(77)a. This is the book. I lost the cover of the book.

145
b. This is the book
i
whose
i
cover I lost t
i
.
(Aceasta este cartea a crei copert am pierdut-o.)

In this case the wh-word drags the constituent cover in clause initial position,
acting again as a genuine pied piper.

The difference between (76) and (77), apart from the distinct syntactical
functions the prepositional and the genitival phrase have, lies in the fact that
in the case of (77) pied piping is obligatory. We couldnt say something like:
(78)* This is the book whose I lost cover.

Pratice

Activity 8
Which of the following relative sentences can be reformulated by
means of preposition stranding?
1. The first question with which Ambrose had to deal was that of
the statue of victory in Rome. 2. The time at which he ate
breakfast was inconvenient. 3. Thus they remained utterly
obsessed with themselves and each other, and some natural
healing process of which Dorina felt she ought to know. 4. In the
interest of public decency, the safeguarding of which was
actually not his task, he requested that the public be excluded. 5.
The problem of safe transportation, no easy answers to which
could be offered, has been troubling them forever. 6. She was the
very woman about whom I knew absolutely nothing. 7. This was
the icepick with which one had seen her stab her husband to
death. 8. She had fully realized how much her love for Austin cut
her off from other people, as if she were being gradually
cornered by a relentlessness of which he was the almost
unconscious agent. 9. For the intense anxious sense of herself
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146
with which she was suddenly invested she was quite untrained.
10. Irene, for whom he had sacrificed his nights and days, he
rarely saw now.

Activity 9
Identify the cases of Pied Piping in the following sentences:
1.His fathers friends, whose interest he most sincerely shared,
were now all gone. 2. This story, the unravelling of which had
cost her many minutes of her life, was now complete. 3. She had
lying in front of her a number of books and dictionaries most of
which had been shipped from remote countries. 4. The only
relatives she would have liked to put up with were her mothers
sisters. 5. His friends, no matter which, knew nothing of what he
had been subjected to.

6.7 Key Concepts

Relative Clauses can be dependent and in that case they need an antecedent in
the main clause, that is nominal phrase to which the relative clause introducer
could send back. The relative clause introducer is also called the relativized
constituent and it co-refers with the antecedent in the main clause.
Dependent relative clauses (so called because they are dependent on their
antecedent) can be further split into restrictive ones (that define and identify
the antecedent) and non-restrictive ones (that offer additional information
about the antecedent and have an appositive value). Both these types of
relative clauses function as Attributes (appositive or not, as the case is).
Independent relative clauses are also called Free Relative Clauses because
their antecedent is missing, has been deleted. They do not function as
attributes, but as subjects or objects (in fact fulfilling almost all syntactical
functions, including that of Indirect Object which only they can have).


147
The mechanism that lies at the basis of dependent (and independent) relative
clauses is movement, as can be seen in those particular sentences exhibiting
preposition stranding or pied piping.

Pratice

Activity 10*
Translate the following making use of the knowledge acquired
about relative clauses:

1. De douazeci de ani, din sraca urbe provincial unde vegetau
fr speran, capitala le pruse un pisc inaccesibil, spre care
aveau drept sa nzuiasc numai cuteztorii cu glezna tare i
plmnii largi.
2. Toate sfreau. Rmnea un vis urt i lung de care i
amintirea va fugi mine cutremurat.
3. Cci pentru toi patru copiii, cu toat deosebirea de vrst i
fire, capitala era necunoscutul miraculos () unde fiecare va
afla tot ce-i poftete inima i tot ce i-a urzit, himeric,
nchipuirea.
4. Nelu, al treilea frate n ordinea cronologic, nchipuia
capitala ca un fabulos garaj de unde nu lipsete nici o marc
de automobil din cele mai rarisime i ca o vast aren
sportiv, unde n fiecare zi se dezlanuie competiia ntre
dou echipe ().
5. Pentru alii, pentru dumneata bunoar, prect am neles din
cele ce-mi vorbeai adineauri, sunt vrednic de invidiat.
6. A venit la mine s-mi cear s-i numesc un ginere director. I-
am numit ginerele cum a vrut i unde a vrut, de altfel un biat
bun! i nu tia cum s-mi mulumeasc.
7. Nu-i greu s-i dea seama ct m-am scandalizat i ce tmblu
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148
am fcut cnd vzui cum te-au lsat toi sa mucezeti ntr-o
asemenea puturoenie de trg.
8. Vag i amintea c ntr-adevr () fusese chemat s dezlege
o ntmplare tulbure i c n spiritul su drept i-a sacrificat
prietenul pentru adevr. Dar ce anume a fost i cum s-a
terminat povestea nu mai tia i nici n-ar fi crezut vreodat c
exist cineva care s mai pstreze o att de fidel amintire.
Fostul camarad i apru cu totul altfel de cum l socotise pn
acum.
9. Eti proaspt sosit aici, nu-i dai poate nc deplin seama de
cte intrigi i de cte presiuni uzeaz politicianismul chiar n
justiie.
10. Dac le convingea vreo nsuire ct de mic, speram c aveai
s faci dumneata ceea ce face un frate mai mare pentru unul
mai mic. mi spuneam c nu se poate s nu banuieti n ce
singurtate i dezndejde se afl un om tnr ntr-un ora
unde totul i e dumnos!
11. Tot ce-ai citit dumneata inca nu nseamn nimic! S-i mai
adaog i concluzia ultim, care nu figureaz nici n
dezbaterile procesului, nici n searbda mea versiune, la care
vd c tot tragi mereu cu ochii. () Ct golim cetile astea de
cafea, i-o rezum la cteva cuvinte.
12. Ceea ce n-a facut preedintele de tribunal din Frana, cnd l
invitase pe Henri Rochefort s ia n primire un sector
electoral i s se aleag deputat, cu surle i cu tobe, a fcut el.
(Cezar Petrescu Calea Victoriei slightly adapted)
13. De altfel chiar i idealuri de felul acesta m strduiesc s
nu-mi mai fac pentru c am observat c mi se ndeplinesc i
nu pot alege acum care dintre ele merge n sensul vieii mele

149
adevrate i care nu, nc netiind care este adevrata mea
via.
14. Voi ncerca s-mi explic de ce la nceput mi s-a prut ca ai
ochii verzi i de ce astzi, pn mai adineauri, ochii ti au
fost cenuii.
15. Avea acum un fel de vertij, din care cauz pe Dora, dei att
de aproape, o vedea ca de la o mare distan.
16. n spatele lor, pe strada Icoanei, tramvaiul venea cu duduit de
avalan i bti de clopote trase furios de dupa o perdea
roie i galben, printre strzile i casele din urm-le, dinspre
Maria Rosetti, din direcia creia apoi, de unde venea i
Marta, aprur, izvornde mereu ns tare ndeprtate, cu
sclipiri abia vizibile, roiuri de fetie.
17. E foarte frumos ce-mi spui, zise ea cu ochii mari, pierdui
ntr-o direcie vag.
18. Nici nu ndrznesc s m gndesc la bnuiala care m
ncearc. Dar nu vezi? Mai nti ideea c a rmas srac, apoi
c trebuie s lichideze tot i s plece i acum c e bolnav cnd
de fapt cu toii tim c este sntos. Nu i se pare bizar la el
care pn acum a fost un brbat att de energic, optimist i
cumpnit?
(Radu Petrescu Matei Iliescu)
19. Dac m lovea, nu tiu ce s-ar fi putut ntmpla.
20. Pe vremea cnd eram sraci nu ne vedeam aproape de loc cu
aceast verioar, care era foarte monden, tria larg de tot,
cci avea cas mare n Bucureti. Era una dintre acele femei
elegante, despre care, fie pe strad, fie la teatru, toat lumea
ntreba cine e.
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150
21. Simeam c nici nu era singura inferioritate pe care mi-o
gsea. Pare-se c snobii, pe care ea i admira acum, aveau un
stil al lor, pe care eu nu-l aveam, vedeam cum zi de zi femeia
mea se nstrina, n preocuparile i admiraiile ei, de mine.
22. N-am putut s nu bag de seam, de sus de unde eram,
plcerea cu care ea se lsa sprijinit toat de el, cnd au urcat
rpa iar, pn n osea, dup ce maina a fost reparat.
23. Pentru mine ns, care nu triesc dect o singur dat n
desfurarea lumii, aceste fapte au nsemnat mai mult dect
rzboaiele pentru cucerirea Chinei, dect irurile de dinastii
egiptene, dect ciocnirile de atri n necuprins.
24. Ct vreme unii copaci sunt nc verzi, alii au frunzele
galbene ca nite caise strvezii.
(Camil Petrescu Ultima noapte de dragoste, ntia noapte de
rzboi)

151

SEVEN
THAT COMPLEMENTS

Aim of this unit: to characterize the syntactic processes that these
complements undergo and to offer a description of the
distribution of that clauses
Objectives: to help students understand the complexity of these
syntactic processes. Students will acquire the ability of
identifying these phenomena and of labeling that clauses,
by stating their syntactic function.

152

C
o
n
t
e
n
t
s
:

7.1. Syntactic Properties That Characterize That
Complements
7.1.1.Extraposition
7.1.2.Topicalization
7.1.3.Clause Shift
7.2. The Distribution of That Complements
7.2.1. That Complements as Direct Objects
7.2.2. That Complements as Subjects
7.2.3. That Complements as Prepositional Objects
7.2.4. That complements as Predicatives
7.2.5. That Complements as Attributes
7.2.6. That complements as Adverbials
7.3. That Deletion
7.3.1. When Can We Delete That?
7.3.2. When is That Obligatory?
7.3.3. When is That Deletion Obligatory?

7.4. The Sequence of the Tenses in Object That
Clauses
7.5. Key Concepts
Unit seven That complements

153

That complements constitute the most representative class of complement
clauses (see section 4). Apart from those introduced by that, complement
clauses can be preceded by
for
(1) It is good for them to know Mathematics.
(E bine s tie matematic.)
whether
(2) I dont know whether he will recover.
(Nu stiu dac se va nsntoi.)
if ( when it is the equivalent of whether)
(3) Tell me if you need anything.
(Spune-mi dac ai nevoie de ceva.)

(4) They wanted to leave immediately.
(Voiau s plece imediat.)

7.1 Syntactic Properties That Characterize That
Complements

7.1.1 Extraposition

Extraposition is a very frequent structure in English, being found not only in
the case of that-clauses, but also of infinitival ones. The term extraposition
refers to a construction where the expletive (empty) pronoun it appears in
front position, followed by the complement clause in peripheral position. In
other words, the clause is extraposed, placed in a marginal position.

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154
This phenomenon is true of more than one syntactic function, but the subject
position is the most frequently met in English:
Subject Clause
unextraposed:
(5) That Dorothy flew from Kansas was a surprise to everybody.
(A fost o surpriz pentru toat lumea faptul c Dorothy a plecat din
Kansas.)
extraposed
(6) It was a surprise to everybody that Dorothy flew from Kansas.
(A fost o surpriz pentru toat lumea faptul c Dorothy a plecat din
Kansas.)

Direct Object Clause
unextraposed:
(7) The plumber wrongly figured out that the pipe needed replacing.
(Instalatorul a considerat n mod greit ca eava trebuia nlocuit.)
extraposed
(8) The plumber wrongly figured it out that the pipe needed replacing.
(Instalatorul a considerat n mod greit ca eava trebuia nlocuit.)

unextraposed:
(9) Can you swear that the accused spent the evening with you?
(Putei jura c acuzatul a petrecut noaptea cu dumneavoastr?)
extraposed:
(10) Can you swear to it that the accused spent the evening with you?
(Puteti jura c acuzatul a petrecut noaptea cu dumneavoastr?)


155
Pratice

Activity 1
Which of the following that clauses are extraposed ones? What is
their syntactical function?
1.It occurred to him that people were laughing behind his back.
2. Nobody knew that they were sorry for what they had done. 3.
It was known to no one that Peter had tried to take his own life.
4.The crowd resented it that the police had been sent for. 5.
Magellan regrets it that the world is round. 6. It appears that no
one voted for him. 7. It was suggested that they should meet the
President. 8. It is too bad that they always make fun of Gilian. 9.
I dont like it that he should be left alone in my flat. 10. He will
answer for it that his son is innocent. 11. You may depend on it
that I will pick you up.

Activity 2
Try to undo the effect of It Extraposition in the following
sentences:
1. It worried me a bit that she didnt visit her aunt. 2. It is not
quite clear whether the trains would be running tomorrow. 3. It
will be soon announced when you can leave. 4. Is it true that the
children are sick? 5. It so happens that I know the secret cipher.
6. It seems such a shame that he never takes her out. 7. It is
incredible how many good students drop out of school for lack of
money. 8. It will suit me best for you to arrive before dinner. 9. It
is no use trying to convince her. 10. It will be a pity if we have to
tell her the truth before he gives us permission to. 11. You know
it only too well that he will not marry you. 12 You may take it
from me that he is a stinking liar. 13. Rumour has it that U2 will
visit us this year. 14. The pebble in my shoe made it painful to
walk. 15. It is nice to meet you. 16 I found it disgraceful that she
hid the truth from me 17. They considered it very silly of her to
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156
have married Bill. 18. I find it difficult to tell her my thoughts.

Activity 3
Comment upon the grammaticality of the following sentences:
1.It bothers me that it is obvious that money means everything. 2.
It amazes Bill that it bothers me that it is obvious that money
means everything. 3. It appears that it amazes Bill that it bothers
me that it is obvious that money means everything. 4. That it is
obvious that money means everything bothers me. 5.That it
amazes Bill that it is obvious that money means everything
bothers me.

Activity 4
Which of the following sentences are correct? Does tense
influence the validity of extraposition?
1.I was the one who guessed it that he would come back. 2. I
guess it that he will come back. 3. They never expected it that he
would come back. 4. I dont expect it that he will come back. 5.
She was the woman who ordered it that all men would be
executed in public. 6.Are you going to order it that all men be
executed in public?!

Activity 5
Translate into English, paying attention to extraposed that and
infinitive clauses:

1. Nu era nici o mirare c nuntrul colii stpnea un pronunat
spirit schillerian.
2. Cnd se ntmpla s-l vd la capt de uli, m ascundeam n
grab, unde se nimerea, dup pori, n gropi, n canal, sub
poduri, de-ar fi fost cu putin a fi disprut i n gaur de
arpe.
3. Fr ndoial c autoritile vor lua msuri ca s fim
evacuai i transportai cine tie unde, zice Lionel. Eu voi
cuta s rmn aici la adpostul uniformei mele de ofier, att

157
ct se va putea. E cert c trupele romne vor nainta repede.
4. Mi s-a prut chiar c, rzbtnd din noianul de fraze searbede
sau neroade, cele cteva cuvinte pline de bun-sim rostite de
mama au produs o oarecare derut n conversaia general.
5. mi plcea tot ceea ce era firesc n purtarea mamei. Se
ntmpla ns ca avnturile ei s fie stvilite de respectul ce-l
nutrea pentru conveniile sociale, precum i de urmele lsate
de educaia burghez. (Nu ntotdeauna; astfel mi aduc
aminte c mama a ndrznit s nu in seama de sfaturile pe
care i le-a dat ntreaga familie i c s-a dus s ngrijeasc
bolnavii din sat n timpul unei epidemii de tifos, cnd locuia
n conacul din La Roque). Educaia burghez se dovedete a
fi, fr ndoial, excelent, att timp ct este vorba numai de
a ine n fru instinctele rele, dar nu trebuie uitat c tot ea
nbue toate pornirile mrinimoase ce nesc din inim.
6. Aadar am crezut de cuviin c cel mai bun lucru pe care l
aveam de fcut era s perfecionez armele ce existau atunci.
7. Greu este s poi pstra pn la urm hotrrea nestrmutat
de a te ntoarce, hotrre pe care aromele i uitarea ce din ele
se va revrsa asupr-i, precum i dorina de a afla i cte
altele, vor cuta s o zdruncine.
Ar fi desigur imprudent s se trag vreo nvtur din aceste
constatri. Spunnd cele ce-am spus, n-am vorbit n calitate de
moralist. Nu m numr printre aceia care caut i gsesc
pretudindeni Lecii, lecii care din pcate nu-i ajut s devin mai
nelepi. Nu fac parte nici din categoria celor ce spun Visez ca
vara s dinuie venic i cred c este mai cuminte s te
mulumeti, fr s crteti, cu ceea ce i se d.

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158

7.1.2. Topicalization

Topicalization is the reverse of extraposition: a subject clause which is
initially placed in the sentence is said to be topicalized. Compare:
(11) That my horse is the best in the world is absolutely evident.
(Este clar ca bun ziua ca armsarul meu este cel mai bun.)
(12) It is absolutely evident that my horse is the best in the world.
(Este clar ca bun ziua ca armsarul meu este cel mai bun.)

While in the case of extraposition, subject clauses are the frequent situation,
in the case of topicalization, this asymmetry is undone. Consequently, direct
object clauses can equally appear topicalized and are by no means less
frequent in this situation than subject clauses:
(13) That Freddie likes to appear in kids nightmares I cannot deny.
(C lui Freddie i place s apar n comarurile copiilor nu pot nega.)

Extraposition is the structure that appears much more frequently in English
and that is why we consider it to be the unmarked case; since topicalization
appears mostly when a writer/speaker wishes to create a special effect of
emphasis, we consider topicalization to be the marked case in the language.

Pratice

Activity 6
Read the following, noticing the effect of topicalization within the
literary passages below. Is the phenomenon of topicalization
restricted to that complements only? Does it apply to Subject
Clauses exclusively? Find counter-arguments in the texts.

1. No wonder Alison had punished her and Matthew thought of

159
her only as an instrument. That she could still be an
instrument might have comforted her once, but not now.
2. That she condemned herself in moral terms brought no
consoling spring of vitality and even guilt gave her no
energy. When this is so one is in extremity indeed.
3. Whether this despair made it easier or harder to act, whether
it would finally carry her off, mere chance would decide. She
had always been the slave of chance, let it kill her if it would
by a random stroke.
4. This was another era. That he should have sat in his room and
penned the letter yesterday, even today, was inconceivable.
Austin had been lost in some ancient cataclysm. He was
utterly gone.
5. His own confusion and misery were so great that he felt
unable to cope with Dorina, he felt no spring of interest in
her, he almost felt resentment at seeing her now. To walk by
was an expression of his own despair.
6. Why she had originally left Valmorana she had by now
forgotten.
7. To return to Valmorana seemed to her like death. To go back
there now would be to climb into her coffin.
8. That Dorina should have electrocuted herself with an electric
fire on a rainy morning in a small hotel in Bloomsbury made
Ludwig feel disgust with himself and the world which was
almost mysterious in its intensity. He did not blame Gracie.
He did not think that Dorina had done it on purpose. The
thing was pure chance and yet weighted with a significance
of horror which he could not bear to contemplate. That he
had actually seen Dorina on the day that she died and had
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160
passed her by was so nightmarish that he felt he would never
be able to tell anybody about it.

7.1.3. Clause Shift

Clause Shift is a syntactic operation that parallels that of Heavy NP Shift. A
NP (Noun Phrase) is said to be heavy when it has a large stretch of modifiers
accompanying it: for instance the noun phrases the letter or the red letter are
much lighter than the noun phrase the letter which he had just read.

The rule of Heavy NP Shift stipulates that the heavy NP should be moved to
the right and of the sentence foe semantic reasons. Compare:
(14) He threw the letter which he had just decoded into the basket.
(A aruncat scrisoarea pe care abia o descifrase la co.)
to
(15) He threw into the basket the letter which he had just decoded.
(A aruncat la co scrisoarea pe care abia o descifrase.)

The sentence under (15) had undergone heavy NP shift by placing the long
NP at the end of the whole structure so that the sentence could be more clearly
understood. This rule is in fact an exceptional one in that it challenges the
fixed word order rules in English, according to which a verb should not be
normally separated from its obligatory complement.

Clause Shift is a similar rule to Heavy NP Shift as it allows for the clausal
structure to be moved to the right end of the sentence. This syntactic operation
differs from extraposition in that there is no pronoun left behind and that

161
clause shift operates only on object clauses. The clausal constituent is moved
over an adverb phrase or a prepositional phrase as follows:

Since the sentence under (16) is not semantically acceptable, because the
adverb phrase quietly may erroneously refer to the last verb phrase in the
sentence (i.e. the verb to drive), clause shift operates and the resulting
grammatical structure is the one under (17):
(16) *Mary said [that she wanted to drive] quietly.
(17) Mary said quietly that she wanted to drive.
(Mary spuse linitit c vrea s conduc maina.)

This way the adverb can no longer have ambiguous interpretation. It is
obviously linked to the main clause verb as intended.

Let us also supply an example where the clausal structure jumps over
prepositional phrase. From the ungrammatical structure under
(19) *They wrote that the firm was going bankrupt to the lawyers.

we obtain, by means of clause shift:
(20) They wrote t
i
to the lawyers [that the firm was going bankrupt]
i

(Le-au scris avocailor c firma urma s dea faliment.)

I have used the notation t
i
(trace co-indexed with the that clause) to
underline the fact that the clausal structure has been moved in a more
semantically advantageous position.

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162
Pratice

Activity 7
Comment on the following sentences from the point of view of the
rule of Heavy NP/Clause Shift discussed above:
1.? Susan burnt the letter (which) she had just written to the last
page. / Susan burnt to the last page the letter she had just written.
2.Susan told her mother that she had just been fired. / ?Susan told
that she had just been fired to her mother.
3.He was informed on Saturday at noon that he was going to be
fired. / He was informed that he was going to be fired Saturday at
noon.
4.He appointed prime-minister Mr Hugh, who had just returned
from Africa. /? He appointed Mr Hugh, who had just returned
from Africa, prime-minister. / He appointed Mr Hugh prime-
minister, who had just returned from Africa.
5.They dismissed s unrealistic Mr Hughs proposal to build a
new hospital. / They dismissed Mr Hughs proposal to build a
new hospital as unrealistic.
6.? I considered to be outrageous what he had done to his wife in
front of so many people. / I considered outrageous what he had
done to his wife in front of so many people. / I considered what
he had done to his wife in front of so many people outrageous.
7.*I found for Susan to behave like that in public disgraceful. /*I
found disgraceful for Susan to behave like that in public./ I found
it disgraceful for Susan to behave like that in public./I found
disgraceful Susans behaving like that in public. /I found Susans
behaving like that in public disgrace.
8.He sprinkled with water the pavement he had been cleaning. /
He sprinkled the pavement he had been cleaning with water.


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7.2. The Distribuition of That Complements

As it will be shown below, that complements can acquire a whole range of
syntactical functions:
Subject
(21) That her husband might be Jack the Ripper slightly annoys Mary.
(Mary e puin enervat de ideea c soul ei ar putea fi Jack
Spintectorul.)
Direct Object
(22) They reported that the bridge had fallen down.
(Au raportat c podul s-a prbuit.)
(23) She was aware that her husband was lying to her.
(Era contient de faptul c soul ei o minte.)
Adverbial
(24) She remained at home so that she would look after the kids.
(A ramas acas s aib grij de copii.)
Predicative
(25) The important thing was that nobody knew about it.
(Lucrul important era c nimeni nu tia despre asta.)
Attribute
(26) The report that the bridge had fallen down was not true.
(Raportul n care se spune c s-a prbuit podul este fals.)

Let us supply a detailed list of verbs or adjectives that require the presence of
these complements. We will begin by discussing the context where that
complements appear as direct objects, since this is the most frequent function
they fulfill.
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7.2.1. That Complements as Direct Objects

Here is a list of classes of verbs after which that complements function as
direct objects:
a) Simple transitive verbs: such as assert, afirm, consider, deem, judge,
estimate, deny, desire, predict, prefer, state, etc.:
(25) a. He announced their engagement.
(i-a anunat logodna.)
b. He announced that they were engaged.
(A anunat c sunt logodii.)
(27) I really dislike it that he is here. (Extraposed)
(M deranjeaz faptul c este aici.)
(28) a. They believe that the man is guilty.
(Cred c omul este vinovat.)
b. They believe the man is guilty. (with that-deletion)
(Cred c omul este vinovat.)
(29) He asserted forcefully that he was innocent (with Clause Shift)
(A susinut cu trie c este nevinovat.)

b) Ditransitive verbs such as: say, promise, communicate, explain, suggest,
etc.
These verbs are called ditransitive because they require two obligatory
complements: a direct object and an indirect object:
(30) They promised him a new house.
(I-au promis o cas nou.)
(31) They promised him that he would received a new house.
(I-au promis c va primi o cas nou.)


165
Since the direct object that clause is heavy, it tends to appear in peripheral
position by means of several syntactic processes:
(32) I explained to Susan that I would be back very late. (Clause Shift)
(I-am explicat lui Susan c m voi ntoarce foarte trziu.)
(33) a. I explained it to Susan that I would be back very late.
(I-am explicat lui Susan c m voi ntoarce foarte trziu.)
b. He owes it to his father that he became lawyer. (Extraposition)
(Faptul c a devenit avocat i-l datoreaz tatlui su.)

7.2.2. That Complements as Subjects

a) This position is filled by that complements in combination with a rather
limited number of intransitive verbs: seem, appear, happen, turn out,
matter, come about, follow, etc.:
(34) It appeared that a life could be interesting, amusing, and ultimately
trivial.
(Se prea c o via poate fi interesant, amuzant, i in fine trivial.)

Some of these verbs (seem, occur, appear) may optionally be followed by an
indirect object:
(35) a. It appeared to him that she was lying to him.
(I se prea c l minte.)
b. It occurred to John that he needed a new car.
(i veni ideea c John are nevoie de o maina nou.)

The most important thing to notice with this class of intransitive verbs is that
only extraposed structures are grammatical:
(42) a. It appears to me that this is a new beginning.
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166
(Mi se pare c acesta este un nou nceput.)
b. *That this is a new beginning appears to me.

b) adjectives (evaluative adjectives, that express a belief of the speaker):
likely, unlikely, certain, sure, etc.
clear, possible, probable, appropriate, fair, good, interesting, etc.

(36) a. It was in any case obvious that Marriage was Dorinas lot.
(Era n orice caz clar c era n firea lucrurilor ca Dorina s fie
cstorita.)
b. It was not just that Austin was an object of interest because of the
Matthew legend. (Iris Murdoch, ibid.)
(Nu conta numai faptul c Austin constituie un obiect de interes din
cauza legendarului Matthew.)

Sometimes the adjective can appear alone, or without the copula:
(37) a. Odd that one should so naturally wish to lie upon ones bed to go to
sleep forever. (Iris Murdoch, ibid.)
(Ciudat c poi dori cu atta naturalee s te ntinzi n pat i s adormi
pe vecie.)
b. for a few days I thought it possible that you wanted simply to
nerve yourself to break things off. (Iris Murdoch, ibid.)
( cteva zile am crezut c e posibil s i doreti pur i simplu s ai
curajul s distrugi totul.)

Some of these adjectives my take indirect objects:
(38) a. That he knew nothing about Poland was obvious to all his friends.
(Era clar pentru toi prietenii lui c nu tia nimic despre Polonia.)
b. It was obvious to all his friends that he knew nothing about Poland.

167
(Era clar pentru toi prietenii lui c nu tia nimic despre Polonia.)

b) Nouns that come from the same semantic area as adjectives: problem,
idea, impediment, surprize, miracle, pity, wonder, etc.

(39) It is a wonder that you werent killed.
(E mare minune c nu ai fost ucis.)

The noun can appear in isolation, as is illustrated in (40):
(40) a. A pity that men were so impatient.
(J. Galsworthy Over the River)
(Pcat c brbaii sunt aa de lipsii de rbdare.)
b. A pity men were so impatient. (that deletion)
(J. Galsworthy Over the River)
(Pact c brbaii sunt aa de lipsii de rbdare.)

d) ing forms (verbal nouns)
(41) a. There was no denying that business was rotten.
(Nu ncpea nici o urm de ndoial c afacerile mergeau prost.)
b. There was no denying business was rotten. (that-deletion)
(Iris Murdoch, ibid.)
(Nu ncpea nici o urm de ndoial c afacerile mergeau prost.)

e) psychological transitive verbs : alarm, amaaze, annoy, confuse, please,
frighten, interest, pain, relieve, soothe, tempt, trouble, etc.:
(42) a. It stirs me that I was thought worthy
(M impulsiona faptul c m credeau vrednic.)
b. That everybody blames him obviously depresses him.
(Faptul c toat lumea d vina pe el l deprim evident.)
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168

7.2.3. That Complements as Prepositional Objects

It is known that the presence of THAT normally excludes the possibility that a
preposition could appear in front of the that complement. We assume that
prepositions are dropped in front of that-clauses. We retain however the name
prepositional object clause for these particular that-complements because the
basic structure it is derived from is a predicate + a preposition:

e.g. decide on something > decide that
(43) a. She decided on coming here.
(S-a hotrt s vin aici.)
b. She decided that she would come here.
(A hotrt c va veni aici.)

In example (43) we consider that the underlined clause functions as a
prepositional object required by the verb decide.

That complements appear as prepositional objects after:
a) simple intransitive prepositional verbs:
decide on, pray for, see to, admit of, ask for, brg about, rejoice at, theorize
about, vote for,etc.:
(44) a. He wondered that she was still there.
(S-a mirat c mai este acolo.)
b. They voted that the strike should go on.
(Au votat s continue greva.)
c. You may depend upon it that he will agree with your terms.
(Extraposed)
(Poti conta pe faptul c va fi de acord cu condiiile tale.)

169

b) transitive prepositional verbs: advise somebody of, accuse somebody of,
blame somebody for, congratulate somebody on ,etc.:
(45) He informed them that he would leave.
(I-a informat c pleac.)

c) the exceptional case of the verb remind somebody of where there is an
indirect object present:
(46) They reminded him that she should leave.
(I-au amintit s plece.)

d) adjectives : afraid of, confident in, alarmed at, happy about
(47) a. I was afraid that she might not come.
(M temeam c s-ar putea s vin.)
b. I was fully aware of it that things were so bad. (Extraposed)
(mi ddeam perfect seama c lucrurile stteau prost.)

7.2.4. That complements as Predicatives

They appear in equative copulative sentences (of the type X is Y or Y is
X) when the subject is an abstract nominal such as: fact, idea, statement,
claim, reason, etc. :
(48) a. The fact is that he cannot join us tomorrow.
(Fapt e c nu poate veni cu noi mine.)
b. The second reason for my departure was that I didnt love Bill any
more.
(Al doilea motiv pentru plecarea mea era acela c nu-l mai iubeam pe
Bill.)

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7.2.5. That Complements as Attributes

after abstract nouns (idea, fact, etc )
after de-verbal nouns (nouns derived from verb): claim, wish, proposal,
etc. :
(49) The fact that she is in debt bothers his wife immensely.
(Faptul c are datorii o deranjeaz enorm pe nevast-sa.)

One has to bear in mind that the examples above contain that complements,
not wh-ones. We included that-relative clauses in the larger class of wh-
complements (although relative that, just like how, are not wh-words
graphically). The examples here contain only that complements and this is
explained by the fact that they are required only by nouns that are either
abstract, or derived from verbs. Compare the example under (50), where that
is replaceable by which (i.e. the book which I gave him), to the one under
(51):
(50) the book that I gave him
(cartea pe care i-am dat-o)
(51) the wish that he should return the money.
(dorina ca el s napoieze banii)

In (51), the that-clause can be seen as the former complement of the verb
wish:
(52) She wished that he should return the money.
(Dorea ca el s napoieze banii.)

A further argument against interpreting the that-clause from (51) as a relative
clause is the fact that the introductory element cannot be replaced by which in
this case:

171
(53)* the wish which we should return the money.

Pratice

Activity 8
Which of the following are that-relative clauses and which are
complement-clauses?
1.His idea that men are smarter than women led him to total ruin.
2. The idea that he had had earned him good money. 3. His order
that all the men in the village should be killed was instantly
disobeyed. 4. The order that he had given was instantly
disobeyed. 5. Their proposal that he should run for Congress was
the best ever. 5. The proposal that they came up with was no
better than hers.

7.2.6. That complements as Adverbials

Adverbial that clauses can be divided into two classes according to what
pattern of subordination they observe:
a) the prepositionl phrase model where prepositional phrases are used to
introduce that-adverbial clauses: for fear that, on the ground that, in order
that, to the end that, in the hope that, in/with the intent that, on purpose that, in
event that, on condition that, with a view that, etc.:
(54) a. They dislike her on the ground that she is too proud.
(O antipatizeaz pe motiv c e prea mndr.)
b. They paid her a large salary in the hope that she would stay with
them.
(I-au dat un salariu mare n sperana c va ramne la ei.)

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In example (54) the Conjunctive phrases introducing it are formed by means
of a prepositional phrase and that. The noun within the prepositional phrase
indicates the meaning, the interpretation of the adverbial clause:
ground => reason, hope =>purpose.
The nouns in these constructions tend to become grammaticalized (i.e. they
lose their meaning, become abstract) and that is why they may lose their
ability to take determiners and adjectives: we say, for example, on condition
that, not *on the condition that exactly because the noun is losing its
autonomous meaning and is becoming more and more part of the conjunctive
phrase.

In older stages of English, prepositions were allowed in front of that-clauses,
but nowadays there are very few examples of this kind left:
(55) Before that man came I saw you. (this example is a sample of archaic
language, similar to the construction existent in Romanian):
(56) Te-am vazut nainte ca el s vin.)
(57) I like him in that he is smart. (this is one of the few examples still used
in contemporary English.)
(mi place de el pentru c e detept.)

A similar situation is exhibited in:
(58) a. now that Charlote had insinuated herself into the flat there was
nowhere to bring Dorina (Iris Murdoch, ibid.)
(acum c Charlote se insinuase n apartament nu mai avea unde s o
aduc pe Dorina)
b. She has everything save that she lacks intelligence.
(Nu-i lipsete nimic, cu excepia faptului c nu e inteligent.)


173
c) adverbial subordination by means of that conjunction phrases where
there are no prepositional phrases available:
Result: so +adverb/adjective that in this structure the degree word (so,
such) is crucial for the grammaticality of the sentence in question:
(59) He is so competent a teacher that every student loves him.
(Este un profesor att de competent nct toi studenii l iubesc.)
(60) *He is a competent teacher that every student loves him.
(61) He is such a nice man that women instantly fall for him.
(Este un om aa de drgu c femeile se ndrgostesc imediat de el.)
(62) *He is a nice man that women instantly fall for him.

That can be deleted, as is shown in the following:
(63) He placed his chair by the window so he would see her pass.
(i-a pus scaunul lng fereastr, s o vad trecnd.)

When the structure contains the word such, the noun following it is deletable:
(64) a. His answer was such an answer that we couldnt doubt its wisdom.
(Astfel suna rspunsul lui nct nu ne puteam ndoi de nelepciunea
sa.)
b. His answer was such that we couldnt doubt its wisdom.
(Astfel suna rspunsul lui nct nu ne puteam ndoi de nelepciunea
sa.)

On some occasion SUCH can optionally move:
(65) a. He gave such an answer that we couldnt doubt it.
(I-a dat un asemenea rspuns c nu ne-am putut ndoi de el.)
b. He gave an answer such, that we wouldnt doubt it.
(I-a dat un asemenea rspuns nct s nu ne putem ndoi de el.)
(66) a. He gave such an answer as had expected.
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174
(I-a dat genul de rspuns pe care l atepta.)
b. He gave an answer such that I had expected.
(I-a dat un rspuns pe care l atepta.)

Pratice

Activity 9
Comment on the distribution and syntactic function of the that
complements in the following sentences:
1.We discovered that our map has disappeared. 2) Was it true
that she was ill? 3) They are not aware that they are in a
dangerous position. 4) The idea that men from Mars were
landing was absurd. 6) John made it clear that he disagreed. 7)
The truth is that we havent met them. 8) I am afraid that I have
to go now. 9) It struck me that the bus was behaving pretty
strangely. 10) She was so careless that she left the door unlocked.
11) The suggestion was that they should leave at once. 12) He
loved her to such an extent that he could give his life for her. 13)
The shock of having been found by Dorina in Mitzis arms first
prostrated him with such a sense of uncleanness and shame that
he could not face his wife. (Iris Murdoch, ibid.) 14) It had also
produced the certainty that they belonged together and that, for
better or worse, they were chained to each other forever. (Iris
Murdoch, ibid.)


175

7.3 That Deletion

7.3.1. When Can We Delete That?

- It is impossible to delete that in unextraposed clauses:
(67) That he will ever come back is a question still.
(nc ne ntrebam dac se va mai ntoarce.)
(68) * he will ever come back is a question still.

- That deletion is more acceptable if the verb/adjective/noun requiring the
complement clause is a frequently used item or if it is frequent in
combination with that-clauses.

(69) a. He showed he was able to do it.
(A dovedit c poate s fac asta.)
b. He got word they were coming.
(A prins de veste c ei vin.)
c. He said he had borrowed her money.
(A spus c a mprumutat bani de la ea.)

The omission of that is an indication that the speaker does not want to be
formal, that he uses a relaxed tone.
If the verb in question is not a very frequently used one (like, for instance,
say, tell), omission of that is impossible:
(70) *He objected it was already too late to leave.
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176

7.3.2. When is That Obligatory?

- That can be deleted if it follows the main verb/adjective/noun directly, but
it is usually required if the complement clause is separated from the main
verb by intervening material:

(71) It had also produced the certainty that they belonged together and that,
for better or worse, they were chained to each other forever. (Iris
Murdoch, ibid.)
(De asemenea, condusese la certitudinea c trebuiau s fie
mpreun i c, bune, rele, erau legai pe veci unul de cellalt.)
(72) *It had also produced the certainty that they belonged together and, for
better or worse, they were chained to each other forever.

In example (71) we interpret the last clause as being coordinated with the
main clause not with the first that clause, because that has been deleted.

- That deletion is blocked if an object clause has been extraposed:
(73) a. I like it that he was here.
(mi place c e aici.)
b. *I like it he was here.

7.3.3. When is That Deletion Obligatory?

That deletion is absolutely obligatory if the subject of the complement clause
is questioned or relativized. You say:
(73) Who did you say was coming?
(Cine spui c a venit?)

177
But you can never say:
(74) *Who did you say that was coming?

This is explainable by the fact that who is the subject of the that clause. The
presence of that can lead to a double subject construction, which is
ungrammatical in English.

Pratice

Activity 10
Delete that where possible:
1)I didnt get the message that they were coming. 2) They
chortled that it was only a joke. 3) That such things still happen
is no wonder. 4) I hate it that you wont be with me. 5) Where
would you guess that he went? (Compare to: *Who did they
imagine that wanted to go?) 6) The fact that they were
unprepared leaked out. 7) They maintain, you want me to
believe, that they were not too late to leave. 8) I reminded them
that they had to leave.

7.4. The Sequence of Tenses in Object That Clauses

The tenses in complement clauses are oriented towards the tenses of the main
clause, thus showing the temporal relation (anteriority, simultaneity,
posteriority) holding between the actions of the main and the subordinate
clause. The changes in the embedded clause are as follows:
Present ----- Past
(75) a) She is there, he said.
(Este acolo, spuse el.)
b)He told me that she was there.
(Mi-a spus c ea este acolo.)
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178

Past
Present Perfect Past Perfect
Past Perfect

(76) a. She was here, he said.
(Era acolo, spuse el.)
b. He told me that she had been there.
(Mi-a spus c a fost acolo.)

Future ------- Future in the Past
(77) a. I will leave her.
(Am s o prsesc.)
b. He said he would leave her.
(A spus c o s o prseasc.)

Future Perfect ------Future Perfect in the Past
(78) a. He will have arrived by the time she leaves.
(Pna s plece, vine el.)
b. He said he would have arrived by the time she left.
(A spus c, pn pleac ea, o s vin el.)

Let us discuss those particular cases when these rules are optional:
1. The Present ----- Past rule can be optional with the so-called
FACTIVE verbs (namely verbs that presuppose the truth of their
complement).

In the example below, the verb realize is said to be a factive verb, exactly
because the complement clause required by this verb is interpreted as true.

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And this important thing is demonstrated by the fact that even if we negate the
main clause, the truth value of the complement clause remains the same.
Consider the following:
(79) I realize that he is a genius.
(mi dau seama c este un geniu.)
(80) I dont realize that he is a genius (that means still that he is a genius,
only I dont realize it).

The implication one can derive from both examples is that he is a genius and
this fact holds true irrespective of the polarity of the main clause. This is what
verifies the factivity of the main verb.

With such factive verbs as realize, forget, mention, regret, discover, show,
notice, be amazed/concerned, say, report, etc. the rule of the sequence of
tenses Present --- Past is optional:
(81) a. Bill reported that coconuts grew high upon trees.
(Bill a anunat c nucile de cocos sunt situate foarte sus n copac.)
b. Bill reported that coconuts grow high upon trees.
(Bill a anunat c nucile de cocos sunt situate foarte sus n copac.)

On the other hand, there is a whole range on verbs that require that the rule
should be observed: know, be aware, think, believe, dream, wish, hope, insist,
whisper,etc.

(82) It seemed/was likely/possible/unfortunate that the new leader of the
group was/*is an undercover agent.
(Prea / era probabil/ posibil/ neplcut c noul conducator al grupului era
agent secret.)

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If we consider this rule outside the domain of that complements, we notice
that general truths, expressed by the Generic Present are normally preserved
in the present even if they can be found right in the middle of a narration:

(83) It was and was not like the first day of the honeymoon when the newly
married pair, in tender deference to each other, feign habits which are not
their own. (Iris Murdoch, The Black Prince)
(Era i nu era ca n prima zi a lunii de miere cnd perechea proaspt
cstorit, cu un respect tandru reciproc, simuleaz obiceiuri care nu le
aparin.)

The Past Tense imposes itself when the action it expresses is relevant to some
point in the past, with which the speaker does not wish to identify himself:
(84) a. She still believed that the earth was flat.
(Ea tot mai credea c pmntul este plat.)
b. She believed that the earth is round.
(Ea tot mai credea c pmntul este rotund.)

In (84a) The Past is used to show that the speaker does not agree with what
the character she considers to be a general truth.

Consider also:
(85) a. She realized that all men are fools.
(i-a dat seama c toti brbaii sunt niste proti.)
b. He knew that she thought all men were fools.
(tia c ea crede c toi brbaii sunt nite proti.)

In (85b) he disagrees with her opinion and that is why Past Tense is used.


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2.) The rule Past ----- Past Perfect is sometimes disregarded in certain
complements which contain a non-durative, simple Past Tense (that) cannot
be seen as simultaneous with the verb in the main clause:
(86) a. She suspected that Bill had left before the police arrived.
(Ea bnuia c Bill plecase nainte s soseasc poliia.)
b. She suspected that Bill left before the police arrived.
(Ea bnuia c Bill a plecat nainte s soseasc poliia.)

Both sentences are grammatical and the presence of the adverbial clause
before the police arrived contributes to the optional character of the rule, since
it indicates that the event of Bills leaving is anterior to the arrival of the
police. Compare the example under (87) to the next one:
(87) She suspected that Bill had been there.
(Bnuia c Bill fusese pe acolo.)

In (88), the durative character of the verb be makes it impossible for the rule
to be broken:
(88) She suspected the Bill was here.
(Bnuia c Bill este acolo.)

In this case the meaning of the sentence is changed. (87) shows the anteriority
of Bills being there whereas (88) shows that the two events suspect and be
there are simultaneous.

3. Future ----- Future in the Past this rule is rarely optional. There are
however cases, such as
(89) a. Peter said that John would leave at 5.
(Peter a spus c John o s plece la 5.)
b. Peter said that John will leave at 5.
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(Peter a spus c John o s plece la 5.)

In (89b) the sequence of tenses is not observed because for us it isnt yet 5
oclock. Imagine, for instance, that you are uttering this sentence in front of
your friend. The time is 3 oclock. Of course in this case you will use the
Simple Future instead of the Future in the Past.

Pratice

Activity 11
Comment on the auxiliary in the complement clause:
a) John heard that Mary is pregnant. b) John heard that Mary
was pregnant. c) John said that Harry is leaving. d) John said
that Harry was leaving. John said that Harry will leave. f)
John said that Harry would leave. g) John thought that Harry
ran. h) John thought that Harry had run.
b) a) John said that Harry was leaving tomorrow. b) John
thought that Montreal played Boston tomorrow. c) *Harry
was leaving tomorrow. d) *Montreal played Boston
tomorrow. e) Harry is leaving tomorrow. f) Montreal plays
Boston tomorrow.
c) a) It was obvious that everyone would leave if coffee was not
provided at the meeting next day. b) It was objected that
people had left the meeting the day before because coffee had
not been provided.
d) a) She thought that Maggie arrived the day before b) She
thought that Maggie had arrived the day before.
e) I knew that poor Chris believed he was of royal blood.
f) a) John said that his car *has run out of gas. / b) John said
that his car is out of gas.
g) Look the dipstick shows oil right up to the full mark. But

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John mumbled that his car was/*is out of oil.
h) John indicated to Mary that she should go to bed early.
a. John told Mary that she should bake a pie. b. *John told Mary
that she had baked a pie. c. John told Mary that she had baked an
excellent pie.

Activity 12
Translate the following, paying attention to any violation of the
Sequence of Tenses rules discussed above. Comment on them:
A) The brightening sky was busy with resident birds and with
traveler birds moving south ahead of the season: various patterns
of duck, geese both grey and white, whistling swan, nighthawk,
bluebird, jaybird, quail, lark, kingfisher, Coopers hawk, red-
tailed hawk. All these birds and others Ruby remarked upon
during their passage to town, finding a thread of narrative or
evidence of character in their minutest customs. Ruby assumed
the twitter of birds to be utterance as laden with meaning as
human talk and claimed to like especially the time in spring
when the birds come back singing songs to report where theyve
been and what theyve done while shed stayed right here.
B) When three crows harried a hawk across the sky, Ruby
expressed her great respect for the normally reviled crow, finding
much worthy of emulation in their outlook on life. She noted
with disapproval that many a bird would die rather than eat any
but food it relishes. Crows will relish what presents itself. She
admired their keenness of wit, lack of pridefulness, love of
practical jokes, slyness in a fight. All of these she saw as making
up the genius of the crow, which was a kind of willed mastery
over what she assumed was a natural inclination toward bile and
melancholy, as evidenced by its drear plumage.

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C) Their talk turned to the war and its effects, and Mrs
McKennet held opinions exactly in accord with every newspaper
editorial Ada had read for four years, which is to say Mrs
McKennet found the fighting glorious and tragic and heroic.
Noble beyond all her powers of expression. She told a long and
maudlin story she had read about a recent battle, its obvious
fictitiousness apparently lost on her. It was fought as they all
were lately against dreadful odds. As the battle neared its
inevitable conclusion, a dashing young officer was grievously
wounded to the chest. He fell back bleeding great gouts of
heartblood. A companion stooped and cradled his head to soothe
his dying. But as the battle raged around them, the young officer,
in the very act of expiring, rose and drew his pistol and added his
contribution to the general gunfire. He died erect, with the
hammer snapping on empty loads. [] During the latter stages
of the tale, Ada developed an itch just to either side of the nose.
She touched the places discreetly with her fingertips, but then she
found that the corners of her mouth would stay down only with
great trembling effort.
D) He talked in the urgent meters of a street preacher, and he had
drawn a crowd with the rage in his voice. He had fought hard
through the war, he claimed. Had killed many a Federal and had
taken a ball to the shoulder at Williamsburg. But he had recently
lost faith in the war and he missed his wife. He had not been
drafted but had volunteered for the fighting, and all he did by
way of crime was unvolunteer and walk home. Now here he
stood jailed. And they might just hang him, war hero though he
was. (Charles Frazier Cold Mountain)

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7.5 Key Concepts

That complements differ from that relatives in that they appear as required by
a verb, adjective or by a de-verbal noun.

The most important syntactic properties these complements exhibit are
extraposition (by means of which the clause is placed at the end of the
sentence and announced by the pronoun it),
topicalization (the reverse of extraposition and a means of emphasis) and
clause shift (a syntactic operation of placing the clause at the end of the
sentence when the main clause contains, adverbial or prepositional
phrases related to the main clause verb).
A very important point to make here is that these syntactic operations are
shared by that-clauses with other complement clauses (such as TO-infinitives
or wh-complements).

That-complements can hold any sort of syntactical function, from the very
frequent subject, object ones up to the attributive function, which they share
with wh-complements.

On certain occasions that can be deleted, on other occasions it has to stay
there, or else.

That object clauses normally observe the rules of the sequence of tenses with
a few (significant) exceptions.

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Pratice

Activity 13*
Translate the following by making use of the information on that-
complements supplied in this section:

1. Cnd m-a vzut a nchis albumul, a srit de pe banc i a
alergat spre mine. Dar cnd a ajuns n faa mea mi-am dat
seama c nu-i pot spune vestea cea mare. Cum i explici
aceasta? M-am sfiit. tiam c orice cuvinte a alege acelea n-
ar fi putut cuprinde tot ce voiam s-i spun i nici fericirea c
venise clipa s-i anunt ce-aveam de anunat.
2. Mama, peste puin, s-a dus acas i eu am rmas singur s
termin desenul. Regretam c m-a lsat singur. Cci
presimeam c mi se va ntmpla ceva neplcut. Cnd au
vzut c mama a plecat, bieii s-au adunat n jurul bncii
mele. i ineau minile n buzunare. Unul din ei, cel mai
mare, cred c avea vreo aptesprezece-otsprezece ani, avea
albea la un ochi i purta un tricou albastru de marinar. Prul
rar i era plin de mtrea.
3. l privi uimit i cu toate c din cauza ntunericului nu-i
vedea chipul distingea totui c tremur i nu tiu dac s
rd c pentru a-i face o asemenea declaraie o deteptase n
puterea nopii, ori sa se team de turbarea lui, care l
mpinsese la un asemenea gest bizar, neconvenabil i
primejdios. Totui sfrli prin a se simi bine la ideea c d
att pre prerilor sale i ncerc dorina tandr de a-l liniti,
de a-i arta c ia prea mult n seam nite ruti fr
consecin. Uit ora i situaia scandaloas.
4. Totui trebuie s tii, spuse domnul Albu la urechea lui
Matei, c nu se vorbete att de mult cu sora Angelei. Fiind

187
de o idioie celebr, s-ar putea interpreta c i-ai cutat lng
ea un refugiu.
5. Se temu c mrturisirea pe care i-o fcuse el pornea din
orgoliu i regret susceptibilitatea lui. Totui era curios c el
se gndise c, nvinuindu-se de lucruri att de neplcute, va fi
mai interesant pentru ea.
6. Abia prinse de veste cnd ea l prsi i nu se ntreb de ce
venise, dac va mai veni. Simplul fapt c ea fusese acolo l
stpnea ca o beie. Se mira, fericit, de ce constata n sine.
Toate simurile i se ascuiser, cptase deodat puterea de a
vedea consistent, luminos i apropiat i cnd, venind de la
avocat, ea, care l pndise, i strecur n mn un bilet n care
citi c, cel puin pentru un timp, trebuie s nu se mai vad
pentru a nu cdea amndoi prad unei iluzii vulgare ce i-ar
putea costa nespus de mult i c, tiind c el nu ar izbuti s se
opreasc de a o cuta, va pleca din ora la vie, pentru o
edere mai ndelungat care le va face bine amndurora, nu
nelese nici de data asta dect c ea i-a scris, c ine n mn
o hrtie care fusese n mna ei i peste care se aplecase
gndindu-se la el.
7. Lui Matei i se pru c mama tie mai multe despre motivele
plecrii Dorei la vie ns i fu cu neputin s o ntrebe ce tie
anume.
8. Ultima dat cnd ne-am vzut aci m-ai speriat pretinznd c
nu ai nici o ambiie pentru viitor. tii c nu-i deloc frumos
pentru un tnr ca tine s nu fie ambiios, s nu aib un ideal?
Cred c nu mi-ai spus adevrul.
9. Nu i-a trecut, aa, niciodat prin minte c trebuie s ajungi
un Pasteur sau un Alexandru cel Mare, un vis de acesta
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188
nebunesc i nflcrat pentru realizarea cruia s-i dedici
toat viaa?
() Matei socoti c e mai nelept s bat n retragere.(Radu
Petrescu Matei Iliescu)
10. Lud apoi ideea cea nou de a face o fabric, spunnd c se
cunoate numaidect isteimea gndirii tinereti i nrurirea
strintii. Lui i btrnului nu le-ar fi dat niciodat prin
minte aa ceva! dar bucuria cea mare Urmatecu a pstrat s
i-o arate n cuvinte calde pentru faptul c Bubi a simit
chemarea i datoria de a lua parte la munca i rspunderea
lor.
11. ncntarea lui Bubi pentru neateptata lui nelegere era att
de mare, nct nu a bgat de seam nici iscodirea, nici
batjocura lui Urmatecu. Dac pn n cele din urm va avea
ntreaga lui nelegere, aceasta nsemna c tatlui su nu-i mai
rmnea dect s aprobe. Astfel de va fi, lucrul era nfptuit,
iar el ieea biruitor! Ceea ce nu simea ns Bubi n aceast
alunecare era c el nu luptase cu Urmatecu aa cum dorise, ci
c se svrise aproape totul prin voina celuilalt. i mai ales
ceea ce n-a aflat (pentru c fusese fcut cu adevrat
cunoatere de oameni i mprejurri) a fost nvluirea n care
se gsea acum bine, tocmai pentru c avea toate colurile unei
potrivnicii roase de viclenia lui Iancu. Acesta, linitit,
urmrea un gnd ce i se mpletea n minte.
12. La ceea ce m gndesc, firete, e c n-avem ce face cu
moioarele astea! Pe ele le vinzi sau nu le vinzi!
13. Erau aci i bucuria c a scpat cu bine, i mndria c a biruit,
dar i teama c, nc o dat, cu tatl su i cu noua chestiune
a ipotecii poate c nu ar avea att noroc. Apoi Bubi era i

189
obosit de ncordare i de emoii. Pe toate, Urmatecu le-a citit
n el i a zmbit. Ceea ce ns I-a rmas nedescoperit a fost
nerbdarea din sufletul tnrului, care ntr-adevr l mna n
tain, mai puternic dect oricnd, spre Jurubia, unde alerga
s mrturiseasc totul. Bubi era ncredinat c ei I se cuvine
ntreaga spovedanie, dup cum, pe drumul acesta al marilor
sinceriti de care avea nevoie, simea c se apropie tot mai
mult de ea.
14. A doua zi de diminea a venit veste de la spital c Dorodan a
murit. Urmatecu a chibzuit cteva clipe cum e mai bine s
fac. i n cele din urm s-a hotrt s trimit pe cineva la
btrnul baron, fr o vorb scris, ci numai aa, s duc
vestea din gur i s o spun oricui, lsnd s se neleag c
o s vin i el pe curnd, s le lmureasc pe toate.
(Ion Marin Sadoveanu Sfrit de veac n Bucureti)

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191

EIGHT
INFINITIVE COMPLEMENTS

Aim of this unit: to provide a classification of infinitive structures by
employing several distinct criteria
Objectives: to provide students with useful information on infinitive
structures that will help them correctly use and identify
these structures.

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C
o
n
t
e
n
t
s
:

8.1.What Are Infinitive Complements
8.2.A Classification of Infinitives
8.3.The Distribution of PRO-TO Constructions
8.4.The Distribution of FOR-TO Constructions
8.5.Syntactic Functions of PRO-TO and For-TO
Constructions
8.6.Verbs of Obligatory Control
8.7.The Distribution of the Nominative +
Infinitive Construction
8.8.The Distribution of the Accusative + Infinitive
Construction
8.9.Key Concepts
Unit eight Infinitive complements

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8.1. What Are Infinitive Complements

Infinitive complements can be integrated into:
1. complement clauses (if we consider them from a structural point of view
see section 4 for further details). From this perspective, infinitive
complements are part of the same class as that-complements:

(1) a. I told her that she should be more careful in the future.
(I-am spus s fie mai atent pe viitor).
b. I told her to be more careful in the future.
(I-am spus s fie mai atent pe viitor)

One can easily notice the similarities existing between the two constructions,
and the relatively synonymous dimension the two structures have. There are
data that can be interpreted as arguments for this view (that infinitive and that
complements share a lot of similar features). Consider the following:
like that complements, infinitive ones can be extraposed:
(2) a. It is important that you should know what you need.
(E important s tii ce i trebuie.)
b. It is important for you to know what you need.
(E important s tii ce i trebuie.)

like that complements, infinitive ones can be topicalized:
(3) a. That you love her is something wonderful.
(E minunat c o iubeti.)
b. To love her is something really wonderful.
(A o iubi pe ea este ceva de-a dreptul minunat).

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194
like that complements, infinitive ones can be subject to the rule of clause
shift:
(4) a. She wished with all her heart that every man in the universe should stay
away from her.
(i dorea din tot sufletul ca toi brbaii de pe lume s stea departe de ea.)
b. She wished with all her heart to be left alone by every man in the
universe.
(i dorea din tot sufletul s fie lsat n pace de toi brbaii de pe pmnt)
c. * She wished that every man in the universe should stay away from her
with all her heart.
d. * She wished to be left alone by every man in the universe with all her
heart.

2. non-finite mood structures (if we look at what kind of mood the verb
inside the construction has)
From this point of view, we distinguish between:
finite moods (such as the Indicative, the Conditional, the Subjunctive) (in
Romanian we call these moods moduri personale)
non-finite moods (such as the Infinitive, the Gerund, the Participle) (i.e.
moduri nepersonale)

By convention, English grammar analyses non-finite structures as clauses,
that can hold a syntactical function within the complex sentence (so, when
one provides the syntactical analysis of a complex sentence, they will
distinguish between infinitival clauses, gerundial clauses, participial clauses,
etc.)

The main characteristic exhibited by non-finite structures, as opposed to the
finite ones, is the fact that they do not have temporal features. For instance,

195
the phrase to go there or going there does not express an event that is
anchored in a certain time. The speaker cannot tell for sure when these events
of going there happened.

The only features these constructions still have are the aspectual features and
that is why one can notice that the Infinitive has four tenses:
present : to leave
perfect: to have left
continuous or progressive : to be leaving
perfect continuous or perfect progressive: to have been leaving

Here are a few examples with these forms:
(5) a. To have succumbed to such base passions was a shame indeed.
(Era ruinos c s-a lsat prad unor pasiuni att de josnice.)
b. They are known to be doing all sorts of vile things.
(Se tie c se ndeletnicesc cu tot felul de lucruri urte.)
c. He knew her to have been knitting a scarf for a year.
(tia c croeteaz un fular de un an de zile)

Due to this lack of temporal features, the infinitive construction is often
subjectless (because normally the subject needs the Nominative case and the
infinitive cannot assign it since there are no temporal and personal features
associated with it. If the verb form has no temporal and personal features,
namely no ending, it cannot be in agreement with the subject and cannot
assign it the Nominative case.)

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196
Pratice

Activity 1
Look at the following sentences and comment upon a) the tense
of the infinitive b) the grammaticality of the sentence:
1.She needed a stick with which she to beat up the old man. 2. It
was an awful thing to be sitting there abandoned. 3. It is nice she
to have a dog as a friend. 4. It was nice for her to have a dog as a
friend. 5. To be looking at her for hours seems his favourite
pastime. 6. She reminded him to pick up the flowers for Susans
birthday. 7. He to be looking at her for hours seems his favourite
pastime. 8. Everybody knew him to have been working as a
plumber for more than twenty years. 9. It is vital for our factory
to be reopened. 10. It is vital this factory to be reopened.

8.2. A Classification of Infinitives

There are three criteria we shall employ in this classification:
1. the criterion of form, according to which there are
long or full infinitive forms:
(6) They told her to leave.
(I-au spus sa plece.)

short or bare infinitive forms:
(7) They saw her leave.
(Au vzut-o plecnd.)

The verbs that normally require the bare infinitive are:
Modal verbs: he can come any time
Make : he made her smile

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Let: he let her go
Help (optionally): he helped her climb the stairs
Have (with the meaning to cause somebody to do something): he had her
clear the table
Perception verbs such as see, hear, watch: they watched him cry

An important thing to remember here is that by passivization, the bare
infinitive becomes a full form:
(8) She was made to go there.
(A fost forat s se duc acolo.)

The only verb that does not follow this rule is let:
(9) The grass was let grow.
(Iarba era / a fost lsat s creasc.)

Pratice

Activity 2
Translate the following sentences:
M-au pus s-l duc pe Tom la coal. / Eram deseori lsat s plec
de acas. / Au vzut-o c pleaca. / I-a ajutat s ridice pachetul
acela greu. / L-a observat cum mnnc un pachet ntreg de
ciocolat. / A fost obligat s l trimit pe Tom pe front. / A pus-o
pe Maria s i fac curat n camer. / A obligat-o pe Maria s i
fac curat n dormitor. / L-au auzit cum a cntat dou cntece
patriotice.

2. according to whether an adverb appears between to and the infinitive, we
can distinguish between:
unsplit infinitive
(10) She likes to look at the painting often.
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198
(i place s se uite adesea la tablou.)

Split infinitive (or the Star Trek infinitive)
(11) She likes to often look at the painting.
(i place s se uite adesea la tablou.)
(12) Captain Picard wanted Starship Enterprise to boldly go and explore
the universe.
(Cpitanul Picard dorea ca nava Starship Enterprise sa ptrunda cu
avnt i s explore universul.)

For a long period English grammarians considered the Split Infinitive to be a
not very elegant construction, uncharacteristic for literary English. However,
this structure is more and more frequent in every-day language and is no
longer considered so inelegant, although it is still seen as typical of relaxed
speech.

Pratice

Activity 3
Translate the following, trying to use the Split Infinitive:
Vrea s fie ntr-adevr recunoscut pe plan mondial. / A plecat n
strintate ca s nvee mai bine metodele moderne de educaie. /
A fi n mod stupid tentat s i vinzi locuina pe un pre de nimic
este exact lucrul de care ne temem cu toii. / Ceea ce s-a
ntmplat i-a forat s devin pe dat contieni de problemele
existente. / Nu vreau s te mai vd niciodat./ Pentru a nelege
pe deplin ce scrie n carte, trebuie s te concentrezi un pic mai
mult.

3. the third criterion of classification refers to the way in which the logical
subject of the infinitive is treated (I underlined the phrase logical subject,

199
because, as I have already mentioned, we cannot speak about a syntactical
subject inside the infinitive, since its lack of temporal features precludes
the assignment of the Nominative case see previous subsection.)

From this point of view we can distinguish between:
Infinitives where the logical subject is not lexically overt:
(13) Harry tried __ to leave.

We place a gap between the main clause verb and the infinitive to show that
the agent of the action expressed by the infinitive is not expressed. By
convention we can name the missing logical subject PRO, that is something
that stands for an item missing:
(14) Harry tried PRO to leave.

Further on, we can co-index the subject Harry with the PRO form, so as to
show that it is in fact Harry that performs the action expressed by the
infinitive:
(15) Harry
i
tried PRO
i
to leave.

In other words, to use the appropriate technical term, we say that the subject
Harry controls the logical covert subject for which we have used the notation
PRO: Harry is the controller of PRO.

Since we have used the notation PRO for the logical unexpressed subject of
the infinitive, we call this class of infinitival clauses the PRO-TO
constructions, or the control constructions.

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Infinitives where the logical subject is lexically expressed in the form of a
prepositional phrase introduced by the preposition FOR. That is why this
class of infinitival constructions is called the FOR TO infinitives:
(16) It is important for him to come back home.
(E important ca el s se ntoarc acas.)

In this situation, the logical subject, namely the agent of the event, gets its
case from the preposition for and can appear in the clause.

So far, we have mentioned the control construction and the for-TO
construction. What is it that they have in common?
a) the fact that they are not required by a certain class of verbs in the
main clause
b) both of them can hold practically the same syntactical function, as is
demonstrated below:

Subject:
(17) a. PRO to err is human, PRO to forgive divine.
(E omenete s greeti, i cretinete s ieri.)
b. It is important for him not to err.
(E important ca el s nu greeasc.)

Object:
(18) a. He tried PRO to persuade her of his innocence.
(A ncercat s o conving c este nevinovat.)
b. I hoped for him to be there in time.
(Am sperat ca el s vina la timp.)

201

Adjunct:
(19) a. He bought a new house PRO to please his nagging wife.
(A cumprat o cas nou ca s o mulumeasc pe ciclitoarea lui nevast.)
b. He stepped aside for her to enter.
(S-a dat la o parte ca s i fac loc s intre.)

The Accusative + Infinitive construction , where the logical subject of the
infinitive is in the Accusative and required by the main clause verb
wherefrom it gets its case:
(20) I believe him to be a good linguist.
(Cred c este un lingvist competent.)

The interesting thing with this class of infinitives and in fact the reason why
they are so called is that the direct object of the main clause verb is in reality
the logical subject of the infinitive. In other words, the pronoun him gets the
Accusative from the verb believe but it is the agent of the verb phrase to be a
good linguist.

We must distinguish between such examples as that under (20) and the
following one:
(21) I persuaded him to be a better linguist.
(L-am convins s fie un lingvist mai bun.)

What is the difference between two examples that look so similar? The
distinction lies in the fact that in (21), him is not the agent of the infinitive,
but the patient of the verb persuade. Semantically, him is related to the main
clause verb, not to the infinitive. The second example is not an accusative +
infinitive structure, but a PRO-TO one:
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202

(22) I persuaded him
i
PRO
i
to be a better linguist.

Also consider the following examples:
(23) I want animals to be tortured.
(Vreau ca animalele s fie chinuite)
(24) I hate animals to be tortured.
(Nu suport ca animalele s fie chinuite.)

A good test by means of which you can decide which of these examples is an
accusative + infinitive construction and which is a PRO-TO one is that of
inference: for instance, from example (20) you cannot infer the sentence I
believe him, whereas example (22) implies I persuaded him. This fact
indicates that in the first case him was rightfully part of the infinitival
construction, but in the second case it belonged with the main clause verb
persuade. Likewise, from (23) you hopefully cannot infer I want animals, nor
can you infer from (24) that you hate animals. This means that both (23) and
(24) are accusative + infinitive structures, since the direct object animals does
not semantically belong with the main clause verbs, but with the infinitive in
the subordinate.

Pratice

Activity 4
Distinguish between the following infinitive structures. Which
are accusative + infinitive ones and which are control
constructions?
I would like people to visit me every day. \ She wanted him to
leave. \ She promised him to leave. \ They tempted him to leave.
\ I would love them to come. \ I allowed them to come. \ He
persuaded her to come. \ They convinced her to come back. \

203
They would have hated her to come back. \ They really asked her
to come back. \ They did not wish her to come back.

Last but not least, there is the Nominative + Infinitive construction, so
called because the syntactical subject in the main clause is in fact the
logical subject of the infinitive. Since this item cannot get case from the
infinitive it goes back to get the Nominative from the main clause verb:
(25) He appears to be a good linguist.
(Pare s fie un lingvist bun.)
(26) He seems to be a good linguist.
(Pare s fie un lingvist bun.)

In examples (25) and (26), the subject is not the agent of the main clause verb,
hence you cannot infer something like: he appears or he seems. But it is clear
that he is a good linguist. This means that the subject he is in fact related to
the infinitive verb not to the indicative one. Compare these examples to:
(27) I managed to get a good job.
(Am reuit s obin o slujb bun.)

where the subject I is the agent of the main clause verb, and wherefrom you
can infer a sentence like I managed something. So, this example contains a
PRO TO infinitive:
(28) I
i
managed PRO
i
to get a good job.

What is it that these last two classes of infinitive structures have in
common?
a) First, it is the fact that both of them borrow items from the main clause to
round up their meaning.
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204
b) Second, both of these constructions appear only with certain main clause
verbs, with special semantic and syntactic properties. In that they differ from
the first two classes discussed above, which are said to be free, that is not
required by certain verbs. The last two structures are said to be lexically
governed because they are required by special verbs (such as want, seem,
hate, appear, etc.).

To sum up the discussion, here is a diagram that will help you to remember
these classes more easily:
INFINITIVE COMPLEMENTS
Free Lexically governed
Control
constructions
They came PRO
to meet her.
FOR-TO
constructions
It is good for
him to meet her.
Accusative +
infinitive
They wanted him
to meet her.
Nominative +
infinitive
He is known to
admire her.

Pratice

Activity 5
Translate the following sentences, bearing in mind that there are
different classes of infinitival structures:
Se pare c a jefuit toate bncile din vecintate. / Se tie c a
ncercat s se sinucid. / Se crede c a sedus-o pe fata
milionarului care sta lng noi. / Asasinul necunoscut se pare c
a mai comis o crim la etajul 6. / Era important ca el s asculte
toat mrturia ei. / E de dorit s vin i s recunoasc faptul c
sunt vinovai. / Nu-i prea trziu s nvee. /I-am nvat s
vorbeasc corect i s scrie fr greeli./ Se presupune c o
cunoate de un car de ani. / N-am tiut niciodat s m port cum
trebuie n faa ei. / Vreau s-i spun ce cred despre tine. / Vreau

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s pleci din casa mea. / E greu s l supori./ S-a ntmplat s fie
prin apropiere, aa c am invitat-o s bea o cafea.

8.3 The Distribution of PRO - TO Constructions

In this subsection we discuss which are the most likely contexts in which
these structures appear:
a) verbs that imply the idea of responsibility and control: attempt, fail, try,
manage, agree to, aspire to, seek (= try), endeavour, contrive, refuse,
decline, condescend, deign, presume, venture, arrange, omit, scheme, care
to, etc.
(28) He
i
sought PRO
i
to find out the truth about Freddie Mercurys death.
(A cutat sa afle adevrul despre condiiile n care a murit Freddie
Mercury.)

b) verbs such as abide, bear, afford, deserve, need, scorn, etc.:
(29) I
i
cannot abide PRO
i
to see such cruelty.
(Nu pot suporta s vd asemenea cruzime.)

c) verbs of liking and disliking: choose, desire, expect, like, dislike, intend,
mean, hate, prefer, propose, want, wish, hope, etc.:
(30) She
i
wanted PRO
i
to become a famous opera singer.
(Dorea s ajung o cntrea de oper renumit.)

Some of these verbs accept an accusative + infinitive variant as well.
Compare:
(31) a. She
i
expected PRO
i
to receive an expensive gift from her boy-
friend.
(Se atepta s primeasc un cadou scump din partea prietenului ei.)
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206
b. She expected her boyfriend to give her an expensive present.
(Se atepta ca prietenul ei s-i fac un cadou costisitor.)

Some of these verbs also allow a FOR-TO construction or a that clause:
(32) a. I would like for him to become president of the country.
(Mi-ar plcea s ajung preedintele rii.)
b. I hate that you should say a thing like this.
(mi pare ru s aud aa ceva.)

d) verbs of mental state and linguistic communication: remember, forget,
ask, conclude, claim, threaten, suggest,etc.
Most of these verbs allow alternative that constructions:
(33) a. I remembered that I had to go to the post office.
(Mi-am amintit c trebuie s m duc la pot.)
b. I
i
remembered PRO
i
to go to the post office.
(Mi-am amintit s m duc la pot.)

8.4 The Distribution of FOR TO Constructions

These structures normally appear in combination with intransitive verbs or
adjectives: arrange, endeavour, verbs of liking and disliking, bear, stand, be
important, possible, desirable, etc. The complement clause is usually
extraposed:
(34) a. For all of them to have been killed is, however, unlikely.
(Ca ei toi s fie omori este puin probabil.)
b. It is however unlikely for all of them to have been killed.
(Este puin probabil ca ei toi s fie omori.)


207
The logical subject of the FOR-TO construction can be also represented by
the expletive there subject as well:
(35) It is impossible for there to be a war between your country and mine.
(E imposibil s existe un rzboi ntre ara mea i a ta.)

8.5 Syntactic Functions of PRO-TO and FOR-TO
Constructions

1. Subject Clauses
In this category we can mention the less frequent cases, where PRO is co-
indexed with a nominal in the main clause:
(36) It was nice of you
i
PRO
i
to allow me to come here.
(A fost amabil din partea ta s-mi dai voie s vin aici.)

The more frequent situation is when PRO is interpreted generically:
(37) PRO to love ones parents so deeply is a natural thing.
( Este un lucru natural s-i iubeti prinii att de mult.)

The generic interpretation of PRO is also supported by the presence of the
generic pronoun one within the infinitive.
The most frequently met subject FOR-TO infinitives are those extraposed:
(38) It was important for them to be there.
(Era important ca ei s fie acolo.)

2. Predicative Clauses
(39) a. The tendency was for the instructions to be more detailed.
(Exista tendina ca instruciunile s fie mai detailate.)
b. Our
i
task is PRO
i
to investigate the details of this case.
(Sarcina noastr este s investigm detaliile legate de acest caz.)
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208

3. Direct Objects
(39) a. I meant for him to be alone with her tonight.
(Am vrut ca el s rmn singur cu ea n seara asta.)
b. I
i
would love PRO
i
to listen to this concert.
(Mi-ar plcea foarte mult s ascult acest concert.)

4. Prepositional Objects
They appear after verbs or adjectives which normally select Prepositional
complements. Like in the case of that complements, the preposition is deleted,
but the meaning remains; this is why we call these objects prepositional
objects:
(40) a. I decided for John to represent us.
(Am hotrt s ne reprezinte John.)
b. I
i
am curious PRO
i
to see whether they will come on time.
(Sunt curios s vd dac vor sosi la timp.)

5. Attribute
This situation happens with:
a) relative infinitive constructions
(40) They bought her a book with which PRO
i
to step on the path of
knowledge.
(I-au cumprat o carte cu ajutorul creia s peasc pe drumul
cunoaterii.)

b) complement constructions (after abstract nouns derived from verbs or
adjectives)
(41) My
i
attempt PRO
i
to escape her was a failure.
(ncercarea mea de a scpa de ea s-a soldat cu un eec.)

209
The distinction between relative infinitives and complement infinitives is
similar with the one we made between relative clauses and complement
clauses in a previous section.

6. Adverbial
Here we can notice several different cases:
a) when the infinitive functions as a restrictive modifier
- the infinitive is viewed as an adverbial, not as an object because adjectives
(or nouns) such as pretty, delicious, bastard do not normally require a
prepositional object after them like in the case of adjectives like aware of,
curious about, etc.:

(42) a. She is pretty to look at.
(Este o fat care i bucur ochii.)
b. The stew is delicious to eat.
(Tocana e foarte bun la gust.)
c. He is a bastard to work for.
(Este un ef care te pune la munc din zori pna n sear.)
d. Youre an idiot to go there.
(Eti un prost dac te duci acolo.)
e. This paint is like concrete to work with.
(Vopseaua asta este tare ca betonul.)

b) adverbial of purpose (the most common function met with adverbial
infinitives)
(43) I
i
slapped him PRO
i
in order to calm him down.
(I-am tras o palm ca s l calmez.)

c) adverbial of result
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210

(44) The plate was too hot to touch.
(Farfuria era prea fierbinte ca s poat fi atins.)
(45) Will you be so kind as to give me the plate?
(Eti asa drgu s mi dai farfuria?)

d) exclamatory, final or introductory infinitive
In this case, the infinitive is an independent clause:

(46) To be perfectly frank, youre a bad driver. (introductory)
(S-i spun drept, conduci prost.)
(47) Ive never met him, to tell you the truth. (final)
(Nu-l cunosc, drept s spun.)
(48) Oh, to be young again! (exclamative)
(Ehei, s fii iari tnr!)

Pratice

Activity 6
Translate the following sentences, trying to use the PRO-TO or
FOR-TO infinitives with the syntactical functions discussed
above:
Oh, cnd te gndeti c pe vremuri tia s cnte aa de frumos la
vioar! / Iarba era prea ud ca s stai pe ea./ Este indicat ca
persoanele fr paaport s se prezinte la poliie. / E destul de
bogat s-i permit o blan i o main nou. / Ehei, s mai fii
tnr i s te poi bucura din plin de via/ i-a cumprat bilet
din timp, s nu piard trenul. / E ntr-att de lipsit de inim nct
e capabil s nu i mai dea banii pentru apartament. / Nu-i chiar
att de btrn nct s nu o ia de la capt. / Pe leau, nu mai am
nevoie de tine i nici de serviciile tale. / Ca s nu mai lungim

211
vorba, nu mai vreau s te vad. / S-a ntors din cltorie doar ca s
dea de nevast-sa ntr-o poziie compromitoare. / Am o vorb
s i spun. / E o persoan cu care poi comunica uor. / Nu-i greu
s locuieti cu el. / Tu eti de vin c a explodat fabrica.

8.6 Verbs of Obligatory Control

By verbs of obligatory control we mean those classes of verbs that demand
that only a certain nominal inside the main clause should be co-indexed with
PRO, that is with the covert logical subject of the infinitive. According to this,
we can distinguish between:
a) verbs of subject control (where the subject in the main clause must control
PRO) the most frequent case in fact: attempt, promise, swear,etc.
(49) a. He
i
attempted PRO
i
to murder his wife.
(A incercat sa isi ucida sotia.)
b. He
i
promised her PRO
i
to give her a new ring.
(I-a promis sa ii dea cadou un inel.)
The fact that only the subject he is allowed to control (hence be co-indexed
with) PRO is reinforced by the impossibility of interpreting PRO as controlled
by the indirect object her:
(50) * He promised her
i
PRO
i
to watch a new show.
b) verbs of direct object control (where the direct object of the main clause
verb must control PRO) here mostly verbs of causation are included:
authorize, direct, enable, encourage, induce, influence, oblige, need,
inspire, press, urge, inform, etc.:
(51) a. He forced the prisoner
i
PRO
i
to kneel down in front of him.
(L-a obligat pe prizonier sa ingenuncheze in fata lui.)
b. His curses inspired the boy
i
PRO
i
to utter foul words himself.
(Injuraturile lui i-au dat ideea baiatului sa vorbeasca si el urit.)
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212
In this category of verbs one can also mention a small class including:
appoint, elect, choose, nominate, name, vote, etc.:
(52) She elected her husband
i
PRO
i
to run the hospital.
(L-a ales pe sotul ei in conducerea spitalului.)

c) verbs of prepositional object control (where the prepositional object inside
the main clause must control PRO): rely on, count on, prevail on, depend
on, look to, etc.
(53) You may rely on me
i
PRO
i
to help you.
(Te poti baza pe ajutorul meu.)

d) verbs of indirect object control (where the indirect object in the main
clause must control PRO): tell, order, command, allow, permit,etc.:
(53) He told the maid
i
PRO
i
to announce her.
(I-a spus servitoarei sa o anunte.)
(54) I leave it to you
i
PRO
i
to take care of it.
(Las lucrurile in grija ta.)

Pratice

Activity 7
Identify the predicates requesting infinitival constructions; which
of them are expressed by verbs of obligatory control?
I presume you do not want to figure in my life merely as a pest. /
I do not intend to tell him that myself. / I have no wish to uproot
ourselves at our age and no inclination to return to a part of the
world which has for us only the unhappiest of associations. /
and when you have done so there is little doubt but that they will
advise you to your own country at once./ I hope to call on you
and your husband a day or two after the funeral./ And now he

213
refuses to see me and has written me a disgusting missive.

8.7 The Distribution of the Nominative + Infinitive
Construction

As previously mentioned, this construction is lexically governed, i.e. it
normally appears after certain verbs with special semantic properties:

a) A- verbs: appear, seem, happen, etc.:
(55) She appears to like him.
(Se pare c i place de el.)

b) inchoative verbs (or change of state verbs): get, grow, come,etc.
(56) She grew to like him in the end.
(n cele din urm ajunse s-l simpatizeze.)

c) constructions including the verb be: be to, be about to, be going to, etc.
(57) He is to come any day now.
(Trebuie s soseasc zilele astea.)

With be going to there are two interpretations:
The Nominative + Infinitive one:
(58) I am going to be late / faint.
(O s ntrzii/ lein.)

Control construction
(59) I
i
am going PRO
i
to meet her at 5.
(M ntlnesc cu ea la 5).
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214

The meaning of (58), that of intention, is well supported by the syntactical
analysis, that presupposes the fact that PRO is controlled by the subject of the
main clause. In (57), the subject cannot control the action in any way (since
we cannot speak about the intention of the subject to be late or faint), hence
there is no control situation whatsoever.
d) modal expressions such as have to or ought to:
(60) He
i
has PRO
i
to tell her the truth.
(Trebuie s-i spun adevrul.)

e) verbs of mental perception in the passive: be said, be thought, be
rumoured, be claimed, be considered, be alleged, be reported, etc.:
(61) He was rumoured to have murdered his wife.
(Se zvonea c i omorse soia.)

8.8 The Distribution of the Accusative + Infinitive
Construction

This construction normally appears in combination with:
a) verbs of physical perception

basic ones that require bare infinitival structures: see, hear, feel, watch,
overhear, etc.:
(62) They heard him insult her.
(L-au auzit insultnd-o.)

neological verbs that require full infinitival structures: notice, observe,
perceive,etc.:
(63) I perceived him to be known in his neighbourhood.

215
(Am observat c era cunoscut n cartier.)

An interesting property of physical perception verbs is that they can make up
both the Nominative + Infinitive structure and the Accusative + Infinitive one.
However, there is a clear difference in meaning between the two possibilities.
Compare:
(64) They heard Freddie Mercury sing last night. (Accusative +Infinitive)
(this is probably because he sings as a rule)
(65) Freddie Mercury was heard to sing last night. (Nominative +
Infinitive)
(this was an exceptional occurrence, since he does not normally sing
in public)

b) causative verbs:
with a bare infinitive: make, have, let

(66) Ill have you learn this in no time.
(Te fac sa inveti asta cit ai zice peste.)

with a full infinitive: get, cause, occasion, necessitate

(67) I couldnt get them to pay me my money.
(N-am reuit s-i fac s-mi dea banii.)

c) verbs of mental perception : assume, believe, consider, understand, figure,
picture, find, imagine, remember, recollect, judge, deem, presume, know,
discover, prove, etc.:
(68) I believe him to be a genius.
(Cred c este un geniu.)
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216

d) verbs of permission and command: allow, permit, suffer, order, command,
etc.:
(69) I allowed the trees in the yard to be cut down.
(Am permis s fie tiai pomii din curte.)

These verbs have the special characteristic that can be combined with PRO-
TO constructions as well:
(70) I allowed the gardener
i
PRO
i
to cut down the trees.
(I-am permis grdinarului s taie pomii.)

e) verbs of liking and disliking: like, love, prefer, want, wish, desire, expect,
mean, choose,etc.:
(71) I would like him to be there at 5.
(A vrea s fie acolo la ora 5.)

Like in the case of the previous class of verbs, these ones allow PRO-TO
constructions as well:
(72) I
i
would like PRO
i
to go there.
(A vrea s m duc acolo.)

Pratice

Activity 8
Identify the infinitive structures in the following texts; state their
type and function:
a) Harold persuaded Alec to let him drive them home. The
drinks hadnt cheered him up; they had depressed and
fuddled him. Harold, who wasnt used to men with moods,
thought that the best and kindest policy was to ignore Alecs.
if he himself was out of spirits, he hated anyone to comment

217
on it. It was a measure of self-protection dating from his
schooldays, when a long face was a sign of weakness and the
whole pack would turn on him if they saw him looking sad.
A cheerful countenance was the first line of defence. Most of
Harolds men friends felt the same, and if they had seen one
of their number looking quite suicidal, would never have
dreamt of asking him the reason.
b) During the visit Harolds own outlook had undergone a good
many changes. It was natural to him to feel critical of another
environment than his own. He suspected hostility at once; the
herd instinct was very strong in him. In so far as he was a
snob his snobbery only operated within his own social group;
he didnt envy those above it, though he tended to look down
on those below it. Both seemed to him a little unreal, and as
if they didnt know what life was about. And this was
especially the case with Alec and his wifes outfit, for Alec
belonged to no group or social stratum, he appeared to have
the freedom of several but to be indigenous to none.
(L.P.Hartley A Perfect Woman)
c) I obliged him to recopy twice the episode of his first
inspection of me aboard the Zahir. A little crossly, Marjanah
told me to spend the night with him as well, so that we might
get to the future and have done. She was even inclined to
remain in the bedroom with us, to make sure we attended
strictly to business, but her husband cautioned against
becoming of a jealous and suspicious later. (John Barth The
Last Voyage of Somebody the Sailor)

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218
8.9 Key Concepts

The analysis of infinitival structures is built upon a few criteria of
classification: from this point of view, we can speak about bare and full
infinitives, about split and unsplit ones and about infinitives with no
expressed logical subject or with an expressed logical subject.

The last criterion, having to do with the presence of a logical subject inside
the infinitive, is connected to the fact that infinitive constructions can have no
syntactical subject within them. This happens because the infinitive mood
exhibits no temporal features and is limited to aspectual features only.

From this perspective, we can speak about free constructions (required by no
special semantic class of verbs): the PRO-TO and the FOR-TO constructions.
We can equally speak about lexically governed infinitive constructions (which
appear after special verbs with semantic particularities): the Nominative +
Infinitive and the Accusative + Infinitive constructions. Their characteristic
lies in the fact that both of them resort to main clause verbs to assign case to
their logical subjects. The logical test of inference offers the modality of
checking whether a structure belongs to this class or not.

219

Pratice

Activity 9*
Translate the following texts, making use of the information on
infinitival clauses supplied in this section:

a) Bietei mame i se rupea inima cnd se gndea c peste o lun
are s-i rmie casa pustie; dar cnd avem nevoie s
mngiem pe alii, pare c uitm propria noastr durere.
b) E greu de calculat efectele unui principiu.
c) Cltoriile cu liftul, spre deosebire de acelea cu trenul ori cu
avionul, sunt mult prea scurte ca s te nfioare cu gndul unei
predestinri.
d) De ce-o fi el att de trist? Cu ce ar putea fi ajutat, s nu mai
arate att de sumbru? Exist cineva care s nu se simt
singur? Orice om are momente cnd i vine s se spnzure,
firete, dar trebuie s ai o fire cu totul aparte ca s i se
ntmple asta tocmai cnd cnt corul acesta.
e) Cnd doi oameni, un brbat i o femeie, stau zile ntregi ntre
zidurile ngheate i tot ce le rmne de fcut e s ciocne rar
i prudent n peretele ce-i desparte, ce reuesc ei s-i spun
astfel precum i circumstanele n care comunic nu seamn,
de bun seam, cu una din discuiile acelea foarte agreabile
ce au loc n cazul unei atingeri de fire, bunoar, sau cu
ocazia unui numr format greit. E posibil, ntr-o zi, ca omul
din spatele zidului s fie schingiuit, dar s nu-i spun. i tu
s fii, de asemenea, lovit i umilit. (Tudor Octavian Zid
ntre un brbat i o femeie)
f) E important timpul care trece, e important ce ntrebri pui,
dac vrei ca povestea s aib un sens, s-l capete, mai bine-
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220
zis, dac vrei ca toate aceste obscure i candide neadevruri,
pe care le cladeti cu team i nfiorare, cu sila i ruinea de a
fi nevoit s-o faci, - s se ntoarc la tine cu fiecare sunet, mai
pline de neles, mai verosimile dect nsi evidena. S spui
de pild, c eti tnr. i s ncepi s crezi c eti tnr.
(Tudor Octavian Zid ntre un brbat i o femeie)
g) Nu tia ce s mai fac s-o opreasc din plns.
h) Vreau s mergem! Rspunde apsat d-na Moroi. Vreau
fiindc vreau trebuie s nelegi odat c nu pot tri ca o
pustnic. Ne-au invitat oamenii i e superiorul dumitale. Ai
dori s te privesc ca p-o icoan, s traiesc numai cu tusea, cu
junghiurile i palpitaiile dumitale? (B.t.Delavrancea,
Nuvele)
i) Ideea d-a nu nu mica ne obosea i capul ncepea s ne
tremure. Locul unde fundul estii se njuga cu ira spinrii ne
durea. De era var, ndueala ncepea s ne curg pe obraji i
pe dup urechi, n jos, d-a lungul gtului. Cu neputin ca cei
mai slabi s nu mite o mna, un picior; sau, gdilai de
iroaiele de ndueal, s nu vrea s se tearg.
(B.t.Delavrancea Nuvele)
j) Paul Achim nu era copt, nc, s-i aduc aminte nu numai de
doctorul Stroescu, aa cum i apruse el, n ploaie, ci i de
conversaia lor din acea noapte, pe care deja o uitase.
Desi discuia merita s fie inut minte. ns Paul Achim
trise, n parte, mai bine de dou decenii, ca s nu i-o
aminteasc, nici mcar n acele puncte unde, n parte, avusese
dreptate. Dar era mult mai comod s-i uite dreptatea, care
exista prin opoziie fa de lucruri pe care fiecare om aproape
le trece n tcere, n conversaiile sale cu el nsui.

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Nu putuse s-l lase n strad pe doctorul Stroescu, dei, de
fapt, ar fi vrut s fie lasat n pace, n acea clip de aleas
fericire cnd era la nceputul unei iubiri, fie ea i grbit.
(Al.Ivasiuc lluminri)
k) Cu zestrea asta, caut un so cruia s m drui i cruia s-i
fiu supus; deopotriv cu jurmntul de a-mi schimba felul
de via, i-a aduce acestui brbat o grij cum nu s-a mai
vzut, de a-i fi pe plac i de a-l sluji. M laud singur, pentru
c nu ncape ruine n privina aceasta cnd te silete nevoia.
ntr-un cuvnt, vreau s spun c eu caut un so care s m
apere, s-mi porunceasc i s m respecte, i nu un amant,
care s m serveasc i s m njure. Dac domnia-ta accepi
ceea ce-i pot drui, sunt aici cu tot ce am, gata s m supun
oricrei porunci, fr s m pun n vnzare (pentru c asta
nseamn s te dai pe mna mijlocitoarelor), cci nimeni nu
se pricepe s mijloceasc mai bine dect prile nsele.
(Proz picaresc)
l) Dar nu mai are timp s ajung la ua din spate-a tramvaiului,
i prin fa, orice-ar fi, ea nu se urc: nu-i att de btrn s
se urce pe-acolo pe un se coboar, prin fa e coborrea,
orice bucuretean tie.
m) Cea mai machiavelic nscocire a lor a fost s fac din
fiecare un posibil suspect: s ne suspectm unii pe alii iat
pe ce se bazeaz n fapt puterea lor!
n) Au intrat ntr-un gang, o mizerie, un miros ngrozitor, au
btut la tot felul de ui... ca s afle c tmplarul lui Muti se
prpdise cu o sptmn nainte!... ei, biata Muti, dintr-o
dat a fost att de ocat!
o) Nici un motiv special ca s-i evite privirea, nici ca s
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vorbeasc att de repede, parc la ntmplare, ca i cnd s-ar
teme de ntrebrile pe care, n realitate, niciodat ea nu i le
pune. (Gabriela Adameteanu Diminea pierdut)

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NINE
ING COMPLEMENTS

Aim of this unit: to establish a distinction between three forms of ing
structures: gerunds, participles, verbal nouns.
Objectives: to provide students with useful information on ing
structures that will help them correctly use and identify
these types of constructions

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C
o
n
t
e
n
t
s
:

9.1.The Participle
9.1.1.Participial Constructions
9.1.2.Characteristics of Participial Constructions
9.2.The Gerund
9.2.1.A Classification of Gerundial Forms
9.2.2.Characteristics of Gerunds
9.2.3.Differences between Participles and Gerunds
9.3.The Verbal Noun
9.4. ING Forms and Infinitives
9.5 Key Concepts
Unit nine Ing complements

225

The last section of this course concerns itself with the remaining non-finite
forms: Participial and Gerundial structures. The characteristic these forms
share with the infinitival ones is the fact that they have no temporal features.
Like in the case of infinitival constructions they exhibit aspectual features and
cannot assign case to their logical subject.

One of the problems always present when discussing the Participle and the
Gerund is the fact that both of these moods have the same ending: -ing. This
makes it sometimes difficult for us to differentiate between them. Due to this
situation, we shall have to point out the specific features of each construction.
Let us start with the Participle:

9.1. The Participle

The first distinction to be made here is that between present participle and
past participle. These are the tenses of this mood and they differ in point of
ending: the present participle ends in ing and makes the object of our
discussion. The past participle ends in en (or -ed) and will be marginally
tackled in this section. Let us now see the main contexts where we can
identify participial forms:

9.1.1. Participial Constructions

The main context in which the present participle appears is when it is part of a
continuous tense form:
(1) Susan is sleeping.
(Susan doarme.)

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In (1) the ing form that appears within the Present Continuous VP (verb
phrase) is a present participle.
This fact is also true of past participle forms and perfect or passive verb
phrases:
(2) a. Susan has come.
(A venit Susan)
b. Susan has been killed.
In (2) the forms come, been and killed are past participle forms.

A context where the present participle frequently appears is when it is
combined with a noun phrase and has a modifying function, i.e. it functions
attributively. Here we have two situations:
a) when it appears before the noun in question:
(3) The running man is my boss.
(Omul care alearg este eful meu.)

b) when it appears after the noun in question:
(4) The man running on the track is my boss.
(Omul care alearg pe pist este eful meu.)

As you can see in this second case, the participle may be accompanied by
additional complements (on the track).
This situation is also characteristic for past participles, especially when they
are placed in front of the nominal and appear in compounds:
(5) His clean-shaved face was shining in the moonlight.
(Faa lui bine brbierit strlucea n lumina lunii.)

More infrequently, the past participle can appear after a noun, too:
(6) Her eye-lids, blood-shot and painted, were closing.

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(I se nchideau pleoapele injectate i date cu fard.)

The participle can also frequently appear as an adverbial and here we can
notice two situations:
a) when it has no expressed logical subject

(7) a. Arriving here, they started singing. (adverbial of time)
(Sosind aici, ncepur s cnte.)
b. Knowing who the guy was, she ran away. (adverbial of reason)
(tiind cine era el, ea o lu la fug.)
c. When singing, people should pay attention to high notes. (adverbial of
time + time conjunction)
(Atunci cnd cnt, oamenii trebuie s fie ateni la notele nalte.)
d. If provoked, a lion can attack. (adverbial of condition + conditional
conjunction)
(Dac este provocat, leul poate s atace.)

b) when it has an expressed logical subject : the Absolute Participle

(8) a. God willing, I will arrive there on time. (adverbial of condition)
(Cu voia lui Dumnezeu, o s ajung la timp.)
b. Weather permitting, I will arrive there on time. (adverbial of
condition)
(Dac vremea mi permite, o s ajung la timp.)
c. Oh, he will eventually marry her, mother permitting. (adverbial of
condition)
(Se va cstori pn la urm cu ea dac maic-sa i d voie.)

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228
The logical subjects in (8) are God and weather, respectively. This
construction is called the Absolute Participle after the model of Latin where
there is the Absolute Ablative an elliptical construction made up of nouns
and non-finite forms in the Ablative, which stands for an adverbial clause.

The participle may also appear in the so-called independent participial
constructions:
i. Nominative + Present / Past Participle

(9) a. He was found stealing.
(L-au descoperit c fur.)
b. He was found killed by a bullet.
(L-au gsit ucis de un glonte.)

ii. Accusative + Present / Past Participle

(10) a. I found him stealing.
(L-am descoperit furnd.)
b. They found him killed by a bullet.
(L-au gsit ucis de un glonte.)

Let us make up a list of verbs and adjectives that require the presence of the
independent participial constructions:
a) Verbs requiring Nominative and Accusative + Present Participle
Verbs of physical perception: see, hear, smell, watch, behold, notice,
perceive

(11) I felt her trembling.
(Am simit-o tremurnd.)

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(12) He was noticed crying.
(A fost vzut plngnd.)

Causative verbs: get, have, set, start, keep, send, leave, etc.
(13) a. Ill have you all speaking fluent English soon.
(O s v fac s vorbii toi curnd o englez bun.)
b. Hell soon get things going.
(O s pun repede lucrurile n micare.)
c. He was sent rolling by the heavy blow.
(Lovitura l-a trimis nvrtindu-se.)

mental perception verbs: remember, recollect, find, etc.:
(14) Imagine him saying a thing like that.
(nchipuiete-i-l spunnd una ca asta.)

b) Verbs requiring Nominative and Accusative + Past Participle
Verbs of physical perception: see, hear, feel, etc.:
(15) a. I heard it said that men are a bore.
(Am auzit spunndu-se c brbaii sunt plicticoi.)
b. He was seen covered in mud from head to toe.
(L-au vzut acoperit de noroi din cap pna n picioare.)

verbs of mental perception: imagine, confess, know, recollect, etc.:
(16) When she heard his words, she knew herself dismissed.
(Cnd i-a auzit cuvintele i-a dat seama c a concediat-o.)

Causative verbs: get , have, make
(17) a. I must get my hair cut.
(Trebuie s m duc s ma tund.)
b. You must get get that leg of yours taken care of.
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230
(Trebuie s te duci la doctor s i ngrijeti piciorul.)

verbs of permission, command
(18) I ordered my bill made out.
(I-am spus chelnerului s-mi aduc nota.)

Verbs of liking and disliking
(19) a. Men like shopping made easy.
(Brbailor le place s termine repede cu cumprturile.)
b. He wanted his car fixed immediately.
(Dorea s-i fie reparat maina imediat.)

Pratice

Activity 1
Translate the following sentences into English, using the types of
participial structures discussed above:
Am s pun s fii arestat dac m mai deranjezi mult. / Nu dup
mult vreme, l vrji n aa hal nct i mnca din palm. / L-au
descoperit aruncat intr-un col./ Cel care tocmai vorbete cu
Maria este fratele meu./ Lovitura l-a lsat lat sub mas. / Nu-l
mai ine s atepte./ Jim a pornit motorul n doi timpi i trei
micri./ S-a dus s-i extrag o msea. / Vrei s v dm
unghiile cu lac? / i de unde ai gsit un ifonier att de
ncptor? L-am facut de comand. / De ce ai uitat robinetul
deschis? / O s pun casa la punct rapid./ L-a trimis la
cumprturi./ Nimeni n-a bnuit c la doar cteva zile dup
aceast discuie, aveau s se trezeasc cu casa spart. / A fost
descoperit ntins n spatele unor lzi, lovit i plin de snge. / Iar
am gsit copilul neschimbat, ce-ai fcut toat ziua? / Prefer s i
ii gura dac nu poi vorbi cuviincios!

231

Activity 2
Identify the participial structures in the following sentences:
Riding was something of a passion with her, so that it always
made her restive to see someone else riding a good horse. / We
might possibly get the damages agreed at a comparatively
nominal sum, if you put in a defence and then didnt appear. /
And before her suddenly closed eyes came Wilfrids face, with
its lips drawn back, as she had seen it last passing her in the
Green Park. / She went into Adrians after leaving him, and was
rather disconcerted to find her Uncle Lionel waiting for her there.
/ I shall vow that towards the end of the voyage the co-
respondent was seen coming out of the respondents stateroom. /
Dinny, sitting taut between her father and her sister, feeling in
her whole being the vibration of her pride and her own, heard the
slow rich voice striking in behind her. / In any case, you gave
instructions to have your wife watched. / My Lord, before
resuming my cross-examination of the respondent, I should be
glad to recall the petitioner. (John Galsworthy Over the River)

9.1.2. Characteristics of Participial Forms

The main property participles have in opposition to gerundial forms is the
verbal quality of these structures. Unlike the gerund, the participle has no
nominal properties whatsoever. We shall enlarge upon this point in the
section on gerunds.

A second differentiating feature is the frequency with which the participle
appears as a modifier or as an adverbial. The only contexts in which the
participle functions as an object is when it is part of the independent
participial constructions (i.e. Nominative or Accusative + Participle).
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232

The participle lacks tense but exhibits:
aspectual features:
(20) Having seen this, I left.
(Vznd acestea, am plecat.)

Voice (can appear in the passive)
(21) Having been noticed by the teacher, I left.
(Dup ce m-a remarcat profesorul, am plecat.)

A nominative subject (in absolute participial constructions)
(22) God willing, the rain will stop.
(Cu voia lui Dumnezeu, se va opri i ploaia.)

A conjunction to precede it optionally
(23) Although not knowing the language, she enjoyed her trip to Spain.
(Desi nu tia limba, a avut parte de o excursie plcut n Spania.)

Pratice

Activity 3
Join each of the following pairs of sentences, using either a
present participle, or a past participle:
1.She didnt want to hear the story again. She had heard it all
before. 2. I turned on the light. I was astonished at what I saw. 3.
I have looked through the fashion magazine. I realize that my
clothes are hopelessly out of date. 4. In this chapter the
characters have an unintelligible conversation. They are lying
face downwards in a sea of mud. 5. The tree had fallen across the
road. It had been uprooted by the gale. 6. People were sleeping in
the next room. They were wakened by the sound of breaking
glass. 7. I knew that the murderer was still at large. I was

233
extremely reluctant to open the door. 8. Mother punished me for
my mistake. I slammed the door of my room. 9. He fed the dog.
He sat down to his own dinner. 10. They found the treasure.
They began quarreling about how to divide it.

Activity 4
The following sentences contain misrelated participles. Read the
sentences and try to correct them. How do you account for the
term misrelated?
1.Running into the room, a rug caught her foot and she fell. 2.
Riding in the first race, his horse fell at the last jump. 3.
Knowing me to be the fool of the family, the news that I had won
a scholarship astonished him. 4. Reading in bed, my hands often
get very cold. 5. Leaving the cinema, it seemed to him that the
film had been exceptionally bad. 6. Climbing down the tree, one
of the eggs broke. 7. Barking furiously, I let the dog out of the
room. 8. Getting out of bed, a scorpion bit him. 9. Sitting in the
dentists chair, an idea suddenly occurred to me. 10. Dropped by
parachute, the country seemed entirely unfamiliar. 11. Tied to the
post, the sea was tossing the post up and down. 12. Passing under
a ladder, a pot of paint fell on my head.

Activity 5
Match a word in list (a) with a word in list (b) to form a
compound word:
a) fair, broad, red (twice), bald, three, many, cloth, stony,
narrow, open, fishy, empty, lion, sharp, wooden, quick, dark,
eagle, straight, open.
b) Headed (5 times), haired (twice), eyed (3 times),shoulder,
hearted (twice), cornered, coloured, covered, minded (3
times), skinned, handed.
6 Same instructions as before:
a) molten, drunken, lighted, mown, roast, shaven, stricken,
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234
sunken, shorn, hidden, shrunken, bounden, ill-gotten, rotten,
graven.
b) grass, candle, meat, deer, man, lead, eyes, head, meaning,
stream, lamb, plank, image, duty, wealth.

Activity 7
In the following pairs of sentences, the same verb is missing
twice, once used as a present participle and once as a past
participle. Insert the correct form in each gap:
1.Books ________ out of the library must be returned within
three weeks. / People ______ books oout which havent been
stamped will be banned. (take) 2. The film, _______ by
S.Spielberg, is expected to be a great hit./ Power stations
_______ enough energy to supply several towns are soon to be
built on the south coast. (produce) 3. Crops _______ under glass
mature more quickly than those in the open. / Farmers ________
such crops can therefore catch the early markets. (grow) 4. I
stared at the canvas for ages, ________ the artists skill and eye
for detail. / Swiss watches, _______ for their elegance and
precision, are sold throughout the world. (admire) 5. The escaped
prisoner, ________ hiding in a barn, was today taken back to
prison. / Many old people ,_______that their savings have been
eaten into by inflation, are having difficulties in making both
ends meet. (find) 6.I fell on the ice, _______ my arm. / Three
people, _____ when their car crashed on the M1, were taken to
hospital. (injure). 7. Whales, _______ for their valuable oil and
meat, are in grave danger of extinction. / Thousands of people
went shopping in the sales today, _______ for a bargain. (hunt).

Translate into English:
1. Toate liniile ei erau pline i rotunde: bucla de pe frunte i de
pe lng urechile descoperite; umerii abia ascuni sub o

235
Activity 8* dantel; snii chinuii n strnsori; oldurile plesnind sub un
corsaj ascuit care le tia, lsndu-le s joace libere i ghicite
sub largile falduri. O umbrelu, cnd strns, cnd deschis,
plina i ea de ape i valuri, arunca pe faa i fiina femeii
umbre i culori ce micau i nviau nencetat toate liniile.
2. Dei clipa i era tulburata mai adnc, o plcere nelmurit a
trecut iute prin Bubi. S-a simit alturi de tatl su i el stpn
la curtea lor, i nc recunoscut de femeia pe care o dorea.
3. Dup ctva timp, struina acestei fraze risipi mbtarea lui
Bubi, silindu-l s-I cerceteze nelesul. i sufletul su, nesigur
i moale, biruit venic de o ndoial, trezit, destrma n
oviri puterea din jurul su. I se pru c refrenul lui Dorodan
sun ca o proorocire misterioas. Se simi deodat ncolit de
un necunoscut pe care l uitase i care venea nspre el din
toate prile. nlimea de entuziasm unde stat o clip se
neca n apa mare i tulbure de ovieli. i, descletndu-i
braele de pe umerii btrnului, ncepu s priveasc nelinitit
primprejur, ca i cum, deodat sufocat, ar fi cutat aer i un
liman.
4. Sttea n jurul ei tot ce avea s fie o mas mbelugat:
carnea roie, mpnat cu vine galbene de grsime, petii cu
solzi srii sub cuit, legume date prin mai multe ape, psri
tiate, aruncate n ligheane i risipind un abur greos de pene
oprite, precum i foile de plcint, ntinse, i moi, cu praf de
fin uoar i lipicioas pe ele, toate trecnd prin minile
pricepute ale coanei Mia, care le rnduia, le fierbea, le cocea.
(Ion Marin Sadoveanu Sfrit de veac n Bucureti)

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9.2. The Gerund
9.2.1. A Classification of Gerundial Forms

We classify gerunds, function of the presence or absence of a logical subject
within the gerundial structure. According to this criterion, one can distinguish
between:
a) gerunds without an expressed logical subject:
(24) PRO seeing is PRO believing.
(Dac vezi, crezi.)

b) gerunds with an expressed logical subject:
This class of gerunds can be further split into two subclasses:
the full gerund (or the possessive ING)
(25) Johns coming here was a mistake.
(Venirea lui John aici a fost o greeal.)

the half gerund (or the Accusative ING)
(26) It all depends on him coming here.
(Totul depinde de venirea lui aici.)

We call the first subclass of b) possessive ING because of the genitive form in
which the logical subject appears. Likewise, the second subclass bears the
name Accusative + ING due to the case of the logical subject within the
gerund.

If there are two possibilities with class b) it means that there must be some
differences between them. The main difference lies in the fact that the
accusative

+ ing is more like a clause whereas the possessive -ing looks more
like a nominal.

237

How do we know that?
Answer: By looking at the way these constructions agree with the main clause
verbs when coordinated:

The possessive -ing in a compound subject agrees with the verb in the
plural, just as it happens with any normal compound subject made up of
two nominal phrases:
(27) a. His winning and your losing were both surprising.
(M-a surprins faptul c el a ctigat i tu ai pierdut.)
b. His victory and your defeat were both surprising.
(M-au surprins n egal msur victoria lui i nfrngerea ta.)

Coordinated accusative + ing requires a singular verb, just as it happens with
coordinated Subject that clauses:
(28) a. Him winning and you losing was surprising.
b. That he won and you lost was surprising.

9.2.2. Characteristics of Gerunds

In the previous subsection on participles I was saying that participles have [+
verbal] features, whereas gerunds have [ + verbal ] and [ + nominal ] features.
In that, gerunds differ from participles. Consider the following table, where
ING structures are ordered according to their main features. Notice that part
of the table is left incomplete.

[+ verb] [+ verb, + noun] [+noun]
Participles Gerunds ?

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Below we offer a few reasons why participles are seen as [+ verb]:
1. Participles look more like clauses and more often than not are translated
by means of a clause:
(29) I saw him smiling and was surprised.
(L-am vzut c zmbete i am fost surprins.)

Unlike participles, gerunds look more like noun phrases and are often
translatable by means of a noun phrase:
(30) His slapping Susan terrified the audience.
(Faptul c a plmuit-o pe Susan a ngrozit publicul.)

2. An important characteristic of gerunds is that they do not normally
extrapose (if you remember, extraposition is one of the main syntactic
features that characterizes that clauses, which are seen as [+ verb]
structures):
(31) a. It was illegal to grow a beard.
(Nu era legal s-i lai barb.)
b. *It was illegal growing a beard.

In (31) extraposition is possible with infinitives but not with gerunds. (31 b) is
ungrammatical because we get a double subject construction. This behaviour
of gerunds concerning extraposition resembles that of relative clauses which
are themselves very similar in behaviour to noun phrases. Consider (32),
which proves that extraposed relative clauses give birth to ungrammatical
structures because of the double-subject restriction:
(32) *It was illegal what she said.

A conclusion to this discussion is represented under the table below. A
similarity is thus drawn between that clauses and participles, as being verbal

239
in nature, and between relative clauses and gerunds as being more nominal in
nature:
That clauses Relative clauses
Participles Gerunds

There are very few exceptions to the extrapositon restriction under which
gerunds are. The examples we can offer are analysed as idiomatic phrases:
(33) a. Its no use crying over spilt milk. (proverb)
(Mortul de la groap nu se mai ntoarce.)
b. Its no good talking to her.
(N-are sens s vorbeti cu ea.)

3. Just like in the case of noun phrases, gerunds can be combined with
Prepositions:
(34) a. She was surprised at his knowing the business so well.
(Era uimit de ct de bine tia el dedesubturile afacerii.)
b. He looked at their wrestling on the muddy floor.
(S-a uitat cum se lupta pe podeaua nnoroiat.)

9.2.3. Participles vs. Gerunds

After discussing the characteristics of gerunds, it would be very useful for us
to have a look at differences between participles and gerunds, as offered in
the table below:
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PARTICIPLES
[+ verb]
GERUNDS
[+ verb, + noun]
1. Participles can be part of tense
forms:
continuous , perfect, passive ones
She was crying.
Gerunds do not make up tense forms.

2. Participles may be preceded by
conjunctions:
While sleeping, babies suck their
thumb.
Gerunds may be preceded by
prepositions:

She waited for his coming home.
3. Participles may function as
adverbials:
Coming here, he built himself a
house.
(adverbial of time)
Gerunds do not function as adverbials
with few exceptions:
She angered him by stealing his
project.

4. Participles do not function as
objects unless they appear in
dependent constructions:
I saw her crying. (Accusative +
Participle)
Gerunds function as direct and
prepositional objects:
She started crying. (direct object
clause)
She was interested in him marrying
her.
(prepositional object clause)
5. Participles may function as
attributes and are paraphrasable by
who/that/which isVerb + ing:
the walking man = the man who is
walking
the flying fish = the fish which is
flying
Gerunds may function as attributes
but are paraphrasable by means of the
preposition for:
the walking stick = stick used for
walking
the flying saucer = saucer used for
flying

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Pratice

Activity 9
Translate into English, remembering that the gerund is always
used of a preposition, a prepositional verb or a phrasal verb:
Nu este nici o speran s se gseasca supravieuitori dupa
prbuirea avionului. / Te-ai scuzat pentru c l-ai deranjat? / Am
renunat s joc / la jocul de fotbal cnd am terminat coala. / Te-
ai sturat probabil s faci acelai lucru zi de zi. / John a fost sever
mustrat pentru c teroriza bieii mai mici dect el. / Publicul a
fost avertizat de pericolul de a se plimba prin parc noaptea. / Nu-l
intereseaz deloc s-i creasc copiii. / Se pare c-i place foarte
mult s subliniezi defectele altora. / Minerii sunt ntotdeauna
avertizai s nu duc chibrituri n mine. / Cine rspunde de
ncuiatul uilor i paza cldirii noaptea? / Ar trebui s te gndeti
s economiseti bani n loc s speri c vei ctiga la cri. /
Rspunsul la problema locuinelor pare s rezide n construirea
de noi blocuri. / Nu vedeau nici un motiv pentru ca ei s nu fac
aa cum plnuisera iniial. / Doctorul m-a sftuit s renun la
fumat i grsimi. / A trebuit s amnm plecarea n vacan. /
Compania aceea este specializat n fabricarea mobilei de birou. /
Ar trebui s se impun tuturor i s se abin de la a fuma n
restaurante i alte locuri publice. / Trebuie s-mi cer scuze c am
ntrziat aa de mult. / Judectorul a fost acuzat de a nu fi dat
juriului obiective clare. / Se mndrete c e totdeauna bine
mbrcat. / I-am spus s nu-i bat capul s pun lucrurile la loc. /
A trebuit s suportam mojicia tot timpul cltoriei. / Am cerut
sfatul unui avocat nainte de a ne decide s acionm n justiie. /
Dup ce a hruit-o bine pe vnztoare, a plecat din magazin fr
s cumpere nimic. / n ciuda faptului c a trebuit s lupte cu o
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mare agitat, nottoarea a reuit s traverseze canalul n timp
record.

Activity 10
Identify the gerundial and participial constructions and state
their function:
1. A stranger sharing the trip with us was bad enough. 2. He
smiled to hear her talking in that way. 3. Gambling is his
favourite pastime. 4. It was worth trying to continue the efforts.
5. What I dont understand is you suddenly turning against me. 6.
The only reason for selling was the owners getting a new car. 7.
He said he favoured people having decent haircuts. 8. I can
excuse his being rude to me but I cannot forgive his being rude to
my mother. 9. He admitted to driving the lorry recklessly. 10.
They were interested in a true vote being expressed by the
people. 11. The house is accustomed to reports being presented
orally. 12. The ceremony ended with his having to receive a
trophy. 12. He was spotted talking to her. 13. I was afraid that
my answer might lead to him being charged for the offence. 14.
Shes looking forward to having lots of children. 15. The idea of
him/his going to Paris appalled her.

Activity 11
Discriminate between gerunds and participles by means of
paraphrase:
Chewing cow/ chewing gum; shooting gallery / shooting star;
boiling water is a job I hate / I need some boiling water; crying
game / crying woman; swimming duck / swimming trunks;
pressing needs/ pressing people to answer questions; eating
habits/ eating people; paying guests / paying guests to leave is
wrong.


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9.3. The Verbal Noun

The verbal noun is here placed in opposition with the gerund. The verbal noun
is an ING form but is not part of non-finite forms: it is part of the nominal
system, as it is a noun phrase which just happens to look like a gerund or
participle.

But how can we tell when an ING form is a verbal noun?

Compare:
(35) The shooting of the attacker was an ugly episode.
(Uciderea celui care i atacase era un episod urt.)
to
(36) Shooting the attacker was an ugly episode.
(Uciderea celui care i atacase era un episod urt.)

Although the meaning of the two underlined structures is similar, they differ
formally:
The first sentence contains a verbal noun, which can be identified by:
- The presence of the (i.e. the determiner)
- The presence of the of phrase (i.e. of the attacker)
- The fact that the ing form can be combined with an adjective:
The cruel shooting of the attacker

The second sentence contains a gerund due to :
- The absence of a determiner like the, a
- The absence of an of phrase, but the presence of a direct object (i.e. the
attacker)
- The possibility of its combination with an adverb:
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Shooting the attacker cruelly

The problem with verbal nouns and gerunds is that they are both ended
in ING and can take a possessive:
Georges shooting of the attacker vs. Georges shooting the attacker.

The test that always helps you out of trouble is that of combining these
constructions with an adjective or an adverbial:
The first construction takes an adjective: Georges cruel shooting of the
attacker, whereas the second structures takes an adverb: Georges shooting
the attacker cruelly. This means that the first structure is a verbal noun while
the second is a gerund.

GERUNDS can combine with an
adverb
VERBAL NOUNS can combine
with an adjective
Shuffling the cards quickly The quick shuffling of cards

Sometimes the verbal noun can appear without its of phrase:
(37) His beautiful singing was a blessing to everyone.
(Faptul c tia s cnte aa de frumos era o binecuvntare.)

In (37) there are two verbal nouns: his beautiful singing and a blessing. How
can we tell? In the first case, we can identify the verbal noun by means of the
adjective that accompanies it. In the second situation, the verbal noun blessing
is accompanied by a determiner which is an indefinite article. These are
features that normally characterize any noun.

Thus, if we were to go back to our incomplete table, we could safely fill in the
blank space with the following information:

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[+ verb] [+ verb, + noun] [+noun]
Participles Gerunds Verbal nouns
(After) shooting the
sheriff, Jim left quietly.
They saw him shooting
the sheriff.
This shooting star is
very large.
Jims suddenly shooting
the sheriff alerted the
whole town.
Are you still interested
in shooting the sheriff?
What is your opinion
about the new shooting
gallery?
Jims/the sudden
shooting of the sheriff
alerted the whole town.

Pratice

Activity 12
Identify the verbal nouns in the following:
Men have as much patience for cool philandering as they have
for shopping. / Shopping can be a nice activity but shopping
there can only be a mistake. / His coming there puzzled her./ His
sudden coming puzzled her./ The massive cutting of funds
shocked everybody in the company. / Cutting funds so suddenly
came down as a shock. / Their looting and ruthless murdering
was never forgotten./ All newspapers commented on Johns
robbing the bank. / Johns robbing of the bank was widely
commented on. / The unexpected robbing of the bank didnt pass
unnoticed.

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9.4. ING Forms and Infinitives.

The aim of this subsection is mainly to help you better understand why those
verbs or adjectives that can be combined both with gerunds and with
infinitives have a different meaning in each case.
It has been noticed that, whenever a verb can appear both with an infinitive
and with a gerund, the meaning is different. However, we can trace a common
feature for all these special verbs. All of them change their meaning according
to the grammatical information offered by the construction they are followed
by.

For instance, whenever we meet an ing form, we expect it to have something
to do with an event that has already happened (and then we are dealing with a
gerund) or is happening (and we are looking at a participle). With the
infinitive, we expect it to refer to something that might happen or that is going
to take place.

Look, for example, at the following:
(38) He saw Susan crossing the street.
(A vzut-o pe Susan traversnd strada.)
as opposed to
(39) He saw Susan cross the street.
(A vzut cum Susan a traversat strada.)

The difference in meaning is well expressed by the Romanian translation and
is motivated by what each form means:
- the ing form ( a participle) expresses something still happening ( so
the guy in the example is watching Susan as she advances across the
street)

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- the infinitival form (a bare infinitive) by opposition with the
participle suggests that we are watching the whole event of the
crossing of the street (so the guy in the example has watched the entire
crossing)

Another example, and the most well-known one, is that of the verb stop:

Compare:
(40) She stopped to eat a sandwich.
(S-a oprit s mannce un sandwich.)
to
(41) She stopped eating a sandwich.
(S-a oprit din mncat.)

The first example, containing an infinitive, suggests the fact that the eating of
the sandwich is going to take place (the potential, future-oriented value of the
infinitive). The second example containing a gerund suggests the fact that
the eating of the sandwich had already commenced and was then interrupted
(the gerund expresses an event happening in the past, prior to the one
expressed by the main clause verb.)

After looking at this example, we can notice that in most cases the gerund
expresses something that has already happened, anterior to the verb in the
main clause. On the other hand, the infinitive expresses something that is yet
to happen, posterior to the verb in the main clause: while the gerund is past-
oriented, the infinitive is future-oriented.

This is exactly why the Perfect form of the gerund (e.g. having left) is
infrequently used in English. Compare
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(42) She remembered having posted the letter earlier in the morning.
(43) She remembered posting the letter earlier in the morning.
(i-a amintit c a pus scrisoarea la pot n cursul dimineii.)

As you can see, both sentences are translated the same in Romanian, which
means that they are similar in meaning. The fact that both (42) and (43) have
the same meaning indicates that the gerund no longer needs to specify
anteriority by means of a perfect form (i.e. having posted) since it already
expresses the idea of anteriority in its simple form. This is why the perfect
gerund is nowadays an indication of educated speech (and will be mostly
found in literary language).
Let us now follow this line of thought which traces an opposition between the
semantics of the gerund and that of the infinitive. We will examine other
verbs like the ones we have already mentioned under (40) and (41), i.e. verbs
that can be followed both a gerund and an infinitive (but with a significant
change in meaning):

a) Remember, recollect, forget
(44) She remembers filling the tank with petrol.
(i-aduce aminte c a umplut rezervorul cu benzin.)
versus
(45) Remember to fill the tank with petrol.
(Adu-i aminte s umpli rezervorul cu benzin.)

The example with the gerund suggests that the filling of the tank has already
happened; the example with the infinitive suggests that the filling of the tank
is going to happen.

b) Regret

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(46) I regret filling the tank with petrol.
(mi pare ru c am umplut rezervorul cu benzin.)
versus
(47) I regret to fill the tank with petrol, but thats it.
(mi pare ru c o s umplu rezervorul cu benzin, dar asta este.)

The example with the gerund suggests that the filling of the tank has already
happened; the example with the infinitive suggests that the filling of the tank
is going to happen.

c) Try
(48) I tried filling the tank with petrol and then I did some car washing.
(nti am ncercat s m ocup cu umplerea rezervorului cu benzin,
apoi m-am ocupat de splarea mainilor.)
versus
(49) I tried to fill the tank with petrol but found it no easy job.
(Am ncercat s umplu rezervorul cu benzin, ns nu mi s-a prut
treab uoar.)

The first example implies the fact that the guy there has already filled the tank
with petrol several times. In the second example, the petrol tank is not filled
yet, the action is not completed.

d) Mean
(50) I mean to tell her the truth.
(Am de gnd s-i spun adevrul.)
versus
(51) This means revealing her all my secrets.
(Asta nseamn s-i dezvlui toate secretele mele.)
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In the first example, the event has not happened yet, it is bound to happen as a
result of the subjects intentions. In the second example, mean has the sense
signify.

e) need, want
With [+ human] objects, these verbs are used in combination with the
infinitive:
(52) He wants / needs to learn English.
(Vrea / trebuie s nvee englez.)

With [- human] objects, they can be combined with the gerund and acquire
the same interpretation as when they are followed by a passive infinitive:

(51) a. The house needs repairing.
(Casa trebuie reparat.)
b. The house needs to be repaired.
(Casa trebuie reparat.)

f) go on
(53) He goes on reading from that cheap novel.
(Continu s citeasc din romanul acela ieftin.)
versus
(54) After he talked about his plans he went on to talk about his daughters
wedding.
(Dup ce a vorbit despre planurile lui, s-a apucat s vorbeasc despre
nunta fiicei sale.)


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In the first case we understand that the event of reading has already begun,
whereas in the second case, the event of becoming a lawyer is yet to happen.

Pratice

Activity 13
Complete the following dialogue by putting the verbs in backets
into the correct form, gerund or infinitive, as required:
a) I remembered my husband (say) that I must look out for
myself. And I realized how silly I was in not (know) that I was
being watched.
Tell me, Lady Corven, why did you defend this action?
Because I knew that, however appearances were against us, we
had done nothing (be) ashamed of.
Dinny saw the Judge (look) towards Clare, (take) down her
answer, (hold) up his pen and (speak).
On that night in the car you were on a main road. What was to
prevent you from (stop) another car and (ask) them (give) you a
lead into Henley?
I dont think we thought of it, my Lord; I did ask Mr. Croom
(try) (follow) one, but they went by too quickly.
In any case, what was there to prevent you from (walk) into
Henley and (leave) the car in the wood?
I suppose nothing really, only it would have been midnight
before we got to Henley; and I thought it would be more
awkward than just (stay) in the car. And I always had wanted
(try) (sleep) in a car.
And do you still want to?
No, my Lord, its overrated.
b) Your uncle has been very kind to me and I shall simply have
(call) and (thank) him. So do look out for me about six oclock
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tomorrow. I spend all my time (hunt) a job, and am beginning
(realise) what it means to poor devils (turn down) day after day.
c) I think youre splendid (want) to be independent. Its quite
impossible for me not (be) in love with you and (long) (be) with
you all day and all night too. But Im going to be as good as I can
because the very last thing I want is (cause) you uneasiness of
any sort.
d) (look up) Sir Lawrences number in Mount Street, he
addressed the note, licked the envelope with passion, and went
out (post) it himself. Then, suddenly, he did not feel inclined
(return) to the Coffee House.
e) I thought youd never forgive me for (ask) at such a moment.
Always delighted for you (ask) anything at any moment. I
must go back now, but Ill hope (see) you again very soon.
f) The word national is winning this election, said Clare.
Where I went (canvas) in the town they were all Liberals. I just
used the word and they fell.
(hear) that the new Member would be at his headquarters all
the morning, the sisters started about eleven oclock. There was
so much (come) and (go) round the doors that they did not like
(enter).
I do hate (ask) for things, said Clare. Especially when they
go on (ignore) you like that.
Then you shall simply have to go on (ask) and after (get) it
you can go on (become) whatever you wish.


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9.5. Key Concepts

In this subsection we have dealt with ING forms. We made an important
distinction between ING complements (which appear either as Present
Participles or as Gerunds) and Verbal Nouns. The main difference between
Present Participles and Gerunds lies in their special features. Participles
mainly function as adverbials, whereas gerunds function mainly as
subjects/objects. The common function these two structures share is that of
attribute but the similarity is deceptive, since paraphrase can correctly
identify which is which.

Another special feature is which elements these two structures can be
preceded by: a preposition for gerunds and a conjunction for participles.

There are also important differences between gerunds and verbal nouns,
although one can mistake them due to the fact that both forms can combine
with a possessive nominal. The main test of disambiguation is that of
combining the two forms with either an adverb (for the gerund) or an
adjective (for the verbal noun).

Last but not least, dont forget that certain verbs can take both ING forms and
infinitives after them but the meaning changes according to the main shade
of meaning each of the aforementioned constructions exhibits.

Pratice

Activity 14
In the following texts, identify the ING forms and analyse them
syntactically:
a) He remembered entering the village and then the ground, the
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very earth opening up. First the crack snaking its jagged way
along the concrete, then the noise and the cracking stone, and
then the incredible sound of the ground opening up, the
enormous split in the earth. The two sides were moving apart,
their edges crashing inwards, down, down into God knows
where. The sight of the two children, the man and his bike
disappearing in the hole. The collapsing shops he
remembered seeing the shops on one side collapsing and
then the ragged mouth reaching towards him.
(James Herbert The Fog)
b) The people above heard the cry for help coming from the
huge hole that had wrecked the burning village. He looked up
towards the daylight, hoping he would see somebody up
there, someone looking for survivors. Then he saw
movement at his feet. At first, he thought it was dust caused
by the disturbance, but then he saw it billowing up from
below. It was like a mist, slowly rising in a swirling motion,
slightly yellowish although he couldnt be sure in the gloom.
It seemed to be spreading along the length of the split,
moving up towards his chest, covering the girls head. She
started coughing.
(James Herbert The Fog)
c) The importance attaching to the meeting of two young people
depends on the importance which others attach to their not
meeting.
(John Galsworthy Over the River)
d) Spying on other people being, according to the books he
read, the chief occupation of the people of these islands, it

255
had never occurred to him to look down on a profession
conscientiously pursued for seventeen years.
e) Accustomed to the shadowing of people on their guard, the
open innocence they were displaying excited him in a slightly
amused if not contemptuous compassion.
f) Mr. Chayne listened to their manly American voices saying
to each other: Gee! Hes on us! with an interest which never
prevented his knowing that his two young people were
listening too.
g) Nothing so tiring as picture-gazing. Im sorry to emulate Em
and suspect you of not eating enough, my dear. That sort of
sparrow-pecking we did before going in doesnt really
count.
h) She might just as well have stayed on soaking in her bath, for
Dornford was busy on an important case. She finished what
jobs there were, looking idly out over the Temple lawn,
whence fine-weather mist was vanishing, and sunlight,
brightening to winter brilliance, slanted on to her cheek.
i) Two little boys carrying toy aeroplanes stopped dead,
examining her dark eye-lashes resting on her cream-coloured
cheeks, and the little twitchings of her just touched-up lips.
Having a French governess, they were well-bred little boys
without prospect of sticking pins into her or uttering a sudden
whoop.
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j) Donford spent a quiet hour with Clare over her evidence, and
then went riding with her in the rain. Dinnys morning went
in arranging for spring cleaning and the chintzing of the
furniture while the family were up in town.

Activity 15
Translate into English, making use of the information supplied in
this section:
1. Aa c vrnd-nevrnd, eram toi adunai n camera aceea,
mama mea, cei doi Mamona, Vaucher i cu mine, i
ateptnd ca tot ce avea s se ntmple s se ntmple cu
adevrat i nu numai n nchipuirea mea sau a lor. i ca la un
semnal care anuna un nceput, se deschise o u i venind o
slug, totul se anim deodat. Ridicndu-se, Mamona cel
Tnr prsi ncperea fr s spun un cuvnt, dar lsnd n
urma lui civa stropi de snge, nveselind privirea cu roul
lor fierbinte i prevestitor. n urma slugii, mpiedicndu-se de
Mamona cel Tnr plecnd, venir alte dou i crnd fiecare
cte un cufr.
2. Intrnd n casa noastr n anul 1812, ntr-o joi, Vaucher a
nceput prin a-l bate pe Mamona cel Tnr sub privirile mele
i ale mamei mele nepstoare i a sfirsit n anul 1821, ()
omort fiind de ctre Mamona cel Tnr, ucenicul su
necredincios. Numai c toate astea sunt departe i nc de
nenchipuit. Dar nu att de nenchipuit nct, ieind din
bltoaca lui i apropiindu-se de Mamona cel Tnr pentru a-l
lovi, s nu-mi inchipui c peste puin vreme m va lovi i pe
mine i atunci, nchiznd ochii, apsndu-mi pleoapele peste
privirea din ei, frica i nepsarea m-au cuprins precum i

257
gndul c ntr-o zi cineva l va omor pe Vaucher i tiind c
nu eu o voi face, am tiut i cine. i poate c stnd n
bltoaca lui, Vaucher a tiut i el, arta n orice caz ca cineva
care tie, dar spernd c totul va fi altfel pna la urm.
3. Aa c atunci cnd a intrat Mamona cel Btrn, cu un sac ud
pe umeri i mirosind tare a ploaie i a sudoare, ne-a gsit pe
fiecare la locul lui, pe mama mea prnd absent, dar
tiutoare, aezat cu spatele la noi, la mine, care stteam cu
ochii aproape nchii, pe Vaucher, aezat n bltoaca pe care
o fcuse apa scurs din hainele lui, i pe Mamona cel Tnr,
stnd cu capul n tavan i cu o mna ridicat n sus, dup cum
i spusese mama, prnd ns c ne salut sau c vrea s-i ia
rmas bun de la cineva. Ne-a privit o clipa i, fr s-i
lepede sacul de pe umeri, neostenindu-se s fac nici asta,
nicidecum s ne salute sau s spun ceva, se duse lnga
mama i, aplecndu-se puin, o srut pe frunte. Neclintii,
continuam s stm i s ateptm.
(tefan Agopian Tache de catifea)
4. Vorbea despre strngerea forelor, despre neprecupeirea
efortului, despre concentrarea tuturor resurselor, despre
salvgardarea realizrilor, afar ploua n continuare, din cnd
n cnd ei i frecau ochii i fetele nerase ca s se in treji,
vntul fcea pereii baracii s vibreze ntr-un fel aproape
emoionant i, dei m aflam pentru prima oar acolo i nu-i
mai vzusem niciodat pe oamenii aceia, totul mi se prea
cunoscut, privit, auzit i zadarnic, parc totul mai fusese
cndva i fusese degeaba, iar eu eram obosit de moarte s tot
vd i s tot ascult, s tot nsemn n carneele i s tot
transcriu pe curat. i deodat, n timp ce frazele continuau s
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curg n felul tiut i ploaia continua s cad i vntul s bat,
m-am gndit ce-ar fi ca Dunarea s fi desprins ntre timp
insula i s o fi mpins ncet la vale, cu tot cu baraca, i cu
soba, i cu stiva de lemne, i cu masa lung de scndur, i cu
faa de mas roie ptat de cerneal i ars de igri, i cu
brbaii din jurul mesei care ascultau frecndu-i obrazurile
nerase, i cu cel ce le vorbea odihnit, i cu mine care notam
aceleai i aceleai vorbe, ce-ar fi ca totul s fi pornit de mult
fr s ne dm seama, fr s bnuim mcar
Apoi au urmat propunerile.
5. De ajuns au ajuns ntr-o diminea frumoas, una dintre acele
diminei de toamn limpezi i rcoroase, a cror rcoare nu
infirm zpueala amiezii, ci o pregtete i o pune n
eviden. Au cobort din camion ncet, oprindu-se fiecare o
clip nainte de a sri, cltinndu-se sub lovitura luminii i
apoi dndu-i drumul n jos ca ntr-o ap al crei fund nu se
ateptau s fie att de aproape. Dup ce ultimul dintre ei
coborse, i, fr ca cineva s fi spus un cuvnt, camionul a
plecat, au ncercat s se uite n jur i s neleag, dar, ca i
cum ar fi uitat ceva, camionul s-a oprit cteva sute de metri
mai departe, cineva a aruncat din el mai mule sape i greble
s-au vzut numai cozile de lemn rotindu-se n cdere prin aer
i o voce cu asprime estompat de deprtare i de uruitul
motorului le-a strigat batjocoritor c li se d posibilitatea s
i ctige singuri pinea i le-a comunicat c nu au voie s se
ndeprteze, s se apropie de aezrile din jur.
Cnd au rmas singuri s-au numrat nc o dat: erau nou.
i de jur mprejurul lor era Brganul. Aezrile de care nu
aveau voie s se apropie nu se vedeau. Tot ce se vedea era un

259
plc de arbori nu mai mult de cteva sute. Primul lucru pe
care l-au fcut a fost s adune uneltele din locul unde
fuseser aruncate. Al doilea s se apropie de fntn.

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261

TEN
REVISION EXERCISES

262

Unit ten Revision exercises

263

Exercise 1

Analyse syntactically:
1. Of course it was no accident that he had mismanaged the whole thing so
horribly. 2. How much, apart from his distress for parents, this would really
hurt, he had not yet been able to estimate. 3. He suffered his pangs of guilt
and fear and loss and waited for these sufferings to pass. 4. He did not know
whether he was glad or sorry that she had accepted them without puzzlement,
without profound questioning. 5. With his claim for British nationality
pending it was, he had been advised, unthinkable that he should be extradited
as a deserter. 6. He had thought a good deal less about Garth in recent weeks,
though when he had first arrived light months ago the return of Garth had
been the thing to which he had most looked forward. 7. There had seemed to
be another place where Dorina walked barefoot in the dew with her hair
undone 8. How this time was to come, unless perhaps borne by a swift horse,
was unclear to Mitzi, and she kept intending to leave and then deciding not to,
because of pity, because she doubted whether she would find another job and
because she thought that if she hung on she would get some money, whereas
if she went away she would get none. 9. You have been much in my thoughts,
and this particularly of late, since I have decided, for a number of reasons of
which I shall tell you at leisure, to retire early from my employment. 10. You
must know that if you do not meet this matter properly now, in some way, and
meet it right here at home, you are choosing exile from what you are fortunate
enough to call your homeland. 11. Having regard to the date of drafting, Mr
Livingstone advises that you profess to have been traveling in continental
Europe and not have received the papers. 12. I am sorry not to have seen you,
but I am afraid I am terribly busy at present. 13. That they saw the war
differently was probably their most rational area of disagreement, and that
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was difficult enough. 14. No one seemed to want to talk about it or to be
interested or to understand. 15 Meanwhile the big talk with Garth to which he
had been so much, even for months, looking forward had not yet taken place.
16 It was but too possible that Garth despised him for this match and felt
already that they were hopelessly divided. 17. Sometimes too she would see
something in it which she knew to be a ghost, the figure of a woman
protecting from the waist upwards high up in the wall opposite to her, like the
prow of a ship and moving slightly as if tortured. 18 He surrounded her with
anxious possessive jealous tenderness, but in obedience to what he professed
to think were her wishes, he did not come to see her. 19. Thus they remained
utterly obsessed with themselves and each other, and some natural healing
process of which Dorina felt she ought to know the secret could not take
place.

Exercise 2

Correct the following sentences:
Climbing down the tree, one of the eggs broke. / The sweetly-smelling
flowers in the garden are his most prized possession. / Before you go on
changing the subject, please consider his proposition. / He bought himself a
new suit of clothes, for attending his sisters wedding. / The incessant
shouting around the house woke Susan up; she could hear her heart beat
wildly and her blood race in her veins. / Whenever I visited my aunt, I was
made say Grace before every dinner. / I would very much like walking out in
the rain, so shall we? / Billy was said to murder his parents when he was only
five. / In the end, I never got used to listen to Susans endless gossiping about
her friends. / You oughtnt behave so rudely to your best friends; this always
makes us feel embarrassed.

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Exercise 3

Translate the following:
1. a) She accused Hugh Whitebread, of all people, (and there he was, her old
friend Hugh, talking to the Portuguese Ambassador) , of kissing her in the
smoking-room to punish her for saying that women should have votes. Vulgar
men did, she said. And Clarissa remembered having to persuade her not to
denounce him at family prayers which she was capable of doing with her
daring, her recklessness, her melodramatic love of being the centre of
everything and creating scenes; and it was bound, Clarissa used to think, to
end in some awful tragedy. Instead of which she had married, quite
unexpectedly, a bald man with a large buttonhole who owned, it was said,
cotton mills at Manchester. And she had five boys!
(Virginia Woolf Mrs Dalloway)
b) Clare lay in a very hot bath. She felt as when, a little girl, she had done
something unpleasing to her governess, without discovery. But poor dear
Tony! A pity men were so impatient. They had as little liking for cool
philandering as for shopping. They rushed into shops, said: Have you such
and such? No? and rushed out again. They hated trying on, being patted here
and there and turning their heads to look at their back views. To savor what
was fitting was to them anathema. Tony was a child. She felt herself much
older by nature and experience. Though much in request before her marriage,
Clare had never come into close contact with those who, centered in London
and themselves, were devoid of belief in anything but mockery, motion and
enough money to have from day to day a good time. At country houses she
had met them of course, but withdrawn from their proper atmosphere into the
air of sport. Essentially, an open-air person, of the quick and wiry, rather than
the hefty type, she observed unconsciously the shibboleths of sport.
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Transplanted to Ceylon, she had kept her tastes and spent her time in the
saddle or on the tennis ground. Reading many novels, she professed, indeed,
to keep abreast of the current, with all its impatience of restraint, but lying in
her bath, she was uneasy. It had not been fair to put Tony on such strain as
that of last night. The closer she allowed him to come to her, short of the
contacts of love, the more she would be torturing him.
(John Galsworthy - Over the River)

2. Dupa ce a facut tirgul cu negustorul, Belizarie nu s-a grabit sa mearga si sa
vada daca are ceva de facut sau sa afle daca Gora vrea ceva in afara de plata
cuvenita. Nici Gora nu l-a chemat un timp. Cind l-a chemat, nu a facut-o
pentru asta. ea a fost mereu printre putinii din Metopolis care l-au socotit
totusi pe Belizarie medic si, cu ochiul ei sigur de a cintari oamenii, il numea
pe Belizarie o fiinta mindra, sensibila si ofensata de rautatile fara sir ale
lumii. Ori de cite ori s-a simtit bolnava nu se temuse sa-l cheme, dincolo de
metodele lui brutale pe care nu le aplica oricui si oricum, era un bun sfatuitor,
numai sa fi stiut sa-i cistigi increderea. Nu la multa vreme de la transferul de
proprietate, Gora a inceput sa-l cheme tot mai des. Bolnava nu se simtea, dar
vizitele acestui om din topor, viguros si vesel in felul lui, ii faceau bine. Se
auzea aproape zilnic din casa Gorei risul gros al lui Belizarie.
(Stefan Banulescu Cartea de la Metopolis)
3.Rindurile dvs.au reusit sa ma insenineze o vreme si sa-mi risipeasca tristetea
nedeslusita care a insotit aparitia Jurnalului. Pesemne incordarea cu care am
asteptat sa-l vad aparut mi-a epuizat resursele bucuriei. Sau poate senzatia ca
m-am despartit, astfel, de ceea ce ar fi trebuit sa ramina capitalul meu de
intimitate in spirit? Paginile acestea, cre s-au nascut lent, de-a lungul a cinci
ani de zile, reprezentau forma mea de a-mi satisface nevoia fireasca a
participarii la un mister. De uitat, nu puteam sa le uit, si in plus, aveam tot mai

267
mult impresia ca experienta de exceptie cuprinsa in ele implica urgenta
comunicarii.
4. Cind a murit Gora Serafis, s-a intimplat ca Belizarie Belizarie sa fie in
odaia ei. A fost gasit plingind in urlete, pe scaunul lui tare, tropaind furios cu
talpile late pe podea.
(St. Banulescu ibid.)
5. Masura pe care o foloseste Polider e aceea pe care I-o da memoria lui
asupra clientului, vaazut cindva, o data sau de doua ori. Cind intilneste un om
sau chiar cind numai il zareste de departe, ochiul lui Polider ii cuprinde talia,
lungimea picioarelor, latimea si ascutisul labei, chiar daca omul cu pricina n-
are deocamdata nevoie de pantaloni.
6.Neputinta batrinelor de a se ingriji singure si de a trai omeneste, cit mai au
de trait, poate fi compensata, in schimbul micilor averi pe care le detin,
printr-o asistenta activa din afara, care insa trebuie sa nu sustina, ci sa bazeze
negotul particular de ani, desfasurat haotic si fara perspectiva privind
renasterea orasului luat in intregimea lui.
7. Pe Glad nu-l pricep si poate ca e inutil sa-l pricepi si sa-l explici. I-am dat
haine de general pentru ca in acelea de soldat nu-mi dovedea nimic si, mi-am
zis, ca si tine, sa incerc maximumul pentru a obtine macar minimumul. Ce a
iesit, se stie. Personal, nu pricep nimic. Daca tu, Milionarule, poti face ceva
sa-l explici si sa-l justifici, fa-o. are nevoie.
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Exercise 4*

Consider the following texts. Translate them, paying attention to the way
symmetry is built through subordination:

1.
And by the Leem lived a lock-keeper. Who was may father. Who was a
phlegmatic yet sentimental man. Who told me, when I was even younger than
you, that there was no one walking the world who hadnt once suckedWho
was wounded at the third battle of Ypres. And had a brother killed in the same
battle. Who when asked about his memories of the War, would invariably
replay that he remembered nothing. Yet who when he was not asked would
sometimes recount bizarre anecdotes of those immemorial trenches and
mudscapes, as if speaking of things remote and fantastical in which his
involvement was purely speculative. (..) Who fell in love with one of the
nurses. Who came home from the war, a wounded soldier, and married the
nurse who nursed him back to health. A story-book romance. Who, delivered
from the holocaust, could scarcely believe that this enchanted chapter of
events was happening to him. Whose love was returned with surprising
readiness.

2.
Could he be blamed, my grandfather, Ernest Richard Atkinson, for being a
renegade, a rebel? Could he be blamed for showing but scant interest in his
future prospect as head of the Atkinson Brewery and the Atkinson Water
Transport Company? Could he be blamed having been sent by his father,
Arthur Atkinson M.P., to Emmanuel College, Cambridge, to receive the finest
education any Atkinson had so far received for squandering the time in

269
undergraduate whims, for flirting with ideas (European socialism, Fabianism,
the writings of Marx) directly aimed at his fathers Tory principles; for
spending large parts of his vacations in nefarious sojourns in London, where
he was called upon by the police to explain his presence at a rally of the
unemployed (he was there out of curiosity) and whence he brought back to
Kessling Hall in the year 1895 the woman, Rachel Williams, daughter of an
ill-paid journalist, to whom, he brazenly declared (omitting to mention other
ladies with whom he had toyed), he had already engaged himself?

3.
But does merriment belong to him who gives it? Testimonies from those
times amply confirmed by his last years, and by the photographs which I
still possess of my maternal grandfather (brooding brows, deep-set, glowering
eyes) suggest that even in his restless youth Ernest Atkinson was a
melancholy, a moody man. That the flightiness of those early years was
merely pursued as is so often the case to combat inner gravity; that his
dabbling with socialist doctrines was not done solely to spite his father but
out of an inclination (true to his name) to take the world in earnest; that he
dedicated himself to the manufacture of merriment because despondency
urged him, and because but this is mere speculation, mere history teachers
conjecture he had learnt such dark things (what death-bed confessions
preceded old Arthur to the grave in 1904?) about his far-reaching progenitors
that he wished for nothing more than to be an honest and unambitious
purveyor of barrels of happiness.

4.
He described I have in my possession a verbatim copy of this brave and
doomed speech how it was conscience alone and no love of taking public
stances (heckles from rear) that had spurred him into the political field. How
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fear for the future had already soured his pleasure-giving role of brewer. How
he foresaw in the years ahead catastrophic consequences unless the present
mood of jingoism was curbed and the military poker-playing of the nations
halted. How civilisation (had Ernest inherited the prophetic gifts of Sarah? Or
was he, as many suspected and attested with nudges to their neighbours, just
plain drunk?) faced the greatest crisis of its history. How if no one took
steps an inferno
(Graham Swift Waterworld)

5.
Unele lucruri sunt sortite s rmn venic netiute, nu-i de ajuns s vrei
s le ptrunzi, trebuie s te vrea i ele; uneori se ntmpl s nu afli singurul
adevr pe care ar fi trebuit s-l cunoti, ca rostul vieii tale s fie altul.
S fi tiut de pild Ion Constantinescu istoria adevrat a morii tatlui
su. Cum lucra tata odinioar cu Gheorghe la un atelier mecanic.
Cum s-a mbtat Gheorghe, omul care trage azi s moar i l-a lovit pe
tatl lor cu o rang n cap.
Cum erau ei mici i au rmas fr tat.
Cum s-a fcut o anchet i nimeni n-a spus un cuvnt despre Gheorghe,
ca s fie accident de munc i s primeasc maic-sa pensie, ca s-i ridice
copiii i s-l ie pe el, Ion, la coal.
Cum a stat Gheorghe n sat, tiindu-i tot satul fapta.
Cum a fcut el cincizeci de ani de nchisoare la rani, fr s poat pleca
nicieri. Cum l-au pzit cu toii s-i ispeasc vina acolo.
Cum a ajuns el, Ion, om mare, fr s cunoasc nimic din toate acestea.
Cum a trit el, satul, cu taina aceasta, ca s ajung Ion om vestit.
Cum au tcut ei, ca Ion s nu duc povara unui secret att de ngrozitor.
Cum a fost viaa lui ca lacrima i cum a fost a lor.

271
Cum Gheorghe e n pat de un an de zile i nu poate s moar, dac nu-I
iertat de nevasta celui ucis, de mama lor.
Cum umbl sora cea btrn a lui Gheorghe s-I roage pe fraii lui s o
nduplece pe mama.
Cum se poate tri o via i viaa s aib un rost.
Cum preul vieii a fost ntotdeauna altul dect acela pe care l-a cunoscut
el.
Cum toate sunt numai cum sunt i pururea altfel.
(Tudor Octavian Istoria unui obiect ciudat)
6.
Ceea ce s-a ntmplat dup aceea nu e treaba nimnui i nici chiar a mea: le
adun i le las pentru btrnee, cnd voi fi singur, cnd Ipu va fi mort i
putrezit: e o poveste foarte lung, cum am ajuns eu stpnul lui, singurul lui
stpn, cum s-a bgat slug la biseric i la printele Ioan numai ca s fie
aproape de mine i s m slujeasc, mpotriva tuturor; cum mi-am dat seama
ct de greu e s ai putere asupra cuiva; cum o singur greeal ca aceea de
azi, cind i-am spus c o s ne jucm mai trziu - pune totul in discuie, te
umple de disperare pentru c-i dai seama c nu eti pregtit pentru via i c
dac se adun, cu sau fr voie, greeli dintr-astea, ajungi pe nesimite n
rndul stpnilor-robi, ncepi s te simi bine i nu e bine!
(Titus Popovici Moartea lui Ipu)

Exercise 5

Translate into English, paying attention to the syntactical concepts studied in
the classroom:
1. E un barbarism monstrous care ar scoate din mormint pe toti luptatorii
limbii literare. L-au derivat cei din teatru, din franuzete, mai nti ntr-o
locuiune rmas culiselor cu exclusivitate: a face foame. Cnd actria,
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tnr i frumoas, e ndrgostit de un actor, tnr i frumos i el, care-i cere
s-l ia de brbat, ea i rspunde cu chibzuin: Eti nebun? Vrei s facem
foame amndoi ?
2. Pe lng noi treceau grupuri care parc nu aveau altceva de fcut dect s
ne examineze. Desigur c toate grupurile se examinau i ntre ele, dar nu
puteam s mi dau seama efectiv de acest fapt, dect cnd noi eram obiectul
lui. Tot aa, de pild, nevasta-mea, uneori i astzi chiar, privindu-m n ochi,
viu i cu o strlucire pasionat, mi ddea impresia c numai pentru mine are
aceast privire.
3. Sptmnile urmtoare m-am simit din ce n ce mai mult convalescent.
Aceste ntrevederi cu nevast-mea m fceau s suport nesfrit mai uor
ruptura i eram foarte mulumit de bunul gnd pe care-l avusesem,
provocndu-le. Deprtarea nu mai era o dram unic i distrugtoare de
organe, ci un sistem de acomodare.
4. ntr-o vreme, parc ncepusem s-o uit. Descoperisem un soi de preocupri,
care o lsau pe ea pe planul al doilea. Niciodata nu ajunsesem la o att de
mare putere de concentrare. Reluasem studiul i cteva zile am avut impresia
c am gasit o explicaie menit s revoluioneze filozofia. Era n mine o
claritate binefctoare, asemeni calmului pe care i-l d morfina.
5. Pe strad umblam aproape automat, cu toat atenia rsfrnt nuntru. Nu
tiam nici pe ce strzi merg, nu auzeam nimic n jurul meu i cteodat,
traversnd, dam buzna peste automobile. Tot ce era raz de lumin era
absorbit n interior. S-a ntmplat s pesc i necazuri penibile, sau ridicole.
6. Nu ineam minte nimic din ceea ce fceam. Era s am din cauza asta un
duel. Am fost oprit pe bulevard de un domn i o doamn, fost prieten din
copilrie. Am nceput, pe jumtate prezent, s-i srut mna ei i pe urm,
continund, i-am srutat-o i domnului. A devenit palid, i-a tras mna brusc
i m-a dezmeticit i pe mine. Abia mai trziu lucrurile s-au lmurit.

273
7. Am nceput, firete, iar, s merg ntins, cci dac suferisem pn s obin
nvoirea, acum pream scpat ca dintr-o pratie i nebunia revederii cretea n
mine ca un spasm, pe care nimic nu l-ar mai fi putut opri pn la istovirea lui.
Ajuns nc dimineaa n pia, simeam c mi se dilat inima, cutnd o
trasur pentru Cmpulung.
8. n clipa aceea am simit c voi dezerta pentru trei zile, orice s-ar ntmpla
cu mine, ca s viu prin surprindere s vd ce face. I-am rspuns c nu tiu, c
nu m-am gndit la asta. Adevrul e ns c m gndisem. De multe ori
imaginam cte o btlie i m vedeam conducndu-mi plutonul cu o bravur
att de extraordinar, nct toi efii mei s se entuziasmeze.
9. Dac nemii naintau, m puteau prinde fr lupt, cci e nendoios c n-a
fi fost n stare s m apr. De altminteri, nici nu mai aveam cui comanda, cci
nu aveam lng mine dect apte oameni. E o problem, care i n cealalt
via m-a obsedat mereu, nc din ultimul an de liceu : sunt inferior celorlali
de vrsta mea ?
10. De la o vreme oboseala mi d ca un val de nebunie. De trei zile i trei
nopi n-am dormit dect asear, n anul oselei dou ore si azi dup-mas
alte dou. Acum picioarele nu mai gsesc nici mcar sprijin, n noroiul care
alunec sub ele, de parc am cauciuc la genunchi. A vrea s m las jos, s
treac peste mine bocancii camarazilor.
11. Dac prin absurd nu se ntmpl nimic, i dac merg ntins, aa ca un
cadavru ambulant, singur n picioare n tot largul cmpului, fr s m opresc
o clip, orice s-ar ntmpla, sfertul de ceas trebuie s treac. Dar nu trebuie s
m opresc sub nici un cuvnt, i nici s fiu atent la ce e in jurul meu ca s-mi
pierd curajul, i s nu ameesc, ca un acrobat, care nu trebuie s se uite n jos
12. A doua zi m-am mutat la hotel pentru saptamina pe care aveam s-o mai
petrec in permisie. I-am daruit nevesti-mi inca o suma ca aceea ceruta de ea la
Cimpulung si m-am interesat sa vad cu ce formalitate ii pot darui casele de la
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274
Constanta. I-am scris ca-i las absolute tot ce e in casa, de la obiecte de pret, la
carti... de la lucruri personale, la amintiri. Adica tot trecutul.
13. La un moment dat, Prunoiu incepu sa spuna cum se muncise la formarea
comitetului. Auzindu-l, Anghel se dadu mai aproape si se facu atent. In
curind, de uimire, nu mai pricepu nimic. Se asteptase ca Prunoiu sa nu
pomeneasca nimic despre organizatie. Nu numai ca pomeni tot timpul de
organizatie, dar si lauda Grozav pe Mitrica si pe Pascu. Numai de Anghel nu
pomeni nici un cuvint.
14. Ilie i-a povestit apoi ca acolo, la fata locului, a stat mult pe ginduri pina sa
le spuna prietenilor pe sleau ceea ce gindea. Ii venea greu, stia bine ca dupa
aceea ei au sa-l ocoleasca. Ii parea rau si de Gavrila, care era un om de treaba
si cu care se ajuta la nevoie. Greu era din partea asta, dar nu se mai putea,
trebuia sa le spuna.
15. Ilie se mira de purtarea curierului. Stan arata foarte ingrijorat de ce-o sa
pateasca Ilie ca nu venise mai dereme. Se vedea ca fusese el insusi luat la rost
ca nu-l adusese pina acum pe Ilie Barbu. Ii spuse sa mai astepte nitel, dar nu-i
spuse si de ce, ca si cind faptul ca tovarasul presedinte si Anghel se dusesera
sa stea la masa ar fi fost un secret pe care Ilie nu trebuia sa-l stie.
16. Ilie nu-l asculta. Se uita nemiscat la Iancu, cu mirare, cu un soi de ciudata
nedumerire. Nu semana deloc cu Iancu acela de-acum cincisprezece ani. Nici
macar cu cel de acum trei ani, de la proces, nu mai semana. Acum trei ani i se
uita in fata cu indrazneala. Acum isi ferea privirea, se uita in jos, parca i-ar fi
fost frica.
17. Lui Iancu ii era frica intr-adevar sa se uite la Ilie, dar nu pentru ceea ce-si
inchipuia acesta. Iancu se stapinea sa nu-i sara lui Ilie in git. Trebuise sa se
scoale la vederea lui si sa mai joace si o comedie. Uite, acum trebuia sa-i
raspunda lui Ghioceoaia :
- Ma, eu am venit sa va intreb, nu trebuie sa va suparati, spuse el cu un glas
ciudat, parca ar fi vorbit in vis.

275
18. Zimbea siret, bagase de seama ca Anghel se preface. Vazuse apoi ca
ceilalti se uitau din cind in cind la omul ala pe care Ilie nu-l cunostea, apoi se
uitau la Ilie, apoi din nou se intorceau spre omul ala. Ilie nu intelesese nimic,
dar, fara sa-si dea seama de ce, i se paru ca aici e ceva. Se uita si el mai
staruitor la tovarasul necunoscut. Ridica sprincenele plin de uimire : omul ii
intimpinase privirea deschis, zimbind foarte bucuros si clatinind a mustrare
din cap.
19. Lui Prunoiu i-ar fi placut mai mult ca Sergiu sa-i spuna direct ce crede,
asa cum facuse pina acum, nu sa-i pomeneasca de Turlea. Aici era ceva,
trebuia sa se poarte cu grija. Rau a facut ca a baut aseara la circiuma cu
ceilalti. Nu era nevoie, le facuse si-asa destula astmosfera, cum zicea Anghel.
E adevarat ca lumea stie ca sint prietenii lui, dar prietenia e una si treaba e
alta.
20. - Ce sa fac, ma gindesc la lumea asta care te da asa la o parte, raspunse Ilie
aratind cu capul spre birou.
Cel care intrebase nu zise nimic, i se paru prea indraznet raspunsul lui Ilie. Ar
fi vrut sa auda ceva mai ocolit, vorbe asa si-asa, care puteau fi intoarse dupa
cum ar fi fost nevoie . se indeparta nepasator. Nu poti vorbi ca lumea cu
Ilie asta , parea sa spuna cu nepasarea lui.

Exercise 6*

Analyse the following texts syntactically; comment on the underlined phrases:
1. Henry would have been so touched to believe that a man he deeply admired
should care a straw for him that he wouldnt play with such a presumption if it
were possibly vain. In a single glance of the eye of the pardonable Master he
read - having the sort of divination that belonged to his talent that this
personage had ever a store of friendly patience, which was part of his rich
outfit, but was versed in no printed page of a rising scribbler. There was even
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276
relief, a simplification, in that: liking him so much already for what he had
done, how could one have liked him any more for a perception which must at
the best have been vague?
2. It was necessary to Pauls soreness to believe for the hour in the intensity of
his grievance all the more cruel for its not being a legal one. It was
doubtless in the attitude of hugging this wrong that he descended the stairs
without taking leave of Miss Fancourt, who hadnt been in view at the
moment he quitted the room. He was glad to get out into the honest dusky
unsophisticated night, to move fast, to take his way home on foot. He walked
a long time, going astray, paying no attention.
3. Winterbourne wondered whether she was seriously wounded, and for a
moment almost wished that her sense of injury might be such as to make it
becoming in him to attempt to reassure and comfort her. He had a pleasant
sense that she would be very approachable for consolatory purposes. He felt
then, for the instant, quite ready to sacrifice his aunt, conversationally; to
admit that she was a proud, rude woman, and to declare that they neednt
mind her. But before he had time to commit himself to this perilous mixture
of galantry and impiety, the young lady, resuming her walk, gave an
exclamation.
4. It was impossible to regard her as a perfectly well-conducted young lady;
she was wanting in a certain indispensable delicacy. It would therefore
simplify matters greatly to be able to treat her as the object of one of those
sentiments which are called by romancers lawless passions. That she should
seem to wish to get rid of him would help him to think more lightly of her and
to be able to think more lightly of her would make her much less perplexing.
But Daisy, on this occasion, continued to present herself as an inscrutable
combination of audacity and innocence.
5. He flattered himself on the following day that there was no smiling among
the servants when he, at least, asked for Mrs.Miller at her hotel. She was one

277
of those American ladies who, while residing abroad, make a point, in their
own phrase, of studying European society; and she had on this occasion
collected several specimens of her diversely born fellow-mortals to serve, as it
were, as text book. Her daughter, on the other hand, was not a young lady to
wait to be spoken to. She rustled forward, in radiant loveliness, smiling and
chattering, making Paul stop and look at her.
6. When Daisy cane to take leave of Mrs.Walker, this lady conscientiously
repaired the weakness of which she had been guilty at the moment of the
young girls arrival. She turned her back straight upon Miss Miller and left
her to depart with what grace she might. Daisy turned very pale and looked at
her mother, but Mrs Miller was humbly unconscious of any violation of the
usual social forms. She appeared, indeed, to have felt an incongruous impulse
to draw attention to her own striking observance of them.
7. I preferred that crumbling things should be allowed to crumble at their ease.
My goddaughter was quite of my way of thinking; she had a high appreciation
of antiquity. Advising with me, often, as to projected changes, she was
sometimes more conservative even than I, and I more than once smiled at her
archaeological zeal, declaring that I believe she had married the Count
because he was like a statue of the Decadence. I had a constant invitation to
spend my days at the Villa, and my easel was always planted in one of the
garden-walks; so I finally grew to have a painters passion for the place.
8. He left me musing, uncomfortably, and wondering what the deuce he
meant. The Count certainly chose to make a mystery of the Juno, but this
seemed a natural incident of the first rapture of possession. I was willing to
wait for permission to approach her, and in the meantime I was glad to find
that there was a limit to his constitutional apathy. But as the days elapsed I
began to be conscious that his enjoyment was not communicative, but
strangely cold and shy and sombre. That he should admire a marble goddess
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was no reason for his despising mankind; yet he really seemed to be making
invidious comparisons between us.
9. H. was only half satisfied with this, for it was by no means definite to him
that Bohemians were also to be saved; if he could be sure perhaps he would
become one himself. Yet he never suspected Mr Vetch of being a govermental
agent, though E. Poupin had told him that there were a great many who
looked a good deal like that: not of course with any purpose of incriminating
the fiddler, whom he had trusted from the first and continued to trust. The
agent became a very familiar type to H, and, though he had never caught one
of the infamous brotherhood in the act there were plenty of persons to whom
he had no hesitation in attributing the character.
10. H. wondered what they were talking about, and perceived that it must be
something important, for the stranger was not a man who would take an
interest in anything else. H. was immensely struck with him, could see he was
remarkable, and felt slightly aggrieved that he should be a stranger: that is that
he should be apparently a familiar of Lisson and yet that M.Poupin should not
have thought his young friend from Lomax Place worthy up to this time to be
made acquainted with him. I know not to what degree the visitor in the other
chair discovered these reflections on Hs face.
11. The close logic of this speech and the quaint self-possession with which
the little bedridden speaker delivered it struck H. as amazing and confirmed
his idea that the brother and sister were a most extraordinary pair. It had a
terrible effect on poor Lady Aurora, by whom so stern a lesson from so
humble a quarter had evidently not been expected and who sought refuge
from her confusion in a series of pleading gasps, while Paul, with his
humorous density, which was deliberate, and acute too, not seeing, or at any
rate not heeding, that she had been sufficiently snubbed by his sister, inflicted
a fresh humiliation in saying: Rosys right, its no use trying to buy yourself
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12. She got up quickly when Paul had ceased speaking; the movement
suggested she had taken offence and he would have liked to show her he
thought she had been rather roughly used. But she gave him no chance, not
glancing at him for a moment. Then he saw he was mistaken and that if she
had flushed considerably it was only with the excitement of pleasure, the
enjoyment of such original talk and of seeing her friends at last as free and
familiar as she wished them to be.
13. It may easily be believed that he criticized his inclination even while he
gave himself up to it, and that he often wondered he should find so much to
attract in a girl in whom he found so much to condemn. When he himself was
not letting his imagination wander among the haunts of the aristocracy and
stretching it in the shadow of the ancestral beech to read the last number of
some fashionable magazine, he was occupied with contemplations of a very
different kind: he was absorbed in the struggles of millions whose life flowed
in the same current as his and who, though they constantly excited his disgust
and made him shrink and turn away, had the power to chain his sympathy.
14. At his suggestion she had retracted the falsehoods with which she had
previously tried to put the boy off, and had made at last a confession which he
was satisfied to believe as complete as her knowledge. H. could never have
told you why the crisis had occurred on such a day, why his question had
broken out at that particular moment. The strangeness of the mater to himself
was that the germ of his curiosity should have developed so slowly; that the
haunting wonder which now, as he looked back, appeared to fill his whole
childhood, should only after so long an interval have crept up to the air.
15. His having the courage to disinter from The Times in the reading-room of
the British Museum a report of his mothers trial for the murder of Lord
Purvis, which was very copious, the affair having been quite a cause celebre;
his resolution in sitting under that splendid dome and, with his head bent to
hide his hot eyes, going through every syllable of the ghastly record had been
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an achievement of comparatively recent years. There were certain things
Pinnie knew that appalled him; and there were others, as to which he would
have given his hand to have some light, that it made his heart ache supremely
to find she was honestly ignorant of.
16. At the theatre, he felt there was a pleasing inconsequence in Marys being
moved to tears in the third act of the play, where the Pearl of Paraguay,
disheveled and distracted, dragging herself on her knees, implored the stern
hidalgo her father to believe in her innocence in spite of circumstances
appearing to condemn her a midnight meeting with the wicked hero in the
grove of coconuts. It was at this crisis none the less that she asked H. who his
friends were in the principal box on the left of the stage and let him know that
a gentleman seated there had been watching him at intervals for the past half
hour.
17. There was not a country in the world he appeared not to have ransacked,
and to H. his trophies represented a wonderfully long purse. The whole
establishment, from the low-voiced inexpressive valet who, after he had
poured brandy into tall tumblers, solemnized the very popping of soda-water
corks, to the quaint little silver receptacle in which he was invited to deposit
the ashes of his cigar, was such a revelation for our appreciative youth that he
felt himself hushed and depressed, so poignant was the thought that it took
thousands of things he then should never possess nor know to make a
civilized being.
18. H. had seen plenty of women who chattered about themselves and their
affairs a vulgar garrulity of confidence was indeed a leading characteristic
of the sex as he had hitherto learned to know it but he was quick to perceive
that the great lady who now took the trouble to open herself to him was not of
a gossiping habit; that she must be on the contrary, as a general thing,
proudly, ironically reserved, even to the point of passing with many people
for a model of the unsatisfactory. It was very possible she was capricious; yet

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the fact that her present sympathies and curiosities might be a caprice wore in
her visitors eyes no sinister aspect.
19. H. didnt mind, with the poor, going into questions of their state it even
gave him at times a strange savage satisfaction; but he saw that in discussing
them with the rich the interest must inevitably be less: the rich couldnt
consider poverty in the light of experience. Their mistakes and illusions, their
thinking they had got hold of the sensations of want and dirt when they hadnt
at all, would always be more or less irritating. It came over H. that if he found
this deficient perspective in Lady Auroras deep conscientiousness it would
be a queer enough business when he should come to pretending to hold the
candle-stick for the princess.
20. One evening in November he had after discharging himself of a
considerable indebtedness to Pinnie still a sovereign in his pocket a
sovereign that seemed to spin there under the equal breath of a dozen different
uses. He had come out for a walk with a vague intention of pushing as far as
Audley Court; and lurking within this nebulous design, on which the damp
breath of the streets, making objects seem that night particularly dim and
places particularly far, had blown a certain chill, was a sense of how nice it
would be to take something to Rose, who delighted in a sixpenny present and
to whom he hadnt for some time rendered any such homage.
(Henry James The Princess Casamassima)

Exercise 7*

Explain the ungrammaticality of the starred underlined
words/phrases/sentences:
1. No one ever listens to her./ * Anyone doesnt listen to her.
2. Neither the teacher nor the students *understands the problem.
3. *Old, young men were invited.
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4. *Bucharest I have known for ages is not a city easy to forget.
5. I didnt go to the concert and *nor went my sister.
6. She didnt ever buy anything anywhere on that trip./ *She ever bought
nothing anywhere on that trip.
7. Alice is the cutest girl I have *always seen.
8. They threw all the people and parcels *who filled the bus.
9. Either John or he * have got to give in.
10. That house *of which garden you liked so much is not for sale.
11. He put back the book he consulted *on the shelf.
12. Who do you think they killed *him?

Exercise 8*:

Identify the non-finite forms in the texts below. State a) their type b) their
function c) what kind of logical subject they have. Can you identify any verbal
nouns in these texts?
a) At the same moment my stomach seemed to come sliding from
somewhere else. There was a soft awkward scraping at the end of the row
as six people rose hastily to let me out. I blundered by, slipped on some
steps, the terrible relentless sweet sound still gripping my shoulders with
its talons. I walked fast. I was definitely going to be sick.
b) I got up and got well away from her this time, walking quickly. I saw her
as a vision, her red and blue silk tulip dress spread by her legs, striding
like a Spartan maid, her shining blue feet twinkling, her arms held out.
And now again she made me stop in front of her shining figure.
c) When I saw her sitting there, I came straight out of the flat and closed the
door behind me and said, Oh, Rachel, how marvellous to see you! Im
just going to do some urgent shopping, would you like to walk along with
me? I did not want to let her in but I was very glad to see her.

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Exercise 9*:

Choose the most correct answer. One or more solutions can be valid:
1. In the sentence I remembered to mention the problem to him but didnt
have the time the interpretation of the infinitive is a) potential b) factual c)
future-oriented
2. The sentence Let there be an end to this misunderstanding exhibits an
instance of a) Accusative + Infinitive b) control construction c)
Nominative + Infinitive
3. Accusative + Infinitive are characterized by such grammatical phenomena
as a) topicalization b) reflexivization c) passivization
4. The sentence It is fun for Mary to prove this theorem exhibits an instance
of a) Accusative + Infinitive b) For-to construction c) extraposition
5. Participial constructions differ from gerundial ones in that they: a) have
aspectual features b) can be modifiers c) are fully verbal constructions
6. Gerunds are characterized by: a) extraposition b) combination with
particles and conjunctions c) the ability to fulfill a subject/object function
7. The sentence Bill shouted to me for the next recruit to be tall exhibits an
instance of a) obligatory Indirect Object control b) for-to infinitive c)
extraposition
8. The infinitive construction shares the following features with that
complements: a) extraposition b) topicalization from object position c)
passivisation
9. The sentence I bought a gun to kill rats with exhibits an instance of a)
relative infinitival clause b) complement infinitve c) pied piping
10. Verbal Nouns differ from gerunds in that they may exhibit: a) a possessive
determiner b) an of phrase and an adjective c) an of phrase and an
adverb
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Exercise 10*:
Consider the following texts; analyse that clauses and relative
complements in these texts:
1. Rosa could hardly think of anything she would not have given to know
Mischa Foxs mind at the moment. What terrified her most was that she
found deep in her heart a strong wish, which was really alarming, that
Mischa might indeed want to reopen negotiations.
2. And then I ventured to add that, if they were poor, it was all the more
reason for them to let me rent them their rooms. I was confident they must
have had a second kitchen, where my servant, who is a wonderfully handy
fellow, could cook my meals.
3. I notified her that he had faults and peculiarities that made mammas life a
long worry and a martyrdom that she hid wonderfully from the world, but
that we saw and pitied. I said it wasnt fair that we should let another
person marry him.
4. The old women spoke no English, and how much she was aware at all of
where she was and what was going on around her Rosa was unable to
decide.
5. I remember the quiver that took me when I perceived that the niece was in
the room. It almost exceeded my courage that I should be left alone with
so formidable a relic as the aunt. I felt sure it was a decisive moment of
my life.
(Iris Murdoch The Flight from the Enchanter)

Key To Chapter One Practice

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KEY TO PRACTICE

KEY TO CHAPTER ONE PRACTICE INTRODUCTION

Activity 2
1. Margaret was anxious to settle on a house before they left town to pay their
annual visit to Mrs. Munt.
Constituents: Margaret, was anxious, to settle, on a house, before they left
town, to pay their annual visit, to Mrs Munt
Some of these constituents are further decomposable: e.g. was anxious = was
+ anxious, etc.

He was informed on Saturday at noon that he was going to be fired.
Constituents: He, was informed, on Saturday, at noon, that he was going to be
fired
Some of these constituent can be further decomposed as follows: that he was
going to be fired = that + he + was going to be fired, etc.

How much, apart from his distress for parents, this would really hurt, he had
not yet been able to estimate.
Constituents: how much, apart form his distress for parents, this, would really
hurt, he, had not been able to estimate, yet
Some of the constituents are further decomposable: e.g.apart from his distress
= apart from, his, distress, etc.
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KEY TO CHAPTER TWO PRACTICE - SENTENCE
NEGATION

Activity 1
They like her a lot. assertive/ Are you listening to me? non-assertive,
interrogative, positive/ Arent you listening to me? non-assertive,
interrogative, negative/ We didnt come here just to talk. non-assertive,
negative/ Come with me. assertive/ Dont do that. non-assertive, negative.
/ If you like her, dont bother her. first clause is non-assertive, second clause
is non-assertive, negative/ She cant wait to read that book. assertive (cant
wait = is eager to)./ She finally admitted, didnt she? assertive sentence +
tag question, which is not assertive./ Hasnt she arrived? non-assertive,
interrogative, negative/ If you like jazz, listen to this. first clause is an if-
clause, and is non-assertive. Second clause is an imperative, it is assertive. /
She is more interesting than anyone I have ever seen. comparison, non-
assertive/ It is odd that you should like Sartre so much. it is odd requires to
be followed by a subjunctive, which context is non-assertive.

Activity 2
His observation is non-scientific and it is also irrelevant. semantic negation/
Bill isnt interested in syntax and his friends are not interested in syntax.-
syntactic negation for both clauses/ He disapproves of mothers going out to
work.- semantic negation/ He doesnt approve of mothers going out to work.-
syntactic negation/ Nikitas unpleasant face appeared on TV last Thursday
night.- semantic negation/ Nikitas unpleasant face did not appear on TV last
Thursday night.- semantic negation + syntactic negation/ Nikitas not very
unpleasant face did not appear on TV last Thursday. first instance is not
really negative: double negation cancellation. The sentence is however
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287
syntactically negated due to the negative word placed in front of the verb. /
Nikitas not very unpleasant face appeared on TV last Thursday. double
negation cancellation.

Activity 3
She was not without grace or beauty./ When he learned the news, he was
hardly pleased./ Not long ago, everybody used to travel by coach./ He needed
not a little skill to solve that problem./ She doesnt have a special preference
for John. / She does like John, but not more than she does others. / He wasnt
unusually bright./ He was exceptionally cunning./ He was smart enough, but
nothing out of the ordinary./ Hardly interested in the conference, Mr Jones
stood up and left the hall./ Mr Jones was not interested in the talk in the
conference room at all. / Not really convinced by what the had heard, the two
brothers dared to protest./ They werent really confused, only irresolute./ I
must admit that this colour suits me to perfection./ He firmly denied any
connection with the murder committed the previous night./ He was not a little
surprised to see how well the two got on with each other.

Activity 4
They did not tell Susan the truth about Jim. they told the truth to somebody
else./ Susan did not get married to Jim - but to someone else. / I dont like her
very much. I like somebody else. / We dont come here often we visit
some other place. / Susan was not bitten by a dog someone else was. / She
does not hate animals. someone hates animals, but it isnt Susan. / They
didnt leave. someone did that, but it wasnt them.

Activity 5
I dont know much about him, not even this thing. / I can hardly understand
what they are saying, not even when its quiet around. / You have never met
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her, not even when you were very young. / I havent ever seen such a thing,
not even in my dreams. / Should they not have told her the truth, not even part
of it? / Not infrequently, they go skiing in the mountains, *not even at
weekends / In no time he was able to solve the problem, * not even this week /
At no time was he able to solve the problem, not even this week / Not always
a witty interlocutor, Jim felt rather at a loss for words, *did he?/ They caused
us no problems, did they? / No problems were caused after all, were they? /
This boy is no good, is he? / Few of them stayed behind, did they? / A few of
them stayed behind, *did they?

Activity 6
They didnt send many students abroad. negative insertion (contraction)/ I
showed him nothing.- negative incorporation / Not many women are famous
opera composers.- negative attraction / Not a word fell from her lips.-
negative attraction / She said not a word when I spoke to her. negative
attraction / It didnt take him a minute to tell her the secret.- negative insertion
(contraction) / Not a minute did it take him to tell her the secret.- negative
attraction (+ emphasis) / No one ever listens to her.- negative incorporation /
None of them liked house music.- negative incorporation / Not one of them
came to meet her.- negative attraction/ They didnt come to meet her.-
negative insertion (contraction) / I saw nobody.- negative incorporation / I
didnt see anybody.- negative insertion (contraction)/ They never went there.-
negative incorporation/ They didnt ever tell her what bothered them.
negative insertion (contraction)/ He should not be released. negative
insertion.

Activity 7
I can barely look him in the eye. I cannot look him in the eye. I could hardly
wait to hear the news. I couldnt wait to hear the news. / This is hardly the

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time to buy yourself a new fur coat. This is not the time / I scarcely ever
see her. I never see her. / Hardly anybody liked him. Almost nobody liked
him. / Youve eaten hardly anything. You havent eaten a thing. / I seldom
look at her like that. I dont often look at her like that. / Few people came to
see her. Not many people came to see her. / You can hardly blame me for
your mistakes. You cannot possibly blame me for your mistakes. / I hardly
ever look at those paintings. I almost never look at those paintings.

Activity 8
I shall never, never trust a man again.- Never shall I trust a man again. / One
can have peace in life only by avoiding them altogether. Only by avoiding
them altogether can one have peace in life. / A truer word has seldom been
spoken! Seldom has a truer word been spoken! / This nation scarcely ever in
the past faced so great a danger. Scarcely did this nation face so great a
danger in the past. / There is rarely an opportunity for us to serve the
community in this way. Rarely is there an opportunity for us to serve the
community in this way./ Nothing like that ever happened in our street
before.- Never before did anything like that happen in our street./ We seldom
receive such generous praise. Seldom do we receive such generous praise. /
Ann gave him the use of her flat and lent him a car as well. Not only did
Ann give him the use of her flat, but she also lent him a car./ She had no idea
he was a man on the run from the police.- Little did she know that he was a
man on the run from the police./ We never thought he was that sort of fellow.
Never did we think that he was that sort of fellow./ We little suspected when
we started our holiday that it would be like this. Little did we suspect that it
would be like this, when we started our holiday. / You rarely see such an
outstanding bargain. Rarely do you see such an outstanding bargain. / You
shouldnt wander away from the path under any circumstances. Under no
circumstances should you wander away from the path. / I didnt leave the
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office at any time. At no time did we leave the office. / You must on no
account touch this machinery. On no account must you touch this
machinery. / She could rely on nobody but him. Only on this man could she
rely. / We not only ran into the fog but it began to rain. Hardly had we run
into the fog when it began to rain. / The keys couldnt be found anywhere.
Nowhere could the keys be found.

Activity 9
John claims that Susan doesnt trust him. John doesnt claim that Susan
trusts him / I suppose she doesnt care, does she? I dont suppose she cares,
does she?/ Its likely that he wont help her. It isnt likely that he will help
her./ I expect he wont come here again. I dont expect he will come here
again./ I thought I didnt have to do it myself. I didnt think I had to do it
myself. / They believe she does not like them. They dont believe she likes
them./ They suggested that she should not meet Jim. They didnt suggest
that she should meet Jim. / He reckoned he would not win her over. He
didnt reckon he would win her over.

Activity 10
We have already had some snow this winter. We havent had any snow this
winter yet. / They say he once had someone very close. They say he never
had anyone very close. / Come on, you can still do something about it.
Come on, you cant do anything about it any more. / We will see them again
somewhere sometime. We wont see them again anywhere anytime./ We
were somehow surprised by that sudden appearance. We werent surprised
by that sudden appearance at all./ Well, I hope hes somewhat wiser now.
Well I hope he isnt any wiser./ I somewhat like his proposal.- I dont like his
proposal at all. / I think I can help him (to) some (extent). I dont think I can
help him to any extent. / Dont worry, it will stop hurting before tomorrow.

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It wont stop hurting until tomorrow./ Susan got a passing grade in English
and her friend did, too. Susan didnt get a passing grade in English and her
friend didnt, either. / Alice doesnt live here any longer/ more. Alice still
lives here. / I dont feel any better for having had a holiday. I feel much
better for having had a holiday. / Well, Im afraid her husband was never any
good. Well her husband has always been a good person. / You neednt send
her anything. You should send her something. / She hardly ever comes here.
She almost always comes here. /This experiment has revealed something of
importance already. This experiment hasnt revealed anything of importance
yet./ Bob is still living at that address. Bob is no longer living at that address
(is not living at that address any more)/ I can understand both of these
sentences. I cant understand either of these sentences./ I can understand all
of these ten English words. I cant understand any of these ten English
words. / Hundreds of students can find somewhere comfortable to live
Hundreds of students cannot find anywhere comfortable to live./ Some of the
questions on this test he knew how to answer. He didnt know how to
answer any of the questions on this test./ Peter knows some English and so
does John.- Peter doesnt know any English and neither does John (and John
doesnt, either)/ Both John and Peter have pretty wives. Neither John nor
Peter have pretty wives./ Daddy drinks a lot of coffee as he always has.
Daddy doesnt drink much coffee and he never has./ I nearly always have to
clean it myself. I hardly ever have to clean it myself. (I almost never have to
clean it myself)/ Almost everyone of them did well on that exam. Hardly
anyone of them did well on that exam. / You must pay that fine. You
neednt (dont have to) pay that fine. / You must be telling lies. You cant
be telling lies.

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Activity 11
Ion isnt very smart, in fact I dont know a single person in that family who is.
/ He cant have done a thing like that. He isnt that smart./ I dont know a
thing about her, I havent seen her in years. / Please, give me a hand, I want to
lift this stone but it wont budge./ They say this Ph.D. has never studied
anywhere./ Nobody told us a thing, to any of us./ Im sure Mark didnt stir a
finger to make that phonecall. / Jim is so brave. He didnt move a muscle. He
didnt even flinch when the doctor dressed his wound./ You look so tired
today. Its no wonder, I didnt sleep a wink all night./ Would you like a glass
of wine? No thanks, ever since I got this ulcer, I havent touched a drop
before dinner./ You took his leaving you very hard. Oh, I dont give a damn if
he comes back or not./ The police didn't leave a stone unturned in search for
the murderer./ It was clear that something awful had taken place, but she
couldnt remember a thing and couldnt say a word./ I dont know why shes
crying, I havent done anything, I havent laid a finger on her!/ He was the
only one who could have helped them, but he didnt lift a finger to save them./
He was a tough man, he didnt move a muscle when he heard about his sons
death./ Hes a happy man. He doesnt have a red cent in his pocket. / Dont go
on believing him. His opinion isnt worth a cent. / The scene was so funny
that he couldnt help laughing. / Ill be damned if I ever talk to him again./
Have they rung the bell? No, not yet.

Activity 12
Nu-i nimic mai rau pe lume decit un prost batrin. / Nu chema necazul asupra-
ti./ Nu spune nu niciodata./ Nimeni nu-i destept tot timpul./ Zis si facut./
Norocul la noroc trage./ N-o sa faca prea multi purici pe-aici./ Ca sa nu o mai
lungesc, e un magar./ Am avut un car de necazuri./ E un baiat de zahar./ N-
avem nevoie de mina de lucru./ Intrarea oprita/ Accesul interzis./ Astia nu stiu
niciodata pe ce lume sunt./ N-are nici cap nici coada./ Nimic de facut./

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Scuze. Nici o problema./ Deloc descurajat, parasi camera./ Nu-i nici un
deranj./ Nu ca mi-ar pasa, dar ar trebui sa faci ceva in legatura cu asta.

Activity 13
a) deny negative meaning of the verb makes its complement non-assertive
b) hate - negative meaning of the verb makes its complement non-assertive
c) reluctant - negative meaning of the verb makes its complement non-
assertive
d) wrong/ unwilling/ unable - negative meaning of the verb makes its
complement non-assertive e) cutest comparison is a non-assertive context
since only a personal opionion is expressed and nothing is in fact asserted.

Activity 14*
Theres a great danger: you might degenerate and get to see life in a
different light. / He was afraid he might leave earlier and forget his
suitcase at home./ I sit and watch the building so there is no fire on the
ground floor. / You have to take care that nothing bad will happen./ He
didnt come home earlier because he didnt know whether he would want
to eat out.
Only when I found myself knocking at the Magureanus gate, feebly,
slowly, without too much determination, did the proportions of the
adventure I was in start to brutally expand in my mind. I hadnt really
expected miracles, I didnt believe I would get anything from Carol, but I
really hadnt thought I would be treated roughly, thrown out.
Anyway I didnt really fancy the fact that they kept their distance, for I
thought this threatening. We had nothing in common, no memory, no
story, nothing; I had never had the opportunity to prove, one way or
another, that I was a decent man, with the same needs they had.
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With none of these persons was NS on very good terms, which meant that
they didnt really talk or greet each other.
Not for a moment had I thought that, by coming here to the monastery, I
might need a tuxedo in my suitcase. In fact I didnt really want to go that
party.
It wasnt daybreak yet and the appointed place was teeming with people.
It was so packed with people that you could hardly move, so the old man
and the kids had trouble finding a spot wherefrom they could watch.
Hardly had they sat down when they heard a flute.
It was my turn to say something, but I didnt remember where I was so I
had to admit my confusion: I really dont understand a thing from this
case; your story, or the bits I got from it seem to be beyond my
comprehensionI think it anachronical, to say the least, a leftover fom
other times Well, Id be so happy if it were so. Unfortunately, I find it
hard to understand where you are at, he immediately answered me
patronizingly. The world is something completely different from what
you imagine it to be. Its not made up of theories and the like, its not
words, but facts, things you do any moment, good, bad, clear or
confusing, thats what the world is about. We have to judge it as it is, not
as we would like it to be or some other way. Your judgement is false, I
have had the occasion/ plenty of opportunities to see that
After all that morning excitement, when he hadnt been able to repeat the
invitation but hadnt seemed to give up the idea that I would join him on
his trip to B., Radu had calmed down, he was sitting beside me, on the
front seat, watching the dull landscape on the bank of the river almost
indifferently.
I cant really tell what it was that I said last night, or if you understood
what I meant. I was sleepy and tired, let alone irritable. You really made
me mad, I admit, and then I suddenly thought about those friends, the only

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ones I had, and I acted on a whim and went for a walk with them, just to
please myself. I also wanted to tell you that you feel right only after you
pay your debts, no matter how huge they are. Look, we are leaving, soon
well be in town, and if you like, you can go to Ursus, although I dont
really believe you will you would have asked me about it otherwise.
Anyway, its your problem, keep your conscience clean: you have one,
its yours, you do as you think fit, keep it squeaky clean, as Baciu would
have us be, I wont interfere. But I was just wondering, as I was travelling
in the same compartment with that old dog. This question is not really
about you although it suits this situation: could it be that behind all this
big conscience of yours, behind these big, precious words, fear might be
hiding, and an inability to act, and even indolence? You used to say that I
was hiding behind a gun and my fists. But what about you and Melania,
did you ever step up front, to fight, or you are lying hidden, too? A gun is
power, it solves troubles, clears your way, makes highways out of bumpy
roads For even if you didnt pull the trigger to really shoot somebody,
your opponent would fear you and with good reason. Without weapons
theres no way you could be in control, or call the respect of others.
So, what would have dad made out of it? How could I have explained to
him all this, me, a man incapable of explaining the smallest thing, me,
who had never managed to say a convincing yes or no up to that moment?
I didnt want to lie to him, but I didnt want to lie to myself, either, so I
had resigned myself to waiting for him to get tired or change the subject,
although it was a difficult thing to do, because Iuliu kept taunting him for
his own pleasure. He would fire away these stupid questions or slyly
remind him that I hadnt answered his own question yet.
What unspeakable injustice: hardly have you got born, hardly have you
got your bearings in this world when you are supposed to die.
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Father Mitrea told me later that he was so reluctant to know where I was
that he didnt even open the envelope and, as soon as he delivered it, he
went home and didnt stop drinking for two days . The surprised villagers
put it down to problems with his wife, or some other woman, but they
gradually got used to it. The villagers were not very religious, they had
had their share of misfortune and this had made them forgiving: small
things, even adultery or fights were no longer a matter of general interest.
I turned my eyes from the old mans face, firmly determined not to answer
immediately. But it was not because I had no answer to give, but for the
simple reason that I hadnt managed to find any logic in his questions.

Activity 15*:
a) Not many people came to dinner- Negative attraction
b) 1. She wont be able to come back home before tomorrow.- incorrect,
because before is a positive polarity item 2. She will be able to come back
home before tomorrow. - correct 3. She wont be able to come back home
until tomorrow. - correct
c) She didnt have a red cent in her pocket - Syntactic negation
d) I have ordered the pizzas but none of them 1. has yet arrived -correct 2.
have arrived yet the agreement is wrong, the sentence is incorrect 3. has not
arrived yet double negation, incorrect sentence
e) It isnt likely that he will lift a finger to help her, will he?- Negative
raising (transportation)
f)1. She doesnt admire Susan or Jane nor Mimi. incorrect, correlatives are
mixed 2. She admires neither Susan nor Jane nor Mimi. -correct 3. She
admires neither Susan nor Jane.- correct
g)No one has found a solution to any of these problems - Negative
incorporation


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Activity 16*:
a)Sympathy was the last thing (API) she wanted. She didnt have the faintest
(NPI) clue as to what she would do about herself. One thing she knew: she
couldnt do without (NPI) Jim and, yet, she couldnt marry him, either (NPI).
(Iris Murdoch The Black Prince, slightly adapted)

Ultimul lucru pe care i-l dorea era s fie comptimit. N-avea nici cea mai
mic idee cum s procedeze n cazul ei. Dar tia un lucru: nu putea tri fr
Jim i nici nu se putea cstori cu el.

b) But it was rather (API) late. Charlotte was no use (NPI) to anybody (NPI)
any more (NPI). She could hardly (NPI) move and so she didnt stir. Her
stillness, her lack of motion would have to do (API); she couldnt be more
right (NPI) about it. No one should know to what torture she was subjected.
(ibid.)

ns era cam trziu. Charlotte nu mai era de folos nimnui. Nu putea s se
mite, astfel c nici nu se mic. Vor trebui s se mulumeasc cu imobilitatea
ei, incapacitatea ei de a se mica. tia c are dreptate. Nimeni nu va ti ns la
ce tortur era supus.

c) He felt no spring (NPI) of interest in her, which meant that he almost felt
resentment at seeing her now. His spirit was too tired, too troubled, not happy
at all (NPI). He could not at this moment lift a finger (NPI) for anybody
(NPI), much less ((NPI) for her. (ibid.)

Nu simea nici o frm de interes pentru ea, ceea ce nsemna c aproape c
avea resentimente la vederea ei. Avea sufletul prea obosit, prea rscolit, nu era
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deloc fericit. Nu putea in aceasta clip s mite un deget pentru nimeni, cu
att mai puin pentru ea.

d) I would not give in one bit (NPI). I would make not the tiniest(NPI) haste
nor hint at the faintest (NPI) urgency nor by any (NPI) slightest (NPI) gesture
depart from what I once was. (ibid.)
Nu voiam deloc s cedez. Nu aveam de gnd s m grbesc nici un pic sau s
fac vreo aluzie ct de mica la faptul c ar trebui cumva s ne grabim i nici
prin cel mai mic gest s m ndeprtez de la ceea ce fusesem cndva.

e) At length, and not a little unsteadily, he made his way to the screen; there
wasnt a soul around (NPI) and still, his heart was beating fast. (Salman
Rushdie, The Satanic Verses, slightly adapted)

n cele din urm, i destul de hotrt, se ndrept spre paravan. Nu era nici
picior de om n jur i totui, inima i batea nvalnic.

f) The women inside were entirely unimpressed by these devotions, and gave
no encouragement whatsoever (NPI) to the suitors at their barred gates. (ibid.)
Femeile din casp nu erau deloc impresionate de gesturile lor de devotament i
nu ncurajau ctui de puin peitorii din faa porilor ferecate.

g) He saw that she hadnt aged so much (NPI) as a day since he last saw her;
if anything (NPI), she looked younger than ever (NPI), which gave credence
to the rumours which suggested that her witchcraft had persuaded time to run
backwards for her within the confines of her tower room. (ibid.)

i ddea seama c nu mbtrnise prea tare de cnd n-o mai vzuse. Ba
dimpotriv, arta mai tnr ca oricnd, ceea ce susinea zvonurile cum c,

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fiind vrjitoare, reuise s conving timpul s mearg ndrt ntre pereii
odii ei din turn.

h) C. told himself that what all this sex-talk revealed was the weakness of
their so-called grand passion because there was nothing else about it that
was any (NPI) good; there was simply (NPI) no other aspect of their
togetherness to rhapsodize about. (ibid.)

C. i spuse c toat discuia asta despre sex nu dezvluia dect punctele slabe
ale aa zisei lor mari pasiuni ntruct nu exista nimic altceva n ea care s fie
pozitiv n afar de acest lucru. Pur i simplu nu se gsea nici un alt aspect al
apropierii lor despre care s fii n al noulea cer.
i) What did C. care if the school were willing to treat him, on any (NPI) visits
he cared to make, as a visiting Head of State? That sort of thing appealed to
Cs vanity, but his father would have none of it (NPI). The point was, the
school wasnt budging (NPI); the gift was useless, and probably an
administrative headache as well. He wrote to his father refusing the offer. It
was the last time his father tried to give him anything (NPI). Home receded
from the prodigal son.

Ce-i pas lui C. c coala voia s l trateze pe el, sau orice vizite ar fi fcut, ca
pe un preedinte de stat? Acest gen de comportament i gdilau vanitatea, ns
tatl su nici nu voia s aud aa ceva. Problema era ns aceea c coala nu
fcea nici o micare. Darul respectiv era de fapt inutil i probabil o pacoste
administrativ. i scrise tatlui su i refuz oferta. Aceasta fu ultima dat c
tatl su ncerc s-i dea ceva. Cminul primitor i inchise porile pentru fiul
rtcitor.
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KEY TO CHAPTER THREE PRACTICE - QUESTIONS

Activity 1
Where are you Bill?/ Who do you love best? Mother or father?/ Did he go
home or is he still there?/ When did you get married? / How did you get here
so quickly?/ How much did the new skirt cost?/ Why cant they be happy with
the money they make?

Activity 2
What is going on? direct question, correct/ What have you been up to?
direct question, correct/ I wonder what have you two been up to? indirect
question, incorrect due to subject auxiliary inversion/ I wonder what is going
on. indirect question, correct/ I wonder: what is going on? direct question
since there is no real subordination, correct/ I wonder: what have you been up
to? direct question since there is no real subordination, correct/ I wonder what
you two have been up to indirect question, correct/ I dont know whom she
fancies indirect question, correct/ Who does she fancy? direct question,
correct/ I dont know who does she fancy. - indirect question, incorrect due to
subject auxiliary inversion/ Who is she? direct question, correct/ I dont
know who is she indirect question, correct since who is the subject in this
sentence and there is no subject auxiliary inversion, as required/ I dont know
who she is indirect question, correct: in this case who is the predicative and
she is the subject/ He asked me who she is indirect question, incorrect
because the sequence of tenses is not observed/ He asked me who she was
indirect question, correct/ He asked me: who is she? direct question since
there is no real subordination, correct.

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301
Activity 3
a) And, to make her story clear, she gives him details about what kind of
body she has, what sort of colouring she has, what sort of gait, and how
she walks when she knows men are looking.
b) It wouldnt be fair for him to state his opinion about romantic love and
about what women are like since his experience is very limited.
c) You know what, the woman says at a certain point, Im going to give you
my name and address. Ill remember your name and address. For I dont
know how long we will be able to talk.
d) The man tells her a name and an address. The woman tells him what her
name is and where she lives, or better said, where she used to live before
she was arrested.

Activity 4
(Any) trouble?/ Like my new TV set?/ Want me to come along?/ What?/ Join
us?/ Have dinner with me?/ Heard from her lately?/ Any bad news?/ Any mail
for me today? / What for?

Activity 5
1. Did you pick up the children from school? yes/no question
2. Will you lend me some money? yes/no question
3. Which do you like best? wh- question
4. Who did you talk to last night? wh- question
5. Have you heard from her these days? yes/no question
6. What time do shops close today? wh- question
7. Can you keep a secret? yes/no question
8. When did the accident happen? wh- question
9. How long did you wait for me? wh- question
10. What have you been doing lately? wh- question
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Activity 6
1. Your mother is shouting for you. Didnt you hear her?/ Yes, I did, but I
want to play basketball a little longer.
2. Youve been learning German for years, arent you able to speak yet?/
Yes, I am, but Im too shy to try in front of strangers.
3. What a lovely hairdo! Wont you tell me who does it for you?/ No,
because you always copy everything I do!
4. Why arent you coming to the party? Dont you feel like getting out?/
Yes, but Ive got to babysit tonight.
5. You look down, didnt you enjoy the film?/ No, I did not. It was the kind
of film that really depresses me.
6. She had her tenants evicted. Wasnt that a mean thing to do? / Yes, it was.
Shes got a reputation for being heartless.
7. That was a rather tactless thing to say. Didnt you realize she was Anns
sister?/ No, I didnt. You could have mentioned it earlier.
8. There was a terrible car crash. Didnt you see it on the news?/ No, I
didnt. I didnt get home until late last night.
9. Its past your bedtime. Arent you in bed by now?/ No, Im allowed to
stay up late at the weekend.

Activity 7
What company does Peter work for?/ How many cars does Sara own?/ What
does she look like?/ Whats the time?/ How often do you have French
lessons?/ Where exactly did you go on holiday?/ How many students are there
in my class?/ Why wasnt I at work today?/ Whose car was stolen?/ Who
wrote King Lear?/ How long did we live here?/ How much did my new car
cost?/ What did Kay go out for?/ Who did Shirley get married to?/ Whose pen
is that?/ Where does she live?/ What did she drop?

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Activity 8
How did I feel about the company of Rosalie?/ What was I glad for?/ What
sort of buildings are demolished?/ Where must I constantly shift?/ What am I
trying to find?/ What is there left to anchor me?/ Who is it that my soul
anchors?/ What places do I often visit?/ What would I never give up?/ Whose
death would I accept?/ For how long havent I been able to do that?

Activity 9
Whoever opened my letter? subject/ Which toys did he buy? attribute/
Whose card is this? attribute/ How large did he build his boat? Adverbial
of manner, degree word/ When do you meet Susan? Adverbial of time/
How long did that last? - Adverbial of manner, degree word/ Where shall I
put these? Adverbial of place/ Why are doing this? Adverbial of reason/
How did you solve the problem? Adverbial of manner/ What job does he
have? Attribute/ Who did he turn to be? Predicative

Activity 10
1. mind 2. it 3. use 4. not 5. have 6. stay 7. be 8. Anne 9. it 10. did 11. be 12.
to 13. not 14. it 15. go 16. to 17. this 18. be 19. not 20. time 21. to 22. not 23.
did 24. it 25. it

Activity 11
A. For years, sometimes desperately, I did nothing but try to bury the traces of
pain deep inside me, I tried to mend my deformities, to face my fears, my
childish anxieties. Nothing new so far, but I feel somehow lost; I am involved
in this story but it is with my heart, not my mind. So, will I be able to go back
to whatever feelings I had before this incident? Or am I only interested in
gathering a file on a troubled germ-filled universe, a tough merciless world?
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What good would that do? Those that are coming after us have tens of
centuries of history behind them and so do those that are leaving or those that
used to be. Since they didnt benefit from other peoples experience, either,
why gather data for this file after all? And who can judge us, if there is such a
person? There always will be stages of evolution, and the stupid, the idle, the
cowardly, the mediocre will always make a majority and take care to abolish
any new idea that they wouldnt comprehend. Or they would postpone it
indefinitely, at best. Then what? Should I argue for this idea of mine that men
are on the brink of a new evolutionary leap? But file or no file, I still have this
certainty. Something is bound to happen () Maybe I am on the verge of
finding my own path and I am naively dreaming to change the world as I am
changing. A new path what sort of path in fact? I have a chance to change,
to turn over a new leaf, no matter the risk. The risk? That is too mild a word.
I mean failure, the failure I have tasted so many times.

B. There is only one thing I can remember from the whole story: I was
standing in the department room, right in front of the headmasters desk,
blinded by a huge desk lamp: Where were you? What did you do until
midnight? Who did you meet? Confess, or well tell you what to confess! I
couldnt see the man because of the blinding light, I could only guess where
he was. Come on, speak! he would shout. Look me in the eye and tell me
if you are man enough. Who did you meet? The light made me dizzy, I felt I
couldnt budge because of the sweat. You were in the park last night. Who
did you meet, who is your contact? And to what purpose?

C. I am still obsessed with he chance I so generously granted myself back
then; and with the long dark trip I took under those vaults leaking with
reddish dirty water, the rats idly scuttling past, the warm humid stinking air.
And, ever since, notwithstanding the fact that I have been granting myself

305
another chance, I have been constantly wondering, contaminated by the
cynicism of my intelligent uncle: Professor, how many gods can you stand
up to in a lifetime when your weapons are rudimentary and your troops
scarce? And it is absolutely out of the question, Carol cant have helped
feeling that white blinding void that dictated his choice, sealed his fate in that
particular moment pending upon him. Is it fair, is it right to annoy him for
nothing, when in fact I cannot do him any good, when there is no way I can
help him? After all, even if I could do that, against all odds, what would be
the point in settling scores? What good would that do to them, when this
obstinate quest for justice is the only thing that is actually keeping him alive?

Activity 12
You have got enough money, dont you?/ Surely you have enough money,
dont you?/ He will be on time, wont he?/ There is enough food for everyone,
isnt there?/ She used to talk a lot, didnt she?/ Everyone felt happy about it,
didnt they?/ I am dressed smartly enough, arent I?/ Thats your car over
there, isnt it?/ You will pick me up, after all, wont you?/ You will pick me
up at seven, wont you?/ Lets eat dinner now, shall we?/ Dont leave without
me, will you?/ Be a nice girl and bring me that stick, will you?/ You have
been invited, havent you?/ There are a lot of cars on that street, arent there?/
She left an hour ago, didnt she?/ He hates his wife, doesnt he?/ He simply
hates empty words, doesnt he?/ That was your father, wasnt he?/ Tell me,,
will you?/ Let me know,, will you?/ Ann cant speak French, can she?/ She
has a brother, doesnt she?/ I am older than you, arent I?/ I must go now,
mustnt I?/ I may not see you tomorrow, will I?/ You ought not to smoke,
ought you?/ The boy never watched his sister, did he?/ The boy often watched
his sister, didnt he?/ He hasnt any money in his pockets, does he?/ He had
his tooth filled two weeks ago, didnt he?/ He has to marry Susan, doesnt
he?/ There are sure to be two books in that drawer, arent there?/ There
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happened to be a spare seat in the back of the room, wasnt there?/ Few
people like her, do they?/ A few people like her, dont they?/ Each of us is
staying, arent we?/ I dont think you like my music, do you?/ I think you like
my music, dont you?/ They said he liked music, didnt they?

Activity 13
1. reversed polarity tag/ constant polarity tag - disagreement on the part of
the speaker/ negative interrogative/ interrogative
2. negative interrogative/ exclamative/ exclamative + reversed polarity tag
asks for the interlocutors approval/ interrogative + emphatic tag the
meaning is similar with the previous sentence, but the register is more
informal
3. negative interrogative/ declarative/ interrogative/ negative interrogative/
interrogative negative interrogatives have a similar meaning with
interrogatives with a reversed polarity tag
4. same as 3
5. interrogative + constant polarity tag disbelief on the part of the speaker/
negative interrogative it has a similar meaning with the previous
sentence but it is less emphatic/ negative interrogative + subject auxiliary
inversion the speaker has some doubts about whether his interlocutor
enjoyed his talk less emphatic as the first two/ interrogative no
disbelief on the part of the speaker, the speaker only tries to find out
whether the interlocutor liked the talk, no emphasis

Activity 14
Wed better stop work soon, shall we?/ Im right about this, arent I?/ Youd
rather stay in bed than get up early, wouldnt you?/ Anyone can apply for a
scholarship, cant they?/ If we dont get a move on, there wont be much time
left, shall we?/ Lets have a rest, shall we?/ Nobody anticipated what would

307
happen, did they?/ Do try to relax, will you?/ He never used to study so hard,
did he?/ They ought to work much harder, oughtnt they?

Wed better not stop work too soon, shall we?/ Im not right about this, am I?/
Youd rather not stay in bed up early, would you?/ No one can apply for a
scholarship, can they? (or: Not anyone can apply for a scholarship, can they?)

Activity 15
Experts are finding new ways of using the computers all the time./ New uses
of the computers are being found all the time, arent they?/ New uses of the
computers arent found all the time, are they?

One day robots and computers will do all our work for us./ All our work for
us will be done by robots and computers one day, wont it?/ Not all our work
will be done by robots and computers, will it?

I dont think that computers could be installed in every classroom./
Computers couldnt possibly be installed in every classroom, could they?
No one has yet invented a robot teacher./ No robot teacher has been invented
yet, has he?
The government should pay teachers on results./ Teachers should be paid on
results, shouldnt they?/ Teachers should not be paid on results, should they?
Students parents often support them. / Students are often supported by their
parents, arent they?/ Students arent often supported by their parents, are
they?
Student loans might replace grants./ Grants may be replaced by student loans,
wont they?/ Grants may not be replaced by student loans, will they?

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Activity 16
She dyed herself WHAT?/ WHAT do I think Ive found?/ Ive found WHAT
in my soup?/ WHAT are we looking for?/ We are looking for WHAT?!/
WHAT is he interested in?/ He is interested in WHAT?

Activity 17
1. I didnt know where she was leading me to, but I could tell her talking had
a clear purpose: after she had kept silent on the subjects I was really interested
in for such a long time, now she was chatty. During what period had she been
a student? Had she really graduated from school? How had she chosen to
become a cashier and why in Oraca, of all places? Who were her parents? Had
she been married? (no, she didnt wear a ring, but) Who had she been
seeing all those years when Ion Micu and I had been regular customers of that
pub? Had she come to that pub often? Who with? And how was she jealous of
the two of us? She managed to somehow nip in the bud my own desire of
asking her these questions by her talkativeness and by the way in which she
didnt communicate anything through these wordy, secretly humorous
confessions What? she seemed to be saying, arent my stories funny?
Well, yes, they were.

2. Now, Fenia, do you really think that this vixen, Vica, daughter of Andrei
Mortu and the slut of our village, do you honestly think she hasnt kept
contact with her thief of a father? Fenia, keep Condrat away from her, for she
has a knack of making honest men lose their head with her sinful love-
making: look at Petre Litra, Stavre Paici, Chizlinski, Luca Horobet, all god-
fearing husbands and fathers. She has an eye for gentle men, the bitch, she
likes to entrance them, to make them lust after her. Do you think it a
coincidence that Condrat let her join his fishing crew last autumn? Keep him
away from her, Fenia, you are in enough trouble as it is, and then what do you

309
think Vica wants? She figures shed better catch him now, when he hasnt
been taken to the army yet.()

And where do you think Vica landed? In Babadag! Big city, with a railway
station and a mosque. And how do you think she landed there? In red and
yellow, ankle-long flowered calico, her hair pinned with blue combs. Her feet
were shod in round-buckled white velvet sandals she was now above
walking barefoot, the slut! And whose head do you think she turned? None
other than the mullah, the minister of Tartars and Turks. He got him out of his
mosque. The mullah, a seventy-eight year old lad, as pure as freshly
whitewashed walls on Easter. The folk from Babadag city-bred fine people
that they were pretended to hear or see nothing for his sake.

3. So thats why you were so self-confident! Thats why you let the summer
exam session pass and kept doing that simple hard work which she couldnt
understand why you were so keen on? Thats why you let her visit you every
other week? While all this time she figured you had given up college
completely. How could anyone be so sure to pass an entrance exam in autumn
when she for one was beside herself with worry even for a yearly ordinary
exam? And is this why you kept casting patronizing smiles up there on the
train and kept prompting that guy to talk; after all he would have gone back to
C and would have looked for Hertha, whats her name, and would have
broken Mr Gs jaw, whom you kept cursing even if you didnt know him at
all? And then you had this brilliant idea. You said: Doesnt this guy, G, have
a girlfriend, too? And you suddenly saw them transported.

4. He doesnt feel like doing anything until evening. It even takes him a while
to go to the window, dragging his feet listlessly. For what is there to look at?
The ivy-clad kiosk, the wicker chairs under the nut-tree Aaah! Why isnt
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Sophie up in the attic, tending to Gs neck lumps? Why is it that she has come
here? You might think she went out to check on her rose bushes. But why
then did she choose this ungodly hot moment of the day? And how grossly
exaggerated her clothing looks! What a deliberately ostentatious gardening
suit: an old straw hat and a slightly rolled-up skirt! Is she wearing clogs by
any chance? Even a layman would tell you it isnt done! That she has lost her
mind is obvious, for the hose is leaking away and has made a pool of the
alleys, and the gardener has never in his life made such a swamp out of the
garden paths. But when could she have descended from the attic? And how?
Could she have used the exit stairs? And how come the Panama hat is in right
the middle of the garden?
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KEY TO CHAPTER FOUR PRACTICE - COORDINATION

Activity 2
1.Bob entered the room and immediately the telephone rang. sentence
coordination
2. They are living in Italy or they are spending a vacation there. sentence
coordination (further reducible)
3. Jane might sing but I dont think she will. sentence coordination (second
sentence is reduced)
4. John is ready and Mary is ready.- sentence coordination (further reducible)
5. John and Mary are ready. phrasal coordination (it is the result of
reduction performed on coordinated sentences: John is ready and Mary is
ready)
6 John sang and Mary danced. sentence coordination
7. John and Mary are the newly married couple.- phrasal coordination (in this
case, due to the reciprocal verbal expression, the structure does not obtain
from an elliptical sentence coordination)
8. Her pet kitten is black and white. phrasal coordination (originates from
coordinated sentences: Her pet kitten is black and her pet kitten is white.)
9. Our flag is red, yellow and blue. similar situation
10. His speech was coherent and understood by almost everybody. similar
situation

Activity 3
My colleague failed, and I passed, our respective examinations. elliptical
structure (obtained from: My colleague failed his examination and I passed
my examination)
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Peter and John played football. ellipsis (obtained from: Peter played football
and John played football)
Bob and George are admired by their students. ellipsis (obtained from: Bob
is admired by his students and George is admired by his students)
Peter, but not John, plays football. ellipsis (obtained from: Peter plays
football, but John does not play football.)
Joan plays many games, and even tennis. ellipsis (obtained from: Joan plays
many games and she plays even tennis)
John both composed the music and wrote the words. ellipsis (obtained from:
John composed the music and John also wrote the words).

Activity 4
1.The message was ambiguous and difficult to comprehend. 2. A burglar must
have broken in and stolen the jewels. 3. Why did you give a gold watch to
your secretary and a pair of gloves to your wife? 4. Bob may have been
listening to music and humming the tune. 5. Bob seems to be trying hard to
get along with Jane and John with Susan. 6. Jane forced John to shave himself
and Susan to wash himself. 7. Father begged Susan to get married and mother
Jane. 8. Bob thought of his girlfriend and Tom dreamed of his. 9. Yesterday
large flags were flying and this morning small flags were. 10. We can and will
demand payment.

Activity 5
This book and the other, her son and others, your work and mine, her idea and
Johns, that method and those, your proposal and his, many guest or few,
much satisfaction or little


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Activity 6
(a) the old men and women the old men and the old women/ the old men
and the women
(b) simple books and magazines for children simple books for children and
simple magazines for children / books are simple but not for children,
magazines are for children but not simple / books are simple and for
children, magazines are only for children, but not simple, etc.
(c) George and Jane are separated George is married to Jane/ George is
married to some other woman
(d) George and Jane went back to their parents George and Jane are
siblings/ George and Jane are not related, each went back to his own
parents

Activity 7
1. He snapped at him and slapped him. (He snapped at and slapped him) 2. I
like the sentences below or those on the next page. 3. He read, interpreted and
translated the work of his contemporary. 4. He likes and takes care of all stray
cats around his building. 5. I have always fought and will fight for progress. (I
have always fought for progress and always will.) 6. It is an older problem
whether and when he decides to go to New Zealand. 7. Psycholinguistics and
sociolinguistics are important subject matters. 8. He invited his sons and
daughters in law to his birthday party.

Activity 8
1. High and low 2. The facts and figures 3. Pros and cons 4. Life and soul 5.
Ups and downs 6. Swings and roundabouts 7. Law and order 8. Spick and
span 9. Touch and go 10. Thick and thin 11. Wear and tear 12. Over and
above 13. Few and far between 14. To and fro 15. Bread and butter 16. Safe
and sound
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Activity 9
1. symmetric 2. asymmetric: cause-effect 3. asymmetric: temporal
sequence 4. asymmetric: temporal sequence. Compare to the next sentence
where the conjuction is symmetrically used 5. asymmetric: cause-effect 6.
asymmetric: concessive tinge of meaning 7. asymmetric: conditional tinge
of meaning 8. similar situation 9. symmetric 10.- symmetric 11.
asymmetric: stronger contrast 12. Symmetric 13. asymmetric stronger
contrast 14. symmetric, exclusive 15. symmetric, inclusive 16.
symmetric, exclusive 17. asymmetric 18. Asymmetric 19. Asymmetric 20.
Symmetric 21. Asymmetric temporal sequence, cause-effect

Activity 10
1. Cathy and David have arrived. 2. The bread and the butter are both more
expensive this year. 3. The bread and butter was scattered on the floor. 4. The
green and blue blanket is also to be washed. 5. The red and the blue shirts
were washed yesterday. 6. My aim and object is to make the theory clear for
all. 7. A carriage and a pair was standing at the door. 8. His friend and legal
adviser was present at the funeral. 9. My son and heir is safe. 10. My son and
daughter are twins.
b. 1.There is a table and some chairs in the room. 2. There are some chairs
and a table in the room. 3. Both the houses and the garden were/was damaged
by the fire. 4. Not only the houses but also the garden were/was damaged by
the fire. 5. Not John but his two sons are to blame. 6. A traffic warden or a
policeman is always on the watch in this street. 7. Either Peter or John has had
breakfast already. 8. Either the child or the parents are to blame. 9. Neither he
nor his wife was/were here. 10. Neither Isabel nor I were timid people.


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Activity 11
(1) 1. There are doctors and doctors. 2. Brother or no brother, Ill still ask for
money for the medicine. 3. Well stick together, for better or worse. 4.
Hes neither fish, nor fowl. 5. I hope my letter finds you alive and well. 6.
How is it going? Im fine and dandy, thanks for asking. 7. Her husband is
long dead and buried. 8. They came to me, bag and baggage/ part and
parcel / kit and caboodle. 9. No drinking and driving. 10. He went to bed,
clothes and all. 11. By hook or by crook, Ill still finish this paper.
(2) 1.He was neither conceited nor thought of himself as good-looking, but a
preservation instinct made him show his biceps and pecs to advantage,
pressing his leg forward in order to show off the corded muscles of his
calf.
2. He wanted to check the strength of his arms and he pressed down on the
back of a chair but the chair groaned under his weight, so he gave up and
was content with punching at the old sofa and its cushions.
3. Grandma and grandpa lived without a toilet in the house and did fine.
Now youve come with all these new ideas.
12. What do you mean? the old woman felt outraged. How am I
supposed to bring the can in the house? / You bring that can, or
therell be hell to pay!
13. Jim thought it over for a while, for he couldnt see how he could use
the can. Should he hang it from the ceiling and tip it over his head,
there was no hook to hang it from and he feared the ceiling might
crumble. Should he pour water in the basin, it was too small.
14. Silivestru felt both disgusted with the triteness of those statements, and
surprised at the boys unheard-of precocity.
15. Madam, Im telling you I have only come to ask for permission to get
married and leave wherever we think fit. Not only should you rest
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assured, but I am also asking for permission to take care of this event
personally, without mentioning financial matters.
(3) 1. Mrs. Ioaniu had been a hell of a woman all her life. Whatever she tried
her hand at, it would work out fine. Once Vica had been hard pressed to
finish one of Ivonas dresses, and she had this idea to ask Mrs. Ioaniu to
help her to sew the hem. What do you know? The moment Mrs. Ioaniu
laid her hand on the needle, she started doing a great job. So Vica took to
asking her for help and Mrs. Ioaniu would sit in her armchair and sew
hems and keep spinning tales from her youth; the things she had lived!
Shed had two husbands, both dead and buried. Her first husband had been
a professor, an important man, and when the Nazis had taken over theyd
thrown him in this prison, whats its name. They hadnt kept him there too
long, but hed come out a cripple. You know, he was rather old and he
might have already been ailing, so hed gone down and died in no time.
2. So shell listen to him, as she always does, triumphantly: shes finally
managed to bring him on common ground, their common ground. This,
she knows for sure, is the one place she doesnt have to share with any of
those women that have been poisoning her life. And, just like when he was
thirty, he starts lecturing her about life and things, and she listens to him,
tense with concentration. Sometimes she even thinks elsewhere, but she
blinks in approval, at equal intervals. From time to time she will launch a
helping question, just as this puppy that used to prance about Tudors
knees came back every time carrying the ball in its mouth. The dog would
carry back the ball for the boy to throw it again, so he could leap in pursuit,
stop dead in his tracks, stand there for a minute and sniff at the pavement,
then grab the ball and carry it obediently back to Tudors feet; and then,
hed leap high, tense like a bow, whenever Tudor would attempt to pat
him.
Key To Chapter Five Practice

317

KEY TO CHAPTER FIVE PRACTICE - THE COMPLEX
SENTENCE A CLASSIFICATION OF DEPENDENT
CLAUSES

Activity 1:
She came to him of her own will. obligatory elements: she, came, to him
I cannot tell you what I heard about you. obligatory elements: I, cannot tell,
you, what I heard about you
Susan disappeared without saying a word. Susan, disappeared
Shes aware of this rage and that he might punish her. she, is aware, of this
rage and that he might punish her
She told whomever wanted to listen about her problems at home. she, told,
whomever wanted to listen, about her problems at home
After I told her the story, she looked at me sadly. she, looked, at me

Activity 2:
1. which was a novelty to Mitzi subordinate, functioning as a modifier
though it was largely politeness - subordinate, functioning as an adjunct
2. when Mitzi bought the house in Brook Green - subordinate, functioning as
an adjunct
as he had just found the little Bayswater - subordinate, functioning as an
adjunct
which he inhabited still - subordinate, functioning as a modifier
3. that we are mortal beings with but a short span of days - subordinate,
functioning as an object (direct)
and that our end as our beginning belongs to God - subordinate,
functioning as an object (direct), coordinated with first subordinate
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4. that her own failure to marry Matthew was actually the cause of Austins
marrying Dorina subordinate functioning as an object (prepositional,
since the main verb is think of something)
5. that you are choosing exile - subordinate, functioning as an object (direct)
if you do not meet it right here at home - subordinate, functioning as an
adjunct
from what you are fortunate enough to call your homeland - subordinate,
functioning as a modifier (for the noun phrase exile)
6. that we should, at our age, remove our home yet again - subordinate,
functioning as a modifier (for the noun phrase suggestion)

Activity 3
a) that I should write to you that complement/ so that you can be sure
that complement/ that he and I are of one mind in this matter that
complement/ because the discussion was between yourself and your father
adverbial/ how much we miss you wh complement/ to say
complement / that I think of my dear son every day that complement/
what times in our day and night are his bed-time and his getting-up-times
wh complement/ that he may be protected and guided that
complement/ to do the right- complement
b) 1. Monroe had died wh complement/ to go out for a time complement
/ to paint the newly opened blossoms complement/ as she left the
house adverbial/ to speak to Monroe complement/ who sat reading a
book in a striped canvas campaign chair under the pear tree wh
complement/ that he doubted that complement/ he had vitality that
complement/ even to finish the page complement/ he was on wh
complement/ before he dropped off to sleep adverbial / to wake him
complement/ when she returned wh complement/ for he did not want
adverbial / to lie sleeping into the damp of the evening complement/ he

319
was just beyond the age that complement/ at which he could rise from so
low a chair wh complement
2. that she realized that complement/ she was now similarly hidden
away that complement/ that anyone walking from the gate to the porch
would never know she was there that complement/ if one of the ladies
from the church made an obligatory visit adverbial / to see about her
welfare complement/ as they called her name adverbial / and knocked
the door adverbial coordinated with the previous one/ until long after
she had heard the gate latch clack shut adverbial/ no one would call
again that complement

Activity 4
a) that she marked down in her favour relative that complement, modifier
(attribute) / when faced with the hard fact wh complement, adjunct
(time)/ that she now found herself in possession of close to three hundred
acres, a house, a barn, outbuildings, but no idea relative that
complement, modifier (attribute)/ what to do with them wh complement,
modifier (attribute)/ to play on the piano - complement, subject/ that she
could not weed ragweed that complement, direct object
b) to dry it complement, adjunct (purpose)/ what she had written wh
complement, direct object/ for she had never mastered the flowing whorls
and arcs of fine penmanship adverbial, adjunct (reason)/ no matter how
she tried wh complement, adjunct (concession)/ her hand insisted on
forming wh complement, modifier (attribute)
c) how things might stand between us wh complement, direct object/ to tell
in this letter complement, prepositional object/ what I have done wh
complement, direct object/ and seen wh complement, direct object,
coordinated with the previous one/ so that you might judge me that
complement, adjunct (purpose)/ before I return adverbial, adjunct (time)/
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it would need a page as broad as the blue sky that complement, direct
object/ to write that tale complement, adjunct (purpose)/ when I took
you in my lap in the kitchen by the stove wh complement, modifier
(attribute)/ and you told me - wh complement, modifier (attribute)/ you
would forever like that complement, direct object/ to sit there
complement, direct object/ and rest your head on my shoulder
complement, direct object/ that it would make you fear that complement,
subject/ to do such again complement, direct object/ if you knew
adverbial, adjunct (condition)/ what I have seen wh complement, direct
object/ and done wh complement, direct object.

Activity 5
1.A few days before the war, Anton Modan had no idea that he had long
ceased to be a bold man, so long that the day he found out he didnt even try
to go back and figure for how long. His wife was reaping the wheat silently,
without straightening her back, and from the way she moved one could tell
that she had this thought on her mind, that kept her constantly tense and grim.
Anton was looking at her and was wondering what could be wrong with her.
He had seen her silent/ brooding all morning.
When Anton put the sickle down, some people looked up at the sun to
figure out how long it was until lunchtime. () Well, this Anton sure eats
early! they thought. But other people, who had seen Anton and his wife
standing like that, sickle in hand, staring at each other, had said to themselves
that Anton had only a few acres of wheat and he still couldnt harvest it
properly. ()
He dashed back, but after he ran a yard or so he realized nobody was
following him, so he stopped and looked to see what he had done.
Everybody had understood that in fact that threat looked more like a flame,
that stands frozen for a moment although the straw beneath is burnt to ashes

321
already, rather than a real threat. For no bold man really falters, or if he does,
he will turn back and no longer be daring, for even swallowing your food is a
big deal, you need courage even for this small thing.
2. Not even at this point, although it was more than an hour since the man in
the swamp had watched for this family to come home, had he managed to spot
the shadow of a young man or an old one close by or in the yard. A warrior
doesnt make use only of his intense concentration or the visible external
clues to sense the presence of an enemy, but also his sharp nose, or other more
hidden means, which he doesnt rely on completely, but he doesnt spurn
either. Nang had thus learned to find a balance in all this and under certain
circumstances he would even laugh in the face of danger, while on other
occasions he would show caution. In this case he had this feeling that there
was no hidden danger awaiting him. First, it was clear that there was no
bridge or barge left to cross the river and that traffic had ceased on this
tributary completely. As for the life of this family who lived isolated from the
village, he would see what it was about at nightfall and whether they could be
of any use to him.
3. Costel had recently written this letter on the topic of their coming back to
live in Braila, saying that it wouldnt be a good thing to do so and that he was
really surprised that his parents kept insisting on it and wouldnt get his point.
Wasnt he right? You only needed to look at Ana to know she was seriously
ill, and then there were other reasons
On the other hand he didnt realize that in all his previous letters he had
touched this matter of finding a good position in Braila. And he had been
speechless with indignation that his mother had answered him saying that she
couldnt understand why he would ask for one thing one day and then change
his mind the next one, as if they were at his beck and call.
Why! He was not of two minds, that was for sure. Only he had Ana to think
of, while they spoke from miles away. Ana could not stand a trip now.
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That was clear, although he could have said so earlier, not after his father
and she had been job hunting for him everywhere but never mind now, they
knew better and wouldnt say another word and everything would be ok.
But it was not ok. Costel didnt want to give up this job, although he by no
means wished to leave Bucharest at this moment. He was also upset at the
rather sour tone of his mothers letter. So, in order to punish her and since he
didnt know what he wanted himself or how to answer her, he had postponed
writing back.

4. And heres how this first day looked, when my problems started because of
G Anisoara, who had this sort of mania to take trips accompanied by all
the gang thing which really sickened me because they were a promiscuous
lot decided to take this trip on St Helens day (it was a Saturday, and on
Monday followed another feast). We were going to drive to a vineyard, to see
some mutual friends, in Odobesti, by the cars of some of us. Twice did we get
in the car, and twice we were requested to get out, for there was always
somebody of note that felt they were not in the right car. In fact, it was the
women, who kept trying to be in the same place with the men they fancied,
and when things didnt go as planned, they would ruin the arrangement, under
the silliest of pretexts. The bad part was that we kept climbing in and out,
without really knowing why, and there were some rather clueless people who
got upset over it and kept complaining:
Oh, come on, are we getting off again? What is wrong, lets be done with it!
And the ones who had found a good seat and were afraid that their plans
might be spoiled would shrug a bored shoulder in reply.
Key To Chapter Six Practice

323

KEY TO CHAPTER SIX PRACTICE - RELATIVE
CLAUSES

Activity 1
1.She came to London where I went too. 2. John told his friend a story about
the king, who was just passing by. 3. They met those students none of whom
agreed with them. 4. I bought Jim a book that he liked. 5. I introduced him to
Jim to whom he told everything about his plans. 6. Susan wants to meet Jane
about whom she doesnt know anything. 7. I had a book whose cover I lost/
the cover of which I lost. 8. This is my husband whom I love very much. 9.
The students, any of whom would answer to questions, like their teacher. 10.
The students like their teacher, all of whom would answer to his questions.

Activity 2
1. To whom does the car blocking the street belong? 2. This is the town where
Charles Dickens was buried. 3. He told her the secret, which was silly of him.
4. He is the author who they gave a prize to. 5. These are people who we
cannot tell much about. 6. That is the couple whose child was abducted by
terrorists. 7. You couldnt join the party, which was a pity. 8. Who are you
writing this letter to? 9. This is the guy whom they first met in Monte Carlo.
10. These are the tulips to which they awarded the big prize. 11. A lot of
tourists went on a trip to Delphi, most of whom were from England.

Activity 3
1. where I spent my youth - restrictive 2. when the plane will take off -
restrictive 3. why they all left - restrictive 4. who is a genius non-restrictive
5. what you want free/ where you can park your car - restrictive 6. on which
this occurred - restrictive 7. when we first met - free 8. where I least expected
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- free 9. on whom nobody could depend non-restrictive/ we all welcomed
and admired - restrictive 10. what their parents made them, however sad - free

Activity 4
1. This isnt the Bucharest I know. 2. Of all the persons there, the prince chose
Cinderella, who was the most beautiful girl in the hall. 3. Of all the persons
there you had to choose me, who cannot say a word. 4. He who doesnt work
will never succeed. 5. You, who think so highly of yourselves, come up front.
6. All wanted to hear that Luciano Pavarotti who had delighted thousands of
opera lovers. 7. I, who didnt like to leave things unfinished, was very
displeased with the situation.

Activity 5
1. What Im saying subject. What direct object 2. where we talk money
predicative. Where - adjunct 3. What Inman remembered subject. What
direct object / which Monroe had repeated four times at dramatic intervals
throughout the sermon attribute. Which direct object/ which shows God in
me attribute. Which subject 4. when they would be immersed in an ocean
of love attribute. When - adjunct 5. about why man was born to die
prepositional object. Why - adjunct 6. Where he was from adjunct, where
predicative 7. who had not witnessed many dawns appositive attribute. Who
- subject 8.When Ada remarked adjunct, when adjunct /when winter came
adjunct, when adjunct/ when winter comes adjunct. When adjunct/
whats broke around here direct object. What subject/ which is a lot
apposition, which - subject 9. where Ruby seemed to aim Ada every day that
first month predicative. Where - adjunct 10. when Ada succeeded in
churning cream to butter adjunct, when adjunct/ when she noted
predicative, when adjunct/ when she went out to hoe the fields adjunct,
when - adjunct 11. what kind of woman her mother had been prepositional

325
object, what - attribute 12. Whatever his fate was adjunct, whatever
predicative 13. what little she knew direct object, what attribute/ how the
worlds logic works direct object, how - adjunct

Activity 6
a)The man who(m)/*which/that/ we saw was nice. which is
ungrammatical due to the [- human] property it has and which does not match
the [+human] feature of the antecedent b) The book *who(m)/which/that/ I
read last night surprised me who(m) is ungrammatical due to the [+ human]
feature this element has and which does not match the [-human] feature of the
antecedent c) The woman who/*whom/*which/that/ came to dinner was
very late whom is ungrammatical due to the fact that it is an oblique case
form and the antecedent is a nominative form; which is ungrammatical due to
the[- human] feature this element has and which does not match the [+human]
feature of the antecedent d) The book *whom/which/that/* deals with this
problem is very good - whom is ungrammatical due to the [- human] feature
of the antecedent which does not match that of the pronoun; the zero article is
ungrammatical due to the fact that that cannot be deleted when it follows after
a subject antecedent e) The man for whom/*who/*which/*that/* we are
looking is not here who is ungrammatical due to the presence of the
preposition, which requires an accusative form; which is ungrammatical
because it is [-human] and it does not match the feature of the antecedent; that
is ungrammatical because it is invariable and cannot mark the accusative form
required by the preposition; the zero article is ungrammatical because the
preposition must select a noun phrase f) The man who(m) *which/that/ we
are looking for is not here which is ungrammatical due to the [-human]
feature which does not match the feature of the antecedent g) The book for
*whom/which/*that/* we are looking is in my bag whom is
ungrammatical because it is [+ human]; that is ungrammatical because it
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cannot be selected by a preposition, due to its invariable character; the zero
article is ungrammatical because the preposition must select a noun phrase h)
The book *who(m)/which/that/ we are looking for is in my bag who(m) is
ungrammatical because it is [+human]

Activity 7
The Flu. My brother-in-law used to have a paternal first cousin, whose
maternal uncle used to have a father-in-law, whose paternal grandfather had
got married for the second time to a young native girl; whose brother had met
a girl during his voyages, and they had a son who got married to a brave
chemist, who was none other but the niece of a British navy officer and whose
adoptive father used to have an aunt who spoke Spanish fluently and who
might have been one of the nieces of an engineer; who had died very young
and who was also the nephew of the owner of a vineyard that produced a
mediocre wine, but whose second cousin, a sergeant, had a son who had
married this very beautiful young lady, a divorcee whose first husband was
the son of a true patriot; who had raised his daughter with the desire of
marrying into fortune and who finally managed to get married to this hunter
who had met Rothschild and whose brother, having changed quite a number
of jobs, got married and had a daughter; whose great-grandfather, a rather tiny
looking man, used to wear a pair of glasses which he had got from a cousin,
the brother-in-law of a Portuguese and natural son of a miller, who was quite
well-off and whose foster brother had married the daughter of a retired
country physician, who was himself the foster brother of a milkman, who, in
his turn, was the son of another country physician who had been married three
times and whose third wife


327
Activity 8
1.The first question with which Ambrose had to deal was that of the statue of
victory in Rome. yes 2. The time at which he ate breakfast was
inconvenient. - yes 3. Thus they remained utterly obsessed with themselves
and each other, and some natural healing process of which Dorina felt she
ought to know. no 4. In the interest of public decency, the safeguarding of
which was actually not his task, he requested that the public be excluded. - no
5. The problem of safe transportation, no easy answers to which could be
offered, has been troubling them forever. yes 6. She was the very woman
about whom I knew absolutely nothing. - yes 7. This was the ice pick with
which one had seen her stab her husband to death. yes, although the distance
between preposition and relative pronoun is a bit too long 8. She had fully
realized how much her love for Austin cut her off from other people, as if she
were being gradually cornered by a relentlessness of which he was the almost
unconscious agent. no 9. For the intense anxious sense of herself with which
she was suddenly invested she was quite untrained. - yes 10. Irene, for whom
he had sacrificed his nights and days, he rarely saw now. - yes

Activity 9
1.His fathers friends, whose interest he most sincerely shared, were now all
gone. obligatory pied piping 2. This story, the unravelling of which had
cost her many minutes of her life, was now complete. - obligatory 3. She had
lying in front of her a number of books and dictionaries most of which had
been shipped from remote countries. - obligatory 4. The only relatives she
would have liked to put up with were her mothers sisters. no pied piping 5.
His friends, no matter which [pied piped phrase, with deletion of the noun
friends], knew nothing of what he had been subjected to. no pied piping

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Activity 10
1. For twenty years, since they had been leading a rather dull hopeless life in
their small provincial town, the capital had been an unattainable peak
where only the bold possessors of sturdy ankles and strong lungs could
hope to arrive.
2. Everything was ending. Only an ugly endless dream remained, which
even ones imagination would strive to evade the next day.
3. For all the four children, irrespective of age and nature, felt that the capital
was the great unknown where they will all grasp what they wished for
and what their imagination had forged as a dream.
4. Nelu, the third born son, thought of the capital as of a fantastic garage
which was endowed with the rarest sort of cars, or as of a vast arena,
where two teams battled every day
5. In other peoples opinion, yours, for instance, I am to be envied, or so I
gathered from what you were telling me a moment ago.
6. He came to me to ask me to appoint one of his sons-in-law as a manager. I
did so, I even let him choose the place he wanted to manage for he was a
sound fellow - and he couldnt thank me enough.
7. It is not difficult for him to realize how mad I got and how much I
protested when I saw how they all left you to rot in this god-forsaken
town.
8. He vaguely remembered that he had indeed been called to get to the
bottom of this rather murky incident and that his honest spirit had forced
him to sacrifice his friend in the name of truth. But what really happened
and how the story ended he couldnt tell and anyway, he would have
never believed that there might still be someone who remembered all that
so clearly. The image of his old mate was now completely different from
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329
9. You are newly arrived here, and you might not really understand how
much plotting and pressure can be applied by politicians even in a court of
law.
10. If any of your qualities were to persuade them, I hoped that you would
perform the duty of an elder brother for a younger one. I told myself you
had to have a notion of the loneliness and despair a young man might feel
in a city where everything appeared hostile to him.
11. All that you have read is rubbish. Let me tell you my last conclusion,
which is not to be found in the minutes of the trial or in my rather insipid
version, that you keep peeping at Ill sum it up for you while we empty
these cups of coffee.
12. He managed to do what the Chair of the High Court from France had not
been able to do when he had invited H.R. to take over a whole elective
section and get elected with quite a lot of publicity.
13. Actually I am trying not to cherish this kind of high hopes for I have
noticed that they come true and then I cannot decide which of them
follows the course of my real life and which doesnt, since I dont really
know which my true life is.
14. I will try to explain to myself why at the beginning I thought that you had
green eyes and why not two minutes ago your eyes looked gray to me.
15. He was suffering from dizziness, which was why he saw Dora very far
away, although she was standing quite close to him.
16. Behind them, on Icoanei street, the tram was rattling along, amidst much
rumbling and tolling of bells, furiously pulled from behind a red and
yellow curtain, leaving streets and houses behind, from MR street, where
from Marta was coming too, and wherefrom a swarm of little girls
appeared far away, barely glittering in the distance.
17. What youre saying sounds very nice, she said, staring aimlessly.
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18. I dont even dare to think of the suspicion that is assailing me. But, cant
you see? First the idea that he was broke, then that he had to sell out and
leave and that he is so sick while we all know that he is not. Doesnt this
kind of behaviour seem strange in a person that used to be so energetic, so
optimistic and composed?
19. If he had hit me, I dont know what might have happened.
20. While we were poor, we didnt use to visit this cousin who was quite the
socialite. She was a woman of means, had a huge house in Bucharest. She
was one of those impeccably dressed women, who prompted everyone on
the street, or in the theatre hall to ask who she was.
21. I felt this was not the only inferior trait she found in me. Those snobs
whose ardent admirer she was now, had a personal style in clothes, which
I did not posses. So, day by day, I could see my woman falling away from
me, in her pursuits, likes and dislikes.
22. From the vantage point I was in, I couldnt help noticing the pleasure with
which she heavily leant on him while they climbed from the ravine back
to the highway, after the car was fixed.
23. But for me, who only lived once in this world, these facts meant more
than the wars for the conquest of China, or the many Egyptian dynasties,
or the clash of stars above.
24. While some trees are still green, others leaves are as yellow as some
transparent apricots.
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KEY TO CHAPTER SEVEN PRACTICE - THAT
COMPLEMENTS

Activity 1:
1.It occurred to him that people were laughing behind his back. extraposed,
subject 2. Nobody knew that they were sorry for what they had done.
unextraposed, direct object 3. It was known to no one that Peter had tried to
take his own life. extraposed, subject 4.The crowd resented it that the police
had been sent for. extraposed, object 5. Magellan regrets it that the world is
round. extraposed, object 6. It appears that no one voted for him.
extraposed, subject 7. It was suggested that they should meet the President.
extraposed, subject 8. It is too bad that they always make fun of Gilian.
extraposed, subject 9. I dont like it that he should be left alone in my flat.
extraposed, direct object 10. He will answer for it that his son is innocent.
extraposed, prepositional object 11. You may depend on it that I will pick you
up. extraposed, prepositional object

Activity 2:
1.It worried me a bit that she didnt visit her aunt. possible: That she didnt
visit her aunt worried me a bit. 2. It is not quite clear whether the trains would
be running tomorrow. possible: Whether the trains would be running
tomorrow is not quite clear. 3. It will be soon announced when you can leave.
questionable, a clause starting with when will normally be taken for a time
adverbial clause 4. Is it true that the children are sick? impossible, for
pragmatic reasons 5. It so happens that I know the secret cipher. 6. It seems
such a shame that he never takes her out. impossible 7. It is incredible how
many good students drop out of school for lack of money. the same as 3. 8.
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It will suit me best for you to arrive before dinner. possible: For you to
arrive me before dinner will suit me best. 9. It is no use trying to convince her.
possible: Trying to convince her is no use. 10. It will be a pity if we have to
tell her the truth before he gives us permission to. impossible 11. You know
it only too well that he will not marry you. impossible unless accompanied
by clause shift: You know only too well that will not marry you. 12 You may
take it from me that he is a stinking liar. impossible, main verb includes it
idiomatically 13. Rumour has it that U2 will visit us this year. same as 12.
14. The pebble in my shoe made it painful to walk. the same as 12. 15. It is
nice to meet you. impossible, idiomatic formula 16. I found it disgraceful
that she hid the truth from me impossible, same as 12. 17. They considered
it very silly of her to have married Bill. impossible, same as 12. 18. I find it
difficult to tell her my thoughts. impossible, same as 12.

Activity 3:
1.It bothers me that it is obvious that money means everything.
grammatical, although a bit intricate 2. It amazes Bill that it bothers me that it
is obvious that money means everything. grammatical, but pragmatically
impossible 3. It appears that it amazes Bill that it bothers me that it is obvious
that money means everything. - grammatical, but pragmatically impossible 4.
That it is obvious that money means everything bothers me. grammatical, a
bit too intricate 5.That it amazes Bill that it is obvious that money means
everything bothers me.- grammatical, but pragmatically impossible

Activity 4
1.I was the one who guessed it that he would come back. correct 2. I guess it
that he will come back. incorrect, tense influences the validity of
extraposition 3. They never expected it that he would come back. - correct 4.
I dont expect it that he will come back. - incorrect, tense influences the

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validity of extraposition 5. She was the woman who ordered it that all men
would be executed in public. correct 6.Are you going to order it that all men
be executed in public?! - incorrect, tense influences the validity of
extraposition

Activity 5
1. It was no surprise that a deeply Schillerian spirit reigned on the premises
of that school.
2. When it so happened that I spotted him at the end of the lane, I hurriedly
hid wherever I could, behind gates, in the pits on the road, in the ditch,
under bridges, I would have vanished into thin air if I had been able to.
3. Doubtlessly the authorities will see to it that we are evacuated and taken
who knows where, Lionel says. I for one will try to stay here for as long
as I can, since I am protected by my officers uniform. It is certain that the
Romanian troops will advance fast.
4. It even seemed to me that mothers few sensible words that penetrated
through that avalanche of dull or stupid sentences had the effect of
creating a sort of confusion in the general conversation.
5. I liked all that was natural in mothers behaviour. Yet it happened that her
momentum was checked by the respect she had for social convention and
by the deep impact her bourgeois education had had on her. (Not always,
though; thus, I remember that mother dared to disregard the advice of all
her family members and went to tend to the sick of the village during a
typhus epidemic, when she used to live in the La Roque mansion).
Bourgeois education undoubtedly proves to be an excellent asset while it
is vital that we keep our bad instincts in check, but it should never be
forgotten that it is this very education that stifles all our generous impulses
that come from our heart.
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6. Therefore I thought it appropriate to perfect what weapons we had at the
time.
7. It is difficult to stick to your unwavering decision to return, which the
scents and the oblivion with which these scents will infuse you will try to
change. As they will try to change your desire to find out more and many
other things you might feel.
8. It would of course be rash to draw a general conclusion from these
observations. By saying this, I was not in fact speaking like a moralist. I
am not one of those that will seek and find lessons everywhere, for these
lessons will unfortunately not help anyone to become wiser. Neither am I
one of those who will say: I dream so that summer could last for
eternity and I believe that it is much better to be content with your lot,
without trying to protest too much.

Activity 7
1.? Susan burnt the letter (which) she had just written to the last page. / Susan
burnt to the last page the letter she had just written. the second sentence
has undergone clause shift. It is less ambiguous than the first.
2. Susan told her mother that she had just been fired. / ?Susan told that she
had just been fired to her mother. the first sentence is the better of the
two, because it is less ambiguous, owing to the clause shift process that
characterizes it.
3. He was informed on Saturday at noon that he was going to be fired. / He
was informed that he was going to be fired Saturday at noon. the
position of the prepositional phrase changes the meaning of the sentences.
4. He appointed prime-minister Mr Hugh, who had just returned from
Africa. /? He appointed Mr Hugh, who had just returned from Africa,
prime-minister. / He appointed Mr Hugh prime-minister, who had just
returned from Africa. the second sentence is questionable, since the

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material dividing the main verb from its obligatory predicative adjunct is
too heavy.
5. They dismissed as unrealistic Mr Hughs proposal to build a new hospital.
/ They dismissed Mr Hughs proposal to build a new hospital as
unrealistic. both sentences are grammatical owing to the unequivocal
meaning of the adverb as.
6. ? I considered to be outrageous what he had done to his wife in front of so
many people. / I considered outrageous what he had done to his wife in
front of so many people. / I considered what he had done to his wife in
front of so many people outrageous. the presence of the infinitive to be
in the first sentence creates confusion with respect to its subject. The
second and third sentences are grammatical, although the third one has not
undergone clause shift. This is possible because the adjective outrageous
cannot be related to the preceding material and does not give rise to
ambiguities.
7. *I found for Susan to behave like that in public disgraceful. /*I found
disgraceful for Susan to behave like that in public./ I found it disgraceful
for Susan to behave like that in public./I found disgraceful Susans
behaving like that in public. /I found Susans behaving like that in public
disgrace. the first two sentences are ungrammatical because the
idiomatic construction find + it + adjective + that/to clause is not
complete. As we have already shown in a previous exercise, extraposition
is obligatory here. The last two sentences are grammatical because there
is no that/to complement involved, so there is no need for extraposition.
8. He sprinkled with water the pavement he had been cleaning. / He
sprinkled the pavement he had been cleaning with water. both sentences
are grammatical, but the position of the prepositional phrase influences the
meaning of each sentence.

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Activity 8
1.His idea that men are smarter than women led him to total ruin.
complement 2. The idea that he had had earned him good money. relative 3.
His order that all the men in the village should be killed was instantly
disobeyed. - complement 4. The order that he had given was instantly
disobeyed. relative 5. Their proposal that he should run for Congress was
the best ever. complement 5. The proposal that they came up with was no
better than hers. - relative

Activity 9
1.We discovered that our map has disappeared. direct object 2) Was it true
that she was ill? subject, extraposed 3) They are not aware that they are in a
dangerous position. prepositional object, required by adjective + preposition
4) The idea that men from Mars were landing was absurd. complement that
clause, required by deverbal noun 6) John made it clear that he disagreed.
direct object, extraposed 7) The truth is that we havent met them.
predicative 8) I am afraid that I have to go now. - prepositional object,
required by adjective + preposition 9) It struck me that the bus was behaving
pretty strangely. subject, extraposed 10) She was so careless that she left the
door unlocked. adverbial of sequence/result, correlated with degree word
11) The suggestion was that they should leave at once. predicative 12) He
loved her to such an extent that he could give his life for her. - adverbial of
sequence/result, correlated with degree word 13) The shock of having been
found by Dorina in Mitzis arms first prostrated him with such a sense of
uncleanness and shame that he could not face his wife. (Iris Murdoch, ibid.) -
adverbial of sequence/result, correlated with degree word 14) It had also
produced the certainty that they belonged together and that, for better or
worse, they were chained to each other forever. (Iris Murdoch, ibid.) -
complement that clauses, coordinated, required by deverbal noun

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Activity 10
1)I didnt get the message that they were coming. that is obligatory 2) They
chortled that it was only a joke. that is obligatory, the verb of propositional
attitude is a rare verb 3) That such things still happen is no wonder. that is
obligatory, since it introduces a subject clause 4) I hate it that you wont be
with me. that is obligatory, being part of an extraposed structure 5) Where
would you guess that he went? that deletion is possible.(Compare to: *Who
did they imagine that wanted to go? in this case, that deletion is obligatory,
for otherwise the sentence would have a double subject) 6) The fact that they
were unprepared leaked out. that is obligatory 7) They maintain, you want
me to believe, that they were not too late to leave. that is here obligatory
because the paranthetical clause intervenes between the conjunction and its
main verb 8) I reminded them that they had to leave. that deletion is
possible

Activity 11
1 a) John heard that Mary is pregnant. b) John heard that Mary was
pregnant. the first sentence is possible because the subordinate reflects
a situation that is still available c) John said that Harry is leaving. d) John
said that Harry was leaving. the same as for the first two e) John said
that Harry will leave. f) John said that Harry would leave. the same as
for the first two g) John thought that Harry ran. h) John thought that Harry
had run. g) is different from h) in that Harrys running is a habit in g)
but an anterior event in h)
2. a) John said that Harry was leaving tomorrow. b) John thought that
Montreal played Boston tomorrow. c) *Harry was leaving tomorrow. d)
*Montreal played Boston tomorrow. e) Harry is leaving tomorrow. f)
Montreal plays Boston tomorrow. a) and b) are indirect speech
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formulations of e) and f) but not of c) and d) which are impossible in
isolation because their past tense is not compatible with the deictic time
adverbial
3. a) It was obvious that everyone would leave if coffee was not provided at
the meeting next day. b) It was objected that people had left the meeting
the day before because coffee had not been provided. grammatical
sentences, sequence of tenses is observed
4. a) She thought that Maggie arrived the day before b) She thought that
Maggie had arrived the day before. both sentences are grammatical, in
a) the Past Tense Past Perfect rule is optional because the subordinate
verb phrase expresses an event not a state
5. I knew that poor Chris believed he was of royal blood. sequence of
tenses is observed
6. a) John said that his car *has run out of gas. / b) John said that his car is
out of gas. a) is excluded because the subordinate verb phrase needs to
show anteriority to the event expressed by the main verb. b) is possible
because the subordinate expresses a situation still available at speech time
7. Look the dipstick shows oil right up to the full mark. But John mumbled
that his car was/*is out of oil. the present in the subordinate is excluded
because it does not reflect a state of facts available at speech time, as is
apparent from the larger co-text
8. John indicated to Mary that she should go to bed early. sequence of
tenses is observed
9. a. John told Mary that she should bake a pie. b. *John told Mary that she
had baked a pie. c. John told Mary that she had baked an excellent pie.
b) is impossible because it is irrelevant (unless Mary suffers from
amnesia) so the sentence is pragmatically wrong


339
Activity 12
a) The brightening sky was busy with resident birds and with traveler birds
moving south ahead of the season: various patterns of duck, geese both
grey and white, quail, lark, hawk. All these birds and others Ruby
remarked upon during their passage to town, finding a thread of narrative
or evidence of character in their minutest customs. Ruby assumed the
twitter of birds to be utterance as laden with meaning as human talk and
claimed to like especially the time in spring when the birds come back
singing songs to report where theyve been and what theyve done while
shed stayed right here. generalization on habits of birds, present instead
of simple past, present perfect instead of past perfect. Compare the present
perfect form theyve done to the past perfect shed stayed here. While the
first is possible because of the generalization, the second is necessary
because it refers to the characters speech situation. One of the few times
when present perfect appears in close association with past perfect.
Translation:
Cerul care se nsenina era mpestriat de psrile de prin partea locului precum
i de psri cltoare care zburau ctre sud n rile calde: diferite soiuri de
rae i gte, cenuii i albe, prepelie, ciocrlii i oimi. Toate aceste psri i
multe altele fur obiectul remarcelor lui Ruby n drumul ei ctre ora, i ea
descoperi cte ceva de povestit sau vreo trstur de caracter n cele mai
nensemnate obiceiuri ale acestor vieti. Ruby considera c ciripitul lor era la
fel de gritor i de ncrcat de nelesuri ca i vorba oamenilor i susinea c
momentul ei preferat era primvara, cnd psrile se ntorc cntnd cntece
prin care povestesc pe unde-au fost i ce-au fcut n timpul n care ea a rmas
s locuiasc aici.
b) When three crows harried a hawk across the sky, Ruby expressed her
great respect for the normally reviled crow, finding much worthy of
emulation in their outlook on life. She noted with disapproval that many a
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bird would die rather than eat any but food it relishes. Crows will relish
what presents itself. She admired their keenness of wit, lack of
pridefulness, love of practical jokes, slyness in a fight. All of these she
saw as making up the genius of the crow, which was a kind of willed
mastery over what she assumed was a natural inclination toward bile and
melancholy, as evidenced by its drear plumage. the Present --- Past
rule is optional in this case, due to the presence of the factive verb in the
main clause. The generic present is used in this case, a situation that is
similar to the one in the examples under (a).
Translation:
Cnd cele trei ciori ncepur s urmreasc un oim pe cer, Ruby i exprim
respectul deosebit pe care-l avea fa de att de ponegrita cioar, gsind c
concepia despre via a acestei psri era demn de urmat. Mai observ cu
dezaprobare c multe psri prefer s moar de foame dect s mnnce
altceva dect hrana care le place cu adevrat. Ciorile ns se ndeamn s
prefere ce li se pune n fa. Ruby le admir spiritul ager, lipsa de vanitate,
firea glumea i viclenia n lupt. Toate aceste nsuiri reprezentau pentru ea
geniul cioarei, o modalitate voit de a nvinge ceea ce se presupunea a fi o
nclinaie natural ctre amrciune i melancolie, dup cum o sugera penajul
lor cernit.
c) Their talk turned to the war and its effects, and Mrs McKennet held
opinions exactly in accord with every newspaper editorial Ada had read
for four years, which is to say Mrs McKennet found the fighting glorious
and tragic and heroic. Noble beyond all her powers of expression. She told
a long and maudlin story she had read about a recent battle, its obvious
fictitiousness apparently lost on her. It was fought as they all were lately
against dreadful odds. As the battle neared its inevitable conclusion, a
dashing young officer was grievously wounded to the chest. He fell back
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341
head to soothe his dying. But as the battle raged around them, the young
officer, in the very act of expiring, rose and drew his pistol and added his
contribution to the general gunfire. He died erect, with the hammer
snapping on empty loads. [] During the latter stages of the tale, Ada
developed an itch just to either side of the nose. She touched the places
discreetly with her fingertips, but then she found that the corners of her
mouth would stay down only with great trembling effort. the Past -----
Past Perfect rule is optional in this case, because it is clear from the larger
co-text that the fight could only have been anterior to the time of the main
story line.
Translation:
i ndreptar apoi conversaia ctre rzboi i efectele sale, iar doamna
McKennet i exprim opiniile n acord cu toate articolele de fond din ziare pe
care le citea Ada de patru ani de zile, ceea ce nsemna ca doamna McKennet
gsea c lupta lor era glorioas, tragic i eroic. Att de nobil nct nu avea
cuvinte s o descrie. Povesti apoi o istorie lung i lacrimogen pe care o
citise despre o btlie recent, a crei dimensiune fictiv nu pruse s o
impresioneze. Oamenii luptaser n ciuda sorilor potrivnici, cum de altfel se
ntmpla mai tot timpul n ultima vreme. Pe msur ce btlia se apropiase de
inevitabilul su sfrit, un tnr i chipe ofier fusese rnit grav n piept. El
czuse pe spate, din inima sa prelingndu-se picturi mari de snge. Un
tovar al su se oprise i i inuse capul n brae, ncercnd s-i uureze
chinul. ns pe msur ce fur mpresurai de iureul luptei, tnrul ofier,
exact cnd urma s-i dea sufletul, se ridicase n picioare, i scosese puca i
i adusese contribuia la ultimul schimb de focuri general. Murise n picioare,
iar puca sa continu s trag pn rmase fr cartue.
d) He talked in the urgent meters of a street preacher, and he had drawn a
crowd with the rage in his voice. He had fought hard through the war, he
claimed. Had killed many a Federal and had taken a ball to the shoulder at
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Williamsburg. But he had recently lost faith in the war and he missed his
wife. He had not been drafted but had volunteered for the fighting, and all
he did by way of crime was unvolunteer and walk home. Now here he
stood jailed. And they might just hang him, war hero though he was.
similar situation to the one under (c). Notice the use of a perspective-
shifting time adverbial (now), which turns the reader back to the time of
the main story line.
Translation:
Vorbea cu modulaiile naripate ale predicatorului de pe strad, i adunase o
mulime mare de oameni cu mnia ce-i rsuna n glas. Luptase din rsputeri n
rzboi, susinea el. Omorse muli yankei i ncasase un glon n umr la
Williamsburg. ns i pierduse nu de mult ncrederea n acest rzboi i i era
dor de soie. Nu fusese chemat la arme ci se nrolase voluntar, i nu fcuse
dect s se dezroleze i s se duc acas. Acum sttea aici, n nchisoare. i
probabil urma s fie spnzurat, dei era erou de rzboi.

Activity 13
1. When he saw me, he closed the album, jumped off the bench and ran
towards me. But when he reached me, I realized I could not tell him the
big news. How can I explain? I just felt shy. I knew that no matter what
words I would pick, they could not convey all that I wanted to tell him,
nor could they express the joy I felt because the time had come for me to
make that announcement.
2. A short while later, mother went home and I was left alone, to finish my
drawing. For I had this dreadful feeling that something bad would happen.
When the boys saw that mother had left, they gathered around my desk.
They all had their hands in their pockets. One of them, the oldest, around
seventeen or eighteen years old, had a bad eye and was wearing a sailors
blue shirt. His sparse hair was full of dandruff.

343
3. She looked at him in wonder and in spite of the fact that she could not see
his face because of the dark, she could still see that he was trembling and
she didnt know what to do : laugh because he had woken up in the dead
of the night to propose to her, or fear his rage, which had prompted him to
do such an awkward thing, such an inconvenient dangerous gesture. And
yet she ended by feeling good about the thought that he cared so much
about her opinion and instantly had this tender wish to soothe him, to
show him that he was paying too much attention to some inconsequential
mean acts. She even forgot about the late hour and the impropriety of it
all.
4. I am afraid I have to tell you that one does not talk to Angelas sister too
long, Mr. Albu whispered in Mateis ear. As it is common knowledge
that she is an idiot, one might think that you sought refuge by her side.
5. He feared that the confession he had made to her sprang from wounded
pride and he regreted his suspicious nature. And yet it was strange that he
had thought he would make himself more interesting to her by accusing
himself of such unpleasant things.
6. He hardly noticed that she had left him and he didnt wonder why it was
that she had come to see him, or if she would do so again. The mere fact
that she had been there overwhelmed him, as if he had been drunk. He
was happily surprised at what he could see in himself. All his senses were
now keen, he had suddenly acquired the ability to see things consistently,
brightly and closely. So when coming from her lawyer she who had
been lying in wait for him slipped a piece of paper in his hand, in which
he read that at least for a while they would have to stop seeing each other
so they would not fall prey to some vulgar illusion that might cost them
dearly and knowing that he could not help visiting her she had decided to
leave town for a while, for her vineyard, for a longer stay that would do
both a power of good, he could only think of the fact that she had written
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to him, that he was holding a piece of paper that had been touched by her
hand and over which she had bent, thinking of him.
7. Matei thought that his mother knew a lot about the reasons of Doras
departure to the vineyard, but he could not find it in himself to ask her
what it was that she knew.
8. The last time when we met here you scared me, claiming you had no
ambition for the future. You know it is not nice that a young man such as
yourself should be unambitious and have no ideal, dont you ? I believe
you did not tell me the whole truth.
9. Has it never occurred to you that you should become a Pasteur or an
Alexander the Great, have you never had one of these crazy passionate
dreams for the pursuit of which you should pledge your whole life ? Matei
thought it wiser to beat a retreat.
10. Then he applauded the new idea to build a factory, saying that the
brightness of a young mind and the influence of an education abroad was
unquestionably apparent. Neither he nor the old man would have ever
thought of such a thing ! but Urmatecu held back his greatest joy
expressing it only later, with warm praise for the fact that Bubi had felt
himself called and indeed had seen it his duty to take part in their work
and responsibility.
11. Bubis delight in his fathers unexpectedly reasonable attitude was so
great, that he did not notice Urmatecus inquisitiveness or derision. If his
father had finally shown him his whole sympathy, it meant that he would
approve of him from then on. And if things were so, he would achieve his
goal and be a victor. But what Bubi did not really see in this development
was that he had not beaten Urmatecu as he had planned, but that Urmatecu
had managed to set things the way he had wanted. And what he had not
found out (for Urmatecu had done this fully knowing human nature and
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345
now, exactly because now he was the object of Iancus cunning aversion.
And Iancu was quietly following the threads of a plan that was being
woven in his mind.
12. Of course my thought is that there is nothing we could do with these small
estates. We either sell them or we dont.
13. He felt both joy for having emerged safe and sound from this and pride for
having won this turn, and fear that once again the opposition of his father
and the new problems brought about by the mortgage might prevent him
from achieving everything as planned. Then Bubi was also exhausted by
the tension and nervousness he had experienced. Urmatecu read all this on
his face and smiled. Nevertheless there was one thing that he did not
understand, namely the impatience of this young man, which secretly
drove him, more urgently than ever, towards Jurubita, where he would run
to confess everything. Bubi was confident that she deserved his full
confession, as he had felt he more close to her since he started to travel on
this road of supreme honesty.
14. Next day news of Dorodans death came from the hospital. Urmatecu
thought of the best course to take for a while. And at length he decided to
send someone to the old baron, without putting anything in a note, but
instructing the man to carry word to everyone around concerning
Urmatecus promise to arrive soon to clear every problem
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KEY TO CHAPTER EIGHT PRACTICE - INFINITIVE
COMPLEMENTS

Activity 1:
1. She needed a stick with which she to beat up the old man. simple
infinitive, grammatical 2. It was an awful thing to be sitting there abandoned.
infinitive continuous, grammatical 3. It is nice she to have a dog as a friend.
ungrammatical (either a that clause, or a for-to infinitive should replace
the subordinate) 4. It was nice for her to have a dog as a friend. simple
infinitive, grammatical 5. To be looking at her for hours seems his favourite
pastime. infinitive continuous, grammatical 6. She reminded him to pick up
the flowers for Susans birthday. - simple infinitive, grammatical 7. He to be
looking at her for hours seems his favourite pastime.- ungrammatical (a that
clause should replace the subordinate) 8. Everybody knew him to have been
working as a plumber for more than twenty years. perfect infinitive, the
perfect aspect is required by the for phrase, grammatical, 9. It is vital for our
factory to be reopened. simple infinitive, grammatical 10. It is vital this
factory to be reopened. - ungrammatical

Activity 2 :
They made me take Tom to school. / I was often allowed to leave home/ let
leave home. / they saw her leave. / He helped them lift the heavy parcel. / She
noticed him eat a whole chocolate bar. / He was forced to send Tom on the
front. / He had Mary clean her room. / He forced Mary to clean her bedroom. /
They hear him sing two patriotic songs.

Key To Chapter Eight Practice

347
Activity 3 :
She wishes to really achieve world-wide recognition. / He went abroad to
better study modern educational strategies. / To be stupidly tempted to sell
your place for practically nothing is the very thing we all fear. / What
happened forced them to suddenly become aware of the problems they had. / I
want to never see you again. / In order to fully understand what that book is
about, you need to try harder.

Activity 4:
I would like [people to visit me every day.] Accusative + Infinitive. Test: * I
would like people. \ She wanted [him to leave.] Accusative + Infinitive.
Test: *She wanted him. \ She promised him PRO to leave. Test: She
promised him. \ They tempted him PRO to leave. Test: They tempted him.
\ I would love [ them to come. ] Accusative + Infinitive. Test: *I would
love them. \ I allowed [them to come.] Accusative + Infinitive. Test: *I
allowed them. \ He persuaded her PRO to come. Test: He persuaded her. \
They convinced her PRO to come back. Test: They convinced her. \ They
would have hated [her to come back.] Accusative + Infinitive. Test: *They
would have hated her. \ They really asked her PRO to come back. Test:
They asked her. \ They did not wish [her to come back.] Accusative +
Infinitive. Test: *They did not wish her.

Activity 5:
He seems to have robbed all the banks in the neighbourhood. / He is known to
have attempted to commit suicide. / He is believed to have seduced the
daughter of the millionaire who is living next to us. / The unknown assassin
seems to have committed another murder on the sixth floor. / It was crucial
for him to listen to all her confession. / It is not too late for him to learn. / I
taught them to speak and spell correctly. / He is believed to have known her
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for years. / I have never known how to behave in her presence. / I want to tell
you what I think of you. / I want you to leave my house. / He is hard to stand.
/ She happened to come by so I invited her to have a cup of coffee.

Activity 6
Oh, to think he used to play the violin so beautifully !/ The grass was too wet
to sit on. / The persons without a passport are asked to go to the authorities. /
She is rich enough to afford a new furcoat. / Oh, to be young again to be
able to enjoy life to the full/ He bought himself a ticket in advance, not to
miss the train. / She is heartless enough to be able not to give him the money
for his flat any more. / He is young enough to start again. / To make a long
story short, I dont need you or your services. / He came back from his trip
only to find his wife in a compromising situation. / I have a word to tell you. /
He is easy to talk to. / He is easy to live with. / You are to blame that the
factory exploded.

Activity 7
I presume you do not want to figure in my life merely as a pest. obligatory
subject control verb / I do not intend to tell him that myself. - obligatory
subject control verb / I have no wish to uproot ourselves at our age and no
inclination to return to a part of the world which has for us only the
unhappiest of associations. - obligatory subject control verb / and when
you have done so there is little doubt but that they will advise you to your
own country at once. obligatory direct object control verb / I hope to call
on you and your husband a day or two after the funeral. - obligatory subject
control verb / And now he refuses to see me and has written me a disgusting
missive. - obligatory subject control verb


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Activity 8
a) Harold persuaded Alec [PRO to let 1] [him drive them home 2]. The
drinks hadnt cheered him up; they had depressed and fuddled him.
Harold, who wasnt used to men with moods, thought that the best and
kindest policy was [ PRO to ignore Alecs 3]. If he himself was out of
spirits, he hated [anyone to comment on it 4].
1 PRO- to, Prepositional object
2 Accusative + Infinitive, Direct object
3 PRO to, Predicative
4 - Accusative + Infinitive, Direct object
b) During the visit Harolds own outlook had undergone a good many
changes. It was natural to him [PRO to feel critical of another
environment than his own 1]. He suspected hostility at once; the herd
instinct was very strong in him. In so far as he was a snob his snobbery
only operated within his own social group; he didnt envy those above it,
though he tended [PRO to look down on those below it 2]. Both seemed to
him a little unreal, and as if they didnt know what life was about. And
this was especially the case with Alec and his wifes outfit, for Alec
belonged to no group or social stratum, [he 3] appeared [to have the
freedom of several 3] but [to be indigenous to none 4].
1 PRO-to, Subject, extraposed
2 PRO-to, Object
3 Nominative + infinitive, Subject
4 Nominative + infinitive, Subject, coordinated with 3
c) I obliged him [PRO to recopy twice the episode of his first inspection of
me aboard the Zahir. 1] A little crossly, Marjanah told me [PRO to spend
the night with him as well 2], so that we might get to the future and have
done. She was even inclined [ PRO to remain in the bedroom with us 3],
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[PRO to make sure 4] we attended strictly to business, but her husband
cautioned against becoming of a jealous and suspicious later.
1 PRO-to, PRO controlled by him, object
2 PRO to, PRO controlled by me, direct object
3 PRO to, PRO controlled by she, adjectival adjunct
4 PRO to, PRO controlled by she, adverbial of purpose

Activity 9*:
a) The poor mother felt heart broken to think that in a months time her
house would be empty. But when we need to comfort others, we seem to
forget about our own pain.
b) The effects of a principle are hard to estimate.
c) Unlike plane trips, elevator rides are much too short to terrify you with the
idea of fatality.
d) Why is he so sad? How could he be helped not to look so grim? Is there
anyone who doesnt feel alone? In any mans life there is a moment when
he feels like hanging himself, true, but you need to have a very special
nature to let this happen to you right when this choir is singing.
e) When two persons, man and woman, sit for days within these frozen walls
and all there is for them to do is to knock against this partition, slowly,
cautiously, what they manage to tell each other as well as the
circumstances in which they communicate are clearly not like when you
dial a wrong number. One day, the man might be tortured but he would
not tell you. And you might also be hit and humiliated.
f) The passing time is important, as are the questions you ask if you want
your story to have a meaning, or better said, if you want all these vague
candid truths that you create fearfully, excitedly, so ashamed and
reluctant for having been forced to do so to come back to you with every
sound you make, more meaningful, more believable than evidence itself.

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To say, for instance, that you are young. And to actually start to believe
you are so.
g) He didnt know what to do to stop her from crying.
h) I want us to go, Mrs. Moroi says heavily. That is it. You have to
understand once for all that I cannot live like a hermit. These people
invited us and the man is your boss. Would you like me to look at you
transfixed, to live only with your coughing, your spasms and your chest
pains?
i) The idea that we shouldnt move exhausted us and our heads would start
shaking. That spot where your head is screwed on your backbone hurt us.
If it was summer, perspiration would start trickling down our cheeks and
behind our ears, all down our neck. It was impossible for the weaker ones
not to move a hand or a foot; or, tickled by the trickles of sweat, not to
want to wipe it off.
j) Paul Achim was not yet ready to remember Dr. Stroescu, as he had
appeared to him in the rain, or their talk that night, which he had already
forgotten. Although that talk deserved to be remembered. But Paul Achim
had lived for two decades with the express desire of never remembering it,
not even those parts where he had been half-right. But it was much easier
for him to forget about his being right, since this situation existed only by
opposition with things that almost every man keeps silent about in his
private talks with himself. He had not been able to leave Dr. S. in the
street, although the man would have really wanted to be left alone, in that
moment of exquisite happiness of early love, even when this love is
hurried.
k) With this considerable dowry, I am looking for a husband to love and
obey, while swearing to change my way of life. And I would care for this
man so deeply, my wish being only to please and serve. I am indeed
praising my own merits, for there is no shame in it when need drives you.
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In a word, I mean to say that I am looking for a husband to be protected
commanded and respected by, rather than a lover to be served and cursed
by. If you will have what I can give you, here I am with all of my own,
ready to submit to any demand, without putting myself on sale (for this
would mean relinquishing your fortune to matchmakers), for no one can
mediate better than the parties involved.
l) But she doesnt have time to reach the last door of the tram and she wont
get on it through the front door, no matter what. She isnt so old as to use
the exit door to get on the tram, for thats the door people get off by, every
Bucharester knows it.
m) Their most diabolical invention was to make a suspect out of every man:
to make people suspect each other thats where their power lay!
n) They entered the passage, met by squalor and terrible smells, they
knocked at every door only to find out that Mutis carpenter had passed
away a week before. Well, poor Muti, she was suddenly so shocked.
o) Theres no special reason for him to avoid her eyes, or to speak so fast,
haphazardly, as if he were afraid of the questions that in fact she never
asks him.
Key To Chapter Nine Practice

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KEY TO CHAPTER NINE PRACTICE - ING
COMPLEMENTS

Activity 1
Ill have you arrested if you keep bothering me. / In a short while she
managed to bewitch him so completely that she had him eating out of her
hand. / They found it thrown in a corner. / The one talking to Maria right now
is my brother./ The blow left him sprawled under the table./ Dont keep him
waiting./ Jim got the engine started in the twinkling of an eye./ He went to
have a tooth pulled./ Would you like your nailes varnished ?/ So where did
you find such a roomy wardrobe ? I had it made. / Why did you leave the
water running ? / Ill have the house arranged in a second./ She sent him
shopping. / Nobody guessed that only a few days after this discussion they
were going to have their house broken into./ He was discovered lying flat
behind some crates, badly beaten and bloodied.. / You didnt change the
babys diaper, what have you been doing all day?/ Ill have you shut up if you
cant keep a civil tongue in your head.

Activity 2
Riding was something of a passion with her, so that it always made her restive
to see someone else riding a good horse. Accusative + present participle/
We might possibly get the damages agreed at a comparatively nominal sum,
if you put in a defence and then didnt appear. Accusative + past participle/
And before her suddenly closed eyes came Wilfrids face, with its lips drawn
back, as she had seen it last passing her in the Green Park. Attributive past
participle; Accusative + present participle / She went into Adrians after
leaving him, and was rather disconcerted to find her Uncle Lionel waiting for
her there. Adverbial present participle (preceded by conjunction);
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Accusative + present participle / I shall vow that towards the end of the
voyage the co-respondent was seen coming out of the respondents stateroom.
Nominative + present participle / Dinny, sitting taut between her father and
her sister, feeling in her whole being the vibration of her pride and her own,
heard the slow rich voice striking in behind her. Attributive present
participle; Attributive present participle; Accusative + present participle / In
any case, you gave instructions to have your wife watched. Accusative +
past participle / My Lord, before resuming my cross-examination of the
respondent, I should be glad to recall the petitioner. Adverbial present
participle (preceded by conjunction)

Activity 3
1.She didnt want to hear the story again, having heard it all before. 2.
Turning on the light, I was astonished at what I saw. 3. Having looked
through the fashion magazine, I realize that my clothes are hopelessly out of
date. 4. In this chapter the characters have an unintelligible conversation,
lying face downwards in a sea of mud. 5. The tree had fallen across the road,
having been uprooted by the gale. 6. Sleeping in the next room, the people
were wakened by the sound of breaking glass. 7. Knowing that the murderer
was still at large, I was extremely reluctant to open the door. 8. Having been
punished by mother for my mistake, I slammed the door of my room. 9.
Having fed the dog, he sat down to his own dinner. 10. Finding the treasure,
they began quarreling about how to divide it.

Activity 4
1.Running into the room, a rug caught her foot and she fell. As she was
running into the room, a rug caught her foot and she fell./ Running into the
room, she caught her foot in a rug and fell. The participle is misrelated to the
main clause for the simple reason that the subject of the participle does not

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identify with that of the main clause, and this phenomenon gives rise to
ambiguities. 2. Riding in the first race, his horse fell at the last jump. As he
was riding in the first race, his horse fell at the last jump. 3. Knowing me to
be the fool of the family, the news that I had won a scholarship astonished
him. As he knew me to be the fool of the family, the news that I had won a
scholarship astonished him. / Knowing me to be the fool of the family, he was
astonished at the news that I had won a scholarship. 4. Reading in bed, my
hands often get very cold. When I read in bed, my hands often get very
cold./ Reading in bed, I often get very cold hands. 5. Leaving the cinema, it
seemed to him that the film had been exceptionally bad. As he left the
cinema, it seemed to him that the film had been exceptionally bad. 6.
Climbing down the tree, one of the eggs broke. As he was climbing down
the tree, one of the eggs broke. / Climbing down the tree, he broke one of the
eggs. 7. Barking furiously, I let the dog out of the room. As the dog was
barking furiously, I let it out of the room. 8. Getting out of bed, a scorpion bit
him. As he was getting out of bed, a scorpion bit him. / Getting out of bed,
he was bit by a scorpion. 9. Sitting in the dentists chair, an idea suddenly
occurred to me. As I was sitting in the dentists chair, an idea suddenly
occurred to me. 10. Dropped by parachute, the country seemed entirely
unfamiliar. As I had just been dropped by parachute, the country seemed
entirely unfamiliar. 11. Tied to the post, the sea was tossing the post up and
down. As he was tied to the post, the sea was tossing it up and down. 12.
Passing under a ladder, a pot of paint fell on my head. As I was passing
under a ladder, a pot of paint fell on my head.

Activity 5
Fair-haired, broad-shouldered, red-handed, bald-headed, three-coloured,
many-coloured, cloth-covered, stony-hearted, narrow-minded, open-minded,
fishy-eyed, empty-headed, lion-hearted, sharp-eyed/minded, wooden-headed,
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quick-eyed, dark-skinned, eagle-eyed, straight-shouldered, open-hearted.
(other combinations are possible as well)

Activity 6
Molten lead, drunken man, lighted candle, mown grass, roast meat, shaven
head, stricken deer, sunken eyes, shorn lamb, hidden meaning, shrunken
stream, bounden duty, ill-gotten wealth, rotten plank, graven image,

Activity 7
1.Books taken out of the library must be returned within three weeks. / People
taking books out which havent been stamped will be banned. (take) 2. The
film, produced by S.Spielberg, is expected to be a great hit./ Power stations
producing enough energy to supply several towns are soon to be built on the
south coast. (produce) 3. Crops grown under glass mature more quickly than
those in the open. / Farmers growing such crops can therefore catch the early
markets. (grow) 4. I stared at the canvas for ages, admiring the artists skill
and eye for detail. / Swiss watches, admired for their elegance and precision,
are sold throughout the world. (admire) 5. The escaped prisoner, found hiding
in a barn, was today taken back to prison. / Many old people, finding that their
savings have been eaten into by inflation, are having difficulties in making
both ends meet. (find) 6.I fell on the ice, injuring my arm. / Three people,
injured when their car crashed on the M1, were taken to hospital. (injure). 7.
Whales, hunted for their valuable oil and meat, are in grave danger of
extinction. / Thousands of people went shopping in the sales today, hunting
for a bargain. (hunt).

Activity 8
1. Her figure had full round curves: the tendrils of hair hanging on her
forehead and around her bared ears; the shoulders barely hidden by lace;

357
the breasts squeezed by the tightly fitting garment; the hips bursting from
the tight bodice that bit into them, yet left them room to sway free, barely
perceived under the rich folds of fabric. A parasol, now taken down, then
put up, would cast on the womans face and figure shadows and colours
that kept dancing and relighting her curves.
2. Although the moment was deeply disturbed, a strange thrill shot through
Bubi. He felt close to his father, in charge of his house and lands, and
moreover, acknowledged and welcomed by the woman he desired.
3. After a while, the urgency of those words cleared Bubis elation/euphoria
away, forcing him to ponder over their meaning. And his soul, hovering
uncertain and soft, always seized by doubts/ beleaguered with doubts/
struggling with doubts, was now awakened and driving away all its
strength by its hesitations. It seemed to him that Dorodans refrain
sounded like some mysterious prophecy. He suddenly felt surrounded by
some unknown long-forgotten danger which was now assailing him. the
feverish enthusiasm he had felt got drowned in the deep murky waters of
doubt. So, freeing the old mans shoulders from his clasp, he started
peering anxiously around as if, suddenly suffocated, he were struggling
for breath, seeking some promised land.
4. She was surrounded by all that was going to turn into a rich meal: the red
meat, streaked with yellow veins of fat, the fish, its scales scraped off by
the knife, the twice rinsed vegetables, the carved chicken, thrown in the
pots, with its sickening smell of scalded feathers, and the puffed pastry
beds, flat and soft, sprinkled with sticky flour, all this passed through
Mistress Mitas skilled hands who would lay them out carefully, boil
them, bake them.

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Activity 9
Theres no hope of finding any survivors afther the plane crash. / Did you
apologize for disturbing him ? / I gave up playing football when I graduated
from highschool. / You re probably fed up with doing the same thing every
day. / John was severely reprimanded for bullying younger boys. / The public
was warned against the danger of walking alone through the park at night.
/Hes not interested in bringing up his children./ It seems youre rather keen
on pointing to other peoples shortcomings. / Miners are always advised
against bringing matches into the mine./ Who is responsible for locking the
door and watching the building during the night ?/ You should think about
saving money instead of hoping to win it by playing cards./ The answer to the
housing problem seems to reside in building new blocks of flats. / They saw
no reason for not continuing as planned. / The doctor advised me against
smoking and eating fat foods. / I had to put off my leaving on holiday. / That
company specializes in manufacturing office furniture. / She should assert
herself and abstain from smoking in restaurants and other public places. / I am
sorry for being so late. / The judge was accused of not tracing clear goals for
the jury. / He prides himself on always being well-dressed. / I told him not to
bother putting things back. / We had to put up with his being rude throughout
the trip. / I asked for legal advice before deciding on taking legal action. /
After annoying the shop-assistant, he left the store without buying a thing. /
Despite her having to struggle with the rough sea, the swimmer was able to
cross the channel in record time.

Activity 10
1. A stranger sharing the trip with us was bad enough. participle (attribute)
2. He smiled to hear her talking in that way. Accusative + participle 3.
Gambling is his favourite pastime. gerund (subject) 4. It was worth trying to
continue the efforts. - gerund 5. What I dont understand is you suddenly

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turning against me. Accusative ING (predicative) 6. The only reason for
selling was the owners getting a new car. gerund (attribute, preceded by
preposition), possessive ING (predicative) 7. He said he favoured people
having decent haircuts. 8. I can excuse his being rude to me but I cannot
forgive his being rude to my mother. - possessive ING (direct object) 9. He
admitted to driving the lorry recklessly. gerund (prepositional object) 10.
They were interested in a true vote being expressed by the people.
accusative ING (prepositional object) 11. The house is accustomed to reports
being presented orally. accusative ING (prepositional object) 12. The
ceremony ended with his having to receive a trophy. possessive ING
(prepositional object)12. He was spotted talking to her. Nominative +
participle 13. I was afraid that my answer might lead to him being charged for
the offence. accusative ING (prepositional object) 14. Shes looking forward
to having lots of children. gerund (prepositional object) 15. The idea of
him/his going to Paris appalled her. gerund (half or full, attribute)

Activity 11
Chewing cow/ chewing gum- participle vs. gerund
shooting gallery / shooting star gerund vs. participle
boiling water is a job I hate / I need some boiling water gerund (functions as
subject) vs. participle
crying game / crying woman gerund vs. participle
swimming duck / swimming trunks participle vs. gerund
pressing needs/ pressing people to answer questions participle vs. gerund
(has a direct object)
eating habits/ eating people gerund vs. participle
paying guests / paying guests to leave is wrong participle vs. gerund (has a
direct object)

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Activity 12
Men have as much patience for cool philandering as they have for shopping.
verbal noun (has adjective); also verbal noun through symmetry rules /
Shopping can be a nice activity but shopping there can only be a mistake.
gerund or verbal noun; gerund (because of the adverbial that follows it; so
probably the first ing form is also a gerund through symmetry rules) / His
coming there puzzled her. full gerund (has adverbial)/ His sudden coming
puzzled her. verbal noun (combined with adjective)/ The massive cutting of
funds shocked everybody in the company.- verbal noun (has determiner,
adjective, of phrase) / Cutting funds so suddenly came down as a shock.
gerund (has direct object and adverbial)/ Their looting and ruthless
murdering was never forgotten.- verbal nouns (due to combination with
adjective)/ All newspapers commented on Johns robbing the bank. gerund
(full, has direct object)/ Johns robbing of the bank was widely commented
on. verbal noun (has of phrase) / The unexpected robbing of the bank didnt
pass unnoticed. verbal noun (has determiner, adjective, of phrase)

Activity 13
a) I remembered my husband say that I must look out for myself. And I
realized how silly I was in not knowing that I was being watched.
Tell me, Lady Corven, why did you defend this action?
Because I knew that, however appearances were against us, we had done
nothing to be ashamed of.
Dinny saw the Judge look towards Clare, take down her answer, hold up his
pen and speak.
On that night in the car you were on a main road. What was to prevent you
from stopping another car and asking them to give you a lead into Henley?
I dont think we thought of it, my Lord; I did ask Mr. Croom to try to follow
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In any case, what was there to prevent you from walking into Henley and
leaving the car in the wood?
I suppose nothing really, only it would have been midnight before we got to
Henley; and I thought it would be more awkward than just staying in the car.
And I always had wanted to try sleeping in a car.
And do you still want to?
No, my Lord, its overrated.
b) Your uncle has been very kind to me and I shall simply have to call and
thank him. So do look out for me about six oclock tomorrow. I spend all my
time hunting a job, and am beginning to realise what it means to poor devils
to be turned down day after day.
c) I think youre splendid to want to be independent. Its quite impossible for
me not to be in love with you and to long to be with you all day and all night
too. But Im going to be as good as I can because the very last thing I want is
to cause you uneasiness of any sort.
d) Having looked up Sir Lawrences number in Mount Street, he addressed
the note, licked the envelope with passion, and went out to post it himself.
Then, suddenly, he did not feel inclined to return to the Coffee House.
e) I thought youd never forgive me for asking at such a moment.
Always delighted for you to ask anything at any moment. I must go back
now, but Ill hope to see you again very soon.
f) The word national is winning this election, said Clare. Where I went
canvassing in the town they were all Liberals. I just used the word and they
fell.
Hearing that the new Member would be at his headquarters all the morning,
the sisters started about eleven oclock. There was so much coming and
going round the doors that they did not like to enter.
I do hate asking for things, said Clare. Especially when they go on
ignoring you like that.
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Then you shall simply have to go on asking and after getting it you can go
on to become whatever you wish.

Activity 14
k) He remembered entering the village (PRO ing gerund, following the verb
remember, functions as direct object) and then the ground, the very earth
opening up (half gerund, direct object). First the crack snaking (half
gerund, direct object) its jagged way along the concrete, then the noise
and the cracking stone, (participle, attribute, stone which is cracking) and
then the incredible sound of the ground opening up (participle, attribute),
the enormous split in the earth. The two sides were moving apart, their
edges crashing inwards (absolute participle, adverbial of time, while
their edges were crashing inwards), down, down into God knows where.
The sight of the two children, the man and his bike disappearing (half
gerund, direct object for the main verb remember, elliptical here. Has a
complex subject) in the hole. The collapsing shops (participle, attribute,
shops which are collapsing) he remembered seeing (PRO-ing, gerund,
direct object) the shops on one side collapsing (half gerund, direct object)
and then the ragged mouth reaching (half gerund, direct object) towards
him.
l) The people above heard the cry for help coming (participle, attribute,
which was coming) from the huge hole that had wrecked the burning
village (participle, attribute, village which is burning). He looked up
towards the daylight, hoping (participle, adverbial of reason) he would see
somebody up there, someone looking for survivors (participle, attribute).
Then he saw movement at his feet. At first, he thought it was dust caused
by the disturbance, but then he saw it billowing up (Acc + present
participle, after verb of perception, direct object) from below. It was like a
mist, slowly rising (participle, attribute) in a swirling motion, slightly

363
yellowish although he couldnt be sure in the gloom. It seemed to be
spreading along the length of the split, moving up (participle, adverbial of
manner) towards his chest, covering (participle, adverbial of manner) the
girls head. She started coughing (PRO-ing gerund, direct object).
m) The importance attached to the meeting of two young people (verbal noun,
has modifier and of phrase) depends on the importance which others
attach to their not meeting (gerund, cannot take modifier/adjective but
works well with adverb: to their not meeting there, early, etc.). (John
Galsworthy Over the River)
n) Spying on other people (PRO-ing gerund, PRO is interpreted as a generic
pronoun, i.e. one, you, subject of being) being (participle, adverbial of
reason), according to the books he read, the chief occupation of the people
of these islands, it had never occurred to him to look down on a profession
conscientiously pursued for seventeen years. (John Galsworthy Over the
River)
o) Accustomed to the shadowing of people on their guard (verbal noun, has
of phrase), the open innocence they were displaying excited him in a
slightly amused if not contemptuous compassion. (John Galsworthy
Over the River)
p) Mr. Chayne listened to their manly American voices saying to each other
(half gerund, prepositional object, preceded by preposition): Gee! Hes
on us! with an interest which never prevented his knowing (full gerund,
direct object) that his two young people were listening too. (John
q) Nothing so tiring as picture-gazing. Im sorry to emulate Em and suspect
you of not eating enough, my dear. That sort of sparrow-pecking we did
before going in (participle, adverbial of time) doesnt really count. (John
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r) She might just as well have stayed on soaking in her bath (participle,
adverbial of manner), for Dornford was busy on an important case. She
finished what jobs there were, looking idly out over the Temple lawn bath
(participle, adverbial of manner), whence fine-weather mist was
vanishing, and sunlight, brightening (participle, attribute) to winter
brilliance, slanted on to her cheek. (John Galsworthy Over the River)
s) Two little boys carrying toy aeroplanes (participle, attribute) stopped
dead, examining (participle, adverbial of manner) her dark eye-lashes
resting (participle, attribute) on her cream-coloured cheeks, and the little
twitchings (verbal nount) of her just touched-up lips. Having a French
governess (participle, adverbial of reason), they were well-bred little
boys without prospect of sticking (PRO-ing gerund, preceded by
preposition, attribute) pins into her or uttering (PRO-ing gerund, preceded
by preposition, attribute) a sudden whoop. (John Galsworthy Over the
River)
t) Donford spent a quiet hour with Clare over her evidence, and then went
riding (participle, adverbial of purpose) with her in the rain. Dinnys
morning went in arranging for spring cleaning and the chintzing of the
furniture (verbal nouns) while the family were up in town. (John

Activity 15:
Translate into English, making use of the information supplied in this section:
1. So, reluctant or not, we were all gathered in that room, mother, the two
Mamonas, Vaucher and I, waiting for all that was to happen to really happen,
and not only in my imagination or theirs. And, as if a signal announcing a
beginning had been given, a door was opened and as a servant entered, and
everything got suddenly animated. Standing up, Young Mamona left the room
without a word, yet leaving a few drops of blood behind, which beckoned to

365
the eye with their hot foreboding red colour. Behind the servant and tripping
over the departing Young Mamona came other two servants, each carrying a
wooden box.
2. Entering our house on a Thursday, in the year 1812, Vaucher began by
beating Young Mamona under my careless mothers eyes and my own, and
ended his life in the year 1821, killed by Young Mamona, his disloyal
apprentice. But all this is far away and yet unimaginable. Not so unimaginable
though, as not to picture him hitting me shortly after, as he came out of his
puddle and drew near Young Mamona in order to hit him. And then, closing
my eyes, pressing my eye-lids over the look lurking behind them, a sort of
fear and indifference overwhelmed me, together with the thought that some
day someone would kill Vaucher, too. And though I knew that person
wouldnt be me, I knew who it would be. And, who knows, sitting in his
puddle, Vaucher might have known that too, for anyway, he looked like
someone who did, yet who hoped that everything would turn out different in
the end.
3. So when Old Mamona came in, a soaked burlap sack on his shoulders, and
smelling so hard of rain, he found us sitting each in his place, mother looking
absent-minded yet knowledgeable, her back towards us, to me, who was
sitting with eyes half-closed, to Vaucher, sitting in the puddle of water
dripping from his clothes, and to Young Mamona, his head almost touching
the ceiling and a hand raised, as mother had ordered him, but looking as if he
was greeting us or taking leave of someone. He cast us a swift glance, without
taking his sack off his shoulders, not deigning to show us this small courtesy
at least, let alone greet us or say something, he went to mother and, bending a
little, kissed her forehead.
4. He was talking about gathering up all our strength, about sparing no effort,
about concentrating all our resources, about the safeguarding of all our
achievements ; it was raining heavily outside and from time to time they kept
Nadina VIAN

366
rubbing their eyes and their unshaven faces in order to stay awake, the wind
made the walls of the barrack rattle in an almost exciting manner and,
although I was there for the first time and had never seen those people before,
everything seemed familiar, already seen and heard, futile, as if things had
happened before and to no avail and I was sick and tired of seeing and
listening to it, of taking notes and rewriting them. And suddenly, while the
sentences kept flowing in that familiar way and the rain kept falling and the
wind kept blowing, I thought : what if in the meantime the Danube had cut the
island off and pushed it down the river, barrack, stove, wood pile, long board
table, ink-stained red table cloth with cigarette burns and all those men around
the table who were listening while rubbing their unshaven faces, and that guy
who was talking sedately and me who was putting down the same old
words what if everything had started a long time ago without our even
realizing it, without even suspecting it This was followed by people making
suggestions.
5. Reach that place they did one sunny morning, one of those crisp chilly
autumn mornings whose chill does not preclude the afternoon heat but
prepares you for it and makes you feel it better. They got off the truck slowly,
each pausing before jumping down, staggering under the strong light and then
letting themselves slide down as if they were slipping into a deep water whose
bottom they didnt expect to feel under their feet. After the last man had
descended and without any of them uttering one word, the truck left and they
tried to look around and understand. But, as an afterthought, the truck stopped
further by and somebody tossed a few shovels and rakes out of it they could
see only the wooden handles twisting in the air as they fell and a voice
whose harshness had been dimmed by the distance and by the droning of the
engine told them that they were not allowed to explore or to come close to the
villages in that area. When they were finally alone they counted themselves
once more : there were nine of them. And all around them was the great field

367
of Baragan. The villages they were not supposed to come close to couldnt be
seen. They could only distinguish a clump of trees no more than a few
hundred. The first thing they did was to gather the implements from the place
where they had been carelessly thrown away. The next thing was to go to the
well.

Nadina VIAN

368

369

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