Download File - Mrs. Mitchell`s AP lANGUAGE

SYNTAX AND STRUCTURE OBJECTIVE:
Students will be taught methods and strategies which will allow them to recognize how syntax and
structure work together with other stylistic techniques to develop meaning in a sentence, a passage, or an
entire prose or poetry piece.
Syntax, an important factor in discerning a writer’s style, is, simply put, the arrangement and
grammatical relation of words, phrases, and clauses in sentences, and the ordering of words into phrases,
clauses, and sentences, according to the NTC’s Dictionary of Literary Terms. In other words, it is
sentence structure and design. Most of Franz Kafka’s sentences in The Metamorphosis are long and quite
complex. They contain complex thoughts, many of which are not on the same subject. Some sentences
are entire paragraphs in themselves. An example of this occurs early in the story in a one-sentence
paragraph that explains how Gregor is attempting to get out of bed. “First he tried to get out of bed
with the lower part of his body, but his lower part-which by the way he had not seen yet and which he
could not form a clear picture of—proved too difficult to budge; it was taking so long and when finally,
almost out of his mind, he lunged forward with all his force, without caring, he had picked the wrong
direction and slammed himself violently against the lower bedpost, and the searing pain he felt taught him
that exactly the lower part of his body was, for the moment anyway, the most sensitive.”
The simplicity of the words and jumble of thoughts has the impression of helplessness and
confusion, indicating the complexity of feelings Gregor has throughout the novella. The complex
sentences stand antithetical to those found in Hemingway’s The Old Man and the Sea, when the old man
is catching the marlin. “He looked back at the coils of line and they were feeding smoothly. Just then the
fish jumped making a great bursting of the ocean and then a heavy fall. Then he jumped again and again
and the boat was going fast although the line was still racing out and the old man was raising the strain to
the breaking point and raising it to breaking point again and again. He had been pulled down tight onto the
bow and his face was in the cut slice of dolphin and he could not move.” Hemingway’s simple syntax
includes short, choppy sentences with very few adjectives. Kafka would somehow
make this series of events all one sentence. Although using different styles, both
authors get their points across while creating different moods and perspectives
for
their stories.
SENTENCE PATTERNS
Declarative (strong, active verb):
1.
Two problems perplexed the student.
2.
Washington offers the tourist two unique spots of interest.
3.
Two strange sights startled Steve as he emerged from the cave.
Interrogative (question):
1.
What two places in the world would you like most to visit?
2.
For what two reasons do little boys enjoy stomping in mud puddles?
Exclamatory:
1.
Two terrible things happened today!
2.
I absolutely will not ride that donkey!
3.
What incredible luck I had yesterday!
Imperative:
1.
Pass the salt please.
2.
Don’t say a word about your actions.
3.
You must finish your homework before watching television.
Loose Sentence: Main clause first; subordinate clause / phrases follows
1.
The long winding road with its leafless trees suggested solitude and loneliness.
2.
The catcher waited patiently for the pitcher to begin.
3.
The detective interviewed the witness carefully.
Periodic Sentence: Subordinate constructions first; main clause closes the sentence.
1.
Paralyzed by the neurotic lassitude engendered by meeting one’s past at every turn, around every
corner, inside every cupboard, I go aimlessly from room to room.
2.
By this rude bridge, their flag unfurled, . . . and fired the shot heard round the world.
3.
After clearing out the furniture, covering the carpet, and removing the pictures, I began painting
the large room.
Balanced or Parallel Sentence: Two or more words or constructions must be in the same
grammatical form – infinitives, verbs, gerunds, participles, prepositional phrases, clauses,
etc. This style is impressive and pleasing to hear, elaborates rhythm and order, and
shows economy by using one element of a sentence to server three or four others.
1.
To complain of the age we live in, to murmur at the present possessors of power, to lament the
past, to conceive extravagant hopes of the future, are the common dispositions of the greatest
part of mankind.
2.
But called by whatever name, it is a most fruitful region; kind to the native, interesting to the
visitor.
3.
Teenagers who dance the frug or the jerk are either wild or juvenile delinquents or both.
Convoluted Structure: Main clause is split in two; subordinate material is between.
1.
Now demons, whatever else they may be, are full of interest.
2.
The pizza delivery boy, no matter how late, still expected a hefty tip.
3.
The talk-show host, whatever his own opinions were, conducted an excellent interview.
Centered Structure: main clause occupies the middle, subordinate material between.
1.
Having wanted to walk on the sea like St. Peter, he had taken an involuntary bath, losing his dignity
and the better part of his reputation.
2.
After digging a large hole, I planted the tree, which was also large and hard to manage.
3.
Before he opening the mail, he answered the phone, which had been ringing insistently.
Freight Train: sentence consisting of short, independent clauses coupled for a sense of immediacy; the
effect produces a rhythmical quality to the test.
1.
And I’ll look out for you, and you’ll sign out as soon as you see me, And we’ll go down the street arm
in arm, and into all the shops, and then I’ll choose my house, and you’ll choose your house, and we’ll live
there like princes and good fellows.
Adverbial or Dependent Clause Opener: creates emphasis by putting important iformation first
1.
As I shopped for groceries, I found three ways to save money.
2.
When I was younger, I liked simple foods.
3.
After the dictator seized control, the situation in the country changed dramatically.
Verb Before Subject or inverted word order: again, used for emphasis
1.
Beside the houses grew two large maple trees.
2.
Along the boulevard sped two sleek, fast cars.
3.
On my street live two large families.
Appositive:
1.
London, the English city on the Thames, offers many tourist attractions.
2.
Tucson combines two cultures: the Spanish/Indian and the American West.
4.
Two American cities, New York and Los Angeles, appeal to me.
Rhetorical Question: creates active involvement with reader or audience by asking them to think
1.
Wasn’t the cult of James a revealing symbol, a symbol of an age and society which wanted to dwell
like him in some false world of false art and false cultures? From “Henry James and His Cult” by
Maxwell Geismar
2.
A good student-body is perhaps the most important factor in a great university. How can you
possibly make good wine from poor grapes? From a student paper
Form Follows Content:
1.
. . . if you have a lot of things you cannot move about a lot, that furniture requires dusting, dusters
require servants, servants require insurance stamps and the whole tangle of them makes you think
twice before you accept an invitation to dinner or go for a bathe in the Jordan. From “My Wood”
E. M. Forster
3.
He had listened to it for years: the long legend of corncribs rifled, of shoats and grown pigs and
even calves carried bodily into the woods and devoured, or traps and deadfalls overthrown and
dogs mangled and slain, and shotgun and even rifle charges delivered at point-blank range and with
no more effect than so many peas blown through a tube by a boy – a corridor of wreckage and
destruction beginning back before he was born, through which sped, not fast but rather with the
ruthless and irresistible deliberation of a locomotive, the shaggy tremendous shape. From “The
Bear” by William Faulkner
Sentence Purpose: to help translate loudness, intonation, and gesture into writing, write sentences that
produce “partial” emphasis that is not of the whole sentence but of a word or a phrase within a sentence.
Opening and closing positions: These areas of a sentence are especially sensitive to emphasis.
Poor - I suddenly began to rain.
Better – Suddenly, it began to rain
A short sentence in a pool of longer ones stands out and emphasizes the topic.
Ex. As Thompson and the transcript man had said, Vanzetti was naturally and quietly eloquent. So
he was electrocuted.
Antimetabole -- repetition of words, in clauses, in reverse grammatical order.
1.
Mankind must put an end to war – or war will put an end to mankind. From Inaugural Address, 1961
John F. Kennedy
2.
I am stuck on Band-Aid ‘cause Band- Aid’s stuck on me. From television ad
3.
If you cannot control your spending, your spending will control you.
Chiasmus –The criss-cross or reversal of grammatical structures in successive phrases or
clauses.
1.
By day the frolic, and the dance by night. From “The Vanity of Human Wishes” by Samuel Johnson
2.
His time a moment, and a point his space. From Essay on Man by Alexander Pope
Epanalepsis – Repetition at the end of a clause of the word that occurred at the beginning of
the clause
1.
Blood hath bought blood, and blows have answer’d blows. From King John, II by William
Shakespeare
2.
Year chases year, decay pursues decay. From “The Vanity of Human Wishes” by Samuel Johnson
Anadiplosis – Repetition of the last word of one clause at the beginning of the following clause.
1.
Labor and care are rewarded with success, success produces confidence, confidence relaxes
industry, and negligence ruins the reputation which diligence had raised. From Rambler No 21 by
Dr. Johnson
2.
3.
The crime was common, common be the pain. From “Eloisa to Abelard” by Alexander Pope.
Queeq: “Aboard my ship, excellent performance is standard. Standard performance is substandard. Sub-standard performance is not permitted to exist. From The Caine Mutiny by
Herman Wouk
Anaphora – repetition of the same word or group of words at the beginnings of successive
sentences.
1.
The Lord sitteth above the water floods. The Lord remaineth a King forever. The Lord shall give
strength unto his people. The Lord shall give his people the blessing of peace. From Psalm 29
2.
It is a luxury, it is a privilege, it is an indulgence for those who are at their ease.
From “Letter to a Noble Lord,” 1796 by Edmund Burke
Epistrophe – Repetition of the same word or group of words at the ends of successive clauses.
1.
Shylock: I’ll have my bond! Speak not against my bond! I have sworn an oath that I will have my
bond! The Merchant of Venice by William Shakespeare
2.
We cannot learn from one another until we stop shouting at one another.
Inaugural Address, January 20, 1969 by Richard Nixon
3.
Free at last; free at last; Thank God Almighty, free at last.
Puns – generic name for those figures of speech, which make a play on words.
1.
Your argument is sound, nothing but sound. From Benjamin Franklin
2.
Although we’re apart, you’re still a part of me. From song “On Blueberry Hill”
3.
If we don’t hang together, we’ll hang separately. From Benjamin Franklin
Understatement – deliberate use of understatement, not to deceive someone but to enhance the
impressiveness of what we say.
1.
It isn’t very serious. I have this tiny little tumor on the brain. From The Catcher in the Rye by J.
D. Salinger
2.
For four generations we’ve been making medicines as if people’s lives depended on them. From ad
for Eli Lilly Drug Company
Paradox – an apparently contradictory statement that nevertheless contains a measure of truth.
1.
Art is a form of lying in order to tell the truth. – Pablo Picasso
2.
The Past is prologue. – Paul Newman
3.
The less we copy the renowned ancients, the more we shall resemble them.
From Conjectures on Original Composition by Edward Young
5.
Water, water everywhere but not a drop to drink
Punctuation – Use of periods, commas, dashes, semi-colons, colons, or other marks in order to
control the pace of effect of a work of prose or poetry.
1.
“No rays from the holy Heaven come down / On the long night-time of the town; / But light from
out the lurid sea / Streams up the turrets silently --/ Up domes – up spires – Up kingly halls – Up
fanes – up Babylon-like walls --“ From “A City in the Sea” by E. A. Poe
Utilizing negative-positive restatement creates emphasis by using opposites. An idea is stated twice,
first in negative terms; then in positive
Using pairing and piling modifiers with sets of adjectives impress themselves upon a reader.
Isolated and interrupting elements cut off by punctuation creates “compression” – to quote Poe – which
does impress a reader.
Ex. Children, curled in little balls, slept on straw scattered on wagon beds.
Finally – pay attention to the verbs which determine active and passive voice but also tend to reveal much
about the speaker, attitude, and tone of the work.
Methods of Structure / Organization / Movement in Literature
All good writing has a pattern of organization or structure. Syntax is concerned with the
sequence of the words as they form sentences; organization is concerned with the sequence of
paragraphs or stanzas.
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General to specific (deductive) or specific to general (inductive)
Chronological (time sequence)
Narrative (order of occurrence of events}
Association / memory (one object to another or by memories)
Movement or lack of movement (storm to calm or calm to storm)
Sensory (organized by senses)
Spatial (inside to outside, far to near, top to bottom, flight to pursuit etc.
In medias res (beginning in the middle and using flashbacks to fill in background)
Comparison and contrast
Order of importance
Dominant impression to least dominant impression (or reverse)
Abstract to concrete (or reverse)
Past to present or present to past
Disorder to order or order to disorder
EXERCISES – STRUCTURE (AND SYNTAX)
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Next morning when the first light came into the sky and the sparrows stirred in the trees, when
the cows rattled their chains and the rooster crowed and the early automobiles went whispering
along the road, Wilbur awoke and looked for Charlotte. From Charlotte’s Web by E. B. White
In the grass and the grain, beside the road, and in some places scattered over the road, there was
much material; a field kitchen, it mush have come when things were going well; many of the
calfskin-covered haversacks, stick bombs, helmets, rifles, sometimes one butt-up, the bayonet
stuck in the dirt, they had dug quite a little at the last; stick bombs, helmet rifles, entrenching
tools, ammunition boxes, star-shell pistols, their shells scattered about, medical kits, gas masks,
empty gas-mask cans, a squat tri-podded machine gun in a nest of empty shells, full belts
protruding from the boxes, the water cooling can empty and on its side, the breech block gone,
the crew in odd positions, and around them in the grass, more of the typical papers. From “A Way
You’ll Never Be” by Ernest Hemingway
Nearly ten years had passed since the Dursleys had woken up to find their nephew on the front
step, but Privet Drive had hardly changed at all. The sun rose on the same tidy front gardens and
lit up the brass number four on the Dursley’s front door; it crept into their living room, which was
almost exactly the same as it had been on the night when Mr. Dursley had seen the fateful news
report about the owls. Only the photograph on the mantelpiece really showed how much time had
passed. Ten years ago, there had been lots of pictures of what looked like a large pink ball
wearing different-colored bonnets—but Dudley Dursley was no longer a baby, and now the
photographs showed a large blond boy riding his first bicycle, on a carousel at the fair, playing a
computer game with his father, being hugged and kissed by his mother. The room held no sign at
all that another boy lived in the house, too. From Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone by J.K.
Rawlings
5.
6.
I hear an army charging upon the land,
And the thunder of horses plunging, foam about their knees:
Arrogant, in black armor, behind them stand,
Disdaining the reins, with fluttering whips, the charioteers.
From “I Hear an Army Charging Upon the Land” by James Joyce
No sooner had the reverberation of my blows sunk into silence, then I was answered by a
voice from within the tomb! – by a cry, at first muffled and broken, like the sobbing of a child, and
then quickly swelling into one long, loud, and continuous scream, utterly anomalous and inhuman – a
howl! – a wailing shriek, half of horror and half of triumph, such as might have arisen only out of
hell, conjointly from the throats of the damned in their agony and of the demons that exult in the
damnation. From “The Black Cat” by Edgar Allan Poe
SYNTAX (AND STRUCTURE)
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When I am too sad and too skinny to keep keeping, when I am a tiny thing against so many
bricks, then it is I look at trees. From The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros
But George sat stiffly on the bank and looked at his right hand that had thrown the gun away.
From Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck
You could draw me to fire, you could draw me to water, you could draw me to the gallows, you could
draw me to any death, you could draw me to anything I have most avoided, you could draw me to
any exposure and disgrace. From Question 1, 1993 (Two Marriage Proposals) Charles Dickens
excerpt
He should be firm, yet gentle; sensitive to others, insensitive to himself; look to the past and the
future, yet be firmly planted in the present, both visionary and sound; affable, yet reflective;
know the value of a dollar and realize that ideas cannot be bought; inspiring in his visions yet
cautious in what he does; a man of principle yet able to make a deal; a man with broad perspective
who will follow the details conscientiously; a good American but ready to criticize the status quo
fearlessly; a seeker of truth where the truth may not hurt too much; a source of public
pronouncements when they do not reflect his own institution. From The Uses of the University by
Clark Kerr
As long as the white man sent you to Korea, you bled. He sent you to Germany, you bled.
He sent you to the South Pacific to fight the Japanese, you bled. From Speech by
Malcomb X.
The impact of poetry is so hard and direct that for the moment there is no other sensation
except that of the poem itself. What profound depths we visit then – how sudden and complete is
our immersion! There is nothing here to catch hold of; nothing to stay us in our flight . . .. The
poet is always our contemporary. Our being for the moment is centered and constricted, as in any
violent shock of personal emotion. From “How Should One Read a Book?” by Virginia Woolf
“I’m clean, Carlito, I’m not using.” My voice dropped to a whisper. “I’m not using,” And oh, God, I
found my mind thinking. Wonder what it would be like again? Wonder what it would be like again?
Wonder what it would be like again? Wonder . . ..
From Down These Mean Streets by Piri Thomas
HIGGINS: Yes: that’s what drives me mad: the silly people don’t know their own silly business.
From Pygmalion by George Bernard Shaw
Death be not proud, though some have called thee
Mighty and dreadful, for thou art not so;
For those whom thou think’st thou dost overthrow
Die not, poor Death; nor yet canst thou kill me.
16.
From rest and sleep, which but thy pictures be,
Much pleasure, then from thee much more must flow;
From “Death be not Proud” by John Donne
Down by the depot, the postmistress, a gaunt woman, who wears a rawhide jacket
and denims and cowboy boots, presides over a falling-apart post office. The depot
itself, with its peeling sulphur-colored paint, is equally melancholy; the Chief, the Super
Chief, the El Capitan go by every day, but these celebrated expresses never pause
there. No passenger trains do – only an occasional freight. Up on the highway, there are
two filling stations, one of which doubles as a meagerly supplied grocery store, while the other
does extra duty as a café --- Hartman’s Café, where Mrs. Hartman, the proprietress, dispenses
sandwiches, coffee, soft drinks, and 3.2 beer. (Holcomb, like all the rest of Kansas, is “dry.”)
From In Cold Blood by Truman Capote
© S. Counsil
A Guide for Advanced Placement English Vertical Teams – pages 39-48.
Corbett, Edward P. J., and Conners, Robert J. Style and Statement. New York: Oxford, 1999.
Dean, Nancy. Voice Lessons Classroom Activities to Teach Diction, Detail, Imagery, Syntax, and
Tone. Gainesville, FL: Maupin House, 2000.
Answers to Structure and Syntax
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This sentence from White is periodic and narrated sequentially. Words such as Next, when, came,
stirred, when, rattled, crowed, and went show a series of actions. First the light came, and very
shortly after that, the sparrows stirred. About the same time the cows rattled and the rooster
crowed. These sounds are the sounds usually made when first waking. The automobile introduced
the human element. Everything was normal and as it should be. Then Wilbur awoke and looked for
Charlotte. This sentence begins the contrast, because here, everything is not as it should be.
The normalcy of all the first events tends to highlight and accentuate the abnormality of the last.
The sentence also employs repetition in order to suggest similarities and contrast.
This piece has a sense of form matching content or subject and is a combination of observation
and narration. Just as the various objects are scattered here and there as a result of a battle,
the description is random, lacking any obvious order. The human objects which have joined the
natural world tell their own story as they are observed in no particular order almost as if one is
cataloguing what he sees as he is walking or driving by the scene. Some objects (stick bombs and
helmet rifles) are mentioned twice. The position of the objects is often the opposite of their
intended one. For example, the helmet rifle is “butt-up,” “the water cooling can in on its side,” the
“crew in odd positions,” and the papers in the grass.” In the beginning of the sentence the items
are described as “scattered.” The sentence as a whole reflects the disaster and chaos of fighting
and of war, suggesting perhaps how battle often turns lives up-side-down. It depicts a scene
where living and actions were halted abruptly which may account for the fact that everything was
described in one long continuous sentence.
This passage is an interesting example of form following content or subject. The contrast
between constancy and change creates dramatic and syntactic tension. The movement of the
paragraph is from the street to the front steps and the number four on the front door to the
living room, the mantelpiece, and finally to the object of attention, the child, Dudley Dursley.
Thus the movement of the paragraph from general to specific emphasizes the attention paid to
the favored child, and only at the end does is the reader reminded that another child resides in
the house. The paragraph begins with a mention of the sun rising and time passing but this stands
antithetically to the fact that no changes have occurred in the Dursley family. “Privet Drive had
hardly changed at all.” The sun shines on the same garden, the same brass number, and the living
room which was almost exactly the same. Concomitantly, the attention paid to Dudley has
remained constant as has the inattention paid to Harry. The narrative pace creates a mood of
constancy and the slow passage of time, and the lack of change creates irony in the final sentence.
A convoluted structure and inversion of normal word order shock and surprise the reader.. The
inversion here also delays syntactic closure, increasing the tension of the sentence and holding the
reader’s attention until the sentence is complete. “Arrogant,” “Disdaining,” and “in black armor”
modify the charioteers and reveal something about their confidence and personality. The words
charging and thunder suggests the power and force of the attack. The flow of the sentence
mimics the gathering speed of the army. The unusual word order heightens and directs the
reader’s attentiveness, forces the reader to examine the line closely in order to determine the
subject, and holds the reader’s attention until the end of the fourth line.
High complex convoluted structure of the sentence reflects the anticipation of a
confusing event. Balanced parallelism reveals how form fits function. Poe utilizes numerous
exclamatory interjections and multiple subordinate clauses to create a broken sentence. The
passage is reminiscent of the stream of consciousness of someone who is horrified. The
appositive, a noun phrase, is a voice from within the tomb – “by a muffled cry . . . damnation.” The
main clause of this sentence is “I was answered by a voice from within the tomb.” It carries both
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the syntactic and semantic weight of the sentence. Syntactic closure (the completion of a
grammatical structure) is thus achieved very early in the sentence. Syntactic closure relieves
tension and allows the reader to explore the complex description of the voice in the tomb.
Through the appositive, Poe increases the intensity of the cries. He moves from a voice (the main
noun) to a cry, then to a howl, then to a shriek. The increasing intensity creates the mood of
terror and reflects the narrator’s increasing madness.
This sentence is a periodic sentence, a grammatical structure consisting of a dependent clause
that cannot stand on its own followed by an independent clause. This creates a syntactic tension:
a need for completion which leads the reader to the focus point of the sentence – the main clause
(then it is I look at trees). Ironically, the speaker talks of feeling weak in the weaker of the two
clauses. The idea that the sentence’s end focus emphasizes is that looking at trees can offer
comfort and reassurance. The sentence structure leads to this contention by balancing the
dependent clauses, which impart the feeling of helplessness, with the independent clause which
offers the comfort of trees. Repetition of the word too before sad and skinny also emphasizes
her helplessness and fragility. The anaphora connects the ideas leading to the main idea which
again is held until the end for effect.
This sentence is similar to the one above in that the subordinate clause makes George’s
right hand into an independent actor. George does not throw the gun away. Instead, his
hand does the work. The implication is that the hand could also shoot the gun independently. This syntactic structure removes the responsibility and the control from George.
This passage is an example of anaphora, “You could draw me to . . .,” and sets up a syntactic tension between all the things the speaker would be willing to do in order to convince his
beloved to marry him. The parallel construction and anaphora emphasize the extent of his
devotion. The repetition on all the negative things the speaker might be willing to do show his
extreme love and desire for the lady
Here is a good example of a balanced sentence, which uses antithesis to show the ideal
combination of traits essential in a university man. Contrasts serve to elucidate the complex
balance, while the drawn-out sentence shows the quantity of qualities that such a man should
possess. The balanced structure matches the balanced qualities that are called for in the
individual such as “inspiring” yet cautious,” and “sensitive” and “insensitive.”
This periodic sentences demonstrate the technique of Epistrophe and Anaphora, using
the words sent you at the beginning of each sentence and bled at the end of each in
order to emphasize the consistent danger and sacrifice the black man endured during the
war. The implication of the word bled is that the white man used the black men in the most
dangerous missions, one they themselves would be reluctant to undertake. Inherent in the
passage is the resentment of the inequality and the unrecognized sacrifice. The repetition of the
word bled creates syntactic tension, increasing the impact of the sentence and holding the
reader’s attention until the sentence is complete. The repetition reinforces Malcolm X’s main point
of oppression, while the short sentences make the points seem more numerous and forceful for
the reader.
The exclamatory sentence is “What profound depths we visit then – how sudden and
complete is our immersion! The exclamatory sentence here serves to emphasize the immediacy
and complete involvement found in reading poetry. Exclamatory sentences in general show deep
feeling, excitement, and passion. When used sparingly, they provide contrast for the more
decorous declarative sentences, and they express the strong feelings of the writer. Form follows
content in this piece as the direct, lyrical prose mirrors the subject of poetry. Woolf uses
creative punctuation (semi colons, dashes, and ellipses) to create a flowing inverted sentence
structure juxtaposed by anaphora.
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There are five sentences in the passage. The first and second sentences
are medium in length; the third and fifth sentences are long; and the fourth sentence (“The poet
is always our contemporary”) is short. Placing a short sentence amidst several longer sentences
serves to emphasize the short sentence and give it weight. The central idea of the passage is
carried by the short sentence and is intensified by its contrast with the longer sentences.
The repetition of the question emphasizes his thought process and re-creates his
obsession with trying drugs again. This repetition is the main syntactical force of the passage,
emphasizing the one-track mindset of an addict. The simple sentences also assist the effect.
Balanced with the repeated “I’m clean . . . I’m not using . . . I’m not using,” it reflects the struggle
between his pride in being drug free and his desire to use the drug again. Rhetorical questions
create drama. Repetition with no variation in syntax increases the importance of the repeated
clause and parallels the narrator’s growing concern. The missing words are, “What would it be like
again?” The omission emphasizes the narrator’s growing concern with what it would be like to try
drugs again. The ellipses leave the paragraph open, which implies that the question could be asked
yet again, reinforcing the emphasis on the narrator’s struggle.
All colons direct the reader’s attention to the words that follow it. The use of Yes
prepares the audience for the coming statement. The purpose of the first colon is just that: to
direct the reader’s attention to the words that follow. The purpose of the
second colon is to indicate that an explanation follows. A colon may separate independent
clauses if the second clause explains or summarizes the first one. The colon prepares
the reader for the explanation which follows the colon. The yes at the beginning of the
sentence intensifies and affirms the rest of the sentence. It also reveals Higgins’
character: his exuberance and self-assurance. Use of Epistrophe or repetition of silly
contributes to the emphasis of the speaker’s attitude toward business and social structure.
The imperative mood is used for orders and advice. When the persona tells Death
to “be not proud,” he is demonstrating his own power and control. Death cannot conquer the
persona in this poem, because he can surmount death through his religion. The effect of the
imperative is to startle the reader and emphasize the power of faith. The understood verb is
must flow, and the understood subject is pleasure. By leaving out words in the first clause that
are stated in the second clause (and vice versa), Donne connects the ideas of the two clauses. His
syntax reflects his meaning: we get pleasure from rest and sleep. Rest and sleep are only
reflections of death. Therefore, we will get even more pleasure from death than from rest and
sleep. Use of repetition reinforces the idea of Death personified. The form follows the content
as the poem follows a languid, leisurely pace that mirrors the respose (rest) of death. Litotes also
aids in facilitating the poet dismissal of Death. Brief, convoluted structure reflects transient
nature of life and teleological oncoming of death. Chiasmus of grammatical features reflect the
terse profundity at the acceptance of death.
The passage has complex syntax. The first sentence has a convoluted structure with a
series of descriptive words connected by and’s and an appositive, all of which construct a thorough
description of the postmistress. This is followed by another convoluted sentence (a nonessential
clause is between the subject and the verb) which describe the depot, and ends with a compound
sentence (the description of the trains). The next sentence is a continuation of the former, a
negative, antithetical structure. Then comes another sentence containing a compound appositive,
(which creates a balanced structure) followed by another appositive, and then a dependent clause,
with another appositive, followed by parallel structure.
SENTENCE #
SENTENCE OPENING SHEET (S0S)
FRIST FOUR WORDS
SPECIAL FEATURES
VERBS
NO. OF
WORDS PER
SENTENCE
SOS - EXAMINING THE SYNTAX WITHIN A LONGER PASSAGE
It was in the clove of seasons, summer was dead but autumn had not yet been formed, that the
ibis lit in the bleeding tree. (1) The flower garden was stained with rotting brown magnolia petals and
ironweeds grew rank amid the purple phlox. (2) The five o’clocks by the chimney still marked time, but the
oriole nest in the elm was untenanted and rocked back and forth like an empty cradle. (3) The last
graveyard flowers were blooming, and their smell drifted across the cotton field and through every room
of our house, speaking softly the names of our dead.
It’s strange that all this is so clear to me, now that summer had long since fled and time has had
its way. (5) A grindstone stands where the bleeding tree stood, just outside the kitchen door, and now if
an oriole sings in the elm, its song seems to die up in the leaves, a silvery dust. (6) But sometimes, (like
right now), as I sit in the cool, green-draped parlor, the grindstone begins to turn, and time with all its
changes is ground away – and I remember Doodle. (8) From “The Scarlet Ibis” by James Hurst
Sent.
#
1.
First Four Words
Special Features
Verbs
# of Words
It was in the
The flower garden was
was, was
had been born, lit
was stained, grew
25
2.
personification
metaphor
Imagery, alliteration
The five o’clocks by
Personification, simile
27
The last graveyard
flowers
Personification,
alliteration
marked, was,
rocked
were blooming,
drifted
3.
4.
18
28