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Grammar & Good Writing COMM 200 - PROFESSOR ROBERTS The Importance of Grammar “ The greater part of the world’s troubles are due to questions of grammar.” -- Michel de Montaigne Subject / Verb Agreement SINGULAR: The cheetah runs across the plain. PLURAL: The cheetahs run across the plain. Subject / Verb Agreement The cheetah, one of the planet ’s fastest animals, runs across the plains. The cheetah who has nine lives like most cats runs across the plains. Subject / Verb Agreement Shaquille O’Neal, along with Allen Iverson and Yao Ming, is entering the Hall of Fame. Shaquille O’Neal, Allen Iverson and Yao Ming are entering the Hall of Fame. Subject / Verb Agreement S I N GU L A R P RONOUN S: A N YO N E , A N Y B O DY, E A C H , E V E R Y B O DY, E V E R YO N E , S O M E B O DY, S O M EO N E , N O O N E , N O B O DY, N E I T H E R , E I T H E R H a s a nyo n e d o n e h i s o r h e r h o m e w o r k ? I ’m s u r p r i s e d t h a t i n a c l a s s o f 2 0 , e v e r yo n e h a s d o n e t h e h o m e w o r k . Ea c h o f t h e 2 0 st u d e n t s i s g o i n g t o g e t a p a s s i n g g ra d e . Ea c h o f t h e 2 0 st u d e n t s i n t h e c l a s s w h o c o m p l e t e d a l l o f t h e a s s i g n m e n t s i s g o i n g t o g e t a p a s s i n g g ra d e . N e i t h e r o f t h e t w o c o m p u t e rs i s w o r k i n g . E i t h e r my fa t h e r o r my b ro t h e rs i s g o i n g t o t h e st o r e . Subject / Verb Agreement SINGULAR OR PLURAL PRONOUNS: A L L , S OME , N ON E A l l o f my w h i s key i s go n e . A l l o f my w h i s keys a re go n e . S o m e o f t h e me d i a a re atte nd ing t h e eve nt . S ome o f t h e wate r i s p ol l uted. N o n e o f t h e gi r l s n ex t d o o r a re co m i n g to my p a r t y. N o n e o f t h e w i n e wa s f i t to d r i nk . Active / Passive Voice ACTIVE: Campus police arrested eight students. PASSIVE: Eight students were arrested by campus police. Times to Use Passive Voice WHEN THE SUBJECT ISN’T CLEAR OR IMPORTANT: Visitors are asked to leave after 8 p.m. TO BE TACTFUL: Unfortunate mistakes were made by an overzealous intern. TO EMPHASIZE THE IMPORTANCE OF THE OBJECT: After a vigorous debate, the defense bill was voted out of committee. Person 1 st Person: 2 nd Person Imperative: I go to the store. Go to the store. 2 nd Person: 3rd Person: You go to the store. He/she goes to the store. Person Avoid shifts in person. They can confuse the reader. First, the photographer must decide between a film camera or a digital camera. While digital may be the obvious choice, do not throw out the valuable experience that comes from film . First, you must decide between a film camera or a digital camera. While digital may be the obvious choice, do not throw out the valuable experience that comes from film. Pronouns and Cases Nominative Objective Possessive I me My / mine we us o u r / o u rs 2 nd Person yo u yo u yo u r / yo u rs 3 rd Person he him his she her h e r / h e rs it t h ey it its 1 st Person who them whom t h e i r / t h e i rs whose Pronouns & Cases NOMINATIVE (Subject of sentence or clause): He went to the store. She and I are going to the dance. You’re looking at the guy who’s going to Europe this summer. Pronouns & Cases OBJECTIVE: Direct Object: Donna hit him with a bat. Indirect Object: Jasper gave them 50 dollars. Prepositional Object: This is between him and me. Pronouns & Cases POSSESSIVE (to show ownership): That crazy calico cat is mine. My cat is always getting into trouble. Also use with gerunds (“ing ” verbs acting as nouns): The freshmen kept me awake last night with their partying. Whose cooking made everyone sick last night? Pronouns & Cases Questions often need to be unraveled to make sense. Who / Whom would I complain to about all the noise? I would complain to her (whom) about all the noise. To who / whom should I give this incredible crème brûlée? I should give this incredible crème brûlée to him (whom). Pronoun Reference Pronouns should have a clear antecedent. Evan told Jonathan that the police had been looking for him. Evan and Jonathan decided that staying quiet was his best option. When the police started pounding on my doors and windows, he had no choice but to open it. Pronoun Reference Avoid unclear pronouns like “it ” ”this” and ”that ”. According to our textbook, it’s clear that good writing takes practice. Sarah is always late and in a bad mood. That drives me crazy. Because Jonah hates math and loves writing, he’s probably not going to do well on this. Pronoun Reference Avoid using ”you” and ”they” to refer to generic individuals. Everyone loves Japanese food, so you should check out Izakaya Seki. When I called the police station, they didn’t even answer. Dangling Participles Participles are verbs functioning as adjectives. My hiking group loves to go to Bear Church Rock. Startled bears can be very dangerous. Participial phrases contains a participle and modifiers or compliments. Hiking down the road, the group came across a bear. Sensing danger to its cub, the bear charged at the group. Dangling Participles Participial phrases should clearly refer to the noun they modify. After reaching a boil, the chef was ready to stir the soup. The mugger was chased by the cops, still holding onto the purse. Hiking through the woods, the bear really scared the scouts. Parallel Construction In lists, use the same construction throughout. Sunday is my day to read the Washington Post, cook a big breakfast, and watching football. Sunday is my day to read the Washington Post, cook a big breakfast, and watch football. Parallel Construction In lists, use the same construction throughout. The Ramones were a great band because they were loud, obnoxious, and still wrote catchy songs. The Ramones were a great band because they were loud, obnoxious , and still able to write catchy songs. The Ramones were a great band. They were loud and obnoxious , but they could still write catchy songs. Parallel Construction In lists, use the same construction throughout. Chef Geoff ’s is known for large beers, good happy hour prices, and being a place for American students to hang out. Chef Geoff ’s is known for large beers, good happy hour prices, and lots of American students. Known for its large beers and good happy hour prices, Chef Geoff ’s is a popular place for American students to hang out. Sentence Types Simple: A sentence made up of one independent clause. I love garlic. After school on Friday, I told Sarah about my love for the sweet, yet smoky aroma of roasted garlic. Sentence Types Complex: A sentence with one independent clause and one or more dependent clauses. After I came home from the store, I realized I forgot to buy oregano. After Jenny came back from the mountains, she only wanted to talk about hiking Old Rag where she saw four bears and a rattlesnake. Sentence Types Compound: A sentence with one or more independent clauses. The cops arrived, and the students fled. I would have gone to the party, but Sarah told me about the arrests. Sentence Types Compound-Complex: A sentence with one or more independent clauses and one or more dependent clauses. After eating an entire bag of Doritos, I was ready to throw up, but then I remembered that I still had to eat dinner with my parents. Because I could barely finish my salad, my mom asked if I was feeling okay, and the waiter probably thought that I hated my meal. Sentence Types to Avoid Fragments: An incomplete sentence missing a subject or predicate. Wishful thinking on my part. With your body turned so your left shoulder is almost in a diagonal line with goal. Sentence Types to Avoid Run-on: Two or more independent clauses that should be joined or separated. The next two teams we play are tough we need to start practicing. Old Bay makes everything taste great, better add some more.