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“The Passive Engineer” By: Professional Training Company Presenter: Vandan Desai English 393 February 23, 2009 Introduction What is Passive Voice? Why Do Engineers Use the Passive Voice? When to Use the Passive Voice? When Not to Use the Passive Voice? What is Passive Voice? Passive voice inverts active word to emphasize what happened, rather than who did it: Active: I repaired the radio. Passive: The radio was repaired by me. OR The radio was repaired. 1) 2) 3) Object => Subject Form of “to be” + Past Participle = Passive Voice Actor now part of prepositional phrase (“by me”) or omit the actor altogether Why Do Engineers Use the Passive Voice? The Passive Sound Objective 1) BAD REASON! Using I or We Sounds Unprofessional 2) BAD REASON! The Passive Emphasizes Results 3) GOOD REASON! “The Passive Sounds Objective” Engineers value objectivity; they do not want their data to be clouded with personal opinions The passive sounds distant and authoritative Think they’re stating emotionless truth Why this first reason is unsound: If you use rational (objective) method to collect and analyze data and work honestly, your work is objective. Writers don’t compromise their objectivity by writing clearly and cannot rectify slanted work using passive voice. “Using I or We Sounds Unprofessional” Engineers were encouraged not to use “I” and “We” because first person accounts were not deemed professional Passive was used to avoid forbidden pronouns Why this second reason is unsound: Passive voice does not make writing sound unprofessional Passive voice is a way engineers can avoid taking responsibility (“mistakes were made”) Passive voice can soften harsh statement (“Resume was sent without being proofread.”) “The Passive Emphasizes Results” Why this third reason is sound: Scientific reporting relies on the passive voice to emphasize results and actions instead of the actor or engineer However, the active voice may convey the meaning better. Status reports should always identify actors: Ex: We managed the project successfully. NOT: The project was managed successfully. […by whom?] When to Use the Passive Voice? When you want to emphasize results 1) Ex. 2) Active: Passive: Our students followed our advice. Our advice was followed. When the sentence doesn’t need an actor Actor not important: The solution was heated to 100°. Actor not known: The jewelry has been stolen. Don’t wish to name actor: One thousand dollars has been contributed. When Not to Use the Passive Voice When you write instructions 1) Instructions should be written with active/imperative verbs Instructions must focus on action & indicate actor Passive frequently omits actor Passive uses past participle and thus can’t direct action Passive = vague & confusing instructions Ex: Passive: It should be noted that any change to the procedure must be recorded in the master file. Active: When you change the procedure, record the change in the master file. When Not to Use the Passive Voice When “it” is the subject of the passive verb 2) Delete “it should be noted that” or “it is expected that” or “it is recommended that” … Passive sentences with “it” as subject is confusing Ex: Passive: It is recommended that this new policy be instituted at once. Active: We recommend instituting this new policy at once. Conclusion What is Passive Voice? Why Do Engineers Use the Passive Voice? When to Use the Passive Voice? When Not to Use the Passive Voice? Works Cited “The Passive Engineer.” Professional Training Company. Factotum Ink, Ltd. 3 October 2008. 21 February 2009. -- The End -Any Questions?