Download COMMON GRAMMATICAL ERRORS WHEN ANALYZING FILMS

COMMON GRAMMATICAL ERRORS
WHEN ANALYZING FILMS AND BOOKS, ALWAYS INTRODUCE REFERERENCES FROM THE BOOK
USING THE PRESENT TENSE. BOOKS AND FILMS ARE CONSIDERED STILL ALIVE BECAUSE THEY
ARE MEANT TO LIVE IN PERPETUITY.
Edit for clarity: Make sure that your sentences are clear, concise and make
complete sense.
Ask yourself: Do all of my sentences make sense? Do they have a point? Can they
stand alone? Or, am I expecting the reader to know what I mean, or what I’m
talking about?
NEVER ASSUME THAT THE READER KNOWS ANYTHING ABOUT YOUR TOPIC.
WRONG WORD CHOICES:
Where vs. were. Think of where? as asking a question and were as the plural past tense of the verb “to
be” (is, are, was, were).
Their vs. there. Think of there as “over there” as in direction, while “their” is a plural possessive
pronoun.
Its vs. it’s. It’s is a contraction for “it is.” “Its” is a very irregular form of possession that fails to follow
the rule. The possessive of “it” has no apostrophe before the “s.” Example: “The child’s tears fell
copiously.” or “The dog’s tail wagged for its master.” If you put an apostrophe in that sentence, “it’s”
would become a contraction for “it is.” The dog wags it’s tail. You would mean “The dog wagged it is
tail.” SOLUTION: In essays and research papers, avoid contractions all together. Leave contractions for
informal writing.
Your vs. you’re – Avoid contractions and you won’t get confused here
We’re vs. were - Again, avoid contractions to eliminate confusion.
Too vs. to vs. two - Too is too much as in number of quantity. To is direction as in to the store. And two
is a number.
RUN ONS
(R/O) contains two complete sentences with no punctuation between the two sentences.
Ex: Kurt Vonneget is a great author I enjoy reading his books.
I like to read I am not a slow reader.
Writing is not my strength I am not so great at it.
COMMA SPLICE
A COMMA SPLICE (C/S) contains two complete sentences with a comma between the two instead of a
period or semicolon.
Ex: My final strength is also a weakness, I can write a paper at the last minute. A period or semicolon
would do here.
Editing is a bigger deal than I thought, when I went to English 28, I learned this the hard way.
Structuring paragraphs is another big weakness of mine, for some reason, I tend to not read over what I
write and the structure comes out wrong.
SEMICOLON
A SEMICOLON is used to join two complete sentences that are very closely related but have no
coordinating conjunction between them. Use them sparingly or not at all if you don’t know what you
are doing, otherwise you will end up with a run on.
FRAGMENT
A FRAGMENT (frag) is a sentence that is not complete. It is either missing the point, a subject or the
action (verb). Most fragments can be fixed by using a conjunction to join it to the preceding sentence, if
the preceding sentence is a complete thought.
Example: I know I can do it. Or not.
He thinks he’s all that. And a bag of chips.
I like reading exciting stuff. Not boring materials.
Keeping up with the Jones.’
Identify the noun/pronoun (subject), the verb (predicate); make sure that the sentence can stand alone
and make complete sense.
VERBS
VERBS. There are several different problems with verbs. The first starts with choosing the correct verb
tense for the sentence. The best thing to do is memorize irregular verb tenses and how to use the
helping verb (have, has and had) before the past perfect tense.
Ex: Present Tense Singular: I go; you go; he, she it, goes.
Past Tense Singular: I went, you went, he, she, it went.
Past Perfect Singular With Helping Verb: I have/had gone; you have/had gone; he, she, it has/had gone.
DO NOT SWITCH TENSES IN THE SAME SENTENCE:
Example of confusion about staying in the same tense in the same sentence: I was born and raise in
Sylmar. “Was” is past tense and “raise” is present tense. Stay in the same tense in the same sentence.
Another Example: After I walk to the store, I felt tired. “Walk” is present tense and “felt” and “tired”
are past tense.
There is also the problem of agreement (agmt). Sometimes it’s subject verb agreement; noun pronoun
antecedent agreement; or simply singular plural agreement.
Example of incorrect singular plural agreement and noun pronoun antecedent agreement would be: The
“woman” put their purses beside them. “Woman” is singular while “their” and “purses” are plural.
There must be agreement between the noun “women” and the pronoun “their.” This is an example of
noun pronoun antecedent agreement.
Ex: I learned about different skin disease and disorders.
Ex: I have some strength that make me a good student.
Simple subject verb agreement problems tend to occur with third person singular (he, she, it, one).
There is a tendency to think that a singular verb does not have an “s” or “es” on the end, because
singular nouns do not end in “s.” However, with third person, the verb does end in “s” or “es.” Example:
The dog (it) barks all night. NOT: The dog bark all night. Example: NOT: “She cover her head with a
scarf for religious reasons, but “She covers her head for religious reasons.” Usually there is no confusion
with first person (I) and second person (you) singular. Ex: “I cover,” “you cover.” The problem is with
third person singular: “she covers.”
PARALLEL STRUCTURE
Parallel Structure. In a series of ideas, express ideas using the same structure, and/or make the endings
of verbs, adjectives or adverbs the same, (i.e. parallel).
Ex: Faulty Parallel Structure: I do anything I can to better myself, from reading anything I can, watch the
news, and attend self improvement workshops. Correct: I do anything I can to better myself, from
reading anything I can, to watching the news, and attending self improvement workshops.
Faulty Parallel Structure: One needs to be mindfulness, faces one’s fears, and willing for prosperity.
Correct: One needs to be mindful, to face one’s fears, and to be willing to accept prosperity.
There is no substitute for learning the rules of grammar. MyWritingLab is designed to help students
master basic sixth grade grammar, which is the foundation for becoming a good writer. No one respects
or trusts an author who never bothered to master sixth grade grammar.
AWKWARD SENTENCES: Example: “A person character it is not define as how well they do but how he
faces his problems.” HERE, we have a problem with possession (A person’s character) and TENSE (A
person’s character is not defined) and WRONG WORD USAGE OF “AS” should be “BY” how well he/she
does but how he/she faces his/her problems. CORRECT: A person’s character is not defined by how
well he/she does, but how he/she faces his/her problems.
AWK AND FRAG: Wrong: All there is to have the confidence to take on the world. CORRECT: All one
needs is to have the confidence to take on the world.
AVOID USE OF 2ND PERSON “YOU” IN ESSAYS AND RESEARCH PAPERS: Example of an awkward run on
sentence with use of 2nd person: “Complaining why it happens to you and only you think about how
strong it made you.” CHANGE TO: Instead of complaining about why it happened, one should think
about how the experience made one stronger.
THESIS STATEMENTS
THESIS STATEMENTS: Go from the general theme to the specific topic or topics you intend to cover in
the paper. Example: The general theme is “the present moment.” Now, focus on what aspect of the
present moment struck your interest in the two films “The Secret of Life” and “Peaceful Warrior.” For
instance: The concept of gratitude and acceptance can fill one with appreciation for the present
moment.
Possibilities: Work, chores and routines can be enjoyable if one uses them as a form of mindfulness
meditation to stay in the moment.
Striving to accept that there is a valuable lesson in everything that happens, good or bad, is one means
of staying happy in the moment no matter what.
Happiness lies in letting go of the ego by living in the present moment, thinking positively, taking
responsibility for one’s actions, and loving what one does.
Feeling and thinking positive, living in the present moment and being the best that one can be helps
avoid disappointment.
Everything in life has a purpose and it is one’s job to find the meaning in what happens because “there is
no starting or ending, just doing.”
The secret of living in the present moment is through appreciation and service to others.
MLA FORMATTING:
Use 12 pitch font and Times Roman, Courier or Ariel
No bold or underline in the title unless underlining the title of a book or film
Headers put your last name and page number at the top right of each page.
One inch margins on top, bottom and sides
Double spaced throughout with no extra spaces
Tab to indent opening paragraphs. Do not hit the space bar
HEADING IS ON THE LEFT AND IS DOUBLE SPACED
Your name
Prof name
Class – include on same line section
Date
CENTER TITLE
Always use a Works Cited Page
Do not bold titles or underline them unless they contain the name of a film or book.