I've been following this exchange with interest.  I have trouble thinking
of "my decision" and "to leave my job" as appositives.  I thought that the
elements in appositives denoted identical entities, as in "my teacher,
Professor Jones."  In contrast to this, "my decision" denotes a mental
activity, whereas "to leave my job" is its implementation.  They aren't
really the same thing.  For example, you could say that your decision to
leave your job was a secret, but it would not make sense to say that to
leave your job was a secret.


In Latin, you have "complementary infinitives" used to complete the
meaning of certain verbs that don't normally stand alone, e.g., solet
cantare, "he is accustomed to sing."  In my view, "my decision to leave"
is rather similar to that and is obviously related to "I decided to
leave."  In the latter, to leave is adverbial.  Hence I
would vote for its being unambiguously adjectival in the phrase, "my
decision to leave."









On Tue, 5 Jun 2001, Sophie Johnson wrote:

> Goody! I love it when I can
> disagree with everybody. Here goes:
>
> The `adjectives' issue need not arise in
>
> `My decision to leave my job was wise'.
>
> Instead, there are two nounal sequences here:
>
> `my decision' and `to leave my job'.
>
> Both of them are described by the predicate
> adjective `wise':
>
> My decision was wise.
> To leave my job was wise
>
> In the same sentence both sequences
> are the noun subjects of the copula `was'.
> They are demarcated by the comma because
> they constitute a list of nouns:
>
> My decision, to leave my job, was wise.
>
> Of course, when this infinitive phrase is intended as
> an adjective it cannot be comma demarcated
> from the noun it describes, `my decision', for
> the simple reason that there is neither syntactic
> nor logical reason for the demarcation:
>
> My decision to leave my job was wise.
>
> Sophie
>
>
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: Richard Veit <[log in to unmask]>
> To: <[log in to unmask]>
> Sent: Tuesday, June 05, 2001 4:00 AM
> Subject: Fwd: Infinitive phrase as adjective and as appositive
>
>
> > In a sense you're both right, since the sentence is ambiguous. If you
> speak
> > it with pauses before and after the infinitive (denoted in writing by
> > commas, dashes, or parentheses), you've got an appositive:
> >
> >        My decision, to leave my job, was wise.
> >
> > More often the sentence would be spoken without pauses (or punctuation)
> and
> > it is then "adjectival":
> >
> >        My decision to leave my job was wise.
> >
> > I'd actually label the latter as a "complement infinitive," since it
> > corresponds with the nominal complement "My decision that I leave my job
> > was wise."
> >
> > Dick Veit
> > UNCW
> >
> > >Date: Mon, 04 Jun 2001 10:34:31 -0700
> > >From: "Kischner, Michael" <[log in to unmask]>
> > >Subject: Infinitive phrase as adjective and as appositive
> > >
> > >Does someone know a convincing way of distinguishing between the
> infinitive
> > >phrase as adjectival ("The attempt to robe the bank failed") and as
> > >appositive ("His goal, to win the Presidency, was never realized").  The
> > >example  that my class got hung up on was "My decision to leave my job
> was
> > >wise."  I called the infinitive phrase there an adjectival.  The students
> > >seemed unsatisfied by my explanation that in their hearts they know I'm
> > >right.
> >
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>
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