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Date: | Fri, 10 Oct 1997 21:17:34 -0400 |
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Brenda Campbell asked how to get her secretaries to recognize sentence
fragments.
I suggest the shortcut of having them use the conversational device of
adding a tag question, like this. (Don't I?)
The tag question refers to the essentials of a sentence. (Doesn't it?)
Its verb refers to the sentence's verb, and its pronoun refers to the
subject. (Don't they?)
If it is not possible to ask a tag question, the statement is not complete.
(Is it?)
Therefore, a fragment (??? no tag, no sentence)
Therefore, it's a fragment. (Isn't it?)
Carolyn Hartnett
College of the Mainland
Texas City, TX
[log in to unmask]
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