Scott,
A correction to my post from last night. The clause in the second sentence tells the extent of the perfect participle (adjective) tragically bound.
There are a good number of concepts here that in order to teach children would have to be built up gradually from simpler concepts. I think that a way could be developed for a systematic paraphrase to be taught. This practice has become more-or-less second nature to me as it is treated as an extended course in my Analytical Grammar of English. I don't know, but it may be easier than diagramming. If we take "i" for an embedded clause and "m" for the matrix in which it is embedded, "a", "b", etc. for each independent clause, we get:
UNIT PARAPHRASE KIND OF JOINING
i We may want to be happy.
m=a It would be easy in that case. conditional clause
i Other people may be happy.
m=b=i1 We want to be happier than them. extrapolent comparative degree clause; adversative clause
i They are so happy.
m We think them happier than this happy. extrapolent comparative degree clause
m1 This is almost always difficult for that reason. justification clause
The "extrapolent" (more) is contrasted with "infrapolent" (less) and "equipolent" (as). The first comparison is to the people and the second comparison is to the happiness. Terminology would probably have to be simplified for kids, or the distinctions left unexplained. I know Roberts tried to do this long ago—unsuccessfully. The formal description of these discontinuous constituents would probably be an advanced topic. Even changing a clause to a fully and logically formed (assertive) sentence is not as simple as it may seem, judging from the kinds of paraphrase that are usually found in the literature.
Bruce
--- [log in to unmask] wrote:From: Bruce Despain <[log in to unmask]>To: [log in to unmask]Subject: Re: grammar question/dependent clausesDate: Thu, 8 Feb 2018 20:08:49 -0800Scott,
The first sentence has a comparative clause invariably introduced by than, which is an adverbial complement to a comparative adjective (happy) or adverb, which is usually the form ending in -er for most monosyllables and disyllables in -y, -le, or -er, but for longer adjectives and adverbs is the "pariphrastic" more.
The second sentence has a result clause introduced by that, which is an adverbial complement to the adverb so, which is a modifier of the adjective or adverb (tragically).
Other adverbial clauses of degree are the complement of too and enough, which is in the form of an infinitive phrase called a "small clause" because its subject is introduced by the preposition for. Unlike the others the adverb enough follows after the adjective or adverb.
Bruce
--- [log in to unmask] wrote:From: Scott Woods <[log in to unmask]>To: [log in to unmask]Subject: grammar question/dependent clausesDate: Thu, 8 Feb 2018 23:11:41 +0000Hi All,
How would you characterize bracketed clauses in the following sentences?
If we only
wanted to be happy, it would be easy; but we want to be happier than other
people, which is almost always difficult,
since we think them happier [than they are].
I refuse to accept the view that mankind is so tragically bound to the starless midnight of racism
and war [that the bright daybreak of
peace and brotherhood can never become a reality].
These seem very different from normal noun, adjective, and adverb clauses. How should I explain these to children?
Thanks,
Scot Woods
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