Nonsense! On Sun, 12 Mar 2006, Bruce D. Despain wrote... >Nancy, > >The progressive paraphrase just doesn't mean the same thing as the simple >verb, whether the verb is a linking one or not. And it doesn't mean the >same thing as the sentence in question, which is more relevant. The >garden's trait of smelling lovely today is a temporary condition. Not so >with the poor dog (or other animal) John's student was describing. He was >stuck with that white streak. I think that the progressive may indeed be >used with linking verbs, but that the meaning is different than when it is >used with active verbs. My impression is that Eduard's reasoning shows >signs of the kind of stretching of interpretation that many a non- native >English speaking student of mine often manifests. > >I am all for paraphrase in the analysis as Eduard has tried so valiantly to >do. However, it is very important that the paraphraser be careful not to >change the interpretation of the pieces, or at least to be aware of the >differences that occur as they are assembled together. Otherwise the >analysis make the whole much greater than the pieces that the sentence is >divided into and the analysis is useless. > >Bruce > >----- Original Message ----- >From: "Nancy Tuten" <[log in to unmask]> >To: <[log in to unmask]> >Sent: Sunday, March 12, 2006 12:26 PM >Subject: Re: What Is This? > > >> Earlier today, when I first responded to John's post, I suggested that the >> verb was "is running," but Bruce said that reordering the sentence would >> prove me wrong. >> >> Bruce, what is wrong with the way Eduard has reordered the sentence below >> (and Linda in another post)? >> >> Obviously, "running" isn't active in the sense in which it is used in >John's >> student's sentence. Is it, instead, a linking verb, much the way >"smelling" >> would be in the sentence "My garden is smelling lovely today"? >> >> Of course, we would be more likely to write "My garden smells lovely >today" >> or "A patch of white hair runs from the back of his skull . . . " But if >we >> wrote "is smelling" or "is running," are we dealing with a different >> construction completely? >> >> Nancy >> >> Nancy L. Tuten, PhD >> Professor of English >> Director of the Writing-across-the-Curriculum Program >> Columbia College >> Columbia, South Carolina >> [log in to unmask] >> 803-786-3706 >> >> -----Original Message----- >> From: Assembly for the Teaching of English Grammar >> [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Eduard C. Hanganu >> Sent: Sunday, March 12, 2006 10:33 AM >> To: [log in to unmask] >> Subject: Re: What Is This? >> >> Hi, John: >> >> I believe that that we might be able to make sense of this syntactic >> structure, which seems to be a complex sentence, if we reordered the >> words: >> >> "A patch of white hair that opens up into his lips is running from >> the back of his scull down to his front." >> >> It appears now clear that the main sentence is: >> >> "A patch of white hair is running from the back of his scull down to >> his front." >> >> The subject is *a patch of white hair*, and the predicate *is running >> from the back of his scull down to his front.* >> >> The verb of the main clause, *is running,* is in the Progressive >> Present Tense. >> >> There are two verb complements in the sentence, both prepositional >> phrases. The first prepositional phrase, *from the back of his >> scull,* is an adverbial of place. The second, *down to his front*,is >> also an adverbial of place. >> >> The main clause, "A patch of white hair is running from the back of >> his scull down to his front," is interrupted in the middle by a >> restrictive relative clause, *that opens up into his lips.* >> >> Let me summarize, now: >> >> A patch of white hair [subject] that opens up into his lips >> [restrictive relative clause ]is running [Verb in the Present >> Progressive Tense] from the back of his scull [Prepositional Phrase - >> Adverbial of Place] down to his front [ Prepositional Phrase - >> Adverbial of Place]. >> >> The comma seems to separate the two parts of the compound verb, that >> is, it separates *is* from *running* and should probably be left out, >> unless you consider "Running from the back of his skull down to the >> front" an introductory verbal phrase in the initial syntactic >> structure. In such a case, I would leave it there. >> >> >> Eduard >> >> >> >> On Sun, 12 Mar 2006, John Crow wrote... >> >> >A student wrote the following sentence in an essay: >> > >> >Running from the back of his skull down to the front, is a patch of >> white >> >hair that opens up into his lips. >> >The comma doesn't belong there, but I'm not sure why. Is >> the "Running" >> >phrase a gerund? If so, then I understand why the comma is wrong: >> it >> >separates the subject from the verb However, the phrase doesn't >> behave like >> >a gerund. Compare: >> > >> >Running around the lake is a part of my daily routine. --> It is a >> part of >> >my daily routine. --> A part of my daily routine is running around >> the >> >lake. >> > >> >In this sentence, the "Running" phrase behaves like a true noun >> phrase in a >> >linking verb sentence. My student's "Running" phrase doesn't behave >> like an >> >NP. It feels participial, modifying "patch". If so, then the comma >> would >> >be correct. But it's not. >> > >> >Any ideas out there? >> > >> >John >> > >> >To join or leave this LISTSERV list, please visit the list's web >> interface at: >> > http://listserv.muohio.edu/archives/ateg.html >> >and select "Join or leave the list" >> > >> >Visit ATEG's web site at http://ateg.org/ >> > >> >> To join or leave this LISTSERV list, please visit the list's web interface >> at: >> http://listserv.muohio.edu/archives/ateg.html >> and select "Join or leave the list" >> >> Visit ATEG's web site at http://ateg.org/ >> >> To join or leave this LISTSERV list, please visit the list's web interface >at: >> http://listserv.muohio.edu/archives/ateg.html >> and select "Join or leave the list" >> >> Visit ATEG's web site at http://ateg.org/ >> >> >> >> -- >> No virus found in this incoming message. >> Checked by AVG Free Edition. >> Version: 7.1.375 / Virus Database: 268.2.1/279 - Release Date: 3/10/06 >> >> > > > >-- >No virus found in this outgoing message. >Checked by AVG Free Edition. >Version: 7.1.375 / Virus Database: 268.2.1/279 - Release Date: 3/10/06 > >To join or leave this LISTSERV list, please visit the list's web interface at: > http://listserv.muohio.edu/archives/ateg.html >and select "Join or leave the list" > >Visit ATEG's web site at http://ateg.org/ To join or leave this LISTSERV list, please visit the list's web interface at: http://listserv.muohio.edu/archives/ateg.html and select "Join or leave the list" Visit ATEG's web site at http://ateg.org/