Grammar Workshop Series

Transcription

1 Grammar Workshop Series Unit 4 Pronoun Reference & Case

2 What Is A Pronoun? Basic Principle: A pronoun is a word that usually refers to something earlier in the text (its antecedent) and must agree in number, gender and person (when applicable) with the thing to which it refers. The pronoun may, however, play a different grammatical role in its clause than its antecedent did in the antecedent s clause. So, for example, check out these sentences: The painter I like best is Monet. He is truly gifted. His colour choice is exceptionally subtle. There are good reasons that cart historians pay so much attention to him. What can you say about the pronouns in these sentences?

3 Pronoun Answers a) The antecedent is Monet. b) Because Monet is a singular male person who we are talking about in the third person, we need to use versions of the masculine singular third person pronoun: he, his, him. c) Monet is the subject of the first sentence. d) The pronoun with Monet as the antecedent is the subject of the second sentence, and so the pronoun is in its subjective form: he. e) In the second sentence, the pronoun describes who possesses or is associated with something else (the color choice). So even though the antecedent was the subject of its sentence, here we put the pronoun in its possessive form: his. f) In the third sentence, the pronoun is the object of the sentence, so we put it in its objective form: him.

4 Pronoun Case These forms are called case. Subjective case is used when the pronoun is the subject of its sentence; objective, when it is the direct or indirect object or is used in a prepositional phrase; possessive, when it owns or belongs to or is strongly associated with something.

5 Subjective Objective Possessive I me my you you your he him his she her her it it its we us our they them their who whom whose whoever whomever whose ever

6 Pronoun Case in Compound Constructions Always ensure pronouns have appropriate case. Use subjective case when pronoun is subject of sentence Use objective case when pronoun is object of the sentence. Be particularly careful when pronouns are part of a compound construction (when and connects a pronoun to a noun or other pronoun)

7 Pronoun Case in Compound Constructions: Subjective Case Use subjective case with pronouns in compound constructions that serve as subject of sentence. Choose the Best Option: (Monet and they/them) shared new approaches to art, painting the effects of light en plein air with broken color and rapid brushstrokes. (Some friends and I/me) have studied Impressionist art. (answers on next slide)

8 Pronoun Case in Compound Constructions: Subjective Case Use subjective case with pronouns in compound constructions that serve as subject of sentence. Answers to Questions on Previous Slide: Monet and they shared new approaches to art, painting the effects of light en plein air with broken color and rapid brushstrokes. Some friends and I have studied Impressionist art.

9 Pronoun Case in Compound Constructions: Objective Case Use objective case with pronouns in compound constructions that serve as object of sentence. Choose the best option: Monet learned his technique from (Charles Gleyre and they/them). Impressionist art does not impress (my friends and I/me). (answers on next slide)

10 Pronoun Case in Compound Constructions: Objective Case Use objective case with pronouns in compound constructions that serve as object of sentence. Answers to Questions on Previous Slide: Monet learned his technique from Charles Gleyre and them. Impressionist art does not impress my friends and me.

11 Pronoun Case: Prepositional Phrases Use the objective case with pronouns in prepositional phrases. The painting was donated (to my friend and them/they). The significance of the word impressionism was misunderstood (by my friends and I/me). The dispute (between Monet and she / her) was legendary. (Answers on next slide)

12 Pronoun Case: Prepositional Phrases Use the objective case with pronouns in prepositional phrases. Answers to questions on previous slide. The painting was donated to my friend and them. The significance of the word impressionism was misunderstood by my friends and me. The dispute between Monet and her was legendary.

13 Pronoun Case: Appositives Pronouns in appositives must match the case of the word in the sentence to which they refer. Monet s technique was informed by the group of painters, Eduoard Manet and them/they), whom he met in Paris in the 1850s. The entire class, (you and I/me and everyone), is studying Impressionism. Answers on next slide.

14 Pronoun Case: Appositives Pronouns in appositives must match the case of the word in the sentence to which they refer. Answers to questions on previous slide. Monet s technique was informed by the group of painters, Eduoard Manet and them, whom he met in Paris in the 1850s. (appositive refers to group which is an object) The entire class, (you and me and everyone), is studying Impressionism. (appositive refers to class which is the subject)

15 Pronoun Case: Gerunds gerund ( ing verb) is not really a verb; it plays the role of a noun nouns or pronouns that modify nouns take the possessive case The painters exploring of plein-air painting was revolutionary. noun in possessive case Their exploring of plein-air painting was revolutionary. pronoun in possessive case The student s studying improved his grades. noun in possessive case His studying improved his grades. pronoun in possessive case

16 Gender Neutral Use of Personal Pronouns Take a look at these sentences. Every person has his own way that he does things. By this point in the term, each student must have submitted his research proposal to his TA. What s the problem with these sentences?

17 Gender Neutral Use In each of these sentences, we re talking about people in general ( every person, each student ) but we have used only the masculine form of the pronoun ( his, he ). We have magically made the entire female gender disappear! In academic writing, we write inclusively, which means that when we re speaking in general terms or about people whose gender hasn t been defined, we don t just assume that they are all guys. So How would you fix these sentences to make them more inclusive?

18 Fixing the Problem Here are three popular ways to fix the problem: 1) They/Their used as a third person singular pronoun (technically wrong, but increasingly used; however, it is not acceptable in formal academic writing yet) 2) S/he, he or she, his/her, his or her (these are technically okay, but they can be awkward) 3) Rephrase the sentence (e.g., turning the noun in question to a plural)

19 Examples of Gender Neutral Options Here are some examples: Each student has his own book vs. has their own book vs. has his or her own book vs. Students have their own books. If a student is late for class, he must wait until the break vs. they must wait vs. s/he must wait vs. he or she must wait vs. Students who are late for class must wait

20 Antecedent Ambiguity Pronouns have the potential to be ambiguous. The use of he tells the reader that the antecedent is male, singular, and third person, but that s all it does. They is especially ambiguous: it could refer to a group of people, a group of animals, a bunch of rocks, etc. So when you are working with pronouns, especially when you are editing your work, always check to make sure that the antecedent will be clear to the reader. Can you think of any strategies to use for that?

21 The Four Ps When you are checking over your work, think of the four Ps: 1) Presence. There must really be an antecedent for the pronoun. If you can t point to an antecedent, probably your reader won t be able to find it either. This is especially important with they for example, At the hospital, they said my mother would be fine. Replace they with the doctors or the nurses or whoever actually said it.

22 The Four Ps 2) Proximity. Generally speaking, the antecedent should be as close to the pronoun as possible. Also, if the reader is confused about the antecedent, he or she will probably choose the nearest possible noun. If I read, I saw Jim, Steve, and Bill. He waved, I will probably guess that it is Bill who waved.

23 The Four Ps 3) Potential. In the above example, I had to guess who waved. So a last guideline is to make sure that the antecedent is the only noun of the right number and gender that is close to the pronoun i.e., that has the potential to be the antecedent. In the above example, any of the three people could have been the antecedent, as they were all masculine, singular, and third person, like the pronoun.

24 The Four Ps 4) Possession. Nouns that are in possessive form (i.e., with apostrophe and s, such as the Professor s ) can t be antecedents. So in this sentence, In Smith s article, he says, the pronoun he is a problem because it actually doesn t have an antecedent.

25 Antecedent Ambiguity Practice In the following passage, identify the pronouns and their antecedents, and discuss any problems or ambiguities with their usage (there are at least 7 such problems). Use the Four Ps to describe how the ambiguities arose. Life begins at forty is a cliché many people live by, and this may or may not be true. Whether one agrees or not with the cliché, you can cite many examples of people whose public lives began at forty. For instance, when she was forty, Pearl Buck s novel The Good Earth won the Pulitzer Prize. Kenneth Kanuda, past president of Zambia, was elected to it in 1964, when he was forty. Catherine I became Empress of Russia at age forty, more feared than loved by them. Paul Revere at forty made his famous ride to warn American revolutionary leaders that the British were going to arrest them, which gave the colonists time to prepare for battle. Forty-year-old Nancy Astor joined the British House of Commons in 1919 as its first female member, though they did not welcome her. Adapted from

26 Choose the Best Option Monet learned his technique from Charles Gleyre and. A) them B) they C) themselves D) he

27 Choose the Best Revision Any artist, if interested, may apply for the grant. A) they are B) she is C) one is D) they themselves are

28 Choose the Best Revision Impressionist art does not impress. A) me and my friends B) my friends and I C) myself and my friends D) my friends and me E) A and D

29 Choose the Best Revision love Impressionist art. A) Me and my sister B) My sister and I C) My sister and me D) My sister and myself E) none of the above

30 Choose the Best Revision When someone has been drinking, may drive poorly. A) they B) she C) he D) one E) B or C

31 Choose the Best Revision practicing made him a successful painter. A) He B) Him C) His D) none of the above

32 Choose the Best Revision Each of the paintings had value determined by an expert. A) their B) they re C) his D) its E) none of above

33 Choose the Best Revision They decided to give the paintings to his closest friends, him and A) me B) I C) she D) they E) any of the above

34 Choose the Best Revision workers must prepare the campaign carefully A) we B) us C) A or B

35 Choose the Best Revision I gave and Sue permission to go. A) her B) she C) I D) they