,POETRY 11: MUSICAL DEVICES

I. The use of "music" in poetry

A. In poetry--unlike normal language which is used merely to convey information--the

poet

1. chooses words for sound as well as meaning

2. use sound as a means to reinforce meaning

B. It is important enough that some have made it the distinguishing term in their
definition of poetry--Poe: "music combined with a pleasurable idea"

C. Most don't agree that it's that important, but verbal music--like connotation, imagery,
figurative language--is an important element in communicating experience.

D. A poet may sometimes pursues verbal music for its own sake, but in the best poetry
the music is just a part; it contributes to the total meaning or experience

E. A poet may achieve musical quality in two ways

1. Through the arrangement of sounds (this chapter)

2. Through the arrangement of accents (next chapter: meter)

II. The achievement of musical quality through arrangement of sounds

A. Repetition of sound

1. Art consists of giving structure to repetition and variation

a. the sea--always the same yet always different

b. baseball--same complex pattern of repetition and variation

c. art--familiarity and variety combined

d. composer of music—

(1) repeats tones

(2) " " in combinations--chords

(3) " " in patterns--melodies

2. Poet also arranges sounds in certain combinations and patterns

B. Example: "The Turtle" by Ogden Nash

 1. Humorous paradox

2. But the appeal is more in how it is said than in what is said

a. The prose form falls flat

b. the unrhymed verse is better, but it is obvious that much of the appeal of the
original must be in its rhyme

c. rhymed verse is much better but the original wording makes it even better

d. original used "fix" rather than "plight"

1) meaning is the same

2) but the sounds of the original wording makes connection to other

words in poem

(a) "x" -- back to "sex"

(b) "f" -- on to "fertile"

3) subtle gratification to the ear, and the structure is better--emphasizes

and draws together key words: "sex," "fix," and "fertile"

4) why "turtle" instead of "tortoise"? the paradox is the same; same

anatomical problem

C. Poet may repeat any unit of sound from smallest to largest

1. Units of repetition

a. individual vowel sounds and consonant sounds

b. whole syllables

c. words

d. phrases

e. lines--"and miles to go before I sleep" or "Hurry up please, it's time to go"

from

f. or a group of lines

2. In a good poem, the repetition will

a. please the ear

 b. emphasize the words in which the repetition occurs

c. give structure to the poem

3. popularity of repetition of sounds seen in cliches

4. Repetition of syllable sounds

a. Alliteration: repetition of initial consonant sounds

(1) tried and true

(2) safe and sound

b. Assonance: repetition of vowel sounds

(1) mad as a hatter

(2) time out of mind

c. Consonance: repetition of final consonant sounds

(1) first and last

(2) odds and ends

(3) struts and frets

5. Combinations of repetition of vowel sounds

a. alliteration and assonance

(1) time and tide

(2) thick and thin

(3) fit as a fiddle

(4) Poe's "the viol, violet, and the vine"

b. alliteration and consonance

(1) crisscross

(2) last but not least

 (3) a doom of a dream

c. assonance and consonance = rhyme

6. Rhyme: repetition of accented vowel and all succeeding sounds

a. Masculine rhyme: riming sounds only one syllable

(1) sex and decks

(2) support and retort

b. Feminine rhyme: two or more syllables

(1) turtle and fertile

(2) spitefully and delightfully

c. Internal rhyme: when one or more riming words are within the rhyme

d. End rhyme: riming words at end of lines

(1) most frequently used and consciously sought type of rhyme

(2) emphasizes musical effect, and it along with meter gives poetry not only
its musical effect but much of its structure

(3) there is a large body of poetry which does not employ rhyme and for
which rhyme would be inappropriate

(4) much of modern poetry tends to substitute approximate rhymes for

perfect rhymes at the end of lines

e. Approximate end rhyme:

(1) alliteration, assonance, consonance, or any combination of these when

used at the end of lines

(2) half-rhyme: feminine rhymes in which only half the word rhymes

(a) accented half--lightly, frightful

(b) unaccented half -- yellow, willow

 
D. Application of Repetition of Sounds: "That Night When Joy Began" by W. H. Auden

1. What has been the past experience with love of the two people in the poem?
What is their present experience? What precisely is the tone of the poem?
Discussion

2. What basic metaphor underlies the poem? Work it out stanza by stanza. What is
"the flash of morning's leveled gun" (3-4)? Does line 10 mean that no trespassers
reproaches the lovers or that no one reproaches the lovers for being trespassers ?
Does "glasses" (11) refer to spectacles, tumblers, mirrors, or field glasses? Point
out three personifications.Discussion

3. The rhyme pattern in the poem is intricate and exact. Work it out, considering
alliteration, assonance, and consonance.   Discussion

Refrain: Repetition--in a fixed pattern--whole words, phrases, lines, or groups of

lines

a. Shakespeare's "Winter" (650):

Tu-whit, tu-who!

A merry note,

While greasy Joan doth keel the pot

b. Shakespeare's "Spring" 

"Cuckoo!

Cuckoo, cuckoo!" O word of fear,

Unpleasing to a married ear!

E. Application: "The Waking," Theodore Roethke

1 The refrains in lines 1 and 3 occur at patterned intervals in this example of the

form called "villanelle" (see page 967 for a definition of the form). Even without
the definition, you can work out the repetitive pattern--but the key question is,
what do these two lines mean, both as statements within the first stanza, and in
each subsequent repetition? Starting with line 1, for what is "sleep" a common
metaphor? What would be the meaning if the first phrase were "I was born to
die"?    Discussion

2 Paraphrase the third line, in light of the idea that the first line presents an attitude
toward the fact that all living things must die. Where does the speaker "have to
 go" ultimately? What is the process of his present "going"? Discussion

3 Explain the clear-cut attitude toward emotive experience versus intellectual

knowledge expressed in line 4. How is that attitude a basis for the ideas in the
refrain lines? How does it support line 10? Discussion

4 What is it that "Great Nature has ... to do" (13) to people. How should they live
their lives, according to the speaker?   Discussion

5 Explain the paradox that "shaking keeps [the speaker] steady" (16). Consider the
possibility that the speaker is personifying "the Tree" (16) as himself--what then
is "fall[ing] away," and how near is it (17)?  Discussion

6 Is the tone of this poem melancholy? resigned? Explain.   Discussion

F. Other sound repetitions

a. Many complex repetitions and combinations thereof which we don't have

names for

b. Example: John Ruskin's "ivy as light and lovely as the vine"

(1) terms we have

(a) alliteration--light, lovely

(b) assonance -- ivy, light, vine

(c) consonance -- ivy, lovely ???

(2) but no terms for these identical sounds

(a) "v" in vine to "v"'s in ivy and lovely

(b) second "l" in lovely to first "l"

(c) final syllable of ivy and lovely

c. Nor do we have terms for related sounds

(a) m and n

(b) p and b

(c) vowel sounds in boat, boot, book

G. Analysis for sound repetition--while we hear many sound subconsciously which

 increase our pleasure and the poetic experience without our being overtly aware of it,
there is value for analysis to increase our awareness and our appreciationof it

1 Repetitions are entirely a matter of sound. Spelling is irrelevant!

a. "bear, pair" rhyme; "through, rough" do not

b. "cell, sin; folly, philosophy" alliterate; "sin, sugar / gun, gem" do not

2 Consider (normally, not always) only stressed (oraccented) syllables to find

alliteration, assonance, consonance, masculine rhyme. Why?

a. only stressed syllables make a strong enough impression on the ear to be

significant in the sound pattern

b. In "The Turtle" line 2, "which" and "it" is not assonance; neither stressed

3. The words involved in a pattern must be close enough together for the ear to
retain the sounds

a. alliteration, assonance, consonance--same line or adjacent

b. end rhymes larger gap

E. Application: Analyzing sound repetition in "God's Grandeur" by Gerald manley

Hopkins

1. What is the theme of this sonnet? Discussion

2. The image in lines 3-4 possibly refers to olive oil being collected in great vats
from crushed olives, but the image is much disputed. Explain the simile (2),
symbol (7-8), symbol (11-12)  Discussion

3. Explain "reck his rod" (4), "spent" (9), and "bent" (13).   Discussion

4. Using different-colored pencils, encircle and connect examples of alliteration,

assonance, consonance, and internal rhyme. Do these help to carry the
meaning?  Discussion

III. Use of musical devices is not always necessary or valuable; we must judge the use or lack
of use in light of the poet's intention

A. Many of great works of English poetry--Hamlet, King Lear, Paradise Lost--do not
use end rhyme

B. Unskillfully used, alliteration and rhyme, particularly feminine rhyme, become

humorous or silly
 1. If this is intention, good--Shakespeare

a. Love's Labor's Lost: The preyful princess pierced and pricked a pretty
pleasing prickett

b. A Midsummer Night's Dream: Whereat with blade, with bloody, blameful
blade, / He bravely broached his boiling bloody breast

2. If it isn't the intention, it can ruin the effect of the poem

C. When  well done, musical devices

1. provide pleasure

2. add depth

SOUND DEVICES USED IN POETRY

 A List of Definitions
 
Sound devices are resources used by poets to convey and reinforce the meaning or
experience of poetry through the skillful use of sound.  After all, poets are trying to use a
concentrated blend of sound and imagery to create an emotional response.  The words and
their order should evoke images, and the words themselves have sounds, which can reinforce
or otherwise clarify those images.  All in all, the poet is trying to get you, the reader, to sense
a particular thing, and the use of sound devices are some of the poet’s tools.
 
These definitions, by the way, come by way of the Glossary of Poetic Terms, which can be
found on the Internet at http://shoga.wwa.com/~rgs/glossary.html
 
ACCENT
The rhythmically significant stress in the articulation of words, giving some syllables more
relative prominence than others. In words of two or more syllables, one syllable is almost
invariably stressed more strongly than the other syllables. Words of one syllable may be
either stressed or unstressed, depending on the context in which they are used, but connective
one-syllable words like, and, but, or, to, etc., are generally unstressed. The words in a line of
poetry are usually arranged so the accents occur at regular intervals, with the meter defined
by the placement of the accents within the foot. Accent should not be construed as emphasis.
Sidelight: Two degrees of accent are natural to many multisyllabic English words,
designated as primary and secondary.
Sidelight: When a syllable is accented, it tends to be raised in pitch and
lengthened. Any or a combination of stress/pitch/length can be a metrical accent.
 Sidelight: When the full accent falls on a vowel, as in PO-tion, that vowel is
called a long vowel; when it falls on an articulation or consonant, as inPOR-
tion, the preceding vowel is a short vowel.
ALLITERATION
Also called head rhyme or initial rhyme, the repetition of the initial sounds (usually
consonants) of stressed syllables in neighboring words or at short intervals within a line or
passage, usually at word beginnings, as in "wild and woolly" or the line from the
poem, Darkness Lost:
From somewhere far beyond, the flag of fate's caprice unfurled,
Sidelight: The sounds of alliteration produce a gratifying effect to the ear and can
also serve as a subtle connection or emphasis of key words in the line, but should
not "call attention" to themselves by strained usage.
ASSONANCE
The relatively close juxtaposition of the same or similar vowel sounds, but with different end
consonants in a line or passage, thus a vowel rhyme, as in the words,date and fade.
CONSONANCE
A pleasing combination of sounds; sounds in agreement with tone. Also, the repetition of the
same end consonants of words such as boat and night within or at the end of a line, or the
words, cool and soul, as used by Emily Dickinson in the third stanza of He Fumbles at your
Spirit.
CACOPHONY (cack-AH-fun-ee)
Discordant sounds in the jarring juxtaposition of harsh letters or syllables, sometimes
inadvertent, but often deliberately used in poetry for effect, as in the opening line of Fences:
Crawling, sprawling, breaching spokes of stone,
Sidelight: Sound devices are important to poetic effects; to create sounds
appropriate to the content, the poet may sometimes prefer to achieve a
cacophonous effect instead of the more commonly sought-for euphony. The use
of words with the consonants b, k and p, for example, produce harsher sounds
than the soft f and v or the liquid l, m and n.
DISSONANCE
A mingling or union of harsh, inharmonious sounds that are grating to the ear.
EUPHONY (YOO-fuh-nee)
Harmony or beauty of sound that provides a pleasing effect to the ear, usually sought-for in
poetry for effect. It is achieved not only by the selection of individual word-sounds, but also
by their relationship in the repetition, proximity, and flow of sound patterns.
Sidelight: Vowel sounds are generally more pleasing to the ear than the
consonants, so a line with a higher ratio of vowel sounds will produce a more
agreeable effect; also, the long vowels in words like moon and fate are more
melodious than the short vowels in cat and bed.
INTERNAL RHYME
Also called middle rhyme, a rhyme occurring within the line, as in the poem, The Matador:
His childhood fraught with lessons taught by want and misery
METER
A measure of rhythmic quantity, the organized succession of groups of syllables at basically
regular intervals in a line of poetry, according to definite metrical patterns. In classic Greek
and Latin versification, meter depended on the way long and short syllables were arranged to
succeed one another, but in English the distinction is between accented and unaccented
syllables. The unit of meter is the foot. Metrical lines are named for the constituent foot and
for the number of feet in the line: monometer (1), dimeter (2), trimeter (3), tetrameter (4),
pentameter (5), hexameter (6), heptameter (7) and octameter (8); thus, a line containing
five iambic feet, for example, would be called iambic pentameter. Rarely does a metrical line
exceed six feet.
Sidelight: In the composition of verse, poets sometimes make deviations from the
systematic metrical patterns. This is often desirable because (1) variations will
avoid the mechanical "te-dum, te-dum" monotony of a too-regular rhythm and (2)
changes in the metrical pattern are an effective way to emphasize or reinforce
meaning in the content. These variations are introduced by substituting different
feet at places within a line. (Poets can also employ a caesura, use run-on lines and
vary the degrees of accent by skillful word selection to modify the rhythmic
pattern, a process calledmodulation. Accents heightened by
semantic emphasis also provide diversity.) A proficient writer of poetry,
therefore, is not a slave to the dictates of metrics, but neither should the poet stray
so far from the meter as to lose the musical value or emotional potential of
rhythmical repetition. Of course, in modern free verse, meter has become either
irregular or non-existent.
MODULATION
In poetry, the harmonious use of language relative to the variations of stress and pitch.
Sidelight: Modulation is a process by which the stress values of accents can be
increased or decreased within a fixed metrical pattern.
NEAR RHYME
Also called slant rhyme, off rhyme, imperfect rhyme or half rhyme, a rhyme in which the
sounds are similar, but not exact, as in home and come or close andlose.
Sidelight: Due to changes in pronunciation, some near rhymes in modern English
were perfect rhymes when they were originally written in old English.
ONOMATOPOEIA (ahn-uh-mah-tuh-PEE-uh)
Strictly speaking, the formation or use of words which imitate sounds,
like whispering, clang and sizzle, but the term is generally expanded to refer to any word
whose sound is suggestive of its meaning.
Sidelight: Because sound is an important part of poetry, the use of onomatopoeia
is another subtle weapon in the poet's arsenal for the transfer of sense impressions
through imagery.
Sidelight: Though impossible to prove, some philologists (linguistic scientists)
believe that all language originated through the onomatopoeic formation of
words.
PHONETIC SYMBOLISM
Sound suggestiveness; the association of particular word-sounds with common areas of
meaning so that other words of similar sounds come to be associated with those meanings. It
is also called sound symbolism.
Sidelight: An example of word sounds in English with a common area of meaning
is a group beginning with gl, all having reference to light, which include:gleam,
glare, glitter, glimmer, glint, glisten, glossy and glow.
RESONANCE
The quality of richness or variety of sounds in poetic texture, as in Milton's
. . . and the thunder . . . ceases now
To bellow through the vast and boundless Deep.
RHYME
In the specific sense, a type of echoing which utilizes a correspondence of sound in the final
accented vowels and all that follows of two or more words, but the preceding consonant
sounds must differ, as in the words, bear and care. In a poetic sense, however, rhyme refers
to a close similarity of sound as well as anexact correspondence; it includes the agreement of
vowel sounds in assonance and the repetition of consonant sounds
in consonance and alliteration.Differences as well as identity in sound echoes between words
contribute to the euphonic effect, stimulate intellectual appreciation, provide a powerful
mnemonic device, and serve to unify a poem. Terms like near rhyme, half rhyme, and perfect
rhyme function to distinguish between the types of rhyme without prejudicial intent and
should not be interpreted as expressions of value. Usually, but not always, rhymes occur at
the ends of lines.
Sidelight: Originally rime, the spelling was changed due to the influence of its
popular, but erroneous, association with the Latin word, rhythmus. Many purists
continue to use rime as the proper spelling of the word.
Sidelight: Early examples of English poetry used alliterative verse instead of
rhyme. The use of rhyme in the end words of verse originally arose to compensate
for the sometimes unsatisfactory quality of rhythm within the lines; variations in
the patterns of rhyme schemes then became functional in defining diverse stanza
forms, such as, ottava rima, rhyme royal, terza rima, the Spenserian stanza and
others. Rhyme schemes are also significant factors in the definitions of whole
poems, such as ballade, limerick, rondeau, sonnet, triolet and villanelle.

Literary devices are used to express thoughts and ideas throughout

literature. By using literary devices, authors can form meaning through
language. Last week we discussed the differences between three similar
literary devices: metaphors, similes, and analogies. Today, we will look at
three more connected literary devices: alliteration, consonance, and
assonance.
 WHAT IS ALLITERATION?
Alliteration is a literary device that uses sound to emphasize words or
phrases by engaging a reader’s auditory senses. In alliteration, the repetition
of consonant sounds is used at the beginning of two or more words in
succession. While alliteration is often used to provide prose and poetry with
a unique sound, it is also used to audibly represent an action. For example,
in “snakes silently slither,” the repetition of the letter “s” portrays the
hissing sound that a snake makes.
The sound repetition in alliteration stands out to catch a person’s attention.
It then allows the phrase to be retained in the person’s memory for a long
period of time.

Examples of Alliteration
 The wicked witch of the west
 Larry, like Laura, likes leaving late.
 Freezing frost in February
 Johnny jumped and jiggled.
 

WHAT IS CONSONANCE?
Consonance is often confused with alliteration, and understandably so.
Consonance is similar to alliteration in the fact that it deals with the
repetition of consonants. However, the repetition in consonance occurs with
the inner consonant sounds, or those at the ends of words, rather than the
consonants at the beginning of the words in a phrase.

Examples of Consonance
 He struck some good luck.
 Think tank
 Touch the peach on the beach.
 The big frog was on a log.
 

WHAT IS ASSONANCE?
Similar to both consonance and alliteration, assonance uses the repetition of
a pattern of sound. In assonance, the repetition occurs with the vowels inside
the words, rather than the consonants. It is used to create internal rhyming
within a phrase or sentence in a more subtle manner than with alliteration.
 Examples of Assonance
 There was a rock in a box that was locked.
 The cat came back to attack the man.
 A white owl was flying high in the night.
In each case, whether we’re talking about alliteration, consonance or
assonance, it’s important to focus on the sound, rather than the letter, that is
used. All three of these literary devices are used to catch a person’s
attention and please the ear by creating a musical effect through language.

Lewis Carroll's poem "Jabberwocky" employs cacophony throughout

'Twas brillig, and the slithy toves 
Did gyre and gimble in the wabe; 
All mimsy were the borogoves, 
And the mome raths outgrabe. 

"Beware the Jabberwock, my son! 

The jaws that bite, the claws that catch! 
Beware the Jubjub bird, and shun 
The frumious Bandersnatch!" 
 
John Keat's poem "Autumn" employs euphony
Season of mists and mellow fruitfulness, 
Close bosom-friend of the maturing sun; 
Conspiring with him how to load and bless 
With fruit the vines that round the thatch-eves run; 
To bend with apples the moss’d cottage-trees, 
And fill all fruit with ripeness to the core; 
To swell the gourd, and plump the hazel shells 
With a sweet kernel; to set budding more, 
And still more, later flowers for the bees, 
Until they think warm days will never cease, 
For Summer has o’er-brimm’d their clammy cells.
 
CACOPHONY AND EUPHONY
Cacophony is the juxtaposition of harsh, unpleasant sound, or a mixture of
discordant sounds. In music, it often refers to the use of harsh and seemingly
unrelated chords.
Euphony is the juxtaposition of pleasant and agreeable sounds. Most sound devices
and rhymes produce euphony. In music, the sound is pleasant, agreeable and
harmonious.
The following Neil Young lyrics contain both sound devices. And to make matters
more interesting, Young has two treatments of the song: a harsh version and a more
pleasant sounding acoustic version. After you read the lyrics, take a listen to the two
versions: Hey, Hey, My, My Out of the Blue and then Hey, Hey, My, My Into the Black.
My my, hey hey
Rock and roll is here to stay
It's better to burn out
Than to fade away
My my, hey hey.

Out of the blue and into the black

They give you this, but you pay for that
And once you're gone, you can never come back
When you're out of the blue and into the black.

The king is gone but he's not forgotten

This is the story of a johnny rotten
It's better to burn out than it is to rust
The king is gone but he's not forgotten.

Hey hey, my my
Rock and roll can never die
There's more to the picture
Than meets the eye.

Hey hey, my my.

Active and Passive Voice: Tense-wise Rules

Simple Present tense
An Active sentence in the simple present tense has the following structure:
Subject + first form of the verb + object
A passive sentence in the simple present tense has the following structure:
Object of the active sentence + is/am/are + past participle form of the verb + by +
subject of the active sentence
Changing an assertive sentence into the passive
Active: I write a letter.
Passive: A letter is written by me.
Active: I help you.
Passive: You are helped by me.
Active: I love my parents.
Passive: My parents are loved by me.
Active: We love our country.
Passive: Our country is loved by us.
Changing a negative sentence into the passive
Active: I do not write a letter.
Passive: A letter is not written by me.
Active: I do not abuse my servants.
Passive: My servants are not abused by me.
Active: I do not write novels.
Passive: Novels are not written by me.
Active: He does not tease her.
Passive: She is not teased by him.
Changing an interrogative sentence into the passive
Structure: Is/are/am + object of the active verb + past participle form of the verb + by +
subject of the passive verb
Active: Do you write a letter?
Passive: Is a letter written by you?
Active: Do you write stories?
Passive: Are stories written by you?
Active: Does she make candles?
Passive: Are candles made by her?
Active: Who does not obey you?
Passive: By whom are you not obeyed?
Active: Which newspaper do you read?
Passive: Which newspaper is read by you?
Active: Does she do her duty?
Passive: Is her duty done by her?
Notes:
The object of the active verb becomes the subject of the passive verb. Therefore,
sentences which do not have an object cannot be changed into the passive. The
following sentences, for instance, cannot be changed into the passive because they do
not have objects.
The old man sat in a corner.
The child sleeps.
The wind blows.
The dog barks.
The fire burns.
He laughed aloud.

Read more at http://www.englishpractice.com/improve/active-passive-

voice-tensewise-rules/#DPDGJrABsZyREUtJ.99

When a sentence is written, it can either be written in active voice or

passive voice.

 Active voice describes a sentence where the subject performs

the action stated by the verb. For example: Tom changed the flat
tire.
 Passive voice describes a sentence where the subject is acted
upon by the verb. For example: The tire was changed by Tom.
In most cases, writing sentences in passive voice is discouraged
because it can obscure the subject of the sentence, and confuse the
reader. It also usually creates a wordy and awkward sentence
construction.

Defining Passive Voice

Every sentence contains, at minimum, a subject and an action. The
subject is the person or thing the sentence is about, and the action is
what the subject is doing.

When a sentence is in active voice, the subject is doing the action and
the subject typically comes before the action in the sentence. For
example:

 I swim. I is the subject. Swim is the action. The subject doing

the action comes before the action, so it is immediately clear to
the reader who is doing what.
When a sentence is in passive voice, the subject is being acted on by
the verb and the subject typically comes after the action. For example:
 Swimming is something I do. Here, the action is swimming. The
subject is I. The sentence is in passive voice, since the person
doing the action (I) is not mentioned until after the action
Some sentences also contain objects - the thing being acted upon.
This can make it more difficult to determine whether the sentence is
in passive voice. For example, here is a sentence in active voice:

 Anna hits the ball. Anna is the subject. Hits is the action. The ball
is the object.
That same sentence in passive voice reads:

 The ball is hit by Anna.

 The ball is the object - not the subject of the sentence. The ball
is not doing an action. Therefore, it should be after the subject
(Anna)
Tips to Recognize the Passive Voice
Sometimes a sentence in passive voice does not necessarily sound
"wrong" or wordy. However, it is still best to write in active voice
when possible.

In order to recognize that a sentence is in passive voice, watch out for

these keywords:

 Be
 Is
 Are
 A
 Was
 Were
 Has been
 Have been
 Will be
 Being

How to Change Voice from Passive to Active

In order to change passive voice to active voice, you need to recognize
what the subject of the sentence is and then rewrite the sentence so
the subject is performing the action.

Let's use the following example to understand how to change passive

voice to active voice:
Extensive training on the new safety procedures was required to be
attended by the maintenance staff. 

We can recognize that this sentence is in passive voice because the

keyword was is used, and because it is not initially clear who or what
this sentence is about. In order to correct the sentence:

Step One: Identify the subject of the sentence - who is doing an

action? The training is not doing an action, so it can't be the subject.
The only person or thing doing an action here is the maintenance staff.
They are attending training. So, the maintenance staff is the subject of
the sentence.

Step Two: Rewrite the sentence so the subject is performing the

action. This sentence could be rewritten to active voice as follows:

The maintenance staff was required to attend extensive training on

the new safety procedures.

This rewrite makes it immediately clear to the reader who is doing

what. The subject is doing the action. 

Practice Changing Passive to Active Voice

Correct the following five sentences to practice changing passive to
active voice. The answers are below:

1. Hunger was what Bill felt.

2. Reading is enjoyed by Mary
3. The town was destroyed by fire
4. Funny is what clowns are
5. Cheese was liked by Sara
Answers to Practice Sentences
1. Bill felt hungry (Bill is the subject, felt is the action)
2. Mary enjoys reading (Mary is the subject, enjoys is the action)
3. Fire destroyed the town (Fire is the subject, destroyed is the
action)
4. Clowns are funny (Clowns  is the subject, funny is the action)
5. Sara likes cheese (Sara is the subject, likes is the action)

Explain the basic rules for changing active voice into passive form with examples

Present Indefinite Tense:

Change object into subject
Is, Are, Am
3rd form of verb
By
Objective form of subject
Active:        I like mangoes.
Passive:     Mangoes are liked by me.

Present Continuous Tense:

Change subject into object
Is, Are, Am
Being
Third form of verb
Objective from of subject
Active:        He is helping his friend.
Passive:     His friend is being helped by him

Present Perfect Tense:

Change object to subject
Has, have
Been
Third form of verb
By
Objective form of subject
Active:        She has closed the door.
Passive:    The door has been closed by her.

Past Indefinite Tense:

Change subject to object
Was, were
Third form of verb
By
Objective form of subject
Active:        She bought a golden chain for herself.
Passive:     A golden chain for herself was bought by her.
Past Continuous Tense:
Object subject
was, were
Being
Verb
By
Object form of subject.
Active:        Was the dog chasing the cat?
Passive:    Was the cat being chased by the dog?

Past Continuous Tense:

Object Subject
Had Been
Being
Verb
By
Object form of subject
Active:        You had not helped me.
Passive:    I had not been helped by you.

Present Perfect Continuous Tense:

Active:        She has been reading these books since morning.
Passive:    These books have been read by her since morning.

Past Perfect Continuous Tense:

Active:        He had been reading this book since morning.
Passive:    This book had been read by him since morning.

Future Indefinite Tense:

Object subject
Will, shall
Be
Verb
By
Object form of subject
Active:        He will read a book.
Passive:    A book will be read by him.

Future Continuous Tense:

Active:        He will be reading a book.
Passive:    A book will be read by him.
Future Perfect Tense:
Object subject
Will have been, shall have been
Verb
By
Object form of subject
Active:        I shall have left this place.
Passive:    This place will have left by me.

Future Perfect Continuous Tense:

Active:        He will have been reading this book since morning.
Passive:    This book will have been read by him.

IMPERATIVE SENTENCES
Let
Verb
Be
Verb
Active:        Clean this room
Passive:    Let the room be cleaned.

USE OF CAN, COULD, MAY, MIGHT, MUST

Object subject
Can, could, may, might, must
Be
Verb
By
Object form of subject
Active:        I can read your handwriting.
Passive:     Your handwriting can be read by me.
RHYTHM
An essential of all poetry, the regular or progressive pattern of recurrent accents in the flow
of a poem as determined by the arses and theses of the metrical feet, i.e., the rise and fall
of stress. The measure of rhythmic quantity is the meter.
Sidelight: A rhythmic pattern in which the stress falls on the final syllable of each
foot, as in the iamb or anapest, is called a rising or ascendingrhythm; a rhythmic
pattern with the stress occurring on the first syllable of each foot, as in
the dactyl or trochee, is a falling or descending rhythm.
Sidelight: From an easy lilt to the rough cadence of a primitive chant, rhythm is
the organization of sound patterns the poet has created for pleasurable reading.
 

Example :
   The manager is signing the cheques.  
The cheques are being signed by the manager.
      
1.  The maid is sweeping the broken pieces of glass.  
      
2.  The police have solved most of the crimes this year.  
      
3.  Only a few of us attended the spiritual talk.  
      
4.  The gardener sweeps and mops the hall once a week.  
      
5.  Mrs Lim is boiling the sweet potatoes at the moment.  
      
6.  The authorities will launch a cleanliness campaign in the park.  
      
7.  We will work out the details of the agreement within a week.  
      
8.  No one responded to the call to donate blood.  
      
9.  The good Samaritan helped the blind man cross the road.  
      
10.  The salesman is driving Danny's new car out of the garage.  
      
Sponsored Links
 
   Answers  
      
1.  The broken pieces of glass are being swept by the maid.  
2.  Most of the crimes this year have been solved by the police.  
3.  The spiritual talk was attended by only a few of us.  
 4.  The hall is swept and mopped by the gardener once a week.  
5.  The sweet potatoes are being boiled by Mrs Lim at the moment.  
6.  A cleanliness campaign will be launched by the authorities in the park.  
7.  The details of the agreement will be worked out by us within a week.  
8.  The call to donate blood was not responded to by anyone.  
9.  The blind man was helped by the good Samaritan to cross the road.  
10.  Danny's new car is being driven out of the garage by the salesman.

Active voice | passive: grammar rules with examples

Form
Present simple and continuous: The car is repaired. The car is being repaired.
Past simple and continuous: The car was repaired. The car was being repaired.
Present perfect: The car has just been repaired.
Past perfect: The car had been repaired.
Future simple: The car will be repaired.
Future perfect: The car will have been repaired.
Present and perfect conditional: The car would be repaired. The car would have been
repaired.
The passive voice in English is formed with the verb to be and the past participle, which
is different for regular verbs (translated, mended) and irregular verbs (taken, thrown). 
Statement: The letter is written. This shop has been opened. It will be done in time.
Question: Is the letter written? Has the shop been opened? Will it be done in time?
Negative: The letter is not written. The shop has not been opened. It will not be done in
time.
The continuous is as follows. (Other continuous tenses are normally used in the active
voice, not in the passive.)
Present: A new house is being built in our street.
Past: A new house was being built in our street.
In all the examples above the agent is not mentioned. We do not know who has written
the letter or opened the shop.
Similarly: Flowers were planted in the garden. (We do not know who did it).
If we want to say who planted the flowers we mention the agent at the end of the
sentence and use the preposition by.
The flowers were planted by my mother.
But: The window was smashed with a stone. (The stone is not the agent. We do not
know who smashed the window. We only know how he or she did it).
Direct and indirect objects
If there are both direct and indirect objects in the active voice (My friend sent me a
letter), the indirect object (my friend), not the direct object (a letter), becomes the
subject in the passive voice.
Active: My friend sent me a letter.
Passive: I was sent a letter by my friend. (Not: A letter was sent to me by my friend. This
sentence does not sound natural in English.)
Similarly: They offer Trevor a place. - Trevor is offered a place.
The infinitive without to
In the active voice some verbs are followed by the bare infinitive (infinitive without to). In
the passive form we use most such verbs with the infinitive with to.
Active: We saw them come. She made him do it.
Passive: They were seen to come. He was made to do it.
But: They let us go. - We were let go.

Use
The passive is used:
1. If the action is more important then the agent.
A demonstration has been held. This theatre was built in 1868.
The important thing is what happened, not who did it.
2. If the agent is not known.
He was offered a job. (Someone offered him the job.)
They are supposed to be good students. (Some teachers suppose that.)
The difference in meaning between the simple and continuous
A new house is built in our street. (The house is finished.)
A new house is being built in our street. (They are building it these days, it is not
finished.)
I was being introduced to Mrs. Jones when her husband arrived. (Her husband arrived
in the middle of the introduction.)
When her husband arrived I was introduced to Mrs. Jones. (Her husband arrived first
and then she introduced me.)
Notes
This form is typical of an impersonal and formal style, that is why you can often find it in
public notices, announcements, instructions or scientific articles.
English is spoken in this shop. Visitors are not allowed to smoke. The seal must be
removed.
In a less formal style the active voice is more usual.
English is spoken in this shop. - We speak English in this shop.
He was seen in Dover. - They saw him in Dover.
The seal must be removed. - You must remove the seal.
In the English language this form is more frequent than in many other languages.
Moreover, you can find some stuctures in English which are not possible in some
languages.
I am told that you are going to have a baby. It is thought that the crises will end soon.
Our tip

 Try some passive voice exercises to practise the difference between the active
and passive voice forms in English tenses.
 If you want to download pdf grammar rules with more examples have a look at E-
grammar pdf rules.
 A marked printable test with answers is available at Mixed exercises.