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The INDICATIVE mood expresses facts. The other two moods are the imperative and the subjunctive
moods.
The IMPERATIVE mood is used to express commands. Positive commands in English take the form of
the base form of the verb:
“Give me a wrench.”
“Clean your room.”
“Read this report, then give it to the supervisor.”
“Send us your address.”
It is important to remember that there are only a few acceptable situations to use the command form in,
such as talking to children, to students, when giving instructions, etc. Otherwise, it is more polite to
request people to do things, using modals such as “would,” “could,” “will” and “can”:
“Could you give me a wrench, please?”
“Will you please clean your room?”
“Would you read this report, then give it to your supervisor?”
“Can you send us your e-mail address?”
MOOD AND VOICE
The SUBJUNCTIVE mood is used to express emotion, doubt,
desire and possibility. It has mostly disappeared in English,
though it is very important in other European languages.
Even educated speakers of English do not regularly use the
subjunctive correctly.
“If I were (not “was”) a rich man, I'd travel all over the
world.”
“If she were (not “was”) any taller, she'd be taller than her
husband.”
The subjunctive also occurs in clauses with the verb “wish”:
“I wish I were (not “was”) in California.”
The subjunctive mood is used in object complements where the
verb in the main clause is a verb like “suggest,”
“recommend,” “demand,” “ask,” etc.:
“I suggest that he take (not “takes”) the day off.”
“I demand that all employees be (not “are”) here on time.”
MOOD AND VOICE
“They asked that we sing in the choir.” (“Sing” has the
same form in the subjunctive as it is in the indicative
mood. Most verbs in the subjunctive mood are only
recognizable in the third person singular. “We” is first
person plural. “Be” is the only exception.)
ACTIVE/PASSIVE VOICE
Beginning or inattentive writers tend to overuse passive voice,
which can weaken their prose, lead to the omission of
important information, and make them appear unsure of
their ideas.
When instructors draw attention to the problem, some
students overcompensate, eliminating all passive voice from
their writing.
Although many academic writers often favor active voice
because it is direct and concise, both voices are useful and
necessary. That is why the grammar check on word
processing programs highlights all passive constructions – it
gives writers a chance to consider whether each choice is
appropriate according to the purpose of the sentence.
VOICE
UNDERSTAND HOW BOTH ACTIVE AND
PASSIVE SENTENCES ARE STRUCTURED
“Get” is used in sentences that look superficially like the passive but cannot have
an agent, having a connotation of something self-inflicted:
I have to get dressed.
I don't want to get mixed up in their affairs.
You’ll get hurt.
PASSIVE CONSTRUCTIONS AND OTHER TYPE
OF CONSTRUCTIONS
The combination be + past participle can be:
1. A passive construction. It is definitely so:
- when an adverbial modifier characterizes the action:
This dictionary is always used by Peter.
-when the verb is in the continuous aspect:
This dictionary is being used by Peter.
Verbs of incomplete predication such as 'seem', 'be', 'suit', 'resemble', 'last', 'have',
and others cannot be used in the passive:
He lacks confidence.
The auditorium holds 5000 people.
This dress becomes hers.
'Have' with durative association is however only to be found in the active form:
He has a house.
We have about a hundred copies in stock.
3. The subject of the noun clause becomes the subject of the whole passive
sentence and the verb takes the infinitive verb:
FORMATION: the required tense of the verb 'to have' + OBJECT+ past
participle: I'm having the heating repaired.
With verbs that have to do with services: 'build', 'clean', 'decorate', 'develop (a
film)', 'mend', 'photocopy', 'print', 'repair':
I am having my watch repaired.
PASSIVE vs.CAUSATIVE
3. Drosophila melanogaster has been one of the most extensively studied species
in genetics research.
(the performer (researchers) is obvious)
When naming the performer would prove difficult or unnecessary, the passive
voice works well.
PASSIVE VOICE VS. ACTIVE VOICE
II. The performer is less important than the action
The solution was heated to 90°C for approximately 30 minutes and then allowed to cool.
We heated the solution to 90°C for approximately 30 minutes and then allowed it to cool.
- Does the active voice shorten the sentences? No. (In fact, the second sentence is one
word longer than it is in the original version. The active voice is not automatically
more concise than the passive.)
- Does the active voice add clarity? Perhaps, although the reader may be justified in
assuming that the authors are also the performers.
PASSIVE VOICE VS. ACTIVE VOICE
Notice that the authors used the active voice in the first and second sentences, but
the passive in the third. If the third sentence is changed to active voice, it becomes:
Pauling and Corey have already proposed a structure for nucleic acid.
This revision shortens the sentence and identifies the performers. However, the original
passive style creates parallel structure by repeating the topic of the second
sentence (“This structure has...”) in the third sentence (“A structure for...”). The
topic in the third sentence connects backward and prepares the reader for the
upcoming information. These three sentences are more cohesive as a result.
By focusing on the topic, the authors have incorporated the passive voice to
advantage, producing a passage that flows naturally and is comprehensible
and enjoyable for the reader.
EXERCISE I.
EXERCISE II.
EXERCISES III.
EXERCISE IV.
BIBLIOGRAPHY