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Tema 27: 
La voz pasiva. 
Formas y funciones 

Madhatter 
09/06/2007 
 
 Tema 27:
La vozz pasiva. Formass y funciones.
2

Ta
able of contents.
1. The passivee voice: Def
efinition. ___
____________________
_________________________ 3
1.1. The acttive-passive correspond
dence. ________________
___________________________ 3
1.2. Choice of the passiive. _____________________________
___________________________ 4
1.2.1. Chooice of the passive when thee agent is omittted. ________
______________________________ 4
1.2.2. Chooice of the passive when thee agent is indiccated. _______
______________________________ 4
2. The passivee auxiliariees. ________
____________________
_________________________ 5
2.1. To be and
a to get. __________________________________
___________________________ 5
2.2. To becoome. ______________________________________
___________________________ 5
2.3. To havee. _________________________________________
___________________________ 5
3. The passivee gradient. __________
_ ____________________
_________________________ 6
3.1. Centrall passives. __________________________________
___________________________ 6
3.2. Semi-paassives. ____________________________________
___________________________ 7
3.3. Pseudo-passives. __________________________________
___________________________ 8
3.4. Summaary. _______________________________________
___________________________ 8
4. Voice consstraints ______________
____________________
_________________________ 8
4.1. Verb coonstraints. __________
_ ______________________
___________________________ 9
4.1.1. Actiive only._____
____________________________________
______________________________ 9
4.1.2. Passsive only. ____
____________________________________
______________________________ 9
4.2. Preposiitional verbss. ______________________________
___________________________ 9
4.3. Object constraints.. _______________________________
__________________________ 10
ng constrain
4.4. Meanin nts. _____________________________
__________________________ 11
4.5. Frequency constraaints. ____________________________
__________________________ 12
4.6. Passivee versus activve infinitivee. ____________________
__________________________ 12
5. Comparisoon of the paassive in Engglish and in
n Spanish. _______________________ 13
5.1. Constru
uction differrences. __________________________
__________________________ 14
5.2. Frequency of use. __________
_ ______________________
__________________________ 14
5.2.1. Ageent deletion. ____________
__ ________________________
_____________________________ 14
5.2.2. Freqquency of use.. __________________________________
_____________________________ 14
5.2.3. Estaar + Adj. ____
____________________________________
_____________________________ 14
5.3. Usual auxiliary
a Verbs in the passive. _______________
__________________________ 14
5.4. Two ob
bject sentencces. _____________________________
__________________________ 15
5.5. Transittive Vs. ____________________________________
__________________________ 15
6. Verb activee in form, but
b passive in
i sense. ____________
________________________ 15
Biibliography.. ___________________
____________________
________________________ 15
Brrief summarry __________________
____________________
________________________ 16

Iván Matella
anes’ Notes
 Tema 27:
La voz pasiva. Formas y funciones.
3

The passive voice: Definition.

1. The passive voice: Definition.
First of all, I must define the term VOICE. VOICE is a grammatical
Grammatical category
category which makes it possible to view the action of a sentence in which makes possible to
view the action of a
either of two ways, without change in the facts reported. sentence in either of two
ways, without change in
[1]The singer killed the bass player. [ACTIVE] the facts reported.
≈ [2]The bass player was killed by the singer. [PASSIVE]

As we see from [1] & [2], the active-passive relation involves two
Grammatical level: VP.
grammatical levels: The VP & the clause. In the VP, the difference btw
Form: Aux BE + past
the two voice categories is that the passive adds a form of the aux BE participle of the main V.

followed by the past participle of the main V.

ACTIVE PASSIVE
Simple Present: Kisses ≈ Is kissed
Simple Past Kissed ≈ Was kissed
Modal + perfective: May have kissed ≈ May have been kissed
Modal + progressive: May be kissed ≈ May be being kissed
Perfective + Progressive: Has been kissed ≈ Has been being kissed
The active-passive
1.1. The active-passive correspondence. correspondence.
In addition, at the clause level, changing from the active to the Gramm level: Clause.

passive involves rearrangement of two clause element, and one

addition:
(a) The active subject becomes the passive AGENT. Activ Subj→Passive AGENT.

Active Obj→Passive subj.

(b) The active object becomes the passive subject.
By + AGENT.
(c) The Pp by is introduced before the AGENT.
AGENT By-Phrase
The PpP (AGENT By-Phrase) of passive sentences is generally an optional is often optional.

element. The active-passive correspondence for a transitive V with an obj (NP)

can be seen as follows:
S V O
John admired Mary
Active sentence.

ACTIVE SUBJ ACTIVE V ACTIVE OBJ

PASSIVE SUBJ PASSIVE V OPTIONAL AGENT

BY-PHRASE Passive sentence.

Mary Was admired (By John)

S VPASS Ag

Iván Matellanes’ Notes

 Tema 27:
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1.2. Choice of the passive. Choice of the passive.

Jespersen points out that in the vast majority of cases the choice of the
passive is due to one of the following reasons:

1.2.1. Choice of the passive when the agent is omitted. The agent is omitted.

Over a 70% of passive sentence found in English contain no

mention of the active subj (passive AGENT):
1. The agent is omitted when it is unknown or it is referred to in a AGENT is unknown or
referred to in a vague
vague general way, such as they, people, someone … general way (they,
people, someone).
[ACTIVE]They make laws in Parliament. ≈ Laws are made in Parliament. [PASSIVE]
2. If the active subj is self-evident from the context it needn’t be Active subj is self-
evident from the
mentioned: context.

He was elected prime Minister of Great Britain.

3. There may be a special reason, such as tact or delicacy of sentiment, Tact or delicacy.

for not mentioning the active subj. In writing it is more frequently

used than in speaking:
I was said that you are in love with me. Is that true?

1.2.2. Choice of the passive when the agent is indicated. The agent is indicated.

Only a 30% of the passive sentences in English have the AGENT by-
Phrase present in the clause:
1. The passive is preferred when the action seems more important Passive is preferred
when the action
than the person who performs it. The Agent is placed after the subj seems more
important than the
and the V and is preceded by the Pp by. person who does it.

JFK was shot by a gunman 25 years ago.

If something inanimate is mentioned, other Pps rather than by may Inanimate is
mentioned with
be used instead: other Pps
rather than by.
[Active] Petrol filled the truck ≈ The truck was filled with petrol. [Passive]
[Active]Tap-water contained arsenic ≈ Arsenic was contained in tap-water. [Passive]

2. The passive voice may facilitate the connection of one sentence The passive voice
may help the
with another. connection of one
sentence with
He rose to speak, and was listened by the crowd. another.

Iván Matellanes’ Notes

 Tema 27:
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2. The passive auxiliaries. The passive Auxiliaries.

2.1. To be and to get. To be & to get.

The passive aux is normally be. Its only serious competitor is get, which Be.
however is not, by most syntactic criteria, an aux at all. Moreover, get tends Get: Not aux; w/
inanimate Agent.
to be limited to constructions without an expressed animate agent.
The cat got run over (by a bus). James got beaten last night.
Get with an animate agent is not impossible. Can also occur with
animate agents.
James got caught (by the police)
The get-passive is avoided in formal style, and even in informal English it Get: avoided in formal
style; less frequent than
is far less frequent than the be-passive. be-passive in informal.

Get is much more common as a RESULTING COPULA in sentences like My

mother is getting old [=My mother becomes old], and it may be best analyzed as

such in sentences which look superficially like passives, but which

cannot be expanded by an AGENT.
Your argument gets a bit confused here. [by who??? – It’s not a passive]

2.2. To become. To become.

To become is occasionally followed by a past participle denoting action,
The combination
and may then be said to be a kind of aux of the passive. The combination expresses change from
one condition to
expresses change from one condition to another. another.

We became acquainted with New Technologies. [=familiarize]

According to Zandvoort, the difference btw get and become as aux of the Diff btw get and become
expressed by the terms
passive may be expressed by the terms PERFECTIVE (expressing an idea of perfective & durative.

completion) and DURATIVE (expressing a continuing action).

2.3. To have. To have.

The passive is also used with the V to have and the past participle of
the main V. This form is used when someone has the action done by Used when someone
has the action done
another person, instead of doing it himself. by another person,
instead of doing it
He always has his burglar alarm tested every year. himself.
I had the telephone installed yesterday.
As with the passive form of be, have can also be used with modal aux Vs: Can be used w/modal
aux Vs: may, might, can,
may, might, can, could, ought to, need, must … could, ought to, need,
must ….
He MUST have had the house repainted since uncle John died.
He COULD have had their money stolen on the bus.

Iván Matellanes’ Notes

 Tema 27:
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3. The passive gradient. The passive gradient.

The purely formal definition of the passive (the clause contains the
construction be (or get) + -ed participle) is very broad and would include all
the following sentences.
+ Passive

[1] This violin was made by my father. [≈My father made this violin – PERSONAL AGENT]

PASSIVES
CENTRAL
[2] This conclusion is hardly justified by the results. [≈The results hardly justify … – NONPERSONAL AGENT]
[3] Coal has been replaced by oil. [≈Oil has replaced coal or ≈People have replaced coal by oil – TWO ACTIVE COUNTERPARTS]
[4] This difficulty can be avoided in several ways. [≈someone can avoid this difficulty in several … - NO EXPRESS AGENT]

PASSIVES PASSIVES
SEMI-
[5] We are encouraged to go on with the project. [≈ The results encourage us to go on … or We feel rather encourage to …]
[6] Leonard was interested in Linguistics. [≈Linguistics interested Leonard or Leonard seem interested in & keen on Linguistics.]
- Passive

[7] The building is already demolished. [NO ACTIVE COUNTERPART nor AGENT ADDITION]

PSEUDO-
[8] The modern world is getting [becoming] more highly industrialized. [NO ACTIVE COUNTERPART nor AGENT ADDITION]
[5-8] do not have a clear correspondence with an active VP or active
Scale from +Passive to
clause, and are increasingly remote to the ideal model of passive [1]. The +Copular clause.

variety of relationships displayed by [1-8] may be well regarded as points on a

scale running from [1] to a sentence such as [9], clearly a copular
construction.
My uncle was very tired. [Adjectival status of “tired” → COPULAR CONSTRUCTION].

3.1. Central passives. Central or true passives.

Examples [1-4] can be called CENTRAL or TRUE PASSIVES. Sentences [1] [1] & [2] > Direct active-
& [2] have a direct active-passive relation. The difference btw the two passive relation.
[1] → Personal agent
is that the [1] has a personal and [2] a nonpersonal agent. [2] → Nonpersonal
[3] > Unclarity about
Sentence [3] brings some unclarity about the nature of the active the active counterpart
(Two possibilities).
counterpart. There are two possible active counterparts, depending on
the interpretation of the by-phrase. The by-phrase can be interpreted as By-phrase:
- Agent phrase
an agent phrase corresponding to the active subj (Oil has replaced coal) or - given an instrumental
interpretation.
with an instrumental interpretation (People in many countries have replaced coal
by oil –by = with-). [4] > Has no
expressed agent & so
Sentence [4] exemplifies the most common type of passive, that which has leaves the subject of the
active counterpart
no expressed agent (AGENTLESS PASSIVE) and so leaves the subj of the undetermined.

active counterpart undetermined.

Iván Matellanes’ Notes

 Tema 27:
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3.2. Semi-passives. Semi- passives.

Sentences [5] & [6] represent a “mixed” or SEMI-PASSIVE CLASS whose [5] & [6] > Have both
verbal and adjectival
members have both verbal and adjectival properties. On the one hand, properties.
they are V-like in having active analogues [5a – 6a]. On the other hand,
V-like> have active
analogues.
their adjectival properties include the possibility of:
Adjectival> They can:
(a) Coordinating the participle with an adj. (a) Coordinate the
participle with an adj.
(b) Modify the participle with quite, rather, more … (b) Modify the participle
with quite, rather, more …
(c) Replace be by a lexical copular V such as feel or seem. (c) replace be by a lexical
copular V such as feel or
[5] We are encouraged to go on with the project. seem.

≈ [5a]The results encourage us to go on with the project. [V-like]

≈ [5b]We feel rather encourage and content to go on … [Adjectival]
[6] Leonard was interested in linguistics.
≈ [6a]Linguistics interested Leonard. [V-like]
≈ [6b]Leonard seem very interested in and keen on Linguistics. [Adjectival]

To these we may add that they are stative rather than dynamic. It does Stative Vs.

not exclude a passive analysis, for there are stative passives as well as dynamic
passives. It does, however, incline the scale in favor of an adjectival Adj analisys: All participle
adjs have a stative meaning.
analysis, since all participle adjs have a stative meaning.
There are several Pps which can introduce agent-like phrases: Pps which can introduce
agent-like phrases:
About, at over, to and with. But just as the by-phrase may cooccur, in About, at over, to & with.

an instrumental function, with an active subj, so can these agent-like Just as the by-phrase
may cooccur, in an
phrases sometimes. Thus, there is thus no strong reason to treat such PpP, instrumental function,
with an active subj, so
whether introduced by by or some other Pp, as diagnostic of passive voice. can these agent-like
phrases sometimes.
We were all worried ABOUT the complication ≈ The complication worried us all.
I was a bit surprised AT her behavior ≈ Her behavior surprised me a bit.
No reason to treat such
Leonard was interested IN linguistics. PpP as diagnostic of
passive voice.
≈ Linguistics interested Leonard.
≈ (someone) interested Leonard IN Linguistics.

So, I can summarize that this kind of sentences look like passives This kind of
sentences look like
but they really consist of a V to be not used as an aux, and a past passives but they
really consist of a V to
participle functioning as an adjectival. be not used as an
aux, and a past
participle functioning
as an adj.

Iván Matellanes’ Notes

 Tema 27:
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Pseudo- passives.
3.3. Pseudo-passives.
Finally, sentences [7] & [8] have neither an active transform nor a Have neither an active
transform nor a
possibility of agent addition. Moreover, the participle has adjectival value just as possibility of agent
addition. The participle
semi-passives. Such elements can be called PSEUDO-PASSIVES, since it is has adjectival value

Passives:
chiefly only their superficial form [BE + -ed participle] that - Their superficial form.
- Subj undergoes the
recommends them for consideration as passives and the fact that the action of the V
subj undergoes the action expressed by the V.
In terms of meaning, the active sentence corresponding to [7] is not
[7a’] but [7a’’]:
[7] The building is already demolished.
≈[7a’] ?* (Someone) already demolishes the building.
≈[7a’’] (Someone) has already demolished the building.

That is, is demolished denotes a RESULTANT state: it refers, like the Meaning: Denote a
RESULTANTstate.
perfective, to a state resulting from the demolition, rather than the act of
demolition itself.

3.4. Summary.
Summarizing the passive gradient:
1) CENTRAL PASSIVES:
a) With expressed agents: [1-3].
b) Without expressed agents: [4].

2) SEMI-PASSIVES: [5-6]

3) PSEUDO-PASSIVES:
a) With “current” copular Vs1 be, feel, look, seem … : [7]
b) With “resulting” copular Vs get, become, grow … : [8]

4. Voice constraints Voice constraints.

Although it is a general rule that transitive Vs sentences can be

either active or passive, there are a number of exceptions where the
active and the passive sentences are not in systematic
correspondence. I will distinguish five kinds of VOICE CONSTRAINTS.

1
Usually stative and cannot occur with the progressive aspect.

Iván Matellanes’ Notes

 Tema 27:
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4.1. Verb constraints. V constraints.

4.1.1. Active only. Active only.

There are greater restrictions on Vs occurring in the passive than on Vs

Copular & intransitive Vs.
occurring in the active. In addition to copular and intransitive Vs, which
having no obj cannot take the passive, some transitive Vs, called MIDDLE VS, Middle Vs.

do not occur at least in some senses in the passive.

They have a nice house.
He lacks confidence.
≈ He has no confidence
All these belong to the stative V
paraphrased by stative be or have.
Will this suit you?
John resembles his father.
John is like his father
OF BEING AND HAVING, as they can be
Stative Vs of
being & having.

4.1.2. Passive only.

Passive only only.
Conversely, with some Vs and verb constructions only the passive
is possible.
BE said.
John was [said / reputed] to be a good teacher
≈ *They [said / reputed] him to be a good teacher

Other examples are be born (with an irregular past participle), and be BE born.

BE drowned.
drowned (in cases where no agent is implied):
He was born in London The wanted man fell into the water and was drowned.
≈ ?* Her mother bore him in London. ≠ … and someone drowned him.

4.2. Prepositional verbs. Ppal Vs.

In English, PpVs can often occur in the passive, but not so freely
PpVs can often occur in
as in the active. These Ppal Vs are verbal idioms consisting of a lexical V the passive, but not so
freely as in the active.
followed by a Pp, such as in look at. Compare the following sentences, in
which [1a] & [2a] contain Ppal Vs, whereas [1b] & [2b] contain the
same words in nonidiomatic use.
the problem. [1a]
The engineers went very carefully into
the tunnel. [1b]
The problem
≈ was very carefully gone into by the engineers.
?* The tunnel

the expected result. [2a]

They eventually arrived at
the splendid stadium. [2b]
The expected result.
≈ was eventually arrived at.
?* the splendid stadium

Iván Matellanes’ Notes

 Tema 27:
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It is only in the
It is only in the abstract, figurative use that go into, arrive at, look into figurative use that
some PpVs accept the
and many other expressions accept the passive. One may construct contexts passive.

where such verbal expressions (not in the figurative sense) will occur in the
Cannot be stated that all
passive. So that, it cannot be stated that all nonidiomatic combinations nonidiomatic
combinations of V and
of V and Pp cannot occur in the passive. Pp cannot occur in the
passive.

4.3. Object constraints. Object constraints.

The subject of a passive is what in the active would be an obj. However,

An active sentence
a sentence may contain two objs: A DO, usually denoting a thing, and an may contain two
objs: A DO and an
IO, usually denoting a person. IO.

John gave me a bottle of Glenfidich. [IO – DO]

Then, only one of them can be made the subj of the passive clause, the One of them can be
made the subj of the
other subj is retained as such, and it is therefore possible to have two passive clause. it is
therefore possible to
passive forms: have two different
passive forms.
!!! I was given a bottle of Glenfidich. A bottle of Glenfidich was given to me.
In fact, when the active indirect obj becomes the passive subj is far IO is often preferred
when there is such a
more usual than the other. Jespersen points out that the greater interests choice.

felt for people than for things naturally places the IO before the DO.
Transitive Vs can be followed either by phrasal or by clausal Transitive Vs can be
followed either by
objs. With clauses as objs, however, the passive transformation is phrasal or by clausal
objs.
restricted in use: 1) NP as obj.

1) NP as object:
[1] John loved Mary ≈ Mary was loved by John.
2) Clause as obj.
2) Clause as obj:
a) Finite clause: 2.a) FINITE clause.

[2] John thought (that) she was unattractive

≈ ?* That she was unattractive was thought (by John).

b) Nonfinite clause: 2.b) NonfINITE clause:

Infinitive & Participle.
i) INFINITIVE:
[3] John hoped to meet her ≈ ?* To meet her was hoped by John

ii) PARTICIPLE:
[4] John enjoyed seeing her ≈ *? Seeing her was enjoyed (by John)

Iván Matellanes’ Notes

 Tema 27:
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The passive becomes acceptable, however, particularly when the obj is a 1) Passive becomes
acceptable when the obj
finite clause, if (1) the clausal obj is extraposed and replaced by the is a finite clause if …

anticipatory pron it or if (2) the subj of the obj clause is made the subj Clausal obj is replaced
and extraposed by the
of the passive clause. anticipatory pron it.

The subj of the obj

[2b] It was thought that she was unattractive. [3b] ?It was hoped to meet her. clause is made the
[2c] She was thought to be attractive. subj of the passive
clause.
Co-reference btw a subj and a NP obj blocks the passive
2) Coreference btw a
correspondence. This constraint occurs with (a) reflexive Prons, (b) subj & a NP obj blocks
the passive.
reciprocal prons & (c) possessive prons when co-referential to the subj.
(a) John i could see [Paul / himself i] in the mirror. Reflexive prons,
reciprocal prons &
≈ [Paul / *Himself] could be seen in the mirror. possessive prons.
(b) We i could hardly see each other i in the fog.
≈ *Each other could hardly be seen in the fog.
(c) The woman i shook [my hand / her hand i].
≈ [My hand / *Her hand] was shaken by the woman.

4.4. Meaning constraints. Meaning constraints.

We cannot assume that matching active and passive sentences Cannot assume that
matching active and
always have the same propositional meaning. The difference of order passive sentences
always have the same
brought about by changing an active sentence into the passive or vice versa meaning.

may well make a difference not only in emphasis, but also the scope of
negatives and quantifiers.
[1] Every schoolboy knows one joke at least.
[2] ≈ One joke at least is known by every schoolboy.

The most likely interpretation of [1] is quite different from the most likely
interpretation from [2]: Whereas [1] favors the reading “each schoolboy
knows at least some joke or other”, [2] favors the reading “there is one
particular joke which is known to every schoolboy”.
Shift of modal
Moreover, a shift of modal meaning may accompany a shift of meaning may
accompany a shift of
voice in VP containing modal auxs. voice in VP containing
modal auxs.
John cannot do it. [ABILITY] ≈ It cannot be done (by John). [POSSIBILITY]

Can will be normally interpreted as expressing ABILITY (active sentence), Can: Active → ABILITY;
Passive → EXPRESSING.
whereas in the passive it is interpreted as expressing POSSIBILITY. Examples
with other modal aux are:
Every one of them must be reprimanded. [=Every one of them is to be blame]
≈ You must reprimand every one of them. [=It’s your duty to do so]

Iván Matellanes’ Notes

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The shift from active to passive may also change the meaning of the
Shift from active to
perfective aspect. passive may also
change the meaning of
[3]JFK has twice visited Oxford. ≈ [4]Oxford has twice been visited by JFK the perfective aspect.

The active sentence [3] can only be appropriately used in the lifetime of
JFK, since the subject of the sentence is determined by the perfective in
The subject must
terms of a period of time leading up to the present (The subject must exist in the real world.

exist in the real world). The passive sentence [4], according to this claim,
could appropriately be said now, after JFK’s death, since Oxford still
exists.

4.5. Frequency constraints. Frequency constraints.

There is a notable difference in the frequency with which the active
Stylistic factor which
and the passive voice are used. The active is far more common, but there is determines frequency
is related to the
considerable variation among individual text-types. The major stylistic factor distinction btw
informative and
determining frequency seems to be related to the distinction btw imaginative prose.

informative and imaginative prose. The passive is generally more Passive: more used in
informative writing,
frequently used in the informative than in imaginative writing, and is objective, impersonal
scientific style.
notably more frequent in the obj, impersonal style of scientific articles
and news reporting.
The passive becomes very much rarer in combinations with Rare with complex V
constructions
other complex V constructions. So, progressive forms are avoided in the (progressive forms).

passive, especially in the perfect tenses: “perfective progressive passive”

HAVE + been + being +
(HAVE + been + being + past participle main V) and “modal perfective past participle main V.

progressive passive” (Modal aux + HAVE + been + being + past Modal aux + HAVE + been +
being + past participle main V.
participle main V), perhaps in part because of an avoidance of the
awkwardness of the be being sequence:
The conservatives have not been winning sits lately.
≈ ?Seats have not been being won by the conservatives lately.

4.6. Passive versus active infinitive. Passive vs. active Inf.

The active form of an infinitive can be transformed in its corresponding

passive form. As a general rule, the active form of an infinitive denotes
active content and the passive form denotes passive content.
I like to teach. I like to be taught.

Iván Matellanes’ Notes

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Changes in the content of the Infinitive: Changes in the content of the Inf:

1) We find a number of cases in which the active form of the Inf can have 1. Active form of the
Inf can have a passive
a passive content. The active form of the Inf with passive content is content.

found as the complement of many adjs, note in particular easy, difficult,

hard. The passive form is here infrequent.
There are a lot of things to do (=to be done). There remains a Qs easy to answer
2) In many cases, only one form may be used for passive content: 2. Only one form
may be used for
The map was no where to be found.[*to find] Oswald was to blame.[*to be blamed] passive content.

3) In other cases there is a vacillation btw the active and the passive 3. Vacilation btw active
& passive form for
form for passive content. In some phrases, in spoken English the passive content.

shorter form is usually preferred.

There is no time [to lose / to be lost]
4) Occasionally a slight diff in meaning btw the two constructions 4. Slight diff in meaning
btw the two constructions
may be observed: may be observed.

There was nothing to see. [=virtually nothing worth seeing]

≈ There was nothing to be seen. [=either nothing at all or nothing visible]

5) It must be noted that when Vs of perception (see, hear, feel …), make 5. When Vs of
perception, make & let
and let are used in the passive, the Inf following them takes to even are used in the passive,
the Inf following them
though these Vs have not this Pp when used in the active. takes to even though
these Vs have not this
Peter saw her take the pen. ≈ She was seen to take the pen. Pp when used in the
active.
Comparison of the English
5. Comparison of the passive in English and in Spanish. & Spanish passives.

Here I will follow Stockwell, Bowen and Martin and we will mainly
consider those cases in which English construction differs from the
Spanish one.
The passive in English is generated in the same way as in Spanish,
with be + Past participle and transposition of subj and obj, with optional
omission of the by-phrase that carries the agent.
El toreo es considerado como un verdadero arte

Iván Matellanes’ Notes

 Tema 27:
La voz pasiva. Formas y funciones.
14

5.1. Construction differences. Construction differences.

Constructionally, Spanish passives differs from the English ones
Spanish passives:
basically in that the participle agrees in number and gender w/the subj. Participle agrees in
number with gender with
La casa es terminada. Las casas son terminadas. the subj.

5.2. Frequency of use. Frequency of use.

The passive in English is frequent and highly productive English passives: highly
productive and + frequent.
(especially in more formal style and writing), the passive in Spanish is
Spanish passives:
Less productive & relatively
relatively rarer and less productive for the following reasons: rarer.

5.2.1. Agent deletion. Agent deletion.

The sense of the passive is usually conveyed by a sentence type
The Spanish pron se
is used with a
that results from agent deletion. That is, a sentence in which the passive Fn, though
the form is active.
Spanish pron se is used with a passive Fn, though the form is active.
Se llevaron los heridos al hospital. [=The wounded people was brought to the hospital]

5.2.2. Frequency of use. Frequency of use.

Spanish makes use of the active more often than English does in Spanish uses the active
more often than
sentences which could be expressed in the passive too, especially when the English, even
w/passive meaning.
agent is not expressed.
His father was killed in the war. [=Mataron a su padre en la guerra – ACTIVE -]

5.2.3. Estar + Adj. Estar + Adj.

The construction estar + Adj (including past participles) is used in
Estar + Adj: It is used in
Spanish if an event is over and only its results are being noted. Spanish if an event is
over & only its results
Compare the diff: are being noted.

La tele fue rota. [= Someone is breaking the TV]

The TV was broken La tele estaba rota. [= Picture of a broken TV on the ground]
English Semi-passives are expressed in Spanish by a non-passive English Semi-passives
are expressed in Spanish
construction with the V estar. by a non-passive
construction w/the V
estar.
El estaba interesado en la lingüística [≈He was interested in Linguistics]

5.3. Usual auxiliary Verbs in the passive. Aux V in the passive.

In Spanish ser is the only auxiliary of the passive. Get and become “Ser” is the only aux of
the Spanish passive.
being equivalent to a construction in the active with a pers pron.
We became acquainted [= Nos conocimos]. You’ll get hurt [=Te harás daño]

Iván Matellanes’ Notes

 Tema 27:
La vozz pasiva. Formass y funciones.
15

5.4. Two object

o se
entences
s. Two object
o senten
nces.

When
n two objs occur in the activ
ve clause a typical passive
p tra
ansform
With Spanissh
in English likke John wass given a boook or A boook was given to John hass no equivalent Ditransitive
e V, only the
DO can bec come the
in Spanish. The reasson is thatt the corre
esponding active sen
ntence (Thhey gave subj of the passive
sentence in Spanish.
ohn a book), with two N objs, can
Joh nnot occurr in Spanissh (*Dieron Juan un libro
ro). One

N must go into a PpP that Fnss as an adv of inte

erest (Dieroon un libro a Juan). Two N objss cannot occur
in Spanish, as one
nglish. Only the DO can be
En ecome Subj of th
he passiv
ve senten
nce in always hass to be a PpP.

Sp
panish.
Dieeron a Juan un
u libro [≈ Unn libro fue dadoo a Juan]

5.5. Trans
sitive Vs.
Only transitive
t V can be used in th
Vs he passive voice in Spanish, co
ontrarily
to English, where
w caussative Intra
ansitive Vs can occur in the passsive.

6.. Verb active

a in
n form, but
b passive in sense. V active in form,
f but pas
ssive in Fn.

Some transitive Vs can be

e used in a passive sense
s with
h the active
e form.
Th
he smell of
o someth
hing can be
b describe
ed by usin
ng the consstruction S
Subj +
sm
mell + Adjj:
Theese roses sm
mell beautifu
ul [=It is beautifful when they are smelt]
In the same
e way, we can desc
cribe the taste off food, drrink … byy using
Ta
aste + Adj:
Thiis tastes dellicious [= It is delicious when it is tasted].

Bibliogra
aphy.
Edittorial MAD
CED
DE
CEN
N
Quiirk, R (1985). A comprehensive
e grammar of th
he English langu
uage. 3.63-78

Iván Matella
anes’ Notes
 Topic 27:Brief summary.
16
Brief summary. La voz pasiva. Formas y funciones
1- THE PASSIVE VOICE: DEFINITION.
1b - Voice is a grammatical category which makes it possible to view the action of a sentence in either of two ways, with no change in the
facts reported. → The singer killed the bass player. [ACTIVE] ≈ The bass player was killed by the singer. [PASSIVE].
1c - Active-passive relation involves 2 grammatical levels:
♦ In the VP, the diff btw the 2 voice categories is that the passive adds an aux be followed by the past participle of the main V.
♦ At the clause level, changing from the active to the passive involves rearrangement of two clause element, and one addition:
___ The active SUBJECT becomes the passive AGENT.
___ The active OBJECT becomes the passive SUBJECT.
___ The Pp by is introduced before the AGENT. It is generally an optional element.
1d - Choice of the passive: Jespersen points out that the choice of the passive is due to one of the following reasons:
♦ 70% of passive sentences contain NO MENTION OF THE ACTIVE SUBJ (PASSIVE AGENT):
___ Omitted when it is unknown or referred to in a vague general way, as they, people, someone … → Laws are made in Parliament.
___ If the active subj is self-evident from the context it needn’t be mentioned → He was elected prime Minister of Great Britain.
___ There may be a special reason (tact or delicacy) for not mentioning the active subj → I was said that you are in love with me.
♦ 30% of the passive sentences have the AGENT by-PHRASE present in the clause:
___ The passive is preferred when the action seems more imp than the person who performs it → JFK was shot by a gunman in 1971.
___ The passive voice may facilitate the connection of one sentence with another → He rose to speak, and was listened by the crowd.
2- THE PASSIVE AUXILIARIES:
2a - To be and To get:
♦ The passive aux is usually be.
♦ Its only serious competitor is get, which is not an aux at all: get-passive is avoided in formal style, & even in informal English it is far less
frequent than the be-passive
___ Get tends to be limited to constructions without an expressed animate agent (→James got beaten last night). However, it can
sometimes occur with an expressed animate agent → James got caught by the police.
___ Get is much more common as a resulting copula in sentences like My mother is getting old [=My mother becomes old], and it may be
best analyzed as such in sentences which look superficially like passives, but which cannot be expanded by an agent → Your
argument gets confused here. [by who??? – It’s not a passive]

2b - To become is occasionally followed by a past participle denoting action, and may then be said to be a kind of aux of the passive. The
combination expresses change from one condition to another → We became acquainted with New Technologies. [=”familiarize”].

2c - The passive is also used with the V to have, which can also be used with modal aux Vs. This form is used when someone has the action
done by another person, instead of doing it himself → I had the telephone installed yesterday.

3- THE PASSIVE GRADIENT:

PASSIVES PASSIVES PASSIVES

CENTRAL
[1] This violin was made by my father. [≈My father made this violin – PERSONAL AGENT]
+ Passive

[2] This conclusion is hardly justified by the results. [≈The results hardly justify … – NONPERSONAL AGENT]
[3] Coal has been replaced by oil. [≈Oil has replaced coal or ≈People have replaced coal by oil – TWO ACTIVE COUNTERPARTS]
[4] This difficulty can be avoided in several ways. [≈someone can avoid this difficulty in several … - NO EXPRESS AGENT]

PSEUDO- SEMI-
[5] We are encouraged to go on with the project. [≈ The results encourage us to go on … or We feel rather encourage to …]
- Passive

3a [6] Leonard was interested in Linguistics. [≈Linguistics interested Leonard or Leonard seem interested in & keen on Linguistics.]
[7] The building is already demolished. [NO ACTIVE COUNTERPART nor AGENT ADDITION]
[8] The modern world is getting [becoming] more highly industrialized. [NO ACTIVE COUNTERPART nor AGENT ADDITION]

- Central Passives - Semi-Passives - Pseudo-passives

♦ [1-2] have a direct active-
passive relation ([1] pers & [2]
nonpers agent)
♦ [3] has two possible active
counterparts, depending on the
interpretation of the by-phrase.
♦ [4] exemplifies the most common
type of passive, that which has no
expressed agent (AGENTLESS
PASSIVE) and so leaves the subj
of the active counterpart undet.
♦ [5-6]’s members have both verbal & adjectival
properties:
a) V-like: They have active analogues.
b) Adj properties:
b1- coordinate the participle with an adj.
b2- Modify the participle w/quite, rather …
b3- Replace be by a lexical copular V such as
feel or seem
♦ They are stative rather than dynamic & incline
the scale in favor of an adjectival analysis, since
all participle adjs have a stative meaning
♦ [7-8] have neither an active transform nor a
possibility of agent addition. Moreover, the
participle has adjectival value just as semi-
passives.
♦ Only their superficial form [be + -ed participle]
considers them as passives and the fact that the
subj undergoes the action expressed by the V.
♦ In terms of meaning, pseudo-passives denote
a resultant state. it refers, like the perfective, to
a state resulting from the action of the V,
rather than to the action of the V itself.

Iván Matellanes’ Notes

 Topic 27:Brief summary.
17

4- VOICE CONSTRAINTS: The general rule states that transitive Vs sentences can be either active or passive. However, there are 5
exceptions (or constraints) where the active & the passive sentences are not in systematic correspondence:
4a - Verb constraints:
♦ Active Vs only: In addition to copular and intransitive Vs, which having no obj cannot take the passive, some transitive Vs, called
MIDDLE VS, do not occur at least in some senses in the passive. MIDDLE VS belong to the stative V of being and having, as they can be
paraphrased by stative be or have → He lacks confidence ≈ He has no confidence or John resembles his father John is like his father.
♦ Passive Vs only: Some Vs and verb constructions only the passive is possible.
→ Be said (John was said to be a good teacher), Be born & Be drowned .
4b - Prepositional Vs: PpVs (such as look at) can often occur in the passive, but not so freely as in the active. It is only in the figurative or
idiomatic use of some PpVs that they can occur in the passive → [The expected result / ?* the splendid stadium] was eventually arrived at.
4c - Object constraints:
♦ The subj of a passive of a bitransitive V can be either the DO or the IO. Only one of them can be made the subj of the passive clause, the
other subj is retained as such, and it is therefore possible to have two passive forms
→ I was given a bottle of Glenfidich or A bottle of Glenfidich was given to me.
♦ Transitive Vs can be followed either by phrasal or by clausal objs. With clauses as objs the passive transformation is restricted in use.
___ FINITE CLAUSE: John hoped to meet her ≈ ?* To meet her was hoped by John.
___ PR PARTICIPLE: John enjoyed seeing her ≈ *? Seeing her was enjoyed (by John)
The passive becomes acceptable if (1) the clausal obj is extraposed and replaced by the anticipatory pron it or if → She was thought to be
attractive or ?It was hoped to meet her.
4d - Meaning constraints: We cannot assume that matching active and passive sentences always have the same propositional meaning.
Make a diff not only in emphasis, but also the scope of NEGATIVES [Æ John does not love Mary (but Susanne) ≠ Mary is not loved by John (But
by Ian)] & QUANTIFIERS [→ Every schoolboy knows one joke at least (each schoolboy knows at least some joke or other)≈ One joke at least is
known by every schoolboy (There’s 1 particular joke which is known to every schoolboy)]
♦ Can will be normally interpreted as expressing ability, whereas in the passive it is interpreted as expressing possibility
→ John cannot do it (ability) ≈ It cannot be done (Possibility)
♦ The shift from active to passive may also change the meaning of the perfective aspect → JFK has twice visited Oxford. ≈ Oxford has
twice been visited by JFK (The active sentence can only be appropriately used in the lifetime of JFK, since the subject of the sentence is
determined by the perfective in terms of a period of time leading up to the present. The passive sentence could appropriately be said now, after
JFK’s death, since Oxford still exists.)

4e - Frequency constraints: notable difference in the frequency with which the active and the passive voice are used.
♦ The active is far more common.
♦ The passive is generally more frequently used in the informative writing, and is notably more frequent in the obj, impersonal style of
scientific articles and news reporting.
___ Progressive forms are avoided in the passive (esp. in the perfect tenses), perhaps to avoid of the awkwardness of the be being sequence.

4f - Passive vs. active Infinitive: Changes in the content of the Infinitive:

♦ The active form of the Inf can have a passive content → There are a lot of things to do (=to be done).
♦ In many cases, only one form may be used for passive content → The map was no where to be found.[*to find]
♦ Sometimes there’s a vacillation btw the active and the passive form for passive content → There is no time [to lose / to be lost] (spoken
UK prefers the shorter version).

5- COMPARISON OF THE PASSIVE IN ENGLISH AND IN SPANISH: following Stockwell, Bowen and Martin.

5a - Spanish
♦ Aux ser is the only auxiliary of the passive. Get and become being
FORM equivalent to a construction in the active with a pers pron.
→ We became acquainted [= Nos conocimos]
♦ The past participle agrees in number and gender w/the subj.
AGREEMENT
→ La casa es terminada vs. Las casas son terminadas.
♦ Passive is rarer & less productive because:
___ The sense of the passive is usually to delete the agent. In Spanish,
FREQUENCY
the pron se is used with a passive Fn, though the form is active.
→ Se llevaron los heridos al hospital.
SEMI- ♦ English Semi-passives are expressed in Spanish by a non-passive
PASSIVES construction w/the V estar → El estaba interesado en la lingüística
♦ It has no equivalent in Spanish, because the corresponding active
sentence (They gave John a book), with two N objs, cannot occur in
BITRANS VS Spanish (*Dieron Juan un libro). One N must go into a PpP that Fns as
an adv of interest (Dieron un libro a Juan). Only the DO can become
Subj of the passive sentence in Spanish.
- English
♦ Aux (chiefly be) + Past participle
♦ Become + Past participle
♦ Have + something + Past participle
♦ No agreement in nº & gender w/the subj
♦ Passive is frequent and highly productive.
♦ Used in the informative writing and in the
objective impersonal style of scientific articles and
news reporting.
♦ Semi-passives can be understood as active (past
participle as an adj) or passive sentence.
♦ When two objs occur in the active clause a typical
passive transform in English like John was given a
book or A book was given to John

Iván Matellanes’ Notes