Post by Morgan Pendragon on Jul 29, 2012 18:58:22 GMT -5
Modifiers
In grammar, a modifier is an optional element in phrase structure or clause structure; the removal of the modifier does not typically affect the grammar of the sentence. Modifiers are typically Adverbs and Adjectives, although clauses and phrases may act as modifiers. Adverbs are words that modify verbs, adjectives, other adverbs, and sometimes clauses and whole sentences. Adjectives are words that modify nouns and pronouns. Be careful not to use an adjective where you need an adverb. Consider the following sentences, for instance:
-- Once the test was over, FUF walked slow out of the classroom.
-- Once the test was over, FUF walked slowly out of the classroom.
The sentence needs an adverb, not an adjective, to modify the verb "walked." In the same vein, remember that adjectives modify nouns and pronouns. Do not mistakenly use an adverb to modify these parts of speech.
-- Once the test was over, FUF walked slow out of the classroom.
-- Once the test was over, FUF walked slowly out of the classroom.
The sentence needs an adverb, not an adjective, to modify the verb "walked." In the same vein, remember that adjectives modify nouns and pronouns. Do not mistakenly use an adverb to modify these parts of speech.
Conjunctive Adverbs
The conjunctive adverb is a special kind of adverb that often serves as a transition between two independent clauses in a sentence. Some common conjunctive adverbs are "therefore," "however," "moreover," "nevertheless," "consequently," and "furthermore." When using a conjunctive adverb at the beginning of the second independent clause, be sure to precede it with a semicolon not a comma.
-- My dormmate is best in Charms; however, he also excels in Potions.
You have a certain amount of freedom in deciding where to place your modifiers in a sentence:
-- I flew my broom swiftly.
-- I swiftly flew my broom.
-- Swiftly I flew my broom.
-- My dormmate is best in Charms; however, he also excels in Potions.
You have a certain amount of freedom in deciding where to place your modifiers in a sentence:
-- I flew my broom swiftly.
-- I swiftly flew my broom.
-- Swiftly I flew my broom.
Misplaced Modifiers
You must be careful to avoid misplaced modifiers -- modifiers that are positioned so that they appear to modify the wrong thing. In fact, you can improve your writing quite a bit by paying attention to basic problems like misplaced modifiers and dangling modifiers. In general, you should place single-word modifiers near the word or words they modify, especially when a reader might think that they modify something different in the sentence. Consider the following sentence:
-- Wearing our translation bracelets, we could understand the Spanish spoken by citizens of Madrid easily.
♦ Do we understand the Spanish easily, or do the citizens speak it easily?
It is particularly important to be careful about where you put limiting modifiers. These are words like "almost," "hardly," "nearly," "just," "only," "merely," and so on. Many writers regularly misplace these modifiers. You can accidentally change the entire meaning of a sentence if you place these modifiers next to the wrong word:
-- Sparky has nearly annoyed every professor he has had.
♦ He hasn't "nearly annoyed" them. He has annoyed “nearly all” of them.
-- We almost ate all of the Cauldron Cakes.
♦ We didn't "almost eat" them. We ate “almost all” of them.
It is important that you place the modifying phrase or clause as close as possible to the word or words it modifies:
-- By accident, he poked the little girl with his wand in the eye.
-- I overheard that my friend intended to throw a surprise party for me while I was in the bathroom.
♦ All of these sentences make it unclear what, exactly, is going on. Whose eye was the wand in? Did you hear it in the bathroom, or will the party be in the bathroom? The following are better:
-- By accident, he poked the little girl in the eye with his wand.
-- While I was in the bathroom, I overheard that my friend intended to throw a surprise party for me.
A squinting modifier is an ambiguously placed modifier that can modify either the word before it or the word after it. In other words, it is "squinting" in both directions at the same time:
-- Defining your terms clearly strengthens your argument.
♦ Does defining "clearly strengthen" or does "defining clearly" strengthen? Phrasing it “Defining your terms will clearly strengthen your argument.” -OR- “A clear definition of your terms strengthens your argument.” will make it clear which you mean.
-- Wearing our translation bracelets, we could understand the Spanish spoken by citizens of Madrid easily.
♦ Do we understand the Spanish easily, or do the citizens speak it easily?
It is particularly important to be careful about where you put limiting modifiers. These are words like "almost," "hardly," "nearly," "just," "only," "merely," and so on. Many writers regularly misplace these modifiers. You can accidentally change the entire meaning of a sentence if you place these modifiers next to the wrong word:
-- Sparky has nearly annoyed every professor he has had.
♦ He hasn't "nearly annoyed" them. He has annoyed “nearly all” of them.
-- We almost ate all of the Cauldron Cakes.
♦ We didn't "almost eat" them. We ate “almost all” of them.
It is important that you place the modifying phrase or clause as close as possible to the word or words it modifies:
-- By accident, he poked the little girl with his wand in the eye.
-- I overheard that my friend intended to throw a surprise party for me while I was in the bathroom.
♦ All of these sentences make it unclear what, exactly, is going on. Whose eye was the wand in? Did you hear it in the bathroom, or will the party be in the bathroom? The following are better:
-- By accident, he poked the little girl in the eye with his wand.
-- While I was in the bathroom, I overheard that my friend intended to throw a surprise party for me.
A squinting modifier is an ambiguously placed modifier that can modify either the word before it or the word after it. In other words, it is "squinting" in both directions at the same time:
-- Defining your terms clearly strengthens your argument.
♦ Does defining "clearly strengthen" or does "defining clearly" strengthen? Phrasing it “Defining your terms will clearly strengthen your argument.” -OR- “A clear definition of your terms strengthens your argument.” will make it clear which you mean.
Introduction to Rhetoric
Now that we’ve covered the basics of grammar, our lessons will now be split. Instead of having two sections over grammar, we will begin covering rhetoric, or the art of discourse. The ancients recognized three modes of persuasion: ethos, pathos, and logos.
Ethos is an appeal to the authority or honesty of the presenter. It is how well the presenter convinces the audience that he or she is qualified to speak on the particular subject. It can be done in many ways:
♦By being a notable figure in the field in question, such as a college professor or an executive of a company whose business is that of the subject.
♦By having a vested interest in a matter, such as the person being related to the subject in question.
♦By using impressive logos that shows to the audience that the speaker is knowledgeable on the topic.
♦By appealing to a person's ethics or character.
Pathos is an appeal to the audience’s emotions. It can be in the form of metaphor, simile, a passionate delivery, or even a simple claim that a matter is unjust. Pathos can be particularly powerful if used well, but most speeches do not solely rely on pathos. Pathos is most effective when the author or speaker demonstrates agreement with an underlying value of the reader or listener. In addition, the speaker may use pathos to appeal to fear, in order to sway the audience. Pathos may also include appeals to audience imagination and hopes; done when the speaker paints a scenario of positive future results of following the course of action proposed.
Logos is logical appeal or the simulation of it, and the term logic is derived from it. It is normally used to describe facts and figures that support the speaker's topic. Having a logos appeal also enhances ethos because information makes the speaker look knowledgeable and prepared to his or her audience. However, the data can be confusing and thus confuse the audience. Logos can also be misleading or inaccurate.
Most rhetorical devices focus on sounds, pictures, or associations, and in fact, these are known as figures of speech. So, any person who uses non-literal rhetoric devices it their speech can be said to be speaking figuratively. We will begin with the most basic of rhetorical forms, those that focus on sounds.
Ethos is an appeal to the authority or honesty of the presenter. It is how well the presenter convinces the audience that he or she is qualified to speak on the particular subject. It can be done in many ways:
♦By being a notable figure in the field in question, such as a college professor or an executive of a company whose business is that of the subject.
♦By having a vested interest in a matter, such as the person being related to the subject in question.
♦By using impressive logos that shows to the audience that the speaker is knowledgeable on the topic.
♦By appealing to a person's ethics or character.
Pathos is an appeal to the audience’s emotions. It can be in the form of metaphor, simile, a passionate delivery, or even a simple claim that a matter is unjust. Pathos can be particularly powerful if used well, but most speeches do not solely rely on pathos. Pathos is most effective when the author or speaker demonstrates agreement with an underlying value of the reader or listener. In addition, the speaker may use pathos to appeal to fear, in order to sway the audience. Pathos may also include appeals to audience imagination and hopes; done when the speaker paints a scenario of positive future results of following the course of action proposed.
Logos is logical appeal or the simulation of it, and the term logic is derived from it. It is normally used to describe facts and figures that support the speaker's topic. Having a logos appeal also enhances ethos because information makes the speaker look knowledgeable and prepared to his or her audience. However, the data can be confusing and thus confuse the audience. Logos can also be misleading or inaccurate.
Most rhetorical devices focus on sounds, pictures, or associations, and in fact, these are known as figures of speech. So, any person who uses non-literal rhetoric devices it their speech can be said to be speaking figuratively. We will begin with the most basic of rhetorical forms, those that focus on sounds.
Rhyme, Alliteration, Assonance, and Onomatopoeia
Rhyme - a repetition of similar sounds in two or more words and is most often used in poetry and songs.
♦ When flying a broom, you need plenty of room.
♦ A witch should not twitch when holding a snitch.
Alliteration - the repetition of a particular sound in the first syllables of a series of words or phrases.
♦ Plenty of purring, pleasant Puffskeins.
♦ Catch the crafty cat carefully. Cats can get crazy if confined.
Assonance - the repetition of vowel sounds to create internal rhyming within phrases or sentences.
♦ A kneazle needs to be emotionally invested in their owner.
Onomatopoeia - The use of words that imitate the sounds associated with the objects or actions they refer to.
♦ As Gwyn apparated, there was a loud crack.
♦ The fireworks popped and crackled in the air.
♦ When flying a broom, you need plenty of room.
♦ A witch should not twitch when holding a snitch.
Alliteration - the repetition of a particular sound in the first syllables of a series of words or phrases.
♦ Plenty of purring, pleasant Puffskeins.
♦ Catch the crafty cat carefully. Cats can get crazy if confined.
Assonance - the repetition of vowel sounds to create internal rhyming within phrases or sentences.
♦ A kneazle needs to be emotionally invested in their owner.
Onomatopoeia - The use of words that imitate the sounds associated with the objects or actions they refer to.
♦ As Gwyn apparated, there was a loud crack.
♦ The fireworks popped and crackled in the air.
Vocab List
ubiquitous adjective
♦ Existing or being everywhere, esp. at the same time
refute verb
♦ To prove to be false or erroneous, as an opinion or charge
rhetoric noun
♦ The study of the effective use of language.
dearth noun
♦ An inadequate supply; scarcity; lack as during famine
conform verb
♦ To act in accord with the prevailing standards, attitudes and practices of society or a group
♦ Existing or being everywhere, esp. at the same time
refute verb
♦ To prove to be false or erroneous, as an opinion or charge
rhetoric noun
♦ The study of the effective use of language.
dearth noun
♦ An inadequate supply; scarcity; lack as during famine
conform verb
♦ To act in accord with the prevailing standards, attitudes and practices of society or a group
Assignments
Easy: Misplace modifiers on purpose. Italicize sentences with intentionally misplaced modifiers. Read the post out loud. (I can’t check this, obviously, but it will help you.)
Intermediate: Use one of the rhetorical devices explained above. When you post the link, be sure to indicate which one(s) you used. Using all of the devices will earn extra points.
Grammar Nazi: Use all five vocab words in a single post. Feel free to change the tense or part of speech in order to integrate the words into your post. Please bold vocabulary words to make them easier to see.
[[Assignments can only be completed once per character, however one character may complete all assignments. Post links to assignments in this thread. Unlinked assignments will not be counted. These assignments are open until August 27th, 12:00 am Central Time. Doing all three assignments successfully will result in double points.]]
Intermediate: Use one of the rhetorical devices explained above. When you post the link, be sure to indicate which one(s) you used. Using all of the devices will earn extra points.
Grammar Nazi: Use all five vocab words in a single post. Feel free to change the tense or part of speech in order to integrate the words into your post. Please bold vocabulary words to make them easier to see.
[[Assignments can only be completed once per character, however one character may complete all assignments. Post links to assignments in this thread. Unlinked assignments will not be counted. These assignments are open until August 27th, 12:00 am Central Time. Doing all three assignments successfully will result in double points.]]
**Special Note: Non-student characters may also take this class if they wish. Points earned will be given to the house of the participant's choice**