Chapter 13: Sentence and Sensibility 17 J You Could Look It Up A sentence fragment is a group of words that does not express a complete thought. A fragment is the same as a dependent clause. Fragments: Lost in Place As its name suggests, a sentence fragment is a group of words that do not express a complete thought. Most times, a fragment is missing a subject, a verb, or both. Other times, a fragment may have a subject and a verb but still not express a complete thought. Fragments don't discriminate: They can be phrases as well as clauses. There are three main ways that fragments occur. And here they are: • Fragments occur when a dependent clause masquerades as a sentence. For example: • Because Lincoln Logs were in- vented by Frank Lloyd Wright's son. • Because the most common name in the world is Mohammed. • Fragments also happen when a phrase is cut off from the sentence it describes. For instance: • Used to cure fleas and ticks. • Hoping to keep the ceiling from collapsing. • You can also create a fragment if you use the wrong form of a verb. For example: • The writer gone to the office. • The pearl being the main ingredi- ent in many love potions. Danger, Will Robinson Don't be misled by a capital letter at the beginning of a word group. Starting a group of words with a capital letter doesn't make the word group a sentence any more than putting a comb on a hen makes her a rooster. Quoth the Maven Experienced writers often use fragments to create realistic- sounding dialogue. They know that few people ever speak in complete sentences, regardless of what we'd like to think. You can correct a fragment two ways: • Add the missing part to the sentence Fragment: In the cabinet over the bookshelf. Complete: I keep extra supplies in the cabinet over the bookshelf. 17^ Part 3: Usage and Abusaqe • Omit the subordinating conjunction or connect it to another sentence. Fragment: When you go to the party. Complete: When you go to the party, be sure to head straight for the shrimp and caviar and chow down. Run-Ons and Comma Splices: It Could Be a Stretch A run-on sentence is two incorrectly joined independent clauses. A comma splice is a run- on with a comma where the two independent clauses run together. When your sen- tences run together, your ideas are garbled. For instance: • Most people who drink coffee don't know where it comes from it is actually the fruit of an evergreen tree. • Robert Wadlow was the tallest person who ever lived he was 8 feet 11 inches tall when he died in 1940. So far, so good, but there are two important facts to realize about run-ons: • Run-ons are not necessarily long. Some can be quite short, in fact. For instance: • She walked he ran. • Birds chirp cows moo. • The second clause of a run-on often begins with a pronoun. • Godzilla wants to sleep he is exhausted from destroying Tokyo. You can correct a run-on sentence in one of four You Could Look It Up ways Let » s use Godzilla as our example. A run-on sentence 's ^ Separate the run-on into two sentences with end two incorrectly joined independ- , . , , . , . i A i- . punctuation such as periods, exclamation marks, ent clauses. A comma splice is a i run-on with a comma where the and question marks. two sentences run together. # Godzilla wants to sleep. He is exhausted from destroying Tokyo. • Add a coordinating conjunction {and, nor, but, or, for, yet, or so) to create a com- pound sentence. • Godzilla wants to sleep,/or he is exhausted from destroying Tokyo. Chapter 13: Sentence and Sensibility 175 • Add a subordinating conjunction to cre- ate a complex sentence. • Godzilla wants to sleep, because he is exhausted from destroying Tokyo. • Use a semicolon to create a compound sentence. • Godzilla wants to sleep; he is exhausted from destroying Tokyo. Seventh-Inning Stretch Take a few minutes to fix the fragments and run-ons in these two anecdotes. 1. In the late 1900s, the man who was shot out of the cannon every day. At the Barnum and Bailey Circus decided to quit his wife had asked him to find a less risky way of making a living P. T Barnum hated to lose a good man. So he sent him a message, "I beg you to reconsider—men of your caliber are hard to find." 2. In 1946, Winston Churchill traveled to Fulton, Missouri, to deliver a speech. Which turned out to be his famous Iron Curtain address. And to be present at the dedication of a bust in his honor. After his speech, a rather attractive and ample woman approached the wartime prime minister of England and said, "Mr. Churchill, I traveled more than a hundred miles this morning. For the unveiling of your bust." Churchill, who was known far and wide for his quick wit, replied, "Madam, I assure you, in that regard I would gladly return the favor." Answers Possible responses: 1. In the late 1900s, the man who was shot out of the cannon every day at the Barnum and Bailey Circus decided to quit because his wife had asked him to find a less risky way of making a living. P. T Barnum hated to lose a good man, so he sent him a message, "I beg you to reconsider—men of your caliber are hard to find." 2. In 1946, Winston Churchill traveled to Fulton, Missouri, to deliver a speech, which turned out to be his famous Iron Curtain address, and to be present at the dedication of a bust in his honor. After his speech, a rather attractive and ample woman approached the wartime prime minister of England and said, "Mr. Churchill, I traveled more than a hundred miles this morning for the unveiling of your bust." Churchill, who was known far and wide for his quick wit, replied, "Madam, I assure you, in that regard I would gladly return the favor." h^_Jy Quoth the Maven. Be sure to use a comma before the coordinating conjunc- tion in a compound sentence, unless the two independent clauses are very short. More on this in Chapter 1 6. 176 Part 3: Usage and Abusage The Least You Need to Know • A sentence has a subject and verb and expresses a complete thought. • There are four types of sentences: simple, compound, complex, and compound- complex. • There are four sentence functions: declarative, exclamatory, interrogative, and imperative. • Fragments are parts of sentences; run-ons are incorrectly joined independent clauses. Chapter Coordination and Subordination: What to Say When the Cops Come In This Chapter • Learn how to coordinate ideas • Explore subordination • Achieve parallel structure When you write effective sentences, you move beyond mere correctness to writing with style and grace. It's like moving from Martha Washington to Madonna, or from a Ford to a Ferrari. This chapter introduces you to the nitty-gritty of writing well. First you learn how to coordinate and subordi- nate clauses to communicate relationships between two or more ideas. Then I show you how to use parallel structure to make sure your ideas are expressed in a logical way. 178 Part 3: Usage and Abusage Coordination: All the Right Moves You coordinate your outfits, home furnishings, and dance moves. So why not coordinate your sentences to give them some style as well? In the previous chapter, you learned how to connect the parts of a sentence. There, I touched on coordinating independent clauses. Let's kick it up a notch and get into the nitty-gritty of coordinating independ- ent clauses. Sometimes you want to show that two or more ideas are equally important in a sentence. In such cases, you're looking to coordinate. Sentence coordination links ideas of equal importance. This process gives your writing harmony by bringing together related independent clauses. There are four main ways to You Could Look It Uo coordinate independent clauses. You can use: Sentence coordination inks ideas of equal importance. Quoth the Maven Remember to use a comma between coordinating conjunc- tions that join two independent clauses, unless the clauses are very short. Coordinating • • • • • • • for and nor but or yet so conjunctions • Correlative conjunctions • either or • neither nor • not only but also • both and • Semicolons and conjunctive adverbs. As you learned in Chapter 4, there are many different conjunctive adverbs. Here are some examples: • ; furthermore, • ; therefore, • ; for example, • ; however, • A semicolon Chapter \k: Coordination and Subordination: What to Say When the Cops Come 179 Mix and Match Coordination isn't just slapping on a black tie with a white shirt or putting some pars- ley on a leg of lamb. No siree; coordination involves using the right word or mark of punctuation to show different relationships between ideas. For example, each of the coordinating conjunctions has a different meaning, as the following table shows. Coordinating Conjunctions and Their Shades of Meaning Coordinating Conjunction Meaning for and nor but or yet so Function because also negative however choice however therefore to show cause to link ideas to reinforce negative to contrast ideas to show possibilities to contrast to show result Correlative conjunctions convey balance, while semicolons and conjunctive adverbs indicate relationships such as examples, contin- uation, and contrast. A semicolon alone shows that the ideas are of equal importance. Strictly Speaking A coordinate sentence is also known as a compound sentence. You learned all about compound sentences in Chapter 1 3. Dancing Cheek-to-Cheek Follow these steps when you coordinate independent clauses: 1. Decide which ideas can and should be combined. 2. Select the method of coordination that shows the appropriate relationship between ideas. Each way to form compound sentences establishes a slightly different relationship between ideas. Often, there's no "right" answer when you're choosing which conjunc- tions and punctuation to use to coordinate ideas. With practice, you'll discover that some sentences sound smoother and more logical than others. Here are some examples to help you get your ear in tune: 180 Part 3: Usage and Abusâge Uncoordinated: Years ago most baseball players were recruited right out of high school or from the minors. Today, most play college baseball and then move on to the major leagues. Coordinated: Years ago most baseball players were recruited right out of high school or from the minors, but today most play college baseball and then move on to the major leagues. Coordinated: Years ago most baseball players were recruited right out of high school or from the minors; however, today most play college baseball and then move on to the major leagues. But and however are used to show contrast. Danger, Will Robinson Be careful not to con- nect unrelated ideas, establish a vague connection among ideas, or connect too many ideas in one sentence. The first and sec- ond errors confuse your readers; the third causes "stringy sen- tences." Uncoordinated: Star Trek was very successful in syndi- cation. It was not a big hit during its original run from 1966 to 1969. Coordinated: Star Trek was very successful in syndica- tion, yet it was not a big hit during its original run from 1966 to 1969. Coordinated: Star Trek was very successful in syndica- tion; nevertheless, it was not a big hit during its origi- nal run from 1966 to 1969. Yet and nevertheless are used to show comparison. Don't Strinq Me Alonq What happens if you go coordination crazy? You end up with a stringy sentence. A stringy sentence contains too many ideas connected by coordinating conjunctions or then. Repetitious and hard-to-follow, stringy sentences are as annoying as stringy cel- ery or stringy cheese. Here's an example of a stringy sentence: • Mount Everest is in the Himalayas and it is the world's tallest mountain and so climbing it is very difficult so Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Horgay first climbed it in 1963 and everyone applauded their achievement. To correct a stringy sentence, place closely related ideas in one sentence, and less closely related ideas in their own sentences. Here's a variation that achieves logic as well as emphasis of ideas: • Because Mount Everest, in the Himalayas, is the world's tallest mountain, climb- ing it is very difficult. It was not until 1963 that the first explorers, Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Horgay, conquered the mountain to great acclaim. Chapter \k: Coordination and Subordination: What to Say When the (ops (ome 181 Why Not Give It a Shot? Take a few minutes to link the following simple sentences by adding coordinating conjunctions, correlative conjunctions, conjunctive adverbs and semicolons, or semi- colons alone. 1. In the Great Fire of London in 1666 half of London was burnt down. Only six people were injured. 2. New York stockbroker Bill Wilson and Ohio surgeon Robert Smith both had a drinking problem. They joined forces and started Alcoholics Anonymous. 3. Most people don't keep their New Year's resolutions for more than a few weeks. They don't make resolutions in the first place. 4. The oldest female elephant in the herd usually leads the other elephants. The other female elephants are ranked below her in age. 5. The puppy pulled all the slippers from under the bed. She shredded all the toilet paper. Answers Possible responses: 1. In the Great Fire of London in 1666 half of London was burnt down, but only six people were injured, (shows contrast) 182 Part): Usage and Abusage 2. New York stockbroker Bill Wilson and Ohio surgeon Robert Smith both had a drinking problem, so they joined forces and started Alcoholics Anonymous, (shows result) 3. Most people don't keep their New Year's resolutions for more than a few weeks or they don't make resolutions in the first place, (shows choice) 4. The oldest female elephant in the herd usually leads the other elephants; the other female elephants are ranked below her in age. (semicolon shows closely linked ideas) 5. The puppy pulled all the slippers from under the bed, and she shredded all the toilet paper, (coordinating conjunction shows ideas of equal importance) Subordination: What I Did for Love Coordination shows the relationship among equal independent clauses; subordination, in contrast, shows the relationship between ideas of unequal rank. Subordination is connecting two unequal but related clauses with a subordinating conjunction to form a complex sentence. When you subordinate one part of a sentence to another, you make the dependent clause develop the main clause. Subordination can help your sentence in many ways. Here are three biggies: You Could Look It Up Subordination is con- necting two unequal but related clauses with a subordinating con- junction to form a complex sen- tence. Quoth the Maven , As you learned in Chapter 3, subordinating conjunctions link an independent clause to a dependent clause. There are many subordinating conjunctions, including offer, although, because, before, if, though, since, when, till, unless, wherever, and where. A more complete list appears in Chapter 1 2. • To trace ideas unfolding • To show specific relationships among ideas • To stress one idea over another As a result, subordination can give your writing and speech greater logic, coherence, and unity. As with sentence coordination, sentence subordina- tion is more than random switcheroos. Subordination requires logic and thought. Follow these four steps to subordinate sentence ideas: 1. Decide which idea or clause is the most impor- tant. It will be the information you most want to emphasize in the reader's mind. 2. Designate this as the "main clause." . two ways: • Add the missing part to the sentence Fragment: In the cabinet over the bookshelf. Complete: I keep extra supplies in the cabinet over the bookshelf. 17^ Part 3: Usage and . 4. The oldest female elephant in the herd usually leads the other elephants. The other female elephants are ranked below her in age. 5. The puppy pulled all the slippers from under the bed • Omit the subordinating conjunction or connect it to another sentence. Fragment: When you go to the party. Complete: When you go to the party, be sure to head straight for the shrimp