Syntactic and semantic features of english ing non finite clauses and their vietnamese equivalents in a literature work

Classifications of clauses in term of their verb phrase structures Analyzing by structural type, a clause can be divided into three kinds: finite clause, non-finite clause and verbless

i

MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING

HANOI OPEN UNIVERSITY

M.A THESIS

SYNTACTIC AND SEMANTIC FEATRURES OF

ENGLISH -ING NON-FINITE CLAUSES AND

THEIR VIETNAMESE EQUIVALENTS IN A

LITERATURE WORK (Đặc điểm về cú pháp và ngữ nghĩa của mệnh đề

không biến vị“-ing” trong tiếng Anh và tương

đương tiếng Việt trong một tác phẩm văn học)

ii

MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING

HANOI OPEN UNIVERSITY

M.A THESIS

SYNTACTIC AND SEMANTIC FEATRURES OF

ENGLISH -ING NON-FINITE CLAUSES AND

THEIR VIETNAMESE EQUIVALENTS IN A

LITERATURE WORK

(Đặc điểm về cú pháp và ngữ nghĩa của mệnh đề

không biến vị“-ing” trong tiếng Anh và tương đương

tiếng Việt trong một tác phẩm văn học)

VU XUAN TUYEN

Field: English Language Code: 8.22.02.01 Supervisor: Assoc Prof Dr Le Van Thanh

Hanoi - 2020

iii

CERTIFICATE OF ORIGINALITY

I, the undersigned, hereby certify my authority of the study project report entitled

SYNTACTIC AND SEMANTIC FEARURES OF ENGLISH -ING NON-FINITE

CLAUSES AND THEIR VIETNAMESE EQUIVALENTS IN A LITERATURE

WORK submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master

in English Language Except where the reference is indicated, no other person’s

work has been used without due acknowledgement in the text of the thesis

Hanoi, 2020

Approved by SUPERVISOR

Assoc Prof Dr Le Van Thanh

Date: 26th November 2020

A special word of thanks goes to other teachers of the Faculty of English at Hanoi Open University for their ideas, support, encouragement and help in supplying materials and their valuable suggestion for me to have this thesis accomplished

Thanks for encouraging of the teachers and students in Vinhloc High School

to help me overcome difficulties to complete this thesis

Last but not least, I am greatly indebted to my family for the sacrifice they have devoted to the fulfillment of this academic work

This thesis cannot avoid limitation, so I wish to receive comments and opinions to make it better

The clause matter is rather complex and there are different types of clause in English We all know the dependent clause is important element in complex sentence Because of the knowledge and time frame, I could not take a study on all related to subordinated clauses English subordinate clauses are classified into four clauses, but in this study I only put nominal clauses into consideration Also, I could not investigate all translations of English subordinate clauses into Vietnamese

Therefore, I just focus on translation of English -ing non-finite clause into

Vietnamese equivalence

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LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS

Adj.: Adjective Adv.: Adverb

Cs.: Subject complement L1.: First language (Vietnamese) L2.: Second language (English)

PP.: Past participle Prep.: Preposition Pron.: Pronoun

SL: Source Language

vii

TABLE OF CONTENTS

CERTIFICATE OF ORIGINALITY iii

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS iv

ABSTRACT v

LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS vi

TABLE OF CONTENTS vi

Chapter 1: INTRODUCTION 1

1.1 Rationale 1

1.2 Aims and objectives 2

1.3 Research questions 2

1.4 Methods of the study 2

1.5 Scope of the study 3

1.6 Significance of the study 3

1.7 Structure of the study 4

Chapter 2: LITERATURE REVIEW 5

2.1 Clauses 5

2.1.1 Definition 5

2.1.2 Clause elements 6

2.2 Classifications of clauses 8

2.2.1 Classifications of clauses in term of their usage 8

2.2.2 Classifications of clauses in term of their elements and verb complementation 10

2.2.3 Classifications of clauses in term of their verb phrase structures 11

2.2.4 Classifications of clauses in term of their syntactical functions 19

2.2.5 Functions of –ing non-finite clause 25

2.3 Summary 37

Chapter 3: ENGLISH –ING NON-FINITE AND VIETNAMESE EQUIVALENTS 38

3.1 Concepts of translation equivalence 38

Definitions of translation 38

3.2 Translation types 40

viii

3.3 Equivalence in translation 42

3.3.1 Definition of equivalence 42

3.3.2 Types of equivalence 42

3.4 Non-equivalence in translation 44

3.4.1 Definitions Non-equivalence 44

3.4.2 Common non-equivalence 44

3.5 Summary 62

Chapter 4: CONCLUSION 63

4.1 Recapitulation 63

4.2 Concluding remarks 63

4.3 Limitation of the study 63

4.4 Recommendations and suggestions for further research 64

REFERENCES 65

APPENDIX 69

All natural languages change continually, and language change affects all areas of language use Types of language change include sound changes, lexical changes, semantic changes, and syntactic changes Syntactic change is the evolution

of the syntactic structure of a natural language Over time, syntactic change is the greatest modifier of a particular language Massive changes - attributable either to creolization or to relexification - may occur both in syntax and in vocabulary Syntactic change can also be purely language - internal, whether independent within the syntactic component or the eventual result of phonological or morphological change Grammatical change appears to spread more slowly than lexical change, older, more conservative forms of speech might sometimes remain present in some regional dialects, but not in others The use of the second person

pronouns thou, thee, thy and thine, for instance, sound old-fashioned to most of us,

but are still heard in parts of northern England - although even there they are becoming increasingly associated with older speakers There are sometimes disagreements about what is correct English and what is incorrect one When using English, one of the most important issues which the users have to know is its grammar It is difficult for learners to use as a foreign language Nowadays, several books focusing on how to use grammar in writing and in speech are published In each book, the author gives wide grammar topics so that reference for further study can be easy and direct as required

All of us know that if we use an –ing non-finite clause (infinite clause), it means that we use only a sentence but express some ideas Using –ing non-finite

2

clauses will help us express fully important ideas, which we want to declare During the studying process, the writer has realized that non-finite clause is one of the most difficult parts which each learner will be afraid of facing with We can make

mistakes easily if we do not exactly know how to use each model of –ing non-finite clauses in particular context In order to give you an overview of –ing non-finite

clauses, we will present the study on it viewed from both structures and meanings

To do this paper, we have only wish that the result of the study could serve as useful information about non-finite clauses for English learners to help them use correctly From my research, the learners will gain level higher and higher That is the reason for this theme chosen for my graduation thesis

1.2 Aims and objectives

The study aims at presenting syntactic features and functions of –ing

non-finite clauses and helping Vietnamese learners of English identify as well as

understand English –ing non-finite clauses In addition, we hope to provide students with knowledge of translation of English –ing non-finite clauses In order to reach

the aim the following objectives will be discovered:

- To describe syntactic and semantic features of –ing of non-finite clauses

- To clarify their equivalents in Vietnamese

1.3 Research questions

The study aims at answering the following questions:

(1) What are syntactic features of -ing non-finite clauses?

(2) What are semantic features of -ing non-finite clauses?

(3) What are equivalents of -ing non-finite clauses in Vietnamese in a literatural work such as the novel The Call of The Wild by Jack London

1.4 Methods of the study

In order to fulfill the aim of the thesis, we have tried to develop the thesis Not only rely on knowledge collected from the previous lectures of university

teachers, we have collected and sorted the series of English–ing non-finite clauses from several sources such as the novel such as The Call of The Wild by (Jack

3

London, (1903), Macmillan Publishers, New York),, grammar books, references,

specialist books used in the university, internet, etc Basing on that, we can analyze and explain its classification and function Moreover, we analyze many useful examples from books, internet for clearness and focus on some areas where learners often make errors for finding suitable solutions Documents for the research are selected from reliable sources on websites, such as www.learnenglish.de/grammar, http://en.wikipedia.org, etc

In short we have introduced the questionnaire and the subjects of the study With the clear procedure above we believe in finding out the common errors made

by learners of English Finally, some hypotheses of committing errors were reviewed They will all the sources for the following sections

1.5 Scope of the study

The thesis focus on syntactic and semantic features of English non-finite

clauses, on investigation English–ing non-finite clauses and their Vietnamese equivalents with the hope of finding the ways of teaching and studying–ing English

clauses Then we provides some implications in Vietnamese translation

Knowledge collected from the previous lectures of my teachers, I myself

have collected and sorted the series of English -ing non-finite clause translation

from several sources such as: grammar books, references, specialist books used in the university, internet, etc Basing on that, I can analyze and explain its classification and function Moreover, I analyze many useful examples from books,

the internet for clearness and focus on some areas where learners often make errors

for finding suitable solutions Document for the research are selected from reliable sources on websites, such as www.learnenglish.de/grammar,http://en.wikipedia.org,

ect

1.6 Significance of the study

As mentioned above, English learners and translators may get confused in

the process of studying English, especially English grammar English –ing

non-finite clause makes learners misunderstand because of its large application and difference from Vietnamese So the researches that relate to grammar will help both

4

learners and teachers in learning and teaching English, especially the students in high schools

1.7 Structure of the study

The thesis consists of four main chapters:

“Chapter 1 Introduction” clarifies the background to the study, the aims of

the study, the scope and significance of the study as well as draws out the outline of the thesis

“Chapter 2 Literature Review”, the necessary literature related to finite

clauses, nonfinite clauses and the equivalents are reviewed The key procedures

-ing non-finite clauses for the study are also found out and given discussion to The

reviewed literature then lays a foundation for the –ing non-finite clauses in the next

two chapters

In “Chapter 3 Findings and discussions”, the collected data are analyzed

and discussed The researcher also synthesizes the major findings of the study and

makes suggestions for better teaching strategies in dealing with –ing non-finite

clauses

“Chapter 4 Conclusion”, summarizes the contents of the study The

limitations of the study and some recommendations for further studies are stated

also in this chapter

“References” and “Appendix” come at the end of the thesis

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Chapter 2: LITERATURE REVIEW

In this chapter, the researcher will present three main sections In the first section different authors’ definitions of clause will be mentioned Next, the clause elements will be discussed In the second section, the classifications of clauses will

be described Section three aims to present –ing non-finite clauses

clause (Jacobs, 1992) The author explains slightly more detail A beautiful girl is

an old house with a small dull cannot be a clause, because it does not have a main

verb A clause consists of subject(s) and a main verb She opened the window The

clause above can stand on its own because as a sentence and it called an

independent clause But it could be embedded inside another clause I saw (that) she

opened the window Note that the embedded clause can be introduced with that This

word is known as the complementizer It is optional complementizer when the

embedded clause is the object of another clause That we need more equipment is

obvious Complementizer never occurs when the clause is an independent clause

Except in the case of the whole sentence, which is technically said to be also

a clause, a clause is always smaller than a sentence that contains it Clause contrasts with phrase Clauses contains phrases Clauses are bigger than the simple phrase they contain The crucial characteristic of a clause, which is lacking from a phrase,

is that a clause normally has its own verb and all or many of the other basic

ingredients of a whole sentence So Billy’s brand new bicycle and on Sunday

morning at ten o’clock are both phrases but not clause, because neither contains a

verb Clause can themselves be contained in complex phrases, such clauses are always, by definition, subordinate clauses” (Hurford, 1994)

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2.1.2 Clause elements

According to Quirk et al (1985), in English, there are five clause elements such as verb, subject, object, complement and adverbial Each element has different position in a clause or a sentence We are now concerned to them

A subject may be singular or plural and used in both simple and complex sentences Its position can be initial, medial (after operator) in question, in case of subject operator in version, in emphatic sentence (with stressed O, C or A) or final

with introductory it in a sentence She is a teacher of English, Where does your

poor old mother live? Subject may be a that clause in non-finite clause or

wh-clause It is said that he is still single, That is what I like Subject plays an

important role in a sentence, if lacking it the sentence does not have full meaning

In a clause , there are two kinds of objects: direct object and indirect object

In a clause, it may appear either direct object or both of them

He gave me some red flowers (Quirk et al, 1985)

Object easily assumes the status of subject in the passive sentence

Homework has been finished for three hours (Quirk et al, 1985)

If in a clause there are two objects: direct object and indirect, we can change them into passive by two ways

I was given a kiss yesterday

A kiss was given to me by her yesterday (Quirk et al, 1985)

The same subject is used in both simple and complex sentences But it is after transitive verb (monotransitive, ditransitive and complex transitive) after another

object and initial with wh-question on object in emphatic sentences

She asked her brother some interesting questions

We know this man (Quirk et al, 1985)

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A complement is in co-referential relation with subject or object (denoting

the same entity) but it is not involved in passive transformation It can stand after to

be

He is my friend’s brother

Our task is to help him (Ha, 1999)

Complement occurs after popular verb (link verbs)

Subject complement describes and indicates the subject

My brother is an engineer

He looks different (Y B, Phuong.V.T, 2001)

Object complement is used to describe and indicate the direct object

The sun keeps us warm

This doesn’t make me happy (Y B, Phuong.V.T, 2001)

Complement is also used in wh-question on C (in emphatic sentence) They appear

in simple and complex sentences

We found him innocent of all charges

They were experts at grammar (Ha, 1999)

A verb is never omitted in a clause There are two kinds of verbs The auxiliary

verbs: can, could, may, might, must, ought to, shall, will, would, have to, had to, etc The ordinary verbs: to read, to write, to swim, to jump, etc

These young men will become workers next year

We all in this class speak English rather well (Y B, Phuong.V.T, 2001)

In regular simple past or past participle are both formed by adding -d or -ed to the

infinitive Sometimes the final consonant of the infinitive has to be double

8

Columbus discovered American more than 400 years ago

Albert Einstein died on April 18,1955 (Y B, Phuong.V.T, 2001)

The present participle and gerund are always regular are formed by adding –ing to

infinitive The rule concerning the doubling of the final consonant of the infinitive

before adding –ing applies here also

I saw him running for the train

Dr Nam is doing cancer research (Y B, Phuong.V.T, 2001)

Almost verbs in the singular third person, we add -s or -es after verb if in the simple

present tense

Bad students never works hard

She goes to school everyday (Y B, Phuong.V.T, 2001)

An adverbial phrase is a part of the main clause in the same way as other adverbials are, such as an adverb or prepositional phrase (Quirk, Greenbaun, Leech, 1972) Adverbial is commonly optional in sentence structure It is obligatory in sentence type S-V-A and S-V-O-A

She is writing a letter in the classroom

We could play cards afterwards (Quirk, Greenbaun, Leech, 1972)

Adverbial stands initial, medial, final and mobile in sentence structure Some adverbial clauses are non-finite clauses

While driving I listen to music to pass the time

Adverbial can be adverb of time, place and process

Since she has joined this school, she learned better (Eastwood, 1994)

2.2 Classifications of clauses

2.2.1 Classifications of clauses in term of their usage

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According to Alexander (1992), a clause can be devised into two kinds They are independent clauses and dependent clauses Independent clauses appear in all sentences

- Independent clauses in a simple sentence: it has subject and a verb and other type (noun or pronouns used as S,O, C, etc.)

My plan would not be carried out without your help

There used to be a bridge across the river

You might drop her a note on your way home (Y B, Phuong.V.T, 2001)

- In a compound sentence: independent clause conjunction independent clause Here there are two clauses and they can omit one clause but meaning in another clause still understood They are connected by conjunctive words

He was sitting in his armchair and (he was) looking at the picture

You must come early tomorrow and (you must) bring your book with you

I asked him to go out with me but he didn’t want to (go out with me)

Mary speaks Russian and John does (speak Russian, too

I haven’t been to London but my teacher has (been to London)

(Y B, Phuong.V.T, 2001)

- Independent clauses in a complex sentence: it is always a main clause in which sub-clause and main clause go together, they never far from If one of them lacks, it does not have meaning

We shall meet where we met last time

(Main clause) (Sub clause)

Before he got home, he learned the news (Y B, Phuong.V.T, 2001)

(Sub clause) (Main clause)

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In contrast with independent clause, if we use dependent clauses without independent clauses, they will not be full of meaning They never stand alone In other words, they are called sub clauses They can function as a subject in a complex sentence It is commonly a nominal clause

I think that you can do (Murphy, 1994)

Sub clauses can also function as a object in a complex sentence

I gave whoever it was a drink (Murphy, 1994)

Sub clauses, which function as complements are normally clauses

The point is that we are leaving

You can present me what you like (Murphy, 1994)

Sub clauses function as a appositive

His ambition, to be president, is incredible (Azar,1992)

Sub clauses can also function as attribute

I do not like stories that have unhappy ending

That is a postcard that I did (Azar,1992)

Sub clauses function as attribute The major function of it is to identify references

If we omit the restrictive relative clauses, it would affect the interpretation of main clauses

The student who answered the question was Nam

The house that stands alone by the river is my father’s

I shall never forget the day when I first met Uncle Ho

Can you tell me the reason why you were so late? (Y B, Phuong.V.T, 2001)

2.2.2 Classifications of clauses in term of their elements and verb

complementation

They hung the picture on the wall (Quirk et al, 1985)

2.2.3 Classifications of clauses in term of their verb phrase structures

Analyzing by structural type, a clause can be divided into three kinds: finite clause, non-finite clause and verbless clause (Quirk et al, 1972)

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She bought a new shirt in a supermarket (Quirk et al, 1972)

All independent clauses are finite clauses, let’s see the following examples:

I passed the examination because I learned by heart (Quirk et al, 1972)

Finite clauses are likely statements or questions

I want to know what he like (Quirk et al, 1972)

A finite clause can be a main clause or sub clause

He regrets now that he jumped (Quirk et al, 1972)

I forgot that I had locked the door (Quirk et al, 1972)

2.2.3.2 Non-finite clause

Definition:

Roger Berry, in "English Grammar: A Resource Book for Students," says that non-finite clauses lack a subject and a finite verb form, but they are still called clauses because they have some clause structure Non-finite clauses are introduced

by three non-finite verb forms and are divided into three types, says Berry:

Infinitive clauses: I saw her leave the room

-ing (participle) clauses: I heard someone shouting for help

-ed (participle) clauses: I got the watch repaired in town

In contrast with finite clause, non-finite clause is a clause whose verb element is a non-finite verb phrase The situation expressed in a non-finite clause is typical assumed not yet to have happened According to Quirk et al (Quirk, Greenbaun, Leech, Svartvik, 1985), there are three kinds of non-finite clauses

a Infinitive non-finite clauses

Definition:

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Infinitive non-finite clauses are part of the non-finite clauses and they have functions as non-finite clauses In the infinitive clauses, we classify into two kinds:

bare infinitive clause and to-infinitive clause

To-infinitive clauses in some cases have the function as nominal clauses

The to-infinitive nominal clauses can occur as:

- Subject: For a bridge to collapse like that is unbelievable

- Direct object: He wants me to do everything in the morning

- Subject complement: My mother wants to become a good leader

- Appositive: His ambition, to be straight actor, was never fulfilled

- Adjectival complement: She is glad to help me

(Quirk et al, 1985)

To-infinitive clauses with subject

According to Quirk et al, 1985, two clauses of verb have to be distinguished

as taking complex transitive complementation: factual and non-factual With factual verb the subordinate clause normally has a statue verb and a finite construction is preferred in ordinary usage to the non-finite, except that the latter provides a convenient passive form The following examples will illustrate this point:

He wants me to dance with him

She believed him to be a teacher (Quirk et al, 1985)

The non-factual verb with this non-finite construction express a causative Volitional or attitudinal relationship with the subordinate clause There is no restriction on its use

John intended Mary to sing a song

John likes Suman to go out with his friends (Quirk et al, 1985)

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When the subject of the subordinate clause is identical with that of the other subordinate one, the non-finite construction is possible to be used with factual and causative verbs, only if the reflexive is expressed

I believed that I had won

I believed myself to have won (Quirk et al, 1985)

Especially, we usually use for to introduce a to-infinitive clause

Cafeteria is the cheapest place for students to eat

Sport is necessary for you to do (Quirk et al, 1985)

To-infinitive clauses without subject

According to Eastwoods (1994), in the non-finite clauses without an overt subject, the implied object is normally the subject of the subordinate clauses There

are some cases which express the use of to-infinitive clause without subject as

follow:

They want to do the examination immediately

My mother began to prepare lunch (Eastwoods,1994)

The infinitive construction indicates that the action or even takes place after the mental process denoted by the verb has begun

I regret to tell you that story

I remember to phone Ann (Eastwoods,1994)

I want o mention to some verbs that suitable with the infinitive only: agree,

arrange, ask, choose, decide, demand, expect, hope, learn, long, manage, mean, offer, pretend, promise, refuse, want, threaten, wish In general, there is no passive

for sentences, whose object is a non-finite clause without a subject The exception is with a few verbs (i.e agree, arrange, etc.) and then only if there is extrapolation

They decide to meet in New York

It was decided to meet in New York (Eastwoods,1994)

You should try to learn more and more

He has to finish all work at 7.00 (Quirk et al, 1985)

The bare infinitive clause also follows: had better, had best, and would

rather, etc Besides it can be used in structure V+O + bare-infinitive

The workers had better do their jobs well

Hot weather makes me feel uncomfortable (Quirk et al, 1985)

Bare infinitive clause with subject:

Three causative verbs have, let, make, take a bare-infinitive

You let me bring her suitcase to her

She had him repair her bicycle (Quirk et al, 1985)

Some verbs of perception take the bare-infinitive in the active feel, hear,

notice, etc

I saw Tom run out of the house

She heard the dog bark in the forest (Quirk et al, 1985)

The bare infinitive is replaced by the to-infinitive in the passive

Lana was watched to break this plate

Birds are observed to fly in the sky (Quirk et al, 1985)

This above structure does not apply to have and let, which have no passive, except for perhaps in He was let go

For the passive corresponding to the infinitive clauses after have and see

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She had him repair her bicycle -> She had her bicycle repaired

I saw him steal the motorbike -> I saw the motorbike stolen (Quirk et al,

1985)

Bare infinitive clauses without subject: They can be complement after be

All I did was hit him on the head

My hobby is play tennis (Quirk et al, 1985)

b –Ing participle non-finite clause

Definition:

It occurs in the following positions:

- Subject: Telling lie is wrong

- Direct object: No one enjoys deceiving his family

- Subject complement: His favorite pastime is playing practical fakes

- Appositive: His hobby, collecting stamps, absorbed him

- Prepositional: I am tired of being treated like a child

- Adjectival complement: The children were busy building sandcastles

(Alexander, 1992)

–Ing participle non-finite clauses with subject

-Ing participle clause with subject if the sentence has two different subjects,

we must add the subject in non-finite clause

In adverbial and relative –ing clause, -ing is a participle that needs to be related to a

subject

–Ing participle non-finite clauses without subject

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In contrast with –ing participle clause with subject, we use -ing participle

non-finite clause without subject when it has the same subject or after some verbs

such as like, continue, enjoy, etc

I like reading English grammar in the library

Going home, I phone you immediately (Alexander, 1992)

c –Ed participle non finite clauses

Definition:

- Ed participle non-finites clause with is normally a contraction of a clause in which

the verb is in the passive voice

Painted in white, it looks bigger

Viewed from distance, the house looked like a dot (Alexander, 1992)

- Ed participle constructions in place of adverbial clauses

Unless changed, this law will make life difficult for farmers

Although built before along time, the house is still firm (Alexander, 1992)

- Ed participle clause replaces a retire clause, restrictive or non- restrictive clauses

The building burnt down last year, will be rebuilt

Car parked illegally will be removed (Alexander, 1992)

- Ed participle clause needs to be related to a subject in adverbial and relative

clauses When the –ed clause precedes the main clause, it is desirable that the

subjects of both clauses should be the same, otherwise the result may be comic or ambiguous

All the exercises done, she was happy

His job finished, he went out (Alexander, 1992)

We can distinguish between three types of construction involving –ed participle

with subject

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Causative/Volitional verb:

He got his motorbike repaired

Factual verb expressing a current state:

He found his car stolen

Factual verb expressing an event:

He saw the tree cut (Palmer, 1974)

Some of causative/volitional verbs have the same finite with subjunctive verbs or should

He ordered that his motorbike be repaired (Palmer, 1974)

Similarly, the factual verbs have the same finite clauses with an indicative verb

He found his car stolen = He found that his car was stolen

He saw the tree cut.= He saw that the tree was being cut (Palmer, 1974)

Note: have can be either causative or factual, thus He had a watch stolen is

ambiguous between He caused the watch to be stolen and He suffered the loss of the

watch

- Ed participle non-finite clause without subject

It is used if the sentence has the same subject and it is also used in passive voice Let’s see some examples below:

Given a beautiful birthday present, I was happy

Asked a lot of questions, he was tired (Palmer, 1974)

The normal range of clause types is available, with active and passive form broadly

as in the corresponding finite clauses, but there is a restriction on the –ed participle

clause, which is both syntactically and semantically passive, and therefore admits only the four passive clause types S+V passive; S+V passive + C; S+V passive + A; and S+V passive + O

When necessary, you should phone me

When a little girl, I used to go to school by bus.(Quirk et al, 1972)

With the verbless clause, we can usually refer ellipsis of verb be, the subject, when omitted, can be treated as recoverable from the context

Whether right or wrong, he always comes off worst in argument

Dozen of people was stranded, many of them children.(Quirk et al, 1972)

Verbless clause can also, on occasion, be treated as reduction of non-finite clauses

Too nervous to reply, he stared at the floor

(Being too nervous to reply, he stared at the floor) (Quirk et al, 1972)

As with participle clauses, the subject is often introduced by with

With the tree now tall, we get more shade (Quirk et al, 1972)

Optional adverbial may also be added, either initially or finally

She looked with disgust at the dog, quiet now in Dinah’s grasp (Quirk et al,

1972)

2.2.3 Classifications of clauses in term of their syntactical functions

According to Quirk et al, (1987), functional classification has two kinds of clauses: main clause (independent clause) and sub clause (dependent clause)

A main clause is a clause in which there is a main verb, sometimes it consists of sub clause

I will buy a new and famous picture if you like (Quirk et al, 1987)

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Main clause can stand alone, but it also can stand before or after sub clause without changing meaning Main clause brings full of meaning but sub clause does not

A sub clause is a group of words containing a subject and verb and forming part

of a sentence If stand alone it does not have full of meaning

She will have a good job if she has a good degree

If you when to school earlier, you would not be hurry (Quirk et al, 1972)

According to syntactic function of sub clause, it is divided into four kinds:

a Nominal clauses

Nominal clauses can be realized by the following clauses:

+ That clause

That he knows me is obvious

That life will be better is coming true (Quirk et al, 1972)

+ Wh clause

I know when your birthday is

Where he has gone is still not known (Quirk et al, 1972)

+ Participle clause

All students continue doing exercises

She enjoying playing the piano (Quirk et al, 1972)

+ Yes/No clause

He asked whether (if) she left

She asked whether (if) you did them (Quirk et al, 1972)

b Comment clauses

Comment clauses are somewhat loosely related to super-ordinate clause and may be classed as adjuncts or conjuncts, which may occur initially, finally or medially comment clauses very informs and syntactic functions as follows:

+ Comment clauses are like a main clause in the examples below:

You know, I think you are wrong

At that time, I believe, labour was cheap (Quirk et al, 1972)

+ Comment clauses are like an adverbial clause (functioning as adjunct) as these examples:

As far as grammar is concerned, the sentence is the largest unit

I am a pacifist, as you know (Quirk et al, 1972)

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+ Comment clauses are like a nominal relative clause as adjunct in the following example:

What is more, we lost all our belongings (Quirk et al, 1972)

+ Comment clauses are like a non-finite clause as style disjunct as in examples below:

I doubt, speaking as a layman, whether television is the right medium

I am not sure what you do, to be honest (Quirk et al, 1972)

c Relative clauses

In some grammarians’ points of view, relative clauses are not considered as part of complex sentences According to Quirk et al (1972), relative clauses are treated in the chapter dealing with the complex noun phrase

To most grammarians’ frame of mind, they may be classified among the complex sentences There are in fact different kinds of relative clauses that do not merely function as post-modifier in noun phrase as follows:

+ Restrictive relative clauses (also called defining relative clauses)

She is talking to the girl who is a good person

The book, which you are taking, is mine (Quirk et al, 1972)

+ Non- restrictive relative clauses

Non- restrictive relative clause is separated by comma and omitted

This book, which was written five years ago, was again revised and published

We met Mr Smiths who was an expert at nuclear physics (Quirk et al, 1972)

Sentential relative clause this has been mentioned in subsection dealing with

non-restrictive relative clauses However this group differs from them in that they have antecedents as the whole previous main clause

He came to see her too often, which annoyed her mother

They failed the final exam, which surprised us all (Quirk et al, 1972)

Nominal relative clauses are much closed to the noun phrase status in that they can perform seven different functions of noun phrases They differ from the other two subgroups in that nominal element plus relative clause can paraphrase them

What caused the fire was only a cigarette end

(= The thing that caused the fire was only a cigarette end.) (Quirk et al, 1972)

d Adverbial clauses

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In this section we are largely concerned with the main type of adverbial clause Adjuncts either finite of non-finite or verbless clauses, the most commonly used, at first and then with other types

Finite adverbial clauses consist of clauses of time, place, condition, concession, reason, circumstance, manner, comparison, result, proportion and preference

When I last saw you, you lived in New York

They went wherever they could find work (Azar, 1992)

Non-finite adverbial clauses

- To-infinitive non-finite clauses: often introduced by in order/for + N to, so as to

Infinitives thus used often function as a purpose

They left the door open in order for me to hear the baby

I left early (so as) to catch the train (Azar, 1992)

Sometimes to-infinitive can act as a result

She woke up to find the whole house on fire

The ceiling is too high for me to reach (Azar, 1992)

-Ing participle clauses are very common with subordinator while, when, without, etc

in the following:

A time: He wrote his greatest novel while working on a freighter

A circumstance: The weather having improved, we enjoyed the end of the

game

A manner: She entered the room without greeting anyone inside

A reason: Being very suspicious she hesitated to open the door

A reference: Rather than sitting quietly at home he preferred to visit his

friends

A condition + concession: Whether living in London or not, John enjoyed

himself

(Quirk et al, 1987)

-Ed/past participle non-finite clauses

A time: Once published the book caused a remarkable stir

A place: Where (ever) known, such facts have been reported

A condition: These books will cause great harms to young students unless

forbidden

- Bare infinitive non-finite clauses

A reference: Rather than go there by air, I would take the slowest train

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(Quirk et al, 1987)

Verbless adverbial clauses include adjectival contingent clauses (without or with subordinator) other clauses (often with subordinator)

They went home dead tired

When in Rome do as Rome does (Quirk et al, 1987)

The structure I will not have + object + present participle is restricted to the

first person

I will not have him sitting down to dinner in his overall I make him change

them (Thompson and Martinet, 1996)

-Ing non-finite clause can replace a sentence or a main clause, express a less

important action When two actions with the same subject occur at the same time

-Ing non-finite clause can be used before or after the finite in one of two actions

We went to the theatre, talking to each other

He went into the room, singing happily (Thompson and Martinet, 1996)

When the second action happens immediately after the first action by the same

subject, the second action often brings –ing non-finite clause or contrastive

He opened the door, seeing a mouse in the corner of the house

Entering the class, he said, “Excuse me.” (Thompson and Martinet, 1996)

When the second action forms part of the first one or it is a result of, explanation of

the main action, –ing non-finite clause can be used as:

She is in the library, reading a newspaper

He runs away, shouting fire! Fire! (Thompson and Martinet, 1996)

-Ing non-finite clause is after some verbs of sensation

The basic verbs of sensation see, hear, smell, and the verbs listen, notice, and watch can be followed by object + –ing non-finite clause as in these examples:

I see him passing my house every day

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I watched them rehearing the play (Azar, 1992)

The action in –ing non-finite clause may be either complete or incomplete I saw

him changing the wheel This example could mean that I watched the whole action

or that I saw only part of it (Thompson and Martinet, 1996)

-Ing non-finite clause is in the structure of catch/find/leave + object + V-ing The

action expressed by this clause is always one which displeases the subject

I caught them stealing my money

She found them learning English (Azar, 1992)

With find there is no feeling or displeasure

I found him standing at the door

She left him talking to Bob (Azar, 1992)

With find the object could be inanimate

He found the tree lying across the road (Azar, 1992)

Besides, there are verb imagine, conceive, describe, portray

I cannot imagine he doing that (Azar, 1992)

-Ing non-finite clause can replace a subordinate clause

The –ing non finite can replace as/since/because, .+ S+V It can help to explain

the action which follows Let’s see the examples below:

Knowing that he would not be able to buy food on his journey he took large

supplies with him

Note: Being often appears in reason phrase and is omitted in the other case

The book being taken from me, I cannot work any more

The lecture being over, we phoned for a taxi (Thompson and Martinet,

1996)

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Being often appears at the beginning of the sentence when two clauses have the

same subject

Being a student, he was naturally interested in museums

Being a teacher, he is very strict (Thompson and Martinet, 1996)

2.3.5 Functions of –ing non-finite clause

2.3.5.1 –Ing non-finite clause can function as attribute in the sentence

According to Alexander L.G (1992), although –ing participle is partly a verb,

it is also partly adjective and has function as noun qualifiers and used attributively Sometimes, it is called verbal adjective when it behaves like an adjective and it is associated with verbs when it refers to action in progress (continuous aspect)

The saying girl woke her child (= The girl was saying woke her child.)

The young men playing tennis hit me (Alexander, 1992)

- Ing participle is more like an adjective than a verb When we put it before a noun,

it usually expresses some more permanent characteristic

An exciting film is move at 7.30 at August cinema

Surprising news is good for people to listen to it on TV (Alexander, 1992)

The -ing participle can play a role as attribute after phrase such as

This is not a good way of doing it

She has no intention of staying (Alexander, 1992)

Besides, -ing participle are rather like adjectives, they give more information about the noun they are connected with And –ing participle used in this way can be

put with other words to make adjectival participle clauses

Simon is the boy sitting in the room number 1

They had an accident driving to work (Alexander, 1992)

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Adjectival present participle clauses can only used to take about action that happens around the same time as the main verb

Do you see the beautiful girl dancing with your friend?

Do you want to make friends with the girl singing? (Alexander, 1992)

When there is a time different between the actions of the two verbs, -ing participle

can not usually be used

–Ing non-finite clause can function as adverbial in the sentence

In this function, -ing non-finite clause as adverbial may express almost all

adverbial relationship except place Adverbial clauses, like adverbial in general are capable of occurring in a final, initial or medial position with the main clause

Not having brought the city map, we lost the way

Speaking English well, she had a good interview (Eastwoods, 1994)

–Ing non-finite clause may be introduced by after, since, until, when(ever) and while In addition, -ing participle non-finite clause without subject are also used to

express time relationship

When nearing the entrance, I shook hands with my acquaintances

He wrote his greatest novel while working on a freighter (Eastwoods, 1994)

–Ing non-finite clause constructions in place of clauses of time

After finishing all homework, we were out for a walk (Eastwoods, 1994)

–Ing non-finite clause constructions in place of clauses of circumstance

The weather having improved, we like to have a picnic (Eastwoods, 1994)

Often time and clause are simultaneously implied a participle phrase

–Ing non-finite clause constructions in place of clauses of manner

She went out slamming the door (Palmer, 1974)

–Ing non-finite clause constructions in place of clauses of manner

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–Ing non-finite clause constructions in place of clauses of result

Being ill, my friend could not go to school with me (Palmer, 1974)

–Ing non-finite clause constructions in place of clauses of means

Taking an express train, he reaches the town just in time (Palmer, 1974)

Indeed, the change of position of –ing non finite clause in non-restrictive

post modification also leads to the reduction of a relative clause or of a causal cause

or of a temporal clause

John learned very hard, hoping to finish college in three years (Palmer,

1974)

–Ing non-finite clause constructions in place of clauses of condition

This was said as if think alone (Palmer, 1974)

2.2.5.2 –Ing non-finite clause can function as object in the sentence

When –ing participle as object, it is always a direct object which can come

directly after the main verb or it can be separated from the main verb by a noun or pronoun

a The –ing form can function as direct object, it comes directly after the main verb

which may be an active or passive one –Ing form can be follow by below verbs:

To avoid (Not) To forget To pardon To suggest

To cannot help To hate/ To love To prefer To postpone

These are the illustrated examples:

I do not like buying anything at supermarket

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Someone suggested going for a walk in the morning (Murphy, 1994)

Besides, -ing participle is also used after the verbs such as

In combination with the modal verb can be used in negative and interrogative sentences

She cannot bear being alone in a large house (Murphy, 1994)

The –ing form as direct object is also found in certain set phrase as follows:

These are the illustrated examples:

I cannot help feeling disappointed when having bad marks

She does not feel like watching T.V in the evening (Murphy, 1994)

The –ing form also comes after a number of verbs denoting motion or position

These are the illustrated examples:

We came hurrying to catch up with the train from Hanoi to Namdinh Yesterday we went sightseeing at Halong Bay (Ha, 1999)

Let’s see the illustrated examples:

I had better not catch doing that again

She reported learning English at 7.00 next week (Ha, 1999)

b –Ing participle can function as direct object followed by a noun or pronoun The

direct object is lexically restricted and depends on the form of the noun or the pronoun, all verbs requiring this construction may be divided into two groups:

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Verbs after which the –ing form is preceded by a noun in the common case or

personal pronoun in the objective case

And a few verbs after which the –ing form as direct object is introduced by as:

We can have a look at these examples:

I cannot imagine Frank and Mabel paying so much for piano

We heard you arguing with your brother (Halliday, 2004)

Verbs after which the –ing form preceded by a noun in the possessive case or a

possessive pronoun:

We can see these examples:

She hated your doing at her house

He resented my being promoted before him (Halliday, 2004)

The simple –ing form is commonly used to express all kinds of time relations,

namely, actions simultaneous with preceding, following and the action of the predicate verb

I caught him hitting my dog

He saw you walking with a young man (Halliday, 2004)

The passive –ing form is sometimes used Its time reference is the same as that of

the active form

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I know the homework being done well

People saw John being hit by a dog (Halliday, 2004)

The perfect –ing form is rarely used It is only found when the direct object is

introduced by as

He remembered that Peter had mentioned the house as having originally

belonged to Black’s family (Palmer, 1974)

–Ing non-finite clause can function as subject in the sentence

As a rule, the function of the subject is performed by a simple –ing form It is

used to express permanent and recurring actions, simultaneous with the action of the

predicate verb Sometimes a passive –ing participle and its time reference is the same as that of the active –ing form The perfect –ing form is rarely used It expresses the priority of the –ing form to that of the predicate verb

Having been bred in that communion was like being born an Englishman Swimming in the morning is my favourite sport (Palmer, 1974)

The subject of the –ing form is generally indicated in context and the relation

of the action expressed by the –ing form and its subject is easily established The

indication of the subject is often found in the same sentence and it expressed by one

of the secondary parts or in one of the neighbor –ing sentence

It was I who persuaded David to come here this Christmas to be reconciled

to his father I realized now that coming here was a mistake (Krulova,1973)

The subject of the –ing form may not be mentioned at all In such cases the action is

associated person Or it may be expressed specially by using the so-called complex

–ing form

Mary’s laughing at my accent is getting on my nervous

Reading French is easier than speaking it (Krulova,1973)

According to Krulova (1973), sentence with the –ing form as subject have

some certain structural peculiarities as follows:

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Like the infinitive, the –ing form as subject is found only in declarative

sentences It is not used as the subject of an interrogative sentence

The –ing form as subject is sometimes found in sentences beginning with

there is, but its use is restricted to negative sentences where it is usually preceded

by no

There is no finding him

There will be no problem parking (Krulova,1973)

We can also use the empty subject it referring forward to the –ing form

It is wonderful travelling around the world

It is difficult making new friends (Krulova,1973)

–Ing participle can function as subject complement in the sentence

The –ing participle clause as subject complement is used with appositive

meaning It often comes after the link verb be and mean

The best way to escape his angry is leaving far from him

Jeremy’s hobby is inventing computer games (Quirk et al, 1987)

The –ing participle as subject complement can modify subject of verb in active

voice It explains to subject clearly in a sentence

The man lied dying in hospital

He sat writing a letter to his friend (Quirk et al, 1987)

In contrast with active voice, the passive voice –ing participle is also used as subject

complement

She remembered being given this book

They hate being interrupted when learning (Quirk et al, 1987)

–Ing participle is used to predicated something of object of main the verb and it acts

as an adjective predicate The object of the main verb and the –ing participle may