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5. Не is not to be disturbed on any account.

6. I was sure the students would be called in.

7.Whose fault that was will never be known.

8.He is said to have helped you very much.

1.You are wanted on the phone.

2.Were you told to wait for him?

3.We are not allowed to use a dictionary.

4.He is not to be disturbed on any account.

5.I was sure the students would be called in.

6.How far he was responsible will never be known.

5.He треба його кожний раз турбувати.

6.Я був певний, що студентів запросять.

7.Ніколи не буде відомо, чия це була помилка.

8.Кажуть, що він вам дуже допоміг.

1.On vous demande au téléphone.

2.Vous a-t-on dit de l'attendre?

3.On ne nous permet pas de nous servir d'un dictionaire.

4.Il ne faut le déranger sous aucun prétexte.

5 J'étais sûr qu'on ferait venir les étudiants.

6.On ne saura jamais quelle fut la part de sa responsabilité.

b) those translated by using the verb-forms of the middle voice, e. g.:

1. This letter can be pronounced

1. Ця буква вимовляється

in two ways.

двояко.

Cf. French: Cette lettre se prononce de deux façons.

2. This quality is not often met

2. Таке не часто зустрічається.

with.

 

Cf. French: Cette qualité se rencontre rarement.

c) those translated by the corresponding passive form of the verb, e.

g.:

Nothing was said. Нічого не було сказано.

d) patterns with the passive verb-forms which can be translated only by the corresponding active ones because of the lexical character of the verb and restrictions in the use of the past participle of some verbs in our mother tongue, e. g.:

Young Jolyon saw that he had been recognised, even by Winifred, who could not have been more than fifteen

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Молодий Джоліон зрозумів, що його впізнала навіть Уініфред; а їй було не більше п'ятнадцяти ро-

when he had forfeited the ків, коли він втратив право right to be considered a For- називатись Форсайтом. syte. (Galsworthy)

To sum up in brief, the frequency value of passive constructions in English is due to a number of reasons. Emphasis will be laid on the following:

a)There are, in fact, no means in English to avoid the indication of the doer of the action in active constructions.

In other languages there are special uses of the active without indicating the agent. Such are, for instance, indefinite-personal sentences in Russian and Ukrainian with the predicate-verb in the 3rd person plural but without exact relevance to the doer of the action.

The indefinite pronoun one and occasionally the personal pronouns we, you and they, as well as the noun people, may be used in this meaning. But for some reason or other the use of such sentence-patterns seems to be restricted, and English instead often shows here a marked preference of passive constructions.

b)Variation in the use of different types of passive turns existing in English lends variety to speech. Although some of them are somewhat restricted in use, they still contribute to the frequency value of the passive in general.

Substitutes for Passive

As in other languages passive meaning can find its expression not only in the paradigmatic forms of the verb. There are other techniques in English which can serve this purpose. There is always a selective way in the distribution of various means adapted to this purpose in each case. The peripheral elements of the passive field in Modern English are:

1)"get-passive".

2)verb-phrases with the semi-copulative verbs become, stand, rest, and go, e. g.:

I have become sunburnt.

He stands prepared to dispute it. We rest assured.

They go armed.

3) active verb-forms with reflexive pronouns, e. g.:

it sees itself; it manifests itself, it displays itself, etc. 1 4) syntactic patterns of causative meaning, e. g.: He had his photo taken. I went it done. See the letters delivered.

5)infinitival phrases: a thing to do = a thing to be done; the house to let, a book to read, etc.

6)gerundial phrases:

The house needs repairing.

1 Pronominal patterns of this type are sometimes referred to as "semantic" or "syntactic passive". Cf. French: Cela se voit; cet air se chante partout; cette étoffe se lave bien.

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My shoes want mending.

7)phrasal verbs of analytical structure. 8)prepositional noun-phrases.

Phrasal-verbs of analytical structure type VN function with rather a high frequency value as stylistic alternatives of -passive and get-pass- ive. A few typical examples are given below. Others will readily occur to the student.

to find expression

to be expressed

to find favour

to be favoured

to find reflection

to be reflected

to find support

to be supported

to find solution

to be solved

to win recognition

to be recognised

to gain respect

to be respected

to get publicity

to be published

to receive a study

to be studied

to receive criticism

to be criticised

to receive recognition

to be recognised

to receive punishment

to get punished

In infinite cases such formations verge on the "quasi-grammatical" and serve, in fact, rather grammatical than lexical purposes. They carry grammatical information of voice distinction, moreover, this is often the dominant feature of their linguistic status revealed with sufficient evidence in regular Oppositional relations between simple and phrasal verbs and between phrasal verbs themselves. The relevance of many phrasal verbs to the voice-field is most obvious. Compare:

 

Active

Passive

to attend

to pay attention

to receive attention

to help

to give help

to find help

to support

to lend support

to find support

to offend

to give offence

to suffer offence

to credit

to give credence

to find credence

to defeat

to inflict a defeat

to suffer a defeat

to publish

to give publicity

to get publicity

Phrasal verbs approach analytical forms: one of the components has lexical meaning, the second, a function verb, is semantically depleted and comes to function as a semi-copulative verb. In their linguistic status phrasal verbs remain, in fact, on the borderline between syntax and morphology. The process of converting notional words into lexico-grammatic- al morphemes is most active in this area.

Verbs which are part of such analytical structures differ semantically. Some of them are synonymically related in the English vocabulary irrespective of the context. Others are synonymous only in combination with certain nounal components.

to gain attention to get attention to receive attention; to win recognition to get recognition to receive recognition

— to gain recognition.

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Most frequent are such verbs as: get, obtain, receive, find, gain, win, undergo.

We also find here such verbs as: achieve, attain, earn, escape, demand, claim, require, suffer, endure, deserve, merit.

Overlapping of Oppositional relations of voice and aspect is not infrequent. Consider the following for illustration:

Active

 

Passive

Common Aspect

 

Inchoative Aspect

to suspect

to fall under suspicion

to despise

to fall into contempt

to observe

to fall under observation

Actions of Single Occurrence

Active

Active

Passive

to laugh to give a laugh to receive a laugh to eye to

give the eye

 

to get the eye

to hug to give a hug

to receive a hug

In such lexico-grammatical oppositions one member (the "marked" member) signals the presence of the aspectual meaning, while the "unmarked" member may either signal "absence of marked meaning" or else be noncommittal as to its absence or presence.

These two volumes comprised all the short stories he had written, and which had received or were receiving serial publication. (London)

Not being as attractive as Doyle, it was not so easy for him to win the attention of girls. (Dreiser)

She was a cold, self-centred woman, with many a thought of her own which never found expression, not even by so much as the glint of an eye.

(Dreiser)

There is a close parallel to this development in other languages. Such structural elements in the English verbal system merit consideration not only in terms of their synonymic correlation with a simple verb of similar meaning. Formations of this kind are most evidently relevant to the problem of covert grammar, implicit predication, in particular.

Synonymic correlation of simple and phrasal verbs of kindred meaning merits attention in different spheres of usage. Such linguistic units are organically related and constantly aiding to and supporting each other in communication. And this is fairly universal. The choice between simple and phrasal verbs predetermines to a great extent the structural pattern of the sentence 1. Consituation and considerations of style in the nominalverbal contrast will generally determine the selection of grammatical forms in the organisation of the message.

Examine the grammatical organisation of the text in the following sentences with nominality adapted to its purpose in each case:

1 See: А. Д. А п р е с я н . Экспериментальное исследование семантики русского глагола. М., 1967.

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Everyone was out in their Slab Square, perambulating to either get or give the eye; perhaps in an odd moment stopping to hear a few words of admonition from Sally's Army... (Sillitoe)

Having given and received another hug, he mounted the window seat, and tucking his legs under him watched her unpack. (Galsworthy)

This last was the shock Jon received coming thus on his mother.

(Galsworthy)

The speed with which Joe worked won Martin's admiration. (London) The passive field includes also patterns with prepositional noun-

phrases functioning as substitutes for ordinary passive forms of the verb. Formations of this kind contribute significantly to the development of

grammatical synonymy in sentence structure. In such syntactic patterns we find, for instance, nominal phrases with the prepositions above, at, beyond, in, on, out of, past, under, within, without. A few typical examples are:

beyond belief, beyond pardon, beyond (or past) cure, beyond doubt, beyond dispute, beyond expression, beyond expectation, beyond grasp, beyond help, beyond all measure, beyond praise, beyond price, beyond question, beyond repair, beyond recognition, beyond reach, beyond (above) suspicion, beyond words, in use, in print, out of use, in question, on sale, under consideration, under control, under discussion, under repair, under supervision, etc.

...June had twice been to tea there under the chaperonage of aunt.

(Galsworthy)

Outside the river, and out of sight he slackened his pace still more.

(Galsworthy)

...She remained under the care of Doctor Thoroughgood until August the fifteenth. (Cronin)

...he ran his beaming eyes over Martin's second-best suit, which was also his worst suit, and which was ragged and past repair. (London)

Unconsciously he absorbed her philosophy. Under her guidance he was learning to cultivate the superficialniceties and let the deeper things go hang. (Cronin)

The passive meaning of the phrase is generally signalled by the context, the lexical meaning of the subject in particular. Compare the following:

(a)children in charge of a nurse children are taken care of;

(b)a nurse in charge of children → a nurse takes care of children.

Functional similarity of structures with nominal phrases and those with passive forms of the verb is quite obvious.

above criticism beyond repair without hearing beyond all measure out of use

under his guidance house is under construetion

too great to be criticised too old to be repaired near enough to be heard too large to be measured no longer used

guided by him the the house is being built

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Chapter VI

ENGLISH VERB-FORMS AND THEIR PATTERN-VALUE

Time-distinctions find their expression in verb-forms. English grammatical terminology has a special word tense to indicate time at which an action or state is viewed as happening or existing. The speaker's subjective use of distinctions of Time drawn in accordance with the conventions of the language is naturally primary in importance.

The system of the English verb offers its own difficulties for a foreign student to master. The most troublesome problems are concentrated in the area of the finite verb, and include, in particular, tense, aspect, and modal auxiliary usage.

The components of grammatical meanings in actual verb-forms are often not so separable as it might be suggested. Tense, mood and aspect appear to be closely entwined. The terms tense-aspect or, say, tense-mood seem therefore fully justified. We can hardly say that there are pure tenses, pure moods or pure aspects; two or three of these kinds of meaning are always inseparably present in any given verb form. This will be made clear if we identify the tense-forms by specifying their characteristic sentencefunctions and look at the contrasting patterns rather than contrasting forms.

A major question in learning the grammar of the English verb is therefore to look for the difference of distribution in various contexts, linguistic or situational, where each verb-form occurs.

Distinction must be made between paradigmatic (primary) and syntagmatical (secondary) meanings of grammatical forms, in other words, between its denotative and connotative meanings.

In the power of connotation of grammatical forms lies the reserve force of language. Grammatical imagery plays such a considerable role in the formal arrangement of units of speech as to deserve our particular attention.

The study of verb-forms must reasonably include their functional transpositions where we distinguish: a) formal conventional transpositions in fixed patterns of grammatical usage and b) expressive transpositions for stylistic purposes. The former are stylistically unmarked and emotionally neutral; the latter are marked and have a stylistic value.

THE PRESENT TENSE

In the practice of perhaps all languages the idea of "now" means a time with appreciable duration the length of which varies greatly with the context. It is important only that the theoretical zero-point should fall within

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the period alluded to. The verb-form itself does not imply the length of duration before or after the present moment covering a very wide range of meaning as well as expression of intermittent occurrences. The implied context, linguistic or situational, is all that can be considered relevant.

The multiple polysemantic essence of the present tense merits close attention as most directly relevant to the problem of synonymy in grammar.

In these terms, the present tense may be characterised by distinguishing the inclusive and exclusive present. The first will include:

1)the actual present denoting an action occurring at the moment of speaking or writing. I see an aeroplane. The teacher wants to speak to you. I love you.

Here belong also author's words, stage remarks, comments in newspapers, etc., e. g.: Goes behind the screen. Opens the door. Bell rings.

2)the neutral present used when no particular time is thought of; depending on the context it may indicate:

a)something that is always true, e. g.: The sun rises in the east (general-

ising present);

b)actions permanently characterising the subject, e. g.: Fleur does what she likes (qualitative present);

c)ability to do something, e. g.: She speaks three languages. (She can speak three languages).

The neutral present is also used in giving a definition or stating a rule. This may be called present of definition, e. g.: Water freezes below zero.

As a matter of fact, in such cases an action or state denoted by the present tense can be referred to any sphere of time: present, past or future. Herein lies probably the reason of the fact that the frequency value of this verbal form is considerably higher in scientific English than in ordinary use.

3) the iterative present refers to an action repeated at intervals, the repetition being usually indicated by an adjunct like every day, twice weekly, always, etc., e. g.: I get up at eight every day. This paper appears twice weekly. We always go to the seaside in summer.

In terms of modern linguistics, the present tense is often characterised negatively, i. e. as the form used when there is no positive reason for the use of the past, future, or the subjunctive or any other complex conjugation form. As the unmarked item in the conjugation of the English verb, it is then called the neutral or non-past of the verb 1. And this angle of view is not devoid of some logical foundations.

The syntagmatic meanings of the "exclusive" present may be illustrated by its use: a) with future time reference, b) with the implication of a past action, c) with imperative modal force.

This may be shown diagrammatically:

See: B. S t r a n g. Modern English Structure. London, 1964, p. 127.

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The Present Tense

The primary denotative meaning

(Inclusive Present)

a)I see an airplane b)I love you.

 

I. Indicative Modality

 

c) Generalising Present

d) Iterative Present I

e) Qualitative Present

The sun rises in the east.

always go to the

She plays tennis with in-

 

South in summer.

nate grace.

Secondary syntagmatic meanings

(Exclusive Present)

 

a) past time reference !

 

b) future time reference

And then in the night of the banquet she appears

We start tomorrow.

in her emeralds... (Mitchell)

 

II. Imperative Modality

You go and see him.

The present tense recounts of a future action as vividly as if it were present.

Distinction must be made here between different shades of modal meaning and adherent expressivity imparted to the verb-form by different kind of contexts, linguistic or situational:

1) strong determination of the speaker to do something or get something done. This is often the case in familiar speech, in expressive or otherwise emphatic style, e. g.:

"If you mention her", cried Winifred, "I go straight out to Park Lane and I don't come back". (Galsworthy)

"You may try, and try, and try again, Messrs. Dodson and Fogg", said Mr. Pickwick vehemently, "but not one far-thing of costs or damages do you ever get from me, if I spend the rest of my existence in a debtor's prison". (Dickens)

"Edward, said miss Murdstone", "Let there be an end of this. I go tomorrow". (Dickens)

2) strong certainty of future action viewed as a logical result or consequence of another given action, e. g.:

Don't go worrying about what may never happen, or you're lost. (Lindsay)

"Draw a form of settlement that passes all my property to Miss Fleur's children..." Gradman grated: "Rather extremely at your age, sir; you lose control". (Galsworthy)

Gosh! Here's a ring with a big blue diamond. Worth four thousand pounds. We're on the velvet for the rest of our lives. (Shaw)

The use of the present tense with the implication of futurity imparts vivacity to speech and often serves stylistic purposes. And this is not

139

specifically English. There is a close parallel to this development in other European languages.

A. M. Peshkovsky1 says with truth that in such cases the category of the present tense in Russian does not lose or modify its meaning, but just actualises it in vivid and clear relief, e. g.:

...To я воображаю себя уже на свободе, вне нашего дома. Я поступаю в гусары и иду на войну. Со всех сторон на меня несутся враги, я размахиваюсь саблей и убиваю одного, другой взмах — убиваю другого, третьего... (Л. Толстой)

"That dog", said Jerry, pointing out the old leader of the troop, and speaking in a terrible voice "lost a halfpenny today. He goes without supper". (Dickens)

She rose to the full extent of her more than medium height, and said: "It has been on my mind a long time dear, and if nobody else will tell you, I have made up my mind that" "Aunt Hester interrupted her: "Mind, Julia, you do it "she gasped "on your own responsibility!" (Galsworthy)

The present tense with future time reference is known to be widely current in certain types of subordination. Distinction must be made between its different uses in object subclauses where it may be used:

a)without any special expressive connotation, e. g.: Suppose they come a few minutes later.

b)with expressive connotation or such modal shades of meaning as: strong determination, certainty or assurance, e. g.:

...But understand that if I decorate, I decorate alone, without interference of any sort. (Galsworthy)

Be sure that I come back with good news, and I am not long gone.

(Dickens)

"...And do I keep the change?" asked Stanley, who had been given a shilling. "I should think you don't, my lad!" cried Turgis. (Priestly).

"Well", he said, "I shall have to see Soames ...At all events I'll let you know what happens when I speak to Soames". (Galsworthy)

"Of course, there's legal separation we can get that. But separation! Um" "What does it mean?" asked Winifred desolately."That he can't touch you or you him; you're both of you married and unmarried."

(Galsworthy)

The use of the present tense with the implication of futurity in object subclauses is rather a frequent occurrence after such verbs in the principal clause as: to be, to care, to hope, to look, to mind, to pray, to see, etc.

"Let's hope they stay there," Mullinder said. "They want to finish off that lot once and for all this time." (Sillitoe)

The present tense may be functionally synonymous with the Present Perfect. This is often the case in patterns with verbs of saying, seeing and hearing. The present tense is employed here perfectively to imply "being in a state resulting from having..." Examples are:

Fly over my city, little Swallow, and tell me what you see there.

(Wilde)

1 See: A. M. Пешковский. Русский синтаксис в научном освещении. М., 1938.

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