Agreeing Pronouns (pronoun-antecedent agreement)

Happy Friday!

I believe I left off the last blog stating I'd be writing about thesis statements this week, but based on some grading I've done lately, I think a discussion about pronoun-antecedent agreement is needed.

We know that pronouns are parts of speech that replace nouns in a sentence. Instead of saying:

Susan took Susan's children to school and then drove Susan's car to the mechanic. Bill, the mechanic, used Bill's tools to fix Susan's car.

you would probably write:

Susan took her children to school and then drove her car to the mechanic. Bill, the mechanic, used his tools to fix her car.

An exception would be if the mechanic were also female:

Susan took her children to school and then drove her car to the mechanic. Karen, the mechanic, used her tools to fix Susan's car.

The waterfall was majestic in its beauty.

The miniature horses were adorable as they
romped around the paddock.

So what's the key behind pronoun-antecedent agreement?

When you use a singular noun or pronoun, associated pronouns must also be singular.
When you use a plural noun or pronoun, associated pronouns must also be plural.

Simple? Well, not necessarily. I don't think the issues arise with regular nouns and pronouns. Most people won't argue that "Susan" is a singular noun, so any pronouns associated with that noun will be singular (i.e., "she" or "her"). Further, most people won't argue that "people" is a plural noun, so any pronouns associated with that noun will be plural (i.e., "they" or "them").

With me so far?

Indefinite pronouns, however, muddy the waters. Indefinite pronouns are pronouns that are ... well, indefinite. They refer to an undefined person(s) or thing(s). Some indefinite pronouns are singular; others are plural. When using a singular indefinite pronoun, any associated pronouns must also be singular, and plural indefinite pronouns must have associated plural pronouns.

Singular indefinite pronouns include: everyone, someone, somebody, no one, nobody, everything, nothing.

Plural indefinite pronouns include: all, many, some, few, several, both.

Examples:

Did everyone remember to bring his homework?

VERSUS

Did some of the students remember to bring their homework?

OR

Somebody forgot to call her mother.

VERSUS

A few forgot to call their mothers.

KEY: Look at the indefinite pronoun you're using. Does it have "one," "body," or "thing"? These are singular words, so you need to treat the entire indefinite pronoun as singular.

For a bit more detail, visit one of my favorite online writing resources. Come back in a couple of weeks ... I think I'll be writing on thesis statements then, but we'll see!

Keep pen to paper!

Prof. Saundra

All that pesky punctuation PART 2 (semi-colons, colons, hyphens/dashes, ellipses, brackets)

Today, we're finishing our discussion about punctuation marks. If you can grasp these concepts, you'll never have a problem with punctuation again. Let's start with a little levity. This is a classic routine by someone you may not know—but you should! It's a bit lengthy, but it's worth watching.

Okay. Let's look at the rest of the most common punctuation marks.

Semi-colon

People seem to think that semi-colons are confusing, but there are really only three uses for them.

First, they're used to connect two independent clauses that are closely related (more about this in my blog about sentence structure):

Joe asked Sue to marry him; she said yes!

Second, they're used to connect two independent clauses with a conjunctive adverb (again, I give more detail about this in my sentence structure blog):

I was going to France; however, I decided to go to Australia instead.

Finally, they're used clarify items in a list when other punctuation marks are included:

The cast members include: John, a talented, well-trained singer; Mary, a graceful, adventurous dancer; Marty, a wonderful, hilarious comedian; and Georgia, a versatile, enthusiastic actor.

That's it!

Colon

Colons have just a few uses, as well.

First, they're used to introduce lists (see the sentence above about "cast members ...").

Second, they're used to introduce further explanation:

Sarah finally found her dream home: it's a quaint Victorian cottage with a wraparound porch.

Third, they're used to separate hour from minute, as in "It's 3:15 a.m."

Fourth, they're used to introduce quotes:

When I'm feeling stressed, I always remember: "That which does not kill me makes me stronger."

Finally, they're used in salutations for formal letters, as in Dear Mr. President:

Hyphens

Hyphens should really only be used one way in academic writing: to create compound words, especially modifiers for nouns:

my well-intentioned friend
her newly-purchased car
his five-year-old daughter

Dashes

Dashes are used to set off parenthetical elements. By using dashes instead of commas, the information stands out to your reader. You can use either "en-dashes," which have spaces between them and your words, or "em-dashes," which are longer dashes with no spaces. NOTE: em-dashes tend to provide for a smoother appearance to your writing.

en-dash: Two main characteristics - a sense of humor and loyalty - are most important to me.
em-dash: Two main characteristics—a sense of humor and loyalty—are most important to me.

Ellipses

Ellipses are used in two ways.

First, they're used to indicate deletion from a quote. For example, the original quote is:

“Writing a book is a horrible, exhausting struggle, like a long bout of some painful illness. One would never undertake such a thing if one were not driven on by some demon whom one can neither resist nor understand.”
—George Orwell

If you want to use just a portion of this quote, you would indicate your deletion like this:

“Writing a book is a horrible, exhausting struggle ... One would never undertake such a thing if one were not driven on by some demon whom one can neither resist nor understand.”
—George Orwell

Second, they're used to indicate a deliberate interruption in thought:

I'm thinking about making lasagna for dinner ... but then again, maybe not.

NOTE: MLA requires a space between words and dots.

Brackets

Brackets are mainly used (in academic writing, at least) to indicate when you're using your own words to add clarity to someone else's quote. The original quote is:

"Joe Smith overcame his circumstances to become a standout in his field."

You want your reader to know who Joe Smith is, so you might write:

"Joe Smith [president of ABC Company] overcame his circumstances to become a standout in his field."

You may also use them to change words to make a quote flow more smoothly. If the original quote is:

Joe Smith stated, "I overcame my circumstances to become a standout in my field."

To incorporate this quote into your own writing, you might write:

Joe Smith "overcame [his] circumstances to become a standout in [his] field."

Well ... that's about it for punctuation. Again, review these rules and incorporate them in your writing.

Keep pen to paper!

Prof. Rinehart

P.S. For the foreseeable future, I'll be posting biweekly. Come back on September 20 when I'll be discussing how to write a thesis and outline. I hope to "see" you then!

All that pesky punctuation PART 1 (end punctuation, apostrophes, quotation marks)

Happy Friday!

I hope your week has gone well.

Last week, we looked at the common uses of commas. Today, we're going to take look at most other commonly-used punctuation marks.

Why is punctuation so important? The meaning of your sentence can change dramatically depending on the punctuation you use (or don't use). For example, in the book Eat, Shoots & Leaves, the author tells the story of a panda that goes into a restaurant, and after eating, he pulls out a gun and shoots it. The bewildered waiter asks, "Why did you do that?" The panda pulls out a wildlife magazine [from where, I'm not certain] and points to an article. "See?" he says. "This article says that a panda eats, shoots, and leaves." "Umm," says the waiter. "I believe there's a faulty comma here. It should say, 'A panda eats shoots and leaves.'"

Get it?

I've said before that the only way we writers can communicate to our readers is the words we use ... and the way we use them.

So let's look at how you can communicate to your readers by the simple use of punctuation:

Periods are hard stops that let your reader know your sentence is complete.

Exclamation points show excitement or anxiety. I can't believe you bought me a car!

Question marks ... Well, this one is clear, isn't it?

Apostrophes have two uses:

1) They show possession. The blue BMW is Scott's car.
2) They facilitate contractions. I don't want to go to the store.

IMPORTANT KEY: Two notable exceptions are the pronouns it and you. The possessive form of it is its; it's is the contraction it is. The possessive form of you is your; you're is the contraction you are.

Quotation marks indicate dialog or a quote that will be cited. Always use double quotation marks.

Sharon said, "I want to go to the store."

Discussing the importance of proper punctuation, Professor Rinehart wrote, "The meaning of your sentence can change dramatically depending on the punctuation you use (or don't use)."

NOTE: Single quotation marks are used only with quotes within quotes. I have an example of this at the end of the panda story.
IMPORTANT KEY: Periods and commas always go inside of quotation marks UNLESS you're using a citation. If I were including a citation (and I'm using MLA here) with the above quote, I'd write:

Discussing the importance of proper punctuation, Professor Rinehart wrote, "The meaning of your sentence can change dramatically depending on the punctuation you use (or don't use)" (Writing Is Painless).

On the other hand, where you place exclamation points and question marks are determined by the meaning of your sentence.

If either is part of the quotation, then it goes inside of the quotation mark.

Susan asked, "Where is the remote?"
Lisa cried, "I lost my phone!"

If either is not part of the quotation, then it does outside of the quotation mark.

Was it John who said, "I don't agree"?
I was so excited when I heard you say, "I'll be home Thursday"!

If I were standing in front of you, this would be the time I'd ask, "Any questions?" If you have some, feel free to comment! I'll get back to you by next Friday, at the latest.

Next week, we'll finish up punctuation marks, including semi-colons, colons, hyphens, m-dashes, and more!

Keep pen to paper!

Prof. Rinehart

The Common Uses of Commas

Happy Friday!

This is "crunch" week for me. I'm finishing up the grades for a summer class, just started four online classes, and am gearing up for my two on-campus classes that start on Tuesday. Suffice it to say, it's a bit crazy. I love what I do, though, so I'm doing what I need to get done. This time reminds me of all the concepts of grammar and how students often struggle with them.

Today's blog and video deal with the lowly comma. It's such a tiny, teeny punctuation mark, but it's misused so often. Students tend either to overuse it or under-use it. The good news? You can learn the most common uses, and when you use them correctly, your instructors will be quite impressed! Before we start, let's look at it from the comma's point of view (yes, we English teachers do have a warped sense of humor!):

Okay. Now to more serious matters.

First, take a look at the video ...

Now that you've learned the concepts, go back to my introductory paragraph. Can you see real-life examples of the concepts? Test yourself. Feel free to comment your answers, and I'll respond next week.

Speaking of next week, come back and we'll look at other punctuation marks (the apostrophe, the semi-colon, and the colon, among others).



Keep pen to paper ... and keep practicing!

Professor Rinehart

Where should I put it? Put it on the table. (Prepositions)

Today's lesson is going to be short ... but sweet (well, maybe not sweet, but important to know).

Prepositions tell us time, placement, or direction. One of my favorite sites for help in writing is Purdue University's OWL (online writing lab). The site defines a preposition as a word that denotes time and place, or introduces objects.

On their own, prepositions don't mean much. Words like on, at, through, above, below, or behind just ... well, fill up space. So we have what we call prepositional phrases. These are phrases that start with the preposition and then end with a noun or pronoun, which is called the object of the preposition.

I'm getting in my car, driving to the store, and walking down the aisles. In, to, and down are prepositions. Car, store, and aisles are objects of the preposition.

I'm sitting on my desk, going through my papers, while my dogs sit at my feet. On, through, and at are prepositions. Desk, papers, and feet are objects of the preposition.

Simple, huh?

One key here: When you're using a pronoun as an object of the preposition, make certain you're using the objective form of the pronoun (see the blog on nouns and pronouns for more information). For example, if the sentence is:

Please give the tickets to Sharon and _____ as soon as possible.

what form of the pronoun I/me would you use? If to is a preposition (and it is!), then you want to use the objective form of the pronoun. Is that I or me? Hopefully, you recognize that the correct sentence should be:

Please give the tickets to Sharon and me as soon as possible. NOT ... to Sharon and I ...

Prepositions, like other parts of speech, are building blocks that help us give more information to our readers. As I often say (and if you watch my videos or read other blogs, you've heard this before), when we communicate in writing, we only have our words (parts of speech) and how we use them (sentence structure, punctuation, paragraph structure).

So use them well!

Keep pen to paper!

Professor Rinehart

Ooops! How to avoid common sentence errors.

Hello again!

Last week, we looked at the four ways sentences are structured in English writing. Can you name them? (No peeking! Okay, if you need to peek, go ahead and do so!) Even more, can you use them correctly in your writing?

As I said, once you grasp the proper way to structure sentences, you're well on your way to building a solid foundation in your essays. However, it's really easy to make mistakes. Take a look at today's video about common sentence errors (good news: there are only three!):

Come back next week and learn about the exciting world of prepositions!

Keep pen to paper!

Professor Rinehart (or Saundra or Sauni ... you pick a title!)

Building Blocks (sentence structure)

Writing is a skill, and just like any other skill, you can learn how to write more effectively. It just takes your knowing the concepts. One of the basic concepts of effective writing is sentence structure. Today's blog covers this concept in a couple of different ways. For you audio/visual learners, here's a video:

May I encourage you to do one thing: PRACTICE! After all, it's not practice that makes perfect; it's PERFECT practice that makes perfect.

Keep pen to paper!
Professor Rinehart