COMPOSITION AND RHETORIC BY PRACTICE. INTRODUCTORY. THE art of finding thoughts and of giving them suitable expression is Composition. The science that discusses the principles which guide us in composition is Rhetoric. In practice Composition and Rhetoric are inseparably connected. Composition has two distinct parts: the one deals with thoughts, the other with forms of expression. The former is usually called Invention; the latter, Style. LESSON I. THE SENTENCE.-GRAMMATICAL CLASSIFICATION. Kinds of Sentences. Sentences are classified, according to their form, into Simple, Complex, and Compound. SIMPLE SENTENCES. The Simple Sentence. The essential parts of the simple sentence are the subject and predicate. In the most elementary form neither of these has any qualification; as, "Time flies." I Qualifiers. The subject and predicate may each have a vast variety of modifications. I. The subject is always a substantive — that is, a noun, or pronoun, or an adjective, adverb, infinitive, or other part of speech — used as a noun. 1. The subject, when a noun or pronoun, may be modified by: (1) An adjective or an adjective phrase, used either attri- a. The good citizens, fearing a revolt, fled. c. His father's estate was sold. d. The husband, with his wife and children, has departed. e. That new world, blessed with plenty, was my hope. f. The desire to please was too strong. (2) A noun in apposition; as, "There, too, sat she, the beautiful mother of a beautiful race, the Saint Cecilia." 2. When the subject is a verbal, simple, or phrasal, it may have the modifiers of a verb, as well as some of those of a substantive; as, a. To buy (or buying) and sell (or selling) goods for cash is a safe business. b. To be sad and gloomy all through life argues a misconception of its object. c. His running violently down the street had a fatal result. d. Being kept here week after week is a great annoyance. 3. When the subject is a word commonly used as an adjective or as an adverb, it may have the modifiers of those parts of speech, as well as some of the modifiers of nouns; as, "The very good of all ages are often ridiculed." "This eternal now rang in his ears." The subject may consist of two or more nouns or pronouns, each with modifiers. II. The predicate may consist of: 1. A single word. The simple verb of the predicate may be modified by: a. An adverb or adverbial phrase; as, "He turned quickly to the right." b. An indirect or adverbial objective; as, "I gave him money"; "He stayed a day." c. An absolute word or phrase; as, "The work being finished, we repaired to our homes." d. An infinitive; as, "He left the hall to obey his master's commands." 2. A verb and its object; as, "They built a house." "He The object may be: (1) a noun or its equivalent ; 3. A copula and its complement; as, "He was rich." The complement of 3 and 4 may be : a. A substantival; as, "That is the man"; "This is he"; "My duty is to die"; "Seeing is believing." b. An adjectival; as, "They are young"; "He stands firm"; "The building is of wood"; "They seem exhausted.” c. An adverbial; as, "The hat is here"; "The work is all-of-a-piece"; "He is here to stay"; "The letter is to be written." 5. A verb completed by a factitive noun or adjective; as, "They made him king"; "He was made king"; "The pain drove him wild." All the objects or complements of 2, 3, 4, and 5, whether substantival, adjectival, or adverbial, are themselves subject to modification, each according to its nature. Position. -The various modifiers may sometimes occupy different positions in a sentence. It is, however, a good general rule that words and phrases should be placed as near as possible to the words they qualify. EXERCISE I. SIMPLE SENTENCES. 1. Enlarge the subjects and the predicates of each of the following simple sentences in as many ways as you can: 2. Combine each of the following groups of statements into a simple sentence: a. I pursued my walk. I pursued it to a door. The door was arched. It opened. It opened to the interior of the abbey. b. She was a maiden. shy. She was simple. those reared in towns. She was born in the country. She was She was sweet. She was different from They are boisterous. They are romping. It was flat on top. His They were green. They c. His head was small. It was flat. ears were huge. His eyes were large. were glassy. d. Night came. with her mantle. stars. She came to receive their form. She came a. An old, thick-set peasant, in rags, is driving his plough in the field. b. She seemed to have survived all love, all friendship, all society. c. The faltering voice of the poor old woman rose to heaven far before the responses of the clerk, the swell of the organ, or the chanting of the choir. |