Search results for 'tag:Phrasal verbs tag:Possessives' matching tags 'Phrasal verbs' and 'Possessives'

Re: intricate

AlpheccaStars — Sat, 01 Nov 2008 04:10:31 GMT

MIA6
Here is another example: We listen to Fagin __ and share her tormented feelings.

A.talk to Nancy. B. talking to Nancy. I chose A since I thought that would make the sentence parallel, but the answer was B. So is that everytime we see "listen", we have put verb-ing form after it?

Let's take this one step at a time:

We listen to Fagin. --> This is a complete sentence (main clause); "listen to" is the phrasal verb, and Fagin is the object.

But could Fagin be doing? talking, screaming, yelling, running, and so on. For example:

Fagin's loud talking drove me crazy. ---> you see that talking is a noun here (a gerund, and the subject of verb "drove")

Fagin's talking softly to Nancy in a dark corner of the room made Jim jealous! --> here is another example, but the gerund phrase has a lot of other words with it.

So what do we listen to?

We listen to Fagin's talking to Nancy. --> this was the correct form 100+ years ago. (with Fagin being in possessive case, and talking the direct object. However, in modern times, this form has dropped out of usage, Instead, we use the gerund as attached to the noun

We listen to Fagin talking to Nancy.

The second part of the sentence now is clearer:

We listen (to Fagin talking to Nancy) and share her tormented feelings. ("we" is the subject of share. Apparently we see her expressions of torment and empathize with her. Maybe they talking about something very painful to her)

But, Fagin could also be doing the sharing, not "we"! Then the sentence changes:

We listen to (Fagin talking to Nancy and sharing her tormented feelings). --> Now we are just listening to Fagin's talking and his sharing Nancy's feelings.

There is another construction using dependent clauses:

We listen to Fagin who is talking to Nancy and share her tormented feelings. ---> now there is a full dependent clause with a subject and verb. (who is talking to Nancy).. We is still the subject of "share"

We listen to Fagin (who is talking to Nancy and sharing her tormented feelings). ---> . the dependent clause is == who is talking to Nancy and sharing her tormented feelings

Re: to be parsed

MrPedantic — Sat, 03 Sep 2005 10:27:54 GMT

Hello K.O.

That looks good - here's a little more detail:

Clause 1

We - subject

were spared - passive voice, past tense

the storm's fury - noun phrase, object (the storm's - possessive; fury - direct object)

Clause 2

but - coordinating conjunction

now - adverb

are having - modal verb, present continuous

to deal with - phrasal verb (prepositional), to-infinitive

the refugees and the misery - two objects coordinated by 'and'

(I expect there are other ways of parsing it.)

The present continuous emphasises the fact that the action is taking place as the speaker utters the sentence.

MrP

Re: Try on this.

Casi — Sun, 16 Jan 2005 03:46:02 GMT

Pronouns (e.g., personal 'him', etc.) are not compatible in that environment. Allow me to explain using an alternative example:

A. Hang the phone up.
B. Hang it up.

In A. and B. the (pro)noun sits next to the verb. That is, it is in close proximity to the head of the phrase it's housed within:

A. [ [hang] [the phone] [up] ]
B. [ [hang] [it] [up] ]

Now, ungrammatically sets in when the pronoun, not the noun, is moved away from its head:

C. Hang up the phone.
D. *Hang up it.

Certain types of phrasal verbs require a nominal object that's semantically independent (i.e., a noun). Pronouns won't work in that environment because they are semantically dependent on an antecedent, which is why D. above and 1. below sound odd to us.

1. *No. I will wake up him!

'him' is not specific enough, semantically. The reason certain phrasal verbs require a noun has more to do with the semantic make-up of those verbs than it has to do with the structural make up of the grammar (i.e., syntax).

Now, if the pronoun is a demonstrative e.g. 'this' as show below, it sounds perfectly fine:

1. Yes, try this on.
2. Yes, try on this.

The difference between demonstrative pronouns and personal pronouns (the non-possessive sort, of course) is the former also function as adjectives, which makes it possible for us to pick up the nominal, or specified meaning from the context.

A: This dress doesn't fit me.
1: Yes, try this (dress) on.
2: Yes, try on this (dress).

A: No one's on his phone.
1: Hang his (phone) up.
2: Hang up his (phone).

A: Whose father should we wake up?
1: Wake his (father) up.
2: Wake up his (father).

I hope that eased some for your pain.