Faculty of Arts Grammar without drama

Grammar is: Not just right or wrong a powerful tool to help you communicate your points a suite of choices to help you guide the reader your friend, or at least not your enemy As you read and write academic essays, you will learn more about grammatical choices and their effects on the reader. For now, we will go through some of the basics. University of Adelaide

An English professor asked her students to punctuate the following sentence: A woman without her man is nothing All of the males in the class wrote: A woman, without her man, is nothing. All the females in the class wrote: A woman: without her, man is nothing. PUNCTUATION IS POWERFUL! facebook.com/grammarly Grammarly.com University of Adelaide

In this presentation we will go over key grammar points: Complete sentences Punctuation Apostrophes Cohesive writing

University of Adelaide

Sometimes it can be hard to know what a sentence fragment is. Sentence Fragments Do you ever get that green wiggly line that asks you to consider revising your sentence fragment? Sometimes it can be hard to know what a sentence fragment is. The best way to understand sentence fragments is to first look at what makes a complete sentence. 6

Complete sentence A ‘complete’ sentence needs a subject and a verb (or a doing word). A sentence can technically just be a verb (Run!), but you will be writing sentences with subjects and verbs in your academic writing. Frank hates grammar. Judy loves grammar more than life itself. Benny is turning into a lizard. Life Impact The University of Adelaide 7

Sentence fragment Without a verb and subject a sentence becomes a ‘fragment’. Which of the following is a sentence fragment? Judy loves grammar. More than life itself. Judy loves grammar more than life itself. 8

Quiz Where is the subject in each of these sentences? Peter wanted to be a professional inline skater. Up the hill and down again ran the escaped ferret. 9

Building Compound Sentences How you build your sentence is your choice! Building Compound Sentences A compound sentence is a sentence made up of simple ‘independent clauses’ that have been joined together with conjunctions or semi-colons. Conjunctions include and, but, both, for, therefore, however, yet. Barry was beginning to wish he hadn’t come to the O-Week Grammar Tutorial. He was considering faking an asthma attack to escape. Barry was beginning to wish he hadn’t come to the O-Week Grammar Tutorial and he was considering faking an asthma attack to escape. Barry was beginning to wish he hadn’t come to the O-Week Grammar Tutorial; he was considering faking an asthma attack to escape. HOW TO SPOT AN INDEPENDENT CLAUSE: 1. Independent clauses work as sentences by themselves. 10

Comma Splice Independent clauses, or simple sentences, cannot be joined by a comma alone. This is called a comma splice. We are going to the ferret race, it will be smelly. We are going to the ferret race; it will be smelly. We are going to the ferret race and it will be smelly. 11

Semicolons A semicolon is used when both parts of the sentence are independent clauses, and are therefore ‘strong’ enough to work as simple sentences. Semi-colons are especially effective when used to join two clauses that are related in thought. I am still pumped about O-Week; it’s going to take more than a grammar tutorial to bring me down. 12

Colons A colon stands between a clause that raises some kind of expectation and the clause/phrase/word that fulfils that expectation. You use a colon when the two parts of the sentence aren’t strong enough to stand alone. I realised immediately who had stolen all the jelly donuts: Dracula! Colons can also be used to introduce a quotation or example or a list. I love three things: chocolate, bananas and chocolate bananas. When I asked the professor, he said: “The paper is due next Monday, not tomorrow.” 13

Commas are your friends! The comma can be used to insert a pause into a sentence. The elephant is large, but he is friendly. Commas can mark out a bit of a sentence, or ‘phrase’, that you could remove from a sentence without affecting it. The elephant, although large, is very friendly. Commas can be used to separate items in a list. The elephant was large, friendly, happy and pink. 14

Quizzes Which of the following sentences is not correct? A. I knew who was following me, what could I do? B. I knew who was following me but what could I do? C. I knew who was following me; what could I do? D. I knew who was following me: what could I do? This is an example of a comma splice. 15

Which of the following sentences is correct? We need a few things; chocolate, movies and a room. We need a few things: chocolate, movies and a room. We need a few things, chocolate, movies and a room. We need a few things; chocolate; movies; a room. Remember: Colons are used to start a list. Semi-colons divide ‘independent’ clauses (with subjects and verbs). Commas separate items in a list (but don’t come before one).

Apostrophes 17

Apostrophes - Singular Apostrophes are used to show who owns something. You put an apostrophe before the s to show one person owns something. The dog’s mobile phone. Mr. Baker’s bowtie. Sometimes, when something or someone’s name already ends in s, you can just put an apostrophe after the name, without an extra s (this is a personal preference, to an extent). Mr. Dickens’ lengthy novels 18

Apostrophes - Plural Apostrophes go after the s when you are indicating more than one person or thing owns something. The dogs’ joint bank account. The boys’ boxed sets of Games of Thrones. Note: sometimes you will encounter a word that acts as a plural, such as ‘children’ or ‘women’. In this case, you place the apostrophe before the s. The children’s playground. The women’s boxed sets of Breaking Bad. Life Impact The University of Adelaide 19

Which of the following is correct? The dog’s off it’s leash The dog’s off its leash The dogs off it’s leash The dogs off its leash The apostrophe shows possession (the leash of the dog). If you wrote out A, it would be ‘The dog is off it is leash.’ 20

Which of the following is correct. A Which of the following is correct? A. A Room of Ones Own is a popular womens book. B. A Room of Ones Own is a popular women’s book. C. A Room of One’s Own is a popular womens’ book. D. A Room of One’s Own is a popular women’s book. Both apostrophes show a ‘single’ person or thing owns something. The room belongs to ‘one’; ‘women’ is singular.

Tips: Use active voice as much as you can: The English language was learned by Celia. Celia learned the English language. Keep your subjects and verbs as close as possible: Charlie, who was from South America and moved to Australia ten years ago, learned English recently. Charlie learned English recently, even though he moved to Australia from South America ten years ago. 22

Cohesive writing Readers need to follow the connection between your ideas. Cohesive devices help explain and connect those complex ideas in your writing. Use cohesive devices to add information, present opposing ideas, and come to conclusions. To join ideas and sentences, use cohesive devices: Scholars have posited various views on the role of tradition within developing countries. Beck, Giddens and Lash (1994) have argued that modernity destroyed tradition. Similarly, anthropological accounts have stated that some groups have willingly rejected tradition in pursuit of the ‘modern.’ 23

Cohesive devices time Before, meanwhile, later, soon, at last, earlier, thereafter, afterward, by that time, from then on, first, second, third, next, now, presently, shortly, immediately, finally, at this time, thereafter, formerly, previously, at this point, during, before, after to compare Likewise, similarly, once again, once more, like, likewise, by comparison, similar to to contrast But, yet, however, although, whereas, though, even so, nonetheless, still, on the other hand, on the contrary, besides, conversely, in contrast, instead, nevertheless, regardless, whereas, while, yet, although, despite, unlike 24

Cohesive devices to conclude As a result, consequently, therefore, hence, for this reason, in summary, in other words, on the whole, thus, in conclusion, hence, ultimately, finally to add Again, also, and, and then, besides, equally, further(more), in addition (to...), indeed, next, in fact, moreover, too, what is more, finally, additionally, further to contradict However, whereas, while, still, alternatively, nevertheless, on the other hand, instead, inspite of, in contrast, even though to give an example For example, for instance, to illustrate, such as, specifically, to demonstrate 25

Examples: Early empires had many common characteristics. For example, many empires promoted themselves as holding greater size and power than the historical reality. Langston Hughes writes about loss and the pursuit of dreams in his poem “Dream Deferred.” As a result, his poem has become a memorable and inspirational text to many who have read it. Some scholars have noted that there is a strong relationship between gender and the nation. However, other scholars have found that the strength of this relationship depends on the cultural context of each nation. 26

Pronouns: your friend and enemy Sometimes, the pronoun and what it refers to is clear, and this helps you avoid repetition in your writing. Other times, the reference is unclear, because there are too many nouns to choose from. Try to avoid beginning sentences with the word “It.” “It” is the most vague of the pronouns, and can refer to nearly anything at all. More often, use a concrete noun (such as ‘empire’, ‘the author,’ or ‘industry,’ instead of ‘it’) to improve clarity. 27

Example: In 18th century England, the idea of the companionate marriage began. As a result, authors wrote about marriage in new ways. It helped to establish relationships based on mutual feelings. But it wasn’t a cure for unhappy relationships. It created other problems too. 28

Example: In 18th century England, the idea of the companionate marriage began. As a result, authors wrote about marriage in new ways. This new style of marriage helped to establish relationships based on mutual feelings. But these unions weren’t a cure for unhappy relationships. Companionate marriages created other problems too. Keep clarifying your meaning in new ways, rather than repeating ‘It.’ 29

Example: Muslim women who wear headscarves are often widely misunderstood in the West. Even though they can be colourful and stylish, many still believe that wearing it equals oppression. Here, it’s unclear what ‘they’ refers to. It could be ‘Muslim women,’ ‘headscarves’ or ‘the West,’ as they are all nouns in the previous sentence. Instead, repeat the word ‘headscarf’ or use a synonym. 30

Use cohesive devices: as a bridge between two ideas as signposts to signal what’s coming up to avoid abrupt stops between ideas Industrialisation in England shifted ideas about gender roles in three ways. First, the creation of mass production caused a separation between home and work that did not exist before. Second, … Third, … Here, the writer is forecasting what is coming up in her paper, creating signposts for the reader. 31

Making connections You can make connections between sentences and paragraphs to lead the reader forward, compare ideas, and draw conclusions. Make these connections by using the rule ‘old before new.’ Put ‘old’ information in the beginning of your sentence, and ‘new’ information at the end. Example: Ann conducted a research study in the social sciences. In Dubai, she interviewed twenty people. Ann conducted a research study in the social sciences. As part of her study, she interviewed twenty people in Dubai. 32

Old before new Ann conducted a research study in the social sciences. As part of her study, she interviewed twenty people in Dubai. While interviewing people, she asked them questions about their national identity. The interviewees answered that they felt pride in their national language of Arabic. And so on … 33

Flow Begin sentences with information familiar to your reader. To you, everything is familiar, since you have worked out your ideas on the topic. Remember to begin sentences with only information that is familiar to your reader. Globalisation is made up of flows of information, technology, capital, culture and people. These flows have no single destination, but instead include processes that are uneven and complex. The Industrial age in England brought about many changes to work and family life. The effects of this time period helped to create the gender relations we recognise today. You can use synonyms to avoid repetition. 34

Further Resources Consider ways in which your grammar journey can continue: Use our especially devised resources in the Academic Skills Resources course on the homepage of Canvas: Grammar Basics and Advanced Grammar: Cohesion. Visit English for Uni (www.adelaide.edu.au/english-for-uni). Join our Facebook Page to post your questions: ‘Uni Adelaide Faculty of Arts Students’. 35