- 1/20/15 Take out your copy of “The Most Dangerous Game” Take out “Literary Devices Planning Sheet” and pass to front of room Take out Scavenger Hunt and set aside

Some examples from Connell’s “The Most Dangerous Game” Some wounded thing– by evidence, a large animal– had thrashed about in the underbrush… A small glittering object not far away caught Rainsford’s eye and he picked it up. Find this excerpt on page 3, about 2/3 down the page.

Some examples from Connell’s “The Most Dangerous Game” Some wounded thing– by evidence, a large animal– had thrashed about in the underbrush… A small glittering object not far away caught Rainsford’s eye and he picked it up. Underline each word in your story. Label each underlined word in pencil in the margin. Is it a noun? Verb? Adjective? Adverb? Pronoun?

Some examples from Connell’s “The Most Dangerous Game” Some wounded (adjective) thing– by evidence, a large animal– had thrashed (verb) about in the underbrush… A small glittering (adjective) object not far away caught Rainsford’s eye and he picked (verb) it up. Label each underlined word in pencil. Is it a noun? Verb? Adjective? Adverb? Pronoun? What do you notice about all these words?

Yes! Without the suffix, they are all examples of verbs. Wound, thrash, glitter, pick– all verbs. So, how can wounded be an adjective? How can glittering be an adjective?

Quotes from the experts… “Verbs are the most important of all your tools. They push the sentence forward and give it momentum. Active verbs push hard; passive verbs tug fitfully.” On Writing Well William Zinsser

Verbs are so effective that we often steal them and transform them into other parts of speech. When we do this it is called a verbal.

Verbals… A verbal looks and sounds like a verb, but it is NOT a verb. It works as another part of speech. Avoid confusing a verbal and a verb. They are never the same and can never occupy the same space in a sentence. Verbals will not have helping verbs.

Participles and Participial Phrases A participle is a verbal used as an ADJECTIVE. Participles modify NOUNS or PRONOUNS only. A participle will answer the adjective questions “Which one?” and “What kind?” Participles are either PRESENT or PAST --- Present participles end in –ing Past participles usually end in -ed, but some past participles have irregular endings such as -en, -n, -t. Even the word made can be a participle.

Examples of Participles and Phrases Present Participle (with an –ing ending) The sleeping student missed his next class. (Which student?) (The verb is missed.) Past Participle (with –ed, -en, -n, -t, made) The defrosted meat lay on the kitchen table. The broken chair is dangerous. The jacket, torn and ripped, is ruined. The car made in Japan is a Nissan.

Participial Phrases A participial phrase is a verbal that includes its modifiers or complements -- all working together as an ADJECTIVE. A participial phrase can be anywhere in a sentence and be combined with an adverb, a prep phrase, or a complement. If an adverb precedes a participial phrase, include it as part of the phrase: Quickly raising his hand, Joe was called on first.

Punctuation with Participial Phrases Always put a comma at the end of an introductory participial phrase. In Liam O’Flaherty’s “The Sniper,” irony is used in the story’s plot. Participial phrases that interrupt or come at the end of a sentence may or may not need a comma depending on whether the phrase is Essential: the phrase identifies or specifies Nonessential: can be removed without changing the sentence’s meaning

Examples of Essential and Nonessential Participial Phrases The painting hanging near the door is Lee’s. (The phrase is essential and needs no commas because it identifies which painting is Lee’s. What if there were other paintings?) My down vest, given to me as a gift, keeps me warm. (The phrase is nonessential and needs commas. That it is a gift has nothing to do with the warmth it provides and is unneeded.)

Gerunds A gerund is a verbal ending in -ing and used as a NOUN. Examples: Subject: Swimming is fun. Direct Object: I love swimming. Indirect Object: Joe’s competitive edge gave his swimming a real boost. Object of a Prep: Joe’s love for swimming is strong. Predicate Nom: Joe’s favorite sport is swimming. Appositive: Joe’s favorite sport, swimming, is easy.

What are complement gerunds? Direct Objects, Indirect Objects and Predicate Nominatives = nouns that end in –ing Direct Objects answer whom? What? And follow action verbs Indirect objects answer For whom? To whom? For what? To what? And follow action verbs. An indirect object comes before a direct object Predicate nominatives follow linking verbs and rename the subject before the verb.

Gerund or Participle? It’s easy! Remember: Gerunds are nouns. Participles are adjectives. Gerunds end in –ing. Participles end in –ing, -ed, -en, -n, -t Nouns are things; adjectives describe things. Know what the verbal is doing in the sentence. Do not confuse the verb and the verbal.

Now, let’s finish the treasure hunt We’ll complete page 3 together. You will then complete pages 4, 5, 6, and 7 with a partner. After completing the search, update your treasure hunt sheet by adding participles and gerunds with page numbers.

Gerund Phrases A gerund phrase includes its modifiers and complements – all working together as one NOUN. GRAMMAR ALERT! GRAMMAR ALERT! Use a possessive noun or pronoun before a gerund. It will be part of the gerund phrase. Sue’s learning grammar makes her sophisticated. The highlight of today is our learning grammar.

Infinitives Infinitives are verbals that usually begin with the word to and another verb. Infinitives can be used as nouns, adjectives or adverbs. Infinitives can never be prep phrases. An infinitive is to + a verb form (to go, to see) whereas a prep phrase is to + an object (noun or pronoun): to school, to Utah, to the dance

Infinitive Phrases Like gerunds and participle phrases, an infinitive phrase can be combined with modifiers and complements – all working together as a noun, an adjective, or an adverb. Examples: We left home early to get to the movie on time. My family hopes to leave for Utah tomorrow. The book to read is Fahrenheit 451.

Finding and Using Infinitives Infinitives can come anywhere in a sentence. Infinitives act like nouns, adjectives or adverbs. Sometimes the word to is omitted when the infinitive follows verbs such as dare, feel, hear, help, let, make, need, see and watch. Example: No one dared go without permission

Identifying Infinitive Phrases Adjective infinitives will always follow a noun or pronoun: The place to go is called Mezzo. (Which place? What kind?) Noun infinitives can be Subjects, DOs, or PNs: To watch a child walk for the first time is exciting. I want to go to Europe every summer. My job is to watch the swimmers. Adverb infinitives modify adjectives and other adverbs. I left early to go home.

Misplaced and Dangling Modifiers Participial phrases and infinitive phrases can be used as modifiers and must be placed close to the word they modify. Misplaced modifier: the verbal phrase must be moved next to the word it modifies. Dangling modifier: DO NOT MOVE the verbal phrase. The sentence lacks a word to be modified. Add that word next to the verbal.

Fixing Misplaced and Dangling Modifiers Example of a misplaced modifier: We saw a bear hiking along with our cameras. Hiking along with our cameras, we saw a bear. (Move the verbal and punctuate it correctly.) Example of a dangling modifier: To enter the contest, a form must be signed. To enter the contest, you must sign a form. (Do NOT move the verbal; add a missing word.)