The Grammatical Category of Voice
Definition of Voice
Voice is a morphological category that manifests itself in the forms of the verb. At the same time, the category of voice has a number of syntactic characteristics because it is realized in such a syntactic unit as the sentence.
Voice is a category of the verb that indicates the relationship between the subject and the predicate-verb of the sentence. The active voice shows that the subject of the sentence is the doer of the action expressed by the predicate, e.g.:
The woman opened the door... (Th. Hardy).
The passive voice shows that the subject does not act, but is acted upon, e.g.:
The door was opened by a Chinese girl... (W.S. Maugham).
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A.I. Smirnitsky thinks that the category of voice expresses the direction of the action. In the active voice, the process denoted by the verb issues from the subject and is directed outside:
AV: S
The woman opened the door.
In the passive voice, the process indicated by the verb characterizes the grammatical subject from without:
PV: S *•
The door was opened by a Chinese girl.
L.S. Barkhudarov is of opinion that in the case of the passive voice the process indicated by the verb does characterize the grammatical subject from without As for the active voice, it is not always that the process denoted by the verb issues from the subject and is directed outside. He analyzes the following three cases.
1. The door opened (A. Christie).
The subject here denotes neither the agent nor the object of the action. It indicates the thing inside which the action is going on.
2. He dressed... (W. Deeping).
The subject in sentences like these indicates both the agent and the object of the action. The action issues from the subject and then returns to it.
3. They kissed again... (P. Swinnerton).
In such cases, the subject also expresses both the agent and the object of the action. But as opposed to sentences of the type He. dressed, the subject here indicates a number of persons or things, and every member of the group performs the action not on himself, but on another member of the same group.
Taking all this into consideration, L.S. Barkhudarov finds it necessary to modify the conception of A.I. Smirnitsky. He also represents the active and passive voices in the form of an opposition. But this opposition, in his opinion, is privative not only in form (the passive voice is characterized by the discontinuous morpheme be + -en; the active voice lacks this characteristic), but also in meaning (in the case of the passive voice, the action of the verb is directed onto the subject from without; in the case of the active voice, the action of the verb is not directed onto the subject from without).
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Recently, however, the privative character of the voice opposition has been called in question by A.V. Bondarko. Privative oppositions can be neutralized on the syntagmatic axis. Since the voice opposition is never neutralized, it is doubtful that it can be regarded as privative. But what kind of opposition is it then? The question is still open to discussion.
The Passive Voice Voice Auxiliaries
In Old English, there existed the free phrase 'beon/weorl>an + Participle II of a transitive verb'. In Middle English, the verb weorPan fell into disuse; the verb beon began to lose its lexical meaning. The full development of the passive form belongs to the Middle English period.
The existence of the voice auxiliary be is universally recognized. According to G.A. Veikhman. there is a rising tendency in Modern English to use the auxiliary get instead of the auxiliary be. English grammarians, however, state that the gef-passive is rare and restricted primarily to conversation.
The gel-passive often reflects an unfavourable attitude towards the action. Thus, the utterance How did that window get opened? (R, Quirk et al.) typically implies that the window should have been shut.
Since most gel-passives are used as stative passives, they cannot take an agent specified in a fcy-phrase. However, the gel-passive conveys a more dynamic sense than the he-passive: the fee-passive generally simply describes a state, while the gel-passive describes the process of getting into the state, with a resultant meaning similar to become. Cf.:
The chair was broken (R. Quirk et al.).
The chair got broken (R. Quirk et al.).
Linguistic Status of the Passive Voice
H. Poutsma does not recognize the existence of an independent passive voice. He looks upon it as the reverse of the active voice. But a passive construction is not always a converted active construction. The impossibility of the passive transformation may be due to the nature of the direct object. Thus, an active
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construction cannot be made passive when the direct object in the active construction is expressed by:
1) a reflexive pronoun, e.g.:
He saw himself in the mirror (R. Quirk et al.);
2) a reciprocal pronoun equivalent, e.g.:
They told each other about their families (Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English);
3) a noun with a possessive determiner referring to the same
person as the subject of the sentence, e.g.:
He cut his face while shaving (A.S. Hornby, A.P. Cowie, A.C. Gimson);
4) a clause, e.g.:
John told us that he'd seen you in town (Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English);
5) an infinitival phrase, e.g.:
We hope to see you soon (A.S. Hornby, A.P. Cowie, A.C. Gimson);
6) a gerundial phrase, e.g.:
I've enjoyed talking to you about old times (A.S. Hornby, A.P. Cowie, A.C. Gimson).
Sometimes there is no passive construction because the verb and the direct object are so closely connected that they form a set phrase and cannot be separated, e.g.:
/ suddenly caught sight of her in the crowd (Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English).
In a number of cases, the impossibility of the passive transformation is due to the semantic nature of the verb. Thus, the passive cannot be used with verbs denoting state, such as resemble, suit, possess, etc., e.g.:
That colour doesn't suit her (Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English). —» *She is not suited by that colour.
She resembles her mother (A.S. Hornby, A.P. Cowie, A.C. Gimson). —»• *ffer mother is resembled by her.
Types of Passive Constructions
In Russian, it is only transitive verbs that admit of the passive construction. In English, M. Joos singles out three types of passive constructions.
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1. Primary passive. The subject of a primary passive
construction corresponds to the direct object of a parallel active
construction, e.g.:
The door was opened by a girl (J.B. Priestley). —» A girl opened the door.
2. Secondary passive. The subject of a secondary passive
construction corresponds to the indirect object of a parallel active
construction, e.g.:
We were shown a room (O. Goldsmith). —> He showed us a room.
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The presence of a prepositional fry-object expressing the agent is optional both in primary and secondary passive constructions. The passive construction with a by-phrase is called the long passive, without a Ay-phrase - the short (or agentless) passive. Although approximately four out of five English passive sentences have no expressed agent, in some passive sentences the agent is obligator)', e.g.:
The music was followed by a short interval (R. Quirk et al.). —> *The music was followed...
3. Tertiary passive. The subject of a tertiary passive
construction corresponds to a prepositional object or an adverbial of
aparalle! active construction, e.g.:
They were never heard of again (W. Deeping). —> Nobody ever heard of them again.
The bed had not been slept in (O. Jespersen). —> Nobody had slept in the bed.
Tertiary passive embraces constructions with fixed prepositions attached to the verb, e.g.:
That's a thing I've not been accused of before (W.S. Maugham).
The child shall be taken care of somehow (G. Eliot).
Use of the Passive Voice
The passive voice is used in the following cases.
1. When the agent is unknown or cannot easily be stated, e.g.:
The two sons were killed in the Great War (W. Deeping).
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2. When the agent is self-evident from the context, e.g.:
He was elected Member of Parliament for Leeds (O. Jespersen).
3. When there is a special reason for not mentioning the agent,
e.g.:
Enough has been said here of a subject which will be treated more fully in a subsequent chapter (O. Jespersen).
4. When the agent is indicated, the reason why the passive
voice is preferred is generally the greater interest taken in the object
of the action than in its agent, e.g.:
His son was run over by a motor-car (O. Jespersen). Naturally, we are more interested in the fact who was run over than by what.
5. The passive voice may facilitate the connection of one
sentence with another, e.g.:
They married, and he went back to the front and was killed (S. Sheldon).
The human actor (or agent) is not important in academic prose. Hence, a high frequency of passive constructions, which allow the objects of study to be the subject of sentences, thereby giving them topic status. The extensive use of passive constructions also gives a sense of objective detachment from what is being described, as required by the Western scientific tradition.
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Passive constructions are also common in news. True, news has somewhat different reasons for the use of the passive, especially the short passive. The focus of a news story is often an event that involves a person or institution. The agent of this event may be easy to guess, uninteresting, or already mentioned. Furthermore, presenting only the new information can save space, which is desirable in newspaper writing. It is natural in such cases to omit the agent and use the passive voice. For example, reference to 'the police' is omitted in the following sentence:
Doherty was arrested in New York in June (D. Biber et al.).
In contrast, conversation is generally much more concerned with the experiences and actions of people. It, therefore, usually expresses the agent as subject and rarely uses the passive voice.
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Meaning of the Passive Voice
According to G. Curme, C.T. Onions, L.S. Barkhudarov, D.A. Shteling and G.N. Vorontsova, the combination 'be + Participle II' should in all cases be treated as a passive voice form. C.T. Onions writes apropos of this: The forms of the passive voice have two distinct meanings:
1) they may express continuous or habitual action, e.g.:
/ was annoyed by mosquitoes all night (R. A. Close);
2) they may express the state resulting from an action, e.g.:
His office is closed. Come back tomorrow (E.S. Connell).
The majority of linguists, however, think that we deal with
two different constructions here. When the combination 'be + Participle II* indicates an action, it should be looked upon as the passive voice; when it renders the meaning of state, it should be qualified as a compound nominal predicate with the verb in the active voice. R. Quirk and his co-authors call it 'pseudo-passive'.
Be with Participle II constitutes the passive voice in the following cases.
1. When the agent of the action is indicated with the help of a
6y-phrase, e.g.:
They were thus introduced by Holly (J. Galsworthy).
2. When the verb is in the continuous aspect because it is
generally action verbs that admit of the continuous aspect, e.g.:
When Milly got to the stables, a horse was being saddled (G. Eliot).
3. When the verb is in the perfect phase because it is generally
action verbs that admit of the perfect phase, e.g.:
You have been told three times this week that she is coming home for her health (B. Shaw).
4. When the verb is in the future tense because it is generally
action verbs that admit of the future tense, e.g.:
... your luggage will be brought straight away (Lingaphone English Course).
5. When the verb is qualified by an adverbial of place, time, or
frequency because it is actions that we place in space and time, e.g.:
Sir Percy and his lady were conducted to the platform (D.H. Lawrence).
I'll be dressed in a minute (E. Hemingway).
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Tfie chambermaid's curiosity was roused at once (J.B. Priestley).
6. When there is another verb in the sentence, in the active voice, e.g.:
People passed him and were passed by him (W. Deeping).
When Participle II makes part of a compound nominal predicate with the verb in the active voice, it can often be modified by the word very or some other intensifying word, e.g.:
She is very excited about getting a part in a film (Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English).
The Problem of the Reflexive Voice
The most popular view is that there are two voices in English: active and passive. The problem of the reflexive voice arises in connection with verbs followed by sd^pronouns, e.g.:
He seated himself on the grass... (P. Abrahams).
The reflexive voice is mentioned by H. Poutsma, H. Whitehall, V.N. Zhigadlo, I.P. Ivanova and L.L. lofik. The subject of the reflexive voice, in their opinion, acts on itself.
To recognize the existence of the reflexive voice, we must prove that the reflexive pronoun forms with the verb an analytical form and that it cannot perform an independent syntactic function in the sentence.
The most striking peculiarity of pronouns is that they can be used both as notional and as auxiliary elements. Reflexive pronouns are not an exception either. In sentences of the type: But he never trusted himself (D.H. Lawrence), It surprised even herself (D.H. Lawrence), the reflexive pronouns himself and herself function as notional elements, namely as objects.
In sentences of the type: He found himself in Upper Street... (W. Deeping), Arline threw herself face down on the bed and sobbed (I. Shaw), the reflexive pronouns himself and herself function as auxiliary elements, hi such cases, the combination of a verb with the following reflexive pronoun could be regarded as a specific reflexive voice on condition that the reflexive pronoun could not be omitted. But auxiliary self-pronouns can and often are omitted, e.g.:
Andrew washed and dressed and ten minutes later was running down the road towards the shop (Ch. Culshaw).
When auxiliary self-pronouns can be omitted, the verb is evidently in the active voice. When auxiliary ^//"-pronouns cannot be omitted, two interpretations seem possible. On the one hand, we can regard the combination of a verb with the following reflexive pronoun as a specific reflexive voice. On the other hand, we can say that we deal in such cases with phraseological combinations of reflexive pronouns with verbs in the active voice.
The Problem of the Reciprocal Voice
Still controversial is the problem of the reciprocal voice formed by a verb with one of the following pronominal combinations: each other or one another, e.g.;
We love each other (J. Galsworthy).
They knew one another very well indeed... (D.H. Lawrence).
Since the pronominal combinations each other and one another function as objects, they cannot form analytical forms with the verbs love and knew. Consequently, there are no grounds for singling out the reciprocal voice as a specific grammatical form.
The Problem of the Middle Voice
The problem of the middle voice arises in connection with sentences of the type: The door opened (W. Deeping).
Some say it is passive. Morphologically, it is not passive because it lacks the pattern 'be + Participle IF.
Semantically, it is different from the passive construction, too: in the passive construction, the subject is acted upon; in the sentence The door opened, the subject is neither the agent nor the object of the action. As L.S. Barkhudarov puts it, the subject here indicates the thing inside which the action is going on.
Syntactically, it is not identical with the passive construction either. In the passive construction The door was opened, the agent of the action can be introduced: The door was opened by a girl (J.B. Priestley). The construction The door opened does not allow the introduction of an agent.
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E.G. Shubnaya does not find this argument convincing. She says that over 70% of passive constructions contain no mention of the agent either, but we still qualify them as passive. However, E.G. Shubnaya does not take into consideration that the mention of the agent in the passive, though optional, is theoretically and practically possible, while in sentences of the type The door opened it generates an ungrammatical construction:
The door opened (W. Deeping). —> *The door opened by a girl.
Since cases of the type The door opened are semantically, syntactically, and morphologically different from passive constructions, we do not find it possible to follow E.G. Shubnaya in qualifying them as functional synonyms of passive voice forms.
The next question is: do they constitute a specific type of construction with the so-called middle voice, or can they, perhaps, be referred to as active?
Voice is a morphological category, first and foremost. Morphologically., The door opened is active.
However, the majority of linguists [e.g. V.M. Nikitevich; I.B. Khlebnikova; A.M. Mukhin] question the validity of a purely morphological approach to the category of voice. Voice does not characterize the verb as a part of speech. Voice meanings come to be realized only on the syntactic level of the sentence. Syntactically, opened in the sentence The door opened is different from the active voice. The verb in active sentences is generally followed by a direct object, e.g.: The woman opened the door... (Th. Hardy), while the verb in sentences of the type The door opened can combine only with an adverbial, e.g.:
The door opened in wards (Longman Dicti onary o f Contemporary English).
Semantically, they are not identical either. In the active sentence The woman opened the door, the subject the woman is the agent of the action; in the sentence The door opened, the subject the door indicates the thing inside which the action is going on.
But the active voice constitutes the non-marked member of the voice opposition. The non-marked member of an opposition has a very general meaning. In view of this, perhaps, L.S. Barkhudarov is right when he says that the indication of a thing inside which an
action is going on constitutes a variety of the meaning of the active
voice.
If we look upon voice as a morphological category, first and foremost, and regard the indication of a thing inside which this or that action is going on as a variety of the meaning of the active voice, we shall be bound to acknowledge that there is no middle voice in English.
NON-FINITE FORMS OF THE VERB
General Characteristics
To non-finite forms of the verb (or verbals), tradition refers the infinitive (to take), the gerund (taking), Participle I (taking), and Participle II (taken).
All English verbals were originally names. But in the course of time they have been acquiring more and more verbal force. Nowadays, they share the properties of verbs and names (nouns, adjectives, and adverbs).
Lexically, verbals do not differ from finite verbs.
Morphologically, they have some features that differentiate them from finite verbs and some features that unite them with finite verbs. As opposed to finite verbs, verbals lack the grammatical categories of person, number, tense, and mood. But just like finite verbs, all verbals have the grammatical categories of phase and voice. The infinitive also has the grammatical category of aspect.
Syntactically, verbals share the characteristics of finite verbs and names. Their verbal nature manifests itself mainly in their combinability: they may take any kind of object or adverbial that a finite verb might take. Their nominal nature reveals itself in their syntactic functions. Those verbals that do the work of verbs and nouns perform the functions typical of nouns (subjects, objects, predicatives, etc.); those verbals that do the work of verbs and adjectives/adverbs, perform the functions typical of adjectives and adverbs (attributes and adverbials). In contrast to finite verbs, verbals can never form a predicate by themselves, although they can form part of a predicate, both simple and compound.
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The Infinitive
In Old English, the infinitive was a fully inflected verbal substantive, ft had two forms.
1. The uninflected infinitive representing the nominative and
the accusative of a verbal noun, e.g.: wntan.
2. The inflected infinitive used mostly after the preposition to.
This form had the suffix -ne and represented the dative case of a
verbal noun, e.g.: to writanne. The inflected infinitive with the
preposition to expressed direction or purpose.
When in the Middle English period -ne, the inflection of the dative case, was lost, the two forms of the infinitive merged into one. The preposition to gradually lost its lexical meaning and turned into a formal sign of the infinitive.
Nowadays, it is often called a particle. B.S. Khaimovich and B.L Rogovskaya prove quite convincingly that the infinitival marker to is not a particle.
1. Particles as a part of speech are characterized by the
lexico-grammatical meaning of 'emphatic specification'. The
infinitival to does not emphasize or specify anything.
2. All particles have distinct lexical meaning. The infinitival to
has no lexical meaning whatsoever.
3. Particles form combinations with words of almost any part
of speech. To is connected only with the infinitive.
The to-infinitive, according to M.Y. Blokh, constitutes an analytical form. He puts forward the following arguments to prove his point of view.
1. As is the case with other analytical markers, the infinitival
marker to can be used to represent the whole infinitival
construction, e.g.:
Perhaps tomorrow you might be able to come to the hospital -with me... -No, I don't want to (S. Hill).
2. Like other analytical markers, it can also be separated from
its notional element by a word or phrase, usually of adverbial
nature, forming the so-called split infinitive, e.g.:
He prepared to silently accompany her (O. Jespersen). The split infinitive is quite common in English, especially in conversation, although a lot of people consider it 'bad style'.
On the one hand, the arguments of M.Y. Blokh sound convincing. But if the infinitival marker to were an auxiliary part of an analytical word, it would be impossible to omit it. In the vast majority of cases, the infinitive is used with the marker to. But there also exists in English the so-called bare infinitive, i.e. infinitive without the marker to.
The bare infinitive is used in the following cases.
1. After the auxiliary verbs do, does, did, and will, e.g.:
Don't move (T. Chevalier).
She does not speak Italian (V. Evans).
He didn't watch television yesterday (R. Murphy).
He'tt be here any minute (J. Galsworthy).
2. After modal verbs, except the verb ought, e.g.:
Soldiers must obey orders (A.S. Hornby, A.P. Cowie, A. C. Gimson).
You should call him (H. Fielding).
At first I could not meet his eyes (T. Chevalier).
She ought to understand (M Swan).
3. After the modal expressions had better, would rather, would
sooner, cannot (choose) but, might as well, etc. Cf.:
You had better mind your own business (A.S. Hornby, A.P. Cowie, A.C. Gimson).
I'd rather play tennis than swim (Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English).
I'd sooner die than marry you (Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English).
I cannot but think so (A. Trollope).
We might as well walk (R. A. Close).
4. After the combinations do nothing save/but, nothing to do
but, e.g.:
The boy had nothing to do but watch the sheep and think (G. Bates).
There was nothing left to do but wait (M. Wilson).
5. When the infinitive makes part of a complex object:
a) after verbs of sense perception, e.g.:
/ haven't heard anyone call me (O. Wilde), I saw Brown enter the room (J. Braine), I_watched her cross the street (A.S. Hornby, A.P. Cowie, A.C. Gimson),
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/ felt the blood rush into my cheeks, and then leave them again (W. Collins),
Did you notice anyone leave the house1? (Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English);
b) after the verbs make, let, have and very often after the verb help. Cf,:
What made you get up so early? (R. Kipling).
I Jet my mother answer (T. Cheval ier),
/ won't have you say this sort of thing (J. Galsworthy),
Help me get him to bed (M. Swan).
6. In sentences beginning with Why? and Why not?, which
have a weakened seme of interrogation, Cf.:
Why worry! (R.A. Close). Why not relax? (R.A. Close).
In both cases, the speaker does not ask for information, but gives the interlocutor a piece of advice.
7. In sentences, comprising two infinitives linked by the
conjunctions and, or, and but, the second infinitive is usually used
without the marker to. Cf.:
I'd like to lie down and go to steep (M. Swan). Do you want to have lunch now or wait till later? (M. Swan). /'// do anything but work on a farm (M. Swan). As has already been mentioned, the infinitive combines verbal features with those of the noun.
Verbal Features of the Infinitive
The verbal features of the infinitive are of two kinds: morphological and syntactic.
Morphologically, the verbal nature of the infinitive manifests itself in the grammatical categories of aspect, phase, and voice. The category of aspect finds its expression in the opposition of non-continuous and continuous forms. The non-continuous infinitive stresses the fact of the action, the continuous infinitive -the progress of the action. Cf.:
/ expect him to fail the exam (Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English).
// 's nice to be sitting here with you (M. Swan).
The continuous infinitive is very seldom used, almost exclusively in the active voice.
The category of phase finds its expression in the opposition of non-perfect and perfect forms. Being the marked member of the phase opposition, the perfect infinitive usually denotes an action prior to the action expressed by the finite verb, e.g.:
She said she was sorry to have missed you (M. Swan).
After such verbs as mean, expect, intend, and hope, used in the past indefinite, the perfect infinitive shows that the hope (or intention) was not realized, e.g.:
I meant to have telephoned, but I for got (M. Swan).
Being the non-marked member of the phase opposition, the non-perfect infinitive has a wider range of meanings than the perfect infinitive. The typical meaning of the non-perfect infinitive is that of succession. The non-perfect infinitive expresses succession in the following cases.
1. When it is an adverbial of purpose, e.g.:
The traveller stopped to rest (The New Webster's Grammar Guide).
2. When it is part of a compound verbal predicate. Cf:
You must stay in bed (V. Evans) - compound verbal modal predicate.
I hope to see you this evening (R.A. Close) - compound verbal modal predicate.
.ft began to rain (Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English) — compound verbal aspective predicate.
3. When it is an object of a verb of inducement, e.g.:
Father advised him to buy the bonds (The New Webster's Grammar Guide).
When the non-perfect infinitive is associated with a verb denoting an emotional state (e.g. astonish, exasperate, relieve, shock, surprise, wonder, like, etc.), it expresses an action preceding the action rendered by the finite verb, e.g.:
We were surprised to hear the news (A.S. Hornby, A.P. Cowie, A.C. Gimson).
And, finally, the non-perfect infinitive can express an action simultaneous with the action of the finite verb, e.g.:
We watched them go (E. Walker, St. Elsworth).
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The voice opposition in the infinitive is similar to that in finite verbs. Cf.:
There is no time to lose (Th. Dreiser) - active infinitive.
There is no time to be lost (G. Eliot) - passive infinitive.
After the verb be the active infinitive often renders the grammatical meaning common to the passive infinitive, e.g.:
This house is to let (R.A. Close). <= Someone wishes to let the house>
You are not to blame for what happened (R.A. Close). <= No one should blame you for what happened.>
Syntactically, the verbal nature of the infinitive manifests itself in the following characteristics.
1. Its right-hand combinability with objects, adverbials, and
predicatives when the infinitive happens to be a copula. Cf.:
Arlene -wanted to buy a fur coat (The New Webster's Grammar Guide) - object.
The train was to leave at midnight (E. Hemingway) -adverbial.
I'm likely to be very busy tomorrow (M. Swan) - predicative.
2. Its left-hand combinability with a subjectival member
denoting the doer of the action expressed by the infinitive, e.g.:
We -want them to build a house (The New Webster's Grammar Guide).
3. The function of realizing the verbal component of primary
predication when the infinitive makes part of a simple or compound
predicate. Cf.:
I'll fall off(S. Hill) - part of a simple predicate,
/ didn 't touch anything (S. Hill) - part of a simple predicate.
His ambition was to write (The New Webster's Grammar Guide) - part of a compound nominal predicate.
Ann can type fast (V. Evans) - part of a compound verbal modal predicate.
He began to cry again.., (S. Hill) - part of a compound verbal aspective predicate.
4. The function of realizing the verbal component of
secondary predication when the infinitive makes part of a complex
member of the sentence or forms a parenthesis. Cf:
She could see him smite (E. Hemingway) - complex object.
To cut a long story short, we finally reached London at four in the morning (Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English) -parenthesis.
Nominal Features of the Infinitive
The nominal features of the infinitive are only syntactic. The infinitive performs almost all syntactic functions characteristic of the noun: subject (often after the introductory it), predicative, object, attribute, and adverbial. Cf:
To err is human, to forgive, divine (J. O'Hara) - subject.
It's easy to make mistakes (M. Swan) - subject.
My intention is to get into Parliament (A. Trollope) -predicative.
/ have never learnt to read or write (W. Collins) - object.
They will make another attempt to cross the river tonight (R.A. Close) - attribute.
/ merely came back to water the roses (O. Wilde) - adverbial of purpose.
In all syntactic functions, the infinitive can be used:
1) alone, i.e. without any words depending on it, e.g.:
Leila had learnt to dance at boarding school (K. Mansfield);
2) as headword of an infinitival phrase, e.g.:
Some speakers hesitate to choose the right word (R.A. Close);
3) as part of an infinitival predicative construction.
There are three predicative infinitival constructions in Modern English:
1) the objective-with-the-infirutive construction,
2) theybr-to-infmitive construction,
3) the subjective infinitive construction.
In the objective-with-the-infinitive construction, the infinitive is in predicate relation to a noun in the common case or a personal pronoun in the objective case. The objective-with-the-infinitive construction performs the function of a complex object in the sentence, e.g.:
We do not allow people to smoke in the lecture halls (M. Swan).
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After verbs of sense perception and causative verbs, the infinitive in the objective-with-the-infinitive construction is used without the marker to. Cf.:
I felt him move (E. Walker, St. Elsworth).
He made me do it (E. Walker, St. Elsworth).
The only exception is the causative verb cause, after which the infinitive is used with the marker to:
What caused the plants to die? (A.S. Hornby, A.P. Cowie, A.C. Gimson).
In the /or-to-infinitive construction, the infinitive is in predicate relation to a noun or pronoun preceded by the preposition for. The/or-to-infmitive construction performs the functions of the following parts of the sentence:
1) complex subject, usually after the introductory it, e.g.:
... it is a shame for people to spend so much money this way (Th. Dreiser);
2) complex predicative, e.g.:
That was for him to find out (G. Eliot);
3) complex object, e.g.:
We are waiting for the rain to stop (A.S. Hornby, A.P. Cowie, A.C. Gimson);
4) complex attribute, e.g.:
There is nobody here for him to play with (E. Hemingway);
5) complex adverbial, e.g.:
He stepped aside for me to pass (D. du Maurier).
In the subjective infinitive construction, the infinitive is in predicate relation to a noun in the common case or a personal pronoun in the nominative case. The subjective infinitive construction occurs in sentences with the finite verb in the passive voice. The infinitive in the subjective infinitive construction is always introduced by the marker to. The subjective infinitive construction performs the function of a complex subject in the sentence, e.g.:
Mr. Bob Sawyer was heard to laugh heartily (Ch. Dickens).
Due to the presence of a passive verb in the sentence, the subjective infinitive construction is more characteristic of literary than colloquial English.
The Gerund
The gerund is a peculiarity of the English language. It is not to be found in other Germanic languages. The gerund goes back to the Old English verbal noun in -ung. In the course of time, it has acquired a number of verbal characteristics so that now the gerund shares the properties of nouns and verbs.
Nominal Features of the Gerund
The nominal nature of the gerund reveals itself at the syntactic level, namely in its combinability and functions. Like the noun, the gerund can be preceded by:
1) a preposition, e.g.:
I'm tired of watching television (Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English);
2) a noun in the genitive case or a possessive determiner. Cf.:
I remember Tom's complaining about the poor service in this hotel (V. Evans).
/ remember his complaining about the poor service in this hotel (V. Evans).
Like the noun, the gerund can perform the functions of the following parts of the sentence.
1. Subject, e.g.:
Swimming is my favourite sport (R.A. Close). // is awfully hard work doing nothing (O. Wilde). There was no mistaking the expression on her face (W. Collins).
2. Object, e.g.:
I like swimming (R.A. Close).
I'm fond of swimming (R.A. Close).
3. Predicative, e.g.:
My favourite sport is swimming (R.A. Close).
4. Attribute, both prepositional and non-prepositional. Cf:
He was born with the gift of winning hearts (E. Gaskell).
... do you like these running shoes'? (J.C. Richards, J. Hall, S. Proctor).
5. Adverbial, e.g.:
... one side of the gallery was used for dancing (G. Eliot).
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Verbal Features of the Gerund
The verbal nature of the gerund reveals itself at the morphological and syntactic levels. Morphologically, the verbal nature of the gerund manifests itself in the grammatical categories of phase and voice. The category of phase finds its expression in the opposition of non-perfect and perfect forms. The perfect gerund always denotes an action prior to the action rendered by the finite verb, e.g.:
He was ashamed of having shown even the slightest irritation (A. Bennett).
Being the non-marked member of the phase opposition, the non-perfect gerund is more flexible in meaning. In the first place, it can denote an action simultaneous with the action expressed by the finite verb, e.g.:
Hike walking in the rain (M. Swan).
In the second place, the non-perfect gerund can render an action following the action denoted by the finite verb, e.g.:
We are thinking of going to France for our holidays (Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English).
In the third place, non-perfect gerund can express an action prior to the action indicated by the finite verb if it is used:
1) after the verbs remember, thank, forget, excuse, forgive,
etc., e.g.:
/ don *t remember hearing the legend before (Th. Hardy), Thanks for coming (M. Swan);
2) after the prepositions on, upon, after, before, without, etc.,
e.g.:
Upon receiving the telegram, we cancelled the trip (The New Webster's Grammar Guide).
After walking about ten yards, he found the hat among the leaves (Th. Hardy).
The category of voice is represented by the opposition of active and passive forms, e.g.:
He liked neither reading aloud nor being read aloud to (W.S. Maugham).
Being the non-marked member of the voice opposition, the active gerund can also render the meaning common to the passive
gerund. Thus, after the verbs need, want, require, deserve and the adjective worth the active gerund renders passive meaning. Cf.:
My coat needs mending (Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English).
This job wants doing at once (Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English).
The book is well worth reading (A.S. Hornby, A.P. Cowie, A.C. Gimson).
Syntactically, the verbal nature of the gerund manifests itself in the following characteristics.
1. Its right-hand combinability with objects and adverbials,
e.g.:
Sweeping the floor was one of Jack's duties (The New
Webster's Grammar Guide).
Sitting on a park bench was his favourite pastime (The New Webster's Grammar Guide).
2. The function of realizing the verbal component of primary
predication when the gerund makes part of a compound nominal or
compound verbal predicate. Cf.:
The only remedy for such a headache as mine is going to bed (W. Collins).
I kept glancing at her through the rest of the play (J. Braine).
3. The function of realizing the verbal component of
secondary predication when the gerund forms part of a complex
member of the sentence, e.g.:
Forgive my speaking plainly (Th. Hardy) - complex object. ... there is no chance of their getting married for years (J. Galsworthy) - complex attribute.
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