Syntax The manner in which a speaker or

Syntax The manner in which a speaker or author constructs a sentence

Declarative • Makes a statement • “The king is sick. ”

imperative • Gives a command • “Cure the king!”

interrogative • Asks a question • “Is the king sick? ”

exclamatory • Provides emphasis or expresses strong emotion • “The king is dead! Long live the king!”

Simple sentence • Contains one independent clause • “The singer bowed to her adoring audience. ”

Compound sentence • Contains two independent clauses joined by a coordinating conjunction or by a semicolon • “The singer bowed to the audience, but she sang no encores. ”

Complex sentence • Contains an independent clause and one or more subordinate clauses • “Because the singer was tired, she went straight to bed after the concert. ”

telegraphic • Shorter than 5 words in length

short • Approximately 5 words in length

medium • Approximately 18 words in length

Long and involved • 30 words or more in length

Compound-complex sentence • Two or more independent clauses and one or more subordinate clauses • “The singer bowed while the audience applauded, but she sang no encores. ”

Loose or cumulative sentence • Makes complete sense if brought to a close before the actual ending • “We reached Edmonton that morning after a turbulent flight and some exciting experiences, tired but exhilarated, bull of stories to tell our friends and neighbors. ”

Periodic sentence • Makes sense fully when the end of the sentence is reached • “That morning, after a turbulent flight and some exiting experiences, we reached Edmonton. ”

Balanced sentence • The phrases or clauses balance each other by virtue of their likeness of structure, meaning, or length • “He maketh me to lie down in green pastures; he leadeth me beside the still waters. ”

Natural order • Subject comes before the predicate • “Oranges grow in California. ”

Singing sentences • Pair words and phrases on the basis of sound devices • To play with grace and to struggle through strife; to win with a grin but to face defeat without heat; to try beyond tribulation and to rejoice within reason: these are the ways of a great man.

Inverted order • Predicate comes before the subject • Creates an emphatic or rhythmic effect • “In California grow the oranges. ”

Juxtaposition • Unassociated ideas, words, or phrases are placed next to one another, often creating an effect of surprise and wit • “The apparition of these faces in the crown: /Petals on a wet, black bough. ”

Parallel structure • Elements of equal importance are equally developed and similarly phrased • “He loved swimming, running, and playing tennis. ”

Repetition • Phrases or ideas are used more than once to enhance rhythm and to create emphasis • “. . . Government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth. ”

Rhetorical question • • Requires no answer Used to draw attention to a point Stronger than a direct statement “If Mr. Ferchoff is always fair, as you have said, why did he refuse to listen to Mrs. Baldwin’s arguments? ”

Rhetorical fragment • Sentence fragment used deliberately for a persuasive purpose • “Something to consider. ”

Anaphora • Repetition of the same word or group of words at the beginning of successive clauses • “We shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing-grounds, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills. ”

Asyndeton • Deliberate omission of conjunctions in a series of related clauses • “I came, I saw, I conquered. ”

Chiasmus/Antimetabole • Arrangement of ideas in the second clause is a reversal of the first • “Ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country. ”

polysyndeton • Deliberate use of many conjunctions to highlight quantity or mass of detail or to create a flowing, continuous sentence pattern • “The meal was huge – my mother fixed okra and green beans and ham and apple pie and green pickled tomatoes and ambrosia salad and all manner of fine country food – but no matter how I tried, I could not consume it to her satisfaction. ”

stychomythia • Dialogue • Endings and beginnings of each line echo each other, taking on a new meaning with each new line • Hamlet: Now mother, what’s the matter? Queen: Hamlet, thou hast thy father much offended. Hamlet: Mother, you have my father much offended. Queen: Come, come, you answer with an idle tongue. Hamlet: Go, go, you question with a wicked tongue.

Zeugma • Use a verb that has two different meanings with objects that complement both meanings • “He stole both her car and her heart that fateful night. ”

Effect of syntax • Inverted order of an interrogative sentence cues the reader or listener to a question and creates a tension between speaker and listener. • Short sentences are often emphatic, passionate, or flippant. • Long sentences suggest the writer’s more deliberate, thoughtful response. • Very long, discursive sentences give a narrative a rambling, meditative tone.

punctuation • Explain unusual or interesting combinations of punctuation contribute to the meaning --dash --exclamation point --semicolon --parentheses

Syntax in poetry • Enjambed lines-sentences which extend beyond the end of the line and into the next line

Syntax vocabulary • • • • Plain, spare, austere, unadorned Ornate, elaborate, flowery Jumbled, chaotic, obfuscating, erudite, esoteric Journalistic, terse, laconic Harsh, grating Mellifluous, musical, lilting, lyrical Whimsical Elegant Staccato, abrupt Solid, thudding Sprawling, disorganized Dry Deceptively simple