Plain English

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PLAIN ENGLISH

LESSON 25

Dear Comrade:

In logic, we have two ways of reasoning, from the general to the particular and from the particular to the general. In other words, we may take a certain number of facts and reason to a conclusion; or we may go the other way about and start with our conclusion and reason back to the facts which produce the conclusion. Scientists use the former method. They gather together all the facts which they possibly can and from these facts they reach their conclusions.

This was what Karl Marx did for the social problems of his day. He analyzed these problems. He gathered together all of the facts which he could obtain concerning conditions of his day and from these facts he reached certain conclusions. He foretold the rise of capitalism and outlined present day conditions so perfectly that had he lived long ago among superstitious people, they would probably have called him a prophet.

This mastery of analysis, of marshaling our facts and from them reaching conclusions, is a wonderful power to possess, and this is exactly what we are doing in our English work. We are analyzing our sentences, finding the elements of which they are composed, and then building the sentence; and since neither the thought nor the sentence can be really studied except in connection with each other, this analysis of sentences gives us an understanding of the thought. The effort to analyze a difficult sentence leads to a fuller appreciation of the meaning of the sentence. This, in turn, cultivates accuracy in our own thought and in its expression.

So do not slight the analysis of the sentence or this work in sentence building. You will find it will help you to a quicker understanding of that which you are reading and it will also give you a logical habit of mind. You will be able to think more accurately and express yourself more clearly. After a little practice in analysis you will find that in your reading you will be able to grasp the author's meaning quickly. You will see at a glance, without thinking about it consciously, the subject and the predicate and the modifiers in the sentence. Then you will not confuse the meaning. You will not have to go back and reread the passage to find out just what the author was talking about; and when you come to write and speak yourself, you will have formed the habit of logical expression. In this way you will be able to put your thought in such a manner that your listener can make no mistake as to just what you mean.

Now, no habit comes without practice. You cannot do a thing unconsciously until you have done it consciously a great many times. So practice this analysis of sentences over and over. It really is an interesting game in itself, and the results which it will bring to you are tremendously worth while.

Nothing is too much trouble which will give us the power to think for ourselves and to put that thought into words.

    Yours for Freedom,
    THE PEOPLE'S COLLEGE.

THE SUBJECT OF A SIMPLE SENTENCE

416. We have found that the two parts of a simple sentence are the complete subject and the complete predicate. The noun is most often used as the subject of a sentence. It may have a number of modifiers, but when we strip away these modifiers we can usually find a noun which is the subject of the sentence. Occasionally the subject is a pronoun or a participle or adjective used as a noun but most frequently the subject is a noun. As for example:

A wild piercing cry rang out.

Hopeless, helpless children work in the cotton mills.

The golden age of peace will come.

Little child lives are coined into money.

Defenseless, helpless children suffer most under capitalism.

Every neglected child smites my conscience in the name of humanity.

The thrilling, far-sounding battle-cry shall resound.

Note that in all of these sentences the word in italics is a noun, which is the simple subject of the sentence. All of the other words which comprise the complete subject are the modifiers of this noun, or modifiers of its modifiers.

But in our study of words, we have found that there are a number of other words which can be used in place of a noun and these may all be used as the subject of a sentence.

417.A pronoun may be used as the subject of a sentence, for the pronoun is a word used in place of the noun; and a pronoun used as the subject of a sentence may have modifiers just as a noun. It may be modified by adjectives or adjective phrases, as for example:

We are confident of success.

He, worried and out of employment, committed suicide.

She, heartsick and weary, waited for an answer.

She, with her happy, watchful ways, blessed the household.

They, victorious and triumphant, entered the city.

How can I, without money or friends, succeed?

"Out of the night that covers me,
Black as the pit from pole to pole,
I thank whatever Gods there be
For my unconquerable soul."

In all of these sentences the pronoun is the simple subject of the sentence, and the pronoun with all of its modifiers is the complete subject of the sentence.

418.The participle may be used as a noun, the subject of the sentence. For example:

Traveling is pleasant.

Here the present participle traveling is used as a noun, subject of the sentence.

Participle phrases may also be used as nouns, as for example:

Being prepared will not save us from war.

His having signed the note was the cause of the trouble.

In these sentences, being prepared and having signed are participle phrases used as nouns, the subjects of the verbs will save and was. Note the use of the participle used as the subject in the following sentences:

Painting is an art.

Making shoes is his work.