I. Compound se
ntence with an elliptical
construction
S V DO; S , DO.
We
like classical music; George, the blues.
I watch Star Trek in the
evenings; my wife, Friends.
The practice critical essay proved
difficult for me; t
he final copy, easy.
II. Compound sentence
with explanatory statement
General Statement : Specific
Statement
ind
ependent clause : independent
clause
You should always follow this
rule: research your topic thoroughly.
I live by a simple rule: nothing in life is black or white.
I’ve learned one important thing
this year: organization is a pain!
III. Series without a
conjunction.
A,B,C (can occur anywhere in
a sentence)
Jason enjoys drama, music, reading.
Talent, dedication, character are
needed to win a championship.
My best performances in the
first
semester were in class participation, enrichment, presentations.
IV. Series with a
variation.
A or B or C OR
A and B and C (can
occur anywhere in sentence
)
The decision is not up to the coaches
or the fans or the athletic director.
Lynne and Kim a
nd Jon left school
without permission.
I’ve decided I don’t like Byron or
Shelley or Keats because they were just plain weird.
V.
Series of Balanced Pairs
A and B, C and D, E and F OR
A or B, C or D, E or F (parallel structure)
Jen and Tony, Laurie and Ed, Sheri
and Jack were all married on the same day.
Famous crime fighting duos include Batman
and Robin, Holmes and Watson, Starsky and Hutch. Notice NO colon after
include because include must take an object; therefore, a colon there would make
the first phrase a fragment.
My favorite presentations were by
Lauren and Cole, Alex and Jamie, Tina and Emily.
VI. Internal series of
appositives/modifiers set off by a pair of dashes
S -- APP, APP, APP -- V DO/PN/PA.
MOD, MOD, MOD
Sleep -- refreshing, therapeutic, necessary -- has eluded me of late.
Sue -- a friend, an athlete, a
scholar -- gained the respect of all.
Tedious, gut-wrenching, painful --
the critical essays drove me crazy.
VII. Dependent clauses
in pair/series at beginning or end of sentences.
DC, DC, DC, IC. OR IC, DC, DC, DC.
If I get a job, if
I save some
money, if my dad will let me, I will buy a car.
I stayed home last night because I
was sick, because I was tired, because I was broke.
Unless I work harder, unless I keep
up, unless I ask questions, I’m never going to get
much out of this class.
VIII. Emphatic appositive
at end of sentence, after a colon.
S V (DO/PN/PA) : APPOSITIVE.
Mark’s new car turned some heads: a
premium ride.
Terri was a friend to all: a caring
person.
The lesson proved terribly
difficult: a challenge.
The lesson proved terribly
difficult: a horror. A little lesson in tone and diction!
IX. Object or complement
(PN/PA) before S V. Use sparingly and with purpose.
OBJ/COMP S V.
Murder
she wro
te.
Her choice of words I do not like.
Quite a challenge being creative is.
Thus the day ended.
X. Complete inversion of normal pattern. <
/b>Use sparingly and with purpose.
V S. or COMP V S. or DO V
S.
Thus ended the day.
Down the street and through the mist
stumbled the weary man.
Lunch was disgusting thought the
students.
Quite a challenge is being creative.