FOREIGN LANGUAGES DEPARTMENT

ENGLISH GRAMAR I
DANGLING MODIFIERS PROJECT
OSCAR DIOFRED MARULANDA BARRAGN
CODE 1124217750
BOGOT DC
JANUARY 17
TH
2013
Ind!
1
1. Introduction
2. Objective
3. Specific objective
4. Research question
5. Methodolo!
". #heoretical fra$e%or&
'. (nal!sis and findins
). *onclusions
+. ,o% to avoid danlin $odifiers
In"#$d%&"'$n(
Spanish- a$onst other lanuaes- is hihl! inflected. that is- the endin of its nouns-
2
adjectives- adverbs and verbs are varied and it is relativel! eas! to identif! their
relationship to other %ords in a sentence. #he /nlish lanuae- on the other hand- is not as
inflicted as Spanish- and the relationship bet%een %ords a$on a sentence depends larel!
upon the order in %hich those occur. 0or this reason- related %ords should be &ept toether
so that their connection $a! be clearl! seen. Modifiers- speciall!- should be placed close to
the %ords or phrases the! are intended to $odif!.
*onsider ho% the $eanin of the follo%in sentence chanes as the position if the adjective
is shifted1
M! first husband2s job %as in $ar&et research.
M! husband2s first job %as in $ar&et research.
#his is an e3a$ple of %hat a $isplaced $odifier $iht loo& li&e- and the reason %h! %e
have to be careful %hen placin an adjective in order not to cause confusion.
4esides $isplaced $odifiers- there are also 5anlin $odifiers. 5anlin $odifiers are
those %hich do not correctl! and clearl! depend upon the riht %ords- the! han loosel!
%ithin the sentence and produce confusion- a$biuit!- and even ludicrousness. 0or
e3a$ple1
5anlin $odifier1
,avin co$e earlier than usual to universit!- the doors %ere loc&ed and the student
couldn2t co$e in.
*orrection1
,avin co$e earlier than usual to universit!- the student found out it %as closed and
couldn2t co$e in.
6e- as native Spanish spea&ers in the process or learnin /nlish- find it difficult at first to
avoid danlin $odifiers because it is not so$ethin %e have to pa! attention to %hen
spea&in our $other tonue.
O)*&"'+,(
#o approach the topic of danlin $odifiers fro$ the perspective of both traditional and
functional ra$$ar so as to co$e up %ith the best ans%er for Spanish spea&ers2 doubts
related to $odifiers.
S-&'.'& O)*&"'+,(
#o stud! each case of danlin $odifiers in order to identif! at %hich %e- as Spanish
spea&ers- are $ost prone to $a&e $ista&es.
3
R,/#&0 1%,"'$n(
,o% can %e- throuh the use of functional ra$$ar- identif! the subject that the $odifier
is describin in order to avoid danlin $odifiers7
M"0$d$2$34
In order to find out %hich t!pe of danlin $odifier is $ost difficult for /nlish learners to
reconi8e and to avoid- I have created t%o questionnaires. In the questionnaires- the
participants %ere as&ed to decide %hether the! thin& the sentences the! read are correct or
incorrect and to %rite %h! the! thin& so.
#he first questionnaire contains 5 incorrect sentences. #he second questionnaire contains '
sentences. 3 of these sentences are incorrect- the other four are the corrected versions of the
first 3 incorrect sentences.
(ll of the participants should have appro3i$atel! the sa$e level of /nlish- and no
participant could be allo%ed to ans%er both questionnaires. #he questionnaires %ere
desined so that a participant ans%erin the first questionnaire %ould be $ore li&el! to
$a&e $ista&es than a participant ans%erin the second one. (lso- an /nlish teacher fro$
the 9nited :indo$ %as as&ed to ans%er the questionnaire in order for us to &no% ho% a
native spea&er perceives danlin $odifiers.
6hile ans%erin the first questionnaire- a participant %ould see onl! incorrect sentences-
havin nothin to co$pare the$ to. On the other hand- a participant ans%erin the second
questionnaire %ould see the sa$e sentences both incorrect and correctl! %ritten- $a&in it
easier for hi$ or her to spot the danlers and to decide that the sentence is incorrect.
6hat I ai$ to de$onstrate %ith these questionnaires is that /nlish learners- thouh havin
the abilit! to identif! $ista&es in a sentence- need to be iven a clue of %hat the! are
supposed to correct in order to do so.
T0$#"'&/2 .#/56$#7
( danlin $odifier is usuall! a descriptive verb for$ that has nothin appropriate to
describe. So$e sentences start %ith a participle or an infinitive- a verbal that does not act as
a verb but instead describes a noun or a pronoun.
In order to understand danlin $odifiers and to learn ho% to avoid the$- one $ust first
understand %hat participles and infinitives are1
( -/#"'&'-2 is a verb for$ that is used in a sentence to $odif! a noun or noun
phrase- and thus pla!s a role si$ilar to that of an adjective or adverb.
;ou could sa! that a participle is a blend of t%o different parts of speech1 the verb
4
and the adjective. therefore- it has i$portant characteristics that it receives fro$
both.
*haracteristics received fro$ the verb1
* #he! loo& li&e verbs- thouh the! $a! have different for$s. So$e end %ith
<in- so$e %ith <ed. #he! also $a! have au3iliar! verbs. =5riven-
challenin- fallin- e3cited- havin co$pleted>
* 6ords that describe verbs $a! also describe participles. =*o$$onl!
&no%n>
* ?articiples $a! have object or subject co$ple$ents. =5riven $ad- havin
crossed the road>
*haracteristics received fro$ the adjective1 basicall!- just li&e the adjective- participles
describe nouns and pronouns. ?articiples $a! appear in several spots in the sentence1
* 4efore the noun the! are describin. =4ro&en heart- tired child- borin class>
* (fter a lin&in verb- in %hich case the! %ould be describin the subject.
=his heart is bro&en- the child is tired- this %as an e3citin class>
* (fter the noun or pronoun that the! describe. =I %ant to read the ne% la%
passed b! the senate>
* (t the beinnin of the sentence- in %hich case the! $ust describe the
subject of the sentence. =,avin loo&ed around- he &ne% no one %as ho$e>
(n 'n.'n'"'+ is to + a verb. /3a$ples1 #o ju$p- to lauh- to love- to read.
Infinitives $a! loo& li&e verbs- but the! do not perfor$ an! verb jobs in a sentence.
Infinitives act as subjects or objects. #he! $a! also describe other %ords in the
sentence. (n infinitive- as %ell as a participle- is a blend of different parts of speech-
and it has several traits inherited fro$ the$.
*haracteristics received fro$ the verb.
* #he! loo& li&e verbs- %ith the %ord to in front of the$. =#o act- to $ove>
* 6ords that describe verbs $a! also describe infinitives. =#o act a%&%ardl!-
to $ove silentl!>
5
* Infinitives $a! have object or subject co$ple$ents. =#o $il& a co%- to
brea& a vase>
*haracteristics inherited fro$ other parts of speech.
* Most infinitives act as subjects- objects- or subject co$ple$ents
=characteristic received fro$ the @O9@>
* So$e infinitives describe nouns =characteristic inherited fro$ the
(5A/*#IB/>
* ( fe% infinitives describe verbs =characteristic inherited fro$ the
(5B/R4>
/3a$ples1
#o co$plete this assin$ent is $! oal =to complete this assignment C subject of the verb
is)
*arl doesn2t li&e to o join =to go jogging C object of the verb li&e>
(nd!2s resolution for 2D14 is to et in shape =to get in shape C subject co$ple$ent of the
verb is>
#he ban& to rob is the one on 4
th
avenue =to rob describes the noun bank>
*arl ca$e here just to cr! =to cry describes the verb came.>
,avin learnt %hat participles and infinitives are- danlin $odifiers is the ne3t
thin to learn.
6ho has learnt %hat participles and infinitives are7 #he danlin $odifiers7 5anlin
$odifiers have learnt %hat participles are7 (ctuall!- in the previous sentence nobod! has
learnt an!thin. #he descriptive verb for$ having learnt what participles and infinitives
are- %hich has nothin appropriate to describe- is called danler or danlin $odifier.
#o correct this sentence- !ou $ust add the subject %ho has learnt1
,avin learnt %hat participles and infinitives are- %e can continue learnin about
danlin $odifiers.
#here are sentences that bein %ith a descriptive verb for$ =infinitives and participles> that
describes the noun or pronoun. In this t!pe of sentences- the subject $ust perfor$ the
action $entioned in the verbal or descriptive verb for$. In the sentence above- we is the
subject of the sentence. #he sentence beins %ith a descriptive verb for$- having learnt
what participles and infinitives are. So- we are the ones %ho have learnt.
(nother e3a$ple could be1
6
,avin finished the assin$ent- the #B is oin to entertain hi$ no%.
#he #B cannot have finished an assin$ent. therefore- %e need to correct this sentence b!
statin the doer of the action e3pressed in the sentence1
,avin finished the assin$ent- the little bo! is no% oin to be entertained b! the
#B.
In this sentence- the doer is the subject of the $ain clause that follo%s the descriptive verb
for$- eli$inatin the danlin $odifier.
( co$$on danlin $odifier is an infinitive =to E verb> that beins a sentence.
#o pass the e3a$- ood stud! is essential.
/ven thouh this sentence $a! sound riht- ra$$aticall! spea&in it is not =I %ill e3plain
%h! Fra$$aticall!G later on>. there is no one stud!in. (nd- even thouh $ovin the
infinitive $a! $a&e the sentence sound better- there is still no one stud!in.
Hood stud! is essential to pass the e3a$.
#o fi3 this sentence- !ou $ust add a person1
#o pass the e3a$- !ou need to stud! %ell
#o pass the e3a$- %e need to stud! %ell.
An/24,', /nd .'nd'n3,
(fter anal!8in the ans%ers of the participants- it %as clear that the objective of the
questionnaires desin %as obtained1 /nlish learners %ho ans%ered the first questionnaire
=11 people> had 1" riht ans%ers and 3+ %ron ans%ers. those ans%erin the second
questionnaire =1D people> had 35 riht ans%ers and 24 %ron ans%ers.
#hese results proved the assu$ption that /nlish learners are capable of identif!in
$ista&es as lon as the! have an idea of %hat &ind of $ista&es the! are searchin for.
#he results also sho%ed other aspects about danlin $odifiers that are %orth co$$entin.
0irst- the sentence- FHaving failed math a second time, a tutor was her only optionG %as the
$ost difficult sentence of the second questionnaire- as ever!one but one participant thouht
it %as correct. Second- " out of 11 participants ta&in the first questionnaire ans%ered
correctl! to the sentence- FAfter turning the corner, the statue appearedG. #he! ans%ered
that it %as incorrect because Fstatues cannot $oveG. also- this %as the sentence that $ost
students ans%ered correctl! in the first questionnaire. 0inall!- in the second questionnaire-
the sentence- FTo appreciate Hamlet, a performance of it must be seen %as the sentence
7
that %as ans%ered incorrectl! b! $ost people- =) out of eleven includin a native spea&er>
even thouh the correct version %as riht under it.
C$n&2%,'$n,(
(ccordin to the findins obtained fro$ the questionnaire- %hen the danlin $odifier
at the beinnin of a sentence is for$ed b! a participle- the probabilit! of a person
spottin the $ista&e depends on ho% $uch sense the sentence $a&es. /3a$ple1
* #he reat $ajorit! thouht that the sentence FHaving failed math a second
time, a tutor was her only optionG %as correct- assu$in that the person %ho
had failed %as a she- to %ho$ the FherG is referrin.
* On the other hand- $ost participants decided that the sentence FAfter turning
the corner, the statue appearedG %as incorrect because Fstatues cannot
$oveG. Hiven that there %as no other noun to perfor$ the action- Fthe
statueG %as the onl! noun left to perfor$ it- %hich did not $a&e $uch sense.
6hen the danlin $odifier at the beinnin of a sentence is for$ed b! an infinitive- it
is hihl! unli&el! that a person %ill reconi8e it =unless he or she is a ra$$arian> iven
that he or she %ill probabl! assu$e that the infinitive plus passive voice invo&es an actor
but does not require that the actor be e3plicitl! na$ed. #his t!pe of danlin $odifiers
is beco$in increasinl! co$$on in scientific and for$al %ritin because scientists
often use passive voice to describe $ethods and processes. /3a$ple1
* #o the sentence- !To appreciate Hamlet, a performance of it must be seen,
a native spea&er and /nlish teacher ans%ered1 F;es =correct>.GItI clearl!
refers bac& to ,a$let. #he frontin $a&es for slihtl! a%&%ard readin- but
overall no proble$s for $eG.
* #hen- to the sentence- FTo appreciate Hamlet, you must see a performance
of it, the sa$e /nlish teacher fro$ the 9nited :indo$ ans%ered1 F6ell-
thereJs a clash of reister for $e K the first clause is $ore for$al than the
second. (nd the co$$a reall! isnJt necessar! hereG.
In $! opinion- this approach- in %hich danlin infinitives are considered to be riht even
b! scientists and so$e editors- sho%s ho% functional ra$$ar %or&s as opposed to
traditional ra$$ar. Loo&in at this situation fro$ the perspective of traditional ra$$ar-
it %ould be %ron to use infinitives in this %a! because it does not follo% the preK
established rules. loo&in at it fro$ functional ra$$ar2s point of vie%- it %ould be riht
because instead of pointin at the $isusae of the infinitive- functional ra$$ar %ould
describe this usae and sho% %h! it is correct1 because no confusion is created and people
understand the $essae.
8
H$6 "$ /+$'d d/n32'n3 5$d'.'#,8
6hen %ritin- %e al%a!s tr! to save space and ti$e b! o$ittin %ords fro$ the sentences.
%e assu$e that the reader is oin to insert the $issin pieces and thus understand %hat %e
are tr!in to co$$unicate. #his assu$ption is riht as lon as %e understand %hat %e can
leave out and %hat %e have to leave alone.
/3a$ple1
(lthouh sufferin fro$ e3cruciatin pain- Aohnson $anaed to et out of bed and
to call an a$bulance.
In this sentence it is eas! to understand the $essae even thouh so$e %ords have been
elided. If all of the %ords %ere present- the sentence %ould be li&e this1
(lthouh Aohnson %as sufferin the e3cruciatin pain- he $anaed to et out of bed
and to call an a$bulance.
In the first sa$ple sentence- the subject and part of the verb are $issin and- even so- the
sentence is co$prehensible. In order to $a&e this t!pe of sentences %ith a descriptive verb
for$ =such as a participle> at the beinnin and to avoid creatin a danlin $odifier- !ou
$ust re$e$ber onl! one rule1 #he $issin subject $ust be the sa$e as the subject that is
present. If !ou do not follo% this rule- !our reader %ill assu$e that !ou are tal&in about
the sa$e person or thin in both parts of the sentence. 0or e3a$ple1
S/@#/@*/ 6I#, 5(@HLI@H MO5I0I/R1 6hile havin ho$e%or& to do- the
boo& in Sa$2s ba re$ained there all da!.
M/(@I@H1 the boo& in Sa$2s ba is not ver! responsible. =@onsense- !our reader
%ill probabl! sa!>
*ORR/*#/5 S/@#/@*/1 6hile havin ho$e%or& to do- Sa$ left his boo& in
his ba all da!.
M/(@I@H1 Sa$ is not ver! responsible.
In order to avoid danlin infinitives- the easiest thin !ou can do is use the active voice.
/3a$ple1
S/@#/@*/ 6I#, 5(@HLI@H I@0I@I#IB/1 #o co$plete the project- a
co$puter is needed.
*ORR/*#/5 S/@#/@*/1 #o co$plete the project- !ou need a co$puter.
Movin the infinitive $a! $a&e the sentence sound better- but it doesn2t solve the proble$.
( co$puter is needed to co$plete the project.
9
In the sentence above there is still no one perfor$in the action- so the sentence is still
incorrect. #o fi3 it- !ou $ust add a person- as it has alread! been done.
@onetheless- as $entioned before in the conclusions- infinitive danlers are co$$onl!
accepted and even required %hen %ritin for$al or scientific co$positions. therefore- a
person can decide to use the$ in his or her paper- especiall! %hen describin processes or
$ethods.
R.#n&,
6oods - H. =2DD1>. "nglish grammar for dummies. Indianapolis- Indiana1 6ile!
?ublishin- Inc.
Lanuae portal of *anada. =2D13- D" 12>. Avoiding dangling modifiers. Retrieved fro$
http1MM%%%.noslanuesKourlanuaes.c.caMbienK%ellMfraKenMra$$aireK
ra$$arMevt$dfntKavdn$dfrKen.ht$l
#he 6ritin Lab N #he O6L at ?urdue and ?urdue 9niversit!. = #he 6ritin Lab N
#he O6L at ?urdue and ?urdue 9niversit!.>. #angling modifiers and how to correct
them. Retrieved fro$ https1MMo%l.enlish.purdue.eduMo%lMresourceM5+'MD1M
URL9, "$ "0 ,%#+4,(
F'#," ,%#+4(
10
0""-,(::d$&,83$$328&$5:.$#5,:d:1S;0dTdd!114<N+JR#=P!5%/+<F3!NL>,N=?L$
1+LR7:+'6.$#5
S&$nd ,%#+4(
0""-,(::d$&,83$$328&$5:.$#5,:d:1-@d2%A
;1+'JN6%D+$10E)0YPB#RUJB.5%23YMU@*?O&:+'6.$#5
#he ans%ers to the surve!s are attached on a different docu$ent as the! did not fit in this
one.
11