Harbrace College Handbook

REVISED THIRTEENTH EDITION WITH 1998 MLA STYLE MANUAL UPDATES

SUB Gttttlngen 7 ••% 208 52018X

98 A14435 Contents

Preface vi

GRAMMAR Chapter 1 Sentence Sense ss The parts of a sentence 2 la Recognizing verbs and predicates 3 lb Recognizing subjects, objects, and complements (1) Subjects of verbs 4 (2) Objects of verbs 6 (3) Subject and object complements 7 (4) Word order 8 lc Recognizing parts of speech 10 (1) Verbs 13 (2) Nouns 13 (3) Pronouns 15 (4) Adjectives 15 (5) Adverbs 16 (6) Prepositions 16 (7) Conjunctions 18 (8) Interjections 18 Id Recognizing phrases 19 (1) Kinds of phrases 19 (2) Phrases used as nouns 21 (3) Phrases used as modifiers 22

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le Recognizing clauses 24 (1) Independent clauses 24 (2) Subordinate clauses 24 If Sentence form and function 28 (1) Examining sentence forms 28 (2) Examining the purpose or function of sentences 29

Chapter 2 Sentence Fragments frag 31 Testing for fragments 31 2a Phrases 32 2b Subordinate clauses 33

Chapter 3 Comma Splices and Fused Sentences cs/fs 36 How to separate clauses 36 How to link and relate clauses 37 3a With coordinating conjunctions 38 3b With conjunctive adverbs or transitional phrases 41 3c Divided quotations 42

Chapter 4 Adjectives and Adverbs ad 45 4a Adverbs 46 4b Adjectives used as subject or object complements 47 4c Comparative and superlative forms 48 (1) The comparative 49 (2) The superlative 50 (3) Incorrect double comparatives or superlatives 50 4d Awkward or ambiguous use of a noun as an adjective 51 4e The double negative 52 Contents

Chapter 5 Coherence: Misplaced Parts and Dangling Modifiers mp/dm 54 5a Placing modifiers near the words they modify 54 (1) Single-word modifiers 54 (2) Prepositional phrases 55 (3) Adjective clauses 55 (4) "Squinting" constructions 55 (5) Awkward constructions that split an infinitive 55 5b Dangling modifiers 56 (1) Participial phrases 56 (2) Phrases containing gerunds or infinitives 57 (3) Elliptical adverb clauses 57

Chapter 6 Pronouns pro 59 Personal pronouns 59 Relative pronouns 61 6a Pronoun agreement 62 6b Pronoun reference 63 (1) Clear antecedents 63 (2) Clear references 64 (3) Broad or implied references 65 (4) Awkward use of it or you 65 6c Pronoun form in compound constructions 67 6d Clause as determiner of pronoun form 69 (1) Who or whoever as the subject of a clause 69 (2) Whom for all pronouns used as objects 69 (3) Confusing constructions with who or whom 70 (4) Pronouns after than or as 70 6e Possessive before gerund 72 6f Objective with infinitive 72 6g Subjective with subject complement 73

Chapter 7 Verbs v 75 Tense 75 Regular and irregular verbs 76 xxii Contents

Auxiliary verbs 76 Forms of be 79 Voice 80 Transitive and intransitive verbs 80 Mood 81 Conjugation of a verb 81 7a Subject-verb agreement 83 (1) Other words between the subject and the verb 84 (2) Endings of subjects and verbs not clearly sounded 85 (3) Subjects joined by and 85 (4) Subjects joined by either . . . or 85 (5) Inverted word order or there + verb constructions 86 (6) Relative pronouns (who, which, that) used as subjects 86 (7) Indefinite pronouns 87 (8) Collective nouns and phrases 87 (9) Linking verbs 89 (10) Titles, words as words, nouns plural in form but singular in meaning 89 7b Principal parts of verbs 90 7c Tense forms 95 (1) The meaning of tense forms 95 (2) Logical sequence of tense forms 97 7d Subjunctive mood 99 7e Unnecessary shifts in tense or mood 102

EFFECTIVE SENTENCES Chapter 8 Sentence Unity: Consistency su 106 8a Clearly related ideas 106 8 b Arranging details 106 8c Mixed metaphors and mixed constructions 108 (1) Mixed metaphors 108 (2) Mixed constructions 109 Contents xxiii

8d Faulty predication 109 8e Unnecessary shifts 110 (1) Faulty is . . . when, is . . . where, or is . . . because constructions 110 (2) Consistent tense, mood, and person 110 (3) Consistent person and number 111 (4) Shifts between direct and indirect discourse 111 (5) Consistent tone and style 111 (6) Consistent perspective and viewpoint 112

Chapter 9 Subordination and Coordination sub/coor 114 9a Subordinating related short sentences 115 (1) Adjectives and adjective phrases 115 (2) Adverbs and adverb phrases 116 (3) Appositives and contrasting elements 116 (4) Subordinate clauses 116 9b Subordinating and coordinating main clauses 117 (1) Subordinating structures for less important ideas 117 (2) Coordinating structures for ideas of equal importance 117 (3) Logical connection of ideas by subordinate and coordinate structures 117 9c Faulty or excessive subordination 118

Chapter 10 Parallelism // 120 10a Balancing similar grammatical elements 121 (1) Parallel words and phrases 121 (2) Parallel clauses 121 (3) Parallel sentences 122 10b Parallel construction 122 10c Correlatives 123

Chapter 11 Emphasis emp 124 lla Placement of important words 124 lib Periodic and cumulative sentences 125 xxiv Contents

lie Ascending order of importance 126 lid Forceful verbs 127 (1) Active and passive voice 127 (2) Action verbs and forceful linking verbs 129 lie Repeating important words 130 1 If Inverting standard word order 130 llg Balanced sentence construction 131 llh Varying sentence length for emphasis 131

Chapter 12 Variety var 133 12a Varying sentence length 134 12b Varying sentence beginnings 135 (1) Adverb or adverbial clause 135 (2) Prepositional phrase or a verbal phrase 136 (3) Connectives 136 (4) Appositive, absolute phrase, or introductory series 137 12c Varying sentence structure 137 (1) Complex sentence 138 (2) Compound predicate in a simple sentence 138 (3) Appositive in a simple sentence 138 (4) Prepositional or verbal phrase added to a simple sentence 138 (5) Additional conjunctions to increase the compounds in a sentence 139 12d Varying subject-verb sequence 140 12e Question, exclamation, or command 141

DICTION Chapter 13 Good Usage usg 144 Dictionaries 144 Unabridged dictionaries 145 Contents xxv

Special dictionaries 145 13a Using a dictionary 147 13b Dictionary labels 150 (1) Colloquial or informal 150 (2) Slang 151 (3) Regionalisms 151 (4) Nonstandard and substandard 151 (5) Archaic and obsolete 152 13c Appropriate usage 152 (1) Technical words 152 (2) Inclusive language 152 (3) Confusion of sit/set and lie/lay and rise/raise 15A

Chapter 14 Exactness e 157 14a Accurate and precise word choice 157 (1) Accuracy 157 (2) Precision 158 (3) Connotations 160 (4) Specific, concrete words 161 (5) Figurative language 164 14b Idiomatic expressions 165 14c Fresh expressions 167

Chapter 15 Conciseness: Avoiding Wordiness and Needless Repetition w/rep 170 15a Making every word count 170 (1) Redundancy 170 (2) Unnecessary words 171 (3) Expletives 172 15b Revising to eliminate wordiness 173 15c Necessary repetition 174 15d Revising to eliminate needless repetition 174 15e Style, overwriting 175 xxvi Contents

Chapter 16 Clarity and Completeness A 177 16a Articles, pronouns, conjunctions, prepositions 177 (1) Use of articles 177 (2) Omitted conjunctions or prepositions 179 16b Verbs and auxiliaries 180 16c Complete comparisons 180 16d Intensifiers 181

PUNCTUATION Chapter 17 The Comma , / 184 17a Before a coordinating conjunction linking independent clauses 185 17b After introductory words, phrases, and clauses 187 (1) Adverb clauses before independent clauses 187 (2) Introductory phrases before independent clauses 188 17c Between separate items in a series 190 (1) Words, phrases, and clauses in a series 190 (2) Coordinate adjectives 191 17d With nonrestrictive, parenthetical, and miscellaneous elements 192 (1) Adjective clauses or phrases 193 (2) Appositives 193 (3) Contrasted elements 194 (4) Geographical names, items in dates, and addresses 195 (5) Parenthetical expressions 195 (6) Mild interjections and words used in direct address 196 (7) Absolute phrases 196 17e For the prevention of misreading 196 Contents xxvii

17f Unnecessary (or misplaced) commas 198 (1) Not between the subject and the verb or the verb and the object 198 (2) Not after coordinating conjunctions 198 (3) Only to set off parenthetical words and short phrases 199 (4) Not to set off restrictive clauses, phrases, or appositives 199 (5) Not before the first or after the last item of a series 199

Chapter 18 The Semicolon ; / 202 18a Connecting independent clauses without a coordinating conjunction 202 18b Separating elements that contain commas 204 18c Misuse with parts of unequal grammatical rank 205

Chapter 19 The Apostrophe * 206 19a Showing possession for nouns and indefinite pronouns 206 (1) Singular nouns, indefinite pronouns, and acronyms 207 (2) Plural nouns ending in -s 207 (3) Compounds and expressions that show joint ownership 207 (4) Individual ownership 207 (5) In time relationships, in academic titles, or before gerunds 207 19b Contractions and numbers 208 19c Plurals formed with an apostrophe 209 19d Misuse with personal pronouns and plural nouns 210 xxviii Contents

Chapter 20 Quotation Marks " "/ 211 20a Direct quotations and dialogue 211 (1) Direct quotations 211 (2) Indirect quotations 211 (3) Quotations within quotations 212 (4) Dialogue 212 (5) Thoughts 213 20b Long quotations 213 (1) Prose 213 (2) Poetry 214 20c Titles of short works and subdivisions of books 215 20d Words intended in a special or ironic sense 216 20e Overusing quotation marks 216 (1) To call attention to a cliche 216 (2) To enclose yes or no in indirect discourse 216 (3) To indicate questionable diction 217 20f Placement with other punctuation marks 217 (1) Comma and period 217 (2) Semicolon and colon 218 (3) Question mark, exclamation point, and dash 218

Chapter 21 The Period and Other Marks 220 21a The period . / 220 (1) Declarative sentence, mildly imperative sentence 220 (2) Some abbreviations 221 21b The question mark ? / 221 21c The exclamation point !/ 222 21d The colon : / 223 (1) Preceding an explanation, a series, or a quotation 223 (2) Between figures in time references and between titles and subtitles 224 (3) After the salutation of a business letter 225 Contents xxix

21e The dash —/ 226 (1) Marking a sudden break in thought or abrupt change in tone 226 (2) Emphasizing a parenthetical element 226 (3) After an introductory list or series 227 21f Parentheses ( ) / 227 21g Brackets [ ] / 228 21h The slash 11 119 Hi Ellipsis points . . . / 230 (1) Indicating an omission within a quoted passage 230 (2) Marking a reflective pause or hesitation 232 MECHANICS

Chapter 22 Spelling, the Spell Checker, and Hyphenation sp 236 22a Spelling and pronunciation 237 22b Spelling words of similar sound 238 (1) Contractions and possessive pronouns 239 (2) Single words and two-word phrases 239 (3) Singular nouns ending in -nee and plural nouns ending in -nts 239 22c Prefixes 242 22d Suffixes 242 (1) Dropping or retaining a final unpronounced e 243 (2) Doubling a final consonant before a suffix 243 (3) Changing or retaining a final y before a suffix 243 (4) Retaining a final / before -ly 244 (5) Adding -s or -es to form the plural of nouns 244 22e Confusion of ei and ie 246 22f Hyphenation 246 (1) Linking two or more words to form a compound 246 (2) Breaking a word at the end of a line 248 xxx Contents

Chapter 23 Capitals cap 251 23a Proper names, their abbreviations and acronyms 251 (1) Names and nicknames 252 (2) Peoples and their languages 252 (3) Geographical names 252 (4) Organizations, government agencies, institutions, and companies 252 (5) Days of the week, months, and holidays 252 (6) Historical documents, periods, events, and movements 253 (7) Religions, holy books, holy days, and words denoting the Supreme Being 253 (8) Personifications 253 (9) Words derived from proper nouns 253 (10) Abbreviations and acronyms or shortened forms of capitalized words 254 23b Titles of persons before their names 254 23c Titles and subtitles of books, plays, essays, and other titled works 255 23d The pronoun I and the interjection O 256 23e First word of sentence and of directly quoted speech 256 23f For emphasis 256 23g Unnecessary capitals 257

Chapter 24 Italics ital 259 24a Titles of publications 259 24b Foreign words and phrases 261 24c Names of legal cases 261 24d Names of specific ships, satellites, and spacecraft 262 24e Words, letters, or figures spoken of as such 262 24f Emphasized words 262 Contents xxxi

Chapter 25 Abbreviations, Acronyms, and Numbers ab/ac/n 264 25a Ms., Mrs., Mr., Dr., and St. 264 25b Names of states, countries, continents, months, etc. 265 25c Street, Avenue, Road, Park, and Company 266 25d Volume, chapter, and page 267 (1) Clipped forms of words 269 (2) Abbreviations with dates and figures 269 (3) Abbreviations of DC and U.S. 269 (4) Abbreviations of organizations, agencies, countries, etc. 270 (5) Abbreviations for some common Latin expressions 270 25e Acronyms 270 25f Numbers 271

Chapter 26 Document Design des 275 26a Proper materials 276 (1) Paper and binding 276 (2) Electronic documents 276 (3) Type, fonts, and justification 277 26b Clear and orderly arrangement 278 (1) Layout 278 (2) Indention 278 (3) Paging 279 (4) Headings 279 26c Electronic documents 280 (1) Electronic mail 280 (2) The World Wide Web 282 26d Proofreading 284 xxxii Contents

LARGER ELEMENTS

Chapter 27 Working with Paragraphs

28d Establishing a thesis 345 (1) The thesis statement 345 (2) Main idea 349 28e Arranging ideas 350 (1) Informal working plans 351 (2) Outlines 352 28f The first draft 355 (1) Introductions 355 (2) Conclusions 358 (3) Titles 360 28g Sample first draft 361

Chapter 29 Revising and Editing Essays rev/ed 366 29a Tone 367 29b Revising 368 (1) What is on the page 369 (2) What is not on the page 370 29c Editing 371 29d Proofreading 373 29e Essay undergoing revision 375 29f The final draft 379

Chapter 30 Writing under Pressure pres 383 30a Preparing ahead 383 30b Overcoming writer's block 384 30c Essay tests 386 (1) Reading instructions and questions 386 (2) Organizing your response 387 (3) Stating main points 389 (4) Sticking to the question 390 (5) Revising and proofreading 390 xxxvi Contents

Chapter 34 Research: Using and Citing Sources cit 485 34a MLA style documentation 487 (1) Using parenthetical citations 487 (2) Listing the works cited 495 (3) Final revising, editing, and proofreading 514 34b Sample MLA research paper 514 34c The note style of documentation 538 34d APA style documentation 541 (1) Parenthetical citations 541 (2) Listing the references 543 34e Sample APA research paper 551

Chapter 35 Writing for Special Purposes lit/bus 575 35a Writing about literature 575 (1) Reading, reflecting, and planning 576 (2) Writing about fiction 582 (3) Writing about drama 592 (4) Writing about poetry 599 (5) Using the proper form 613 35b Writing for business 615 (1) E-mail 615 (2) Memos 617 (3) Business letters 619 (4) Application letters 623 (5) Resumes 627 Glossary of Usage usgl G-l Glossary of Terms gt G-15 Copyrights and Acknowledgments C-l Index 1-1 ESL Index 1-45 MLA Index 1-47 APA Index 1-49