UNIT 5 Fairness; Crime and punishment, Relative clauses
Relative Clauses
Relative clauses are used to give more details about someone or something. When we give more information about someone, we use the word WHO. When we give more information about something, we use the word WHICH. However, we can use the word THAT instead of WHO or WHICH and the meaning is the same.
The problem is that you cannot use the word THAT in non-defining clauses. Non-defining clauses are the clauses which you can leave out. That was why I always stuck to WHICH and WHO and I never made a mistake. And I advise this to my students too.
Defining
•Essential information•No commas
•“That”
•Omission of relative (when it's NOT the subject)
The woman
who/that lives next door is a doctor.
The woman
who/that I wanted to see is away.
(Ø) (it is not the subject)
Non Defining
•Extra information
•Commas
•NO “that”. NO omission of relative.
•Extra information
•Commas
•NO “that”. NO omission of relative.
Our college, which
gives education in English, accepts students with scholarship.
Susan, who works in that company, is such a well-qualified person
When a relative clause begins with “which”, we can use it to comment on the whole sentence.
They didn’t bring any food, which is unusual, since they always bring snacks.
She called me at midnight, which was rude, because she knows I work early mornings.
The house, the roof of which is broken, should be mended
The
English book, the exercises of which are a bit hard, gives a through explanation about
the grammar.
Instead
of whose , of which can also be
used. (* formal language)
ØI have two sisters, both
of whom are teacher.
Ø Susan
has bought clothes, most of which were second-hand.
If
there is a to
be (am,
is, are, etc),
delete the to
be and
the relative pronoun who/which/that)
If
there is no to be (am, is, are, etc),
delete the relative pronoun (who/which/that) and change the verb to ing.
The
car which is parked there
is the director’s car.
The
car parked
there is the director’s car.
The
man who escaped from
the prison was a bank robber.
The
man escaping from
the prison was a bank robber.
EXERCISES (Please write it in your notebook)
1The nurse who is looking after my mother
is very kind to her.
2.
Luggage that is left unattended will be taken away by police.
3.
Who’s that good-looking man who is talking to Alice?
4.
All the rubbish that is thrown away in the sea is a real danger to health.
5.
Do you know the man who is standing near the door?
Compare
non-defining
|
defining
|
He has only one brother, and that brother works at the supermarket.
|
He has more than one brother. The one I’m talking about works at the supermarket.
|
The money is intended for local charities. All these local charities help the homeless.
|
The money is intended for local charities. Some of these local charities help the homeless. There are other local charities as well as these.
|
Compare
|
A defining relative clause which we can’t leave out; without this information we do not know which soldier the speaker is referring to.
|
|
Non-defining relative clauses which we can leave out:
The tour party was weakened when Gordon Hamilton withdrew yesterday because of a back injury.
|
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/es/gramatica/gramatica-britanica/relative-clauses/relative-clauses-defining-and-non-defining
Online Exercises
https://www.ego4u.com/en/cram-up/grammar/relative-clauses/exercises?04Relative clauses: typical errors
English Grammar Today
- When we use a relative pronoun as a subject in the relative clause, we don’t use a personal pronoun or noun:
That’s the school that does lots of music and drama.
Not:That’s the school that it does lots of music and drama.
- When a relative pronoun is the object of the relative clause, we need a subject (pronoun or noun) in the relative clause:
They met at the gallery that Jane had talked about.
Not:They met at the gallery that had talked about.
- When a relative pronoun is the object of the relative clause, we don’t need another object (pronoun or noun) in the relative clause:
They went to the same restaurant that Mark had been to.
Not:They went to the same restaurant that Mark had been to it.
- In writing, we don’t use commas in defining relative clauses:
Sally is a committee member who finds it difficult to make decisions.
Not:Sally is a committee member, who finds it difficult to make decisions.
Common English expressions that are associated with crime and jail. How many of these do you know?
English “jail” expressions
- “Ball and chain”
- “Bail some out” (of jail/trouble)
- “In the slammer/bighouse” or “behind bars”
- “To get away with murder”
- Highway robbery
- Cat burglar
“Ball and chain”
Originally the name for the heavy ball that was chained around the ankles so that prisoners could not run away, this term is now (jokingly) used to describe your romantic partner. Yikes!
The ferry ride to Alcatraz is half the fun of this excursion!
“Bail some out” (of jail/trouble)
When someone is arrested in the United States, they go directly to jail . . . although the court date will probably not be for several weeks. Shortly after being arrested, the arrested attends a hearing in which the judge “sets bail,” which means that the judge determines the price the arrested must pay in order to leave jail between the arrest and the court hearing. To literally “bail someone out” means that you pay the price that the judge sets so that your friend or family member can go free. Of course, few people experience this process, so in reality, most English speakers use the term figuratively: to help someone out of a difficult situation.
Alcatraz and San Francisco, 1870
“In the slammer/bighouse” or “behind bars”
All three of these terms are slang for jail.“To get away with murder”
The phrasal verb “get away with” something means that you do something bad and experience no consequences. To get away with murder is to do something and not “pay” for your “crime.” It is used in a very exaggerated sense: for example, “I only work five hours each day but my boss pays me for eight. I feel like I’m getting away with murder!”
An eerie, beautifully foggy day in SF.
Highway robbery
This term is used when a company sets a ridiculously high price for a product. “Four dollars for a loaf of bread? That’s highway robbery!”
Alcatraz, 1895
A “cat burglar” is a thief who breaks into houses, usually by climbing through a window.
Have you been to Alcatraz? If not, book a trip soon: it’s an incredible experience!
Test your comprehension with the exercise below.
Please post a comment with your answers
- While most tourists would rather avoid jail, no trip to San Francisco would be complete without ________________________________________________
- Alcatraz is located____________________________________ San Francisco Bay.
- Alcatraz,the Rock, was America’s premier ______________________________and for 29 years the final stop for the nation’s most ___________________________
- Make sure to buy your tickets online and in advance because they _______________
- If you schedule your trip for early in the morning, you’ll have more room to _________________________
- For a spooky trip, book the ___________________
- When you are visiting the prison, you might want to pick up a headset for an ____________________ audio tour.
- You’ll hear stories told by _______________________________________
Death Penalty Report Listening
-------------------------------------------------------------------
#LearnEnglishwithmovies
The Shawshank Redemption is a 1994 American drama film written and directed by Frank Darabont, and starring Tim Robbins and Morgan Freeman.
Escape from Alcatraz is a 1979 American prison thriller film directed by Don Siegel. It is an adaptation of the 1963 non-fiction book of the same name by J. Campbell Bruce and dramatizes the 1962 prisoner escape from the maximum security prison on Alcatraz Island. The film stars Clint Eastwood, Jack Thibeau and Fred Ward as prisoners Frank Morris, Clarence Anglin and John Anglin
The Green Mile is a 1999 American fantasy crime drama film written and directed by Frank Darabont and adapted from the 1996 Stephen King novel of the same name. The film is told in a flashback format and stars Tom Hanks as Paul Edgecomb and Michael Clarke Duncan as John Coffey. The film tells the story of Paul's life as a death row corrections officer during the Great Depression in the United States, and the supernatural events he witnessed.
Good for you!! You made it here!
This is the Answer Key for the exercise above
1.The nurse looking after my mother is very
kind to her.
2. Luggage left unattended will be taken
away by police.
3.
Who’s that good-looking man talking
to Alice?
4.
All the rubbish thrown
away in the sea is a real danger to
health.
5.
Do you know the man standing near
the door?
Relative Clauses Game
Fold Your Arms
Speaking activity
In this amusing card game, students define pictures of objects, people, places, and times using defining relative clauses. The class is divided into groups of three (Student A, B and C) and each group is given a set of picture cards. Student A picks up the top card, looks at the picture, places the card face down, and folds his/her arms. Student A then defines the object, person, place or time to Student B using relative clauses. Student B must try to guess the word Student A is describing. Students are not allowed to say the name of the object, person, place or time in any way. They must also keep their arms folded when they are defining the words. This is to stop students from trying to mime the word they are describing. If Student B guesses correctly, Student A gives him/her the card. If Student B doesn't know the word, Student C tries to guess. If neither student can guess the word, the card goes back to the bottom of the pile. Students continue taking turns defining the pictures on the cards until there are no cards left in the pile. The student who collects the most cards by the end of the game is the winner.
No comments:
Post a Comment