Passive Voice

1. Passive Voice Or how to make a simple story unintelligible

2. Explanation: Active and Passive Voice • Active voice sentences have animate subjects doing something: • The girl hit the ball. • Passive voice presents the object of action as the subject; the do-er sometimes disappears. • The ball was hit. (By whom?)

3. Explanation: Stative and Dynamic Verbs • Stative verbs are those which are not grammartical in the progressive form. • These verbs present states of being, not events taking place over time; they cannot have an “-ing” ending. • The girl is happy. (stative) • The girl is being happy.* (not grammatical) • The girl is singing happily. (dynamic)

4. A Simple Story Early in the morning, birds sit in the tree outside my window and chirp and fuss at a squirrel that has a nest there. The squirrel, a mother who is still nursing her babies, chases them away. Once the squirrel thinks the nest is secure, she starts gathering acorns from another tree in our yard. Although she eats a few, she mostly buries them. Next spring, however, she probably will not remember where they are.

5. Passive Voice Version Early in the morning, the tree outside my window is sat in by birds. A squirrel that has a nest in the tree is chirped and fussed at. The birds are chased away by the squirrel. Babies are still being nursed by the mother squirrel. Once the nest is thought to be secure, acorns from another tree in our yard are gathered. A few are eaten but most are buried. Next spring, however, the acorns probably will not be remembered (by the squirrel).

6. Purpose • Story was re-written using passive voice, stative verbs, and abstract subjects. • Result is confusing and hard to read. • Conclusion: These constructions are often less effective than dynamic verbs, sentences in active voice with animate subjects. • Remember, though, that appropriate style depends upon purpose, context, audience, etc.