Explaining clause positioning in scrambles: E4-03W

Putting clauses together

 

The exercises called clause scrambles, where we try to find the correct order in which to put three[1] or four[2] clauses, are not entirely about correct English. In some cases they are about good style. This file looks at these two topics in a little more detail.

 

Adverbial clauses: position

 

I went to book tickets

as soon as I got your e-mail

though the earliest date available was next Wednesday.

 

[I went to book tickets as soon as I got your e-mail, though the earliest date available was next Wednesday]??

 

As soon as I got your e-mail, I went to book tickets, though the earliest date available was next Wednesday. ü

 

To my ears, the second sentence sounds much better than the first. In this case, where there are two adverbial clauses, I much prefer to put the main clause in the middle, with one adverbial clause before and one after. Here’s another example:

 

so he drove on unworried

Salman had confidence in the map,

while he did not yet remember any of the road

 

While he did not yet remember any of the road, Salman had confidence in the map, so he drove on unworried.

 

In this case, there is no possible doubt. No other order can be considered. Notice that the conjunction ‘while’ in this case is being used for contrast (like although), not to refer to two actions happening at the same time.

 

This sentence has another important feature. Normally, we could not begin a sentence with a pronoun such as he: While he did not remember…. We use a pronoun after, not before identifying the noun in whose place it stands.

 

My wife and I watched the prime minister on TV. He was talking about the economy.

 

First we identify the author of the action, then we can use a pronoun instead. But, in the special case above, if an English reader sees at the beginning of a sentence 1) a subordinating conjunction (e.g. while), 2) a comma arriving quite soon (after ‘road’ in this case), then he or she knows that 3) the person - or thing -  being referred to by the pronoun in the opening subordinate clause will be identified as soon as the main clause begins (Salman here). Another example:

 

As it had been sitting in the rain for an hour or more, the old cat was now very wet.

 

Relative and –ing clauses: form and position.

 

who drove a car

my grandfather had a friend

which you had to start using a handle

 

In such a sentence, there can be no choice of position for the various clauses. Who refers to the friend and which refers to the car, giving us this, in which each relative clause has to follow the noun to which it refers:

 

My grandfather had a friend who drove a car which you had to start using a handle.

 

Now look at these two sentences:

 

In the old school photo I easily identified my brother, who was standing at the back with a big smile on his face.

 

In the old school photo I easily identified my brother, standing at the back with a big smile on his face.

 

In the second version, we have left out ‘who was’ with no difference of meaning, producing an –ing clause. But we can do something with this type of clause which we cannot do with a relative clause:

 

Waiting in the rain, Maria slowly smoked a cigarette.

 

In other words, we can move an –ing clause in front of the noun to which it refers. We could not say: ‘Who was waiting in the rain Maria….’

 

Turning left off the main road, we drove up into the hills.

 

Notice that the two actions MUST have the same subject in order to use this construction: we turned and we drove. If not, we get something like this:

 

As we turned off the main road, Chao drove up into the hills.

 

In this case, we do one thing, Chao does another, and no –ing clause is possible.

 

Finally, notice that there is another form of the ing clause, used in one of the sentences: the perfect form

 

Having eaten a good breakfast, Talal was ready for a visit to the hairdresser.

 

This is used to show that the eating happened before, not at the same time as, the being ready to visit.

 

Summary:

 

This has been no more than a brief guide to adverbial, relative and –ing clauses as found in the clause scramble exercises. We will go into much more detail about both relatives and –ing clauses elsewhere.