Grammar Questions

Grammar Questions
The myth of the melting pot At the beginning of the 1900s, European immigrants immigrated to America (Booth). A Jew named Israel Zangwill wrote a play whose central theme has not been forgotten. The said production was entitled “The Melting Pot” which depicts a promise that immigrants can be transformed into Americans, that America can transform people of color and background into ‘one America’ (Booth). In the book, Ragtime, Tateh represents a ‘Melting Pot’ immigrant. When we first get to know Tateh, he lives in a single room with his family. Tateh made his living in the street (Doctorow 15). They were in a terrible situation as they lived in extreme poverty, struggling to make ends meet. Tateh’s identity clashes with the white American ideal as they are white, Christian and capitalists whilst Tateh is an immigrant, Jewish and socialist. It is said that Tateh is the president of the Socialist Artists’ Alliance of the Lower East Side and that he is a proud man (Doctorow 44). Tateh refuses to give up his religious and political values to become an American. This, however, is not an unusual reaction as it easy to avoid the melting pot with the emphasis on diversity and ethnicity (Branigin). In the article, Immigrants Shunning Idea of Assimilation, they bring up the fact that attachment to one’s home country, culture and language helps maintain a sense of identity (Branigin). Tateh’s exclusion from the melting pot is somewhat self-chosen, which was shown when he was unwilling to interact with a white woman as she asks for a portrait of herself together with his daughter, the reaction that Tateh had, suggests hostility towards this lady (Doctorow 44). Another factor for his exclusion from the melting pot, is the American’s hostility towards immigrants (Doctorow 14). Miraculously, Tateh gets a job in Lawrence which leads him into leaving New York, hoping for a better future (Doctorow 91). However, Tateh’s economic and living conditions did not improve which makes him realize that the economic situation gives him no possibility to change (Doctorow 130). Tateh began to see how the life in New York had taken a toll on him. He also experiences a meaningful feeling of separation from his previous socio-economic position (Doctorow 131). Everything changes when Tateh’s movie books gets published, making him climb the social ladder and make a fortune. The formerly proud socialist gives up his socialism and becomes a capitalist. He leaves his old identity and values behind as he assimilates to the American culture (Doctorow 259). At the end of the book, Tateh even marries a white Christian woman and lives lavishly.   Conclusion: It is safe to say that Tateh is a character full of unpredictabilities and contradictions. At the beginning, Tateh, a proud man who does not want to give up his values and identity whilst he is too proud to interact with Americans, ends up marrying a white Christian woman and gives in to capitalism. He first lived in extreme poverty with bad living conditions but later becomes a wealthy person and lives in a lavish house. He also felt strong about his religious values but ended up abandoning these values later as he marries a Christian woman. Thus the reason why Tateh represents a ‘melting pot’ immigrant. Works Cited: Booth, William. “One Nation, Indivisible: Is It History?” The Washington Post. 22 Feb 1998. https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/national/longterm/meltingpot/melt0222.htm  accessed 21 February 2022. Branigan, William. “Immigrants Shunning Idea of Assimilation” The Washington Post. 25 May 1998. https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/national/longterm/meltingpot/melt0525a.htm  accessed 21 February 2022. Branigan, William. “We Were Pretty Much Invisible” The Washington Post. 25 May 1998. https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/national/longterm/meltingpot/melt0525b.htm  accessed 21 February 2022. Doctorow, E. L. Ragtime. 2nd ed., Random House Trade Paperbacks, 2007.
Grammar Questions
The myth of the melting pot At the beginning of the 1900s, European immigrants immigrated to America (Booth). A Jew named Israel Zangwill wrote a play whose central theme has not been forgotten. The said production was entitled “The Melting Pot” which depicts a promise that immigrants can be transformed into Americans, that America can transform people of color and background into ‘one America’ (Booth). In the book, Ragtime, Tateh represents a ‘Melting Pot’ immigrant. When we first get to know Tateh, he lives in a single room with his family. Tateh made his living in the street (Doctorow 15). They were in a terrible situation as they lived in extreme poverty, struggling to make ends meet. Tateh’s identity clashes with the white American ideal as they are white, Christian and capitalists whilst Tateh is an immigrant, Jewish and socialist. It is said that Tateh is the president of the Socialist Artists’ Alliance of the Lower East Side and that he is a proud man (Doctorow 44). Tateh refuses to give up his religious and political values to become an American. This, however, is not an unusual reaction as it easy to avoid the melting pot with the emphasis on diversity and ethnicity (Branigin). In the article, Immigrants Shunning Idea of Assimilation, they bring up the fact that attachment to one’s home country, culture and language helps maintain a sense of identity (Branigin). Tateh’s exclusion from the melting pot is somewhat self-chosen, which was shown when he was unwilling to interact with a white woman as she asks for a portrait of herself together with his daughter, the reaction that Tateh had, suggests hostility towards this lady (Doctorow 44). Another factor for his exclusion from the melting pot, is the American’s hostility towards immigrants (Doctorow 14). Miraculously, Tateh gets a job in Lawrence which leads him into leaving New York, hoping for a better future (Doctorow 91). However, Tateh’s economic and living conditions did not improve which makes him realize that the economic situation gives him no possibility to change (Doctorow 130). Tateh began to see how the life in New York had taken a toll on him. He also experiences a meaningful feeling of separation from his previous socio-economic position (Doctorow 131). Everything changes when Tateh’s movie books gets published, making him climb the social ladder and make a fortune. The formerly proud socialist gives up his socialism and becomes a capitalist. He leaves his old identity and values behind as he assimilates to the American culture (Doctorow 259). At the end of the book, Tateh even marries a white Christian woman and lives lavishly.   Conclusion: It is safe to say that Tateh is a character full of unpredictabilities and contradictions. At the beginning, Tateh, a proud man who does not want to give up his values and identity whilst he is too proud to interact with Americans, ends up marrying a white Christian woman and gives in to capitalism. He first lived in extreme poverty with bad living conditions but later becomes a wealthy person and lives in a lavish house. He also felt strong about his religious values but ended up abandoning these values later as he marries a Christian woman. Thus the reason why Tateh represents a ‘melting pot’ immigrant. Works Cited: Booth, William. “One Nation, Indivisible: Is It History?” The Washington Post. 22 Feb 1998. https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/national/longterm/meltingpot/melt0222.htm  accessed 21 February 2022. Branigan, William. “Immigrants Shunning Idea of Assimilation” The Washington Post. 25 May 1998. https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/national/longterm/meltingpot/melt0525a.htm  accessed 21 February 2022. Branigan, William. “We Were Pretty Much Invisible” The Washington Post. 25 May 1998. https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/national/longterm/meltingpot/melt0525b.htm  accessed 21 February 2022. Doctorow, E. L. Ragtime. 2nd ed., Random House Trade Paperbacks, 2007.
Grammar Questions
PART 1: GRAMMAR TERMINOLOGY Read the following text, and answer the questions 1–5 below, using examples from this text: This morning I received a letter from an old friend. We have been very best friends since we were at school. To be honest, we hardly ever meet now but for many years we have sent each other a small gift at Christmas. Anyone who met her would judge her a generous person. 1. Word Classes Give one example only of each of the grammatical terms listed in a–g below from the text in bold type above. Here is an example: a reciprocal pronoun: each other. a. a verb: ___________________________________________________________________ b. an adjective: ______________________________________________________________ c. a coordinating conjunction: __________________________________________________ d. a preposition: _____________________________________________________________ e. a demonstrative pronoun: ____________________________________________________ f. a noun: ___________________________________________________________________ g. an adverb: ________________________________________________________________ 2. Phrases Give one example only of each of the grammatical terms listed in a–g below from the text in bold type on page 1. Give the whole phrase, and do not select those phrases that only consist of one word. a. an adjective phrase: _________________________________________________________ b. a noun phrase with a postmodifier: _____________________________________________ c. a noun phrase with a premodifier: ______________________________________________ d. a noun phrase with neither premodifer nor postmodifier: ____________________________ e. a prepositional phrase: _______________________________________________________ f. an adverb phrase: ___________________________________________________________ g. a verb phrase: ______________________________________________________________ 3. Clauses Give one example only of each of the grammatical terms listed in a–d below from the text in bold type on page 1. a. an adverbial clause: _________________________________________________________ b. a non-finite clause: __________________________________________________________ c. a relative clause: ____________________________________________________________ d. an independent (i.e. main) clause: ______________________________________________ 4. Clause Structure Turn back to the text in bold type on page 1 and label the underlined clause elements, using the abbreviations S, V, Oi, Od, Ps, Po, A, as applicable. These abbreviations stand for Subject, Verb, indirect Object, direct Object, subject Predicative, object Predicative, and Adverbial. As you can see, there are 23 main clause elements in the text, but the first 3 have been done for you. 5. Verb Terminology Give one example only of each of the grammatical terms listed in a–h below from the text in bold type on page 1. Do not give more than one word per answer, and do not change the verb form. a. a transitive verb: __________________________________________________________ b. a linking verb: _____________________________________________________________ c. a modal auxiliary verb: _____________________________________________________ d. a primary auxiliary verb: _____________________________________________________ e. a finite verb form: __________________________________________________________ f. a non-finite verb form: ______________________________________________________ g. a past tense verb form: ______________________________________________________ h. a present tense verb form: ___________________________________________________ 6. Tense, Aspect, Voice, and Mood Give one example only of each of the grammatical terms listed in a–d below from the following text in bold type. Give the underlined verb phrase only, not the words before or after. Here is an example: the present simple: is. My boss insists that I go to work today or I will be fired, but I am planning to go to the beach. It has been rainng all week, but now at last the sun is out. Don’t tell anybody, but I have found the perfect sunbathing spot. a. the subjunctive: ____________________________________________________________ b. the imperative: _____________________________________________________________ c. the present perfect progressive: ________________________________________________ d. the passive: ________________________________________________________________ PART 2: GRAMMAR IN USE 1. Using Articles Complete the sentences a–h below by inserting an article (a, an, the) where appropriate. Where no article is needed, mark the space clearly with a long dash (—). a. What ____ terrible weather! I need ____ umbrella! b. He works as ____ nurse in ____ hospital on ____ George Street. c. ____ cats are very clean animals. d. I am applying to be ____ accountant at ____ firm in ____ City of London. e. He is ____ Social Democrat who really believes in ____ socialism. f. ____ President Coolidge read everything he could lay his hands on about ____ supernatural. g. We booked ____ room at ____ Hilton Hotel. h. In England, most people only go to ____ church for weddings and funerals. 2. Subject verb agreement Write the correct form in the gaps below. a. My scissors _______ broken. (is/are) b. At least there _______ furniture in this room! (is/are) c. Everyone _______ invited to the party. (is/are) d. Here _______ the delivery van at last (comes/come) e. Measles _______ contagious. (is/are) f. None of the students _______ here. (is/are) g. Three weeks _______ not a long time! (is/are) 3. Using Adjectives and Adverbs Write the correct form in the gaps below and state if it is an adjective (adj.) or an adverb (adv.). a. He was ___________________ (real/really) bored. b. She looked ___________________ (well/good) in her new outfit. c. I made the soup ___________________ (thick/thickly) because that’s the way he likes it. d. They knew they would do ___________________ (bad/badly) in the exam, because they hadn’t studied ___________________ (hard/hardly) 4. What’s the difference? Explain the difference in meaning between the following pairs of sentences, focusing on the underlined parts. Here is an example: I am going to fix it I will fix it In the first sentence, the speaker has already planned to ‘fix it’ at some point in the future; in the second sentence, the speaker has decided at the moment of speaking to ‘fix it’ at some point in the future_____ My friend who visits me regularly is ill. My friend, who visits me regularly, is ill. ____________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________ b. When are you having dinner? When do you have dinner? ____________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________ c. I have done my homework. I have been doing my homework. ____________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________ d. You may be right You might be right. ____________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________ 5. Constructing the Passive Restructure the following active sentences into passive sentences. Omit the agent if it is not needed. Here is an example: John slapped Susan: Susan was slapped by John. a. Someone stole the street sign again. ___________________________________________________________________________ b. The police have arrested my husband for murder. ___________________________________________________________________________ c. Perhaps we should not tell them about the staff cuts. ___________________________________________________________________________ 6. Irregular Verbs Complete the chart of the principal parts of some verbs below. base form past tense form past participle form do broke left seek cost drink shaken 7. Pronouns Write the appropriate pronoun in each gap in sentences a–g below. a. I need to know to _________ (who/whom) I should send the bill. b. _________ (It/There) was a terrible game last night: Arsenal lost again. c. _________ (It/There) was a torrential downpour before the game. d. I can’t decide _________ (who’s/whose) ideas are the best. e. He always marvels at the _________ (amount/number) of rare books in my library. f. The house, _________ (that/which) my father bought, is now mine. g. There are _________ (fewer/less) books in my bag today. 8. Identifying Errors Correct the language mistake in each sentence in a–e below OR explain why it is incorrect. a. It can be that he has missed the bus. ___________________________________________________________________________ b. She made a fortune writing children books. ___________________________________________________________________________ c. I on a daily basis use English at work. ___________________________________________________________________________ d. I have done a lot of skiing when I was younger. ___________________________________________________________________________ e. I use to play the piano, but I don’t play now. ___________________________________________________________________________