Sunday, November 24, 2019

Follow This Word Order for the Best French Sentences

Follow This Word Order for the Best French Sentences The order of words in a French sentence can be confusing, especially if you have, as we do, dual-verb constructions, object and adverbial pronouns, and negative structures. Here, were going to take a look at all of these and suggest the best positioning of words so that you dont end up with French sentences that make no sense. Dual-Verb Constructions Dual-verb constructions consist of a conjugated  semi-auxiliary verb, such as  pouvoir and  devoir  (called  modal verbs  in English),  vouloir,  aller,  espà ©rer, and  promettre, followed by a second verb in the infinitive. The two verbs may or may not be joined by a preposition.   Dual-verb constructions have a slightly different word order than compound verbs tenses. Word order is important because, if you get it wrong, the sentence will read like nonsense in French. Object and Reflexive Pronouns Object and reflexive pronouns are usually  placed between the two verbs and after the preposition(if any) that follows the conjugated verb. Adverbial pronouns are always placed in this position. Je dois me les brosser.   I need to brush them.Je vais te le donner. Im going to give it to you. Nous espà ©rons y aller. We hope to go there. Je promets de le manger. I promise to eat it.Il continuera ten parler.   Hell continue to talk to you about it. Sometimes the object pronoun should precede the first verb. In order to determine this, think about which verb is being modified. Why? Because in French, the object pronoun must go in front of the verb it modifies.  The wrong place may give you a grammatically incorrect sentence or may even change the meaning of the sentence. Consider the examples in this chart. Correct Pronoun Placement X Il aide nous travailler. X Hes helping work us. Il nous aide travailler. Hes helping us work. X Elle invite me venir. X Shes inviting to come me. Elle minvite venir. Shes inviting me to come. X Je promets de te manger. X I promise to eat you. Je te promets de manger. I promise you that Ill eat. Je promets de le manger. I promise that Ill eat it. Je te promets de le manger. I promise you that Ill eat it. Negative Constructions Negative structures surround the conjugated verb and precede the preposition (if any). Correct Negative Structure Placement Je ne vais pas tudier. Im not going to study. Nous nesprons jamais voyager. We never hope to travel. Je ne promets que de travailler. I only promise to work. Il ne continue pas lire. Hes not continuing to read. Pronouns Plus Negative Construction In a sentence with both pronouns and a negative structure, the order is: ne   object pronoun (if applicable) conjugated verb part two of negative structure preposition (if any) object pronoun(s) adverbial pronoun(s) infinitive Correct Placement of Pronouns and Negative Structures Je ne vais jamais te le donner. Im never going to give it to you. Nous nesprons pas y aller. We dont hope to go there. Il ne continue pas y travailler. He isnt continuing to work there. Je ne promets pas de le manger. I dont promise to eat it. Je ne te promets pas de le manger. I dont promise you that Ill eat it. Je ne te promets pas dy aller. I dont promise you that Ill go there.

Thursday, November 21, 2019

William Apess and Frederick Douglass Research Paper

William Apess and Frederick Douglass - Research Paper Example William Apess and Frederick Douglass were both men who accepted and adhered to the Christian faith while championing social causes for their people. William Apess is a Christian minister and missionary who works among his people and fights for their recognition of their status as worthy human beings. Apess’ writings â€Å"illuminates the meaning of the colonial and post-colonial relationship between Native Americans and the white dominant culture as well as an understanding of the violence that permeates that relationship† (Moon 45). Equally, Frederick Douglas is an ex-slave who was educated and sought to sensitize the American public on injustices against slaves and African Americans. Both men persist in laboring as advocates of human rights through their writings. Their writings classified as protest writing â€Å"found enthusiastic supporters among the entire literate black population whose resentment and indignation it voiced†¦the motivating force was that onc e they became aware of the situation, the powerful white minority would do something to improve matters† (Gaylard 20). Composed during the Abolitionist Movement and Reconstruction Era, these literary works stress the superficiality and hypocrisy of the Christian Whites in their support of institutionalized, discriminatory oppression - employing their own ideologies and religious doctrines to control the masses. The superficiality of the White man's doctrine is a point of argument in Apess' work. Apess observes that one â€Å"may learn how deep (the White man's) principles are...I should say they were skin deep† (Apess). The foundation of the objections to non-Whites’ enjoyment of their human dignity and privileges is based on the skin pigmentation. Skin color has no inherent value in any substantial and profound argument since what lies on the inside forms the core and matters most. Contrary to the racial Whites, Apess’ major concern is â€Å"†¦not talking about the skin, but about principles† (Apess). In his day, Apess would have been familiar with the Great Chain of Being philosophy which privileges the Whites at the head of the human race and relegates the Other to occupy lower tiers (Lovejoy 27). American Whites manipulated this concept to justify their subhuman treatment of other races. Frederick Douglass also perceived the superficiality of racism re alizing that â€Å"there was a skin aristocracy in America; no not exactly the skin, it was the colour of the skin, that was the mark of distinction or the brand of degradation† (Blassingame 50). Greed and prejudice constitute the vices that spurred discrimination. As a consequence, millions have lived broken lives and died deaths worse than an animal’s. The slavery was founded on skin color without regard for other more sterling and lasting qualities such as character. Douglass marvels at the preoccupation with something so trivial, yet which bears so much weight. The usage of skin color as a means to exalt oneself and debase another reveals the superficiality of the premises of racism. In time, the surface of any object is defaced and gradually stripped away. External appearances deceive however, only the content of character is real and enduring. As a Christian minister himself, Apess makes a stirring appeal to the tenets of Christianity, the so-called White man's r eligion. White men would use their religion to validate conquest, segregation, and the institution of slavery, however, Apess wields the Holy Bible, the book which instructs Christians in defense of human rights, equality, justice and brotherhood. Apess cites in his stirring appeal that â€Å"God is no respecter of persons; †¦By this shall all men know that they are my disciples, if ye have love one to