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 #2 (permalink) Sat Feb 28, 2009 14:15 pm Interested or Being interested? |
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Hi Vaok,
The most natural choice for me would be 'Being interested ' since the subject for both parts is the same - 'I'. 'Interested' on its own doesn't really flow as naturally.
Alan
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| #3 (permalink) Sat Feb 28, 2009 14:24 pm Interested or Being interested? |
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But D is the best answer for this. Why do you think "D" is out of correctness?=)
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 Tilt
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| #4 (permalink) Sat Feb 28, 2009 14:30 pm Interested or Being interested? |
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2. ____ in reading a novel, Tom did't notice me come in.
A Buried B Being buried
why A here is right? why not B? what's the difference between the two questions? thaks . |
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| #5 (permalink) Sat Feb 28, 2009 14:51 pm Interested or Being interested? |
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I can feel it only, but I do not have an explanation why )
I hope someone would clear it up for us.
Regards,
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| #6 (permalink) Sun Mar 01, 2009 5:59 am Interested or Being interested? |
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| yes. looking forward to explanations. |
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| #7 (permalink) Sun Mar 01, 2009 7:04 am Interested or Being interested? |
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"Buried" is an action, "Interested" is not an action.
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| #8 (permalink) Sun Mar 01, 2009 10:39 am Interested or Being interested? |
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| Gray wrote: |
| "Buried" is an action, "Interested" is not an action. |
so what about
Being surprised and surprised? |
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| #9 (permalink) Sun Mar 01, 2009 10:59 am Interested or Being interested? |
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.
Going back to the original, I would suggest that both B and D are possible, and that Alan is right in that D seems to 'flow better'. It is also necessary in both cases for the implied subject of the nonfinite clause to be the same as that of the main clause. I think that generally native speakers will do without the 'being', since it carries little intrinsic meaning in this structure, but that sometimes it is preferred for purposes of flow, clarity, etc.
(Being) interested in the magazine, I made a decision to read it again.
(Being) buried in reading a novel, Tom didn't notice me come in.
(Being) surprised by joy, C.S. Lewis turned from atheism to Christianity.
I don't think there is good argument for any of these being 'wrong', with or without 'being'.
.
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| #10 (permalink) Mon Mar 02, 2009 3:53 am Interested or Being interested? |
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| Mister Micawber wrote: |
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I don't think there is good argument for any of these being 'wrong', with or without 'being'.
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I agree. Perhaps we are more inclined to add "being" to participles that we feel have become semi-adjectives, like "interested", than to those that have not? Some sense of "action", as Gray put it, may have something to do with what we consider pure participles (if any).
Then again, there are some pure adjectives that do not need "being" at all:
"Sick with grief, she gave him a foul look - then she was gone."
"Big as an elephant, she was different from the others."
Why and when do we like to add "being", for flow or otherwise? An interesting question. One thing that could be said about such a construction is that a pure adjective is rarely, if ever, used without a qualifying adverbial adjunct. |
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| #11 (permalink) Mon Mar 02, 2009 8:46 am Interested or Being interested? |
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Hi,
Apart from the 'flowing' element in the sentence above, there seems also to be a need to show participation when the word 'interested' is used and that's where 'being' comes into use. Contrast this idea with a sentence that had 'bored' instead: Bored with the magazine, I decided to watch TV. Can you participate in being bored?
Alan
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| #12 (permalink) Mon Mar 02, 2009 10:17 am Interested or Being interested? |
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Hi,
| Quote: |
| buried in reading a novel, Tom did't notice me come in. |
what do you think about this regarding Alan's idea of 'participation'? (according to Vaok's textbook, perhaps), Vaok said 'burried in...' (without 'being') is correct, but I think this is similar to the first case - there seems a sense of 'participation'. What do you say?
Many thanks,
Nessie.
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| #13 (permalink) Mon Mar 02, 2009 17:35 pm Interested or Being interested? |
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| Alan wrote: |
| Bored with the magazine, I decided to watch TV. Can you participate in being bored? |
"Being bored with the traditional Winter Olympics, Top Gear decided to put their own unique twists to the events." (from a .uk site)
Do you mean the contexts are different in these two sentences? -- one of them excludes 'being' because we are talking about present and another includes 'being' to emphasise that Top Gear went through boredom for a period of time?
I am just trying to interpret, please do correct me.
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| I finish my work. vs I am finished with my work. | Beside or besides? |
