Students understanding the complexity of language
 

Chapter 07-03: Sentence Variety – Review

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chapter 7: sentence variety - analyzing examples I

Now that we have analyzed an example passage for sentence  variety, let’s review a paragraph in context to reinforce the key  strategy that understanding sentence variety means recognizing all of  the independent and dependent clauses in each sentence:

Margot’s mind reeled. She could hear the listless,  scraping sounds of fingertips against the door. It haunted her to  consider the sea of faces outside. They were faces she once knew in a  different light, but now they were putrid reflections of squalor and  decay. There was nothing left for her to glean from their lifeless eyes  except the grim reminder that she was alone. She tried to ignore the  thought, but it was difficult to swallow when she was the last bastion  of humanity. And only death awaited her outside.

First we separate the sentences:

  1. Margot’s mind reeled. 
  2. She could hear the listless, scraping sounds of fingertips against the door. 
  3. It haunted her to consider the sea of faces outside. 
  4. They were faces she once knew in a different light, but now they were putrid reflections of squalor and decay. 
  5. There was nothing left for her to glean from their lifeless eyes except the grim reminder that she was alone. 
  6. She tried to ignore the thought, but she was the last bastion of humanity. 
  7. And only death awaited her outside.
From these seven sentences, we need to identify all clauses by finding the main verb phrases:
  1. Margot’s mind reeled. 
  2. She could hear the listless, scraping sounds of fingertips against the door. 
  3. It haunted her to consider the sea of faces outside. 
  4. They were faces she once knew in a different light, but now they were putrid reflections of squalor and decay. 
  5. There was nothing left for her to glean from their lifeless eyes except the grim reminder that she was alone. 
  6. She tried to ignore the thought, but she was the last bastion of humanity. 
  7. And only death awaited her outside.
Once we know where the clauses are, we can proceed to analyze for sentence variety:
  1. Margot’s mind reeled. SIMPLE
  2. She could hear the listless, scraping sounds of fingertips against the door. SIMPLE
  3. It haunted her to consider the sea of faces outside. SIMPLE
  4. They were faces [THAT] she once knew in a different light, but now they were putrid reflections of squalor and decay. COMPOUND-COMPLEX
  5. There was nothing left for her to glean from their lifeless eyes except the grim reminder that she was alone. COMPLEX
  6. She tried to ignore the thought, but she was the last bastion of humanity. COMPOUND
  7. And only death awaited her outside. SIMPLE
NOTE:
  • SCRAPING is an adjectival present participle phrase modifying SOUNDS
  • [THAT] she once know – nominal THAT-clause (with a deleted THAT) – nominal appositive (renames FACES)
  • BUT is a coordinating conjunction, not a dependent marker
  • NOW is an adverb, not a dependent marker
  • ONLY is an adjective, not a dependent marker

Remember, use key markers to identify both independent and  dependent clauses, then determine the combination used to make up the  sentence.

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