THE BASICS OF SPEECH 2 - PART II 02/12/2010
In the first part of this essay we looked at personal pronouns, reflexive pronouns, and intensive pronouns. In this part we will consider relative pronouns, indefinite pronouns, interrogative pronouns, and demonstrative pronouns. Relative Pronouns A relative pronoun relates one part of the sentence to a word in another part of a sentence. They are called relative pronouns because they usually introduce dependent clauses1 by relating further information to the rest of the sentence. As such, each relative pronoun in a sentence refers back to an antecedent (a noun that precedes the pronoun). Through the use of a dependent clause, a relative pronoun describes a noun in the independent clause2; hence, a pronoun acts as the subject or the object of a dependent clause. Relative pronouns include who, whom, whose, which, that, whomever, whichever, and whatever. Do note that a dependent clause that begins with a relative pronoun is also known as a Relative Clause. There goes the driver who won the race on his way to the West Indies. (In this sentence the relative pronoun who refers back to the driver. Who is the subject of the verb won, and the relative clause who won the race. The independent clause in this sentence is There goes the driver on his way to the West Indies.) Who and whoever are used (formally) as the subjects of a dependent or relative clause, while whom and whomever are used as the objects of a relative clause. Who, whoever, whom, and whomever are used for persons. Who is used when a particular person is spoken about. Whose denotes possession. 1A dependent clause, like an independent clause, also has a subject and a predicate. However, it is always introduced by a relative pronoun or a subordinating conjunction. 2 An independent clause is a combination of words including a subject and a verb; a dependent clause can stand alone as a sentence.  This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 Unported License. Please provide a link back to the FTP Blog or website from wherever you choose to use this essay. 
Add Comment AN INTERVIEW WITH BEN OKRI 02/12/2010
Ben Okri discusses his work Starbook, and his approach to writing. Quite interesting and insightful. Learn more about Ben Okri here and here. FTP Consultancy -- What made you write Starbook?Discusses the style in Starbook:THE BASICS OF SPEECH 2 - PART I 02/12/2010
In the English language, pronouns are words used mostly as substitutes for nouns or noun phrases. The use of pronouns allows a writer to continue depicting a person, a place, or a thing without repeating the discussed noun. This prevents the flow of a particular piece from becoming bulky and repetitive. Pronouns used in complete sentences have antecedents. An antecedent is simply the noun which the pronoun refers to, or supersedes. Lanre desperately searched for his keys to the safe, but he could not find them. (The pronoun his stands for Lanre's, and the pronoun he stands for Lanre; the writer uses them to avoid repeating keys to the safe. Lanre is the antecedent of his and of he; keys to the safe is the antecedent of them.) Classification of Pronouns Pronouns are generally classified into seven groups, as follows: personal, reflexive, intensive, relative, indefinite, interrogative, and demonstrative. In this first part, we will look into personal, reflexive, and intensive pronouns. Personal Pronouns A personal pronoun is a word used in place of a specific person or thing. Personal pronouns include I, you, he, she, it, mine, yours, his, hers, our, ours, and theirs. Personal pronouns take on four different forms, respectively identified by:
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USING NEW MEDIA FOR MARKETING 02/11/2010
Highly recommended talk by Seth Godin on modern day marketing. For creatives interested in being their own entrepreneurs. FTP Consultancy -- CONFUSING WORDS 6 01/11/2010
Be sure to consult a dictionary as some of the words below have other meanings not described here. 1. lay, lie: Lay is a transitive verb that means “to cause to lie down”; “to put on or place in a particular position or state”; “to put or set down”. Lay requires an object and its principal parts are laid and laying. Lie is an intransitive verb meaning “to be or place oneself in a flat, horizontal, or recumbent position”; “to recline or rest in a flat position”. Lie does not take an object and its principal parts are lay, lain, and lying. Where did I lay those car keys before lying down. The ranch lies to the right of the lake. 2. lead, led: As a verb, lead means “to guide or direct”; “to show the way by going before”. Led is the past tense of the verb lead. When both words are pronounced the same, then lead is a noun that is “a soft, malleable, and ductile metal”. The detective was led to the conclusion that the thief had to be a member of the board. “She will lead us to the lead pipes,” said the head plumber to his employees. 3. learn, teach: Learn is a verb meaning “to gain knowledge or understanding through experience or study”; “to memorize”. Teach is a verb that means “to impart skill or knowledge to” ; “to give instruction”. To teach is also to learn. For the rest of the words, click here... FTP Consultancy This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 Unported License. Please provide a link back to the FTP Blog or website from wherever you choose to use this essay.
THEIR BEHAVIOR BY DENNIS BRUTUS 01/11/2010
Their guilt is not so very different from ours: —who has not joyed in the arbitrary exercise of power or grasped for himself what might have been another’s and who has not used superior force in the moment when he could, (and who of us has not been tempted to these things?)-- so, in their guilt, the bare ferocity of teeth, chest-thumping challenge and defiance, the deafening clamor of their prayers to a deity made in the image of their prejudice which drowns the voice of conscience, is mirrored our predicament but on a social, massive, organized scale which magnifies enormously as the private dehabille of love becomes obscene in orgies. © Dennis Brutus -- To learn more about Dennis Brutus, click here. Via Black Looks FTP Consultancy THE BASICS OF SPEECH 1: NOUNS 08/07/2009
In the English language, nouns are words that name persons (manager, uncle), animals (lion, dinosaur), places (bank, court), things (skateboard, frying pan), and concepts/ideas (beauty, rights). Nouns fall under various groups and can be categorized in two different ways: 1. The first (and general) way is to classify nouns as common, proper, and collective nouns. 2. The second identifies nouns in relation to how they are used: by their form (case, gender, and number), by their function (appositive, complement, modifier, object, and subject), and by their class (abstract, collective, common, concrete, and proper). In this essay the second method will be described, to give the reader a more comprehensive look at the role nouns play in formal speech/writing. BY FORM Three Cases of Nouns The case of a noun determines how a noun is used in relation to other words, phrases, or clauses. A noun can be identified as one under three cases. The three cases are as follows: In the nominative case (or subjective case), a noun, or a pronoun, is used as the subject of a verb. (The subject is the noun or pronoun that performs the action of the verb). Faisal sought the comfort of his mother after the accident. (The verb sought is performed by the nominative Faisal) A noun is also in the nominative when it is used as a predicate noun. (A predicate noun follows a linking verb [such as is, was, were, smells, appears] and repeats, or renames the subject). The group Outkast consists of Andre 3000 and Big Boi. (The series Andre 3000 and Big Boi is the predicate noun renaming Outkast.) Click here to read more. FTP Consultancy This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 Unported License. Please provide a link back to the FTP Blog or website from wherever you choose to use this essay.
CONFUSING WORDS 5 08/07/2009
Be sure to consult a dictionary as some of the words below have other meanings not described here. 1. hardly: Keep away from expressions as can’t hardly and not hardly as these are actually double negatives. I can [not can’t] hardly wait to be through with this class. 2. heard, herd: Heard is the past tense of the verb hear. Herdis a noun meaning “a group of cattle or other domestic animals of a single kind together”; “a number of wild animals of one species that are together as a group”; “a crowd or a large number of people”. The herd of buffalo began a stampede when they heard rustling from the bushes. 3. heir, air: Heir is a noun that means “a person who inherits, or is given authority by law or terms of a will to inherit the holdings of another”; “one who receives or is expected to receive a heritage, as of ideas, from a predecessor”. Air is a noun that means “a colorless, odorless, tasteless gaseous mixture contained in the atmosphere”; “the air or atmosphere in an enclosure”; “breeze or wind or an atmospheric movement”. All community members knew she was the rightful heir to the great Chief's throne. “The air today brings me good news,” said the magician. For the rest of the words, click here FTP Consultancy This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 Unported License. Please provide a link back to the FTP Blog or website from wherever you choose to use this essay.
CONFUSING WORDS 4 07/06/2009
Be sure to consult a dictionary as some of the words below have other meanings not described here. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 Unported License. Please provide a link back to the FTP Blog or website from wherever you choose to use this essay.
A FEW GUIDELINES FOR SPELLING 06/01/2009
To spell words correctly is a challenge common to us who write. This essay presents some rules that can assist a writer in easing the difficulties involved in typically misspelled words. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 Unported License. Please provide a link back to the FTP Blog or website from wherever you choose to use this essay.
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