Definition and Examples of Reporting Verbs in English

In English grammar, a reporting verb is a  verb (such as say, tell, believe, reply, respond, or ask) used to indicate that discourse is being quoted or paraphrased. Its also called a  communication verb. [T]he number of  reporting verbs  that can be employed to mark  paraphrases  is around a dozen, author Eli Hinkel reported, and  they can be learned with relative ease while working on a writing assignment (e.g.,  the author says, states, indicates, comments, notes, observes, believes, points out, emphasizes, advocates, reports, concludes, underscores, mentions, finds), not to mention phrases with similar textual functions such as  according to the author, as the author states/indicates, in the authors view/opinion/understanding,  or  as noted/stated/mentioned. Tenses and Their Uses Most often, reporting verbs, such as seen in fiction to show dialogue, are in the past tense, because as soon as a speaker says something, it is literally in the past.   George Carlin illustrates this in this example of reported speech: I went to a bookstore and  asked  the saleswoman, Wheres the self-help section? She  said  if she  told  me, it would defeat the purpose. To contrast with  words spoken once, putting a reporting verb in the present tense is used to show an adage, something that someone has said in the past and continues to say or presently believes. For example: She always says how hes not good enough for you. Next, a reporting verb may be in the historical present tense (to refer to an event that took place in the past). The historical present is often used for dramatic effect or immediacy, to place the reader right in the scene. The technique should be used sparingly, so you dont create confusion, but its use can make for a dramatic lead to a story, for example. The year is 1938, the place, Paris. The soldiers smash shop windows and run through the street  and yell...   You also use reporting verbs in  the literary present tense (to refer to any aspect of a work of literature). This is because no matter what year you watch a particular movie or read a book, the events always unfold in the same way. The characters always say the same thing in the same order. For example, if youre writing on Hamlet, you might write, Hamlet shows his anguish when he speaks his To be soliloquy. Or if youre reviewing fantastic movie lines, you might write, Who can forget when Humphrey Bogart says  to Ingrid Bergman, Heres looking at you, kid  in Casablanca?   Dont Overuse Reporting Verbs When youre writing dialogue, if the identity of a speaker is clear from the context, such as in a back-and-forth conversation between two people, the reporting phrase is often omitted; it doesnt have to be used with  each line of dialogue, just enough times to make sure the reader doesnt get lost as far as whos speaking, such as if the conversation is long or if a third party interjects. And if the lines of conversation are short, using a bunch of he said she said gets distracting for the reader. Its more effective to leave them out in this instance. Overusing creative substitutions for, said can also get distracting for the reader. A reader goes by said quickly and doesnt lose the flow of the dialogue. Be judicious in using substitutions for said.   The line of dialogue belongs to the character; the verb is the writer sticking his nose in, wrote Elmore Leonard in  The New York Times.  But  said  is far less intrusive than  grumbled, gasped, cautioned, lied. I once noticed Mary McCarthy ending a line of dialogue with she asseverated, and had to stop reading to get the dictionary. Sources Teaching Academic ESL Writing. Routledge, 2004Elmore Leonard, Easy on the Adverbs, Exclamation Points and Especially Hooptedoodle.  July 16, 2001

Asking The Right Questions A Critical Thinker - 1903 Words

Critical thinking is the analyzing and evaluating of information in order to form a judgment or decision. This paper will use the techniques outlined in â€Å"Asking the Right Questions: A Guide to Critical Thinking† by Browne and Keeley (2015) to analyze a business memo written October 10, 2014 by Anil Ravaswami, Vice President of Human Resources, of Cliffside Holding Company of Massapequa (CHCM). These techniques outlined will help develop critical thinking by showing how to ask questions in order to analyze and process the information in the memo. By utilizing these techniques, managers will be able to assess relevant information in order to solve complex issues and be able to communicate effectively. The Manager as a Critical†¦show more content†¦Once you know the why, you can then evaluate the strength of the reasoning, (Browne and Keeley, 2015). Mr. Ravaswami gives numerous reasons throughout his memo on why CHCM should not develop a leadership development program. His first reason is that none of the current twelve senior executives required a development program in order to become leaders. He further states that leaders are born and not made and that a physical characteristic to look for in leaders is if they are tall. He also believes that leadership programs are a waste of money and that if the money is spent on the program, there won’t be money left in the budget for recruiting. He also believes that Ms. Forsythe has a personal agenda against him and is pushing the theories of the Aspen Institute; theories that he does not believe are appropriate for the culture of CHCM. Which Words or Phrases are Ambiguous? In order to critically analyze an issue, you need to be able to recognize which words or phrases are ambiguous and determine if you accept the author’s definition of them (Browne Keeley, 2015). This will help you decide if you agree with the author’s conclusion. Mr. Ravaswami used several ambiguous words and phrases throughout his memo. 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Summer by David Updike free essay sample

David Updike’s story â€Å"Summer† describes one summer holiday of a boy named Homer. He is faced with the external conflict on an unrequited love. Homer, the protagonist, is spending the summer at his best friend, Fred’s home near the lake. The summer, for the most, followed the usual flow of ‘athletic and boyhood fulfillment† (para 11) for Homer and Fred. There were the tennis matches and hiking, the alcohol and hanging out late at night and the reckless driving of both the car and the motorboat out on the lake. However, what made this summer special to Homer was that he had fallen in love with Fred’s sister, Sandra, the antagonist. Sadly, though, she did not seem to really notice him despite all the times they spent together, and so he suffered the heartache of regret and longing as he faced his conflict of an â€Å"unrequited† love. The story progressed describing Homers affliction, showing him trying, but failing, to discard his feelings for Sandra. We will write a custom essay sample on Summer by David Updike or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page The climax of the story occurs at the very end of the summer when in a family setting, on the last night, both Homer and Sandra are on the same couch. Homer, in a â€Å"moment of breathless abandon† (para 16), settles his hand on the hollow of Sandra’s arch as she lay beside him. The conflict is then resolved when, from her reaction, he realized that she also loved him, but thought the love was in the end returned, that was as far as it would ever go. Student Response I think we can all relate to Homer’s situation; finding that one girl we fall in love with at sight but feeling that she does not return the feelings despite becoming close. One may express this in slang terms as being â€Å"friendzoned† or â€Å"brotherzoned†. However, in the end the story suggests to me that love comes amidst all else, and though we may not always be able to clearly see it, we must not give up hope that it may be there, for it just might be. Study Question No. 1 I like how this love story relates to the lesser told side of love. It is very satisfying in the way in which it ends as it was less expected. If, in turn, it had spun around and allowed Homer and Sandra to openly acknowledge their feelings and kiss, I do not think the story would have been as effective. It would have simply followed the cliched â€Å"happily ever after† ending, which is overused and unappealing to the reader, leaving a taste of dissatisfaction. The sense of silent satisfaction of a secretly acknowledged love is much more touching and real.

Violence And Nonviolence Essays (890 words) - Pacifism,

Violence And Nonviolence Violence is a problem that we as humans, deal with everyday. Today, it seems that we deal with it in just about every aspect of our lives. From children's cartoons to the nightly news, we are witnesses to its power and harm. A highly debated argument for the causes of violence are surrounding our homes as well as our government. No matter the causes of violence or for that fact aggressors, we have a personal responsibility must be taken for violent actions. We are given the choice to decide how we each want to live our lives; but before we decide, we must look at the ethical issues that surround our choices. Most humans strive to live a good, pure life. Violence is one of the few instances that destroys that good life. It is something that we work towards eliminating. It is defined as an act taken against another being with the intent to do harm. We often consider violence in terms of the physical aggressor, yet violence can surface in a variety of ways even including self-defense. Violence is a result of conflicting interests or unresolvable differences. In most instances, both parties to he conflict feel that they are right and that their actions are justified. However, there are other cases in which their is a clear aggressor and victim. Nevertheless, violence is a very complicated and difficult issue. By its very nature, violence is an act against life. Life, is sacred. It is cherished, not out of purpose of use, not instrumental, but for the good, intrinsic value of its very being. Violence is instrumental. It is a means to an end. There is no intrinsical goodness in violence. Violent acts are not good for the sake of violence itself. A single question that arises out of the argument of violence and nonviolence, Is violence ever justifiable or acceptable. The two main types of arguments that arise are the self-defense paradigm and pacifism. The self-defense paradigm accepts violence as a means to protect one's life, or the life of others. This argument interprets life as being intrinsically good and for instrumental purposes, but accepts lethal results as an unintended consequence of defense. Pacifism argues that violence is never acceptable. Because violence is an instrumental act, it undermines and disrespects human life as a cherished entity. Upon first evaluation of these arguments, I preferred the self-defense paradigm. I believe I am more of a realist. I thought that violence was inevitable. No matter the strategy, violence is going to be the end result. However, by the end of the semester, I have discovered something. The whole purpose of pacifism is to change the fact that violence is inevitable. It is a movement that teaches humans how to deal with the situations that inevitably end in violence. It is a way to defend life from aggressive threats. The pacifist may never risk killing his opponent, regardless of the consequences. At all times, they must be respectful and compassionate of life. I believe that I have changed my view because I have a greater understanding of pacifism. At first, I thought that it was the easy way out. It was the way to take to avoid a situation; "no matter the situation, never be violent." I thought of issues such as wars or if someone was trying to kill you or your family. How could someone not do anything? It was a weak person's answer to the argument. Then, out of the blue, it struck me. We are always talking about"bettering" the world, getting rid of violence. Well, we are imitative creatures. We do what we see. How are the younger generation of people going to be nonviolent when all they see is violence. If, we don't start demonstrating nonviolent, peaceful acts, what are they going to imitate? We are presenting self-defense as an excuse. It is justifiable but only if you don't intend to kill the other person. This can be a very risky situation. When defending yourself or someone else, you are allowed violence as long as you didn't mean to kill the aggressor? What happens when you can't decipher the aggressor? Nothing should be taken away from the self-defense philosophy. It is understandable and ethical. It would be hard not to defend yourself from an attacker, or to help a loved one. But, it just seems to me that in today's world, we must reevaluate our morals. Self-defense takes the idea that life is intrinsically good and should never be violated.