第十四章:关系从句
关系从句就是形容词从句。
1 关系从句特点
两个句子要有交叉(两个句子中 a man 和 he 是重复的,因为有这个交叉存在,两个句子就有了关系):
- For boyfriend I’m looking for a man.
- He is tall, rich, and well-educated.
把交叉改为关系词的拼法(wh-),让其产生连接词的功能:Who is tall, rich and well-educated.
合并:将关系从句放在主要从句的交叉点(名词)后面来形容它:For boyfriend I’m looking for a man who is tall, rich and well-educated.
由以上分析可看出,关系从句有一个很重要的特色:连接词是从句中含字眼的改写,而名词从句和副词从句的连接词是外加的:
- I know that I am right: i am right 是完整句子。
- I know this because I have proof: I have proof 是完整句子。
- I don’t trust people who talk too much:无连接词,把 they 改为 who。
2 关系代名词与关系副词
关系从句与主要从句的交叉点,可能是名词也可能是副词。改变为 wh- 后分别成为关系代名词与关系副词:
代名词 | 关系代名词 | 副词 | 关系副词 |
---|---|---|---|
he (she, they) | who | then | when |
it (they) | which | there | where |
his (her, their, its) | whose | so | how |
him (her, them) | whom | for a reason | why |
3 关系代名词的省略
关系词之所以被省略,主要是句子中有重复的元素:和主要从句的先行词重复。可是除了是代名词的功能外,还有连接词的功能。假如关系词去掉后不影响句子的清楚性,就可以省略:
- The man is my uncle.
- You saw him just now:him 做宾语,合并时改为 whom。
关系代名词是宾语的话,位置应该在动词后面。可是要表示关系从句的开始,就要调到句首(这个调动和其省略有很大关系):whom you saw just now.
合并:The man whom you saw just now is my uncle.
倘若将 whom 省略,由于 you saw just now 紧跟 the man,所以读者很清楚其在修饰 the man,所以 whom 可省略。反之如果关系代词是主语,就不可以省略了:
- The man is my uncle.
- He was here just now.
合并:The man who was here just now is my uncle. 此时的 who 就不可以省略。如果省略就会造成断句困难:The man was here now is my uncle. 补语中的也可以省略:
- He is not the man he used to be.
- He used to be the man:此处的 the man 和主从句重复,改写成关系代词 who,成为关系从句:who he used to be.
此处 who 是补语,不是宾语。所以不可以用 whom,但是一样可省略,原因是需要向前挪,所以和宾语一样,省略后不会造成断句难。
4 何时用 that
关系代名词 who 和 which 有时候可用 that 代替,that 具有指示功能,所以有指示的作用时才适合借用 that 做关系词:
- Man is an animal that is capable of reason.
- Meteorology is a science that deals with the behavior.
以上两句用 which 也不算错误。但是有些情况,因为指示要求很强烈,一般选用 that,如果用 who 或者 which 反而不恰当:
- Money is the only thing that interests him.
- He’s the best man that I can recommend.
这两个例子的指示意味很强烈,所以需要用 that。
5 何时不用 that
当缺乏指示功能就不用 that。如果关系从句只是补充说明的性质,应该用逗号和先行词隔开:
- For boyfriend, I’m considering your brother John, who is tall, rich:此处先行词 your brother John 是专有名词,听到后就知道是谁了,所以后面的从句不再具有指出是谁或哪种人的功能。因而关系从句只是在补充说明
- I like books, whatever the subject, that have illustrations:关系从句 that have illustrations 虽然放在逗号后面,可是这个逗号是和前一个逗号构成一组括弧,把 whatever the subject 括在里面,关系从句本身并不是放在括弧中作补充说明,它仍然是一个具有指示功能的从句,指出喜欢的书是哪一种,所以还是可以借用指示代名词 that。
- I like time classic words, which many people like, too:time classic words 是一本书,听到的人都知道,所以不需要额外的指示,属于补充说明的性质。而且,一旦有了逗号,两个从句已断开,which 虽然是宾语,也不适合省略了。
6 先行词的省略
关系代名词与先行词重复,有时候可以省略掉关系词。同样的有时候可以把先行词省略掉。如果要省略先行词,则此先行词必须是没有内容的空字眼比如:thing, people。其次关系从句与先行词之间不能有逗号断开。而且先行词是名词类,属于重要元素,不是可有可无的修饰语,所以一旦先行词省略,就需要在关系代词部分有所表示:
6.1 What
- I have the thing.
- You need it.
The thing 和 it 重复,建立两句关系,改为复合句:I have the thing that you need it。the thing 为先行词,that 为宾语。该句可有两种改变:
- I have the thing you need.
- I have what you need:the thing 是空字眼,可直接省略,但 the thing 省略后,主从句 I have 缺少宾语,关系从句 that you need 缺少修饰的名词,所以要加上 what。但在句型分析的时候也可以直接说 what you need 为 have 的宾语。
6.2 whoever
- I’ll shoot any person.
- He moves.
合并:
- I’ll shoot any person that moves.
- I’ll shot whoever moves:whoever moves 可看做名词从句,作为 shoot 的宾语。
6.3 which
- You can take any car.
- You like it.
合并:
- You can take any car that you like.
- You can take any car you like.
- You can take whichever you like.
- You can take whichever car you like.
7 关系从句的位置
标准:放在哪个位置最清楚就放在哪里。
例 1:
- There are two apples in the basket.
- The basket is lying on the table.
合并: There are two apples in the basket which is lying on the table.
例 2:
- You can find two apples in the basket.
- I bought the apples.
合并:
- You can find two apples which I bought in the basket:意思不清楚。
- You can find two apples in the basket which I bought:此处的先行词可能是 two apples,更可能是 basket。意思不清楚。
- In the basket you can find two apples which I bought:此时 in the basket 只能修饰 can find,关系从句中只有单一的先行词,意思才清楚。
例 3:
- A plague broke out.
- It lasted 20 years.
合并:
- A plague which lasted 20 years broke out:颠三倒四,不合逻辑。
- A plague broke out which last 20 years:虽然关系从句和先行词距离较远,但是没有别的名词妨碍,所以语义通顺
8 关系副词
如果关系从句中是以副词和主要从句中的先行词重复,就会改成关系副词,关系副词是副词类,所以比较自由省略。
8.1 When
例 1:
- The rain came at a time.
- The farmers needed it most then.
合并:
- The rain came at a time when the farmers needed it most.
- The rain came when the farmers needed it most:关系从句。
- The rain came at a time the farmers needed it most:关系从句。
例 2:
- I need some time.
- I can be with my daughter then.
合并:
- I need some time when I can be with my daughter.
- I need some time I can be with my daughter.
- I need when I can be with my daughter:错误的表达,因为 some time 虽然没有内容,而且重复,但属于名此类,不是可有可无的副词。
例 3:
- I know the time.
- He will arrive then.
合并:
- I know the time when he will arrive.
- I know the time he will arrive.
- I know when he will arrive:此处 the time 并不是先行词,后面的 when he will arrive 也并不是关系从句,而是名词从句。
8.2 Where
和 when 大同小异。
例 1:
- The car stopped at a place.
- Three roads met there.
合并:
The car stopped at a place where three roads met:at a place 和 where 任意省略一个。
例 1:
- The Johnsons have a place.
- Where they can get away from other people.
合并:
The Johnsons have a place they can get away from other people:不可省略 a place,而可省略 where。
8.3 How/why
So 改写的 how,for a reason 改写的 why。
- Can you show me the way.
- You pulled off that trick in that way.
合并:
- Can you show me the way how you pulled off that trick:此句的 how 应该省略,但是名此类 the way 不可以。
- Can you show me how you pulled off that trick:这句中的 how 从句应该视为 how did you pull off that trick,所以改为了名词从句。
9 有逗号隔开的关系从句
关系副词引导的关系从句用逗号隔开,原因和关系代名词一样:将逗号看做一组括弧,括弧中的关系从句起到补充说明的功能,失去了指示的功能。所以关系副词不可以用 that 代替,同时不能省略:
- The best museum in Taiwan is the Palace Museum.
- You can see our national treasures there.
合并:
The best museum in Taiwan is the Palace Museum, where you can see our national treasures:the palace museum 已经是个明确的地名,不需要进一步指认,所以需要用逗号隔开,当作补充说明。当然这里的 where 不能省略,因为逗号与正文切断开来。
9.1 Wh-ever 与副词从句
- Wh-ever 解释为 no matter wh-:表示让步、条件的语气,相当于副词从句。
- Wh-ever 解释为 anyone/anything that,就是关系从句省略到先行词,后面的从句当作名词从句解释,在主从句中扮演主语、宾语。
- Whatever (=No matter what) he may say, I won’t change my mind.
- Whatever (=Anything that) he may say won’t be true.
- Whichever (=No matter which) way you go, I’ll follow.
- Whichever way (=Any way that) you go is fine with me.