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05/25/09, 06:38 AM
:Fish Smiley 6068: PARALLELISM IN WRITING :Fish Smiley 6068:
By Susan Thurman
For your work to be easily read—and, in some cases, for it to be coherent—using parallelism is important. This helps you give equality and balance to separate the points you make.
Puzzled? Not to worry. Understanding parallelism isn’t as difficult as it may seem. You simply write all the similar parts of a sentence in the same way. If you’ve used two nouns, you don’t suddenly switch to a gerund. If you’ve used verbs that have a certain tense, you don’t suddenly change tenses. If you begin in one voice, you don’t suddenly switch to another voice.
Take a look at some of the examples that follow, and you’ll get a clearer understanding of what parallelism is and how important it is in your writing.
Parallelism Problem # 1: Items in Pairs or in a Series
When naming items, you should present all in the same way.
Look at this problem sentence:
This afternoon Doris and Stephanie washed and waxed, and then they were vacuuming the car.
Here is the problem viewed:
This afternoon Doris and Stephanie washed (past tense verb) and waxed (past tense verb), and then they were vacuuming (past progressive tense verb) the car.
Here’s the repaired sentence that’s now parallel:
This afternoon Doris and Stephanie washed, waxed, and vacuumed the car.
All the verbs are now in the same tense; all the verbs are now –ed words.
Parallelism Problem # 2: Clauses
When you’re using more than one clause. Keep the same voice and use the same type of introduction in each.
Here’s the problem sentence:
I was worried that Joan would drive too fast, that the road would be too slippery, and that the car would be stopped by the police.
Here’s a view of the problem:
I was worried that Joan would drive too fast (active voice), that the road would be too slippery (active voice), and that the car would be stopped (passive voice) by the police.
Here’s the repaired sentence:
I was worried that Joan would drive too fast, that the road would be too slippery, and that the police would stop the car.
Parallelism Problem # 3: Placement
Items in a series should be placed in similar locations.
Take a look at this problem sentence:
Mike is not only very kind but also is very good-looking.
Let’s look at the problem:
Mike is not only (first part of a correlative conjunction “not only” comes after the verb) very kind but also (second part of a correlative conjunction :but also” comes before the verb) is very good-looking.
Here’s the repaired sentence:
Mike is not only very kind but also very good-looking.
Parallelism in Writing 2
(http://english-coffee.com/showthread.php?p=44254#post44254)
Source: 2008. Grammar and Style Book, 2nd ed.
By Susan Thurman
For your work to be easily read—and, in some cases, for it to be coherent—using parallelism is important. This helps you give equality and balance to separate the points you make.
Puzzled? Not to worry. Understanding parallelism isn’t as difficult as it may seem. You simply write all the similar parts of a sentence in the same way. If you’ve used two nouns, you don’t suddenly switch to a gerund. If you’ve used verbs that have a certain tense, you don’t suddenly change tenses. If you begin in one voice, you don’t suddenly switch to another voice.
Take a look at some of the examples that follow, and you’ll get a clearer understanding of what parallelism is and how important it is in your writing.
Parallelism Problem # 1: Items in Pairs or in a Series
When naming items, you should present all in the same way.
Look at this problem sentence:
This afternoon Doris and Stephanie washed and waxed, and then they were vacuuming the car.
Here is the problem viewed:
This afternoon Doris and Stephanie washed (past tense verb) and waxed (past tense verb), and then they were vacuuming (past progressive tense verb) the car.
Here’s the repaired sentence that’s now parallel:
This afternoon Doris and Stephanie washed, waxed, and vacuumed the car.
All the verbs are now in the same tense; all the verbs are now –ed words.
Parallelism Problem # 2: Clauses
When you’re using more than one clause. Keep the same voice and use the same type of introduction in each.
Here’s the problem sentence:
I was worried that Joan would drive too fast, that the road would be too slippery, and that the car would be stopped by the police.
Here’s a view of the problem:
I was worried that Joan would drive too fast (active voice), that the road would be too slippery (active voice), and that the car would be stopped (passive voice) by the police.
Here’s the repaired sentence:
I was worried that Joan would drive too fast, that the road would be too slippery, and that the police would stop the car.
Parallelism Problem # 3: Placement
Items in a series should be placed in similar locations.
Take a look at this problem sentence:
Mike is not only very kind but also is very good-looking.
Let’s look at the problem:
Mike is not only (first part of a correlative conjunction “not only” comes after the verb) very kind but also (second part of a correlative conjunction :but also” comes before the verb) is very good-looking.
Here’s the repaired sentence:
Mike is not only very kind but also very good-looking.
Parallelism in Writing 2
(http://english-coffee.com/showthread.php?p=44254#post44254)
Source: 2008. Grammar and Style Book, 2nd ed.