Subject: ways of expressing the sentence

Unlike swarm, the verbs in such sentences do not normally admit the progressive (* The bus is holding…) or the passive (* Forty people are held …).

Temporal subjects can usually be replaced by the empty it, the temporal expression becoming adjunct:

Tomorrow is my birthday (= It is my birthday tomorrow)

The winter of 1970 was exceptionally mild (= It was exceptionally mild in the winter of 1970)

Eventive subjects (with abstract noun heads designating arrangements and activities) differ from others in permitting intensive complementation with a time adverbial:

The concert is on Thursday (but * The concert hall is on Thursday)

Finally, a subject may lack semantic content altogether, and consist only of the meaningless ‘prop’ word it, used especially with climatic predications:

It’s raining/snowing, etc. It’s getting dark It’s noisy in here [3, 163]

Note: The ‘prop’ subject it as discussed here must be distinguished from the ‘anticipatory’ it of sentences like ‘It was nice seeing you’, where the ‘prop’ subject is a replacement for a postponed clausal subject (= Seeing you was nice).

1.3 Ways of Expressing Subject

As it is stated above, the Subject is the main part of a two-member sentence which is grammatically independent of the other parts of the sentence and on which the predicate is grammatically dependent. [7, 67]

The subject can be expressed by different parts of speech and by different constructions:

1. The noun in the common (or occasionally possessive) case;

The sulky waiter brought my tea. (Du Maurier)

Marcellus slowly turned his head. (Douglas) [13, 226]

The address must be written in the center of the envelope.

Jonathan Swift is the father of irony. (E.B. Browning, Aurora Leigh) [9, 185]

Occasionally a noun in the possessive case is used as the subject of the sentence.

Mrs. Gummidge’s was in a fretful disposition. (Dickens)

Oh, my dear Richard, Ada’s is a noble heart. (Dickens)

2. A pronoun (personal, demonstrative, defining, indefinite, negative, possessive, interrogative);

After about an hour I heard Montgomery shouting my name. That set me thinking of my plan of action. (Wells)

All were clad in the same soft, and yet strong silky material. (Wells)

All were happy.

Everyone was silent for a minute. (Wells)

Nothing was said on either side for a minute or two afterwards. (Dickens)

Theirs is not a very comfortable lodging … (Dickens)

Who tore this book? (Twain) [13, 226]

The pronouns ‘one, we, you are much used with the same general or indefinite force:

‘As long as one is young, one easily acquires new friends.’

‘We don’t like to be flatly contradicted.’

‘You don’t like to be snubbed.’ [12, 149]

3. A substantivized adjective or participle;

The Privileged have seen that charming and instructive sight. (Galsworthy)

The wounded were taken good care of.

4. A numeral (cardinal or ordinal);

Of course, the two were quite unable to do anything. (Wells)

The first and fourth stood beside him in the water. (Wells)

Two were indeed young, about eleven and ten. (Galsworthy)

The first was a tall lady with dark hair … (Bronte) [11, 335]

5. An infinitive, an infinitive phrase or construction;

To see is to believe.

To live uprightly, then, is sure the best. (John Dryden) [9, 185]

To prolong doubt was to prolong hope. (Bronte)

For him to come was impossible.

To be a rich man, Lieutenant, is not always roses and beauty. (Heym) [13, 226]

To walk is useful. Walking is useful. [17, 38]

6. A gerund, a gerundial phrase or construction;

Lying doesn’t go well with me.

Winning the war is what counts. [7, 67]

Walking is a healthy exercise.

Watching and ministering Kit was her best care. (Galsworthy) [11, 335]

Teaching others teaches yourself. [9, 185]

7. Any part of speech used as a quotation;

On is a preposition.

A is the first letter of the English alphabet.

And is a conjunction.

No is his usual reply to any request. [13, 227]

^ is the sign of perpendicular. [16, 50]

8. A group of words which is one part of the sentence, i.e. a syntactically indivisible group.

The needle and thread is lost. (here the subject represents one person).

Their friend and defender is darkly groping towards the solution. [7, 67]

Twice two is four.

How to do this is a difficult question. [11, 335]

9. It as the subject of the sentence.

In English the pronoun it is sometimes used as the subject of a sentence.

Table

The construction there is

When the subject of the sentence is indefinite (a book, books, some books), it is often placed after the predicate verb and the sentence begins with the introductory particle there. The word there has no stress and is usually pronounced with the neutral vowel /рƏ/ instead of /рέƏ/. It has lost its local meaning, which is shown by the possibility of combining it in the sentence with the adverbs of place here and there:

there was a gate just there, opening into the meadow… (Bronte)

‘There’s a good spot over there.’ (Cusack) [11, 341]

Things are specifically different in cases when it and there are used in subject positions as representatives of words or longer units which embody the real content of the subject but are postponed.

It is most pleasant that she has already come.

It was easy to do so.

There are a few mistakes in your paper.

There were no seats at all.

It and there in such syntactic structures are generally called anticipatory or introductory subjects.

There in such patterns is often referred to as a function word, and this is not devoid of some logical foundation [15, 94] Sentences with the introductory there may serve to assert or deny the existence of something. In sentences with the introductory there the predicate verb is usually the verb to be; occasionally some other verbs are found, such as to live, to occur, to come, etc., which, similarly to the verb to be, indicate to exist or have the meaning of to come into the existence:

There was a little pause. (Voynich)

(there – an introductory particle; was – a simple verbal predicate; a pause – the subject; little – an attribute)

…there is the rustle of branches in the morning breeze;

…there is the music of a sunny shower against the window; (Gissing)

There came a laugh, high, gay sweet. (Galsworthy) r

…there came a scent of lime-blossom. (Galsworthy)

There soon appeared, pausing in the dark doorway as he entered, a hale, grey-haired old man. (Dickens) [11, 341]

2. Chapter Two. Ways of Expressing Subject in Fiction

Practical part of the given project, presented in Chapter Two, brings to light subject features, investigated from theoretical point of view in Chapter One, in separate examples, drawn from fiction works. Opposing works of American and British English fiction, the paper is aimed at distinguishing subject peculiarities in both fiction sides. Thus, the investigated works are ‘The Book of Grotesque’ by Sherwood Anderson, ‘The Magic Barrel’ by Bernard Malamud, ‘The Last Leaf’, ‘The Gift of the Magi’ by O. Henry concerning American writers and ‘The Man with the Scar’, ‘The Door of Opportunity’, ‘A Friend in Need’ by W. S. Maugham for British authors.

2.1 Ways of Expressing Subject in British Fiction

‘The greatest English playwright, novelist and short story writer, considered one of the most popular writers of his era, and reputedly, the highest paid author during the 1930s’ [en./wiki/W. Somerset Maugham], William Somerset Maugham gives preference mainly to the personal pronouns in the role of the subject. All the examined works of the writer within the project keep the tendency of the presenting the personal pronouns as the subject.

‘We draw our conclusions from the shape of the jaw, the look in the eyes, the contour of the mouth.’ [26, 355]

‘When you made him that offer of a job, did you know he’d be drowned?’ [26, 360]

‘Well, I hadn’t got a vacancy in my office at the moment.’ [26, 360]

‘She gave him a long searching look.’ [25, 501]

‘In your place I should never have been able to resist the temptation to take my eight cops and have a whack at the blighters myself.’ [25, 503]

‘She is waiting at the prison door.’ [27, 229]

The second preferable part of speech in the subject role is a noun in the nominal case.

‘Women thought a lot of him.’ [26, 357]

‘The blood spurted from the cut vein and dyed his shirt.’ [27, 230]

‘This scar spoke of a terrible wound and I wondered whether it had been caused by a sabre or by a fragment of shell.’ [27, 228]

‘But Alban had already a London look.’ [25, 495]

‘Anne quickly made friends with the shy, pretty native woman and soon was playing happily with the children.’ [25, 496]

Other parts of speech in the Subject position are surely kept but in much less frequent periodicity.

‘That was how you thought a poet should look.’ [25, 515] where ‘that’ is a demonstrative pronoun in the Subject role.

‘Two or three shouted back in answer.’ [25, 525] where ‘two’ and ‘three’ are cardinal numerals occupying Subject position in the sentence.

‘The worst of it was that Anne knew how low an opinion Alban had of the Governor’s parts.’ [25, 514] where ‘the worst of it’ is construction carrying Subject function in the sentence.

‘How can anyone be so shameless?’ [25, 532] where ‘anyone’ is indefinite pronoun in the Subject role.

‘Nothing that concerns me was at stake.’ [25, 530] where ‘nothing’ is a negative pronoun carrying the Subject function.

‘All that was far away in the future.’ [25, 527] where indefinite pronoun ‘all’ is in the Subject role.

The Subject it is surely also presented in the works of W. S. Maugham. In consequence of its research we can state that the frequency of the usage of notional ‘it’ is much higher in comparison with the formal ‘it’ in the works of W. S. Maugham.

‘It’s only an hour’s journey,’ said Anne. [25, 495] where ‘it’ is formal denoting time aspect.

‘It was a room with twin beds and a bathroom.’ [25, 502] where ‘it’ is notional pointing out a thing expressed by a predicative noun.

‘It was a change, but Anne was always glad to get home.’ [25, 511] where the notional ‘it’ is the Subject pointing out a thing expressed by a predicative noun.

‘It was on account of the scar that I first noticed him, for it ran, broad and red from his temple to his chin.’ [27, 228] where both ‘it’s are notional subjects but first ‘it’ points out a thing expressed by a predicative noun whereas the second ‘it’ stands for a definite thing mentioned before.

‘It happened so quickly that many didn’t know what had occurred, but the others gave a cry of horror;’ [27, 231] where the notional subject ‘it’ again denotes a thing expressed by a predicative noun.

‘It was a busy, exhilarating scene, and yet, I know not why, restful to the spirit.’ [26, 357] where ‘it’ is notional carrying the Subject role in the sentence.

The introductory ‘there’ also is maintained in the work but as it is mentioned above in Chapter One, the particle ‘there’ carries just the introductory function, but doesn’t represent the Subject of the sentence.

‘There was a group of natives’ [25, 517]

‘There was a little stir at the gateway.’ [26, 229]

Subject features corresponding to their characteristics in Classifications One and Two can be commented on the following points.

Proceeding from the structural point of view (Classification 1) simple and complex subjects are predominantly met.

‘Though his offices were in Kobe, Burton often came down to Yokohama.’ [26, 356] where ‘Burton’ represents the simple Subject.

‘Those sort of fellows always do.’ [26, 358] where ‘sort’ presents the simple Subject.

‘I couldn’t help laughing.’ [26, 358] where I in combination with the gerund ‘laughing’ represents the complex Subject.

‘They laid the girl on the ground and stood round watching her.’ [27,230] where ‘they’ in combination with the gerund ‘watching’ represents again the complex Subject.

‘The rebel advanced a step or two to meet her.’ [27, 231] where ‘the rebel’ in combination with the infinitive ‘to meet’ represents the complex Subject.

‘Alban, as was his way, tipped the porter generously and then went to the bookstall and bought papers.’ [25, 495] where ‘Alban’ represents the simple Subject.

Concerning Classification 2 agentive and affected Subjects are essentially identified.

‘Burton