Wednesday, March 15, 2017

sentence structure - ' being ' in participle clauses


According to the source " we can use an adverbial participle clause to express reason or cause as an alternative to a because/since/as clause. Using a participle clause in this way is more characteristic of written English or a literary style, rather than spoken colloquial English. Compare the following:




Being French, he is passionate about wine and cheese.



Instead of :



Because he is French, he is passionate about wine and cheese.






Being a friend of Tony Blair, I'm often invited to No 10.




Rather than:



As I am a friend of Tony Blair, I'm often invited to No 10.






Being quite slim, I was able to squeeze through the hole in the railings.



Instead of:




Since I am quite slim I was able to squeeze through the hole in the railings.






Being rather over weight, Geoffrey was unable to squeeze through.



Rather than:



Because he's rather over weight, Geoffrey was unable to squeeze through."






So my question is that non-being sentences are too informal to use in a formal essay?



Answer



There are very few constructions in grammatically correct English that are only appropriate in formal vs. informal texts, and in my mind the best solution is to find materials in your areas of interest to read. Some of them will be more formal than others, and it will give you an idea of how different kinds of usage make their way in both scenarios.


Here's an informal sentence with a being-clause: My younger brother, being the lazy momma's boy everyone knows him to be, always gets away with not doing chores.


In other words, what makes an essay formal is the structure, and the clarity with which you're expected to express your ideas.


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