Voice Lesson: Syntax
On a sheet of notebook
paper, write
“Voice Lesson:
Syntax.” Then copy
down the definition.
Syntax: the way words are arranged
within sentences, word order,
sentence length, sentence focus, and
punctuation.
Copy the following quotation (and
author’s name) onto your paper:
“I slowed still more, my shadow pacing
me, dragging its head through the weeds
that hid the fence.”
-- William Faulkner,
The Sound and the Fury
“I slowed still more, my shadow pacing me,
dragging its head through the weeds that hid
the fence.”
In this sentence, form imitates meaning.
How does Faulkner slow the sentence down,
reinforcing the sentence’s meaning?
How would the impact of the
sentence change if we rewrote the
sentence to read:
I slowed still more. My shadow
paced me and dragged its head
through the weed-obscured fence.
• “I slowed still more, my shadow
pacing me, dragging its head through
the weeds that hid the fence.”
• Faulkner’s sentence expresses
reluctance. (reluctance = hesitance,
unwillingness, disinclined)
“I slowed still more, my shadow pacing me,
dragging its head through the weeds that hid the
fence.”
Write a sentence (also showing reluctance),
copying Faulkner’s syntax. You can use this as
a form:
I __________ (past tense verb) ___________,
my __________ (another noun, related to “I”)
_________ing ________________, _______ing
_____________________________________.
Now, make a subtitle on your page, entitled:
[Your author]’s syntax
Look through your book, and find sentences from
your author’s book that you find interesting.
Copy one on to your page.
Then, write a sentence of your own, using syntax
similar to your author!