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while the expansion, correspondingly, features verbs of perceptions. As is seen from the examples, it is the
semi-compound pattern that diagnoses the meaning of the pattern with the infinitive, not the reverse. The
infinitive pattern for its part makes up an expressive stylistic device by virtue of its outward coincidence with
an infinitive pattern of purpose: the unexpectedness of the referent action goes together with the contextual
unexpectedness of the construction.
The participial construction expresses a parallel attendant event that serves as a characteristic to the event
rendered by the leading clause:
He sat staring down the gardens, trying to remember whether this was the seventh or eighth day since the
attack had begun (H.E. Bates). > He was sitting and staring down the gardens, and was trying to remember...
Rage flamed up in him, contorting his own face (M. Puzo). > Rage flamed up in him and contorted his own
face.
With the participial pattern, the same as with the infinitival one, the diagnostic construction is the semi-
compound sentence, not vice versa.
The nature of the shown correlations might be interpreted as a reason for considering the relations between
the head-verb and the verbid in the tested patterns as coordinative, not subordinative. However, on closer
analysis we must admit that diagnosis of this kind is called upon to expose the hidden meanings, but not to level
up the differences between units of opposed categorial standings. The verbid patterns remain part of the system
of semi-complex sentences because of the hierarchical ranking of their notional positions, while the correlation
with semi-compound sentences simply explains their respective semantic properties.
§ 4. The asyndetic formation of the semi-compound sentence stands by its functional features close to the
syndetic and-formation in so far as it does not give a rigorous characterization (semantic mark) to the
introduced expansion. At the same time its functional range is incomparably narrower than that of the and-
formation.
The central connective meaning distinguishing the asyndetic connection of predicative parts in semi-
compound sentences is enumeration of events, either parallel or consecutive. In accord with the enumerative
function, asyndetic semi-compounding more often than not is applied to a larger set of base sentences than the
minimal two. E.g.:
He closed the door behind him with a shaking hand, found the old car in its parking place, drove along with
the drifting lights. They talked, laughed, were perfectly happy late into the night.
Asyndetic semi-compound sentences are often used to express gradation of intensity going together with a
general emphasis. E.g.:
He would in truth give up the shop, follow her to Paris, follow her also to the chateau in the country (D. du
Maurier). He never took the schoolbag again, had refused to touch it (J. Updike).
Characteristic of enumerative and gradational semi-compound sentences is the construction where the first
two parts are joined asyn-detically, and die third part syndetically, by means of the conjunction and. In such
three-base constructions the syndetic expansion finalizes the sentence both structurally and semantically,
making it into an intensely complete utterance. E.g.:
He knows his influence, struts about and considers himself a great duellist. They can do it, have the will to
do it, and are actually doing it.
Of the meanings other than enumerative rendered by the construction in question, the most prominent is
elucidation combined with various connotations, such as consequence, purpose, additional characteristics of the
basic event Cf:.
The sight of him made me feel young again: took me back to the beaches, the Ardennes, the Reichswald,
and the Rhine. I put an arm round her, tried to tease her into resting.
§ 5. The number of predicative parts in a semi-compound sentence is balanced against the context in which
it is used, and, naturally, is an essential feature of its structure. This number may be as great as seven, eight, or
even more.
The connection-types of multi-base semi-compound sentences are syndetic, asyndetic, and mixed.
The syndetic semi-compound sentences may be homosyndetic (i.e. formed by so many entries of one and
the same conjunctive) and heterosyndetic (i.e. formed by different conjunctives). The most important type of
homosyndetic semi-compounding is the and-type. Its functional meaning is enumeration combined with
copulation. E.g.:
A harmless young man going nowhere in particular was knocked down and trodden on and rose to fight
back and was punched in the head by a policeman in mistake for someone else and hit the policeman back and
ended in more trouble than if he had been on the party himself (M. Dickens).
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