Breaking up a sentence

Question

Until AD 22 there had, according to Tacitus, been "a genuine harmony between mother and son".

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To me this is wrong. I would have written "there had been, according to Tacitius, etc", not "There had, according to Tacitus ..."

Which is correct and why?

Clive · Accepted Answer

Hi,

Welcome to the Forum.

Until AD 22 there had, according to Tacitus, been "a genuine harmony between mother and son".

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To me this is wrong. I would have written "there had been, according to Tacitius, etc", not "There had, according to Tacitus ..."

Which is correct and why? I wouldn't say either is incorrect. It's a matter of style, and perhaps emphasis as information moves 'forward' in the sentence. Some people would prefer not to split up the components of the verb, preferring as you do to keep 'had been' together.

How about putting 'according to Tacitus' at the front of the sentence? You could do that to give it more emphasis. Or you could put it at the end.

Best wishes, Clive

Breaking up a sentence

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