Complicated sentence
Hello,
I am at a loss to understand how to analyse this sentence in terms of clauses and phrases:
“To study obedience most simply, we must create a situation in which one person orders another person to perform an observable action and we must note when obedience to the imperative occurs and when it fails to occur”.
(Stanley Milgram's ‘Obedience to Authority')
‘To study obedience = main clause?
“Most simply”= adjectival phrase?
“we must create a situation” =main clause?
“in which one person orders another person to perform an observable action and we must note when obedience to the imperative occurs” =adjectival clause modifying ‘situation’?
“and when it fails to occur” = appositional clause restating previous clause?
‘Thanks
Top answer
To study obedience most simply, we must create a situation in which one person orders another person to perform an observable action and we must note when obedience to the imperative occurs and when it fails to occur To study obedience most simply = Infinitive Phrase acting as an adverb showing PURPOSE ; We must create a situation in which one person orders another person to perform an observable action = Main Clause; And we must note = Main clause, but it's a compound sentence joined by a coordinating conjunction. When obedience to the imperative occurs = Adverbial clause of time, which is also a Dependent clause, and is also the direct object of the verb " note " in the previous clause. ) = When obedience to the imperative occurs And when it fails to occur = Compound sentence joined by a coordinating conjunction, dependent clause, adverbial clause of time, also the direct object of the verb Note.
- To study obedience most simply, we must create a situation in which one person orders another person to perform an observable action and we must note when obedience to the imperative occurs and when it fails to occur To study obedience most simply = Infinitive Phrase acting as an adverb showing PURPOSE ; We must create a situation in which one person orders another person to perform an observable action = Main Clause; And we must note = Main clause, but it's a compound sentence joined by a coordinating conjunction.
- When obedience to the imperative occurs = Adverbial clause of time, which is also a Dependent clause, and is also the direct object of the verb " note " in the previous clause.
- ) = When obedience to the imperative occurs And when it fails to occur = Compound sentence joined by a coordinating conjunction, dependent clause, adverbial clause of time, also the direct object of the verb Note.
- The placement of the adverbial clause and prepositional phrase may vary according to the writer's desire: We must create a situation in which one person orders another person to perform an observable action to study obedience most simply.
- - To study obedience most simply, we must create a situation in which one persons orders..
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To study obedience most simply, we must create a situation in which one person orders another person to perform an observable action and we must note when obedience to the imperative occurs and when it fails to occur
To study obedience most simply = Infinitive Phrase acting as an adverb showing PURPOSE;
We must create a situation in wh
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