Preposed complement
“It shows that everyone is not in lock step with the end of arms control,” Moore said.
(From The Guardian.)
Is “It shows that everyone is not in lock step with the end of arms control” a preposed complement in the sentence above?
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I think it is.
Top answer
No: compare this pair: [1] “It shows that everyone is not in lockstep with the end of arms control,” Moore said . [2] Moore said, “It shows that everyone is not in lockstep with the end of arms control”, In [1] the reported speech is non-embedded -- it serves as a main clause. The expression “Moore said” is then a parenthetical, a kind of supplement.
- No: compare this pair: [1] “It shows that everyone is not in lockstep with the end of arms control,” Moore said .
- [2] Moore said, “It shows that everyone is not in lockstep with the end of arms control”, In [1] the reported speech is non-embedded -- it serves as a main clause.
- The expression “Moore said” is then a parenthetical, a kind of supplement.
- But if the order is reversed, as in [2], the reported speech is embedded, and hence a complement of the reporting verb “said”, though not a preposed one, of course.
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No: compare this pair:
[1]“It shows that everyone is not in lockstep with the end of arms control,” Moore said.
[2] Moore said, “It shows that everyone is not in lockstep with the end of arms control”,
In [1] the reported speech is non-embedded -- it serves as a main clause. The expression “Moore said” is then a parenthetical, a kind of supplement.
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