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Anonymous Posted 15 years ago
Grammar
That vs which
From The Independent's article: " The words formed the framework for the Big Society, the one theme that Cameron has clung to through the years."
The underlined 'that' does the job of the the relalative pronoun here and can be substitute with another pronoun 'which'. So, I can say the same sentence like that : "The words formed the framework for the Big Society, the one theme which Cameron has clung to through the years." I can put the preposition 'to' before the pronoun 'which' like that: "The words formed the framework for the Big Society, the one theme to which Cameron has clung through the years." without changing of the sentence meaning. But I cannot express the same sentence like that: "*The words formed the framework for the Big Society, the one theme to that Cameron has clung through the years.*" where the pronoun 'that' could stay in an objective case position. Why is it like that?
Thanks.
The underlined 'that' does the job of the the relalative pronoun here and can be substitute with another pronoun 'which'. So, I can say the same sentence like that : "The words formed the framework for the Big Society, the one theme which Cameron has clung to through the years." I can put the preposition 'to' before the pronoun 'which' like that: "The words formed the framework for the Big Society, the one theme to which Cameron has clung through the years." without changing of the sentence meaning. But I cannot express the same sentence like that: "*The words formed the framework for the Big Society, the one theme to that Cameron has clung through the years.*" where the pronoun 'that' could stay in an objective case position. Why is it like that?
Thanks.
Top answer
The only reason I can think of is that people just don't say so. No preposition can precede relative that. If you were familiar with the history of the English language, you might wonder why which can be used in that position.
- The only reason I can think of is that people just don't say so.
- No preposition can precede relative that.
- If you were familiar with the history of the English language, you might wonder why which can be used in that position.
- It was impossible and incorrect 1200 years ago!
- CB
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3 Answers
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The only reason I can think of is that people just don't say so. No preposition can precede relative that. If you were familiar with the history of the English language, you might wonder why whichcan be used in that position. It was impossible and incorrect 1200 years ago!
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CB is right, "that" cannot be used with clauses introduced by a preposition. One additional note regarding "that" vs "which"; since the clause "that Cameron has clung to through the years" is restrictive, "that" is preferred over "which" in your example even though this isn't a generally accepted rule.
BTW, you can leave out "that" (or "which") in the original sentence if you wish.
BTW, you can leave out "that" (or "which") in the original sentence if you wish.
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Thank you, CB, for your reply. So, it seems that the best answer, to that, may be: it is as it is. By the way, to complicate the matter further, I've used the preposition 'to' followed by the pronoun 'that' as an evidence that such collocation can be possible.
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