The Canterville Ghost's Grammar and Syntax analysis

Introduction

• Oscar Wilde (16 October 1854 – 30 November 1900) was an Irish writer, playwright and poet, from Victorian age.
• The Canterville Ghost was written by Oscar Wilde and published by first time in February 1887, in the magazine The Court and Society Review.
• He became one of the London’s most popular playwrights in 1890s.
• The Canterville Ghost tells the story of an American family, the Otis, who buy Canterville Chase an old haunted castle where its first owner’s phantom remains.
• The grammar and syntax analysis of this short story, The Canterville Ghost, will be based on its fifth chapter, when the first encounter between Sir Simon and Victoria Otis, is produced. The text was taken from Short Stories, Oscar Wilde, adapted by Paolo Bertinetti and Brian Hodgkiss, from Black Cat editorials.

Simple, compound and complex sentences

Simple sentences:

“«You mean the Garden of Death», she whispered.” (Page 42)

Subject: You

Verb: mean

Object: the Garden of Death

Compound sentences:

“His head was leaning on his hand, and his whole attitude was one of extreme depression.” (Page 38)

Subject:  His head                      

Verb: was leaning                      

Adverb (place): on his hand

Subject: His whole attitude

Verb: was

Object: one of depression

Complement: extreme

Conjunction: and

Complex sentences:

“« […] I had nothing left but indigo and Chinese white, and could only do moonlight scenes, which are always depressing to look at, and not easy to paint. »” (Page 40)

Main clause: I had nothing left but indigo and Chinese white

Subject:  I

Verb: had

Object: nothing left but indigo and Chinese white

Subordinate clauses: and could only do moonlight scenes, / which are always depressing to look at/ and not easy to paint.

Subject: I

Verb: could, do

Adverb: only    

Object: moonlight scenes

Conjunction: and       

Subject: moonlight scenes

Verb: are, to look

Adverb: always

Complement: depressing

Subject: moonlight scenes

Verb: to paint

Adverb: not easy

Conjunction: and

Complex-compound sentences:

“«He was sitting by the window, watching the ruined gold of the yellowing trees fly through the air, and the red leaves dancing madly down the long avenue.»” (Page 37)

Main clauses: He was sitting by the window/ and the red leaves dancing madly down the long avenue.

Subject: He

Verb: was sitting

Adverb (place): by the window

Subject: the red leaves

Verb: (ellipsis verb to be) dancing

Adverb (manner): madly

Adverb (place): down the long avenue

Subordinate clause: watching the ruined gold of the yellowing trees fly through the air.

Subject (tacit): He

Verb: watching

Object: the gold of the trees fly

Adverb (place): through the air

Complement: ruined (gold); yellowing (trees)

Sentences moods

Declarative sentences:

“«I am so sorry for you», she said, «but my brothers are going back to Eton tomorrow»” (page 38)

Subject: I                                       Subject: my brothers

Verb: am                                        Verb: are going back

Complement: so sorry                  Adverb (place): Eton

Object: you                                    Adverb (time): tomorrow

Interrogative sentences:

“« [...] and do you know how she had it sent up to table? »” (Page 40)

Subject: you      

Verb: know

Auxiliary verb: do

Conjunction: and

Object: how she had it sent up to table

Imperative sentences:

“«Stop! », cried Virginia stamping her foot” (page 40)

Subject: Virginia

Verb: cried

Adverb: stamping her foot

Imperative: Stop!

Exclamatory sentences:

“«Oh, I hate the cheap severity of abstract ethics! »”

Subject: I

Verb: hate

Object: severity of ethics

Complement: cheap (severity); abstract (ethics)

Interjection: Oh

Parallelism

This occurs when parts of a sentence (or complete sentences) have a similar grammatical structure.

“His head was leaning on his hand, and his whole attitude was one of extreme depression” (page 38)

Subject:  His head

Verb: was leaning

Adverb (place): on his hand

Subject: His whole attitude

Verb: was

Object: one of extreme depression

Syndetic and asyndetic listing

Syndetic listing (with conjunctions):

“« [...] it is you who are rude, and horrid, and vulgar, and so as for dishonesty. »”

Subject: it                         Subject: you

Verb: is                              Verb: are

Object: you                       Complement: rude, horrid, vulgar

Conjunction: and

Asyndetic listing (no conjunctions):

“« […] and you are much nicer than the rest of your horrid, rude, vulgar, dishonest family. »” (Page 40)

Subject: you

Verb: are

Complement: much nicer than the rest of your horrid, rude, vulgar, dishonest family.