UNIT 2: RELATIVE CLAUSES

1. DEFINING RELATIVE CLAUSES

Éstas describen al sustantivo que las precede de tal manera que lo distinguen de otros de la misma clase. Por ejemplo: The man who told me this refused to gime me his name.

Who told me this es la oración de relative. Si nosotros la omitimos, no queda claro de qué hombre estamos hablando. No se pone coma entre el sustantivo y la oración de relativo.

Una oración de relativo definida normalmente sigue a “the + noun”, pero también pueden ser usadas con “a/an + noun” y con los pronombres “all, none, anybody, someone, something, those”.

Los pronombres relativos son los siguientes:

El pronombre relativo se puede omitir cuando hace la función de objeto dentro de la oración de relativo. Los pronombres de sujeto, posesivos y de lugar no se pueden omitir.

A veces hay una preposición en la oración de relativo. En inglés formal, dicha preposición se coloca delante del pronombre WHOM / WHICH, es decir, delante del pronombre en función de objeto. Pero en inglés coloquial, es más usual poner la preposición al final de la oración. WHOM y WHICH son sustituidos por THAT. Sin embargo, es todavía más común omitir este pronombre relativo.

The man that I spoke to… / The man I spoke to…

The ladder that I was standing on… / The ladder I was standing on…

The people that we were waiting for have arrived. /The people we were waiting for have arrived.

2. NON-DEFINING RELATIVE CLAUSES

Se colocan después de sustantivos ya están definidos. Por lo tanto, no definen el sustantivo, sino que simplemente añaden más información. No son esenciales en la oración y pueden omitirse sin generar confusión. Están separadas de sus sustantivos por comas. Los pronombres, que veremos en la siguiente tabla, nunca pueden ser omitidos.

El pronombre relativo nunca puede omitirse en una oración de relativo indefinida.

This block, which coast ₤5 million to build, has been empty for years.

These books, which you can get at any bookshop, will give you all the information you need.

This machine, which I have looked after for twenty years, is still working perfectly.

3. “WHICH” COMO CONECTOR RELATIVO

A veces WHICH puede usarse para referirnos a una palabra o grupo de palabras de la oración anterior, siendo usual que éste sea el sujeto de la oración de relativo.

He said he had no Money, which wasn’t true.

Some of the roads were flooded, which made our journey more difficult.

USEFUL VOCABULARY FOR A REVIEW

 

INTRODUCTION Give the title and author of the book. When reviewing a film mention the director or actors and the characters they play.	- ......... (Name of the book/film) is a - romance/an action film/a - cartoon/a biography..... - The film/book tells the story of....... - The story/film is set....... - It ́s based on..... - It stars..... - It ́s written/directed by.......
THE MAIN BODY • Summarize the plot in a few sentences. • Mention the setting and the time. • Say something about the main characters. • Say something about the content.	1 (Main points of the plot) - The story/film begins.../is about..... - The story focuses on... - (Start telling the story.... - The story is set/ takes place in (place) in - (time)... - The film reaches a dramatic climax..... - The story/film ends.... 2 (Comments) - It ́s rather/quite long/confusing/moving/sad.... - It ́s a well-written book/ well-acted film... - The script/the story is beautifully written
THE CONCLUSION • Comment on the book/film. • Let other know whether you liked it or not. Explain why. • Is the book/film interesting/boring...? • Do you recommend the book/film?	- In my opinion.... - I would (not) recommend it because..... - I really enjoyed/hated it because.... - It is definitely (not) worth seeing/reading..... - Don’t miss it. - I highly/thoroughly recommend it . - If you are looking for a ............story/film you should definitely read/watch... - It is a highly entertaining film/book/play.... - I was pleasantly surprised by ..... - If you get a chance to ...
Adjectives	Entertaining, exciting, funny, hilarious, dull, serious, moving, violent, predictable, entertaining, frightening, amusing, sad, Fantastic, romantic, fascinating, excellent, gripping, dramatic, Tragic, badly/well- written/-acted/-made, touching dreadful, spectacular, powerful
Adverbs	a bit, a little, rather, fairly, really, absolutely, slightly, quite, very ,extremely
Nouns	Acting, actor, actress, author, writer, director, novelist, Character, ending, story, plot, scene, series, sequel, Special effects, cast, star, soundtrack, episode

 

AN EXAMPLE: ‘A Walk in the Clouds’

This story is about a touching romance which is set in ‘The Clouds’ the place where the Aragons live. The film is directed by Alfonso Arau. The cast includes Keanu Reeves as Victoria ́s husband, Aitana Sanchez-Gijón as Victoria Aragón a young student, Anthony Quinn as Victoria ́s wise grandfather and Giancarlo Giannini as Victoria ́s father.

It tells the story of a soldier who comes back home to his wife. He has to earn a living so he goes to other places to sell chocolate. Then the soldier meets Victoria who has come back home too. She is pregnant and single. Victoria fears her father. The man proposes her to pretend to be her husband for a day and afterwards, he will carry on his life together with his wife. Victoria agrees with him but her father suspects of them.

The film is filled of amusing and dramatic scenes. The actors give a brilliant performance. It also has beautiful and colorful pictures which go with a superb soundtrack. I highly recommend it. Don ́t miss it. If you like familiar values, it will be worth seeing.

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