- Nightingale is a European singing bird
- The degraded environment is causing a lot of havoc
Here, singing and degraded are non-finite verbs (participle form) and they are used as adjectives.
When you add -ing/-ed/-en to a verb and if it functions as an adjective then, it is a non- finite verb
Read the following sentences and notice the underlined words.
I asked the foresters to come and teach them.
Non-finite verbs that use to before them are called infinitives
Non -finite clauses:-
Non -finite clauses are simply dependent clauses that use non- finite verbs. They dont contain a finite verb. In these clauses the verb is in a participle or infinite form
A. Underline the non-finite clauses in the following sentences.
Question 1.
Born in London, he became the citizen of U.K. ?
Answer:
Born in London
Question 2.
Having done his homework, he went out to play?
Answer:
Having done his homework
Question 3.
Recognized by his boss, he got an appreciation letter?
Answer:
Recognized by his boss
Question 4.
Encouraged by his father, Ravi got distinction in his final examination?
Answer:
Encouraged by his father
Question 5.
With the tree grown tall, we get more shade?
Answer:
With the tree grown tall
Question 6.
We left the room and went home to search for the books?
Answer:
to search for the books
Question 7.
Do we have the money to buy that car?
Answer:
to buy that car
Question 8.
We were not able to get away until now?
Answer:
to get away until now
Question 9.
Having read the book, I returned it to the Library?
Answer:
Having read the book
Question 10.
Jumping on his horse, the farmer rode to the market?
Answer:
Jumping on his horse
B. Observe how the following sentences have been rewritten to include nonfinite clauses?
- Vincent Van Gogh, who was born in Holland in 1853, is one of the worlds most famous painters.
Born in Holland in 1853, Vincent Van Gogh is one of the worlds famous painters
- Although his talent was unrecognized throughout his life, it was much appreciated after his death.
Although unrecognized throughout his life, his talent was much appreciated after his death
- After he had failed in every career he had attempted, Van Gogh first turned to art to express his strong religious feelings.
Having failed in every career he had attempted, Van Gogh first turned to art to express his strong feelings
Rewrite the following sentences to include non-finite clauses.
Question 1.
After he had decided to become a painter, in about 1880, he started to paint studies of peasants and miners?
Answer:
Having decided to become a painter, in about i880, he started to paint studies of peasants and miners
Question 2.
During the next few years, which are known as his Dutch period, he produced paintings with rather dark greenish-brown colours?
Answer:
The next few years, known as his Dutch period, he produced paintings with rather dark greenish-brown colours
Question 3.
In 1886, when he went to Paris to visit his brother Theo, he was immediately attracted to the Impressionist work he saw there. He decided to stay in Paris and continued his painting there?
Answer:
In 1886, after going to Paris to visit his brother Theo, after seeing and immediately getting attracted to the Impressionist work there, he decided to stay in Paris and continued his painting there
Question 4.
He was encouraged by Pissaro to use more colour in his pictures and his subsequent paintings were bright and immensely colourful?
Answer:
Encouraged by Pissaro to use more colour in his pictures, his subsequent paintings were bright and immensely colourful
Question 5.
After Van Gogh had moved to Arles in the south of France, in 1888, he worked frantically?
Answer:
Having moved to Arles in the south of France in 1888, Van Gogh worked frantically
Question 6.
This frenzied activity, which was interrupted by bouts of deep depression and despair, produced the majority of his most famous paintings?
Answer:
Interrupted by bouts of deep depression and despair, this frenzied activity produced the majority of his most famous paintings
Question 7.
One of these, which is called Self Portrait with Bandaged Ear, showing Van Gogh. He was wearing a bandage after cutting off his ear, committed suicide a year later in 1890?
Answer:
One of these called a Self Portrait with Bandaged Ear, shows Van Gogh, wearing a bandage after he had cut off his ear. A year later, in 1890, he committed suicide
Question 8.
A lot is known about Van Goghs life and his feelings because of the hundreds of letters, which were written by him to his brother Theo and others?
Answer:
A lot is known about Van Goghs life and his feelings because of the hundreds of letters, written by him to his brother Theo and others
Question 9.
His brother always encouraged him in his work because he believed in Van Goghs genius. He was the person closest to Van Gogh?
Answer:
Believing (believed) in Van Goghs genius, his brother, the closest person to Van Gogh always encouraged him in his work
II. Reported speech
Apart from the ground rules that are laid down for reporting in traditional grammar books, there are certain other principles that are to be followed to make the speech appealing?
Suppose you want to tell somebody what Ram said. There are two ways of doing this
You can repeat Rams words (direct speech).
Ram said,I am feeling ill
Or you can use reported speech:
Ram said that he was feeling ill
It is not always necessary to change the verb in reported speech. If you report something and the situation hasnt changed, you need not change the verb to the past:
Direct : Neelima said, My new job is.very interesting.
Reported : Neelima said that her new job is very interesting.
(The situation hasnt changed. Her job is still interesting.)
Direct : Ravi said, I want to go to New York next year.
Reported : Ravi told me that he wants to go to New York next year.
(Ravi still wants to go to New York next year.)
You can also change the verb to the past:
Neelima said that her new job was very interesting.
Ravi told me that he wanted to go to New York the following year
The past simple (did/saw/knew etc.) can usually stay the same in reported speech, or you can change to past perfect (had done/had seen/had known etc.)
Direct : Ravi said:I woke up feeling.ill, so I didnt go to work."
Reported : Ravi said (that) he woke up feeling ill, so he didnt go to work, or Ravi said (that) he had woken up feeling ill, so he hadnt gone to work
Look at the following conversation and notice how it is reported.
NHK Radio : How is peace connected to a good environment?
Wangari Maathai : Many wars that are fought in the world are fought over natural resources. Some wars are fought because the environment is so degraded that it is not able to support communities and so they fight over the little that is left. Others are fought because some people want to take a lot of the resources, to control them, and to keep many other people out
Reported speech of the above conversation:
NHK Radio asked Wangari Maathai how peace was connected to a good environment
She answered that many wars that were fought in the world were fought over natural resources. Some wars were fought because the environment was so degraded that it was not able to support communities and so they fought over the little that was left. Others were fought because some people wanted to take a lot of the resources, to control them, and to keep many other people out
A. Write the following in Reported Speech:
NHK Radio : What is the one thing we can do ?
Wangari Maathai : For me, my greatest activity is to plant a tree. I think that a tree is a wonderful symbol for the environment and when we plant a tree we plant hope. We plant the future for ourselves, for our children, for the birds. We plant something that will last, long after we are gone?
Answer:
NHK Radio asked Wangari Maathai what was the one thing that they could do. She answered that the greatest activity was to plant a tree for her. She thought that tree was a wonderful symbol for the environment and when they planted a tree they planted hope. They planted the future for themselves, for their children, for the birds. They planted something that would last, long after they were gone
B. Report the following dialogue
Man : Im doing a survey on shopping habits.
Woman : OK. As long as it doesnt take long.
Man : How often do you eat hamburgers?
Woman : Never. Im a vegetarian. I dont eat any animal products.
Man : Right! Can I just ask you a personal question? Are you wearing leather shoes?
Woman : Yes, lam.
Man : Dont you think thats rather hypocritical?
Woman : No, not really.
Man : Oh, thats amusing?
Answer:
The man said that he was doing a survey on shopping habits. Acknowledging it the woman said that she would answer the questions if they didnt take much time. The man asked her how often she ate hamburgers. The woman replied that she never ate as she was a vegetarian and she didnt eat any animal products. Then, the man sought her to permit to ask personal question and enquires if she was wearing leather shoes. The woman said that she was. The man asked her if she didnt think that was rather hypocritical. The woman said she really didnt. Finally the man said that her statement was only amusing
Writing
You have read the interview with Wangari Maathai. You know how and what type of questions have been asked by the interviewer. Imagine that you have decided to interview someone concerned with environment. You may include the following?
- issues relating to the environment
- the causes
- actions that could be taken to save the environment
Answer
Mr. Gogoi is one of the famous environmental activists. He wants to protect the ecosystem. He mainly concentrates on anti-dam campaign. He uses the RTI act as an instrument for social mobilization. He also starts the anti-corruption movement. He resists the massive eviction drive throughout Assam. Given below is my interview with Mr. Gogoi
I. Why are you protesting against the construction of large dams in northeastern India?
Answer:
Mr.Gogoi:
The rivers have been flowing down since the hills from the ancient times to give us life and livelihood. Our farmers are hugely dependent on the rivers. Dams will destroy this strong bond between the river and the people. The ecology of Assam is part of the ecology ofArunachal Pradesh. Assam bears the cost of developmental projects in Arunachal Pradesh. One big dam is enough for all the people in the Northeast
But the dams in Arunachal Pradesh are not being built to supply power for local people. They are being constructed to supply power to corporations. This is corporatization of water. Water should be a community resource. Before constructing a big dam, we should have a very proper, genuine scientific study on the river and the ecosystem. No such study was conducted
I. Your anti-dam campaign has largely focused on the 2,000 megawatt Lower Subansiri Hydroelectric Project on the border of Assam and Arunachal Pradesh, which is now roughly 50 percent completed. In 2011, you led a protest movement to block the turbines from reaching the construction site. How did you do that?
Answer:
Mr.Gogoi:
KMSS, along with other organizations, succeeded in mobilizing the farmers and middle classes on the dam question. Hundreds of thousands of people had involved in the process. We chopped down huge trees on the road. We dug a trench. We blocked roads with electric poles. All the roads were blocked. The government accused us of being Maoists, Naxalites, and carrying on an armed struggle. But we are not. Ours is a ferocious resistance and we have put all our energy against this dam
I. How do you use Right to Information requests to fight corruption and why is this method so important to your movement?
Answer:
Mr.Gogoi:
First we get all the information we need for using the RTI and then we start to fight.
The base of our popularity comes from the use of the RTI Act as an instrument for social mobilization and our anti-corruption movement. The anti-corruption movement made KMSS possible. This is why the middle class has accepted us
I. Last year, KMSS opened "fair price" vegetable stalls in Guwahati, the capital of Assam. What does this achieve?
Answer:
Mr.Gogoi:
We tried to address two questions. The price of vegetables is high for consumers, but the farmers get very little for their crops. A farmer gets only get 1.5 rupees per kilogram of tomatoes but the consumer has to buy it for 30 to 40 rupees. The profit goes to the brokers, not to the producers. We wanted to establish a market that directly connects producers and consumers. We understand that this is a temporary experiment. But it shows that price control as well as profits to the producers can be provided by sincere state effort
I. You recently announced plans to start a political party in 2015. Will you be contesting in the elections?
Answer:
Mr.Gogoi:
In the next elections we are going to form a party, but not fight for parliamentary elections. The issue has been continuously debated within the organization. The party is for social and democratic reform and revolution. Till now, KMSS is a mass organization, and no mass organization can bring about serious change. Only a strong political party can achieve this
I. The movement you led in 2002 against the forest departments eviction drive launched you as an activist beyond student politics. What happened?
Answer:
Mr.Gogoi:
There was a massive eviction drive by the Forest Department throughout Assam. I was one of the five students from Guwahati University, who went to Tengani area in Nambar Reserve Forest in Golaghat district. We found many houses burned and others demolished by the Forest Departments elephants. We held a meeting and formed an organization to resist the eviction drive and my real movement was started
On Aug. 7, 2002, we led a protest from Tengani to the district headquarters - in Golaghat 40 kilometers away. We went on foot, 10,000 to 15,000 people, starting at 4 a.m. In Golaghat town we fought against the police. After quarreling for an hour, the deputy commissioner came and he gave an assurance that no eviction drive would happen in Tengani area before discussing it with the people. It was the first time I spoke about land rights
I. How was KMSS formed and what issues does it care about the most?
Answer:
Mr.Gogoi:
After two years in Tengani, we had an intense confrontation with the government.
The police and the ruling Congress party were strongly opposing us. We could not resist the government in such a small area, so we decided that we must spread the democratic mass movement all across Assam. On June 28, 2005, we began a bicycle procession with 200 people, split into two teams
One went to lower Assam, and the other to upper Assam. We met many flood-affected people and people living in the forests in every district of Assam. This was a big source of learning for us, and we connected with many local organizations and NGOs throughout the state. After one month, we gathered in Tezpur town and formed the KMSS
We demand land reforms in Assam. Land must be distributed to peasants and farmers. Our second demand is for community rights over natural resources. And third is to find a solution to problems of flooding and erosion. Also, we want 100 percent irrigation in paddy fields
(This interview has been slightly edited and condensed.)
Environment Summary in English
(Wangari Muta Maathai (1 April 1940 - 25 September 2011) was a Kenyan , environmental and political activist In the 1970s, Maathai founded the Green Belt Movement, an environmental non-governmental organization focused on the planting of trees, environmental conservation, and womens rights. In 1986, she was awarded the Right Livelihood Award, and in 2004, she became the first African woman to receive the Nobel Peace Prize for "her contribution to sustainable development, democracy and peace". The given lesson is an excerpt from her interview with NHK Radio (Japan)
Wangari Maathai says that the efforts of the Green Belt Movement were to respond to the basic needs of the people in the rural areas. She says that Kenya had undergone severe environmental degradation due to the attitude of the colonial rulers. Kenya, which was colonialised by the British had a lot of indigenous forests in the forested mountains which worked as water to wers
These forests were cleared for establishing commercial plantations of exotic species of trees like the Pines and Eucalyptus. Though these movements have had its say in the commercial timber industry, it happened at the cost of the local biological diversity. These trees, which grew faster extracted water from the soils and precipitated that back to the atmosphere. The result was severe water shortage, drying up of underground water resources, severe changes in the rain patterns and the greater loss of local bio-diversity
This was well reflected in the very first United Nations Conference for Women in Mexico in 1975, many of the women were saying, "We need food, we need water, we need clean drinking water, we need fodder for our animals." This was the turning point from where Wangari Maathai started her movement
Her first attempt was to make the people plant and take care of the indigenous plants and trees, by growing the seeds and then transplanting them. Even that had some troubles as the women were not trained for that. As the training attempt with the help of the foresters failed, she inspired the ladies to use the common sense, and grow plants in pots and all. These trees can grow and meet the needs, as the trees grow faster in the tropical regions. People need trees for fire wood and building purposes
Wangari Maathai is of the opinion that the people of the nation do ask for the basic needs of people in the rural areas; and people are asking for clean drinking water, for food, for energy (which is mostly firewood), for building material, for fodder for the animals. All these need to come from the nature. Once it gets degraded then the life of common people gets into trouble. She also feels that planting trees is not just the solution, for there are some other things to be done as well
For this, the government needs to organize programmes and take care of them. Though there were movements or wars, they were for the sake of their supremacy or the control over it, but not for the sake of the environment. According to her, the theme is like an African stool, with three legs and the basin on which you sit. The three legs: one leg is peace, the other leg is good governance, and the third leg is sustainable management of resources. When you have those three legs, you can put the basin, which is development. And if you try to balance that stool without those three, it wont happen
What she had understood from the given scenario was that the best way to protect the environment is by organizing the illiterate and ordinary women, who could plant trees, grow them, meet the needs and even sell them. The women are now proud of what they have achieved. The landscape also has got changes. The dust filled land now has green lush growing and are even inhabited by birds and animals. The third change is that of the people, who now come willingly forward, to be a part of the movement. She becomes more humble, to accept that the efforts she had started which has become an inspiration for a lot many such struggling communities around the world
Glossary
Green Belt Movement (n) = a movement to protect environment
Nobel Peace Prize = The Nobel Peace Prize is one of the five Nobel Prizes created by the Swedish industrialist, inventor, and armaments manufacturer Alfred Nobel
respond (v) = to say or do something as a reaction to something that has been said or done
discontent (n) = a feeling of wanting better treatment or an improved situation
fodder (n) = food for farm animals
forested (adj) = covered with forests
pristine (adj) = fresh or clean
indigenous (adj) = native
biological diversity (n) = the variety of plants and animals in a particular place
exotic species (n) = unusual plants
commercial plantations (n) = a long, artificially-established mini forest, farm or estate, which is grown for commercial purposes
flora (n) = all the plants of a particular place
fauna (n) = all the animals of a given region
downstream (adj) = with or in the direction of the current of a stream
illiterate (n) = the person who is unable to read or write
germinate (v) = to develop into a plant or individual, as a seed, spore
seedlings (n) = a plant or tree grown from a seed
rehabilitate (v) = to restore to a condition of good health, ability to work, or the like
landscape (n) = a section or expanse of rural scenery, usually extensive, that can be seen from a single viewpoint
profound (adj) = penetrating or entering deeply into subjects of thought or knowledge
ensure (v) = to make sure or certain
negotiations (n) = mutual discussion and arrangement of the terms of a transaction or agreement
conflict (v) = to come into collision or disagreement