REASONS FOR THE FREQUENT OCCURENCE OF THE PASSIVE IN ENGLISH
It is common knowledge that the Passive is extensively used in English. This seems to be
due to a number of reasons.
In English there are no means of avoiding the indication of the doer of the action in active
constructions. In other languages we find special active constructions which make it
possible to avoid any mention of the agent. For instance, in Russian there several
grammatical means to serve the purpose:
the so-called indefinite-personal sentences in which there is no subject and the
predicate is in the third person plural:
Греков держали как пленников, но при этом обращались с ними самым
почтительным образом и предоставляли им всевозможные блага.
sentences with reflexive verbs:
Эта картина ценилась выше, чем все другие.
Он знал, что оставался ещё один важный вопрос
Его неожиданное появление объяснялось очень просто.
impersonal sentences
Не слышалось никакого шума.
Взорвало плотину.
Всё небо обложило тучами
It is true that in English the indefinite pronoun ONE and occasionally the personal
pronouns WE, YOU, THEY and the noun PEOPLE may be used in the same way. But for some
reason or other, the use of this kind of sentences is restricted, and English, instead, resorts to
passive constructions.
In English, owing to the loss of distinction between the accusative and the dative
cases, the number of verbs taking a direct object is quite considerable. It accounts for the
extensive use of the Direct Passive.
There is a great variety of passive constructions in English. Although some of them
are restricted in their application, they still contribute to the frequent occurrence of the Passive.
Lecture 5. The question of the number of voices.
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