Re: preferred voices?

Marcus Smith wrote:

> nicole perrin wrote:
>
> >Yesterday we were reviewing the passive voice in my French class, and
> >one of the points the teacher made quite emphatically is that the active
> >voice is preferred.  I know that this is also the case with English,
> >although I could never understand it.
>
> Me either.  I use the passive quite often, but I know other English
> speakers who have claimed that they *never* use it.  I think
> "never" is too
> strong a word, but I must admit that I've never heard those people use it,
> so they could very well be right.
The passive voice is used by me a fair bit, but sentances are made to look
slightly unwieldy by it ;o).

> >   The only explanation I've ever
> >gotten is that it's not as powerful as active but I don't really buy
> >that.
>
> That doesn't really make much sense to me.  What is "powerful" supposed to
> mean?
In French or English? In french the passive isn't used because there's a lot
of other ways of expressing the same sentiments: les oignons sont vendus
ici, on vend des oignons ici, les oignons se vendent ici, all translate
quite happily into "onions are sold here," whereas the second two translate
literally into "one sells onions here" and "onions sell themselves here
(soliciting vegetables?)". English seems to shift back and forth at will, it
all depends on the mood of the speaker. I suppose that the passive throws
the focus on the subject, but really that doesn't seem as much of a major
factor. One of the more important uses is where the subject is unknown, or
if it isn't relevant, simply because our "impersonal pronoun" (either 'you'
or 'one', depending on how pedantic/old-fashioned you are) isn't as flexible
as that of French or German.

> >   Are any of your conlangs prejudiced against the passive voice?
> >Or any other voice for that matter?  (Mine aren't)
Carashán is much the same as French: los cêvous seit cho ventetos, jom vente
cho los cêvous, los cêvous se venteit cho. "onions are sold here, one sells
onions here, onions sell themselves here" At times, Carashán isn't really
all that inventively different from European natlangs, but it's my baby and
you always feel something special for your first proper conlang </misty eyed
reminiscence>

Dan

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Go dtóga na púcaí do bheithígh!
                                      May the fairies take your livestock!
Dan Jones: www.geocities.com/yl_ruil/
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