COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUES- I ENGLISH GRAMMAR (CONTINUED) 11. DIRECT AND INDIRECT SPEECH (PART 1) In Unit I and the four previous lessons of this unit, you had acquired an awareness of rules connected with use of verbs, articles and prepositions, concord, and avoidance of common errors in speech which are essential for correct and meaningful sentence formation. This lesson and the next one move forward to identifying the various characteristics of Direct and Indirect Speech patterns and learning how to differentiate between them, and how to change one form into the other.
11.0 Objectives By the end of these lessons you will: i. ii. iii. iv.
Identify Direct and Indirect Speech. Differentiate between Direct and Indirect Speech. Paraphrase what you read and hear correctly. Change speech from the direct form to the indirect form and vice versa.
11.1 Introduction We often have to give information about what people say or think. In order to do this we can use direct or quoted speech, or indirect or reported speech. It is like giving a report on what happened and was said or thought. Often, when we read the newspaper, we find both forms of speech- direct as well as indirect. We can give information in both forms of speech, which is why it is important to understand the difference and also to be able to change from one form to the other. Pay close attention to the characteristics of Direct and Indirect Speech and the rules associated with them. You will then be able to identify the differences between the two Speech forms. This will help you gain familiarity to be able to change the form from one to the other. Constant practice will give you the necessary confidence to use the most appropriate form, according to need, in order to make communication more effective.
11.2 Direct Speech
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Saying exactly what someone has said is called Direct speech (sometimes called quoted speech). Here what a person says appears within quotation marks (“ ”) and should be word for word. For example: I love playing basketball! May I fix your tie, daddy?”
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6.
The file is in this drawer.
"The file is in this drawer," he said She said, “I love playing basketball!” Maya asked, “May I fix your tie, daddy?” He said, “I didn’t break it.” “Hand your books to me when you have finished,” said the teacher. “I am innocent,” said the accused. When we want to repeat the exact words used by somebody, we put such sentences between inverted commas which are also known as quotation marks (“…”). The contents inside the inverted commas are known as Direct speech.
11.3 Punctuation It is important that the direct speech is correctly punctuated to mark the exact words of the speaker. There are a few rules that one has to adhere to in the punctuation used in direct speech with a reporting clause. Note: A clause is a group of words. A reporting clause is one, which has a verb in it.
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For example: He said, she asked, they said… 1. Direct speech begins and ends with quotation marks. They can be either a set of single quotation marks (‘….’) or a set of double quotation marks (“….”). Direct speech begins with a capital letter. For example:
She said, “I’m sure everything will be alright.” He said, “I told you so.”
2. If the reporting clause is at the beginning, put a comma after the reporting clause and before the initial quotation marks. For example:
He said, “I’ll finish it soon.” They said, “Don’t take it lightly.”
3. Instead of the comma, it is also possible to use the colon, especially if the direct speech has more than one sentence, or if the sentence is rather long. For example:
Mamta said: “The children will have a lot of fun on the beach. The only trouble is that we can’t rely on the weather at this time of the year, but we’ll have to take a chance on it.” The correspondent reports: “The strike in the paper mill has entered the third day today; no agreement is yet in sight and the workers refused to move away from the gate.”
4. If the quotation or direct speech ends the sentence, put a full stop, a question mark, an exclamation mark or a dash (or dots) before the final quotation marks. For example:
They said, "We told you so." He asked, "What did she say to you?" He yelled, "Watch out!" She said, "I have worked all day today, but —"
5. If the direct speech sentence would normally end in a full stop, a comma is put before the final quotation marks. The reporting clause begins with a small letter. For example:
“I expect you to be there on time,” he said. “Don’t let the dog out,” my father said. “Be careful while crossing the road,” warned mom.
6. If the direct speech is a question or an exclamation, use the appropriate punctuation mark before the final quotation marks. For example:
"What did he show you?" he asked. “Get out!” he yelled.
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7. When the reporting clause comes in between direct speech, the punctuation features for the initial and final reporting clause are combined. For example:
"We told you so," they said. "But you wouldn't listen to us." "What did she give you?" he asked. "Show me what she gave you." "Get lost!" he yelled. "Leave me alone!"
8. If the reporting clause interrupts a sentence, a comma is used even though, normally, the sentence would not be punctuated. The second half of the interrupted direct speech begins with a small letter. For example:
"We're tired," they said, "of telling you again and again." "We warned you both," they said, "many times.
Self-Check Questions Apply punctuation and other rules as applicable to Direct Speech forms, in the following sentences. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7.
He said we are going to a movie She said We worked so hard during the rehearsals of the play, yet I am happy the Chairman said about the profits made by the Company I am tired she said I need some rest We thank you for the kind gesture he said Do you know where he lives he asked The travel guide said This is the Taj Mahal the most beautiful monument of our times It is an embodiment of true love and was built by Shah Jahan in memory of his beloved wife The monument is built entirely of marble to signify the purity of his love
11.4 Indirect Speech Indirect speech doesn't use quotation marks to enclose what the person said and it doesn't have to be word for word. In other words, the exact meaning of what has been uttered is given, though not in the same words spoken by the speaker. The inverted commas (quotation marks) are removed and a conjunction “that� is used. For example: 1. He said that he was going to meet his friend. 2. She said that she had seen the movie. 3. Pankaj asserted that he had seen the man somewhere.
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4. Sudha said that she could not go to the temple with her. Indirect speech is also known as reported speech. When reporting speech the tense usually changes. This is because when we use reported speech, we are usually talking about a time in the past (because obviously the person who spoke originally spoke in the past). The verbs therefore usually have to be in the past too. For example: Direct “I’m going to the cinema,” he said.
Indirect He said that he was going to the movies.
“I’m working very hard,” she said.
She said that she was working very hard.
She said, “I can run faster than you.”
She said that she could run faster than me/he/she. He said that it might be too late.
“It may be too late,” he said. I said “I’m going to change my job.”
I said that I was going to change my job.
When direct speech is turned into indirect speech, certain changes are necessary. You will learn more about how to change indirect speech to direct speech and vice versa in the next lesson.
Self-Check Questions 8. Change the direct speech into indirect speech in the following sentences and write them in the columns on the right hand side. Direct She said “I am going to meet the teacher.”
Indirect
Tom said, “I can paint the fence in no time.” He said, “It may rain.” “We are moving to Delhi,” he said. “I will certainly help her,” she said.
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11.5 Summing Up In this lesson, you have learnt the characteristics of Direct and Indirect Speech. You should now be able to listen to the spoken language as well as read written language and distinguish between the two forms of speech. Remember: • • • • • • •
Direct Speech is also known as quoted speech. Direct Speech tells us the exact words spoken by a person. The exact words spoken by the person are placed within quotation marks (“ ”) There are many punctuation rules we need to remember when we work with Direct Speech. Indirect Speech is also known as Reported Speech. (Someone reports what another person has said or thought of). Indirect Speech does not tell us the exact words that are spoken by a person. No quotation marks are needed in Indirect Speech.
11.6 Answers to Self-Check Questions 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7.
He said, “We are going to a movie.” She said, “We worked so hard during the rehearsals of the play, yet….” “I am happy,” the Chairman said, “about the profits made by the Company.” “I am tired,” she said. “I need some rest.” “We thank you for the kind gesture,” he said. “Do you know where he lives?” he asked. The travel guide said: “This is the Taj Mahal, the most beautiful monument of our times. It is an embodiment of true love and was built by Shah Jahan in memory of his beloved wife. The monument is built entirely of marble to signify the purity of his love.”
8 Direct She said “I am going to meet the teacher.”
Indirect She said that she was going to meet the teacher.
Tom said, “I can paint the fence in no time.”
Tom said that he could paint the fence in no time.
He said, “It may rain.”
He said that it might rain.
“We are moving to Delhi,” he said.
He said that they were moving to Delhi. She said that she would certainly help her.
“I will certainly help her,” she said.
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11.7 References 1. I.Jayakaran. Everyone’s guide to English Grammar. Chennai: 2M Publishing International, 1999. 2. Wren P.C & Martin H. English Grammar & Composition. New Delhi: S.Chand & Company, 2005 3. Cholij, Mark, and Geetha Nagaraj. English Basics a companion to grammar and writing. Cambridge: The Press Syndicate of The University of Cambridge, 2004. 4. Hashemi, Louise and Thomas, Barbara. Grammar for First Certificate. Chennai: Cambridge University Press, 2004. 5. Gilani, Archana, and Kaul, Mridula. & Suganthan Beena. The Grammar Tree India: Oxford University Press 2004 6. Fowler, W.S. and Coe, Norman. Test and Practice your English. Chennai: Orient Longman Private Ltd, 2003. 7. Stern,George. Learners’ Grammar Dictionary. Singapore: Learners Publishing Pte Ltd, 2000. 8. Nagaraj, Dr. Geetha. Comprehend & Compose. New Delhi: Foundation Books, 2003. 9. www.grammarstation.com 10. www.learnenglish.de
11.8 Glossary • •
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Direct and Indirect Speech: gives information about what people say or think; for this one can use direct speech, or indirect reported speech. Direct Speech: sometimes called quoted speech; it relates to a speaker’s spoken words or words the speaker quotes from another speaker using the exact words of that speaker; quoted or direct speech, when used must be within quotation marks (’’...”) Indirect Speech: also known as reported speech; it relates to a person quoting or referring to what someone else has said in his own words; quotation marks are not used when using reported speech. Reporting Verbs: refers to verbs used in indirect speech; the verbs such as: said, told and asked, are the most common verbs used in indirect speech. Pronoun changes: When changing from direct to indirect speech and vice versa, the pronouns need to be changed from one person to another. Expressions of time: refers to the time of reporting speech. Expression of place: refers to the expression used when we report something that someone else said in a place different from where we are reporting it.
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