Voice Change Part One (1): Assertive Sentence

“Voice” is perhaps one of the most difficult parts in English grammar. Most of the students find it difficult when it comes to change the pattern of the sentence from active to passive. Without learning it properly, one cannot be skilled in English language. Even one cannot get a good job or get enrolled in a good educational institute without mastering the skill of this grammar part. If you find any mistake, do not forget to mention it in the comment box. 

Change the following active voices into passive:

1.   Mr. Jalil teaches us English.

Answer: We are taught English by Mr. Jalil. / English is taught us by Mr. Jalil.

2.   The cow gives us milk.

Answer: We are given milk by the cow. / Milk is given to us by the cow.

3.   Sumi writes a letter.

Answer: A letter is written by Sumi.

4.   Rani was singing a song.

Answer: A song was being sung by Rani.

5.   Rumi draws a picture.

Answer: A picture is drawn by Rumi.

6.   The old man stopped the guest.

Answer: The guest was stopped by the old man.

7.   Suman will help me.

Answer: I shall be helped by Suman.  

8.   He gave her the pen.

Answer: The pen was given to her by him. / She was given the pen by him.

9.   We should do our duties.

Answer: Our duties should be done by us.

10.                We had finished the work.

Answer: The work had been finished by us.

11.                We elected him chairman.

Answer: He was elected chairman by us.

12.                God loves us all.

Answer: We all are loved by God.

13.                The teacher did the sums.

Answer: The sums were done by the teacher.

14.                They are flying kites.

Answer: Kites are being flown by them.

15.                The fishermen were catching fish.

Answer: Fish were being caught by the fishermen.

16.                He likes you.

Answer: You are liked by him.

17.                I am going to post the letter.

Answer: The letter is going to be posted by me.

18.                They are going to open a bank.

Answer: A bank is going to be opened by them.

19.                He has caught a bird.

Answer: A bird has been caught by him.

20.                We eat rice.

Answer: Rice is eaten by us.

21.                I saw him playing football.

Answer: He was seen playing football by me.

22.                He watched the boy crying.

Answer: The boy was seen crying by him.

23.                They will be writing the poem.

Answer: The poem will be being written by them.

24.                The teacher saw the students playing in the field.

Answer: The students were seen playing in the field by the teacher.

25.                The people in Asia mainly eat rice.

Answer: Rice is mainly eaten by the people in Asia. / Rice is eaten by the people in Asia mainly.

26.                She hurt her brother.

Answer: Her brother was hurt by her.

27.                I saw the boy crying.

Answer: The boy was seen crying by me.

28.                Mother showed me a picture.

Answer: I was shown a picture by mother. / A picture was shown to me by mother.

29.                I have to do it.

Answer: It has to be done by me.

30.                All his pupils like him.

Answer: He is liked by all his pupils.

31.                They were building a house.

Answer: A house was being built by them.

32.                The motor car ran over the dog.

Answer: The dog was run over by the motor car.

33.                I know that the work is hard.

Answer: It is known to me that the work is hard. / That the work is hard is known to me.

34.                The ladies fan themselves.

Answer: The ladies are fanned by themselves.

35.                Our teacher is going to give us presents.

Answer: We are going to be given presents by our teacher. / Presents are going to be given to us by our teacher.

36.                He has cut his finger.

Answer: His finger has been cut by him.

37.                He pleased us.

Answer: We were pleased with him.

38.                He made me drive his car.

Answer: I was made to drive his car (by him).

39.                They think him to be a poet.

Answer: He is thought to be a poet by them.

40.                He is beating the thief.

Answer: The thief is being beaten by him.

41.                Fortune favors the brave.

Answer: The brave are favored by fortune.

42.                I will do my duty.

Answer: My duty will be done by me.

43.                The Lilliputians made Gulliver prisoner.

Answer: Gulliver was made prisoner by the Lilliputians.

44.                She is weaving a sari.

Answer: A sari is being weaved by her.

45.                You should keep your promise.

Answer: Your promise should be kept.

46.                The cat kills mice.

Answer: Mice are killed by the cat.

47.                You should have done it.

Answer: It should have been done by you.

48.                They are going to start a business.

Answer: A business is going to be started by them.

49.                We know that the earth is round.

Answer: It is known to us that the earth is round. / That the earth is round is known to us.

50.                He slept a sound sleep.

Answer: A sound sleep was slept by him.

51.                He caught me by the hand.

Answer: I was caught by the hand.

52.                The watch maker has repaired my watch.

Answer: My watch has been repaired by the watch maker.

53.                We heard her sing.

Answer: She was heard to sing (by us).

54.                I saw a man carrying some books.

Answer: A man was seen carrying some books by me.

55.                Everyone knows him to be an honest man.

Answer: He is known to be an honest man to everyone.

56.                His behavior annoys me sometimes.

Answer: I am annoyed at his behavior sometimes.

57.                We shall not admit children under ten.

Answer: Children under ten will not be admitted by us.

58.                Nobody knows him here.

Answer: He is not known here. / He is known to none here.

59.                They are breaking the pitcher.

Answer: The pitcher is being broken by them.

60.                They are drinking water.

Answer: Water is being drunk by them.

61.                I have nothing to say.

Answer: Nothing is had by me to say. / Nothing to say is had by me.

62.                We have seen the accident.

Answer: The accident has been seen by us.

63.                They buy fish every day.

Answer: Fish is bought by them every day.

64.                She gave us the news.

Answer: We were given the news by her. / The news was given to us by her.

65.                People generally believe that money brings happiness.

Answer: Money is generally believed to bring happiness.

66.                No one expects you to do it alone.

Answer: You are not expected to do it alone.

67.                They say that a cat has nine lives.

Answer: A cat is said to have nine lives.

68.                They claimed that they were the winners.

Answer: They were claimed to be the winners.

69.                We ought to obey our parents.

Answer: Our parents ought to be obeyed by us.

70.                He hurt himself.

Answer: He was hurt by himself.

71.                She killed herself.

Answer: She was killed by herself.

72.                He poisoned himself.

Answer: He was poisoned by himself.

73.                Honest tastes sweet.

Answer: Honey is sweet when it is tasted. / Honey is tasted sweet.

74.                The bed feels soft.

Answer: The bed is soft when it is felt. / The bed is felt soft.

75.                The moon looks lovely.

Answer: The moon is lovely when it is looked. / The moon is looked lovely.

76.                The rose smells sweet.

Answer: The rose is sweet when it is smelt. / The rose is smelt sweet.

77.                The house is building.

Answer: The house is being built.

78.                The cow is milking.

Answer: The cow is being milked.

79.                Rice sells cheap.

Answer: Rice is cheap when it is sold. / Rice is sold cheap.

80.                This story reads funny.

Answer: This story is funny when it is read. / This story is read funny.

81.                The book is printing.

Answer: The book is being printed.

82.                We call him a fool.

Answer: He is called a fool by us.

83.                The children laughed at the beggar.

Answer: The beggar was laughed at by the children.

84.                One should keep one's promises.

Answer: Promises should be kept.

85.                Somebody has picked my pocket.

Answer: My pocket has been picked (by somebody).

86.                Circumstances obliged me to agree.

Answer: I was obliged to agree (by circumstances).

87.                I saw him stealing the watch.

Answer: He was seen stealing the watch by me.

88.                We must listen to his words.

Answer: His words must be listened to.

89.                One cannot gather grapes from thistles.

Answer: Grapes cannot be gathered from thistles.

90.                People regarded him as an impostor.

Answer: He was regarded as an impostor by people.

91.                They refused him admittance.

Answer: He was refused admittance by them.

92.                The doctor despaired of his recovery.

Answer: His recovery was despaired of by the doctor.

93.                The manager will issue you a ticket.

Answer: You will be issued a ticket by the manager.

94.                He handed her a parcel.

Answer: She was handed a parcel by him. / A parcel was handed to her by him.

95.                They asked me my name.

Answer: My name was asked by them. / I was asked my name by them.

96.                We will execute all orders promptly.

Answer: All orders will be promptly executed by us.

97.                People all over the world speak English.

Answer: English is spoken by people all over the world.

98.                They saw the storm approaching.

Answer: The storm was seen approaching by them.

99.                I saw him get out of the train.

Answer: He was seen to get out of the train.

100.            They made him drink the milk.

Answer: He was made to drink the milk.

101.            She helped me lift the box.

Answer: I was helped to lift the box.

102.            They made her repeat the whole story.

Answer: She was made to repeat the whole story.

How does Achitophel convince Absalom to go against King in Absalom and Achitophel?

“Absalom and Achitophel” is one of the best works of John Dryden. It is also considered to be one of the best political satires of English literature. It is a long poem where the poet talked about the conflict between King Charles II and his illegitimate son James Scott, the Duke of Monmouth. In this poem, Dryden talked in favor of the King Charles II. Using the story of the Bible, the poet narrated his contemporary political situation of England. In this poem, Absalom represents the illegitimate child of King Charles II while Achitophel represents the Earl of Shaftesbury, friend and loyal advisor of Absalom. King David actually represents King Charles II. The second wife of King Charles II could not give him any child and he had a number of mistresses who bore his illegitimate children. Of them, the Duke of Monmouth was his favorite.

Achitophel tried to provoke Absalom to go against King David. Then Absalom gives a long speech to Achitophel where he tells him that he is unable to rebel against King David for he is a generous king who loves his subjects. He never oppresses his subjects. He has been very kind to Absalom and provides assistance in his needs. King David fulfilled all the wishes of Absalom. Thus he does not want to go against the king. 

Upon hearing this, Achitophel presents different logic to convince Absalom to rebel against King David. First he uses the art of flattery. He falsely praises Absalom’s various qualities and tells him that he has all the abilities to become a king. In this manner, he first tries to flatter Absalom.

Achitophel also degrades King David by saying that he may be generous but not intelligent. He gives many things before his subjects ask for it which is not the quality of a good king. Overall, King David is not a worthy King. 

In this manner, Achitophel tries to convince Absalom that Absalom should be the King for the future welfare of the country. Absalom or the Duke of Monmouth has many qualities that cannot be found in King Charles II or King David and the King does not understand his subjects very well which is why he makes mistake in every step. This is why the country accumulated a huge debt and its future is at stake.

The worst thing about King David is that he chose James in place of Absalom. James’ biggest fault is that he is a Catholic Christian. It means that if James becomes the next king, Catholics will prosper and Protestants will suffer. It will not stop there, James hates Absalom and he would destroy Absalom at any cost after he would become the king.

Achitophel convinces Absalom that it is the best time to rebel against the King. If the Duke of Monmouth or Absalom does not take this opportunity then his own future will be at stake. If James becomes the next king then he will destroy Absalom at the first chance he would get. Moreover, today King David is favoring Absalom but that may change any moment. He is dominated by his mistresses. Thus he might change his mind about Absalom at any moment.

Achitophel also tells Absalom that many people do not like the king and they can create a big army with these people. Only Duke of Monmouth can unite this people and lead them against King Charles II. Duke of Monmouth is a popular person and many will join him if he calls them to take up arms against the King. 

Achitophel is also a man of great influence and he will also try to rally as many men as possible against the King. Achitophel also tells Absalom that many nobles are not happy with the King and his brother James. They are waiting for a good King and Duke of Monmouth is the best candidate at present in England.

In this manner, Achitophel convinces Absalom to go against the King. In reality, the Duke of Monmouth’s rebellion against the King did not become successful. 

Absalom and Achitophel as a political satire

Absalom and Achitophel written by John Dryden is a political satire. Since Dryden was belong to Restoration period so we can easily say Dryden’s this work is mirror of that period. We have found several historical stories through this poem. 

In this period, there were several political parties in England. Among them Whig and Tory were common. Whig was Protestant and against the king and Tory was Catholic and supporter of king. As the relation between these two parties was not good so when they expressed anything through their writing they used satire form in their writing for opposite party. In this way, satire became popular form among the parties, but as a poet or writer, Dryden used satire as a literary form in his poem in a good way. 

Before describing Absalom and Achitophel as a political satire, we need to know the definition of the widely used literary technique, satire. Satire is a literary attack on the follies and vices of individual or society in order to correct them through laughter and ridicule. It has some characteristics. These are-

·         Literary form of expression.

·         Disgust at the ugly and foolishness.

·         Humour. 

    ·    A sincere desire to correct or reform.

The only intention of Dryden to write this poem was to support King Charles II. The King himself asked Dryden to write a poem satirizing the Whig party and particularly its leader Shaftesbury. Dryden was also supporter of Tory. He was called Staunch Tory. He used satire very strictly for that people who were against the King Charles II and made plan to dethrone him. 

First, Dryden attacked Earl of Shaftesbury. With his brilliant tricks he represented Shaftesbury as hypocrite. We found Shaftesbury a smooth talker and with his this capability, he convinced Duke of Monmouth to go against his father. 

Dryden also attacked Protestant group. The Protestant group was in fear that if James, the brother of King Charles II, came to the throne then Roman Catholics would be beneficial and would be in power. Here, it is notable that James, the Duke of York was thought to be a follower of Pope of Roman Catholic. Instead, Protestants wanted to see the Duke of Monmouth in the throne of England. In Absalom and Achitophel, Dryden tried to show the traitorous activities of the Whig against their king. 

In the seventeenth century England, religion played a big role in ruling the country and politics and religion were closely related to each other. Both Protestant Christians and their rival Roman Catholic were in cock fight to grab the power of the country. To prevent Roman Catholics from getting into the power of England, a clergyman, Titus Oates, in favor of Protestants, also made a plan and claimed that James and Roman Catholics had tried to kill the King Charles II in order to make James as the king of England which was later proved wrong. 

Dryden in Absalom and Achitophel also criticized Duke of Buckingham with whom he had personal conflict. When Dryden joined as a poet-laureate and historiographer to the government in 1670, he got both money and recognition. Being jealous of Dryden’s such prosperity, some contemporary high officials started making fun of him. Duke of Buckingham was one of those people. In his literary work, The Rehearsal, he strongly criticized Dryden. In Absalom and Achitophel, Dryden took the revenge of making fun of him. In his poem, Dryden compared the Duke of Buckingham to the Biblical character Zimri, who being lured of the throne of Israel, killed his master and ascended to the throne thought Zmiri could only survive for seven days as the king of Israel. In reality, Duke of Buckingham was initially a friend of King Charles II, but when the religious chaos between Whig and Tories started, he joined the Whig, the rebel group of King Charles II. 

In Absalom and Achitophel, Dryden did not focus much on the Duke of Monmouth who in the poem is compared to Absalom. Instead, he criticized much about Shaftesbury who is compared to Achitophel. According to Bible, Achitophel was a counselor to the court of King David, father of Absalom. When Absalom set to fight against his father, King David, Achitophel joined Absalom’s side. So, Dryden’s Absalom and Achitophel would be much more related to the Biblical incident of Absalom and Achitophel, if he gave much importance on the Duke of Monmouth while making satire. However, Dryden mostly attacked Shaftesbury (symbolizing Achitophel in the poem). There are some political reasons behind it. At that time in England, Shaftesbury was in lead of the Whig, who placed “The Exclusion Bill” to the House of Commons. So, Dryden wanted to save King Charles II from any volatile situation due to the continuing rebellion. That is why; Dryden gave much importance while making satire. Another reason is that Dryden might have though that if he criticized Duke of Monmouth much then he would be more furious and as the Duke of Monmouth was an illegitimate child of King Charles II, Dryden tried to make a compromise between the King and Duke of Monmouth so that the movement over the religion and power could be stopped. 

In Dryden’s time, satire became popular, especially among the political parties. In that time, Dryden wrote this poem. It is his best work. Now, this satire poem is considered as a classical work of Dryden in English literature. 

Gulliver as a misanthropic character

Gulliver’s Travels is perhaps the most famous literary work of Jonathan Swift. Published in 1726, it has become popular among readers as a satirical novel and perhaps one of the best satirical novels in English literature. By writing this novel, the writer has strongly criticized everything in England and English society. This book, which is divided into four different sections, shows Gulliver’s travel to four different parts of the world. Portraying the badness of human beings equally present in each section, Jonathan Swift actually satirizes people of his time. Even the governments and the judicial system have not been spared from his criticism. In some parts of this novel, his disliking for humankind and avoiding human society are in extreme level. So, Gulliver is a misanthropic character. 

In book 1 of Gulliver’s Travels, we can find that Gulliver goes to Lilliput. Lilliput is a place in which the human beings are not only small in size but also narrow in mentality. The tiny creatures soon turn out to be treacherous and cruel. They love to fight for nothing and they are greedy for power and want to destroy anyone who disagrees with them. The king and his ministers have no respect for the citizens. They think that they are like God and citizens must obey them without asking any question. Today they are grateful to Gulliver for helping them to defeat Blefuscu. Tomorrow they are unhappy with Gulliver and want to kill him. Thus, they do not have any goodness in them. 

In book 3, Gulliver goes to Laputa. There, Gulliver goes to science academy and he finds that scientists are busy with all kinds of inventions except anything that would help humanity. The government general secretary distributes fund for this kind of useless research. The people there have no interest to do anything good. 

The worst attack against human beings comes in book 4. Here, Gulliver travels to Houyhnhnms. Here, we can find that Yahoos who are similar to monkeys are presented as human beings. The Yahoos have no quality and even they look ugly. They are inferior to Horses in every possible way- physically and mentally. To show hatred towards mankind, Gulliver frankly says, “I expressed my uneasiness at his giving me so often the appellation of Yahoo, an odious animal, for which I had so utter a hatred and contempt.” 

The more time Gulliver spends with the Houyhnhnms, the more hatred for Yahoos grows in his heart. His abhorrence of the Yahoo race first comes to the notice when, on one occasion, he catches a Yahoo child and describes it as an “odious vermin”. He is also seen using Yahoo skins as clothing, which actually represents his slight value for human life. Even when a discussion about killing the Yahoo race was made at the general assembly of the Houyhnhnm, he does not oppose it. Gulliver’s hatred for humans reaches its peak when he says that he must leave the Houyhnhnm land that he has grown to love so much. He exclaims: “that the certain prospect of an unnatural death was the least of my evils, for supposing I should escape with life by some strange adventure, how could I think with temper of passing my days among Yahoos”. Hence, Gulliver prefers death to living among his own people in civilization again; for him, they are corrupted, Yahoos too. 

His abhorrence towards Yahoos, who represent human beings, is increased after a female Yahoo attacked him being aroused by sexual urge. The association with the Houyhnhnms makes Gulliver loathing normal sexual intercourse. Such disgust keeps on troubling him, even when he returns to England, and with horror he apprehends that by copulating with his wife, a species of Yahoo, he has produced so many Yahoos. 

The way he treats his family members after returning home again show his hatred for mankind. He denies eating and talking with them. The very smell of them makes him ill. Instead, he would spend time conversing with his two new horses for “at least four hours a day”. He said,

“I began last week to permit my wife to sit at dinner with me…. Yet the smell of a Yahoo continuing very offensive, I always keep my nose stopped with rue, lavender, or tobacco leaves.” 

Thus, we can perhaps conclude that Jonathan Swift did not have any high idea about human beings. He created Gulliver as a misanthropic character. Gulliver could not find any good quality among people of any of the countries he traveled. However, we have to understand one thing that Jonathon Swift only criticized the people of his own time and own country. Naturally, he was frustrated because there was no democracy in England. The King and his ministers and rich land lords used to control everything. The aristocratic people had all the facilities and the ordinary people could not even get three decent meals a day. When there is no good governance, the discipline of a country suffers. As a result, people lose their goodness. 

Jonathon Swift was a humanitarian person and he dreamt of a world in which there would be no oppression and corruption. But two things were main obstacles for each. First of all, there was no good governance and when people did any good thing there was no system of reward. The second obstacle was that the ordinary people did not have high value for education and other good qualities. They did not want to welcome new ideas. Jonathon Swift dreamt of a world in which people will try to become better. They will value goodness and will respect each other. 

Jonathon Swift was unlucky that he was ahead of his time. He was a visionary and his ideas were modern. The people of his time could not understand it. So, they thought that Gulliver was a misanthropic character. However, in our own time we can understand that Gulliver was not a misanthropic character but he criticized the bad qualities of human being in the right way. 

The Rape of the Lock as a mock epic or heroic poem

“The Rape of the Lock” is the most famous poem of Alexander Pope. It is a mock heroic poem in which the poet has criticized the contemporary social life. One of the important elements of this epic poem is the use of supernatural elements and it looks like Pope has written it in a mock heroic style. Supernatural elements are an important part of any epic poem, but in “The Rape of the Lock”, they are often laughable and funny persons. There are other mock heroic elements too. Apart from supernatural elements, Pope also criticizes the society and characters.

A mock heroic poem is a poem in which the epic style is mocked. By epic, we normally understand the epic poems and books of the western civilization of ancient Greece and Rome. “Illiad” and “Oddessy” of Homer are perhaps the best example of epic poems and books. In mock heroic poems, the poets follow that style. In English literature, Dryden used this style successfully. Then Pope used it in a very good way in “The Rape of the Lock” poem. A mock heroic poem is much shorter in length, something that is ridiculed or made fun at. The tone is a bit serious but the readers understand that the poet is making fun.

Perhaps the most important mock heroic element is the theme or subject matter of the poem. The theme is very simple. In “The Rape of the Lock”, the plot or story takes place in London in a single day. At first, we can find that Belinda is preparing herself for a party that would take place later in the day. Then the party takes place and the Baron cuts a lock of her hair from Belinda’s head. Yes, the story of the poem is as simple as that but Pope treats the story very seriously.

Based around this theme, Pope presents everything very seriously. Pope mocked at the shallow level of the aristocratic people of his time. They had nothing to do but waste their time on nonsense things. Pope also mocked at the rich girls like Belinda who cared for beauty instead of brain.

The Baron was a shallow person too. All he cared for was rich girls like Belinda. The characterization in this poem also contains mock heroic styles. If we think of characters like Helen or Hector in “Iliad” and then compare them with Belinda and the Baron then we will realize how shallow they are.

"But since, alas! frail Beauty must decay,  Curl'd or uncurl'd, since Locks will turn to grey;  Since painted, or not painted, all shall fade,  And she who scorns a Man, must die a Maid,  What then remains but well our Pow'r to use,  And keep good Humour still whate'er we lose?"

Although Pope mocked at the rich ladies and young girls of her time, he failed to go deeply about this matter. Yes, girls like Belinda had no brain but just beauty. But it happened because girls at that age did not have freedom. They could get formal education from college and universities. Their properties were owned by their husbands, brothers or fathers. 

In epic poems, there are supernatural elements. In Homer’s two epics, we can find that Greek Gods like Zeus were more powerful than human beings and controlled many things. However, in “The Rape of the Lock”, the supernatural elements did not have any power at all. The supernatural elements in Pope’s poem are nothing more than jokers.

People of the eighteenth century became reasonable and rational. For this reason, Alexander Pope could not use the classic elements in his poem. So, if Pope had directly used epic form then his poem would not be acceptable among the people. For this reason, he used epic elements in his poem but in mockery way. Female is the main item of mockery. To make satire or mockery, he used supernatural elements. In an epic, we can see that supernatural figures are very important but in this poem, staying sylphs with Belinda all the time in all places indicate that Pope has mocked to the ladies of his society.

After reading the poem carefully, I have to accept the fact that Pope was a good poet and “The Rape of the Lock” is a successful mock heroic poem.