Violation

of
Coherence
DANGLING MODIFIERS
 A dangling modifier is a word or phrase that modifies a
word not clearly stated in the sentence. A modifier
describes, clarifies, or gives more detail about a concept.

The word "dangling" refers to hanging or swinging

loosely. And "modifier" stands for a person or thing that
makes partial or minor changes to something. So a
dangling modifier is a modifier (word or phrase that
modifies) which makes the meaning of a sentence to
swing (incomplete).
Example #1
"Having finished the assignment, the TV was turned on.“

"Having finished" is a participle expressing action, but the doer is

not the TV set (the subject of the main clause): TV sets don't finish
assignments. Since the doer of the action expressed in the participle
has not been clearly stated, the participial phrase is said to be a
dangling modifier."
 STRATEGIES FOR
REVISING DANGLING
MODIFIERS:
1. Name the appropriate or logical doer of the
action as the subject of the main clause:
Example:
"Having arrived late for practice, a written excuse was needed.“

Who arrived late? This sentence says that the

written excuse arrived late. To revise, decide
who actually arrived late. The possible
revision might look like this:

"Having arrived late for practice, the team

captain needed a written excuse."
The main clause now names the person (the
captain) who did the action in the modifying phrase
(arrived late).
2. Change the phrase that dangles into a complete
introductory clause by naming the doer of the
action in that clause:
Example:
"Without knowing his name, it was difficult to introduce him."

Who didn't know his name? This sentence

says that "it" didn't know his name. To
revise, decide who was trying to introduce
him. The revision might look something like
this:

"Because Maria did not know his name, it

was difficult to introduce him." The phrase is now a complete introductory clause;
it does not modify any other part of the sentence, so
is not considered "dangling."
3. Combine the phrase and main clause into one:
Example:

"To improve his results, the experiment was done again."

Who wanted to improve results? This sentence says that

the experiment was trying to improve its own results. To
revise, combine the phrase and the main clause into one
sentence. The revision might look something like this:

"He improved his results by doing the experiment again."

TYPES OF
DANGLING
MODIFIERS
Participial Phrases as Dangling Modifiers
Many dangling modifiers appear at the beginning of a
sentence. It's easy to lose track of the word they’re modifying
in these cases, particularly when the sentence begins with a
participial phrase. Take a look at several examples of
participial phrases that have become dangling modifiers in
their sentences. The modifiers are highlighted red, while the
words they modify are underlined.
 1. Present Participle or Participle Phrase
 When a present participial phrase isn't followed by the noun it’s modifying, the resulting sentence just doesn't
make sense. Unlike a misplaced modifier, the subject isn't in the wrong place — it's just gone.

Example:

Dangling Modifier

"Hoping to garner favor, my parents were unimpressed with the gift.“

Correction (No longer a dangling modifier)

"Hoping to garner favor, my new boyfriend brought my parents a gift, but they were unimpressed.“

The first sentence includes a dangling modifier because it is unclear who or what was hoping to garner
favor. It's certainly not the parents, since they were unimpressed! When you add a proper subject such as
"my new boyfriend," it's clear who was hoping to garner favor.
 2. Past Participle or Past Participle Phrase
 You'll also find past participial phrases without their subjects. You have a few options for correcting these
modifiers, all of which involve some rewriting.

Example:

Dangling Modifier

"Tired of my lateness, the note was written and handed in.“

Correction (No longer a dangling modifier)

"Tired of my lateness, my teacher demanded to see an excuse note."

The phrase "tired of my lateness" modifies the teacher, who is missing from the original
sentence. You can fix this dangling modifier by making the teacher the subject of the
sentence.
 Prepositional Phrases as Dangling Modifiers
 Starting sentences with prepositional phrases is also an effective way to vary your sentence style. They can modify nouns, or
they can function as adverb phrases to modify a verb. However, they need to come right before the words they modify to avoid
becoming dangling modifiers.

 Prepositional phrases provide more information about a noun in the sentence. The trick is to make sure the noun it's
modifying is obvious.

Example:

Dangling Modifier

"After reading the great new book, the movie based on it is sure to be exciting.“

Correction (no longer a dangling modifier)

"After reading the great new book, Anna thought the movie based on it was sure to be exciting."
We are left wondering exactly who read the great new book. The phrase can't possibly be modifying the
movie, since the movie can’t read. Adding a subject (Anna) allows the reader to know who has read the book.
 Adjective Phrases as Dangling Modifiers
 Adjectives are the most common types of modifiers. For example, "The big" doesn't make sense without telling what is big, which leaves
"big" as a dangling modifier. However, "the big dog" is a complete phrase. Adjectives and adjective phrases can become dangling modifiers
when they don't have anything to modify.

 Starting your sentence with an adjective is an effective stylistic choice. But if the noun it modifies is missing, you've got a dangling modifier.

Example:

Dangling Modifier

"Heartbroken, the amusement park had to close for repairs.“

Correction (No longer a dangling modifier)

"Heartbroken, the children learned that the amusement park had to close for repairs."

Unless your story is about an amusement park that is self-aware, you need a subject to be "heartbroken."
Adding "the children“ into the sentence clarifies what you're trying to say.
Violation of Coherence
MISPLACED MODIFIERS
 A misplaced modifier is a word, phrase, or clause that is improperly
separated from the word it modifies / describes. Because of the
separation, sentences with this error often sound awkward,
ridiculous, or confusing. Furthermore, they can be downright
illogical.
Example #1
"On her way home, Jan found a gold man's watch.“

• The example above suggests that a gold man owns a watch. Misplaced
modifiers can usually be corrected by moving the modifier to a more sensible
place in the sentence, generally next to the word it modifies.

Example:
"On her way home, Jan found a man's gold watch."

Correctly placed modifier

Several kinds
of misplaced
modifiers:
1. Misplaced adjectives
- are incorrectly separated from the nouns they modify and almost always distort the intended meaning.

Example # 1

"The child ate a cold dish of cereal for breakfast this morning.“

Correct the error by placing the adjective next to the noun it modifies.
"The child ate a dish of cold cereal for breakfast this morning.“

Example # 2

"The torn student's book lay on the desk"

The torn student' s is the misplaced adjective(modifies student)

"The student's torn book lay on the desk."

 2. Placement of adverbs
- can also change meaning in sentences.

For example, the sentences below illustrate how the placement of just can change the sentence's meaning.

- Just means only John was picked, no one else:

- Just means that John was picked now:

- Just means that John hosted only the program, nothing else:

Sentences like these are common in everyday speech and ordinarily cause their listeners no trouble.
However, they are quite imprecise and, therefore, should have NO place in your writing.
2. Placement of adverbs
- Each of these sentences says something logical but quite different, and its correctness depends upon
what the writer has in mind. Often, misplacing an adverb not only alters the intended meaning, but also
creates a sentence whose meaning is highly unlikely or completely ridiculous

This sentence, for example, suggests that we brought a lunch slowly:

To repair the meaning, move the adverb "slowly" so that it is near "ate".
 2. Placement of adverbs
- Watch out for adverbs such as only, just, nearly, merely, and almost. They are often misplaced and
cause an unintended meaning.

This sentence, for example, means that I only contributed the money:

Repaired, however, the sentence means that I contributed only $10.00.

Like adjectives, adverbs are commonly misplaced in everyday speech, and may not cause listeners difficulty.
However, such sentences are quite imprecise and, therefore, should have NO place in your writing.
3. Misplaced Phrases
- may cause a sentence to sound awkward and may create a meaning that does not make sense.

The problem sentences below contain misplaced phrases that modify the wrong nouns. To fix the errors
and clarify the meaning, put the phrases next to the noun they are supposed to modify.

Example 1 (a buyer with leather seats?).

Corrected
4. Misplaced Clauses
- may cause a sentence to sound awkward and may create a meaning that does not make sense.

The problem sentences below contain misplaced clauses that modify the wrong nouns. To fix the errors
and clarify the meaning, put the clauses next to the noun they are supposed to modify.

Example 1 ( a buttered woman?).

Corrected
Violation of Coherence
RUN-ON SENTENCE
 Run-on sentence
• A run-on sentence occurs Example:

when two or more I love to write papers I would write one every
day if I had the time.
independent clauses (also
known as complete There are two complete sentences in the
above example:
sentences) are connected
Sentence 1: I love to write papers.
improperly.
Sentence 2: I would write one every day if I had
the time.
THERE ARE TWO TYPES OF RUN-ON
SENTENCES: FUSED SENTENCES
AND COMMA SPLICES.
Fused Sentences...
- A fused sentence occurs when independent clauses run together with no marks
of punctuation or coordinating conjunctions to separate them.

Example:
"My professor read my paper she said it was excellent."
Independent Clause Independent Clause
Comma splice...
- Occurs when two or more independent clauses are joined only by a
comma.

Example:
"My cat meowed angrily, I knew she wanted food."
Independent Clause Independent Clause
 Comma splice...
- Some comma splices occur when a writer attempts to use a transitional expression in the middle of a sentence.

Example:

The results of the study were inconclusive, therefore more research needs to be done on the topic.

Sentence 1: The results of the study were inconclusive

Transitional expression (conjunctive adverb): therefore
Sentence 2: More research needs to be done on the topic
- To fix this type of comma splice, use a semicolon before the transitional expression and add a comma after it.

Revision: The results of the study were inconclusive; therefore, more research needs to be done on the topic.

You can correct a run-on sentence by connecting or separating its parts correctly. There are several
easy ways to connect independent clauses.
Correcting
Run-On
Sentences
1. Use a period
- The easiest way to fix a run-on Example:

is to split the sentence into I love to write papers I would write one
every day if I had the time.
smaller sentences using a period.
This revision works especially
well with longer sentences. Revision example:
Check, however, to make sure I love to write papers. I would write one
that this solution does not result every day if I had the time.

in short, choppy sentences.

2. Use a semicolon
- Inserting a semicolon between Example:
independent clauses creates a I love to write papers I would write one every
grammatically correct sentence. day if I had the time.
Using a semicolon is a stylistic
choice that establishes a close Revision example:
relationship between the two
I love to write papers; I would write one every
sentences. day if I had the time.
3. Use a comma and a
coordinating conjunction.
Example:
- A comma, paired with a
coordinating conjunction (e.g., I love to write papers I would write one every
day if I had the time.
"and," "but," or "or"), corrects a
run-on sentence. This method
Revision example:
emphasizes the relationship
I love to write papers, and I would write one
between the two clauses. every day if I had the time.
 4. Use a subordinating conjunction.
- Turn one of the independent clauses Example:
into a dependent clause. A I love to write papers I would write one
subordinating conjunction (e.g., every day if I had the time.
"because," "unless," and "although")
connects two clauses to create a
Example:
complex sentence. This option works
to cement the relationship between Because I love to write papers, I would write
the two parts of the sentence and may one every day if I had the time.

improve the flow of the clauses.

However you decide to revise for run-on sentences, remember that maintaining sentence variety
helps to keep the writing clear and interesting for your readers.