miércoles, 2 de mayo de 2012


REPORTED SPEECH PRACTICE 


‘They are playing football, he said
He said that they were playing football
‘I’ll pay you the day after tomorrow’, Jim said
Jim said that he would pay us/them two days after
‘I don’t eat fish’, Jane said
Jane said that she didn’t eat fish
‘Where are the books which I lent you?’, he asked me
He asked me where the books which I lent you were
‘Have you ever travelled to China?’, I said to him
I asked him if he had ever travelled to China
‘They have brought this parcel today’, they said
They said that they had brought that parcel that day
‘Can you read English newspapers?’, he asked her
He asked her if she could read English newspapers
‘Please don’t be late’ she said to her sister
She asked her sister not to be late
‘Did Mary pass the driving test?’ my brother asked me
My brother asked me if Mary had passed the driving test
‘They will finish tomorrow’ my mother said to us
My mother told us that they would finish the following day/the day after/the next day
‘They do what they are told to’, he said
He said that they did what they were told to
‘He has never read a complete book’, he said to me
He told me that he had never read a complete book
‘When did you leave school?’, he asked me
He asked me when I had left school
‘They have discovered water in the moon’, the news said
The news said that they had discovered water …
‘I met Mary’s sister three years ago’, she said
She said that she had met Mary’s sister 3 years before
‘I was in Paris yesterday’ he said
He said that he had been in Paris the day before
‘My son won a prize the day before yesterday’, Susan said
Susan said that her son had won a prize 2 days before
‘Don’t do what you are doing’, she said to me
She told me not to do what I was doing
‘Please don’t smoke here!’, he said to me
He asked me not to smoke there

‘I’ve had an argument with my husband’, the policewoman said to me

The policewoman told me that she had had an argument with her husband

martes, 17 de abril de 2012


El Estilo Indirecto

Introducción General

Oraciones Enunciativas (Statements)

Oraciones Interrogativas (Questions)

Órdenes y Peticiones (Orders and requests)

Introducción :¿Qué es el Estilo Indirecto ?

Hay dos maneras o estilos de reproducir lo que otras personas han dicho. Si lo hacemos textualmente

“Go home”, my father told me

“Vete a casa”, me dijo mi padre

estaremos empleando el estilo directo ; si, por el contrario, relatamos lo que otros han dicho con nuestras propias palabras, estaremos utilizando el estilo indirecto

My father told me to go home

Mi padre me dijo que me fuera a casa

La dificultad que presenta el estilo indirecto respecto al estilo directo, estriba en que en el primero se han de dar una serie de transformaciones en pronombres, adverbios y verbos y en el segundo, dado que se trata de una mera reproducción textual, esto no ocurre.

En el estilo indirecto, si el verbo introductorio o de expresión está en presente, los tiempos verbales no experimentarán cambio alguno,

Estilo Directo

He says, “I am very tired”

Él dice : “Estoy cansado”

Estilo Indirecto

He says that he is very tired

Él dice que está cansado

Si el verbo introductorio viene en pasado, se dará un paso atrás en el tiempo verbal (backshift), es decir, el presente se convierte en pasado, el pasado en past perfect,etc.

Estilo Directo

He said, “I am very tired”

He said that he was very tired

Estilo Indirecto

Él dijo : “Estoy cansado”

Él dijo que estaba cansado

A pesar de las dificultades arriba mencionadas, el uso del estilo indirecto en inglés y en castellano es muy similar, es decir, la correspondencia sintáctica, en general, y verbal, en particular, es casi total. De este modo, si sabemos conjugar todos los tiempos del inglés y sabemos hacer las transformaciones correspondientes de estilo directo a estilo indirecto en nuestro propio idioma, tenemos gran parte del camino andado y el reported speech resulta ser solamente un ejercicio de lógica.

2) Oraciones Enunciativas (Statements)

Con las oraciones enunciativas utilizaremos los verbos say or tell[1] seguidos de una oración introducida por la conjunción that

“I’m studying hard”, he told me

He told me that he was studying hard

She said, “My name is Ann”

She said that her name was Ann

Como ya hemos indicado en el apartado anterior el uso del estilo indirecto conlleva una serie de transformaciones que ahora pasamos a detallar :

2.a Cambios en los tiempos verbales

En la oración de estilo indirecto el verbo sufrirá un paso atrás hacia el pasado (backshift)

Estilo Directo

Estilo Indirecto

Present Simple (He likes)

Past Simple (He liked)

Present Continuous ( He is dancing)

Past Continuous (He was dancing)

Past Simple (He liked)

Past Perfect (He had liked)

Future Simple (He will like)

Conditional (He would like)

‘Going to’ future (He is going to like)

‘was/were’ going to (He was going to like)

Can (He can dance)

Could (He could dance)

Could (He could dance)

Had been able to (He had been able to dance

Must ( He must study)

Had to (He had to study)

May (It may rain)

Might (It might rain)

2.b Cambios en pronombres y determinantes personales

Por norma general, los pronombres y determinantes pasan a tercera persona.

I

he, she

You

they

We

they

Me

him, her

Us

them

My

his, her

Your

their

Our

their

Mine

his, hers

Ours

theirs

This

that

These

those

Hemos de tener en cuenta que en frases en las cuales el verbo introductorio lleve un pronombre de primera persona como objeto y, en la oración directa aparezca uno de segunda persona , éste pasará a primera persona en la oración indirecta resultante :

“You are making me angry”, he told me

He told me that I was making him angry

2.c Cambios en otras palabras :

Here

there

Now

then

Ago

before

Today

that day

Tonight

that night

Tomorrow

the next day, the day after, the following day

Yesterday

the previous day, the day before

De todas maneras, estas transformaciones no son siempre automáticas. Por ejemplo :

“I saw him yesterday”, he said

puede transformarse en varias, dependiendo del momento en que lo dijo :

He said he had seen him the day before

He said he had seen him yesterday

He said he saw him yesterday

EXERCISES

http://www.englisch-hilfen.de/en/exercises/reported_speech/statements.htm

http://www.englisch-hilfen.de/en/exercises/reported_speech/statements2.htm

3) Oraciones Interrogativas (Questions)

Las oraciones interrogativas indirectas tienen una estructura diferente a las enunciativas. En primer lugar, el verbo introductorio ya no es say ni tell sino ask. En segundo lugar, la oración interrogativa no vendrá introducida por that, sino por una partícula de wh- en el caso de las wh-questions, o por if si se trata de una yes-no question.

“What time is it?”, he said to me

He asked me what time it was

“Are you playing football tomorrow ?, he said to me

He asked me if I was playing football the next day

Como podemos observar el orden de la interrogativa indirecta es el mismo que el de la enunciativa. Por otro lado, los cambios sintácticos indicados en el apartado anterior son válidos para este.

EXERCISES

http://www.englisch-hilfen.de/en/exercises/reported_speech/questions.htm

http://www.englisch-hilfen.de/en/exercises/reported_speech/questions2.htm

4) Órdenes y Peticiones (Orders and requests)

Entenderemos por orden directa aquel imperativo que no venga suavizado por un please o will you ?. El verbo introductorio para las órdenes indirectas será tell pero tendremos que tener en cuenta que la estructura será totalmente distinta a la que tell lleva en la enunciativa :

tell+obj (nombre o pronombre objeto)+ to + infinitivo

“Stand up”, he told me

He told me to stand up

En el caso de las peticiones indirectas el verbo introductorio que se debe utilizar es ask. Sin embargo, y al igual que ocurría con tell en las ordenes indirectas, la estructura que sigue a ask en este caso es muy diferente a la que ask lleva en las oraciones interrogativas indirectas :

ask + obj (nombre o pronombre objeto) + to + infinitivo

“Could you repeat ?, please”, he said

He asked me to repeat

EXERCISES

http://www.englisch-hilfen.de/en/exercises/reported_speech/commands.htm


5) Otros verbos introductorios:

Hasta ahora nos hemos centrado en tres verbos introductorios que, con ciertas variaciones sintácticas, son los básicos. Sin embargo, en muchas ocasiones hay verbos que son mucho más descriptivos que los arriba mencionados y más que transmitir las palabras de otros hemos de expresar sus ideas. Si en la frase vemos que está implícita la idea de consejo (should, ought to, if I were you...) utilizaríamos advise. Si, por ejemplo vemos que se trata de un ofrecimiento (shall/will) emplearíamos offer. El uso de estos verbos implicaría normalmente una transformación sintactica ya que explain interrupt demand insist admit complain warn offer refuse order invite remind beg advise van seguidos de infinitivo o de objeto+infinitivo; 'suggest', por el contrario, iría seguido de gerundio.


EJEMPLOS

to add

“And what is more, I am tired”, he said

He added that he was tired

to advise

“If I were you, I’d phone Lil”, Phil said to Chucky

Phil advised Chucky to phone Lil

to announce

“Letizia and I are getting married in May” Prince Philip said

Prince Philip announced that he was getting married in May

to admit

“Ok, I took the money.”, he said

He admitted taking/having taken the money/He admitted that he had taken the money

to beg

“Please, please don’t tell my father”, he said

He begged me not to tell his father

to complain

“My soup is cold”, John said

John complained that his soup was cold

to declare

Cuba is an enemy”, John F. Keneddy said

JFK declared that Cuba was an enemy

to deny

I didn’t break the window,” he said

He denied breaking the window

to explain

“I’ve taken an aspirin because I have a headache”, John said

John explained that he had taken an aspirin because he had a headache

to insist

“I’ve already told you twice. I’ll pay!” he said

He insisted on paying

to invite

“Would you like to come to my party?” Janet said to Julia

Janet invited Julia to her party

to offer

“I’ll help you with your homework” , George said to Bill

George offered to help Bill with his homework.

to promise

“I’ll tidy my room this evening” John said

John promised to tidy his room that evening

to refuse

“I don’t want to shake hands with Sean” Jack said

Jack refused to shake hands with Shean

to remind

“Don’t forget to lock the door!” they said to me

They reminded me to lock the door

to suggest

“Why don’t you write her a letter”, Sam said

Sam suggested writing a letter

to threaten

“If you don’t pay the ransom at once, I’ll kill your daughter” The kidnappers said

The kidnappers threatened to kill their daughter if they didn’t pay the ransom at once-



[1] El verbo say se utiliza cuando simplemente decimos algo (no decimos a quién). El verbo tell, sin

embargo, ha de utilizarse cuando decimos a quién decimos algo,

He said that he was happy to see me

He told me that he was going to buy a new car