ENGLISH 8

(2nd Grading)
Communication Skills

Using Conjunctions Correctly

The word conjunction comes from the Latin word conjunctus – meaning “to join”.
Conjunctions are words that join words, phrases, or clauses. They should be used with care.

There are two general classes of conjunction: coordinating and subordinating

conjunctions.

Coordinating Conjunctions

Coordinating conjunctions connect words, phrases, and clauses of equal rank; they do not
join a principal element to a subordinate element.

The best way to remember the coordinating conjunctions is by using the

acronym FANBOYS (for and nor but or yet so).

Subordinating Conjunctions

Subordinating Conjunctions are used to introduce subordinate clauses. They convey

the thought relationship between ideas in a sentence.

Activity 1

Identifying the Correct Coordinating conjunctions

What coordinating conjunctions should connect these clauses?

1. It was raining. We went out.

2. It was a warm day. We took off our coats.

3. He was an extravagant person. He did not spend all his money.

4. He was an extravagant person. He spent his money foolishly.

5. Tell the truth. I will punish you.

Supplying the Appropriate Subordinating Conjunctions

6. She could not go out. She felt I'll.

7. We went out. The rain stopped.

8. She did not know. She lost her watch.

9. The child is crying. He has been punished.

10. She was not sure. She could go.

 THREE INDIAN POETS

A. Bhartrihari (Seventh Century)

Bhartrihari experienced an inner conflict brought about by love of religion and
love of the world. It is said that seven times he tried to renounce the world by entering a
monastery, only to forsake it each time. The legend goes that he kept a horse at hand, so
that he could easily flee from the monastery the moment he felt the urge to go out into the
world.

B. Kalisada
Kalisada (flourished about 375-415) was an Indian court poet and dramatist. An
outstanding figure in Oriental literature, his poetry is noted for it's fine descriptions of
nature and of poignant emotions. His principal works have been translated in many
languages, including English. So many poems of different types are attributed to Kalisada
that some critics believe them to be the work of three poets, all named Kalisada.

C. Rabindranath Tagore
Rabindranath Tagore (1861-1941), essayist, poet, musician, and mystic, did a
great deal to interpret the thought of India to the Western world. His complete mastery of
English was one of his chief assets in his transmission of ideas. He founded an important
school of Indian studies called Visva-Bharati. Much of his life was spent in travel. He
made many friends among the leading intellectuals of the West. He lectured to many
audiences. Among his works are musical compositions, poems, plays, stories, and essays.
Early in life, Tagore was taught by his father to love solitude and nature. Thus,
even as a boy, he preferred contact with nature to the confinement of the classrooms. He
was a precocious child child who at age of eight began writing poems; at twelve he wrote
drama; and at thirteen did a translation of Macbeth into Bengali. Tagore's many talents
included painting and composing music.
Tagore's book of poems, Gitanjali, won the Nobel Prize. This was the first time it
was awarded to an Oriental. The poet, in these isolated fragments, expresses his
reflections on the simple life and on the moral regeneration of man, so that he can attain
freedom.
The fable " The Tame Bird and the Free BIrd" reveals a bit of Oriental wisdom.
 THE WONDER TREE
THE WONDER TREE
An Arabian
Folktale
An Arabian Folktale

Far out in the desert of Arabia lived a chief

called Ali Ben Ahmed and his tribe. Their tents
were pitched on the trackless sand where the
blazing sun beat down all day. Month after month,
they saw no strand, for the paths of travelers lay
far to the south.