LANGUAGE CONVENTIONS: CONSISTENCY IN TENSE, PERSON, NUMBER, AND TONE

SHIFTS IN TENSE
The logic of your writing determines the verb tenses you use. Sometimes a shift in tenses is necessary and therefore logically
consistent:
l remember that he put on the parking break before he turned off the engine. (remember: present tense; put on, turned off:
past tense)
A logically inconsistent shift in tense, however, is confusing to the reader:

WRONG: I cleaned the ice from the window while the car is running.
He thought his sister was busy and cannot see him.
Since al the verbs in the two examples above describe actions in the past, they should all be in the past tense:

CORRECT: I cleaned the ice from the windshield while the car was running.
I cleaned the ice from the windshield with the car running. (Notice that the participle in the prepositional phrase
with the car running takes its tense from cleaned.)
He thought his sister was busy and could not see him.
He thought his sister was busy and unable to see him. (The adjective phrase unable to see him takes its tense
from Was.)
Consistent use of tenses makes your writing easier to read and more effective.

EXERCISE 1 Correcting tense shits

Decide which verbs are logically inconsistent in tense, and correct them. Consider the logic of the whole passage in making
your decisions.

Our teacher let us out of class early so that we can go to a lecture on campus. The lecture began late, so we have to wait. I
am usually impatient, so I become upset when we had to wait 15 minutes for the talk to begin. Since I know a lot about
geology, I was able to follow the lecture, but many of my classmates can't. I noticed that one of my classmates, Mario, is
sleeping. Fortunately, our teacher wasn't there because I think she will be angry with him.

SHIFTS IN PERSON AND NUMBER

Pronouns refer to the first person (I or we), second person (you), and third person (he, she, it, they). An illogical or
unnecessary shift in person or number is distracting to readers, as in the following examples:

WRONG: One has to be careful when you buy a used car. (There's a shift from third person (one] to second person [you] for
no reason.)

WRONG: I often buy clothes on sale because we can save a lot of money that way. (There's a shift from singular to plural first
person that is not called for by the context.)
The students didn't find the exam difficult, but you couldn't finish it in two hours. (There's an unnecessary shift from
third person, to second person.)
In these revised examples, the inconsistencies in person and number have been corrected.

CORRECT: You have to be careful when you buy a used car. (informal)
One has to be careful when one buys a new car. (formal)
I often buy clothes on sale because I can save a lot of money that way.
The students didn't find the exam difficult, but they couldn't finish it in two hours.

EXERCISE 2 Correcting shifts in person and number

Rewrite the sentences, correcting the shifts in person and number. Verbs and possessive pronouns may need to change to
agree with new subjects.

1. Anyone can learn a foreign language if you study.

2. Everyone has the ability to learn, so one should never give up when it seems difficult to you.
3. You also need to keep in mind that one might be better at oral skills than at reading and writing.
4. Students should be proud of their strengths, but at the same time you need to work on your weaknesses.
5. Students often focus on vocabulary, but you need to realize that vocabulary is only one part of a language.
6. A language learner should remember that they can’t communicate without knowing the structure and phonology of a
language.

THE INFORMAL YOU

When you are speaking with someone, the antecedent for you is obvious. Your roommate might say this to you:
INFORMAL You need to get to registration early to avoid long lines.
The same sentence does not work as well in writing, however. You probably does not refer to your audience as it usually
does in speaking, so its use is imprecise in this sentence. (Your probable audience, the teacher, is most likely not registering
for classes).
Less formal writing often uses you in a conversational, general way to be closer to the reader. This informal use is usually not
appropriate in academic writing, however. The third person is more precise and formal.

INFORMAL: You need to heat the solution to 120 Celsius.

You could see how much pain the patient was in.
If you live in Miami, you must have air-conditioning.
Notice how these three sentences become more formal when third person constructions are substituted for you.

FORMAL: The solution needs to be heated to 120 degrees Celsius.

It was evident how much pain the patient was in. (or)
A person could see how much pain the patient was in.
To live in Miami, one must have air-conditioning.

EXERCISE 3 Avoiding the informal you

Rewrite these sentences, replacing you to produce more precise, formal sentences. Make any other necessary structural
changes as well.
1. During the afternoon, when it's very hot in my country, you need to dress in cooler clothes.
2. You should try to avoid wearing dark colors.
3. You can't wear shorts in public in my country, however.
4. People consider shorts indecent, and they would stare at you.
5. At home, of course, you can wear whatever you want.
6. If you receive company, though, you should make sure you look presentable.

SHIFTS IN TONE
Colloquial language and slang should also be avoided in academic writing because such language conflicts with the formal
tone that is usually appropriate. Notice the shifts from formal to informal tone in the following examples:
The university president addressed the faculty at length on issues including tenure, salary, the importance of
research, and hanging out with students.
The faculty reported that raises of less than a thousand bucks per year would be unacceptable.

The same sentences with a consistent formal tone follow:

The university president addressed the faculty at length on issues includıng tenure, salary, the importance of
research, and faculty-student relationships.
The faculty reported that raises of less than a thousand dollars per year would be unacceptable.

EXERCISE 4 Correcting shifts in tone

Change the words and expressions in italics to maintain a formal tone.
1. John blew off his math class to prepare for his history exam.
2. It was difficult to give the accident victim the necessary medical attention because he was screaming his head off
3. Two guys approached the managing editor's office to see what the commotion was all about.
4. A family with lots of kids will find making ends meet more difficult.
5. Marcella remarked that John's new sunglasses were pretty cool.
6. Smaller children often refuse to eat vegetables, which they find yucky.
7. Archibald will probably have trouble selling his car for a good price because it is an old junk.
8. The students reported that they had had an awesome time on their spring break holiday.