When To Use The Active And Passive Voices

WomanSkirtFan8

Can someone please explain when is the best time to the active voice and passive voice? Thanks

redser7

I suppose in general you should try to avoid using the passive voice. It makes for a weaker sentence/reading experience. Active has more punch and is more engaging to read, simpler and more straight forward to write and read and understand. Unless for some reason you want the subject to look weak or victimised maybe - stuff is happening to them rather than them being the agent of change in the story.

echo beach

The usual advice is to avoid the passive voice. If in doubt, try the sentence both ways and see which sounds better. It is almost always the active.
"The rain fell on John as he walked." or "John walked in the rain." You choose.

EileenG

Totally depends on the context. One of the most famous openings in history, "It is a truth universally acknowledged that a single man..." is passive voice.

As a general rule, active voice works better with an action driven story, while passive can slow the pace and give a more thoughtful voice.

But don't use passive voice because you are afraid to let the characters do their stuff.

WomanSkirtFan8

EileenG wrote: »

Totally depends on the context. One of the most famous openings in history, "It is a truth universally acknowledged that a single man..." is passive voice.

As a general rule, active voice works better with an action driven story, while passive can slow the pace and give a more thoughtful voice.

But don't use passive voice because you are afraid to let the characters do their stuff.

Ok. Thanks for that. That's certainly something to keep an eye on.

WomanSkirtFan8

EileenG wrote: »

Totally depends on the context. One of the most famous openings in history, "It is a truth universally acknowledged that a single man..." is passive voice.

As a general rule, active voice works better with an action driven story, while passive can slow the pace and give a more thoughtful voice.

But don't use passive voice because you are afraid to let the characters do their stuff.

Okay so something like: "Maeve twirled as she danced" instead of "Maeve was twirling as she danced." ?

redser7

No, that's not it. In both examples Maeve is active - she is/was doing the twirling. Active is when your subject (Maeve) does something. Passive is when something is done TO your subject.

Where Maeve is your subject ...
Maeve twirled as she danced - active. She is DOING the twirling.
Maeve's dance partner twirled her as she danced - passive. She is BEING twirled.

I would say that people instinctively use the the active voice (He got up, he brushed his teeth, he loaded the gun) but inadvertently slip into the passive voice now and again. Don't worry about it too much but watch out for it when revising your drafts and rewrite it if it was accidental. Or else rewrite to use it if you think it could be effective in a particular scene eg. someone is overwhelmed by forces outside of themselves.

Das Kitty

How to spot the passive voice:

Put the words "by zombies" after the sentence. If it fits, it's passive.

Maeve was twirled (by zombies) -- passive

Maeve ate her dinner (by zombies) -- active

Maeve was getting down to the beat (by zombies) -- active


While it's true that a whole bunch of gerunds (-ing verbs) in your prose will make it read more passive, that's not the same as it being in the passive voice.

WomanSkirtFan8

redser7 wrote: »

No, that's not it. In both examples Maeve is active - she is/was doing the twirling. Active is when your subject (Maeve) does something. Passive is when something is done TO your subject.

Where Maeve is your subject ...
Maeve twirled as she danced - active. She is DOING the twirling.
Maeve's dance partner twirled her as she danced - passive. She is BEING twirled.

I would say that people instinctively use the the active voice (He got up, he brushed his teeth, he loaded the gun) but inadvertently slip into the passive voice now and again. Don't worry about it too much but watch out for it when revising your drafts and rewrite it if it was accidental. Or else rewrite to use it if you think it could be effective in a particular scene eg. someone is overwhelmed by forces outside of themselves.

Okay, I think I've got now. So now something like:

"Maeve twirled happily as she danced to her favourite music." (Active)

"The magical formula forced Maeve to twirl beyond her control." (Passive)

cdeb

WomanSkirtFan8 wrote: »

Okay, I think I've got now. So now something like:

"Maeve twirled happily as she danced to her favourite music." (Active)

"The magical formula forced Maeve to twirl beyond her control." (Passive)

No - still wrong.

"Maeve twirled happily as she danced to her favourite music by zombies" Active - so correct

But "The magical formula forced Maeve to twirl beyond her control by zombies." Also active. The magical formula is forcing.

DivingDuck

cdeb wrote: »

No - still wrong.

"Maeve twirled happily as she danced to her favourite music by zombies" Active - so correct

But "The magical formula forced Maeve to twirl beyond her control by zombies." Also active. The magical formula is forcing.

Would that not mean the example quoted upthread is also active?

echo beach wrote: »

The usual advice is to avoid the passive voice. If in doubt, try the sentence both ways and see which sounds better. It is almost always the active.
"The rain fell on John as he walked." or "John walked in the rain." You choose.

You can't put "The rain fell by zombies on John as he walked" (and "The rain fell on John as he walked by zombies" has a whole other meaning).

I guess what I'm asking is this: is passive voice exclusively defined as being where the force of the action is not specified in the sentence, i.e., "Maeve was twirled"? Or does it count as passive voice even when there is a specified force behind the action, but that force makes the character the object of the sentence rather than the subject, i.e. "The rain fell on John"?

cdeb

DivingDuck wrote: »

Would that not mean the example quoted upthread is also active?



You can't put "The rain fell by zombies on John as he walked" (and "The rain fell on John as he walked by zombies" has a whole other meaning).

Yes, I think so.

John walked, or the rain fell - so it's the active voice. It's clear who or what is doing the action.

"John was rained on" would be passive - if a bit strange. You assume he was rained on by, well, rain - but it could in theory be by zombies.

The passive voice is where it's not revealed who or what is doing the action outlined in the verb in the sentence.

DivingDuck

cdeb wrote: »

The passive voice is where it's not revealed who or what is doing the action outlined in the verb in the sentence.

Clarity at last...! Bless you.

WomanSkirtFan8

Thanks. Thats exactly what I was looking for. I presume that there are ways to get around this?

Qualitymark

EileenG wrote: »

Totally depends on the context. One of the most famous openings in history, "It is a truth universally acknowledged that a single man..." is passive voice.

Surely not? A contracted relative clause, nach ea?

Nice piece from the New York Times grammar blog about active vs passive constructions:

http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/04/30/the-pleasures-and-perils-of-the-passive/?_r=0

holystungun9

Passive voice is constructed with a suitable form of the verb 'be' with a past participle

The painting was stolen

The work is done by robots

The match will be played in Anfield

He had been told many times before

It is being sold as we speak.

holystungun9

It doesn't always mean we don't know who was the agent.

My bike was stolen

It can shift the focus to what we view as important or the part we want to share

The Mona Lisa was painted in (insert year). If you want to also name the artist then use 'by...'

redser7

Would this be passive voice?

The topic was done to death

Qualitymark

redser7 wrote: »

Would this be passive voice?

The topic was done to death

Would that it were!

WomanSkirtFan8

Okay guys, I think I have it now.

"Maeve twirled as she danced." = Active.
"Maeve was twirled as she danced" = Passive.

or
"Adrienne moaned at her stained top." = Active.
"Adrienne was moaning at her stained top." = Passive.

:cool:

Insect Overlord

WomanSkirtFan8 wrote: »

Okay guys, I think I have it now.

"Adrienne moaned at her stained top." = Active.
"Adrienne was moaning at her stained top." = Passive.

Nope! One of those is past tense, the other is past continuous.

I don't think it's possible for the verb "moan" to be used passively.

WomanSkirtFan8

An File wrote: »

Nope! One of those is past tense, the other is past continuous.

I don't think it's possible for the verb "moan" to be used passively.

Which sentence exactly? Didn't know that "moan" was a passive verb.:)

Qualitymark

holystungun9 wrote: »

It doesn't always mean we don't know who was the agent.

My bike was stolen

Ah yes, that's what the Guards always say. "We know who did it." But do they get it back? They do not!

As for moan as a passive, what about "the moan was moaned by the moaner"?

Insect Overlord

WomanSkirtFan8 wrote: »

Which sentence exactly? Didn't know that "moan" was a passive verb.:)

http://en.bab.la/conjugation/english/moan

WomanSkirtFan8

An File wrote: »

http://en.bab.la/conjugation/english/moan

Ok. What about this then:

"Adrienne groaned on seeing her stained top."

Insect Overlord

WomanSkirtFan8 wrote: »

"Adrienne groaned..."

Active.

Qualitymark

Interesting piece here - political, read at your own risk - about active and passive voice as used in speaking of intersexual violence: http://www.thejournal.ie/readme/violence-against-women-language-2068085-Apr2015/

There's quite a nice wiki about voice in grammar, taking in several languages https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voice_(grammar)

cdeb

WomanSkirtFan8 wrote: »

"Adrienne was moaning at her stained top." = Passive.

WomanSkirtFan8 wrote: »

"Adrienne groaned on seeing her stained top."

Put "by zombies" at the end of both sentences, as previously suggested.

Do they make sense now?

They don't - so the sentences are active, not passive.

Antilles

That "by zombies" suggestion is the best I've seen. Definitely going to use it in future!

TheGlitchKing

If you want something read slowly use passive,
quickly use active

WomanSkirtFan8

TheGlitchKing wrote: »

If you want something read slowly use passive,
quickly use active

Ok thanks guys. I think I've got it now.:)