The Syntactical Function of the Infinitive and the Gerund.
The Infinitive and the Gerund seem to have practically the same syntactical functions, very close to those of the noun and, therefore, they are half-nouns (The Infinitive has the category of tense, aspect, voice). Their syntactical functions are nearly the same, there’s only one function – the predicative where the Gerund and the Infinitive follow the same pattern and can be used one instead of the other. As to the syntactical functions of the Infinitive some grammarians consider that the Infinitive can’t be the subject or object in the sentence. Their points of view are:
1. Such cases as “to live is to struggle” are exceptions, very seldom found and not typical.
2. That in the pattern “it is impossible to do it”, the infinitive might be an opposition (приложение), attribute and so on.
3. In the sentence “I’m glad to see you” the infinitive is not an object, but part of the predicate; this statement is not entirely proved yet.
4. Such cases as “I am glad to see you” and “there is nothing to fear about”; “I’ve come to speak to you”, “the picture is too good to miss” should be called “extensions” (изъяснения).
But all these are just diversity of theories. The Gerund is much closer to the noun, it is used with prepositions and forms prepositional phrases with all the syntactical functions of a prepositional noun phrases. A noun with a preposition can be the predicative, the possessive object, the attribute, and the adverbial modifier. And so can be the Gerund that shows it is very close to the noun. Another proof of the identity of the Gerund and the Noun is that it can be modified by a possessive pronoun or a noun in the possessive case, but the relations between the possessive pronoun or a noun in the possessive case and the modified noun are attributes, while the relations between the possessive pronoun or a noun in the possessive case and the Gerund are predicatives.
Infinitive
1 .Meaning:
- action (to go)
- state (состояние) (to be angry)
2. Form
Non-Perfect
Active
Passive
(переходные глаголы)
to go
to read
to be going
to be reading
----
to be read
----
to be being read
Perfect
to have gone
to have read
to have been going to have been reading
----
to have been read
----
to have been being read
3. Functions
1. подлежащее (Subject):
To smokeis dangerous.Itis dangerousto smoke.
2. часть сказуемого (составного глагольного) (Predicative)
My taskis to study.
3. дополнения прямого (Object)
Ilike to study.
4. --------------------------
5. обстоятельство (Adverbial modifier)
I come here to study.
having gone
having read
(кот.уже прочитали, прочитав)
----
having been read
3.Свойства существительного:
· предлог (after reading)
· притяжательное мест. Sorry for his coming late;
· Сущ. в Possessive Case (director’s)
· Сущ. в Common Case (I don’t mind the director sending me on a trip)
3. Functions
1. подлежащее (Subject):
a) Smokingis dangerous.
b) Itis (no use/worth)going there.
3. часть сказуемого (составного глагольного) (Predicative)
My taskis studying.
4. дополнения прямого и предложного (Object)
Ilikestudying.I insist onyourstudying.
5. определение (Attribute)
an idea of going there
an experience in teaching
the reason fir coming
6. обстоятельство (Adverbial modifier)
After, before, on, upon, without, instead of, by, in spite of.
before going to bed
on crossing.
Participle
1.Meaning:
- action (is reading / sat reading)
- process (are playing)
- (св-ва прилагательного) quality degree of smth. (a smiling face, when crossing, not finding)