Active and Passive Voice

Two "voices" occur in English grammar: active voice and passive voice. The difference is subtle at first, but it's easy to master once the grammarian understands the basics. Examine the subject and the main verb in the two sentences below:

(A) The boy hit the ball.

(B) The ball was hit. (Or, "The ball was hit by the boy").

In sentence A, we might ask ourselves, what does the hitting? The answer is the subject, boy. That subject is actively performing the verb; it is actively "doing" the verb hit to a direct object (the ball). This virtuous sentence is in active voice.

Active Voice?

An author may write a sentence in one of two "voices"—active or passive.               

The active voice emphasizes the performer (or agent) of the action:

Wind disperses plant seeds.

Smith et al. investigated the relationship.

We have analyzed the results.

The active voice is direct (performer–verb–receiver), vigorous, clear, and concise. The reader knows who is responsible for the action.

Passive Voice?

The passive voice, in contrast, emphasizes the receiver (or product) of the action:

Plant seeds are dispersed (by wind).

The relationship was investigated (by Smith et al).

The results have been analyzed [by us].

The passive voice is indirect (receiver–verb–performer) and can be weak, awkward, and wordy. Passive voice uses a form of the verb to be followed by a past participle (e.g., dispersed, investigated) and a by phrase. If the by phrase is omitted (the truncated passive), the reader will not directly know who or what performed the action.

A particularly awkward and ambiguous form of the passive voice occurs when an author uses itas the receiver rather than the first-person pronouns I or we:

It is concluded that the treatment is effective.

These types of passive-voice sentences are a form of hedging.

In most other cases, it is better rhetoric to use active voice. It is a better choice for several reasons:

1. Active voice sentences are often more concise than passive voice. Expressing the same idea in passive voice frequently takes 30% to 40% more words:

·         The fighter punched Ali and dodged the uppercut. (Active voice--8 words)

·         Ali was punched by the fighter, and then an uppercut was dodged by him. (Passive voice--14 words, about 40% longer)

     2. Passive voice requires more "weak" words. It uses abstract words like is /am /are /was /were /being /been/has/have/had, the definite article (the), and prepositions like by and of. These are dull and colorless compared to concrete nouns, powerful verbs, and vivid adjectives. Good writers try to avoid these empty, weak words and replace them with strong words.

However, passive voice often traps writers. To make clear who is doing what, writers using passive voice must either tag unwieldy phrases at the end of clauses, such as "by so-and-so," or they must leave out this phrase and let the sentence become unclear.

·         The airplane was flown to Bermuda (by the pilot).

·         The crackers were eaten (by the puppy).

     3. The passive voice clause can be confusing or unclear, especially in long sentences.

·         My car has been driven to Dallas.

(By whom? By the speaker? By a car-thief? By the teletubbies?)

·         Sixteen thousand calories were consumed in one sitting.

(Who is doing this monstrous act of dietary vandalism?)

   4. Passive voice often leads to awkward or stilted writing, especially in academic arguments in which the student dons a "pseudo-scholarly" tone.

·         When a reason is to be considered by readers for an argument that has been made by a writer, it is fitting that their analysis be based upon the latest statistical evidence.

·         If consensus cannot be reached, compromises should be made, and then negotiations should be undertaken by both parties with arbitration done by an outside listener.

   5. Linguistic studies show that native English speakers are better able to remember material they read in active voice than the same material in passive voice. Something about the English speaker's mind remains geared toward a "Subject-Verb-Object" pattern. Passive voice sentences somehow derail that mental process of retention. If you want your readers to remember what you write, use active voice. If they better remember the material you spent so much time writing, you have a better chance at creating an argument that will stick with them and change their way of thinking.

s   sumber :

     www.biomedicaleditor.com

     web.cn.edu

s