ГДЗ по Английскому Языку 11 Класс Модуль 4c Номер 1b Ваулина — Подробные Ответы

Какое слово мы используем, чтобы указать субъект действия? (Т.е. человек/вещь, который выполнил действие) Когда мы его опускаем? Найдите примеры в тексте.

We use «by» to indicate the agent performing the action. The phrase «by» + agent is often omitted when it is clear, unimportant, unknown, or previously mentioned who or what is responsible for the action. For instance, «The fire was still being fought» (by the firefighters) or «An investigation will be initiated» (by the police).

With the agent: «Damage has been caused by a fire» (we need to know what caused the damage).

Without the agent: «Debris is being cleared away» (by cleaners); «until the cause of the fire is discovered» (by the police); «Reports had been made» (by unknown individuals); «Characters were seen» (by unknown individuals); «Their identity has yet to be discovered» (by the police).

This version maintains the original meaning but changes the phrasing for uniqueness.

When we use the passive voice in English, the agent performing the action is often introduced by the word «by.» However, in many cases, the phrase «by» followed by the agent can be omitted if it is clear from the context who or what is carrying out the action, if the agent is unimportant, unknown, or has already been mentioned earlier in the text.

For example, consider the sentence, «The fire was still being fought» — here, the phrase «by the firefighters» can be omitted because it’s generally understood that firefighters are the ones fighting the fire. Similarly, in the sentence «An investigation will be started,» the agent («by the police») is not needed because it’s implied that the police are conducting the investigation.

With the agent:
When we want to emphasize or specify the agent, we use the phrase «by» + agent. For instance:

«Damage has been caused by a fire.» Here, it’s important to specify that a fire caused the damage, so we use «by a fire» to indicate the agent responsible for the action.

Another example: «The report was written by a team of researchers.» The agent here is the team of researchers, and it is essential to know who wrote the report.

Without the agent:
In many situations, the agent is either unknown, irrelevant, or already understood, so it is left out. For example:

«Debris is being cleared away.» (It’s obvious that the cleanup workers or staff are responsible for the action, but they are not explicitly mentioned.)

«The cause of the fire is still being investigated.» (The police or authorities are implied to be conducting the investigation, but we do not need to state «by the police.»)

«Reports had been made.» (The agent isn’t specified here, and it’s either unknown or not significant to the context.)

«Characters were seen.» (We do not specify who saw the characters, as it’s not important in this context.)

«Their identity has yet to be discovered.» (In this case, the police are likely investigating the identity, but «by the police» is not explicitly stated.)

By omitting the agent, the focus of the sentence shifts from the person or group performing the action to the action itself or the result of the action. This is one of the key aspects of the passive voice—it allows the speaker or writer to prioritize the object or result of the action rather than the agent doing it.

In summary, while «by» + agent is important when the agent needs to be emphasized or is essential to the meaning of the sentence, it is often omitted in passive constructions when the agent is either obvious, unimportant, or unknown. This flexibility in sentence construction makes passive voice particularly useful for focusing on what is happening or the result of an action rather than who is performing it.