There are two possible voices in Latin: active and passive. Knowing the voice of a verb form allows the reader to know whether the subject is the doer of the action of the verb or the recipient. Active Voice verbs tell the reader that the subject of the skeleton is the performer of the action described by the verb. The subject is thus the agent of the skeleton: "The boy runs": the boy (the subject) is the one performing the action of the verb. "The boy watches the dog": the boy (the subject) is the one performing the action (watching) upon the direct object (the dog). Passive Voice verbs tell the reader that the subject of the skeleton receives the action described by the verb. The subject is thus the patient of the skeleton: "The boy is watched by the dog": the boy (the subject) is the one upon whom the action of the verb is done upon (watching) by the agent (the dog). Passive verbs are also usually transitive verbs since when an active skeleton is transformed into a passive one, the direct object of the transitive active skeleton becomes the subject of the passive skeleton. The subject of the transitive active skeleton then becomes an ablative of agent. |
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Last Updated March 18, 2003 Questions, comments and corrections should be sent to Brian K. Harvey, Kent State University |
