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Learning Strategies |
Coordination and Subordination
What are they?
Coordination is the process of combining ideas of equal importance by means of coordination conjunctions or correlatives.
In subordination, on the other hand, those ideas considered less important than the main idea of the sentence are expressed in modifying or dependent constructions. These dependent constructions are grammatically subordinate to the main clause, which expresses the dominant idea.
How do they work?
Coordination:
Allows a series of words, phrases, subordinate clauses or main clauses to occupy the same level of importance in a sentence.
Examples:
- SUBJECTS: Seattle and Atlanta hosted the alternative rock festivals.
- VERBS: We ate, slept, and danced during Fall Break.
- OBJECTS: Mary enjoys both the competitive nature of rugby and the sheer athleticism of Ultimate.
Subordination:
Allows the writer to emphasize the more important aspects of a sentence while still including relevant, if less important, information.
Examples:
Before:
- The price of CDs has risen in the past few years. The rise has been dramatic.
- Many students purchase used books from the bookstore. Used books are cheap.
- My parents didn't want me to buy a new car. I bought a new car in 1997.
NOTE: The second sentences are less important to the reader's understanding than the first in these cases.
After:
- The price of CDs has risen dramatically in the past few years. (adverb)
- Many students purchase used books from the bookstore because used books are cheap. (subordinate clause)
- My parents opposed my purchase of a new car in 1997. (prepositional phrase)
Subordination makes the new sentences clear and pleasing to the reader.
Notes on punctuation:
- Always use a comma after an introductory subordinate clause.
Example:
- As she arrived, we left.
- Use commas to set off subordinate clauses beginning with who, whose, whom, or which, that are not essential to identify the word modified.
Example:
- John, who broke his arm last week, is not running in this week's race.
- The book that fell in the puddle is ruined.
In these examples, the second sentence does not use a comma because the underlined clause is necessary to determine which book. The first sentence does use commas because John is identified even without knowing about his broken arm.
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