Video version of "The Object Complement Patterns" lecture I delivered in my English 402--Grammar course at the State University of New York College at Cortland.

1. The Object Complement
Patterns
Ed McCorduck
English 402--Grammar
SUNY Cortland
http://mccorduck.cortland.edu

2. As discussed in the “Verb Patterns and the Be Patterns”
lecture and in the “Linking Verbs” lecture, a subject
complement (subj comp) refers to the same entity as or
attributes a property to the subject of a sentence. For
example, in the sentences Beelzebub is evil and
Beelzebub is a demon, both the adjective evil in the first
sentence and the noun phrase a demon in the second
refer to their respective subjects, i.e., in both cases
Beelzebub. The sentences are likewise diagrammed in
similar ways with the headwords of these subject
complements on the main line as the verb and separated
from it by a slanted line:
slide 2: review of subject complements
English 402:
Grammar

3. slide 3: Reed-Kellogg diagraming of subject complements reviewed
English 402:
Grammar

4. Similarly, direct objects can also be followed by slots
whose occupants co-refer to the same entity as the object.
Words and phrases that can fill these slots are called
object complements (obj comp).
slide 4: definition of object complements
English 402:
Grammar

5. Pattern IX
NP1 V-tr NP2 ADJ
(subj) (pred vb) (dir obj) (obj comp)
• in this pattern, the ADJ refers to the same entity as the NP2
slide 5: Pattern IX
English 402:
Grammar

6. exx
I | consider | that | ridiculous. (cf. That is ridiculous)
NP1 V-tr NP2 ADJ
She | likes | her men | hot. (cf. Her men are hot)
NP1 V-tr NP2 ADJ
Catnip | drives | my little kitties | absolutely nuts.
NP1 V-tr NP2 ADJ
slide 6: examples of Pattern IX sentences
English 402:
Grammar

7. Pattern X
NP1 V-tr NP2 NP2
(subj) (pred vb) (dir obj) (obj comp)
• in this pattern, the second NP2 functions as object complement,
i.e., it has the same referent as the direct object
slide 7: Pattern X
English 402:
Grammar

8. exx
I | consider | him | a nutjob. (cf. He is a nutjob)
NP1 V-tr NP2 NP2
They | called | it | the greatest thing since sliced bread.
NP1 V-tr NP2 NP2
The club | has named | Ebeneezer | (the) treasurer.
NP1 V-tr NP2 NP2
slide 8: examples of Pattern X sentences
English 402:
Grammar

9. Other verbs that can occur in Pattern IX and X sentences
(sometimes in only one of the patterns or the other) are
find, elect, leave, make and prefer.
slide 9: verbs that can appear in Pattern IX and/or Pattern X sentences
English 402:
Grammar

10. In Reed-Kellogg diagrams, object complements are
indicated like subject complements, i.e., their headwords
occur on the main line preceded by a slanted line, but
because these complements modify not the subject but
the direct object they always immediately follow the direct
object (as they do in surface structure). As an illustration,
here is the diagram of the sentence I consider that
ridiculous where the adjective ridiculous is an object
complement:
slide 10: Reed-Kellogg diagrams of sentences with object complements
English 402:
Grammar

11. slide 11: example of a Reed-Kellogg diagram of a Pattern IX sentence
English 402:
Grammar

12. And here is the diagram of the sentence I consider him a
nutjob where the noun phrase a nutjob is an object
complement:
slide 12: example of a Reed-Kellogg diagram of a Pattern X sentence
English 402:
Grammar