#passive constructions

[cynosurus]

Earlier today I was just about to start eating and thought to myself in Swedish:

det vattnas i munnen på mig.

literally: "it is being watered in the mouth on me" "my mouth is watering"

And the more I think about it the more interesting this sentence is. Literally translated to English it sounds incredibly weird.

the "body part ON owner of body part" construction to express "owner's body part" since the mouth is inalienably possessed by me. That is, "my mouth" is often expressed as "munnen på mig", while normal possession is instead expressed simlilarly as in English, eg "my horse" = "min häst". This is a distinction common in Germanic languages that English has lost.

det (= it) should probably be analysed as an expletive "dummy" subject similar to it in "it is raining"?

the -s ending of vattna (= to water) often indicates passive or impersonal constructions. Not sure how to view it here. The mouth is caused to produce water, or something impersonal is producing water in the mouth.

#swedish language #svenska #linguistics #inalienable possession #language nerding #passive constructions

[agueforts]

sometimes i think when some of u talk about gorgug u forget zac isn't white

#aspen tag #it's not like a concrete thing i just get the vibe sometimes #like sometimes ppl phrase things abt his heritage and relationship to his rage #or how he fits with gnomish culture n stuff #in a way that kinda frames it as like..... passive #when there's obviously very deliberate themes being explored #or like. idk. #talk about him in a way that gives the impression they've never thought about it from the perspective of race #i'm having an autism moment or smth and the tone machine is like fully offline rn #but i guess i just don't get how someone could just. not consider it at all #it's not like it's a stretch it's very much like. baked into him #his parents don't understand his rage or how it's a part of him #their house isn't made for someone his size #he shies away from anger because he already knows the world wasn't made to fit him #he spends s1 looking for his bio parents-- people who'd be like him. who he could connect to with this part of himself #digby & wilma don't talk to the rest of their families because they thought adopting gorgug was a bad choice! #their parenting (well-meaning as it may be) is all about redirecting rage #and gorgug's teaching himself not just how to channel it constructively #but how to be comfortable with it at all #because the environment he's in doesn't offer security in expressing it. not for people like him #and so he's learned to control it and distance himself from it #in a way that he has to dismantle to fully engage with his barbarian class #it's just. it's there #i can't convince of a world where someone could look at him and just. not see it #idk how to end this. yeah 👍 #d20

[simplyghosting]

Why does anyone choose passive aggressiveness as a form of interaction just say what you mean civilly and duel to the death like a sane person

#ghost posts #I hate passive aggressiveness sm #and I say this as someone who used to be constantly passive aggressive and tries very hard not to be now #like say what you mean #had to sort through these legal texts and o want to scream #passive aggressiveness is so so childish #like are you still an angry 13 year old? #passive aggressiveness is just sarcastic anger without construction #it doesn’t benefit anyone it’s just frustrated at best and mean

[bendingmuses]

I hate workplace drama.

#ooc #/everyone is just so catty #/with each other #/and passive aggressive #/and you can never #/bring up anything constructive #/unless your the manager #/cause then you're seen as a bitch #/trying to tell them what to do

[mystacoceti]

crazy to think that last year I was wigging the fuck out and bored out of my skull and now I'm. well now I'm itching to go for jugular of my condescending idiot intro to logic teacher. but still. it's nice to have things I'm interested in

#I've taken to editorializing on his midterms which is the more passive aggressive option but also probably the more constructive one too #idk. he didn't say anything about the remarks I left last time but maybe he will this time

[felinenthusiast]

sigh. realising an understanding about one of my favourite characters of all time has just greatly shifted. i need to reconfigure my entire brain because this character has changed sexual orientation to me lol

#rambles #i wanted him to be. bisexual. like me. and it was the obvious choice considering the fact he's literally been married to women. twice. #but i just... his first marriage canonically just 'happened' to him before he knew it based on societal expectations #like we dont know much other than it's described as just. occurring before he knew it. in a very passive way. #so i like to think they WERE friends and it was a nice relationship. but um. i truly do not believe there was any romance there. #his second marriage was literally a political marriage to keep him tethered to a company... he canonically feels no love towards her. #(also. im deeply defensive of female characters who are hit with the 'abusive' accusation out of nowhere it happens too much and is levelle #very incorrectly i'd say like. 60% of the time. but this woman IS genuinely abusive to him. first emotionally. then she beats him later :| #so great marriage that one was! yikes!) #then his (MALE) coworker corners him in the bathroom and he immediately interprets it gayly and can respond like #'this was going to happen sooner or later' <- real quote. #and he's nervous but down for the gay scenario he's constructed in his head (it's not actually gay.) #and then also. he goes on to have Even More intense homoeroticism with a completely different man. #like Oh. babygirl you are a deeply closeted gay man. i understand now. #im sorry mr osawa. #Sorry im rambling about things no o e cares about also. #im obvs thinking of a specific character but also like. im sure others have had this experience #when you're the ceo of a character (me and my partner are largely cus he doesn't have any other big fans lol) and your understanding shifts

[mydecorative]

Passive House Design: Maximizing Energy Efficiency For Comfortable And Sustainable Living

One of the best ways to start living more sustainably is to consider a passive house design. If you’re considering a new build or renovation, you can build your property to use around one-tenth of the energy used by average houses.

#passive house design #buildingdesign #energy efficiency house #passive houses benefits #construction #home improvement

[bonefall]

I made a super self indulgent "Firestar is a BrokenTiger kit for shits and giggles" where Brokensky/star was supposed to bring back SkyClan or something and didn't, so the job was passed on to Firestar. Also Firepaw is an absolute brat good lord, if this were to be written I would have to change the protagonist to Ravenpaw or something just so the plot would get moving

You could use Firepaw being kind of a brat to your advantage. I have a philosophy; every character trait is a coin, and its strength is heads and its weakness is tails.

So maybe he's an entitled brat and plays up his privilege, but what does that mean in the brutal society he'd grow up in? That he doesn't like getting blood on his claws? That he's allowed to break up a fight? He might very well have a "childlike" sense of justice that he's leaned into.

And what would Ravenpaw be contributing to that dynamic? What exactly does Firepaw lack that Raven would bring? Not just 'brattiness', I mean, does Raven bring a respect of the code? Practical logistical considerations? Agency, as in Raven is the one who wants to get stuff done?

If your protag is having issues getting the plot started, you may have an easier time identifying how you can tweak them to get the story in motion.

Nothing's worse than a protag, or a DND character, or any other main "plot mover" who's allergic to getting involved in the plot!

#Unless the narrative literally drags them into it #But even then you need to construct the circumstances to do the dragging #I do have a fondness for stories that allow Firestar's righteousness to express as brattiness and self assurance tbh #People forget how canon Firestar is NOT passive! He's always being dramatic and yelling at people and things #I love him #We will NEVER get scenes like Firestar waking up the whole sleepy warrior den to tell them he's gonna defy their leader again #More needs to be done with Brokenstar and SkyClan in AUs! #Wasted opportunity! #Warrior cats AU #Brokenstar #Firestar

[a-earthssprout]

naturally, in the midst of my efforts to be active here, a hurricane is coming 😭 we are prepared & safe for the most part, thankfully, but if this experience will be anything like Irma ... well, I might be without power for a while 😟 that being said, please don't be alarmed by my silence if I happen to go quiet on discord or here -- it will most likely just be a consequence of hurricane Ian 😭

if you are anywhere near the hurricane's path, please be safe & well. wishing you all the best 🌷

#( 🌸 | ooc // .mobile. ) #( however ... the construction on my bathroom is not yet finished #& the plumbing company has not cleaned up their mess 👀 which means there's lots of stuff in my backyard #including a bathtub that's been split in two #I asked the company to come & retrieve their GARBAGE but they were like ... kinda passive about the whole thing? sinfsjd #so here's hoping we won't have to worry about it ... much 👀 )

[2badso4nick8]

#Constructive Criticism #2023 #Passive Aggression #ferris bueller's day off #Sampler

[pochapal]

another grandma ushiromiya mention. hm.

#umineko liveblog #ep1 reread #the concept of grandma ushiromiya is weird to me #because she doesn't occupy an absence within the narrative if that makes sense? #like nobody seems to be haunted by her not being there #and yet she receives more narrative mention than the actually alive ushiromiya who is absent from the conference #again i feel like there's a slippery point about ange and grandma that i'm not quite grasping yet but i know is there #maybe put them in a trifecta with beatrice? #the two literal absences do not haunt but the one metaphorical figure does nothing except haunt #in this case the youngest and the oldest female members of the family become another mirror for the golden witch #because the rule of umineko seems to be 'when in doubt make it about beatrice' #btw this is funny because this is like the second metaphorical trifecta i've put beatrice into #we've got the ange-beatrice-grandma triangle of absent and haunting figures #and then we have the beatrice-shannon-kanon triangle of active/passive involvement in the construction of the witch narrative #beatrice is a fractal. this is what i have learned today

[trainsgenderfoxgirl2816]

I need rant about how much I hate modern home construction so modern houses (the stupid kind) are lightly built structures made mostly of wood that require HVAC systems that run all the time and said HVAC systems are energy intensive the houses need to be heavily insulated and require the HVAC systems to be on pretty much all the time since they have no passive HVAC since they don't use the old thermal mass strategy thermal mass by the way uses brick, sand, clay or some other material to trap and store heat almost like a capacitor this is the same concept as thermal batteries However there are some good things about modern houses mainly insulation which can increase the efficiency of thermal mass since it reduces heat loss and it means you don't need to have you furnace running all the time or whatever other systems you have.... Ok I have ranted enough

#thermal mass #passive heating #brick houses #HVAC #engineering #random rant #stupid construction

[decepti-geek]

tbh, with anyone who’s upset that they can’t access much fanfic of a certain level of quality/complexity... I can’t help feeling like, maybe go and find some well-recommended literature at your local library, and then adjust what you’re expecting randos on the internet to write ‘for you’ in their free time. 

#fandom #fandom culture #this also goes for meta discussion or whatever as well honestly #cause frequently what that actually is is discussion between two friends that you happen to be able to see #as like. a much more passive and less involved outside party #it is not For You #if you don't have the spoons to start the conversation that you want then why should anyone else #be expected to muster the spoons to hold it instead #like absolutely you can ASK someone to use their spoons to provide that for you #but you gotta ask and accept that the answer might be 'no' #rather than constructing a reality where you are entitled to the use of someone else's spoons in that way #and being wronged if they're not being used for your benefit

[munamania]

anyway. i am going to be SO incredibly livid and angry and throwing an absolute tantrum on thursday if i dont get good feedback on my script.

#and by good i mean anything actually helpful not just 'omg wow this is amazing' tho ofc that's acceptable too #like a month back now u. might remember that the day i was supposed to get feedback on my outline i literally ended up #holding back tears in class bc it was so. just. pointless and rude and genuinely not helpful #and last week everyone was soooo boring about the scripts that were due like no one was giving helpful critiques or anything #it was all just sooo insufferable u people are not being constructive about like actually helping someone develop their story or whatever #ur just being stupid. and by that i mean it. like they didnt even try to just understand the humor or worldbuilding of this one kid's scrip #t it pissed me off. #and i actually had fun with my script finally it's a first draft so u know it's gonna have its weak spots but eye had fun hanging out #w my girls <3 so. if people could attempt to be helpful this time around that'd be awesome. #like last time a few people made snide comments like 'um about this - well i can't even remember this one's name' hey girl. you could #probably look at the very contained outline i wrote that's right in front of your face instead of saying annoying shit like that to the #writer's face! #the vibes have just been off. that class was so fun for a while and lately it's been such a bitch fest. #they were so mean about mine and my friend's i think people r jealous that that's our bestie prof's class but like. he doesnt treat us any #kind of way you know. and he's supportive of everyone like u dont have to make this weird #sorryyyyy for complaining about what i THINK is wrong with everyone but like! idek how to deal with their passive aggressive shit anymore #they're mean to each other too sometimes #just gonna go crazy with it on thursday #abby talks

[indizombie]

In one study from 2006, the psychological researcher Shelly Gable and her colleagues brought young-adult couples into the lab to discuss recent positive events from their lives. They psychologists wanted to know how partners would respond to each other’s good news. They found that, in general, couples responded to each other’s good news in four different ways that they called passive destructive, active destructive, passive constructive, and active constructive. Let’s say that one partner had recently received the excellent news that she got into medical school. She would say something like “I got into my top-choice med school!” If her partner responded in a passive destructive manner, he would ignore the event. For example, he might say something like “You wouldn’t believe the great news I got yesterday! I won a free T-shirt!” If her partner responded in a passive constructive way, he would acknowledge the good news, but in a half-hearted, understated way. A typical passive-constructive response is saying “That’s great, babe” as he texts his buddy on his phone. In the third kind of response, active destructive, the partner would diminish the good news his partner just got: “Are you sure you can handle all the studying? And what about the cost? Med school is so expensive!” Finally, there’s active constructive responding. If her partner responded in this way, he stopped what he was doing and engaged wholeheartedly with her: “That’s great! Congratulations! When did you find out? Did they call you? What classes will you take first semester?” Among the four response styles, active-constructive responding is the kindest. While the other response styles are joy killers, active-constructive responding allows the partner to savor her joy and gives the couple an opportunity to bond over the good news.

Emily Esfahani Smith, 'The Secret to Love Is Just Kindness', Atlantic

#Shelly Gable #good news #passive destructive #active destructive #passive constructive #active constructive #response style #Emily Esfahani Smith #Atlantic

[mokeymokey]

I'm mad because I've just realized that my conlang with its elaborate case system is like exactly the same gimmick as Ithkuil. Reddit ass language. What have I done

#I'm not trying to exhaustively capture every participant role though just blur the distinction somewhat between subject and object #and obviate the need for a distinct passive construction. but anyway. #AND my phonology and orthography are more elegant. pah.