The Communicative Grammar of English Workbook - Edward Woods, Rudy Coppieters 2002

17.5. Organising information - Fronting with ‘so/neither’
Unit seventeen. Focusing

Section 418

So is placed first:

• as a substitute form with subject-operator inversion for end-focus

• as a substitute form without inversion to express emphatic affirmation

• for emphasis with subject-operator inversion when it introduces a clause of degree or amount.

In the case of a negative comparison, we use neither.

Task one *

Read through the information about the people below, then write sentences that show additional information using so as a substitute form with subject operator inversion.

1. David read physics at university.

2. Marc hasn’t been to university.

3. Sara is a keen tennis player.

4. Helen is fond of climbing.

5. Sara got married before 1993.

6. Rowan wants to be a writer.

7. Miles doesn’t have any sons.

8. David got married in October.

9. Marc will go to America next year.

10. David wants to have his own business.

Task two **

Rewrite the following text so that, where possible,

1. So as a substitute form without inversion is fronted to express emphatic affirmation

2. So introducing a clause of degree or amount is fronted for emphasis.

The event was so catastrophic that most people couldn’t take in the enormity of the disaster. In reality, the area covered was so small that the majority of the world could only look on in disbelief. However, the building was so enormous that, as it crumbled, it brought others down in its wake.

“We have seen the end of an era,” claimed one commentator.

“We have indeed,” replied the politician.

“I had friends in there.”

“In fact, we all did.”

“The world will never be the same again.”

The messages that flashed round the world were so extraordinary that only pictures could help people understand what had happened. Commentators described the scene as if it were from a Hollywood movie so often that the comparison became devoid of meaning.

“I saw that film ’Independence Day’”.

“We all did.”

“It had scenes like this”

“It did indeed.”

And the people were so shocked and frightened that they went home and left an eerie silence on the streets.