Introduction
Reporting is an essential aspect of everyday language use. It involves giving an account of past incidents and recapturing what other people have said. As a language sub-skill, reporting is crucial for various activities, including minutes writing, storytelling, literature review, and summarisation. All of these activities cannot be avoided by students, making a good understanding of reporting mechanics imperative.
Types of Reporting
There are two primary forms of reporting: direct reporting and indirect reporting.
Direct Reporting
Direct reporting involves the presentation of the speaker’s actual words. In direct speech, the speaker’s original utterance is enclosed in quotation marks. This indicates that the words belong to the original speaker. The enclosed quotation is accompanied by a reporting main clause, which can be placed at the beginning, middle, or end of the sentence. The reporting main clause typically refers to the original producer of the utterance.
Examples:
- The boys said, “We are going to school.”
- She vowed, “I will never do such a thing.”
The phrases “The boys said” and “She vowed” are examples of reporting main clauses. It’s important to note that even when reporting clauses interrupt the quotation, the two parts of the actual utterance remain together.
For example:
- “I will never do such a thing,” she vowed.
- “We are going to school,” the boys said.
Changes Involved in Indirect Reporting
Tense Changes
Tense changes often occur in reported speech because the report is typically given after the original speech. Tenses generally shift one step backward. For instance, a present tense verb becomes past, past becomes past perfect, and present continuous becomes past continuous. This change not only affects lexical or main verbs but also modal auxiliary verbs.
Examples:
- “She is sleeping.” → He/she said she was sleeping.
- “The committee meets once a week.” → He said the committee met once a week.
- “I am singing.” → She said she was singing.
Pronoun Changes
When reporting other people’s speeches, pronoun changes are common. However, there are instances where pronouns remain unchanged.
Examples:
- (a) “I will go there tomorrow.” (b) He said he would go there the next day. Here, “I” changes to “he.”
- (a) “We will go there.” (b) He said they would go there. Here, “we” changes to “they.”
A general principle is that number is preserved in pronoun changes. If the original pronoun is singular, the substituted pronoun should also be singular. Similarly, if the original is plural, the substitute should be plural.
Examples:
- “I want your pen” → He said he wanted his/her pen.
Adverbial Changes
Adverbs of time and place often change in reported speech.
Examples:
- now → then/at that time
- this time → that time
- yesterday → the previous day/the day before
- today → that day
- next week → the following week
- two years ago → two years earlier
Reporting Interrogatives
Interrogatives are expressions used to elicit responses. When reporting questions, certain elements change. The auxiliary verb that usually precedes the subject might be omitted, and question marks are not used.
Example:
- (a) “Did you go there?” mummy asked. (b) Mummy asked if I went there.
In direct reporting of questions, the question mark is maintained, but a verb of asking should be included.
Examples:
- Sola asked, “Did you go there, Tunde?“
- “Have you given her the money?” I enquired.
Reporting Imperatives
Imperatives are commands and requests. They are reported differently. In reporting commands, the imperative becomes a to-infinitive.
Examples:
- (a) “Go there tomorrow.” (b) He directed me to go there the following day.
- (a) “Let them go,” said the Vice-Chancellor. (b) The Vice-Chancellor ordered us to let them go.
In reported commands, the addressee is usually identified, and initial finite verbs are changed to non-finite verbs. However, imperative sentences involving the use of order, command, or declaration might not require the to-infinitive.
Example:
- (a) “Go on a national strike,” ordered the Chairman. (b) The Chairman ordered his men to go on a national strike.
It’s important to note that in reporting imperatives, it’s optional to include the reported form of “to state” or “to speak by.” For instance, “He said that he would go there” can be used instead of “He said he would go there.”
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