Loose and Periodic Sentences

Basic Sentence

Abraham Lincoln wept. SUBJECT + VERB

Loose Sentence A basic sentence with the details added

immediately at the end of the basic sentence

Abraham Lincoln wept, fearing that the Union would not survive if the southern

states seceded.

Periodic Sentence A sentence in which additional details are

placed in ONE of TWO positions: BEFORE the basic sentence

Alone in his study, lost in somber thoughts about his beloved country, dejected but not broken in spirit, Abraham Lincoln wept.

Periodic Sentence A sentence in which additional details are

placed in ONE of TWO positions: In the MIDDLE of the basic sentence

Abraham Lincoln, alone in his study, lost in somber thoughts about his beloved country,

dejected but not broken in spirit, wept.

The Purpose of Loose and Periodic Sentences

The emphasis in each sentence is different Allows for variation in sentence structures Allows for the writer to control the pacing of

the text on the reader: Loose sentences move quickly Periodic sentences work with delay.

PracticeDo you think the following sentence from

Booker T. Washington’s Up from Slavery is loose or periodic?

“In order to defend and protect the women and children who were left on the plantation

when the white males went to war, the slaves would lay down their lives.”

Practice

“The slaves would lay down their lives in order to defend and protect the women and

children who were left on the plantation when the white males went to war, the

slaves would lay down their lives.”