A prelude to discussions of the use (and abuse) of the passive
For writing that’s limp and lifeless, dense, dull, there are generally a constellation of issues to be addressed. But in discussions of writing so compromised, it’s most often passive voice that takes the blame.
Before you can evaluate for yourself when and where, and how much, the passive voice in question plays a role, you need to be able to distinguish it from active voice. And not in that simple way that the two are described in so many discussions of the passive, but in a way that helps distinguish it from verbs that have a passive feel, but that are actually — grammatically — active. Or verbs that don’t have grammatical voice at all.
But the reason discussions of the passive voice are so often rather simplistic is that it can require more foundational work in the forms of English verb phrases, and the structure of sentences, to really be able to spot the passive voice in all its more complex glory. Or all its regrettable banality, as the case may be. This discussion too will begin with simple structures, and then build from there.
Let’s start with this concept of “voice.”
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This discussion uses color to highlight parts of the sentence, and there is no option for color in this platform. For the remainder of this piece, see here. The formatting is simple, not at all publication quality. But there’s clarifying color.