My glasses! I can't (be) see(n) without my glasses!

[Glizdka]

When vain Johnny and nerdy Velma bumped into Shaggy and Scooby, and dropped their (sun)glasses, they said:

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Velma: My glasses! I can't see without my glasses!
Johnny: MY glasses! I can't be seen without my glasses!

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Do you think it's a good example for teaching the passive voice?

 

[GoesStation]

Maybe, but the second one is an idiom. You'll have to keep in mind that its meaning is not obvious.

 

[emsr2d2]

No. First, it makes no sense and second, it's not the kind of scenario in which we would use the passive voice. Use real-life situations as examples. We use the passive in things like:

John was hit by a car.
This cake was made by Helen.
That photo was taken by me.

If you want to use those for teaching the passive, give the students the following sentences and ask them to change them to the passive:

A car hit John.
Helen made this cake.
I took this photo.

 

[Skrej]

No, because I wouldn't even call Johnny's line passive voice*. Velma's line can't be made passive, as 'see' is being used intransitively.

Velma is saying that without her glasses, she cannot see anything. Johnny is saying that he doesn't want anyone to see him without his glasses on.

Of course it's physically possible for people to see him without them on, he just doesn't want them to. Velma is speaking of inability, Johnny is speaking about his wishes.


*Edit: I guess it could be considered passive with an understood subject, but I'd still consider it more of an idiom.

 

[jutfrank]

No, for all of the reasons given above and a few more.

 

[emsr2d2]

I was tempted to say in my first response that it wasn't even passive, but chose not to. However, I've now applied my "Could this be passive?" test to it and decided it could be. That test, for any learners who wonder, is simple: Can you add "by zombies" at the end? If you can, it's passive.

Is "I can't be seen by zombies" possible? Yes, it is.

I'm aware that that isn't the meaning of the idiom ("can't be seen without XXX").