Below are explanations for the two Adverb Samples:

Adverbs from The Brothers Karamazov

It came to pass that, settling permanently in Paris he, too, forgot the child, especially when the Revolution of February broke out, making an impression on his mind that he remembered all the rest of his life.

As the interactive exercise instructs, the first step is to highlight any words that could be adverbs:

It came to pass that, settling permanently in Paris he, too, forgot the child, especially when the Revolution of February broke out, making an impression on his mind that he remembered all the rest of his life.

There appear to be two adverbs in this sentence:

1. PERMANENTLY: has adverb-making morpheme (-ly); can be moved or removed; follows and modifies a non-finite verb functioning adverbially (SETTLING)
2. ESPECIALLY: has adverb-making morpheme (-ly); can be moved or removed; precedes and modifies an adverbial subordinate clause

Challenge Sample from The Brothers Karamazov

He completely abandoned the child of his marriage with Adelaïda Ivanovna, not from malice, nor because of his matrimonial grievances, but simply because he forgot him.

Again, the first step is to highlight any words that might be adverbs:

He completely abandoned the child of his marriage with Adelaïda Ivanovna, not from malice, nor because of his matrimonial grievances, but simply because he forgot him.

For this sample, there appears to be two adverbs in this sentence:

1. COMPLETELY: has adverb-making morpheme (-ly); can be moved or removed; precedes and modifies a main verb (ABANDONED)
2. SIMPLY: has adverb-making morpheme (-ly); can be moved or removed; precedes and modifies an adverbial subordinate clause

Brief Preview of Future Analyses

While there are two adverbs, there are also a number of other elements in the second sentence that are functioning adverbially. The prepositional phrases FROM MALICE and BECAUSE OF HIS MATRIMONIAL GRIEVANCES are adverbial, modifying the main verb ABANDONED. As stated above, BECAUSE HE FORGOT HIM is an adverbial subordinate clause. This clause can be moved to the beginning of the sentence, which shows that it is adverbial.

Tips to Keep in Mind

When reviewing for adverbs (or adverbials), the most important test is MOVEMENT or DELETION. Because adverbs (and adverbials) are almost always non-restrictive, they can be moved or deleted without disturbing the meaning of the sentence. They certainly add information, but adverbials are rarely necessary for understanding the meaning of a sentence. Probably the two most consistent KEY MARKERS for adverbials is their placement in the sentence (usually at the beginning or the end) and the comma, especially double commas, which always signal a non-restrictive element.

If you have questions about these sample analyses, please contact your instructor or start a conversation in your work group.