An inserted unit is a unit placed inside a sentence that explains the thought being stated or adds new information to it. It differs from an introductory unit in that an introductory unit expresses an attitude, while an inserted unit gives new information, an explanation or a reminder. It may be a word, a phrase or a sentence and is most often separated by brackets, sometimes by a dash. Because it ensures exactness and completeness of speech it occurs in all styles. In artistic and publicistic texts the writer uses an inserted unit to show a character’s particular way of speaking or to add his own attitude as a brief aside. If we drop an inserted unit, the main content of the sentence does not change, but the extra information is lost.
Worked examples
With brackets: «Anvar (sinfimiz sardori) tanlovga yozildi.» (“Anvar (our class monitor) signed up for the competition.”) – an inserted phrase that gives an explanation.
In sentence form: «Kecha (havo juda sovuq edi) dalaga bordik.» (“Yesterday (the weather was very cold) we went to the field.”) – the bracketed sentence gives extra information about the circumstances.
Class activity
“Open the brackets”: inserted units in a text are removed while reading; the class says what information is lost.
Practice
1
How does an inserted unit differ from an introductory one?
An introductory unit expresses attitude; an inserted unit gives additional information or explanation.
2
Find the inserted unit in «Kitob (qalin muqovali) javonda turibdi» and name the separating mark.
«Qalin muqovali» (“with a thick cover”) is the inserted unit; it is separated by brackets.
3
Compare «Afsuski, uyda hech kim yo‘q» and «Ukam (u hali kichik) uyda yolg‘iz».
In the first «afsuski» is introductory (regret); in the second the bracketed clause is an inserted unit (extra information).
4
Why do writers use inserted units?
To reveal a character, bring speech to life and give an additional explanation.