Representing being and having
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Using there be to represent existence and location | page 4 of 8 |
Using there be with relative clauses
Many existential sentences follow the pattern there + be + noun group
+ relative clause:
There are so many people who don't have a job. (Bank of English)
There is nothing I can do but pray that some kind-hearted mum and dad will come forward with organs that will save my little boy. (Bank of English)
In general terms, such sentences are used when the author wants to introduce into a text some information that deserves special attention. For this reason, some newspaper articles and stories begin in this way:
There is a general rule of thumb in Hollywood which says that sequels should be served up like hamburgers. (Bank of English)
There was one professor who was stone deaf and if he came in without his hearing box you couldn't make him understand at all. (Bank of English)
Note how, in the following article on the booming economies of the Far East, the writer marks the switch from a discussion of their strengths to a discussion of their weaknesses by using there is with a relative clause:
Japan, Korea and Taiwan are now exporting their out-of-date assembly plants to Britain, while they move upstream to new technologies and new products. There is a dark side to Asia's development which cannot be ignored. (Bank of English)
The expression there are those who … is particularly common. It is generally used to when the author wants to signal his or her disagreement with other people:
There are those who love Hong Kong's buzzing, pulsating atmosphere, its wonderful shops, its dense tangle of narrow streets overlooked by vast skyscrapers. And there are those who, like me, find it stimulating, but exhausting after a few days. (Bank of English)
There are those who is often followed by verbs of saying and thinking, such as say, claim, argue, think and believe:
Whilst there are those who would say that heavy drug users or "addicts" are not responsible for their actions, we do not take such a view. (Bank of English)
There are those who would argue that this discomfort is not real, that sport cannot matter enough to break anyone's heart, but this is simply not the case. (Bank of English)
There are those who think that 1.7 lb means one pound seven ounces or 4.5 ft means four feet five inches. (Bank of English)
Introduction
Using there be with relative clauses
