Dave's ESL Cafe's Student Discussion Forums

[iloveyou]

Hello,

Numerous humanitarian companigns to end world hunger have been mounted in the last 50 years.

From the dictionary, I learned that mount means increase.
I wonder why passive voice is used in the above sentence..

Why use have been mounted instead of have mounted?

Thanks.

Yun

[asterix]

The verb to mount has several meanings; here it means to initiate and organize.

The writer has chosen to use the passive voice, but you should avoid it as much as possible. It is indirect, weak, limp and sneaky.
Always use the active voice. It is direct, strong and vigorous.

e.g. In the last 50 years numerous humanitarian organizations have mounted campaigns to end world hunger.

The weak and colorless passive voice seems oddly to be just the right way to describe accident, violence and disaster.
e.g. She was hit by a car. He was shot. She was trapped in a burning building. He was kidnapped. They were killed in a plane crash.
Used in these instances, the passive voice makes it quite clear that the subject is not acting, but being acted upon. It conveys a sense of helplessness, which is what the writer wants for such events.