by Bailey Bischoff<\/p>\n
\u201cNEVER use \u2018because\u2019 to start a sentence!\u201d is an oft-spoken refrain of middle school English teachers. These well-meaning teachers drill this phrase into children\u2019s heads because they don\u2019t want children to write sentence fragments like this: \u201cI was sad. Because the dog ran away.\u201d The second \u201csentence\u201d is actually a fragment as the initial \u201cbecause\u201d makes the phrase a dependent clause, and a dependent clause depends<\/em> (you can think of it as leaning) on an independent clause for support.<\/p>\n An independent clause is a sentence with both a subject and a verb that can stand on its own. However, dependent clauses cannot stand on their own and need an independent clause to accompany them. In essence, if you start a sentence with a dependent clause (as I have here), make sure a comma and an independent clause follow it. This rule helps explain why it can actually be okay to start a sentence with \u201cbecause.\u201d<\/p>\n It is grammatically incorrect to write, \u201cI was sad. Because the dog ran away.\u201d However, one can write, \u201cBecause the dog ran away, I was sad.\u201d<\/p>\n Because* \u2013 Dependent clause \u2013 Comma \u2013 Independent Clause.<\/p>\n Your sentences can grow from there to include more complex ideas, such as those required in your academic papers: Because the conquistadors colonized Latin America through the use of institutionalized slavery and encomiendas, a hierarchical societal system was put into place, the remains of which can still be seen today.<\/em><\/p>\n Because you are no longer in middle school, feel free to use \u201cbecause\u201d at the beginning of sentences (just as long as you follow it up with a comma and an independent clause).<\/p>\n *If you want to know more about other words like \u201cbecause,\u201d words that frequently start dependent clauses, do a search for \u201csubordinating conjunctions\u201d and you will find such words as \u201calthough, if, when, even though, in order to,\u201d and more. Here\u2019s a link to more information on subordinating conjunctions:<\/p>\n