Converting Active to Passive Voice: "He likes people to flatter him"

Let's convert the sentence "He likes people to flatter him" from active voice to passive voice. Understanding the structure of the active sentence is the first step in finding its passive equivalent.

The original sentence is in the active voice, with the structure focusing on "He" as the subject performing the action of "liking". The clause "people to flatter him" functions as the object of his liking.

• Subject of the main verb: He
• Main Verb: likes
• Clause/Phrase as Object: people to flatter him

Within the clause "people to flatter him", "people" is the subject performing the action of the infinitive verb "to flatter", and "him" is the object receiving the action of "flatter".

When we convert a sentence with a structure like "Subject + Verb (like, want, etc.) + Object + Infinitive" to passive voice, we usually focus on making the infinitive phrase passive while keeping the main subject and verb active. The object of the original infinitive ("him") becomes the focus of the passive infinitive.

The active infinitive phrase "to flatter him" involves the action done by "people" to "him". The passive form of the infinitive "to flatter" is "to be flattered". The object of the original infinitive "him" is the one who receives the action, so he is the one who likes "to be flattered". The original subject of the infinitive "people" becomes the agent in the passive form, introduced by "by".

So, the transformation follows the pattern:

Active: Subject + Verb + someone + to + Verb + something

Passive: Subject + Verb + to be + Past Participle + by someone

Applying this to our sentence:

Active: He (Subject) + likes (Verb) + people (someone) + to flatter (Verb) + him (something)

Passive: He (Subject) + likes (Verb) + to be + flattered (Past Participle of 'flatter') + by people (by someone)

This results in the passive sentence: He likes to be flattered by people.

Analyzing the Provided Options

Let's examine each option to see which one correctly represents the passive voice transformation:

1. He likes to be flattered by people.
   This option follows the correct pattern for transforming the active structure. The main subject and verb ("He likes") are retained. The infinitive phrase "people to flatter him" is correctly transformed into the passive infinitive "to be flattered by people", where "He" (corresponding to the original "him") is the one who is flattered, and "people" are the agents.
2. He likes to have been flattered by people.
   This option uses a perfect passive infinitive ("to have been flattered"). The simple infinitive "to flatter" in the original sentence indicates a general preference. Using a perfect infinitive would imply a preference related to a past, completed action, which changes the meaning and aspect of the sentence.
3. He likes people to be flattered by him.
   This option completely changes the subject and object of the action of flattering. It means he likes it when *other people* are flattered *by him*. The original sentence means he likes it when *he* is flattered *by people*.
4. He liked to be flattered by people.
   This option changes the tense of the main verb from present tense ("likes") to past tense ("liked"). A standard passive voice transformation usually maintains the original tense of the main verb.

Based on the transformation rules and the analysis of options, the sentence "He likes to be flattered by people" is the correct passive voice equivalent of "He likes people to flatter him."

Revision Table: Key Differences in Voice

Additional Information: Passive Voice with Verbs of Preference

Verbs expressing preference, desire, or need (like 'like', 'want', 'need', 'prefer') often appear in constructions that can be transformed into passive voice, especially when followed by an object and an infinitive clause.

Consider the structure: Subject + Verb + Object + Infinitive Verb (+ Object of Infinitive)

When passivizing, the main Subject and Verb usually remain. The Object of the main verb and the Infinitive part are restructured.

If the object of the main verb is also the conceptual receiver of the action of the infinitive (as is the case when the main subject likes/wants *himself* to be acted upon), the structure shifts to Subject + Verb + Passive Infinitive (+ by Agent).

• Example: They want someone to finish the work. (Active) → They want the work to be finished by someone. (Passive - object of infinitive becomes subject of passive infinitive)
• Example: He wants people to respect him. (Active) → He wants to be respected by people. (Passive - object of infinitive 'him' relates back to 'He', the main subject, so 'He' is the one who wants 'to be respected')

This demonstrates how the object of the infinitive in the active sentence ('him' in "flatter him") becomes the person referred to by the subject of the main verb ('He') in the passive structure ("He likes to be flattered...").