TOPIC VI Verb. Categories of Tense. Aspect. Order (Correlation)
Time and linguistic means of its expression. Tense in Russian and English compared.
The problem of the future and future-in-the-past. The category of posteriority (prospect).
The place of continuous forms-in the system of the verb. The category of aspect.
If 4. The place of perfect forms in the system of the verb. The category of order (correlation, retrospect, taxis).
1.1. We should distinguish between time as a universal non-linguistic concept and linguistic means of its expression (grammatical and lexical).
The time of events is usually correlated with the moment of speaking. The three main divisions of time are present (including the moment of speaking), past (preceding it), and future (following it).
Events may be also correlated with other events, moments, situations (for example, in the past or in the future). They may precede or follow other events or happen at the same time with other events.
Accordingly time may be denoted absolutely (with regard to the moment of speaking) and relatively '(.with regard to a certain moment).
1.2. Languages differ as to the means of the grammatical expression of time. Time may be expressed by one category, the category of tense (Russian) or by several categories (English).
In Modern Russian the category of Tense denotes .time both absolutely and relatively:
(1) Он работает на заводе.
(2) Он сказал, что работает на заводе.
In sentence (1-) the -present, form denotes an action, correlated with the moment of speaking. In sentence (2) it denotes an action, correlated with a moment in the past. In both sentences the action includes the moment with which it is correlated.
,_ln Modern English the category of tense denotes time only absolutely:
(3) He works at a plant.
(4) He said he worked at a plant,
In both sentences the action is correlated with the moment of speaking. In sentence (3) it includes the moment of speaking. In sentence (4) it precedes < the moment of speaking.
So the category of lense in Modem Russian denotes the relation of an action to the moment of speaking or to some other moment. The category of tense in Modern English denotes the relation of an action to the moment of speaking. Relative time is expressed by special forms (future-in-the-past, perfect forms, sometimes continuous forms), which are very often also treated as tenses.
2. The two main approaches to the category of Tense in Modern : English are:
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1) there are three tenses: present, past, future;
2) there are two tenses: present and past (O.Jespersen, L.S.Barkhudarov).
According to the second view shall, will + infinitive cannot be treated as analytical forms, as shall and мчи preserve their modal meaning. There are proofs that shall and will may denote pure futurity (B.A.Ilyish), so they may be regarded as auxiliary verbs.
However the recognition of the analytical forms of the future does not mean the recognition of the three-tense system, because in Modem English there are two correlated forms denoting future actions: future and future-in-| thejmst. Future-in-the-past correlates an action not with the moment* of speaking, but with a moment in the past, so it cannot be included into the system of tenses. Moreover, if it is treated as a tense-form, there will be two
tenses,in one form (future and past), which is impossible. On the other hand, future and non-future forms constitute an opposition: comes — will come, came — would come
This opposition reveals a special category, the category of posteriority (prospect). Will come, denotes absolute posteriority, would come — relative posteriority.
3. English verbs have special forms for expressing actions in progress, going on at a definite moment or period of time, i'.ei for expressing limited duration,— continuous forms.
When I came in he was writing.
Continuous forms have been traditionally treated as tense-forms (definite, expanded, progressive) or as tense-aspect forms. Consider the opposition:
comes — is coming
Members of the opposition are not opposed as tenses (tense is the same). They show different character of an action, the manner or way in which the action is experienced or regarded: as a mere fact or as taken in progress. _The_opposition common - continuous reveals the category of aspect
Tense and aspect! are closely connected, but they are different categories, revealed through different oppositions: comes — came; comes — is coming.
The fact that the Infinitive has the category of aspect (to come — to be coming) and has no category of tense also shows, that these are different categories.
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The category of aspect is closely connected with the lexical meaning. R.QuirR divides the verbs into dynamic (having the category of aspect) and stative (disallowing the continuous form). Stative verbs denote perception, cognition and certain relations: see, know, like, belong. Dynamic verbs may be terminative Limitive), denoting actions of limited duration:, close, break, come, and durative (unlimitive) , denoting actions of unlimited duration: walk, read, write, shine. With durative verbs the aspect opposition may be neutralized.
When I came in he sat in the. corner. When I came, in he. was sitting in the corner.
4. In Modem English there are also special forms for expressing relative priority — perfect forms. Perfect forms express both the time (actions preceding a certain moment) and the way the action is shown to proceed (the connection of the action with the indicated moment in its results or consequences). So the meaning of the perfect forms is constituted by two semantic components:, temporal (priority) and aspeetive (result, current relevance). That is why perfect forms have been treated as tense-forms or aspect-forms. \
Consider the oppositions: comes — has come,
is coming — has been coming. ,
Members of these oppositions are not opposed either as tenses or as aspects (members of each opposition express the same tense and aspect). These oppositions reveal the category of order (correlation, retrospect, taxis).
Tense and order are closely connected, but they are different categories, revealed through different oppositions: comes —: come,
comes — has come.
The fact that verbals, have the category of order (to come — to have come., coming — having come) and have no category of tense also shows the difference of these categories.
The meaning of perfect forms may be influenced by the lexical meaning of the verb (limitive/unlimitive), tense-form, context and other factors.
So temporal relations in Modem English are_j:xpressed by three categories:
tense (present — past)
prospect (future — non-future)
order (perfect — non-perfect).
The central category, tense, is proper to finite forms only. Categories denoting time relatively, eiribrace both fmites and verbals.
The character of an action is expressed by two categories: aspect (common — continuous) and order.
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