2 Verb Tense Consistency.docx

1、2 Verb Tense ConsistencyVerb Tense ConsistencyThroughout this document, example sentences with nonstandard or inconsistent usage have verbs in red.Controlling Shifts in Verb TenseWriting often involves telling stories. Sometimes we narrate a story as our main purpose in writing; sometimes we include

2、 brief anecdotes or hypothetical scenarios as illustrations or reference points in an essay. Even an essay that does not explicitly tell a story involves implied time frames for the actions discussed and states described. Changes in verb tense help readers understand the temporal relationships among

3、 various narrated events. But unnecessary or inconsistent shifts in tense can cause confusion. Generally, writers maintain one tense for the main discourse and indicate changes in time frame by changing tense relative to that primary tense, which is usually either simple past or simple present. Even

4、 apparently non-narrative writing should employ verb tenses consistently and clearly.General guideline: Do not shift from one tense to another if the time frame for each action or state is the same.Examples:1. The ocean contains rich minerals that washed down from rivers and streams.Contains is pres

5、ent tense, referring to a current state; washed down is past, but should be present (wash down) because the minerals are currently continuing to wash down.Corrected: The ocean contains rich minerals that wash down from rivers and streams. 2. About noon the sky darkened, a breeze sprang up, and a low

6、 rumble announces the approaching storm.Darkened and sprang up are past tense verbs; announces is present but should be past (announced) to maintain consistency within the time frame.Corrected: About noon the sky darkened, a breeze sprang up, and a low rumble announced the approaching storm.3. Yeste

7、rday we had walked to school but later rode the bus home.Had walked is past perfect tense but should be past to maintain consistency within the time frame (yesterday); rode is past, referring to an action completed before the current time frame.Corrected: Yesterday we walked to school but later rode

8、 the bus home.General guideline: Do shift tense to indicate a change in time frame from one action or state to another.Examples:1. The children love their new tree house, which they built themselves. Love is present tense, referring to a current state (they still love it now;) built is past, referri

9、ng to an action completed before the current time frame (they are not still building it.)2. Before they even began deliberations, many jury members had reached a verdict.Began is past tense, referring to an action completed before the current time frame; had reached is past perfect, referring to act

10、ion from a time frame before that of another past event (the action of reaching was completed before the action of beginning.)3. Workers are installing extra loudspeakers because the music in tonights concert will need amplification.Are installing is present progressive, referring to an ongoing acti

11、on in the current time frame (the workers are still installing, and have not finished;) will need is future, referring to action expected to begin after the current time frame (the concert will start in the future, and thats when it will need amplification.)Controlling Shifts in a Paragraph or Essay

12、General guideline: Establish a primary tense for the main discourse, and use occasional shifts to other tenses to indicate changes in time frame.Hints: Rely on past tense to narrate events and to refer to an author or an authors ideas as historical entities (biographical information about a historic

13、al figure or narration of developments in an authors ideas over time). Use present tense to state facts, to refer to perpetual or habitual actions, and to discuss your own ideas or those expressed by an author in a particular work. Also use present tense to describe action in a literary work, movie,

14、 or other fictional narrative. Occasionally, for dramatic effect, you may wish to narrate an event in present tense as though it were happening now. If you do, use present tense consistently throughout the narrative, making shifts only where appropriate. Future action may be expressed in a variety o

15、f ways, including the use of will, shall, is going to, are about to, tomorrow and other adverbs of time, and a wide range of contextual cues. Using Other Tenses in Conjunction with Simple TensesIt is not always easy (or especially helpful) to try to distinguish perfect and/or progressive tenses from

16、 simple ones in isolation, for example, the difference between simple past progressive (She was eating an apple) and present perfect progressive (She has been eating an apple). Distinguishing these sentences in isolation is possible, but the differences between them make clear sense only in the cont

17、ext of other sentences since the time-distinctions suggested by different tenses are relative to the time frame implied by the verb tenses in surrounding sentences or clauses.Example 1: Simple past narration with perfect and progressive elementsOn the day in question.By the time Tom noticed the door

18、bell, it had already rung three times. As usual, he had been listening to loud music on his stereo. He turned the stereo down and stood up to answer the door. An old man was standing on the steps. The man began to speak slowly, asking for directions.In this example, the progressive verbs had been li

19、stening and was standing suggest action underway at the time some other action took place. The stereo-listening was underway when the doorbell rang. The standing on the steps was underway when the door was opened. The past perfect progressive verb had been listening suggests action that began in the

20、 time frame prior to the main narrative time frame and that was still underway as another action began.If the primary narration is in the present tense, then the present progressive or present perfect progressive is used to indicate action that is or has been underway as some other action begins. Th

21、is narrative style might be used to describe a scene from a novel, movie, or play, since action in fictional narratives is conventionally treated as always present. For example, we refer to the scene in Hamlet in which the prince first speaks (present) to the ghost of his dead father or the final sc

22、ene in Spike Lees Do the Right Thing, which takes place (present) the day after Mookie has smashed (present perfect) the pizzeria window. If the example narrative above were a scene in a play, movie, or novel, it might appear as follows.Example 2: Simple present narration with perfect and progressiv

23、e elementsIn this scene.By the time Tom notices the doorbell, it has already rung three times. As usual, he has been listening to loud music on his stereo. He turns the stereo down and stands up to answer the door. An old man is standing on the steps. The man begins to speak slowly, asking for direc

24、tions.In this example as in the first one, the progressive verbs has been listening and is standing indicate action underway as some other action takes place. The present perfect progressive verb has been listening suggests action that began in the time frame prior to the main narrative time frame a

25、nd that is still underway as another action begins. The remaining tense relationships parallel those in the first example.In all of these cases, the progressive or -ing part of the verb merely indicates ongoing action, that is, action underway as another action occurs. The general comments about ten

26、se relationships apply to simple and perfect tenses, regardless of whether there is a progressive element involved.It is possible to imagine a narrative based on a future time frame as well, for example, the predictions of a psychic or futurist. If the example narrative above were spoken by a psychi

27、c, it might appear as follows.Example 3: Simple future narration with perfect and progressive elementsSometime in the future.By the time Tom notices the doorbell, it will have already rung three times. As usual, he will have been listening to loud music on his stereo. He will turn the stereo down an

28、d will stand up to answer the door. An old man will be standing on the steps. The man will begin to speak slowly, asking for directions.In this example as in the first two, the progressive verbs will have been listening and will be standing indicate ongoing action. The future perfect progressive ver

29、b will have been listening suggests action that will begin in the time frame prior to the main narrative time frame and that will still be underway when another action begins. The verb notices here is in present-tense form, but the rest of the sentence and the full context of the narrative cue us to

30、 understand that it refers to future time. The remaining tense relationships parallel those in the first two examples.General guidelines for use of perfect tensesIn general the use of perfect tenses is determined by their relationship to the tense of the primary narration. If the primary narration i

31、s in simple past, then action initiated before the time frame of the primary narration is described in past perfect. If the primary narration is in simple present, then action initiated before the time frame of the primary narration is described in present perfect. If the primary narration is in sim

32、ple future, then action initiated before the time frame of the primary narration is described in future perfect.Past primary narration corresponds to Past Perfect (had + past participle) for earlier time frames Present primary narration corresponds to Present Perfect (has or have + past participle) for earlier time framesFuture primary narration corresponds to Future Perfect (will have + past participle) for earlier time framesThe present perfect is also used to narrate action that began in real life in the past but is not completed, that is, may continue or