Examplesof Verbal Processesof Increasing Length

l."Now in a minute we will be blowing the bridge" (E. Hemingway); 2." I won't be looking for a while," he said and turned away (A. Saxton); 3. "We shall be stopping ten minutes at the junction" (D. Hicks); 4. "I'll be dining later with Professor Parish" (A. Kingsley); 5. "Then I should sleep in here?" he asked politely.—"Yes." —"Thanks," Robert Jordan said, "I'll be sleeping outside" (E. Hemingway); 6. "She'll be reading the proofs of your book any moment now" (M. Aden); 7. " I hope I '11 • be seeing a good deal of you two gentlemen at my house during this coming week" (C. Forester); 8. At least forty Communist candidates will be contesting in the municipal elections in the Midlands this May (D. Worker); 9. The Soviet Union will be producing more fertilizers than America next year (D. Worker); 10. "In five-hundred years there may be no New York or London, but they (the native people of Vietnam) will be growing paddy in these fields, they'll be carrying their produce to market on long poles wearing their pointed hats. The small boys will be sitting on small buffaloes" (G. Greene); 11. "Feet will be walk­ing over one's grave, wherever it lies" (G. Meredith).

Concrete Processes. About 69% of the instances of the Future Dynamic are references to concrete processes occurring at some moment or in

a period of time which may be contextually indicated (examples a) or not (examples b):

(a)1." He'll be closing in ten minutes" (D. Carter); 2. "Tell the front office these boys'll be coming up in about thirty minutes" (A. Maltz); 3. "You won't be having your breakfast at nine then, will you, sir?" (F. Pohl); 4. "Meet me at Fourteenth and Broadway at two o'clock. I'll be looking out for you" (J. London); 5." We'll be playing games all morn­ing" (H. Smith); 6. " By the time you all eat breakfast, I'll be having my first beer" (A. Maltz);

(b)1. Jenny stood up too."I think I'll be going" (A. Kingsley); 2."Tell me it was a lie, Anna, and I'll be saying prayers of thanks, on my two knees" (E. O'Neill); 3. Browdie opened the door of the car, sat in the driving seat and then took the letters from her.—"You'll be taking the car to Belmont with you?" she asked uncertainly.— "Be late if I don't," Browdie replied (H. Smith); 4. "Let you sit down, now, Miss, and I'll be telling you a bit of myself, and you'll be telling me a bit of yourself" (E. O'Neill); 5. "I'll be walking on. Catch me up" (K. Water-house); 6."I shall be writing to Mr. Moritz" (N. Collins).

Abstract Processes: 1. "We're losing our individuality. Soon they'll be breeding us from test-tubes" (A. Kingsley); 2. "I shall often be com­ing to Pisa" (E. Voynich); 3. "I'll never need to do that sort of thing again. I'll be helping blind men across the street and taking stones out of horses hooves" (A. Kingsley); 4."I shall be moving about probably — getting a job here and a job there" (Th. Hardy); 5. Public health service will soon be operating in every country as well as in towns (M. Endi-cott); 6. On a regularly scheduled run, an experienced engineman can look at his watch and tell you that in four-and-a-half minutes the train will be passing a school-house to the right of the tracks (J. O'Hara); 7." He's very much opposed to you, as I understand it. He'll be run­ning around most likely and talking in the papers" (Th. Dreiser); 8. "So it doesn't look as if you and I '11 be seeing so much of each other in future" (A. Kingsley); 9."They'll be swarming round you like flies round a honey pot. That's what you like, isn't — to have the women petting you and running after you?" (A. Cronin); 10. "Depend on it, he will be thinking pretty hard about this whole business from now on" (Th. Dreiser); 11. "Every minute, waking or sleeping, you'll be wondering if tomorrow you'll be dead" (A. Maltz); 12. "But, Doctor, her sister goes to work. We'll be both working. And Jan will be alone all day" (D. Cusack).

THE FUTURE DYNAMIC TO REFER TO SIMULTANEOUS PROCESSES

The Future Dynamic is used to express simultaneous verbal pro­cesses in about 16% of all its uses: ~~, ~~, __

~~ - 67%;

~.~ , ~’~ — 23%.

Examples of synchronous processes denoted by verbs in the Future Dynamic:

1. "She'll be lying in bed and she'll be looking at the pictures in an old 'Paris Match'" (G. Greene); 2. "I'll be making you a present of my youth, my ideals, and my love, and expecting not one thing in return"

(Th. Dreiser); 3. "But then I shall be sagging, bulging or curving in

a distressing way, the female form being what it is" (M. Arlen); 4. " You '11 be standing knee deep in the surf waiting for me and your machine will be playing 'There's no place like home'" (O'Henry); 5. Watch a plant beginning to grow from a seed. A root grows down into the ground, and a stem grows up into the air. Very soon the root will be taking food from the ground, and the leaves will be taking food from the air (H. McKay).

One of the simultaneous processes is frequently denoted by a verb (usually to be, have, know, etc.) in a Static tense, as in:

1. "This year you'll probably be taking one of my courses. You'll have to do more than talk about how good you are" (M. Wilson); 2. "As you know you'll be teaching freshman physics lab while you take your own courses towards your doctorate" (M. Wilson); 3. "Bill won't be work­ing at a job. He'll be in a concentration camp" (D. Carter); 4. "If he wakes up, we'll know it; he'll be yelling for water" (A. Maltz).

Examples of Patterns ~.~ and ~’~ :

1. "If you're always crying 'wolf, wolf we'll not be believing you when it does come to the bit" (A. Cronin); 2." I shall be cleaning up when you come with my luggage" (J. Galsworthy); 3. "When I see him he will be running already" (E. Hemingway); 4. "I know where I will find him. He will be standing at the ginger stall, chewing his ginger" (D. Russell).

THE FUTURE DYNAMIC TO REFER TO SEQUENT PROCESSES

The Future Dynamic refers to sequent processes in about 4% of its total use.

The Future Dynamic to Refer to One Process Sequent to That Denoted by a Verb in a Static Tense: 1. "I've no doubt the moment my back's turned you'll be crouching at the fire with your trashy books" (A. Cro­nin); 2. "Now you'll think I'm against you and you will be laying for me at every lodge meeting" (A. Saxton); 3. "In ten minutes I'll cross the Central, Southern, and Middle Western States, and be legging it for the Canadian border" (O'Henry).

The Future Dynamic to Refer to Two Sequent Processes: 1. "I'll be coming to your flat and making you give me that lesson" (S. Lewis); 2. "I shall be getting things and going back" (J. Galsworthy); 3. "He'll be going in, too, and stamping on what's left of us" (J. Galsworthy); 4."I'll be pressing your grey flannel suit and sewing on buttons" (S. Wil­son); 5. "They will soon be rushing here and declaring they never expect­ed anything else" (G. Meredith); 6. "Look here, it isn't safe to lean like that. You'll be tumbling over and breaking your neck" (H. Walpole).

ADVERBIALS OF TIME COMBINED WITH THE FUTURE DYNAMIC

In the sources analysed the Future Dynamic is used 46.3% with an adverb or adverbial phrase of time and 4.3% with a temporal clause.

The relative frequency of adverbs and adverbial phrases of time combined with the Future Dynamic is given below (figures in brackets

indicate % of the total number of instances of the tense combined with such modifiers):

soon (15.7); in ten minutes, etc. (9.5); tomorrow, tomorrow morning, etc. (6.7); next (6.0); next week, etc. (4.5); again (4.1); at five past ten, etc. (4.1); now (4.1); for a while, etc. (3.6); by that time, etc. (3.2); tonight, presently, all the time, right along (2.6); before teatime (etc.), often (ever so often, etc.), on Saturday (etc.), one morning (etc.), until then (etc.) (1.7, each); shortly, then, this year, some day, before long (1.4, each); always, during this coming week (etc.), every minute (etc.), from now on, any more, today (this day, etc.) (1.0); after lunch, any day (moment) now, constantly, in December (etc.), in (the) future, in the morning, later, meanwhile, never, still, this afternoon, this weekend, when ...? (0.7); all day long, at first, a few days, much longer, this May, this morning, this summer, what time ...?, yet (0.4, each).

Soon: 1." I'll be going abroad soon" (J. Braine); 2. "You'll be fighting them soon" (E. Hemingway); 3."Yes, old man, I'm on the bread line! I'll soon be hanging around the back door asking you for some stale buns!" (D. Carter).

In Ten Minutes, etc.: 1." He'll be closing the restaurant in ten min­utes" (D. Carter); 2. "Tell the front office these boys'11 be coming in about thirty minutes" (A. Maltz); 3. "Why, in a week you'll be kicking because the towels are too small" (S. Lewis).

Tomorrow, etc.: 1. " Will you be coming tomorrow, doctor" (A. Cro­nin); 2." The sun will be shining tomorrow morning" (H. Walpole); 3." I '11 be waiting for you at the morning train the day after tomorrow" (J. Lon­don).

Next: 1." Next he'll be selling us dirty postcards" (I. Shaw); 2." You'll be telling me the monkeys in India wear trousers next" (A. Cronin); 3. "What a notion! What will you be writing next?" (E. James).

Next Week, etc.: 1." Next week we'll be leaving" (M.Wilson); 2. "Any­way you'll be seeing me next weekend" (A. Kingsley); 3." Who'll be com­ing here this time next year, I wonder?" (Th. Wolfe).

Again. At Five Past Ten, etc. Now: 1." I hope I'll be seeing you again" (A. Kingsley); 2. "We won't be going there again" (J. Braine); 3. "He'll be passing here on his pony at five-past ten" (J. Galsworthy); 4. "I shall be sailing at the end of March" (E. Delafield); 5. "You'll becoming home with me now" (Th. Dreiser); 6."I'll be going now" (A. Saxton).

For a While, etc.By That Time, etc.: 1. "You won't be following even so few as one hound for a while" (E. Caldwell); 2. "We hope father won't be coming from prison for a long time" (J. Galsworthy); 3. "You mean by that time you'll be experimenting with someone else?" (J. Gals­worthy); 4. "By Christmas you'll be eating Russian bread" (A. Maltz).

Tonight. Presently. All the Time. Right Along: 1. "They'll be com­ing down tonight" (R. Graves); 2. "I suppose Michael will be getting home presently" (W. S. Maugham); 3. "You know what Chicago is; they'll be meeting all the time" (W. S. Maugham); 4. "I'll be selling land right along" (J. London).

Before Teatime, etc. Often, etc.: 1. "I shall be coming down before-teatime" (Ch. Bronte); 2. "Don't frown too much, Dick. You'll be look-

ing old before your time" (J. Lindsay); 3. "I'll be seeing you ever so often now" (A. Cronin).

On Saturday, etc. One Morning, etc. Until Then, etc.: 1. The club will be watching Bennett play for Rotherham in their Cuptie against Lincoln on Saturday (D. Worker); 2. "We shall be running the experi­ment on the twenty-third" (C. P. Snow); 3."I wonder if you'll be passing one morning and could look in and see me for a moment" (H. Walpole);

4."One of these days you'll be having the dog stolen" (J. Galsworthy);

5." Until then I'll be sleeping there" (I. Stone); 6. "I shan't be leaving till past seven" (J. Lindsay).

Shortly. Then. This Year. Some Day. Before Long: l."The position will be falling vacant very shortly" (P. Wodehouse); 2. "We shall just be beginning the experiments then" (M. Wilson); 3. "You will be coming to me some day" (Ch. Bronte); 4." I don't think I shall be going to Ascot this year" (M. Arlen); 5. "The doctors will be finding something extra-pink before long" (J. Galsworthy).

Always. During This Coming Week[67], etc. Every Minute[68], etc. From Now On. Any More. Today, etc.: 1. "The glasses will always be sliding down my nose" (K. Mansfield); 2. "They'll be working for us from now on" (M. Wilson); 3. "Then I shan't be troubling you any more" (M. Ar­len); 4. "Today I'll be voting twenty times or more" (D. Carter).

After Lunch. Any Day Now. Constantly. In December, etc. In (the) Future. In the Morning: l."I've told him I'll be pushing off after lunch" (A. Berkley); 2. "Any day now the Russians will be fighting the British and the Americans" (I. Shaw); 3. Two fighters who will be seeing action at the National Sporting Club in December are British and European featherweight champion Howard Winston and John O'Brien (D. Work­er); 4. "Meanwhile, I'll be praying for you and loving you constantly" (Th. Dreiser); 5. "He'll be wanting other things from the city in the future" (Th. Dreiser); 6. "You'll find you won't be thinking of it in the morning" (H. Walpole).

Later. Meanwhile[69]. Never. Still. This Afternoon, etc. When ...?: l."I will be writing you later" (A. Cronin); 2. "I know my mother will never be forgiving me if I don't travel to see her" (J. Lindsay); 3. By that time you and I will be dust beneath the feet of horses, and men be still riding instead of flying (B. Shaw); 4. "But will you not be going there this afternoon?" (M. Mitchell); 5. Lester Piggott will be making a supreme effort to beat the reigning champion this weekend (D. Worker);

6. "When will you be going down?" (M. Wilson).

All Day Long. At First. A Few Days. Much Longer: l."I'll be work­ing my head off all day long, training the girl!" (S. Lewis); 2. "You're green. If I break you in, I'll be doing plenty of your work at first" (J. Lon­don); 3." Will you be spending a few days in Paris?" (Th. Dreiser); 4. "She won't be working there much longer" (O'Henry).

This May[70]. This Morning. This Summer[71]. What Time ...? Yet: 1. Many London tradeunionists will be rallying to welcome the Northerners at Friends House this morning (D. Worker); 2. "What time will you be calling tonight?" (G. Gordon); 3. "If he comes, you'll be doing the best yet, Hurley" (E. Cluer).

Clauses of Time Modifying the Future Dynamic: when-clause (38%); before-clause (31.0%); while-clause (10.3%); after-clause, as soon as-clause, until-clause (6.9%, each).

When-clause: see Examples 1—3 on page 128.

Before-clause: 1. "Before you know, the leaves will be hanging out a welcome to say it's spring again" (D. Cusack); 2. "I daresay we shall be having many talks about it before it's over" (H. Walpole); 3. "She'll be thanking her stars she found out her mistake in time, before the year's out" (E. Delafield).

While-clause: see Example 2 on page 128.

After-clause: "After I'm in my grave, you'll be weeping salt tears" (J. Lindsay).

As Soon As-Clause, Until-Clause: "As soon as your brother is fixed up I shall be sailing" (J. Galsworthy); "Remember I'll be looking till you find your sister" (Th. Dreiser).

VERBS USED IN THE FUTURE DYNAMIC[72]

Absolute frequency of verbs used in the Future Dynamic Tense in the sources analysed[73]:

go (49); come (38); see (33); get (27); want (20); wait (19); do, have, look, think (14); work (10); make, say (9); leave, tell (8); run (7); sit, take (6); carry, play, sing, stay (5); ask, call, feel, fight, move, need, pass, stand, visit, watch, wonder (4); draw, eat, fall, find, live, marry, meet, operate, ride, sail, sell, smell, speak, talk, try, turn, use, write (3); appear, attend, blow, buy, carve, cut, demand, drive, earn, expect, follow, hang, hear, help, hurt, lay, lead, let, mess, miss, push, put, read, report, return, ring, send, shine, shove, sleep, spend, start, stop, swarm, vote, walk (2).

The list contains 87 verbs wich are used in the sources analysed from 49 (about 8% of all instances of the Future Dynamic) to 2 (about 0.15%) times each. There are also 104 other verbs in the sources whose absolute frequency is unity, among them to believe, depend (on), for­give, love, wish.

Examples of the Future Dynamic of the verbs: to see (33); want (20); think (14); feel, need, wonder (4); find, smell (3); appear, expect, hear, hurt (2); believe, depend, forgive, love, wish (1).

To See. The verb to see in the Future Dynamic is used 32 times out

of 33 (97%) in the meaning to meet and converse with and 1 time in the meaning to experience^[74]. Most typical examples:

1.I'll be seeing you" (G. Greene); 2. "Fine. Be seeing you" (D. Car­ter); 3. "I shan't be seeing him again" (J. Galsworthy); 4. "When will I be seeing you again?" (A. Clark).

To Want: 1 ."There we are—a change! Womenwill be wanting a change in Paradise" (G. Meredith); 2. "Will you be wanting me any more, Sir John?" —"No, thank you" (E. James); 3. "They'll be wanting you home again soon" (A. Saxton); 4."Some day you'll be wanting to retire" (G. Gals­worthy); 5." When do you suppose you'll be wanting me to go?" (Th. Drei­ser); 6. "You'll be wanting tea, I suppose?" (J. Galsworthy).

To Think: 1." I shall be thinking of you day and night" (J. Galsworthy); 2. "I'm figuring we'll both be clear by tomorrow morning. We won't even be thinking of bail or a trial" (A. Maltz); 3. My dear, I am afraid he will be thinking more of his own danger than of mine (B. Shaw).

To Feel. To Need. To Wonder: l."I expect Mr. Jettsonwill be feeling a little tired now" (J. Pudney); 2. "In an hour or two you'll be feeling more like yourself" (D. du Maurier); 3. "You'll be needing a new suit soon" (M. Wilson); 4. "The light won't work for some reason. But you won't be needing one, will you?" (A. Kingsley);5. "He'll be wondering where I've gone to" (H. Smith); 6. "Well, are you ready to go down­stairs, Ena? Davidwill be wondering what's happened to you" (A. Berkley).

To Find. To Smell: 1. "I guess you'll be finding him asleep, sir" (S. Lewis); 2."The children'11 be finding things soon enough" (J. O'Hara); 3." In a couple of days thecorpse'll be smelling" (W. Faulkner); 4." They're like horses and dogs, they smell death." — "Shut up, Pete. Get to sleep or you'll be smelling something else" (D. Cusack).

To Appear. To Expect. To Hear. To Hurt: 1. "I'd like somebody to go as soon as possible, please, and inform the audience that I shan't be appearing before them" (A. Kingsley); 2." Ralph! I hear an aeroplane!" — "Why, honey, you're crazy! You'll be hearing Kreisler playing the violin next!" (S. Lewis); 3. "He cannot afford to give his daughter a bit of sweetie next,' that's what we'll be hearing tomorrow" (A. Cronin); 4. "Anyhow this is the day the old man won't be expecting me to come around" (J. O'Hara); 5. "Do you want to marry her?" —"Of course." —"You'll only be hurting yourself, because Lily won't marry you" (M. Wil­son).

To Believe. To Forgive. To Love: See Examples 1, 2 and 4 on pages 128, 130 respectively.

To Depend (on).To Wish: "Now I'm going to Ludington and I won't be depending on anybody but myself" (A. Saxton); "I'll soon be wishing

you were back in Chicago" (A. Saxton).

Miscellaneous

Typical General Questions. Interrogative sentences containing the Future Dynamic make about 5% of all its uses:

general questions — 3%,

special questions — 2%.

In 56% of all general questions the word order is direct:

1." You'll be coming by train?" (A. Kingsley); 2. "Will you be coming tomorrow?" (A. Cronin); 3. "You'll be going to the football match this afternoon?" (A. Cronin); 4. "Will you be going hopping this year?" (J. Galsworthy).

Verbs in the Passive Voice. Only one example has been found on the 150,000 pages of text (See pp. 54—55).

THE USE OF ANTERIOR STATIC TENSES

The anterior static tenses are used to denote verbal processes an­terior to the speaker's mental time (for the Beforepast and the Before-future also to any other process in the past or future) and represented as relatively static.

THE BEFOREPRESENT STATIC

The Beforepresent is fourth in frequency in fiction (3.8%) and tech­nical literature (1.2%). It is used to refer to processes anterior to the speaker's mental present and represented as relatively static. Processes denoted by verbs in the Beforepresent Static can be exclusive (73%) or inclusive (27%), isolated (80%) or simultaneous (12.1%) or sequent (7.9%) with other processes. They can be currently relevant or irrelevant (see pages 42—45). Objectively, they are anterior to processes in pres­ent (95%), future (3%) or past (2%) time. In 41.6% the Beforepresent Static is modified by an adverb, adverbial phrase, or a temporal clause.

PROCESSES OBJECTIVELY ANTERIOR TO PRESENT TIME

A process denoted by the Beforepresent Static can be either inclusive or exclusive (see pages 44—45), the distance between the end of a pro­cess and the moment of speaking as well as the length of the process ranging from several instants to infinite.

Examples of Increasing Distance Between the End of Verbal Process and the Moment of Speaking

1. At last with a swift grab he caught her and pulled her close to him."So I've caught you, my fairy" (M. Mitchell); 2." Lunch, Lawrence?"— "I have lunched, Jack" (J. Galsworthy); 3. Millie comes in with the early morning cup of tea. "There's been a terrible fall of snow in the night" (K. Mansfield); 4. "I have had another baby since I saw you. I've only had her two days" (K. Mansfield); 5."That's a really pretty woman who has moved in next door" (Th. Dreiser) (The Vances had been Carrie's neighbours for over a month); 6. "I want love. I thought I'd married the handsomest man in England, and I've married a tailor's dummy"

(W. S. Maugham) (Julia to Michael after a year's married life); 7. "Wo­man, you have given birth to a monster" (Th. Wolfe) (Steve, to whom reference was made, was a man of about thirty); 8. "We Americans have taken an undeveloped continent ..." (Th. Dreiser); 9. I saw him looking at the cave man's skull. "You don't think an ugly beast like that could really leave" a ghost?" I asked.— "It's left its bones," he said (J. Gals­worthy) (The Cave man of the Old Stone Age lived about 10,000 years ago); 10. "Time passes", said George; "what do we know of Time? Pre­historic beasts, like the ichthyosaurus have laired and brought forth ..." (R. Aldington) (Millions of years ago).

Date: 2015-12-11; view: 577