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Past tenses§ 29. All the past tenses (the past indefinite, the past continuous, the past perfect, the past perfect continuous) refer the actions they denote to the past. The difference between them lies in the way they represent the I categories of aspect and perfect. Owing to their past time reference all of them are used both in the written language in narrative and description, and in conversation, especially the past indefinite.
The past indefinite (The simple past) § 30. Formation. The affirmative forms of the past indefinite are synthetic, the interrogative, negative and negative-interrogative forms are analytic. Affirmative (synthetic) forms are represented by the second of the basic verb forms. Interrogative forms are built by means of the auxiliary to do in the past indefinite (did), which is placed before the subject, and the infinitive stem of the notional verb, which follows the subject. Negative forms are built by means of the negative form of the auxiliary, which has two varieties: a) didn’t (used in the spoken language) and b) did not (used in the written language) and the infinitive of the notional verb that follows it. The paradigm of the verb in the past indefinite
Negative-interrogative
The auxiliary did also occurs in affirmative forms in cases when the speaker wishes to emphasize his statement, as in: But I assure you, he did tell me of it himself. Actually, I did see him once last week. There are a few verbs which form their past indefinite differently from the way described above. These are: The verb to be, which has synthetic forms not only in the affirmative, but also in the interrogative, negative and negative-interrogative. It also distinguishes the category of number. The interrogative is formed by placing the verb before the subject. The verb to have, which also has synthetic forms for all structures. When having meanings other than ‘possess’ or when used as part of a phrasal verb (to have a look), to have forms its interrogative and negative in the ordinary way with the auxiliary to do.
§ 31. The past indefinite refers actions to past time quite cut off from the present, that is, these actions are in no way connected with the present).* The past indefinite can therefore be used only in contexts relating to the past. The past reference of the context can be shown: * This is very important for distinguishing the situations in which either only the past indefinite or only the present perfect are to be used. a) by various adverbials of time pointing to the past, for example, yesterday, the day before yesterday, last (that) Saturday (Sunday), etc., last (that) week (month, year), an hour ago (and other adverbials with ago), in 1970, on the 1st of September, and many others denoting certain moments and periods of time already past. He left yesterday. They married in 1975. She returned two hours ago. I saw them last Monday. That night nobody slept. b) by some other past actions (denoted by the verb in the past indefinite or past continuous). He came when I was already at home. They started when the sun was rising. Thus the very fact that the past indefinite is used in a narrative or in a single sentence is generally an indication that some past time not connected with the present is referred to.
§ 32. The past indefinite is the verb form most frequently used; its range of application is immense, especially in all kinds of narratives. The past indefinite is used: To state simple facts in the past. The house stood on the hill. She was beautiful. I did not know who the man was. I did not hear your question. I did not see you at the theatre. What did you say? The past indefinite, never the present perfect, is used in questions beginning with when, even though no indication of past time is made, because when implies a certain moment in the past. The answer can be either in the past indefinite or in the present perfect, depending on the situation: When did you see him? - I saw him two days ago. - I have just seen him. Likewise, the past indefinite, not the present perfect, is used in questions beginning with where because in such questions the reference to some past moment is implied: Where did you buy that hat? The implication is: when you were at the place where the action was performed. 2. To denote habitual actions in the past. All summer I got up at 7. On Sunday evening he took her to the pictures. He usually took the first morning train. Note: Besides the past indefinite there are other ways of expressing habitual actions in the past: a) by means of the form used to + infinitive: Some years ago he used to call on me, now he never does. The negative construction of used to is formed in one of two ways: didn’t used to and didn’t use to. She didn’t use to knit in the evenings. The interrogative construction is: did (he) used to? or did (he) use to...? Did she used to write her articles at night? Did he use to do it? b) The other way to express habitual actions is by means of the verb would + infinitive stem. But unlike used to, would always conveys an additional modal colouring of will, insistance, perseverance. This used to be my mother’s room, and I would sit there for hours. 3. To denote a succession of past actions. He got up, put on his hat, and left. The car stopped, the door opened, and a very pretty girl got out of it. 4. To denote actions in progress at a certain moment in the past, with verbs that cannot be used in continuous forms. He was not listening but still heard what they were speaking about. At that time he was on the watch. 5. To denote future actions in subordinate adverbial clauses of time and condition depending on principal clauses with the predicate verb in a past tense. She said she would come when the film was over. She said she would do it if nothing unexpected happened.
§ 33. The ways of rendering the past indefinite in Russian are varied, owing to its aspective vagueness. Depending on the lexical meaning of the verb and on the context, it can be translated by Russian verbs in the past tense of both perfective and imperfective aspects with all possible shades of their meanings.
The past continuous § 34. Formation. The past continuous is formed analytically by the auxiliary verb to be in the past indefinite and participle I of the notional verb. In the interrogative the auxiliary is placed before the subject and participle I follows the subject. In the negative the corresponding negative forms of to be are employed, and participle I follows them. The paradigm of the verb in the past continuous
Negative-interrogative
§ 35. The past continuous is used mostly in narrative although it may occur in conversation as well. The past continuous is used with all actional verbs and some statal verbs: 1. To denote a continuous action in progress at a certain moment in the past. At 10 it was still raining. When I called him up, he was still having breakfast. The fire began at midnight when everybody was sleeping. At that time she was already packing up. In these examples the moment of time is specified directly, by means of adverbials of time or indirectly by some other past action mentioned in the same sentence. The moment of time at which the action is in progress can also be shown by the previous context, or understood from the situation: He did not answer. His lips were trembling. I stood motionless, as if glued to the ground. The enormous black bull was galloping towards me at full speed. I told him that Ralph was staying at the Three Boars. 2. To denote a continuous action in progress during a certain period of time in the past, marked by adverbials - prepositional phrases (from ... till, from ... to) or adverbs (all day long, the whole night, etc.) We were quarrelling all day long yesterday. She says she was washing from six till eight. When actional durative verbs take the form of the past continuous the actions thus described do not actually differ from those in the form of the past indefinite, as both denote continuous actions in progress at some moment of time in the past: When I saw him, he was standing by the door. When I saw him he stood by the door. Both examples may refer to the same situation. The difference between the two is that the past indefinite lays stress on the fact, while the past continuous emphasizes the process, thus presenting the action more vividly. However in a complex sentence with a subordinate adverbial clause of time if the predicate verbs both in the principal and in the subordinate clauses express simultaneous continuous actions in progress it is usual (though not obligatory) to use the past indefinite in both the clauses: While I ate and drank, I looked up the register. She looked all the while at him as she spoke in her slow, deep voice. But, the past continuous is rather frequent in adverbial clauses, introduced by the conjunction while, as, when, as long as, etc.: While they were talking, the boy waited outside. As he was climbing up, he all the while looked at the birds soaring high above him. When I was working there, I played in the local jazz band. She stayed in the car while I was talking to the nurse. Sometimes the past continuous is found in the principal clause, while the past indefinite is in the subordinate: They were talking inside while he stood watching the path.
The verbs to stand, to sit, to lie expressing actions in progress at a certain moment, or during a certain period of time in the past are commonly used in the past indefinite, if they are followed by participle I. They stood by the door, talking loudly. They sat beside their lorry, drinking soda water and eating sardines from a tin. He lay in bed trying to forget what had happened. However, the past continuous is also possible. She was standing, staring at the open letter in her hand. 3. The past continuous is sometimes used to denote actions characteristic of certain persons in the past. In such sentences the adverbials always and constantly are generally included. She had rather poor health and was constantly complaining of headaches. As I remember her she was always fussing over something. He seemed very absent-minded, he was constantly loosing things. 4. To denote future actions viewed from the past, with verbs of motion (to arrive, to come, to go, to leave, to return, etc.), usually if the action is planned or expected. In this case adverbials of future time are generally used, or the future reference of the verb is clear from the context or situation: She said she was leaving in a week. Then I understood that they were not returning either that year or the next. The ship was sailing in a few hours. If no future reference of the action is evident, it implies that though the action was planned, it was not and will not be carried out: “Listen”, I said. “I’ve brought a little cousin of mine along. Joanna was coming up too but was prevented.” I said quickly: “She was coming to tea yesterday afternoon.” (was due to come, but did not). § 36. As follows from the meaning of the past continuous and from its uses described above, it cannot denote a succession of past actions. Two or more verbs having the form of the past continuous, whether used in the same or in adjoining sentences, always denote simultaneous actions performed by different persons or non-persons: Nash made periodic appearances in the town but what he was doing and what traps the police were setting, I had no idea. It was a glorious day. The sun was shining high in the sky. There was no wind. The larks were singing in the blue depth. Only far away, over the horizon, soft milky clouds were moving placidly towards the east. In all its uses the past continuous is translated into Russian by means of the past tense of the imperfective aspect.
The past perfect § 37. Formation. The past perfect is formed analytically by the auxiliary to have in the past indefinite and participle II of the notional verb. The interrogative and negative forms and built in the way usual for all analytic forms. The paradigm of the verb in the past perfect
§ 38. In all its uses the past perfect denotes actions the beginning of which (always) and the end (usually) precede a certain moment of time in the past. The prepast period of time to which the actions in the past perfect refer is unlimited, that is, they may take place either immediately before some moment in the past or in the very remote past. This tense is used with both actional and statal verbs. Its sphere of application is mainly that of narratives, though it is also used in conversation.
The past perfect is used: 1. To denote an action of which both the beginning and the end precede some moment of time in the past. This moment can be specified by an adverbial of time, or by another action, or else by the situation. What should be borne in mind is that the use of the past perfect form is in itself a sufficient indication of the precedence of the denoted action to some moment in the past which therefore need not be specified. He had finished his work by then. I knew him a little: we had met in Rome a year before. She felt wretched. She had not slept for two nights. I opened the window. The rain had stopped, but the sharp east wind was still blowing. After everybody had left, she rushed to her room and began packing hurriedly. 2. To denote an action in progress which began before a certain moment of time in the past and went on up to that moment and sometimes into it. In such cases either the starting point of the action is specified (by means of the adverb since, a prepositional phrase with since or an adverbial clause introduced by the conjunction since), or the period during which the action was in progress (by various adverbials): a) with statal verbs, which do not normally allow of continuous forms: He had been away for some months before his first letter came. They had thought it over and over again since that dinner. I could not believe the rumour. I had known him for a good many years. b) with some actional durative verbs (in the similar way as with the past perfect continuous). When we first met she had lived in the country for two years and was quite happy. And thus he had sat in his chair till the clock in the hall chimed midnight. Since her mother's death she had slept in the comer room. In this case the past perfect continuous can also be used, though with a slight difference of meaning: while the past perfect lays the stress on the mere fact that the action took place, the past perfect continuous accentuates the duration of the action. 3. To denote a succession of past actions belonging to the time preceding the narrative as a whole, thus describing a succession of events in the prepast time. I gave a slight shiver. In front of me was a neat square of grass and a path and the low gate. Someone had opened the gate, had walked very correctly and quietly up to the house, and had pushed a letter through the letter-box. § 39. The ways of rendering the past perfect in Russian are varied, owing to its aspective meaning of the verb or the context. It can be translated by Russian verbs in the past tense of both perfective and imperfective aspects with all possible shades of their meaning. These are mostly supported by lexical means:
The past perfect continuous § 40. Formation. The past perfect continuous is formed analytically by means of the auxiliary to be in the past perfect (had been) and participle 1 of the notional verb. In the interrogative the first auxiliary (had) comes before the subject, and the second auxiliary (been) and participle I follow the subject. In the negative the corresponding negative forms of the first auxiliary (had) are used, the second auxiliary (been) and participle I follow the negation. In the negative-interrogative the corresponding negative-interrogative forms of the first auxiliary are used first, the second auxiliary and participle I follow the subject. The paradigm of the verb in the past perfect continuous
Negative –interrogative
§ 41. The past perfect continuous denotes an action which began before a given moment in the past, continued for a certain period of time up to that moment and possibly still continued at that past moment. The moment of time in the past before which the action begins is usually indicated by other past actions in the past indefinite or, rather rarely, by the past continuous. Sometimes it is indicated directly by adverbials (by that time, by the 1st of August, etc.). The past perfect continuous is used with actional verbs to denote: 1. Actions in progress that began before a certain moment of time in the past and continued up to that moment, but not into it. As a rule no indications of time are present: the exact time of the beginning of the action is more or less clear from the situation, while the end, closely precedes the given moment of past time (the exclusive past perfect continuous). Dick, who had been reading aloud Pit’s letter, suddenly stopped. I had been feeling very tired, but now I grew alert. They had been walking rapidly and now they were approaching the spot. Her eyes were red. I saw she had been crying. 2. Actions in progress that began before a certain moment of time in the past and continued into it. In this case either the starting point of the action or its duration is indicated (the inclusive past perfect continuous).
Ever since his return he had been losing strength and flesh. She had been acting for a long time without a rest and she badly needed one. Even now he could not stop, though he had been running all the way from the village. The past perfect continuous is usually rendered in Russian by the past tense, imperfective.
Date: 2015-04-20; view: 1355
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