11. Tense and aspect. Peculiarities of the English system.

Existence of aspect in English is a disputable theme. The aspect shows the character of an action.

From the point of view of duration, progress and completion.

If we take 2 forms: writes - is writing

The basic difference between these forms is the following: an action going on continuously during a certain period of time, and an action not limited, not described as proceeding.

So, the difference is in the way the action is shown. The category of aspect can be expressed by lexical and grammatical means.

1) lexical: subdivided into terminative, non-terminative verbs

2) grammatical: continuous, perfect forms of the verb. (Continuous, common aspect).

The category of tense. Henry Sweet: Tense is the grammatical expression of distinctions of time. Tense is relative, time-objective. The category of tense is realized through the main opposition: present vs past. Controversial question: is there a future tense?

Ilyish: The category of tense may be defined as a category which reflects the objective category of time of the action and the time of the utterance. How can we prove that tense is relative? By using present indefinite tense speaking of the past events.

I go there and see Mike. I tell him...

We can see that tense shows not real time.

Ex.: I'm going to the party tomorrow.

12. The category of mood. Means of expressing modality in English.

Various definitions have been given. Vinogradov: Mood expresses the relation of the action to the reality as it is stated by the speaker, and also attitude of the speaker towards the reality, towards the produced information. The speaker may treat the action/event as real, unreal or problematic or as fact that really happened, happens or will happen, or as an imaginary phenomenon.

It follows from this that the category of Mood may be presented by the opposition

obligue mood-direct mood=unreality = reality.

Mood relates the verbal action to such conditions as certainty, obligation, necessity, and possibility.

So different authors speak of different number and types of moods. Ilyish 3 MOODS (indicative, subjunctive, imperative) - meaning form.

The most popular in Grammar has become the system of moods put forward By Prof. Smirnitsky. He speaks of 6 mood forms:

1) The Indicative Mood (Indicative mood shows that the speaker represents the action as real).

2) The Imperative Mood (Imperative used for request, command, invitation, advice.)

3) Subjunctive I (Subjunctive I expresses a problematic action. Subjunctive I is used in American English and in newspaper style. Subjunctive I coincides with the Infinitive without the particle to. Ex.: Ring me up if he would be there.)

4) Subjunctive II (Subjunctive II denotes an unreal action and it coincides in the form with the Past Indefinite Tense (Subjunctive II Present) or Past Perfect (Subjunctive II Past). Ex.: I wish he had told the truth. If only he were here!)

5) The Conditional Mood (The Conditional Mood denotes an unreal action and is built by the auxiliary verb "world" + any Infinitive a non-perfect infinitive expresses Simultaneousness while a perfect infinitive expresses priority. E.g.: But for the rain we would go for a walk. But for the rain we would have gone...)

6) The Suppositional Mood (The Suppositional Mood also expresses a problematic action and is formed with the help of the auxiliary verb "should" for all the persons + Infinitive. E.g.: Ring me up if he should be there.)

One of the important differences between the indicative and the other moods is that the meaning of “tense” does not go with the meanings of subjunctive mood and imperative mood. “Tense” reflects the real time of a real action. The imperative and the subjunctive moods represent the action as real, but as desired or imagined, and the notions of real time are discarded.