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Shifts in Mood

Introduction

• Shifts in mood are often closely related to shifts in tense.

• • Both involve verbs.

We will begin this lesson by reviewing grammatical mood.

What is Grammatical Mood?

• • The grammatical term mood has nothing to do with frame of mind.

Instead, it is a variant of the word method.”

mode

, meaning “manner or

What does mood reveal?

• Grammatical mood indicates the manner in which the writer conceives of the sentence- that is, the writer’s idea whether the sentence states fact, expresses doubt, gives a command, or performs some other function.

How can we tell the “mood” of a sentence?

• The verb or verbs in each sentence indicate the mood in which the writer wrote the sentence.

The Three Moods

• English employs three traditionally recognized moods: – Indicative – Imperative – Subjunctive

Indicative

Indicative Mood

• • • • Writers most frequently use indicative mood.

Indicative sentences make statements of fact.

Example: John will fly to Chicago today.

Example: Although I can knit, I have never learned to sew.

Which of the following sentences is in indicative mood?

• • • Peace be with you.

Leave that dog alone.

Harold was late to his wedding.

Answer

• • • Harold was late to his wedding.

This sentence makes a simple statement of fact. The other two sentences expressed a wish (peace be with you) or gave a command (Leave that dog alone).

• Since the majority of English sentences express fact, you should not find it difficult to recognize the indicative mood.

Indicative Mood & Verb Tenses

• The indicative mood employs common verb tenses: – Present: I see.

– Past: I saw – Future: I will see.

– Present Perfect: I have seen.

– Past Perfect: I had seen.

– Future Perfect: I shall (will) have seen.

• • • Most grammarians classify interrogative sentences, as well as statements of fact, as indicative.

An interrogative sentence, as you know, asks a question. Example: Was Harold late to his wedding?

Which of the following sentences is in the indicative mood?

• • • Eat those beets immediately.

Has he decided to start lifting weights?

Heaven help you.

Answer

• • Has he decided to start lifting weights?

Remember that questions employ indicative mood, just as do those that state facts.

Imperative

• Writers use the imperative mood to give commands or to make requests.

• • Example: Eat your beets. (command) Example: Please forgive me. (request)

The “Understood”

You

• • All imperative verbs are in the second person, present tense.

Writers generally omit the subject,

you

, of an imperative verb, but writers understand it as part of the sentence.

Which of the following sentences is in the imperative mood?

• • • Step right this way.

You should go home now.

The general commanded his company to charge.

Answer

• • • •

Step right this way.

This sentence makes a request. The subject,

you

, is understood, just as it is in most imperative sentences.

The omission of

you

helps make imperative sentences easier to recognize.

Subjunctive

• The third of the three commonly recognized moods is the subjunctive.

What is subjunctive mood?

• • • The subjunctive mood expresses wishes and suppositions contrary to fact.

Example: Peace be with you. (wish) He speaks French as if he were a Frenchman. (supposition contrary to fact)

• • In the second sentence, the main clause— He speaks French—is in the indicative because it states a fact.

The “as-if” clause uses the subjunctive because it expresses a condition contrary to fact: he is not really a Frenchman.

• When the dependent clause is subjunctive, the main clause is normally indicative.

• This shift is a logical and necessary one and not considered a faulty shift in mood.

Which of the following tests employs the subjunctive?

• • Go and get me some cream and sugar.

When she awoke, she could remember every detail of her dream.

• I wish I were a kid again.

Answer

• • • I wish I were a kid again.

The dependent clause—(that) I were a kid again—expresses a wish and is in the subjunctive.

The main clause—I wish—asserts a fact and is in the indicative.

• In our day-to-day language use, the indicative has, to a large extent, replaced the subjunctive.

• However, writers continue having difficulty with the subjunctive because its few surviving uses require special verb forms.

• You should have little difficulty with the subjunctive once you know the following few forms.

Rule # 1

• The third person singular (

he

,

she

,

it

) of the present tense verb drops its –s or –es ending.

Application of Rule #1

• • Therefore, although we would normally write “she leaves,” the subjunctive that se drop the -s.

Example: The old man asked that

she leave

him in peace.

Rule # 2

• • • The verb

to be

requires special treatment.

In the subjunctive, the present tense is always

be

, not the normal

am

,

is

, or

are

.

Example: Peace

be

with you. (Not “Peace is with you.”

Rule # 2, Continued: Past Tense of

To Be

• • Similarly, in the subjunctive, the past tense is always

were

, never

was

.

Example: If I

were

a millionaire, I wouldn’t eat hamburger every night.

Advice

• • The past subjunctive of to be —always were —is the subjunctive form people most frequently use and misuse.

Therefore, you should pay particular attention to it.

Which of the following sentences employs the subjunctive correctly?

• • • He be a very interesting person.

If he were not so lazy, he would go far.

We would not be talking about her if she was here.

Answer

• • • If he

were

not so lazy, he would go far.

The

if-clause

makes a supposition contrary to the fact: he apparently is “so lazy.” The verb uses the correct past tense subjunctive— were .

• We correctly use subjunctive forms in several main situations.

• The first two come naturally to native English-speakers.

Situations Requiring the Subjunctive

1.

In a main clause expressing a wish: – God bless you. [not

blesses

] 2.

In a

that-clause

expressing a request, a demand, a motion, or a formal resolution: – The teacher demanded that he leave the room. [not leaves] – Resolved: that this motion be tabled. [not is]

• Only two subjunctive uses are likely to cause you difficulty. • The first appears as # 2 on the previous slide. • If you wish to look back at it, press your keyboard’s “page up” key.

Rule # 3

3.

In a

that-clause

expressing a wish – Example: He wishes that he were in India. (not

was

) Writers may often omit the

that

in sentences like the one above.

Rule # 4

Here is the other troublesome use: 4.

In an

if-clause

expressing a condition contrary to fact that is impossible or highly improbable.

– Even if he were a millionaire, she still would not marry him.

Remember . . .

• The past tense of the verb

to be

is

were

, not

was

.

Caution

• • Not all if-clauses require the subjunctive.

You should use the indicative if the condition expressed by the

if-clause

is possible or probable.

– The President stated that our forces would retaliate if the island was bombed.

Reminder

• • • However, remember to use the subjunctive when the if-clause is clearly contrary to fact or purely hypothetical.

If I were President, I would not employ our forces to defend the island.

The person named as “I” is clearly not the President.

Which of the sentences below should employ the subjunctive?

• • • If he was our father, he’d have a right to tell us what to do.

The traffic department decided that a motorist should be given a ticket if he was stopped for driving too slowly.

If I was caught without bus fare, I would simply walk home.

Answer

• • Only the sentence below states a supposition contrary to fact.

If he was our father, he’d have a right to tell us what to do.

Revised Sentence

• • The sentence should read as follows: If he were our father, he’d have a right to tell us what to do.

Further Explanation

• The remaining two sentences correctly used the indicative, rather than the subjunctive, because their

if-clauses

express possible or probable conditions.

– The traffic department decided that a motorist should be given a ticket if he was stopped for driving too slowly.

– If I was caught without bus fare, I would simply walk home.

• While the subjunctive is becoming increasingly uncommon in speech, in writing it still preserves the fine distinctions of meaning that make English a rich language.

• Places will always exist in your writing where you can and should use the subjunctive to good advantage.

Brief Review

• • • Indicative- used to state a fact or ask a question Imperative- used to give a command or make a request (in a main clause) Subjunctive- used mainly to express wished and to make suppositions contrary to fact.

Question

• Which of the following sentences is written entirely in the indicative mood?

– Get me a basin and some hot water.

– Silently the captain was wishing to retreat, but aloud he ordered his men to make ready for the attack.

– Mr. Billings would be thoroughly likeable if he were not always telling such bad jokes.

Answer

– Silently the captain was wishing to retreat, but aloud he ordered his men to make ready for the attack.

• Though it mentions a wish and an order, the second sentence states fact.

• It says nothing contrary to fact, nor does it give an order for the reader to do anything • Therefore, it is indicative.

Shifts in Mood

Word of Advice

• Just as you should avoid needless shifts in subject, person, and tense, you should also avoid illogical shifts in mood.

A Correct Shift

• • As you have learned, a sentence containing a subjunctive

if-clause

or

that-clause

correctly shifts to the indicative in its main clause.

If I were you, I’d go on a diet.

(subjunctive) (indicative)

Faulty Shift

• However, faulty shifts in mood often involve the indicative and the imperative.

– First, preheat the oven; then you should grease the cake pan. (shift from imperative to indicative)

Possible Revisions

• • All in the imperative: First, preheat the oven; then grease the cake pan.

All in the indicative: You should first preheat the oven; then you should grease the cake pan.

Remember . . .

• Do not shift moods without reason.

Question: Which of the following sentences shifts mood without reason?

• She requested that he darken her door no more.

• Even though the air was warm, the water was too cold for swimming.

• All students should assemble on the main quadrangle at ten o’clock, and don’t be late.

Answer

• • All students should assemble on the main quadrangle at six o’clock, and don’t be late.

The first clause is in the indicative and the second in the imperative.

Possible Revisions

• • All students should assemble on the main quadrangle promptly at six o’clock.

All students should assemble on the main quadrangle at six o’clock; they must not be late.

Summary

• Grammatical mood indicates the manner in which the writer conceives of the sentence: that is, his idea as to whether the sentence states a fact, expresses a doubt, gives a command, or performs some other function.

• The verb or verbs in each sentence indicate the mood in which the sentence is written.

• When writing, we most frequently use the indicative.

• • The indicative makes statements of fact.

Examples: – John is going to Chicago.

– Although I can knit, I never learned to sew.

More Indicative Sentences

• Most grammarians classify interrogative sentences, as well as statements of fact, as indicative.

• Example of an interrogative sentence: – Was Harold late to his wedding?

Imperative Mood

• • The imperative mood gives commands or makes requests.

Examples: – Eat your dinner.

– Please forgive me.

The “Understood” You

• • • All imperative verbs are in the second person, present tense.

The subject of an imperative verb—you—is usually omitted but is understood by the reader as part of the statement.

Example: Shut the door = (You) shut the door.

Subjunctive Mood

• The subjunctive mood primarily expresses wishes and suppositions contrary to fact.

Subjunctive Forms

• You should have little trouble with the subjunctive once you know the following few forms: 1.

With third person singular subjects (

he

,

she

,

it

, or any noun for which one could substitute

he

,

she

, or

it

), present tense  verbs drop the –s or –es ending: The old man asked that she leave him in peace. (not

leaves

)

Subjunctive Forms, Continued

2.

The verb to be: --The present tense (all persons) is

be

: Peace be [not

is

] with you.

--The past tense (all persons) is

were

: If I were [not

was

] a millionaire, I wouldn’t have to eat hamburger every night.

Mood Shifts

• • Remember to avoid unnecessary shifts in mood.

These occur most commonly in sentences using indicative and imperative.

You have now finished the discussion of mood shifts.

Please complete PowerPoint worksheet # 39, and put it in your lab folder.