Lecture 13 The Verb. The Categories of Person and Number

The categories of person and number are greatly intertwined in the system of the English verb. These categories differ from the rest of morphological categories of the verb in that they express not processual, but substantial semantics thus correlating the the predicate of the sentence with its subject. For example the inflexion -s expressing the 3^rd person and singular number of the verb “to take” in the sentence: He takes some books from the shelf. This inflexion -s signifies that the subject of the sentence has to be a noun in singular, which correlates with a 3^rd person pronoun.

The expression of the category of person is realized only in the singular form of the verb in the present and future tense. In the present tense, the expression of person may be realized in three different ways:

1. Regular expression of person (most of verbs) - by means of the inflexion -s: The wind blows.

2. The verb to be has specific forms of person. It has the form “am” for the 1^st person and “is” for the 3^rd. The verb does not have special forms of the second person, since the form “are” may correlate not only with 2^nd person pronouns, but also with l^sl (we are) and 3^rd person (they are) plural pronouns.

3. Modal verbs (with the exception of to be and to have) have no person inflexions.

In the future tense, the category of person is expressed through the opposition of shall (for l^sl person) and will (for the 2^nd and 3^rd person). This opposition however may undergo reduction: i will meet you at the railway station.

The category of number is expressed in the English verb only in the present tense forms and only together with person distinctions, i.e. the English verb has no specific inflections of number. The number is distinguished only with verbs in the 3^rd person in the present tense: He goes (Sg.) vs. They go (PL). The verb “to be” has special number distinctions, but they are also realized only in combination with person distinctions of the verb. In the present tense, the verb has the following forms expressing number. The singular number is expressed by “am” and “is”. The plurai number cannot be distinguished, since the form "are” is correlated both with the singular and plural nouns. In the past tense, the singular number is expressed by the form “was”. The plural number cannot be distinguished either, since the form were is used both for singular and plural.

Lecture 14 The Verb. The Grammatical Category of Tense

The immediate expression of grammatical time, or “tense” is one of the typical functions of the finite verb, it is typical because the meaning of the process finds its complete realization only if presented in certain time conditions. That’s why the expression or non-expression of grammatical time together with the expression or non-expression of grammatical mood in person-form presentation, constitutes the basis of the verbal category of finitude, i.e. the basis of the division of all the forms of the verb into finite and non-finite.

When speaking of the expression of time by the verb, it is necessary to distinguish between the general notion of time, the lexical denotation of time, and the grammatical time proper or grammatical temporality.

1. The dialectical-materialistic notion of time exposes it as the universal form of the continual consecutive change of phenomena.

2. All the lexical expressions of time are divided into “present- oriented”, or “absolute” expressions of time, and “non-present-oriented”, or “non­absolute” expressions of time. The absolute time denotation distributes the intellectual perception of time among three spheres:

the sphere of the present; the sphere of the past; the sphere of the future.

Thus, words and phrases like now, last week, in our century, in the past, very soon, yesterday and the like are absolute names of time. The non-absolute time denotation does not characterize an event in terms of orientation towards the present. This kind of denotation may be either “relative” or “factual”. The relative expression of time correlates two or more events showing some of them either as preceding or following the others, or happening at one and the same time. Here belong such words and phrases as after that, before that, at one and the same time, at different times, etc. The factual expression of time either directly states the astronomical time of an event, or conveys this meaning in terms of historical landmarks. Under this heading should be listed such words and phrases as in the year of 1066, during the time of the First World War, at the epoch of Napoleon, etc. In the context of real speech the above types of time naming are used in combination with one another, so that the denoted event receives many-sided and very exact characterization regarding its temporal status.

in Modern English, the grammatical expression of verbal time, i.e. tense, is effected in two correlated stages. At the first stage, the process receives an absolute time characteristic by means of opposing the past tense to the non-past, or present tense. The marked member of this opposition is the past form with the differential feature ed. At the second stage, the process receives a relative time characteristic by means of opposing the forms of the future tense to the forms of the non-future tense with the form of the future as a strong member of opposition with the differential features will or shall. Since the two stages of the verbal time denotation are expressed separately, it stands to reason to recognize in the system of the English verb not one, but two temporal categories. Both of them answer the question: “What is the timing of the process?” But the first category expresses a direct retrospective evaluation of the time of the process, fixing the process either in the past or not in the past; the second category gives the timing of the process a prospective evaluation, fixing it either in the future or not in the future. As a result of the combined working of the two categories, the time of the event finds its adequate location in the temporal context, showing all the distinguished properties of the lingual presentation of time mentioned above. In accord with the oppositional marking of the two temporal categories under analysis, the first one may be called the category of “primary time’’ denotation, and the second one - the category of “prospective time" denotation.

Thus, the category of “primary time” divides all the tense forms of the English verb into two temporal planes: the plane of the present and the plane of the past. The category of “prospective time” comprises the two futures: on the one hand, the future of the present, i.e. as prospected from the present; on the other hand, the future of the past, i.e. as prospected from the past. The following example will be illustration of the whole four-member correlation:

Jill returns from her driving class at five о 'clock.

Jill returned from her driving class at five о 'clock.

I know that. Jill will return from her driving class at five о 'dock.

I know that at five Jill would return from her driving class.

The most controversial problem concerning the grammatical category of tense is whether the combination of the verbs shall and will with the infinitive should be considered as a purely grammatical form expressing the verbal tense or just modal phrases. The view that shall and will retain their modal meanings in all their uses was defended by such recognized authorities on the English grammar of the 20^th century as O. Jespersen and J. Lyous. Since a future action is rarely seen as a fact, but only as being foreseen, planned, desired, etc., future time reference can be expressed by some modal verbs: The train is to arrive at 5.30 and the expression to be going to. And even regular ways of expression time reference - the verbs will and shall - also have a kind of modai meaning: will - that of desirability and intention, shall that of necessity or promise lo fulfill an action.

A well-grounded objection againsi the inclusion of the cited construction in the tense system of the verb on the same basis as the forms of the present and past has been advanced by L.S.Barkhudarov. His objection consists in the demonstration that the construction i., question can express at once both the future time and the present time, which hardly makes any sense in terms of a grammatical category since the principle of the identification of any grammatical category demands that the forms of the category in normal use shouid be mutually exclusive. Let's consider the following examples:

Mary won t go lo the parly tomorrow.

The door won 't open at present.

The lexical expressions of time definitely refer the first action to the plane of the future and the second action to the plane of the present. But still we couldn't exclude the possibility of homonyrr.ic forms: in the first exampie “won’t” is interpreted as a differential feature of the strong member of the category of “prospective time” denotation; in the second example “won't" is interpreted as a modal verb expressing persistence. Of course, in analyzing the English future tenses, the modai factor shouldn’t be excluded, especially in the verbal form of the first person. But then, as is widely know n, the expression of the future in other languages is also not disconnected from modal semantics either. And it is conditioned by the mere fact that the future action, as different from the present or past action, cannot be looked upon as genuine feature of reality. Indeed, it is only foreseen, or anticipated, or р'г.-.ned, or de^cd, or otherwise prospected for the time to come.

Another important question which is bnw.’’y speculated upon in connection with the grammatical category of tense is the cases of oppositional reduction. Thus, the process of neutralization is connected with the shifting of the forms of the primary tenses (present, past) from the sphere of absolute tenses into the sphere of relative tenses. One of the typical cases of neutralization in question consists in using anon-future temporal form to express a future action. E.g.:

Today the government meets in emergency session.

I hear your sister is soon arriving from Paris.

This case of oppositional reduction is optional, the equivalent reconstruction of the correlated member of the opposition is nearly always possible. E.g.:

... —> The government will meet in emergency session.

... —> Your sister will soon arrive from Paris.

Another case of neutralization of the analyzed categorial opposition is but strictly obligatory. It occurs in clauses of time and condition with the verb- predicate expressing a future action. E.g.:

If things turn out as has been arranged, the triumph will he all ours.

Lecture 15

The Verb. The Grammatical Category of Voice

The verbal category of voice shows the direction of the process as regards the participants of the situation. The category of voice in English is expressed by the opposition of the passive form of the verb to the active form of the verb. The strong member of the opposition is the passive form, or the combination of the auxiliary be with the past participle of the conjugated verb (symbolically illustrated as: be.T he passive form as a marked member of opposition expresses reception of the action by the subject of the syntactic construction; the active form as the weak member of the opposition leaves this meaning unspecified.

In colloquial speech the role of the passive auxiliary can occasionally be performed by the verb get or become:

The dog got run over.

The category of voice has a much broader representation in the system of the English verb that in the system of the Russian verb, since in English not only transitive, but also intransitive verbs including prepositional ones can be used in the passive.

The diplomat vcav refused transit facilities through London.

Still, not all the verbs capable of taking an object are actually used in the passive, in particular, the passive form is alien to many verbs of the statal subclass: belong, cost, resemble.

A question then should be posed whether the category of voice is a full- representative verbal category, i.e. represented in the system of the verb as a whole, or a partial-representative category.

Three reasons can be given to back the latter point of view. First, the integral categorial presentation of non-passivized verbs fully coincides with that of passivized verbs used in the active voice: takes-goes, is taking-is going, has taken-has gone. Second, the active voice as the weak member of the categorial opposition is characterized not by the active meaning as such, but by the extensive non-passive meaning of a very wide range of actual significations. E.g.: The door opens. The magazine doesn’t sell well. Third, the demarcation line between the passivized and non-passivized sets is not rigid, and the verbs of the non-passivized order may migrate into the passivized order in various contextual conditions. E.g.: The bed has not been slept in. The house seems not to have been lived in for a long time.

Thus, the category of voice should be interpreted as being reflected in the whole system of verbs.

The category of voice differs radically from the categories of time, aspect, mood from the point of view of its referential qualities. All the above-mentioned categories reflect various characteristics of process. The category of voice reflects the subjective appraisal of the situation by the speaker, the plane of his presentation of the situation. Indeed, the situation reflected by the passive construction does not differ in the least from the situation reflected by the active construction - the nature of the process preserved unchanged. The situation participants remain in their places in their unchanged quality. What is changed, is the angle of speaker's point of view.

The guard surrounded the crowd in front of the Presidential Palace. —> The crowd in front of the Presidential Palace was surrounded by the guards.

In these two constructions, the first one features the act of the guards, whereas the second one features the experience of the crowd.

The functional distinctions of the passive are preserved in i;s use with verbids. E.g. : This is an event never to be forgotten. Being arrested he confessed his being guilty. After being invited she refused the offer.

The big problem in connection with the voice identification in English is the problem of the so-cailed “medial” voices, or voices functioning in other way than the passive or the active. All the medial voice uses are effected wii.un the functional range of the unmarked member of the voice opposition.

1. Let’s consider the following example:

She washed the baby and went for a walk.

In the cited example the verb “to wash” is transitive, complementive and takes an obligatory' object “the baby”. The voice ir-aning is active, it indicates that the subject “she” is an active performer of the action, which ^;s directed towards the object. Let’s take another example:

She washed and dressed, and was ready for breakfast.

The analyzed verb “to wash” is also used in the form of the active voice. But the real voice meaning is not active, since the action expressed is not passed from the subject to any outer object; on the contrary this action is confined to me subject itself. This kind of verbal meaning of the action performed by the subject upon itself is classed as “reflexive”. The same meaning can be rendered by combining the verb with the reflexive “self’ - pronoun: 1 will shave myself; Mary hasn't dressed herself up yet; Your son is thoroughly preparing himself.

2. Let’s take examples of another kind:

The friends will be meeting tomorrow.

Nellie and Christopher divorced two year afier (heir marriage.

Are Phil and Glen quarrelling again?

The actions expressed by the verbs in the above se"⁺“nces are aiso confined to the subject, but these actions are performed by the subject constituents reciprocally:

The friends will be meeting one another.

Nellie divorced Christopher, but in turn Christopher divorced Nellie.

Phil is quarrelling with Gien. but Glen, in his turn, is quarrelling with Phil. This verbal meaning of the action performed by the subjects in the subject group on one another is called “reciprocal”.

The reciprocal meaning can be rendered explicitly by combining the verbs with the reciprocal pronouns: one another, each other.

3. Alongside of the considered two, there is a third use of the verb in Eng'ish directly connected with the grammatical voice distinctions. This use can

be shown on the following examples:

The new paper-back are selling excellently.

Large native cigarettes smoked easily

Perhaps the chop will eat better than it looks.

The actions expressed by transitive verbs in the cited examples are confined to the subject, thcugh the meaning of the performances is not active since the actions rendered hv the above-sentences are going on out of their own. The presentation of the verbal action of this type comes under the heading of the

“middle” voice.

However, lacking both regularity and an outer form of expression, it is natural to understand the «middle» voice uses of verbs as cases of neutralization of the voice opposition. The peculiarity of the voice neutralization of this kind is that the weak member (active voice) used instead of the strong one (passive voice) does not fully coincide in function with the strong member, but rather located somewhere in between the two functional borders.

Another problem in connection with the category of voice concerns the relation between the morphological form of the passive voice and syntactical form of the corresponding complex nominal predicate with a pure link verb to be.

The door h as closed by the butler as softly as could be.

The door on the left uw closed.

The demarcationa! line between the construction types in question is commonly derived on the basis of the semantic character of the constructions. Namely, if the construction expresses an action, it is interpreted as passive voice form; if it expresses a state, it is interpreted as a nominal predicate. Of course, the factor of semantics as the criterion of the construction identification is quite appropriate.

But in this case we can’t ignore a complete similarity of forms and functions, which is not in favor of construction discrimination on the categorial bases. That’s why the status of the above-mentioned constructions still remains disputable.

Lecture 16

The Verb. The Grammatical Category of Aspect

The aspective meaning of the verb, as different from its temporal meaning, reflects the inherent character of the process irrespective of its timing. The aspective meaning may be realized in two different ways:

1. It may be in-built in the semantic structure of the verb. In English, for example, aspective semantics serves as a basis for division the verbs into limitive and unlirnitive.

2. On the other hand, the aspeetive meaning can be represented in variable grammatical categories, namely, the category of development and the category of retrospective coordination.

The Aspeetive Category of Development

The aspeetive category of development is constituted by the binary, privative opposition of the continuous form of the verb to the non-ccntinucus, or the indefinite form of the verb. The marked member of the opposition is the continuous, which is built up by the auxiliary “be” + the present participle of the conjugated verb. In symbolic notation it is represented by the formula “be...ing'\ The categorial meaning of the continuous is “action in progress"; the unmarked member of the opposition leaves this meaning unspecified.

The evolution of views in connection with the interpretation of the continuous forms has undergone three stages.

1. The traditional analysis placed them among the tense-forms of the verb, defining them as expressing an action going on simultaneously with some other action. This temporal interpretation of the continuous was consist;.;,у developed in the works of H. Sweet and O. Jespersen.

Let’s take the following example:

While I was typing. Mary and Tom were chatting in the next room.

In fact, four combinations of the continuous and the indefinite are possible in principle on the basis of the above sentence. For exampie ... Ciearly, the difference in meaning between the cited examples cannot lie in their time denotations. The time is shown by their tense-signais of the past (namely, the past form of the auxiliary “be” in the continuous, or the suffix (e'd in the indefinite). The meaningful difference consists exactly in the categorial semantics of the indefinite and continuous: while the latter shows the action in f : very process of its realization, the former points it up as a mere fact.

A further demonstration of the essentially non-temporal nv.--r.ing of the continuous is its regular use in combination with the perfect, in the form of the perfect continuous. For example,

/ have been waiting for you for 2 hours already.

Surely, the very' idea of perfect is alien to simultaneity, so the continuous combined with the perfect in one and the same molestation of the verb can oniy be understood as expressing aspectuality. Thus, the consideration of the temporal element in the continuous shows that its referring an action to a definite tirne- point or its expressing simultaneity, is in itself an aspeetive, not a temporal f'”tor.

2. At the second stage of the interpretation of the continuous, the form was understood as rendering a blend of temporal and aspeetive meanings. Tnis view was developed by Russian scholar LP. Ivanova. The combined temporal- aspective interpretation should be appraised as an essential step forward, because, first, it introduces the very idea of the aspeetive categorial meaning in the system of the English verb. Second, it demonstrated the actual connection of time and aspect in the integral categorial semantics of the verb. But within the framework of tii is approach the categorial meaning of the aspect is left unspecified.

3. At the third stage of study the continuous acquires the categorial interpretation, namely, the categorial meaning of development. This view was initiated and developed in the works of A.I. Smirnitsky, V.N. Yartseva, B.A. Ilysh, L.S. Barkhudarov.

The category of development, unlike the category of person and number and the category of tense, has a verbid representation, namely, it is represented in the infinitive. With the infinitive, the category of development expresses the same meaningful contrast between action in progress and action not in progress. For example:

Is there really anything for you to be complaining about (process)?

Is there really anything for you to complain about (fact)?

But in addition to this purely categorial distinction, the form of the continuous infinitive has a tendency to acquire a special meaning in combination with modal verbs, namely that of "probability”. For example:

Paul must wait for you, you neecl/i't be in a hurry Paul must he waiting for you, so let's hurry up.

The first of the two sentences expresses Paul’s obligation to wait, the second one renders the speaker’s supposition of the fact.

The gerund and the participle do not distinguish the category of development as such, but the traces of progressive meaning are inherent in these forms, especially in the present participle.

The opposition of the category of development undergoes various reductions.

!. Namely, the unlimitive verbs are easily neutralized in cases where the semantics of continuity is rendered by lexical means.

The night is silent. The stars shine with a fierce brilliancy.

2. Neutralization in cases of statal verbs amounts to a grammatical rule. Now / understand that 1 hate this man.

3. The opposition of development is also neutralized with the verbs in

the passive voice.

/ have been w riting a letter since morning The letter has been written since morning.

2. Regular neutralization takes place in sentences with participial constructions of parallel actions.

The man stood smoking a pipe

The man was standing smoking a pipe.

2. On the other hand, the continuous can be used transpositionallv to denote habitual, recurrent actions in emphatic collocations.

Miss Tailor said you were always talking nonsense.

2. Transposition also may take place in cases with statal verbs.

I had a horrid feeling that she was seeing right through me and knowing all about me.

In such cases the continuous implies the idea of intensification and exaggeration.

The Category of Retrospective Coordination

Alongside with the category of development the aspectual meaning is also rendered by the grammatical category of retrospective coordination. The category of retrospective coordination is constituted by the opposhion of the perfect form of the verb to the non-perfect, or imperfect form. The marked member of the opposition is the perfect, which is built up by t'ne auxiliary have in combination with the past participle of the conjugated verb. In symbolic notation it is expressed by the formula “have...en”.

The functional meaning of the category has been interpreted in linguistic literature in four different ways.

1. The first grammatical exposition of t!:e perfect verbal form was the “tense view": by this view the perfect is interpreted as a peculiar Tense form. This view was developed in the works of H. Sweet, G. Curme, M. Bryant and some other foreign scholars. In the Soviet linguistic literature this approach was worked out by N.F. Irtenyeva, M.A. Ganshina and N.M. Vasilevskaya.

The difference between the perfect and no..-perfect forms of the verb, according to the tense interpretation of the perfect consists in the fact that th? - feet denotes a secondary temporal characteristic of the action. Name',у, it shows that the denoted action precedes some other action in the present, pasi, or future.

The idea of the perfcct conveying a secondary time characteristic of the action is quite a sound one, because it shows that the perfect coexists with the other primary expression of time. But laying emphasis on the temporal fi motion of the perfect, the “tense view^-’ fails to expose tne aspectual function, by which the action is shown as successively connected with a certain time limit. Besides, the purely oppositional nature of the form is not disclosed by this appro*.~4 either. So this view leaves the categorial status of the perfect undefined.

2. The second grammatical interpretation of the perfect was the “aspect view”, which was represented in the works of M. Deutselibein, E.A. Sonnenschein, A.S. West, and other foreign scholars. !n ^,1*c Soviet linguistic literature the aspective interpretation of the perfect was developed by G.N. Vorontsova. According to this approach the categorial ..leaning of the Perfect is purely resultative.

The wind has dropped, and the sun burns more fiercely.

The resultative meaning car. be testified by the following transposition:

The sun burns more fiercely as a result of the wind haring dropped.

Recognizing all the merits of the aspectual approach, we clearly sec its two serious drawbacks. First, it underestimates temporal meaning of the perfect demonstrated by the “tense-view". Second, bearing in mind the examples like: i have lived in Ufa for many years, to which the idea of result is alien, the discussed approach again leaves the categorial meaning of the perfect unspccifiea.

3. ^The third grammatical interpretation of the perfect was the “tense- aspect blend view”. In accord with this interpretation the perfect is recognized as a form of double character. This tense-aspect interpretation of the perfect was developed in the works of I.P. Ivanova. According to Ivanova, the two verbal expressing temporal and aspective functions in a blend are contrasted against the indefinite form as their common counterpart. The achievement of the tense-aspect view of the perfect is the fact that it demonstrates the actual double nature of the analysed verbal form, its inherent connection with temporal and aspective spheres of verbal semantics.

Indeed, the temporal meaning of the perfect is quite apparent in the following construction:

/ have known him long enough.

The temporal semantics of the perfect can be proved by the following transformation:

How long have you known him?

The aspective semantics of the pcrfect can be shown by the following transformation:

1 have known him long enough to entrust my future.

Admitting all the advantages of the cited approach we can’t but state that this view also fails to formulate the categorial meaning of the perfect since the concept of grammatical opposition is that differential feature should correspond to a definite plane of content, not a blend.

4. The categorial individuality of the perfect was shown as a result of study conducted by the Soviet linguist A.I. Smirnitsky. His conception of the perfect, the fourth in our enumeration, may be called the “time correlation view”. The essence of this approach is that the perfect form builds up its own category, different both from the “tense” and the “aspect”. The functional content of the category of “time correlation” was defined as priority expressed by the perfect forms in the present, past or future contrasted against the non-expression of priority by the non-perfect forms. The ground for that kind of interpretation of the perfect is that each category should be expressed by a particular differential feature. Since there exists a special form, it is to render a special categorial meaning, namely the categorial meaning of “retrospective coordination”.

In keeping with the general tendency the category of retrospective coordination can be contextually reduced.

/. Especially freely and naturally it is neutralized with limitive verbs.

We 11 have dinner when they arrive (or have arrived).

2. Very peculiar neutralizations take place when the verbal lexeme

migrates from a limitive class to an unlimitive one.

He has already come from classes (limitive verb).

Where do you come from? (unlimitive verb)

2. Characteristic colloquial neutralizations affect also some verbs of

physical and mental perception.

I forget what you've told me about Nick.

I hear the management has soften their demands

The categorial opposition «perfcct versus imperfect» is broadly represented in verbids in semantically strong positions, when its categoriai meaning is made prominent. Otherwise, the opposition is neutralized, the ir.inerfect being used in the position of neutralization.

Having entered the hall he greeted everyone.

(To.’ihKo после того как он вошел...)

Entering the hall he greeted everyone.

(При входе в зал он поздоровался со всеми)

In case of the infinitive the category of retrospective coordination performs a double function. It expresses both the priority and gradations of probability.

I must have left the gloves in the shop.

I might have left the gloves in the shop.

I may have left the gloves in the shop.

Lecture 17

The Verb. The Grammatical Category of Mood

The category of mood, undoubtedly, is the most controversial category of the verb. The principles of its analysis, the nomenclature, the relation, io other categories, in particular, to tenses, all this has received different presentations and appraisals with different authors. The problems of the grammatical category of mood were particularly developed in the works of Smimitsky, llyish, Vorontsova, Barkhudarov, Khlebnikova and a number of other scholars.

The category of mood expresses the character of connection between the process denoted by the verb and the actual reality, eilher presenting ti c process as a fact that really happened, happens or will happen, or treating it as an imaginary phenomenon, the subject of speculation or desire. It follows from this that the functional opposition underlying the category as a whole is constituted by the forms of oblique mood meanings, i.e. those of unreality, contrasted against the forms of direct mood meaning, i.e. those of reality. The Oblique mocd is the strong member of the opposition and direct mood is the week member of the opposition. The meaning of the category of mood, like th«» of the ceugoiy of voice, differs in principle from the verbal categories of time, prospect, development, and retrospective coordination. Indeed, while the enumerated categories characterize the action from the point of view of its various properties, the category of mood expresses the outer interpretation of the action as a whole, namely, the speaker’s presentation of if as actual or imaginary.

Traditionally the following subtypes of the oblique mood are distinguished:

1. The Subjunctive I is formed by the bare infinitive irrespective to time and person denotation. It expresses desire, supposition, speculation, suggestion, recommendation, inducement of various degrees of insistence including commands. Thus, the analyzed mood may be called the mood of attitude.

Long live our friendship.

It is recommended that the elections start on Monday

The agreement stipulates that the goods pass customs free.

2. The Subjunctive II is formed by the form of the Past Simple to express the present time denotation, and the form of the Past Perfect to express the past time denotation. The meaning of this mood is that of unreal, imaginary condition.

1 wish he hud come yesterday.

I wish he were here now.

The mood under analysis is used in the following constructions: 1 wish ...; It's time ...; if (only) it were summer...; As if, as though (subordinate ciauses of comparison); I’d rather you did sinth; I’d better you did smth.

3. The Suppositional mood is formed with the help of the auxiliary should (which may be omitted) and the simple infinitive to express the present time denotation, and the perfect infinitive to express the past time denotation. The meaning of this mood is that of insistence, recommendation, inducement.

/ suggest he (should) attend the classes regularly.

It's strange that he (should) have said that.

The mood under analysis is used in the following constructions: impersonal sentences expressing recommendation or inducement (It’s urgent.,.; It’s necessary...; It’s suggested....; It’s important...); impersonal sentences expressing doubt or surprise (It’s strange...; It’s queer...; It’s odd...; it’s impossible...); in the subordinate clause after the conjunction lest; in the subordinate clausc of concession.

4. The Conditional mood is formed by the auxiliary would and the simple infinitive to express the present time denotation and the perfect infinitive lo express the past time denotation. This mood renders the idea of unreal consequence.

If it were summer, we would go to the country.

If he had arrived the day before, we would have gone to the party.

The mood under analysis is used in the following constructions: main clausc with a subordinate of unreal condition; simple sentences expressing the idea of speculation or hypothesis.

The analyzed terminology of the oblique mood is far from being unique. For instance, there exists another kind of terminology naming the meanings of the oblique mood, namely, Subjunctive I, Subjunctive II, Subjunctive III. As you see, here we are already dealing with the three modifications of the Oblique mood instead of four. The matter is that the Subjunctive I and Suppositional Moods may be united on the basis of similarity of meanings (suggestion, recommendation, seducement) and similarity of forms. Let’s consider the following examples:

It is recommended that the meeting start at 2 sharp. (Subjunctive I)

It is recommended that the meeting (should) skirl at 2 shcr'-p. (Suppositional)

Since the auxiliary “should” may be easily omilteJ in the tor;;', of the Suppositional mood, the similarity of forms of the Subjunctive 1 and Suppositional mood is on the surface.

Another problem in connection with the Subjunctive i is whether it comprises the so-called Imperative mood or not. Within the traditional practical grammar the imperative mood is analyzed as semantically direct mood (Ganshina, Vasilevskaya, 2000)But according to the meaning the imperative form displays every property of the Subjunctive mood. Let’s consider the following examples:

Be off! —> I demand that you he off

Do as / ask you! —> / insist '.hat you do as / ask you.

Turn around! —> / command that you turn around.

On the basis of this analysis we can state that the imperative vcrbai forms may be looked upon as a variety of the subjunctive mood.

Observation of the factual materials have led linguists to the identification of a number of construction types rendering the same semantics as is expressed by the Subjunctive I. These generalized expressions of attitudes may be classed into the following three groups:

1. The construction of may/might + Infinitive expresses wish, desire, hope.

May success attend you! / Success attend you!

May’ our friendship live long. / Our friendship live long.

2. The construction of should + Infinitive expresses supposition, speculation, suggestion, recommendation, inducement.

Whatever they should say of the project, it must be considered seriously.

It has been arranged that the delegation should be received by the President.

Orders were given that the searching group should start out at once.

3. The construction of Let + Objective Substantive + infinitive expresses inducement.

Let's agree to end this wait-and-see policy.

Let our military forces be capable and ready.

All the three types of constructions are characterised by high frequency by uniformity of structure similar to the Subjunctive i. These qualities show that the described constructions may be safely identified as functional equivalents of the Subjunctive I, namely the modal Subjunctive I.

Another problem in connection with the Oblique mood Is the way it expresses the timing of the process. Tne category of the primary time denotation is neutralised with these forms and the actual expression of time is rendered relatively by means of the aspective category of retrospective co-ordination the imperfect denotes the relative present (simultaneity and posteriority), while the perfect denotes the relative past (priority in the present and past). Let us consider the following examples:

He speaks English as if he were an Englishman.

(the present simultaneity-posteriority)

lie spoke English as if he were an Englishman.

(the past simultaneity-posteriority)

lie speaks English as if he had lived in England for many years.

(the present priority)

He spoke English as if he had lived in England for many years.

(the past priority)

Thus. the peculiarity of the oblique mood is that it completely neutralises the grammatical category of primary time denotation and is able to express the timing of the action only relatively presenting it as simultaneous with another action or prior to it.

One more problem in connection with the category of mood concerns th terminology of the oblique mood. Since the discussed terminology is only traditional and connectional, but not explanatory, MY. Blokh suggested the following terms for naming the oblique mood modifications which correspond to their meanings, namely: non-modal formes of the Subjunctive 1 should be called "spective’: formes of the Subjunctive II should be called “stipulative”; formes of the Subjunctive 11! should be called "consective”; modal forms should be called "modal subjunctive", which would exactly correspond to its functional nature in distinction to the three "pure” oblique moods.