Causal Clauses

The similarity between temporal and causal clauses is manifested by the fact that both kinds of clauses can be introduced by the conjunction as, and nothing but the context, i. e. the lexical meanings of the words involved, will enable us to tell whether the clause is temporal or causal. Thus the difference between the two kinds is not grammatical in these cases. Let us consider the following two examples: For ever since he had fled from Kansas City, and by one humble device and another forced to make his way, he had been coming to the conclusion that on himself alone depended his future, with a clearly temporal meaning, and "So," said Helen, "since you obviously don't know how to behave in Great Britain, I shall take you back to France directly " , where the connection is causal.

There would be no necessity to analyse the meanings of the words, etc., if the subordinate clause were introduced by a conjunction which can have one meaning only, for instance, the conjunction because. No clause introduced by this conjunction could ever be a temporal clause.

A special problem, which has received much attention, attaches to clauses introduced by the conjunction for. In many ways they are parallel to clauses with because

But at the same time there is a basic difference between the two types. Because-clauses indicate the cause of the action expressed in the main clause. They can be used separately as an answer to the question why...?, as in the following bit of dialogue: "I must have come." "Why?" "Because I must. Because there would have been no other way." A for-clause could not possibly be used in this way. The reason is that a far-clause expresses an additional thought, that is, it is added on to a finished part of the sentence, as in the following extract: "What game are they all playing?" poor Fleda could only ask; for she had an intimate conviction that Owen was now under the roof of his betrothed.

It would also be impossible to replace because by for in the following sentence: But either because the rains had given a freshness, or because the sun was shedding a most glorious heat, or because two of the gentlemen were young in years and the third young in the spirit — for some reason or other a change came over them.

This peculiarity of for-clauses as distinct from because-clauses is in full harmony with the fact that for-clauses can also come after a full stop, thus functioning as separate sentences, much as sentences introduced by the conjunction but do, as in the following extract: This thought cheered him and caused him to step along most briskly and gaily. For, since having indulged in this secret adventure so long time, both were unconsciously becoming bolder.

Conditional Clauses

Conditional clauses may be introduced by several conjunctions such as if (the most general one), unless, provided, supposing (with more specialised meanings), and the phrase in case.

An essential peculiarity of conditional clauses, or, we should rather say, of conditional sentences (including both the main and the subordinate clause), is the use of verbal forms. Here the actual meaning of a verbal form depends entirely on the syntactical context: it may acquire a meaning which it would never have outside this context.

The classification of conditional sentences is familiar enough. The main types are three: (1) If we can get to the bicycles, we shall beat him. (2) If they could derive advantage from betraying you, betray you they would . . . (3) If you had been arguing about a football match I should have been ready to take a more lenient view of the case,..

There may, however, also be other types, with the action of the subordinate clause belonging to the past and its consequence to the present, e. g. Anyhow, if you hadn't been ill, we shouldn't have you here, etc.

Subordinate conditional clauses can also, like some types of clauses considered above become independent sentences expressing wish. From a sentence like If I had known this in advance 1 should have done everything to help, etc., the conditional clause may be separated and become an independent exclamatory sentence: If I had known this in advance! The conjunction if in such a case apparently ceases to be a conjunction, since there is no other clause here. The conjunction then becomes a particle typical of this kind of exclamatory sentence. The following examples will illustrate this point: If only she might play the question loud enough to reach the ears of this Paul Steitler.