Shifts in Mood

Shifts in Mood

NEC FACET Center

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 mode, meaning “manner or method.”

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

Revised Sentence

• The sentence should read as follows:The sentence should read as follows:

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