LECTURE 5
1. The Verb Group:
LEXICAL VERB - a head of the Verb Group; the Lexical Head always appears last in the Group,
AUXILIARY VERB - a modifier of the Lexical Head Verb:
Auxiliary Verbs: be, have, do, can, may, must, will, shall, need, e.g.:
We write. / We are writing. / We have been writing.
SIMPLE Vgrp - a Head Verb without Auxiliaries.
COMPLEX Vgrp - a Head Verb preceded by Auxiliary Verbs (they are sisters in the Phrase Marker).
2. The simple FINITE Verb Group:
FINITE Vgrp - a Vgrp that contains a tensed verb, e.g.: Three brown bears strolled across the city.,
the Verb stroll is regular and it can be divided into the verb stem stroll and the past tense inflection -ed,
however, there are many irregular verbs which do not take -ed inflection and some of them do not even change, e.g.: I read that book last month.,
sentences may contain more than one Vgrp but every sentence must contain one Finite Vgrp (either Simple or Complex),
NON-FINITE Vgrp - a Vgrp without a tensed verb.
3. SUBJECT-VERB AGREEMENT - the agreement between the Subject NP and the Finite Verb.
4. Tenses of English:
it is customary to recognize just PRESENT and PAST as the tenses of English,
although FUTURE TIME is expressible in many ways, there is no FUTURE TENSE as such,
neither, is there a simple correlation between the grammatical category of tense and the notion of time, e.g.: The ferry departs at 8. (present tense -> future),
therefore, a tense feature will be added to the V node.
5. Auxiliary verbs: [AUX]:
Primary Auxiliaries: be, have, do,
Modal Auxiliaries: can, may, must, shall, will, need,
there are Auxiliary Verbs which function as Lexical Verbs as well; the difference between them is that Auxiliary Verbs move in front of the subject in questions and the Negative Particle not can be attached to them, e.g.: Today, the bears are strolling in the woods. -> Are the bears strolling in the woods? -> The bears are not strolling in the woods.
6. The structure of AUX:
Auxiliary Verbs can contain up to four immediate constituents, each with its own Auxiliary Verb:
Modal [M],
Perfect Aspect [perf],
Progressive Aspect [prog],
Passive Voice [pass].
However, each of them is optional, any combination of them is possible but they always appear in the order given, each may appear only once.
7. Modal: [M]:
Modal Auxiliaries always carry tense (unlike Primary Auxiliaries and Lexical Verbs); some of them have both Present and Past forms:
can - could, will - would, shall - should, may - might
other, such as must, need have only a Present form,
Lexical Verbs have Finite forms, such as Present and Past form, e.g.: Three bears fall asleep./Three bears fell asleep., and Non-finite forms, such as: to fall, falling, fallen,
it is characteristic for Modals to not exhibit Subject-Verb Agreement, e.g.: The little bear must be still hungry as it is looking for food. (not musts),
Modal Present and Past forms (here can - could) are represented in the following way:
Vgrp Vgrp
[ditrans] [intrans]
AUX V AUX V
[M] [pres] [M] [past]
can give could die
8. Perfect Aspect: [perf]:
the following sentences contain the Perfect Auxiliary Verb have, e.g.:
She has taken a nap. - [present perfect] tensed form (has)
She had taken a nap. - [past perfect] tensed form (had)
She will have taken a nap. - [present modal perfect] untensed/basic/
She could have taken a nap. - [past modal perfect] stem form
a Tensed Verb does not always differ in its form from the basic stem,
in the sentence: She has taken a nap. the form of have is affected by the NP (3rd person singular), which confirms that we are dealing with a Tensed/Finite form of have,
although, the tense of the above sentence is present, it refers to Past Time, i.e.: there is no correlation between Tense and Time in it,
the Present Perfect Auxiliary have is one way of referring to past time independently of tense,
the Verb that follows have in the Vgrp always appears in its (Non-finite) Perfect Participle form (in its regular of irregular form), e.g.:
stay - stayed - stayed
have - had - had
take - took - taken,
Phrase Marker for the Present Perfect Vgrp have taken and would have taken:
Vgrp Vgrp
AUX V AUX V
[perf] [pres] [M] [past] [perf]
have taken would have taken
9. Progressive Aspect: [prog]:
be is the Progressive Auxiliary,
-ing inflection of the Verb following be: V-ing is called Progressive Participle, e.g.:
Past Progressive Vgrp: were doing/was coming/was talking
Present Progressive Vgrp: is playing/are jumping/am moving
Past Modal Progressive Vgrp: would be doing/might be learning
Present Perfect Progressive Vgrp: have been walking/has been skiing
10.Passive voice: [pass]:
Vgrps containing the Passive Auxiliary Verb are said to be in the Passive Voice:
ACTIVE: PASSIVE:
wrote was written
is writing is being written
has written has been written
can write can be written
all the Passive Vgrps contain a form of the Verb be which is the Passive Auxiliary Verb.
11. How to distinguish between be as the Progressive Auxiliary and the Passive Auxiliary?:
the Progressive be adopts the Progressive Participle form V-ing,
the Passive be adopts the Passive Participle form, e.g.: taken,
the Passive Participle and Perfect Participle of Verbs always have the same form, which is traditionally called the PAST PARTICIPLE,
in the Passive, the OBJECT in the Active voice becomes the SUBJECT of the Passive; the Subject of the Active becomes a PREPOSITIONAL PHRASE (PP) introduced with by, e.g.:
He is transferring the money.
[S] [O]
The money is being transferred by him.
[S] [PP]
in Passive sentences, the (by) PP functions as a VP-(adjunct)adverbial and as such it is OPTIONAL,
only Verbs that can have Objects appear in the Passive; sentences containing Intransitive Verbs do not have a Passive Counterpart.
12. How to illustrate Passive Sentences in the Tree Diagram:
the Subject of the Passive sentence is a former Direct Object (ex-dO) of an Active sentence; it (dO in Active) has moved, leaving the gap (0), e.g.:
This so called music has driven me mad.
[S] [Vgrp] [dO] [oP]
S
NP VP
Vgrp NP AP
[complex]
This so called music AUX V PRO
[perf] [pres]
has driven me mad
I have been driven mad. -> the Vgrp must still be Complex; however, the Object has become the Subject and the oP is no longer characterizing the Object, but the Subject,
nevertheless, oP is still oP in the Passive, but we don't find the dO in its usual place (it's empty = 0); yet, we know that oP must refer to the NP = dO which has been displaced, e.g.:
S
NP VP
PRO Vgrp NP AP
[complex]
I AUX V 0 mad
[perf] [pass] [pres]
have been driven
13. Passive with Di-transitive Vgrps:
His mother was sent some flowers by him. (-> He sent his mother some flowers. / He sent some flowers to his mother.):
S
NP VP
VP PP
His mother
Vgrp NP NP by him
[di-trans]
AUX V 0 some flowers
[pass] [past]
was sent
14. Tree Diagrams for QUESTIONS:
to form a question, the Auxiliary Verb that carries the Tense (the first Auxiliary Verb) moves in front of the Subject, e.g.:
Did they speak?
S
[past]
Did S
NP VP
PRO Vgrp [intrans]
they AUX V
0 speak
COMPLEMENTISER POSITION - a daughter of S-bar and a sister of a following S.,
Has Buster been boiling the broccoli?
S
[perf] [pres]
Has S
NP VP
Buster Vgrp NP
[trans]
AUX V the broccoli
[prog]
0 been boiling
14. NEGATIVES - the negative particle not is placed immediately after the Auxiliary that carries the tense (i.e. the first Auxiliary).
Auxiliary do:
We do not protest. - in this sentence with not, the Auxiliary do is required to carry the tense,
We did not protest. - in this sentence do is carrying the past tense and the verb protest appears in its non-finite, untensed stem form,
the Auxiliary do is empty of meaning; its only function is to carry the tense.
15. Verb Phrases - expressing future:
Will/Shall + infinitive -> the most common way of expressing futurity; Shall is used with the 1st person Subject (especially in Southern British English),
be going to + infinitive -> is used to mean:
future fulfillment of a present intention, e.g.: I am going to read this book.,
future result of the present cause, e.g.: She is going to have a baby.,
present progressive -> future arising from present arrangement, plan or programme, e.g.: We are sitting several exams this semester.,
Simple Present:
used in subordinate clauses, e.g.: I will call you when I come home.,
used in subordinate clauses to express the degree of certainty, one normally associates with the present, e.g.: Tomorrow is Friday.,
used with certain dynamic verbs to refer to a plan or programme, e.g.: I go/am going on vacation next week. and with state verbs to convey the same meaning, e.g.: I am on vacation next week. (progression is not possible here),
Will/Shall + progressive:
to indicate the future period of time within which another situation occurs, e.g.: When I finish the work, you will be driving home.,
to mean, future as a matter of cause, e.g.: We will be flying at 30,000 feet. (it is normal and expected attitude),
to sound more tactful, e.g.: When will you be paying back the money?,
be to + infinitive -> to mean a future arrangement or plan a future requirement and intention, e.g.: You are to be back by 10 p.m.,
be about to + infinitive -> is used to express near future, e.g.: We are about to have a break.,
be not about + infinitive -> means to have no intention, e.g.: We are not about to leave..
16. Future time in the Past:
most of these future constructions can be used in the Past Tense to describe something which is in the future when seen from a viewpoint in the Past,
modal verb construction with would -> rare/literary narrative style, e.g.: The time was not far off when he would regret this decision.,
be going to + infinitive -> often with sense of unfulfilled intention, e.g.: We were going to receive an e-mail with attachments, but we didn't.,
past progressive -> arrangement predetermined in the past, e.g.: I was meeting him the next day.,
be to + infinitive -> was destined to or arrangement, e.g.: I was destined to meet Brad Pitt.,
be about to + infinitive -> on the point of; often with the sense of unfulfilled intention, e.g.: I was about to say the same thing.
17. Modals - meaning:
there are two kinds of meaning for Modal Auxiliaries:
INTRINSIC MODALITY - involves intrinsic human control over events (permission, obligation, volition),
EXTRINSIC MODALITY - involves human judgment of what is or is not likely to happen (possibility, necessity, prediction),
each of the modals has both, Intrinsic and Extrinsic Uses,
can/could:
possiblity, e.g.: Even experienced drivers can make mistakes.,
ability, e.g.: We can speak foreign languages.,
permission, e.g.: Women can finally vote.,
may/might:
possiblity, e.g.: You may be right.,
permission (may is more formal and less common), e.g.: You may borrow my car if you need it.,
must:
necessity (the meaning of must is a parallel to the possibility meaning of may), e.g.: There must be a mistake.,
obligation and compulsion, e.g.: You must be back by 10 p.m.,
ought to/should:
tentative (hesitant) inference, e.g.: The mountains should/ought to be visible from here.,
obligation, e.g.: You should/ought to do as you are told.,
will/would:
prediction, e.g.: I will feel better soon.,
volition:
intention, e.g.: I will be back soon.,
willingness, e.g.: Will you help me?,
insistence, e.g.: Your condition can get worse if you will go out without jacket.,
shall:
prediction,
volition (for intensions, suggestions and in questions to consult to wished to the addressee),
could/might/would -> in polite requests:
tentative position, e.g.: Could I see?,
tentative volition, e.g.: Would you hold the door for me?,
tentative possibility, e.g.: I might be wrong.