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20 - Aspect: perfect

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  07 February 2023

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Summary

1 b have been lost = present perfect (passive); c had forgotten = past perfect; d this is not the perfect, but the past tense of what is called the ‘causative’: to have something done; e has been = present perfect; f this is not the perfect, but the present tense of the modal verb have to; g will have had = future perfect; h has been signing = present perfect progressive; i had I known = past perfect; j has smashed = present perfect; k had been stopped = past perfect (passive).

2 a Here is the suggested answer for this task:

b The grammatical clues are the use of the past simple (he lived … he worked … he wrote … , etc.), in the case of the text about Arthur Miller, and the present perfect (he has lived … he has worked … he has written … , etc. ), in the text about David Mamet. The reason is that Mamet is still alive, and hence the events occur in a time period that is still connected to the time of utterance – in this case, the present. Miller, on the other hand, is dead, so the events occur in a period that is disconnected to the time of utterance.

c This points to the essential difference between the present perfect and the past tense, i.e. connectedness with the present – and the reason why the present perfect is called the present perfect.

3 a 1 The winning of the Pulitzer prize took place at an unspecified time in his life, i.e. in a period leading up to the present: presumably, he still has the prize.

2 Likewise, the writing of the screenplays is one of his lifetime achievements – something he ‘has’ now (which is perhaps the reason why we use the auxiliary verb have in the present perfect).

3 The period of his blog contribution extends from ten years ago until now, hence the connection to the present is real.

4 Likewise, the period of his marriage extends to the present time: he is still married.

b Sentences 3 and 4 match timeline A, i.e. a situation continuing up to the present; sentences 1 and 2 match timeline B, i.e. finished actions and events that have present relevance or consequences.

Type
Chapter
Information
About Language
Tasks for Teachers of English
, pp. 287 - 290
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2017

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