THE VALUES OF THE PAST

PERFECT TENSE
•
EXAMPLES
He knew he had been there for more than two weeks and he felt tired.
• Știa că era acolo de mai bine de două săptămâni și se simțea obosit.
• He realized he had been waiting for three months and still hadn’t received an answer.
• Și-a dat seama că aștepta de trei luni și tot nu primise un răspuns.
• She knew he had been very upset with her ever since she had refused to marry Jim.
• Știa că era foarte supărat pe ea de când refuzase să se căsătorească cu Jim.
• He admitted that he had been behaving unreasonably lately.
• A recunoscut că se comporta foarte nerezonabil în ultima vreme.
• He realized that he hadn’t met her yet.
• Și-a dat seama că n-o întâlnise încă.
• He was aware that he had last been paid six months before.
• Era conștient că ultima dată când fusese plătit fusese cu șase luni în urmă.
• He had thought his friend had died in 1990, but in fact he had died much later.
• Crezuse că prietenul lui murise în 1990, dar de fapt acesta murise mult mai târziu.
• The previous night, a wolf had broken in the pen and had killed a sheep, which meant that
he had to repair the fence of the pen.
• Noaptea trecută pătrunsese un lup în țarc și omorâse o oaie, ceea ce însemna că acum
trebuia să repare gardul țarcului.
• He had often visited her and she knew she could depend on him.
• O vizitase adesea, iar ea știa că se putea baza pe el.
• He hadn’t always been such a brute, she thought.
• Nu fusese întotdeauna o brută, se gândea ea.
 GENERALIZATION

PAST PERFECT CAN SUCCESSFULLY

COMBINE WITH ANY CLASS OF TIME
ADVERBIALS [+THEN/-THEN]
IS PAST PERFECT ONLY THE PAST COUNTERPART
OF PRESENT PERFECT?
• Direct Speech: I have been very happy here. /
Indirect Speech: He said he had been very happy
there.
• Direct Speech: He has been sleeping for two hours. /
Indirect Speech: Jim said that his friend had been
sleeping for two hours.
• Direct Speech: John married Susan last year. /
Indirect Speech: He said that John had married Susan
the previous year.
• Direct Speech: He visited us on Monday. /
Indirect Speech: Jim said that John had visited them
on Monday.
 Let’s generalize!
Past Perfect makes a connection with ‘then’ and is a
past counterpart of Present Perfect. It also indicates
anteriority to ‘then’ and is therefore a ‘past before
past’, expressing events prior to other past events.
• Jim realized he had hated his wife for many years.
• Jim și-a dat seama că n-o mai suporta pe nevastă-sa
de mulți ani de zile.
• Jim realized that he had met his wife twenty years
before.
• Jim și-a dat seama că o întâlnise pe nevastă-sa cu
douăzeci de ani în urmă.
•
 FOOD FOR THOUGHT
• Consider the following pairs of sentences and comment on
their point of reference and on the tense forms employed:
• I’ve never been happier in my life!
• He realized he had never been happier in his
life.

• Jim had been happily married for at least ten

years.
• Jim has been happily married for at least ten
years.
 PAST PERFECT IN NARRATION
• ... I picked up a bit of naan bread and mopped up my
curry sauce. The naan bread was big; we’d both
stuffed ourselves with it during the meal but it was
still big. When it had arrived it had needed a
separate table just to accommodate it; luckily the
restaurant wasn’t busy. ‘Not so much a naan bread,
more a toasted duvet,’ I’d said. Ash had laughed.
• During the course of the meal we’d reduced the
blighter to the proportion of a couple of pillows, not
to mention disposing of portions of chicken kalija and
fish pakora to start, followed by garlic chicken [...].
Two dry sherries and a couple of bottles of Nuit St
George had washed it all down and now we were
onto the coffee and brandy. (Ian Banks – Crow Road)
 PAST PERFECT IN NARRATION
• Elsie thought of her own mother. She had worked.
She had been good at her craft and the air of the
kilns had made her ill. She had tried to make a home
for them. They had had a geranium in a pot on a
window sill. They had had a Minton plate [...] hung
on a nail on the wall. They all knew what these things
meant. They meant they were respectable. Just
respectable. She tried to think she wouldn’t so much
mind being trapped in a gilded cage of a comfortable
Home – she had done a fair amount of substitute
Home-making at Purchase House, not so much out of
a desire for homeliness as out of a powerful dislike
for mess, and shoddiness, and discomfort, which was
unshared by the Purchase women. (A.S. Byatt – The
Children’s Book)
 MAIN FUNCTIONS OF PAST
PERFECT
Past Perfect may Past Perfect may express Past Perfect may
express an event that is an event that is anterior to describe a set or a
directly connected with the subsequent moment sequence of events that
(i.e. a past point of
or has an effect on the happened before a past
reference, then) and that
subsequent moment point of reference (a
does not necessarily have
(i.e. a past point of a direct effect on the ‘story within a story’)
reference, then) → it is subsequent moment → it
the past counterpart of behaves like a ‘past before
Present Perfect a past’, a past counterpart
of the Past Simple
[Mary understood Her father had died in the Mary remembered her
instantly]: someone had war/two years before, [or days in prison.] She had
stolen her purse! so Mary thought.] entered prison as a young
(resultative meaning) girl and had left it as a
[She knew that] somebody [Everybody in the class mature, middle-aged
had been following her all knew that] King Harold had woman. She had made
morning/ since her leaving been defeated at Hastings friends there, had been
the hotel. (continuative in 1066. miserable and happy and
meaning) had even learned how to
She had done a lot of bad play chess. [But now, all of
 CAN PAST PERFECT BE REPLACED
BY PAST SIMPLE?
• Mary remembered how Jim (had) behaved to her parents on
Thanksgiving. He (had) insulted her mother and (had) angered
her father. In his turn, Jim knew he had been a horse’s ass.
• Mary își amintea ce urât se purtase Jim cu părinții ei de
Thanksgiving. O insultase pe maică-sa și îl supărase pe taică-
său. La rândul lui, Jim știa că fusese măgar.
• Mary remembered how Jim (had) behaved to her parents on
Thanksgiving. He (had) insulted her mother and (had) angered
her father. In his turn, Jim knew he was a horse’s ass.
• Mary își amintea ce urât se purtase Jim cu părinții ei de
Thanksgiving. O insultase pe maică-sa și îl supărase pe taică-
său. La rândul lui, Jim știa că era un măgar.
 Let’s generalize!
Optionality: Past Perfect forms can be replaced by Past Simple
ones if the context clearly indicates the order of the events
expressed by the verbs. The shifted verbs need to be dynamic,
otherwise their interpretation might be ambiguous between
anteriority and simultaneity.

Mary thought about last night’s events and decided she left
the party too late.
Mary thought about last night’s events and decided she had
left the party too late.

Mary realized she was sick.

Mary realized she had been sick.
PAST PERFECT CONTINUOUS
 EXAMPLES
• Jim thought that] aliens had visited his planet.
• Jim era convins că extratereștrii ne vizitaseră planeta.
• [Jim thought that] aliens had been visiting his planet.
• Jim era convins că extratereștrii ne vizitau constant
planeta.
• [Susan knew] Jim had drunk the gin in the cupboard.
• Susan știa că Jim băuse ginul din dulap.
• [Susan knew] Jim had been drinking gin from the
cupboard.
• Susan știa că Jin (tot) bea din ginul din dulap.
 Let’s generalize
• The Continuous (/progressive) aspect forces
a mainly continuative reading upon the
perfect sentence.
• He had written a novel.
• He had been writing a novel.

• She had read the Harry Potter books.

• She’d been reading the Harry Potter books.
 TIPS FOR TRANSLATION
• The Present or Past Perfect are not translated in the same
manner as the Present or Past Perfect Continuous!

• Compare the translation of the following sentences and remember

that the Continuous form is normally translated into Romanian by
a Prezent form (or by an Imperfect form for the Past Perfect
Continuous):
•
• He has sung the same song. / He has been singing the same song
for an hour.
• A cântat același cântec. / Cântă același cântec de o oră.
•
• She realized he had sung the same song./ She realized he had
been singing the same song for an hour.
• Și-a dat seama că el a cântat/cântase același cântec./ Și-a dat
seama că el cânta același cântec de o oră.
 TIPS FOR TRANSLATION
• Past Perfect ≠ Mai Mult ca Perfect, but: Mai Mult ca Perfect = Past Perfect

• The Romanian Mai Mult ca Perfect is a tense devoid of much ambiguity. It

normally expresses anteriority to a past point of reference and it is
therefore translatable by means of a Past Perfect form:
•
• Mama îl certă pe Tom că nu trăsese apa la closet și nici nu ridicase colacul.
• Mother scolded Tom because he hadn’t flushed the toilet or raised the
toilet seat.
•
• There is no one-to-one correspondence between Past Perfect and Mai
Mult ca Perfect, however. Consider the following sentences and their
translation:
•
• Jim told Susan he had never loved another woman.
• Jim îi spuse lui Susan că nu mai iubise niciodată altă femeie.
• Jim i-a spus lui Susan că nu a mai iubit niciodată altă femeie.
 TIPS FOR TRANSLATION
• Past Perfect ≠ Mai Mult ca Perfect, but: Mai
Mult ca Perfect = Past Perfect

• Jim realized he had been staring blankly for

hours.
• Jim își dădu seama că se uita/se uită de ore
întregi în gol.
•
• He knew that by the time she had arrived he
would have left for the airport.
• Știa că până să sosească ea/să fi sosit ea/va fi
sosit ea, el va fi plecat/o să plece la aeroport.
MEANS OF EXPRESSING FUTURITY
• I’ll pack my suitcase tomorrow.
• I’m going to pack my suitcase tomorrow.
• I‘m packing my suitcase tomorrow.
• Please, don’t forget to give me my umbrella when I pack my
suitcase.
• If you want to say goodbye, come and see me in my room. I’ll be
packing my suitcase.
• Tell me what you want. I am about to pack my suitcase.
• My master has ordered me to leave. I am to pack my suitcase after
I serve his morning tea.
• I’ll have packed my suitcase by the time the train enters the
station.
• I’ll come to say goodbye after I have packed my suitcase.
• I told him I would pack my suitcase the following day.
• I told him I was going to pack my suitcase the following day.
 EXPRESSING THE FUTURE
1. PRESENT Present Simple Present
TENSES The boat sails Continuous
and tomorrow at Paul is giving a
PAST noon. speech next
TENSES week.
Past Simple Past Continuous
They told me the They told me that
boat sailed Paul was giving a
tomorrow at speech next
noon. week.
 EXPRESSING THE FUTURE
2. WILL + verb WILL + infinitive WILL+have + V-en
WOULD + infinitive WOULD+have+ V-en
(=Present
Form)
and
WOULD + WILL+infinitive WILL+have + V-en
verb “THE FUTURE SIMPLE” “THE FUTURE PERFECT”
(=Past He will talk to her on Monday. He will have already talked to Sue by
Va vorbi cu ea luni. the time Tim gets back.
Form)
Va fi vorbit deja cu ea când Tim se va
întoarce.
WOULD + infinitive WOULD+have+ V-en
“THE FUTURE IN THE PAST” “THE FUTURE PERFECT IN THE PAST”
They told me he would talk to her on They told me that he would have
Monday. already talked to her by the time Tim
Mi-a spus că va vorbi cu ea luni. got back.
Mi-au zis ca va fi vorbit deja cu ea
când Tim se va întoarce.
WILL+ be+V-ing WILL+have+be-en+V-ing
WOULD+be +V-ing WOULD+have+be-en+V-ing
WILL+ be+V-ing WILL+have+be-en+V-ing
 EXPRESSING THE FUTURE
3. THE PHRASE AM/IS/ARE GOING TO
BE GOING TO WAS/WERE GOING TO
(Present Form
And
Past Form)
AM/IS/ARE GOING TO
Sue is going to have a baby.
Sue o să aibă un copil.

WAS/WERE GOING TO
They told him Sue was going to have a baby.
I-au spus că Sue o să aibă un copil.

4. OTHER PHRASES: AM/IS/ARE TO AM/IS/ARE BOUND TO

BE TO, BE BOUND TO WAS/WERE TO WAS/WERE BOUND TO
(Present Forms
AM/IS/ARE TO AM/IS/ARE BOUND TO
and
He is to give a My parents are bound to arrive
 NOTA BENE!

• THESE WAYS OF EXPRESSING THE FUTURE DO

NOT ALL HAVE THE SAME MEANING. THERE
ARE MORE SIGNIFICANT OR SLIGHTER
DIFFERENCES IN MEANING AMONG THE
VARIOUS FORMS ABOVE.
 EXPRESSING THE FUTURE IN
CERTAIN SUBORDINATE CLAUSES
• I will talk to him tomorrow.
• Voi vorbi cu el mâine.
•
• I’ll tell you what’s going on, after I talk to his sister.
• Îi voi spune ce se întâmplă, după ce voi vorbi cu sora
lui.
• I’ll tell you what’s going on if I talk to his sister.
 Let’s generalize
• The use of WILL/WOULD is forbidden in temporal
clauses that we call WHEN-clauses and conditional
clauses that we call IF-clauses.
• Because the future auxiliary is forbidden, all the
WILL/WOULD forms will be turned into equivalent
forms without the mark of the future, so that all
simple forms stay simple, all perfect forms stay
perfect, all that is continuous stays continuous, all
that is past stays past (see the table above).
 Present Simple versus Present
Continuous
• My train leaves tomorrow at five.
• Trenul meu pleacă mâine la cinci.
•
• ??? My train is leaving tomorrow.
•
• “Are you coming home tomorrow?”
• Vii acasă mâine?
• “Yes, my plane gets here at seven.”
• Da, avionul ajunge aici la şapte.
•
• My train leaves tomorrow at five. (IN THE FUTURE)
• ? My train leaves. (INCOMPLETE SENTENCE)
 Present Simple versus Present
Continuous
• He’s walking his neighbour’s dog tomorrow. (IN THE FUTURE)
• O să plimbe câinele vecinului mâine.
• b. He’s walking his neighbour’s dog. (RIGHT NOW)
• Îi plimbă câinele vecinului.
 Let’s generalize!
• When one wants to express a schedule or
an arrangement that depends upon
exterior factors (a plane’s departure, an
itinerary), one uses the Present Simple
Tense. However, when one describes a
personal arrangement, something that
depends only upon the plans of a person,
one uses the Present Continuous tense.
 THE PRESENT CONTINUOUS versus
THE BE GOING TO FUTURE
• a. Bill is taking his son on a fishing trip tomorrow. He has
arranged to do so.
• Bill îşi ia fiul cu el la pescuit mâine. A plănuit asta deja.
• b. Bill is going to take his son on a fishing trip (tomorrow). He
intends to do so.
• Bill o să-şi ia fiul cu el la pescuit mâine. Asta e intenţia lui.
•
• a. There are clouds in the sky. It’s going to rain!
• Sunt nori pe cer. O să plouă.
• b. ???There are clouds in the sky. It’s raining tomorrow.
 BE GOING TO and THE WILL/SHALL
FUTURE
• a. He will/He’ll take his son on a fishing trip.
• O să-şi ia fiul la pescuit.
• b. I shall/I will/ I‘ll take my son on a fishing trip.
• O să-mi iau fiul la pescuit.
•
• a. I’ll stay in my room and write my essay.
• b. I’m going to stay in my room and write my essay.
• O să stau în camera mea să-mi scriu compunerea.
•
• a. The queen will visit Romania next week.
• b. The queen is going to visit Romania next week.
• Regina va vizita România săptămâna viitoare.
 FOOD FOR THOUGHT
• a. I think it is going to rain
• Cred că o să plouă.
• b. It will rain tomorrow in the South.
• Cred că va ploua mâine în sud.

• The phone is ringing. I’ll answer it.

• Sună telefonul. O să răspund.
• b. I’m going to answer that letter, even if it’s going to take
an entire night to compose an answer.
• O să trimit un răspuns scrisorii aceleia, chiar dacă o să stau
toată noaptea să-l scriu.
 BE GOING TO and THE WILL/SHALL
FUTURE
Differences:
1. Register – Colloquiality
2. Present/versus/Future orientation
3. WILL is more bound to be associated
with prediction tinges of meaning:
 Let’s generalize!
• The Present Continuous is used to express
future arrangements. The “Be Going To”
Future is used to express the fulfilment in
the future of an intention in the present or
of a present cause. It is a more colloquial
form than the “WILL-future”. “The WILL–
future” is used to express (spontaneous)
decisions, intentions or predictions and can
be used most of the times interchangeably
with the “Be Going To” Future.
 THE FUTURE CONTINUOUS
1. a situation in progress at a particular moment in the future
•
•What will you be doing tomorrow at five?
•I guess I’ll be driving to the airport to meet my friends.
•Ce faci mâine la cinci?
•Cred că o să conduc la aeroport să mă întâlnesc cu prietenii.
2. a situation that will happen as part of the normal course of events in a
person’s life:
•
•I’ll be teaching a lecture tomorrow. (TOMORROW IS MONDAY. THIS IS WHAT I
USUALLY DO ON MONDAYS.)
•O să predau un curs mâine.
•
•I’ll teach a lecture tomorrow. (THIS IS MY INTENTION. I DON’T USUALLY DO
THAT ON MONDAYS)
•O să predau un curs mâine.
 FOOD FOR THOUGHT
• A butler asking his master:
• Will you be taking the Jaguar or the Rolls,
sir?
•
• A mother scolding her son:
• If you keep drinking like that, you’ll be
drinking yourself to death one of these
days.
•
 THE FUTURE PERFECT
• By this time next week, Billy will have
completed his journey to Mexico.
• Săptamâna viitoare pe vremea asta, Billy îşi va
fi dus la capăt călătoria în Mexic.
•
• As you have seen, the Future Perfect depends
on a point in time in the future. It is often
used with a temporal expression of the type
“BY + a point in time” such as “by this time
next week”, “by the time you get back” etc.