I guess this isn't such an obvious example to me.

Veit, Richard wrote:

>Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable
>
>The obvious example of the nonfiniteness of imperatives is the linking
>verb: "Be brave!" (the nonfinite form), not "Are brave" (as in "You are
>brave").
>
If we assume the imperative in nonfinite, then how do we explain these
negatives?

Don't be brave.
Don't open the door.
Don't have the soup.

This poses problem for the "underlying" claim of will.  If will is
present, then the imperative should be

*Won't be brave.
*Won't open the door.

(I like Herb's notion that the tag question of imperative is a different
speech act.)

How do we explain the presence of "do" for the negative?  It certainly
seems that this property of the imperative follows ALL other finite
clauses without a helping verb.

You open the door.
You don't open the door.
You have the soup.
You don't have the soup.

In cases of the subjective there is no do-support.

My mother insists you be brave
My mother insists you not be brave.

Clearly, the irrealis in these sentences has no tense.

The only problem the finite explanation needs to explain is BE and not
agreement form.  This can be solved by suggesting that agreement is not
part of the imperative marker.

Bob Yates, Central Missouri State University.

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