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Subject:	Re: Some suppositions
From:	shun Tang <[log in to unmask]>
Reply To:	Assembly for the Teaching of English Grammar <[log in to unmask]>
Date:	Wed, 23 May 2001 00:10:28 +0800
Content-Type:	text/plain
Parts/Attachments:	text/plain (63 lines)

But the phenomenon happens to all kinds of auxiliary modals: would, could,
might, etc. Should we put on every single one an singular history?

Shun
englishtense.com

----- Original Message -----
From: "Herb Stahlke" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Tuesday, May 22, 2001 11:55 AM
Subject: Re: Some suppositions

Because "should" and "ought" are modern reflexes of historic past tense
forms.  "Be," on the other hand, can be marked for past or non-past.
Should, which is, of course, derived historically from shall, no longer acts
as if it has past meaning, but it has past form and can't take additional
past tense morphology.  "Ought" is the historical past tense form "owe,"
going back to Old English agan "to owe," agte "owed."  Since it too has past
tense marking it can't take another past tense suffix.  Of course, it too no
longer behaves semantically as if it's a past tense.

Herb Stahlke
Ball State University

<<< [log in to unmask]  5/21 10:42p >>>
Please consider the following suppositions. When referring to the past,
"ought to", "be supposed to", and "should", couple with "have" + the past
participle:
Ex: The shipment ought to have arrived yesterday.
Ex: The shipment was supposed to have arrived yesterday.
Ex: The shipment should have arrived yesterday.

On the other hand, we seem to have only:
Ex: The shipment was supposed to arrive yesterday.

Why is it, or why does it seem, that "be supposed to" can take either the
"have" + pp or the simple present, when the others cannot?

Shun Tang

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