A question about 'Past Perfect'
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everyone!
I'll appreciate, if anyone could explain me the usage of past perfect in the following sentence, since the past perfect, I assume, is unusually refering to 'later past'.
"The frustrated interrogator was not going to give up easily. “Are you both still working in the company?” Barbara, appearing not the least disturbed by the woman’s incontinent insistence, scooped the last cherry out of her dish, smiled, looked directly at her, and said in the identical tone of voice, “We’ve separated, but the company is unaffected.” That shut her up. Barbara had shown her big winner’s badge by using “The Broken Record” technique, the most effective way to curtail an unwelcome cross-examination."
(https://howtotalktoanyone.blogspot.com/2008/12/how-to-respond-when-you-dont-want-to.html)
Best RGDS
grammar
edited Apr 20 at 12:20
Anton Sherwood
49529
asked Apr 18 at 15:24
deepcosmosdeepcosmos
143
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add a comment |
everyone!
I'll appreciate, if anyone could explain me the usage of past perfect in the following sentence, since the past perfect, I assume, is unusually refering to 'later past'.
"The frustrated interrogator was not going to give up easily. “Are you both still working in the company?” Barbara, appearing not the least disturbed by the woman’s incontinent insistence, scooped the last cherry out of her dish, smiled, looked directly at her, and said in the identical tone of voice, “We’ve separated, but the company is unaffected.” That shut her up. Barbara had shown her big winner’s badge by using “The Broken Record” technique, the most effective way to curtail an unwelcome cross-examination."
(https://howtotalktoanyone.blogspot.com/2008/12/how-to-respond-when-you-dont-want-to.html)
Best RGDS
grammar
edited Apr 20 at 12:20
Anton Sherwood
49529
asked Apr 18 at 15:24
deepcosmosdeepcosmos
143
New contributor
deepcosmos is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
There are two events, one later than another. The later one was the last event in the narrative: That shut her up, i.e, she stopped talking. The prior one, with past perfect, is Barbara had show her ... badge, which describes the previous events and their outcome. As it happens in this paragraph, the last sentence describes prior events, not the latest one. Order of mention is not always order of occurrence.
– John Lawler
Apr 18 at 16:44
In fact, one of the times when English speakers are very likely to use the past perfect is when the order of mention is not the order of occurrence. Here, the had shown happens before that shut her up, but after many of the previous verbs.
– Peter Shor
Apr 20 at 15:15
John Lawler, thank you for your explanation.
– deepcosmos
Apr 20 at 21:01
Peter Shor, appreciate your reply..
– deepcosmos
Apr 20 at 21:03
add a comment |
everyone!
I'll appreciate, if anyone could explain me the usage of past perfect in the following sentence, since the past perfect, I assume, is unusually refering to 'later past'.
"The frustrated interrogator was not going to give up easily. “Are you both still working in the company?” Barbara, appearing not the least disturbed by the woman’s incontinent insistence, scooped the last cherry out of her dish, smiled, looked directly at her, and said in the identical tone of voice, “We’ve separated, but the company is unaffected.” That shut her up. Barbara had shown her big winner’s badge by using “The Broken Record” technique, the most effective way to curtail an unwelcome cross-examination."
(https://howtotalktoanyone.blogspot.com/2008/12/how-to-respond-when-you-dont-want-to.html)
Best RGDS
grammar
edited Apr 20 at 12:20
Anton Sherwood
49529
asked Apr 18 at 15:24
deepcosmosdeepcosmos
143
New contributor
deepcosmos is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
everyone!
I'll appreciate, if anyone could explain me the usage of past perfect in the following sentence, since the past perfect, I assume, is unusually refering to 'later past'.
"The frustrated interrogator was not going to give up easily. “Are you both still working in the company?” Barbara, appearing not the least disturbed by the woman’s incontinent insistence, scooped the last cherry out of her dish, smiled, looked directly at her, and said in the identical tone of voice, “We’ve separated, but the company is unaffected.” That shut her up. Barbara had shown her big winner’s badge by using “The Broken Record” technique, the most effective way to curtail an unwelcome cross-examination."
(https://howtotalktoanyone.blogspot.com/2008/12/how-to-respond-when-you-dont-want-to.html)
Best RGDS
grammar
grammar
edited Apr 20 at 12:20
Anton Sherwood
49529
asked Apr 18 at 15:24
deepcosmosdeepcosmos
143
New contributor
deepcosmos is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
edited Apr 20 at 12:20
Anton Sherwood
49529
asked Apr 18 at 15:24
deepcosmosdeepcosmos
143
New contributor
deepcosmos is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
edited Apr 20 at 12:20
Anton Sherwood
49529
edited Apr 20 at 12:20
Anton Sherwood
49529
edited Apr 20 at 12:20
Anton Sherwood
49529
49529
asked Apr 18 at 15:24
deepcosmosdeepcosmos
143
New contributor
deepcosmos is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
asked Apr 18 at 15:24
deepcosmosdeepcosmos
143
asked Apr 18 at 15:24
deepcosmosdeepcosmos
143
143
New contributor
deepcosmos is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
New contributor
deepcosmos is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
deepcosmos is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
There are two events, one later than another. The later one was the last event in the narrative: That shut her up, i.e, she stopped talking. The prior one, with past perfect, is Barbara had show her ... badge, which describes the previous events and their outcome. As it happens in this paragraph, the last sentence describes prior events, not the latest one. Order of mention is not always order of occurrence.
– John Lawler
Apr 18 at 16:44
In fact, one of the times when English speakers are very likely to use the past perfect is when the order of mention is not the order of occurrence. Here, the had shown happens before that shut her up, but after many of the previous verbs.
– Peter Shor
Apr 20 at 15:15
John Lawler, thank you for your explanation.
– deepcosmos
Apr 20 at 21:01
Peter Shor, appreciate your reply..
– deepcosmos
Apr 20 at 21:03
add a comment |
There are two events, one later than another. The later one was the last event in the narrative: That shut her up, i.e, she stopped talking. The prior one, with past perfect, is Barbara had show her ... badge, which describes the previous events and their outcome. As it happens in this paragraph, the last sentence describes prior events, not the latest one. Order of mention is not always order of occurrence.
– John Lawler
Apr 18 at 16:44
In fact, one of the times when English speakers are very likely to use the past perfect is when the order of mention is not the order of occurrence. Here, the had shown happens before that shut her up, but after many of the previous verbs.
– Peter Shor
Apr 20 at 15:15
John Lawler, thank you for your explanation.
– deepcosmos
Apr 20 at 21:01
Peter Shor, appreciate your reply..
– deepcosmos
Apr 20 at 21:03
There are two events, one later than another. The later one was the last event in the narrative: That shut her up, i.e, she stopped talking. The prior one, with past perfect, is Barbara had show her ... badge, which describes the previous events and their outcome. As it happens in this paragraph, the last sentence describes prior events, not the latest one. Order of mention is not always order of occurrence.
– John Lawler
Apr 18 at 16:44
There are two events, one later than another. The later one was the last event in the narrative: That shut her up, i.e, she stopped talking. The prior one, with past perfect, is Barbara had show her ... badge, which describes the previous events and their outcome. As it happens in this paragraph, the last sentence describes prior events, not the latest one. Order of mention is not always order of occurrence.
– John Lawler
Apr 18 at 16:44
In fact, one of the times when English speakers are very likely to use the past perfect is when the order of mention is not the order of occurrence. Here, the had shown happens before that shut her up, but after many of the previous verbs.
– Peter Shor
Apr 20 at 15:15
In fact, one of the times when English speakers are very likely to use the past perfect is when the order of mention is not the order of occurrence. Here, the had shown happens before that shut her up, but after many of the previous verbs.
– Peter Shor
Apr 20 at 15:15
John Lawler, thank you for your explanation.
– deepcosmos
Apr 20 at 21:01
John Lawler, thank you for your explanation.
– deepcosmos
Apr 20 at 21:01
Peter Shor, appreciate your reply..
– deepcosmos
Apr 20 at 21:03
Peter Shor, appreciate your reply..
– deepcosmos
Apr 20 at 21:03
add a comment |
1 Answer
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Think of it in terms of cause and effect. Here the past perfect is expressing the causal relation (by making explicit their relation to each other in time). The cause ususally comes before the effect in time.
More simply, the interrogator quit talking because Barbara showed her 'big winner's badge' (whatever that is). The cause (showing badge/using technique) precedes the effect (going quiet) and thus comes before it in time.
The past perfect here is stressing the causality, by putting the first event directly in front of the second, consequential one.
answered Apr 20 at 16:26
AnalphabetaAnalphabeta
16
New contributor
Analphabeta is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
Analphabeta, much thanks for your explanation.
– deepcosmos
Apr 20 at 22:49
add a comment |
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1 Answer
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1 Answer
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Think of it in terms of cause and effect. Here the past perfect is expressing the causal relation (by making explicit their relation to each other in time). The cause ususally comes before the effect in time.
More simply, the interrogator quit talking because Barbara showed her 'big winner's badge' (whatever that is). The cause (showing badge/using technique) precedes the effect (going quiet) and thus comes before it in time.
The past perfect here is stressing the causality, by putting the first event directly in front of the second, consequential one.
answered Apr 20 at 16:26
AnalphabetaAnalphabeta
16
New contributor
Analphabeta is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
Analphabeta, much thanks for your explanation.
– deepcosmos
Apr 20 at 22:49
add a comment |
Think of it in terms of cause and effect. Here the past perfect is expressing the causal relation (by making explicit their relation to each other in time). The cause ususally comes before the effect in time.
More simply, the interrogator quit talking because Barbara showed her 'big winner's badge' (whatever that is). The cause (showing badge/using technique) precedes the effect (going quiet) and thus comes before it in time.
The past perfect here is stressing the causality, by putting the first event directly in front of the second, consequential one.
answered Apr 20 at 16:26
AnalphabetaAnalphabeta
16
New contributor
Analphabeta is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
Analphabeta, much thanks for your explanation.
– deepcosmos
Apr 20 at 22:49
add a comment |
Think of it in terms of cause and effect. Here the past perfect is expressing the causal relation (by making explicit their relation to each other in time). The cause ususally comes before the effect in time.
More simply, the interrogator quit talking because Barbara showed her 'big winner's badge' (whatever that is). The cause (showing badge/using technique) precedes the effect (going quiet) and thus comes before it in time.
The past perfect here is stressing the causality, by putting the first event directly in front of the second, consequential one.
answered Apr 20 at 16:26
AnalphabetaAnalphabeta
16
New contributor
Analphabeta is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
Think of it in terms of cause and effect. Here the past perfect is expressing the causal relation (by making explicit their relation to each other in time). The cause ususally comes before the effect in time.
More simply, the interrogator quit talking because Barbara showed her 'big winner's badge' (whatever that is). The cause (showing badge/using technique) precedes the effect (going quiet) and thus comes before it in time.
The past perfect here is stressing the causality, by putting the first event directly in front of the second, consequential one.
answered Apr 20 at 16:26
AnalphabetaAnalphabeta
16
New contributor
Analphabeta is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
answered Apr 20 at 16:26
AnalphabetaAnalphabeta
16
New contributor
Analphabeta is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
answered Apr 20 at 16:26
AnalphabetaAnalphabeta
16
answered Apr 20 at 16:26
AnalphabetaAnalphabeta
16
16
New contributor
Analphabeta is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
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New contributor
Analphabeta is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
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Analphabeta is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
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Analphabeta, much thanks for your explanation.
– deepcosmos
Apr 20 at 22:49
add a comment |
Analphabeta, much thanks for your explanation.
– deepcosmos
Apr 20 at 22:49
Analphabeta, much thanks for your explanation.
– deepcosmos
Apr 20 at 22:49
Analphabeta, much thanks for your explanation.
– deepcosmos
Apr 20 at 22:49
add a comment |
deepcosmos is a new contributor. Be nice, and check out our Code of Conduct.
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There are two events, one later than another. The later one was the last event in the narrative: That shut her up, i.e, she stopped talking. The prior one, with past perfect, is Barbara had show her ... badge, which describes the previous events and their outcome. As it happens in this paragraph, the last sentence describes prior events, not the latest one. Order of mention is not always order of occurrence.
– John Lawler
Apr 18 at 16:44
In fact, one of the times when English speakers are very likely to use the past perfect is when the order of mention is not the order of occurrence. Here, the had shown happens before that shut her up, but after many of the previous verbs.
– Peter Shor
Apr 20 at 15:15
John Lawler, thank you for your explanation.
– deepcosmos
Apr 20 at 21:01
Peter Shor, appreciate your reply..
– deepcosmos
Apr 20 at 21:03