ابحث بين معلمي الإنجليزية المتعددين...
United Kingdom flagMoira, Cambridge,UKمُعلم محترف
I need an AMERICAN opinion!

The subjunctive! 

It is essential he ATTEND/ATTENDS the meeting.

I demand he GO/GOES now!

Most Brits would use either form, and not notice the difference. I suppose if one wanted to sound more formal, one might choose the subjunctive. In an exam one should go with the subjunctive (better safe than sorry!).

I gather that Americans nearly always choose the subjunctive. Now, here in England, if someone chooses the 'incorrect' form in a grammatical structure the user may sound uneducated. I don't want to get into an argument here about regional/colloquial English, and social class - so try not to consider that aspect please!! My question is....  DOES A BRIT WHO SAYS, "IT IS ESSENTIAL HE GOES TO THE MEETING" sound uneducated to an American?

Often we sound a bit quaint and old-fashioned to Americans, I think. Perhaps we often sound 'correct.' But in this case of the subjunctive is it Brits who sound... just plain wrong?

I attach links to feisty discussions on this point:

https://english.stackexchange.com/questions/76578/why-is-american-english-so-wedded-to-the-subjunctive

http://www.antimoon.com/forum/t16622.htm Do Americans ever NOT use the subjunctive?


التعليقات · 41

8

Michael: "I have to concede (very reluctantly) that, in this very specific area, American practice is more orthodox and correct."

That must really hurt.

Try to Keep Calm and Carry On.

8
Nice topic, Ms Miller.

To a native speaker of American English, the subjunctive is not some special technique to impress the British, but simply our natural way of talking for thousands of years — we didn’t get the memo that it had been abolished. Yes, in more colloquial situations people are more likely to avoid it (usually by using other constructions such as infinitives or auxiliaries), but the subjunctive has served a useful purpose in European languages since time immemorial. In very casual speech, some people even use the indicative all or most of the time. (There are lots of non-standard structures some people use.) As you know, the subjunctive is still essential for communication in the Romance Languages.

Getting back to English, we note that “I insist he goes” and “I insist he go” have two entirely different meanings: I assure you that he does in fact go / I don’t know if he’s going, but I want him to and am insisting on it. Frankly, it seems less awkward to use the subjunctive. “She insists her son be a good boy” versus “She insists her son is a good boy.” Big difference. Is it considered correct, normal, or acceptable to use the indicative in the above examples in UK English?

Update: I see Irena learned the subjunctive from American movies and contact with actual Americans — nice.

7

Some years ago I was writing material for a coursebook for a well-known UK publisher affiliated to a (let's just say) somewhat prestigious university.

One of my tasks was to write instructions for the actors who were recording the listening sections. I wrote:

It is essential that the actor stress this word.

The editor returned my script with the word stress amended to stresses.

Enough said?



6
Thanks for your gracious understanding, Jerry.  It's always nice to be reminded how hurtful something can be.  Anyway, I won't forget your comment easily .....
6

Thanks for landing on our shores, Irena. You are welcome.

I think the disease of failing to use the subjunctive correctly should be called "subjunctivitis".

I for one won't leave this scourge unchecked!

لا تفوّت فرصة تعلّم لغة جديدة وأنت مرتاح في منزلك. تصفّح مجموعتنا المختارة من مدرّسي اللغات ذوي الخبرة وسجّل في درسك الأول الآن!

ابدأ التعلم اليوم