1. Introduction: Tense and aspect
A foreign learner of the English language has to struggle with many tasks concerning vocabulary and grammar. Especially the correct usage of the verb phrase includes a highly difficult problem and has to be analysed very detailed. It includes not only the grammatical category of tense but as well the category of aspect, mood and voice.
This paper is supposed to concentrate on the grammatical categories tense and aspect.
Tense is used to express the location of an event or state in time. It can be divided into future, present and past tense. By contrast to that “aspect” expresses the way in which the action or the state is experienced. It reflects the meaning of the verb in relation to time. That means it shows whether the action is finished or is still in progress. The English verb system includes the perfective aspect, the progressive aspect, the simple aspect and the perfect-progressive aspect. (Quirk et al. 1979: 40)
In the following an overview of the tense past combined with the perfective aspect will be given. First of all the definitions of this tense and aspect will be compared in three different grammars: “Meaning and the English Verb” by Leech, “A Student’s Grammar of the English Language” by Quirk and Greenbaum and “Longman Student Grammar of spoken and written English” by Biber et al.. In the second part of the paper the application of the past perfect will be analysed in an excerpt of “Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban” written by Joanne K. Rowling.
Table of Contents
1. Introduction: Tense and aspect
2. Theories of the Past Perfect
2.1. Meaning and the English Verb
2.2. A Student’s Grammar of the English Language
2.3. Longman Student Grammar
2.4. Comparison
3. Application of the Past Perfect
3.1 Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
3.2 Analyse of text excerpt
4. Conclusion
5. Bibliography
Objectives and Topics
This paper examines the grammatical categories of tense and aspect, specifically focusing on the function and usage of the past perfect in the English language. The central research question investigates how different linguistic reference works define this tense and how these theoretical frameworks apply to narrative literature.
- Theoretical definitions of the past perfect in reference grammars
- Comparative analysis of verb usage and aspect
- Practical application of the past perfect in contemporary fiction
- Distinction between narrative, academic, and direct speech constructions
Excerpt from the Book
3.1 J.K. Rowling: “Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban”
It was one o’clock in the morning. Harry’s stomach gave a funny jolt. He had been thirteen years old, without realising it, for a whole hour. Yet another unusual thing about Harry was how little he looked forward for his birthdays. He had never received a birthday card in his life. The Dursleys had completely ignored his last to birthdays, and he had no reason to suppose they would remember this one.
Harry walked across the dark room, past Hedwig’s large, empty cage, to the open window. He leant on the sill, the cool night air pleasant on his face after a long time under the blankets. Hedwig had been absent for two nights now. Harry wasn’t worried about her – she’d been gone this long before – but he hoped she’d be back soon. She was the only living creature in this house who didn’t flinch at the sight of him.
Summary of Chapters
1. Introduction: Tense and aspect: This chapter introduces the grammatical challenges foreign learners face regarding the verb phrase and defines the basic scope of tense and aspect.
2. Theories of the Past Perfect: This section provides a comparative analysis of definitions regarding the past perfect from three established English reference grammars.
3. Application of the Past Perfect: This chapter applies the previously established theoretical concepts to a specific literary text to demonstrate usage in practice.
4. Conclusion: The concluding chapter summarizes how different literature types influence the usage of the past perfect and why certain functions are more prevalent than others in youth literature.
5. Bibliography: This chapter lists all the academic sources, reference books, and digital databases utilized for the research of the paper.
Keywords
Past Perfect, Tense, Aspect, English Grammar, Verb Phrase, Leech, Quirk, Biber, Narrative, Fiction, Linguistic Analysis, Language Learning, Text Excerpt, Harry Potter
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the primary focus of this academic paper?
The paper focuses on the grammatical category of the past perfect, analyzing its definitions in various reference books and its practical application in English fiction.
Which central topics are discussed?
The study covers the definitions of tense and aspect, the comparative analysis of three major grammar references, and the investigation of the past perfect within literary contexts.
What is the primary goal of the study?
The goal is to determine how the past perfect is theoretically defined and how those definitions hold up when analyzed in a narrative, fictional context.
Which scientific methods are utilized?
The paper uses a comparative literature review of grammar books followed by a qualitative text analysis of an excerpt from J.K. Rowling’s work.
What themes are covered in the main body?
The main body treats the theoretical foundations provided by Leech, Quirk, and Biber, followed by a practical analysis of text segments from "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban".
Which keywords characterize this work?
The primary keywords include Past Perfect, English Grammar, Tense, Aspect, Narrative Fiction, and Linguistic Analysis.
How does the author define the relationship between "then" (T) and "before then" (B)?
The author references Leech's framework where "then" represents a regular past point of reference, and "before then" designates an earlier point, explaining how the past perfect bridges these two timeframes.
Why are certain functions of the past perfect absent from the analysed Harry Potter text?
The author concludes that functions like the "hypothetical past perfect" are absent because they are less common in children's literature, which typically utilizes a simpler, more direct writing style.
- Quote paper
- Sandra Schwesinger (Author), 2011, Tense and Aspect - The Past Perfect, Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/200156
