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'THAT' CLAUSES
1.Syntactic Properties That Characterize That Complements
1.1.Extraposition
1.2.Topicalization
1.3.Clause Shift
2.The Distribution of That Complements
3.That Deletion
4.The Sequence of the Tenses in Object That Clauses
5.Key Concepts
That - complements constitute the most representative class of complement clauses (see section 4). Apart from those introduced by that, complement clauses can be preceded by
for
It is good for them to know Mathematics.
(E bine sa stie matematica.)
Whether
I don't know whether he will recover.
(Nu stiu daca se va insanatosi.)
If
Tell me if you need anything.
(Spune-mi daca ai nevoie de ceva.)
They wanted to leave immediately.
(Voiau sa plece imediat.)
1. Syntactic Properties That Characterize 'That' - Complements
1.1.Extraposition
Extraposition is a very frequent structure in English, being found not only in the case of that-clauses, but also of infinitival ones. The term extraposition refers to a construction where the expletive (empty) pronoun it appears in front position, followed by the complement clause in peripheral position. In other words, the clause is extraposed, placed in a marginal position.
This phenomenon is true of more than one syntactic functions, but the subject positions the most frequently met in English:
Subject Clause
unextraposed:
That Dorothy flew from Kansas was a surprise to everybody.
(A fost o
surpriza pentru toata lumea faptul ca Dorothy a plecat din
extraposed
It was a surprise
to everybody that Dorothy flew from
(A fost o
surpriza pentru toata lumea faptul ca Dorothy a plecat din
Direct Object Clause
unextraposed:
The plumber wrongly figured out that the pipe needed replacing.
(Instalatorul a considerat in mod gresit ca teava trebuia inlocuita.)
extraposed
The plumber wrongly figured it out that the pipe needed replacing.
(Instalatorul a considerat in mod gresit ca teava trebuia inlocuita.)
Prepositional Object
unextraposed:
Can you swear that the accused spent the evening with you?
(Puteti jura ca acuzatul a petrecut noaptea cu dumneavoastra?)
extraposed:
Can you swear to it that the accused spent the evening with you?
(Puteti jura ca acuzatul a petrecut noaptea cu dumneavoastra?)
Which of the following that clauses are extraposed ones? What is their syntactical function?
1.It occurred to him that people were laughing behind his back. 2. Nobody knew that they were sorry for what they had done. 3. It was known to no one that Peter had tried to take his own life. 4.The crowd resented it that the police had been sent for. 5. Magellan regrets it that the world is round. It appears that no one voted for him. 7. It was suggested that they should meet the President. 8. It is too bad that they always make fun of Gilian. 9. I don't like it that he should be left alone in my flat. 10. He will answer for it that his son is innocent. 11. You may depend on it that I will pick you up.
Try to undo the effect of It Extraposition in the following sentences:
1.It worried me a bit that she didn't visit her aunt. 2. It is not quite clear whether the trains would be running tomorrow. 3. It will be soon announced when you can leave. 4. Is it true that the children are sick? 5. It so happens that I know the secret cipher. It seems such a shame that he never takes her out. 7. It is incredible how many good students drop out of school for lack of money. 8. It will suit me best for you to arrive before dinner. 9. It is no use trying to convince her. 10. It will be a pity if we have to tell her the truth before he gives us permission to. 11. You know it only too well that he will not marry you. 12 You may take it from me that he is a stinking liar. 13. Rumour has it that U2 will visit us this year. 14. The pebble in my shoe made it painful to walk. 15. It is nice to meet you. 16 I found it disgraceful that she hid the truth from me 17. They considered it very silly of her to have married Bill. 18. I find it difficult to tell her my thoughts.
Comment upon the grammaticality of the following sentences:
1.It bothers me that it is obvious that money means everything. 2. It amazes Bill that it bothers me that it is obvious that money means everything. 3. It appears that it amazes Bill that it bothers me that it is obvious that money means everything. 4. That it is obvious that money means everything bothers me. 5.That it amazes Bill that it is obvious that money means everything bothers me.
Which of the following sentences are correct? Does tense influence the validity of extraposition?
1.I was the one who guessed it that he would come back. 2. I guess it that he will come back. 3. They never expected it that he would come back. 4. I don't expect it that he will come back. 5. She was the woman who ordered it that all men would be executed in public. Are you going to order it that all men be executed in public?!
1.2. Topicalization
Topicalization is the reverse of extraposition: a subject clause which is initially placed in the sentence is said to be topicalized.
Compare:
That my horse is the best in the world is absolutely evident.
(Este clar ca buna ziua ca armasarul meu este cel mai bun.)
It is absolutely evident that my horse is the best in the world.
(Este clar ca buna ziua ca armasarul meu este cel mai bun.)
Extraposition is the structure that appears much more frequently in English and that is why we consider it to be the marked case; since topicalization appears mostly when a writer/speaker wishes to create a special effect of emphasis, we consider topicalization to be the marked case in the language.
Read the following, noticing the effect of topicalization within the literary passages below. Is the phenomenon of topicalization restricted to that complements only? Does it apply to Subject Clauses exclusively? Find counterarguments in the texts.
No wonder Alison had punished her and Matthew thought of her only as an instrument. That she could still be an instrument might have comforted her once, but not now.
That she condemned herself in moral terms brought no consoling spring of vitality and even guilt gave her no energy. When this is so one is in extremity indeed.
Whether this despair made it easier or harder to act, whether it would finally carry her off, mere chance would decide. She had always been the slave of chance, let it kill her if it would by a random stroke.
This was another era. That he should have sat in his
room and penned the letter yesterday, even today, was inconceivable.
His own confusion and misery were so great that he felt unable to cope with Dorina, he felt no spring of interest in her, he almost felt resentment at seeing her now. To walk by was an expression of his own despair.
Why she had originally left Valmorana she had by now forgotten.
To return to Valmorana seemed to her like death. To go back there now would be to climb into her coffin.
That Dorina should have electrocuted herself with an
electric fire on a rainy morning in a small hotel in
(Iris Murdoch - An Accidental Man)
1.3. Clause Shift
Clause Shift is a syntactic operation that parallels that of Heavy NP Shift. A NP (Noun Phrase) is said to be heavy when it has a large stretch of modifiers accompanying it: for instance the noun phrases the letter or the red letter are much lighter than the noun phrase the letter which he had just read.
The rule of Heavy NP Shift stipulates that the heavy NP should be moved to the right and of the sentence foe semantic reasons:
Compare:
He threw the letter which he had just decoded into the basket.
(A aruncat scrisoarea pe care abia o descifrase la cos.)
to
He threw into the basket the letter which he had just decoded.
(A aruncat la cos scrisoarea pe care abia o descifrase.)
The sentence under (14) had undergone heavy NP shift by placing the long NP at the end of the whole structure so that the sentence could be more clearly understood. This rule is in fact an exceptional one in that it challenges the fixed word order rules in English, according to which a verb should not normally be separated from its obligatory complement.
Clause Shift is a similar rule to Heavy NP Shift as it allows for the clausal structure to be moved to the right end of the sentence. This syntactic operation differs from extraposition in that there is no pronoun left behind and that clause shift operates only on object clauses. The clausal constituent is moved over an adverb phrase or a prepositional phrase as follows:
Since
(15)*Mary said [that she wanted to drive] quietly.
is not semantically acceptable, because the adverb phrase quietly may erroneously refer to the last verb phrase in the sentence (i.e. the verb to drive), clause shift operates and the resulting grammatical structure is:
Mary said quietly that she wanted to drive.
(Mary spuse linistit ca vrea sa conduca masina.)
This way the adverb can no longer have ambiguous interpretation. It is obviously linked to the main clause verb as intended.
Let us also supply an example where the clausal structure jumps over prepositional phrase:
From the ungrammatical structure under
(17)*They wrote that the firm was going bankrupt to the lawyers.
we obtain, by means of clause shift,
(18) They wrote ti to the lawyers [that the firm was going bankrupt] i
(Le-au scris avocatilor ca firma urma sa dea faliment.)
I have used the notation ti (trace co-indexed with the 'that' clause) to underline the fact that the clausal structure has been moved in a more semantically advantageous position.
Comment on the following sentences from the point of view of the rule of Heavy NP/Clause Shift discussed above:
? Susan burnt the letter (which) she had just written to the last page. / Susan burnt to the last page the letter she had just written.
Susan told her mother that she had just been fired. / ?Susan told that she had just been fired to her mother.
He was informed on Saturday at
4. He appointed prime-minister Mr Hugh, who had just
returned from
They dismissed s unrealistic Mr Hugh's proposal to build a new hospital. / They dismissed Mr Hugh's proposal to build a new hospital as unrealistic.
? I considered to be outrageous what he had done to his wife in front of so many people. / I considered outrageous what he had done to his wife in front of so many people. / I considered what he had done to his wife in front of so many people outrageous.
*I found for Susan to behave like that in public disgraceful. /*I found disgraceful for Susan to behave like that in public./ I found it disgraceful for Susan to behave like that in public./I found disgraceful Susan's behaving like that in public. /I found Susan's behaving like that in public disgrace.
He sprinkled with water the pavement he had been cleaning. / He sprinkled the pavement he had been cleaning with water.
2. The Distribuition of That Complements
That complements can acquire a whole range of syntactical functions:
Subject
(19) That her husband might be Jack the Ripper slightly annoys Mary.
(Mary e putin enervata de ideea ca sotul ei ar putea fi Jack Spintecatorul.)
Direct Object
They reported that the bridge had fallen down.
(Au raportat ca podul s-a prabusit.)
Prepositional Object
She was aware that her husband was lying to her.
(Era constienta de faptul ca sotul ei o minte.)
Adverbial
She remained at home so that she would look after the kids.
(A ramas acasa sa aiba grija de copii.)
Predicative
The important thing was that nobody knew about it.
(Lucrul important era ca nimeni nu stia despre asta.)
Attribute
The report that the bridge had fallen down was not true.
(Raportul in care se spune ca s-a prabusit podul este fals.)
Let us supply a detailed list of verbs or adjectives that require the presence of these complements. We will begin by discussing the context where that complements appear as direct objects, since this is the most frequent function they fulfill.
2.1. That Complements as Direct Object
Here is a list of classes of verbs after which that complements function as direct objects:
a) Simple transitive verbs: such as assert, afirm, consider, deem, judge, estimate, deny, desire, predict, prefer, state, etc.:
(25)a. He announced their engagement.
(Si-a anuntat logodna.)
b. He announced that they were engaged.
(A anuntat ca sint logoditi.)
I really dislike it that he is here. (Extraposed)
(Ma deranjeaza faptul ca este aici.)
a. They believe that the man is guilty.
(Cred ca omul este vinovat.)
b. They believe the man is guilty. (with that-deletion)
(Cred ca omul este vinovat.)
He asserted forcefully that he was innocent (with Clause Shift)
(A sustinut cu tarie ca este nevinovat.)
b) Ditransitive verbs such as: say, promise, communicate, explain, suggest, etc.
These verbs are called ditransitive because they require two obligatory complements: a direct object and an indirect object:
They promised him a new house.
(I-au promis o casa noua.)
They promised him that he would received a new house.
(I-au promis ca va primi o casa noua.)
Since the direct object that clause is heavy, it tends to appear in peripheral position by means of several syntactic processes:
I explained to Susan that I would be back very late. (Clause Shift)
(I-am explicat lui Susan ca ma voi intoarce foarte tirziu.)
a. I explained it to Susan that I would be back very late.
(I-am explicaat lui Susan ca ma voi intoarce foarte tirziu.)
b. He owes it to his father that he became lawyer. (Extraposition)
(Faptul ca a devenit avocat i-l datoreaza tatalui sau.)
2.2. That Complements as Subjects
a) This position is filled by that complements in combination with a rather limited number of intransitive verbs: seem, aappear, haappen, turn out, matter, come about, follow, etc. :
It appeared that a life could be interesting, amusing, and ultimately trivial.
(Iris Murdoch, An Accidental Man)
(Se parea ca o viata poate fi interesanta, amuzanta, si in fine triviala.)
Some of these verbs (seem, occur, appear) may optionally be followed by an indirect object:
a. It appeared to him that she was lying to him.
(I se parea ca il minte.)
b. It occurred to John that he needed a new car.
(Ii veni ideea ca John are nevoie de o masina noua.)
The most important thing to notice with this class of intransitive verbs is that only extraposed structures are grammatical:
a. It appears to me that this is a new beginning.
(Mi se pare ca acesta este un nou inceput.)
b. *That this is a new beginning appears to me.
b) adjectives (evaluative adjectives, that express a belief of the speaker):
likely, unlikely, certain, sure, etc.
clear, possible, probable, appropriate, fair, good, interesting, etc.
a. It was in any case obvious that Marriage was Dorina's lot.
(Era in orice caz clar ca i se potrivea Dorinei sa fie casatorita.)
b.It was not just
that
(Iris Murdoch, ibid.)
(Nu era numai faptul ca
Sometimes the adjective can appear alone, or without the copula:
a. Odd that one should so naturally wish to lie upon one's bed to go to sleep forever.
(Iris Murdoch, ibid.)
(Ciudat ca poti dori cu atita naturalete sa te intinzi in pat si sa adormi pe vecie.)
b. . for a few days I thought it possible that you wanted simply to nerve yourself to break things off.
(Iris Murdoch, ibid.)
( . citeva zile am crezut ca e posibil sa iti doresti pur si simplu sa ai curajul sa distrugi totul.)
Some of these adjectives my take indirect objects:
a. That he knew nothing about
(Era clar pentru toti prietenii lui ca nu stia nimic despre Polonia.)
b. It was obvious to all his friends that he knew nothing
about
(Era clar pentru toti prietenii lui ca nu stia nimic despre Polonia.)
b) Nouns - that come from the same semantic area as adjectives: problem, idea, impediment, surprize, miracle, pity, wonder, etc.
(39) It is a wonder that you weren't killed.
(E mare minune ca nu ai fost ucis.)
The noun can appear in isolation:
a. A pity that men were so impatient.
(J. Galsworthy - Over the River)
(Pacat ca barbatii sint asa de lipsiti de rabdare.)
b. A pity men were so impatient. (that - deletion)
(J. Galsworthy - Over the River)
(Pacat ca barbatii sint asa de lipsiti de rabdare.)
d) -ing forms (verbal nouns)
41a. There was no denying that business was rotten.
(Nu exista indoiala ca afacerile mergeau prost.)
b. There was no denying business was rotten. (that-deletion)
(Iris Murdoch, ibid.)
(Nu exista indoiala ca afacerile mergeau prost.)
e) psychological transitive verbs : alarm, amaaze, annoy, confuse, please, frighten, interest, pain, relieve, soothe, tempt, trouble, etc.:
a. It stirs me that I was thought worthy
(Ma impulsiona faptul ca ma credeau vrednic.)
b. That everybody blames him obviously depressed him.
(Faptul ca toata lumea da vina pe el il deprima evident.)
2.3. That Complements as Prepositional Objects
It is known that the presence of THAT normally excludes the possibility that a preposition could appear in front of the that complement. We assume that prepositions are dropped in front of that-clauses. We retain however the name prepositional object clause for these particular that-complements because the basic structure it is derived from is a predicate + a preposition:
e.g. decide on something > decide that .
a. She decided on coming here.
(S-a hotarit sa vina aici.)
b. She decided that she would come here.
(S-a hotarit ca va veni aici.)
In example (43) we consider that the underlined clause functions as prepositional object required by the verb decide.
That complements appear as prepositional objects after:
a) simple intransitive prepositional verbs:
decide on, pray for, see to, admit of, ask for, brg about, rejoice at, theorize about, vote for,etc.:
(44)a. He wondered that she was still there.
(S-a mirat ca mai este acolo.)
b. They voted that the strike should go on.
(Au votat sa continue greva.)
c. You may depend upon it that he will agree with your terms. (Extraposed)
(Poti conta pe faptul ca va fi de acord cu conditiile tale.)
b) transitive prepositional verb: advise somebody of, accuse somebody of, blame somebody for, congratulate somebody on ,etc.:
(45) He informed them that he would leave.
(I-a informat ca pleaca.)
c) the exceptional case of the verb remind somebody of
where there is an indirect object present:
(46) They remind him that she should leave.
(I-au amintit sa plece.)
d) adjectives : afraid of, confident in, alarmed at, happy about
a. I was afraid that she might not come.
(Ma temeam ca s-ar putea sa vina.)
b. I was fully aware of it that things were so bad.
(Extraposed)
(Imi dadeam perfect seama ca lucrurile stateau prost.)
2.4. 'That' complements as Predicatives
They appear in equative copulative sentences (of the type X is Y or Y is X) when the subject is an abstract nominl such as:
fact, idea, statement, claim, reason, etc. :
(48)a The fact is that he cannot join us tomorrow.
(Fapt e ca nu poate veni cu noi miine.)
b. The second reason for my departure was that I didn't love Bill any more.
(Al doilea motiv pentru plecarea mea era ca nu-l mai iubeam pe Bill.)
2.5. 'That' Complements as Attributes
after abstract nouns (idea, fact, etc )
after deverbal nouns (nouns derived from verb):
claim, wish, proposal, etc. :
The fact that she is in debt bothers his wife immensely.
(Faptul ca are datorii o deranjeaza enorm pe nevasta-sa.)
One has to bear in mind that the examples above contain that complements, not wh-ones. We included that-relative clauses in the larger class of wh-complements (although relative that, like now, for instance, are not graphically wh-words). The examples here contain only that complements and this is explained by the fact that they are required only by nouns that are either abstract, or derived from verbs.
Compare:
the book that I gave him
(cartea pe care i-am dat-o)
Where that is replaceable by which (i.e. the book which I gave him),
to:
the wish that he should return the money.
(dorinta ca el sa returneze banii.)
Where in fact the that-clause can be seen as the former complement of the verb wish:
She wished that he should return the money.
(Dorea ca el sa returneze banii.)
A further argument against interpreting the that-clause from (51) as a relative clause is the fact that the introductory element cannot be replaced by which in this case:
(53)* the wish which we should return the money.
Which of the following are that-relative clauses and which are complement-clauses?
1.His idea that men are smarter than women led him to total ruin. 2. The idea that he had had earned him good money. 3. His order that all the men in the village should be killed was instantly disobeyed. 4. The order that he had given was instantly disobeyed. 5. Their proposal that he should run for Congress was the best ever. 5. The proposal that they came up with was no better than hers.
2. 'That' complements as Adverbials
Adverbial that clauses can be divided into two classes according to what pattern of subordination they observe:
a)the prepositionl phrase model - where prepositional phrases are used to introduce that-adverbial clauses: for fear that, on the ground that, in order that, to the end that, in the hope that, in/with the intent that, on purpose that, in event that, on condition that, with a view that, etc.:
a. They dislike her on the ground that she is too proud.
(O antipatizeaza pe motiv ca e prea mindra.)
b. They paid her a large salary in the hope that she would stay with them.
(I-au dat un salariu mare in speranta ca va ramine la ei.)
In example (54) the Conjunctive phrases introducing it are formed by means of a prepositional phrase and that. The noun within the prepositional phrase indicates the meaning, the interpretation of the adverbial clause:
ground => reason, hope =>purpose.
The nouns in these constructions tend to become grammaticalized (i.e. they lose their meaning, become abstract) and that is why they may lose their ability to take determiners and adjectives: we say, for example, on condition that, not *on the condition that exactly because the noun is losing its autonomous meaning and is becoming more and more part of the conjunctive phrase.
In older stages of English, prepositions were allowed in front of that-clauses, but nowadays there are very few examples of this kind left:
Before that man came I saw you. (this example is a sample of archaic language, similar to the construction existent in Romanian:
Te-am vazut inainte ca el sa vina.)
I like him in that he is smart. (this is one of the few examples still used in contemporary English.)
(Imi place de el pentru ca e destept.)
A similar situation is exhibited in:
a. . now that Charlote had insinuated herself into the flat there was nowhere to bring Dorina .
(Iris Murdoch, ibid.)
( . acum ca Charalote se insinuase in apartament nu mai avea unde sa o aduca pe Dorina . )
b. She has everything save that she lacks intelligence.
(Nu-i lipseste nimic cu exceptia faptului ca nu e inteligenta.)
c) adverbial subordination - by means of that conjunction phrases where there are no prepositional phrases available:
Result: so +adverb/adjective . that - in this structure the degree word (so,such) is crucial for the grammaticality of the sentence in question:
He is so competent a teacher that every student loves him.
(Este un profesor atit de competent incit toti studentii il iubesc.)
*He is a competent teacher that every student loves him.
He is such a nice man that women instantly fall for him.
(Este un om asa de dragut ca femeile se indragostesc imediat de el.)
*He is a nice man that women instantly fall for him.
That can be deleted, as is shown in the following:
He placed his chair by the window so he would see her pass.
(Si-a pus scaunul linga fereastra, sa o vada trecind.)
When the structure contains the word such, the noun following it is deletable:
a. His answer was such an answer that we couldn't doubt its wisdom.
(Astfel suna raspunsul lui incit nu ne puteam indoi de intelepciunea sa.)
b. His answer was such that we couldn't doubt its wisdom.
(Astfel suna raspunsul lui incit nu ne puteam indoi de intelepciunea sa.)
On some occasion SUCH can optionally move:
a. He gave such an answer that we couldn't doubt it.
(I-a dat un asemenea raspuns ca nu ne-am putut indoi de el.)
b. He gave an answer such, that we wouldn't doubt it.
(I-a dat un asemenea raspuns incit sa nu ne putem indoi de el.)
a. He gave such an answer as had expected.
(I-a dat genul de raspuns pe care il astepta.)
b. He gave an answer such that I had expected.
(I-a dat un raspuns pe care il astepta.)
Comment on the distribution and syntactic function of the that complements in the following sentences
1.We discovered that our map has disappeared. 2) Was it true that she was ill? 3) They are not aware that they are in a dangerous position. 4) The idea that men from Mars were landing was absurd. 6) John made it clear that he disagreed. 7) The truth is that we haven't met them. 8) I am afraid that I have to go now. 9) It struck me that the bus was behaving pretty strangely. 10) She was so careless that she left the door unlocked. 11) The suggestion was that they should leave at once. 12) He loved her to such an extent that he could give his life for her. 13) The shock of having been found by Dorina in Mitzi's arms first prostrated him with such a sense of uncleanness and shame that he could not face his wife. (Iris Murdoch, ibid.) 14) It had also produced the certainty that they belonged together and that, for better or worse, they were chained to each other forever. (Iris Murdoch, ibid.)
3. 'That Deletion
3.1. When Can We Delete 'That'?
It is impossible to delete that in unextraposed clauses:
That he will ever come back is a question still.
(Inca ne intrebam daca se va mai intoarce.)
* he will ever come back is a question still.
That - deletion is more acceptable if the verb/adjective/noun requiring the complement clause is a frequently used item or if it is frequent in combination with that-clauses.
a. He showed he was able to do it.
(A dovedit ca poate sa faca asta.)
b. He got word they were coming.
(A prins de veste ca ei vin.)
c. He said he had borrowed her money.
(A spus ca a imprumutat bani de la ea.)
The ommision of that is an indication that the speaker does not want to be formal, that he uses a relaxed tone.
If the verb in question is a not so ordinary one, omission of that is impossible:
*He objected it was already too late to leave.
3.2. When is 'That' Obligatory?
That can be deleted if it follows the main verb/adj./noun directly, but it is usually required if the complement clause is separated from the main verb by intervening material:
It had also produced the certainty that they belonged together and that, for better or worse, they were chained to each other forever. (Iris Murdoch, ibid.)
(De asemenea, condusese la certitudinea ca trebuiau sa fie impreuna si ca, bune, rele, erau legati pe veci unul de celalalt.)
*It had also produced the certainty that they belonged together and, for better or worse, they were chained to each other forever.
In example (71) we interpret the last clause as being coordinated with the main clause not with the first that clause, because that has been deleted.
'That' deletion is blocked if an object clause has been extraposed:
a. I like it that he was here.
(Imi place ca e aici.)
b. *I like it he was here.
3.3. When is 'That' Deletion Obligatory?
That deletion is absolutely obligatory if the subject of the complement clause is questioned or relativized:
You say
Who did you say was coming?
(Cine spui ca a venit?)
But never
*Who did you say that was coming?
This is explainable by the fact that who is the subject of the that clause. The presence of that can lead to a double subject construction, which is ungrammatical.
Delete 'that' where possible:
1)I didn't get the message that they were coming. 2) They chortled that it was only a joke. 3) That such things still happen is no wonder. 4) I hate it that you won't be with me. 5) Where would you guess that he went? (Compare to: *Who did they imagine that wanted to go?) 6) The fact that they were unprepared leaked out. 7) They maintain, you want me to believe, that they were not too late to leave. 8) I reminded them that they had to leave.
4. The Sequence of the Tenses in Object That Clauses
The tenses in complement clauses are oriented towards the tenses of the main clause, thus showing the temporal relation (anteriority, sumultaneity, posteriority) holding between the actions of the main and the subordinate clause. The changes in the embedded clause are as follows:
Present ----- Past
a) "She is there", he said.
("Este acolo", spuse el.)
b)He told me that she was there.
(Mi-a spus ca ea este acolo.)
Past ]
Present Perfect ] Past Perfect
Past Perfect ]
a. "She was here", he said.
("Era acolo", spuse el.)
(Mi-a spus ca a fost acolo.)
Future ------- Future in the Past
a. I will leave her.
(Am sa o parasesc.)
b. He said he would leave her.
(A spus ca o sa o paraseasca.)
Future Perfect ------ Future Perfect in the Past
a. He will have arrived by the time she leaves.
(Pina pleaca vine el.)
b. He said he would have arrived by the time she left.
(A spus ca o sa vina el pina pleaca ea.)
Let us discuss those particular cases when these rules are optional:
The Present - Past rule can be optional with the so-called FACTIVE verbs (that is verbs that presuppose the truth of their complement).
For instance, when you say.
I realize that he is a genius.
(Imi dau seama ca este un geniu.)
the complement clause is interpreted as true. And that is demonstrated by the fact that even if we negate the main clause, the truth value of the complement clause remains the same:
I don't realize that he is a genius (that means still that he is a genius, only I don't realize it).
With such verbs as realize, forget, mention, regret, discover, show, notice, be amazed/concerned, say, report, etc. the rule of the sequence of tenses Present --- Past is optional:
a. Bill reported that coconuts grew high upon trees.
(Bill a anuntat ca nucile de cocos stau foarte sus in copac.)
b. Bill reported that coconuts grow high upon trees.
(Bill a anuntat ca nucile de cocos stau foarte sus in copac.)
On the other hand, there is a whole range on verbs that require that the rule should be observed:
Know, be aware, think, believe, dream, wish, hope, insist, whisper,etc.
It seemed/was likely/possible/unfortunate that the new leader of the group was/*is an undercover agent.
(Parea / era probabil/ posibil/ neplacut ca noul conducator al grupului era agent secret.)
If we consider this rule outside the domain of that complements, we notice that general truths, expressed by the Generic Present are normally preserved in the present even if they can be found right in the middle of a narration:
It was and was not like the first day of the honeymoon when the newly maarried pair, in tender deference to each other, feign habits which are not their own. (Iris Murdoch, The Black Prince)
(Era si nu era ca in prima zi a lunii de miere cind perechea proaspat casatorita, cu un respect tandru unul fata de altul, simuleaza obiceiuri care nu le apartin.)
The Past Tense imposes itself when the action expressed by it is relevant to some point in the past, with which the speaker does not wish to identify himself:
a. She still believed that the earth was flat.
(Ea tot mai credea ca pamintul este plat.)
b. She believed that the earth is round.
(Ea tot mai credea ca pamintul este rotund.)
In (84) a The Past is used to show that the speaker does not agree with what the character 'she' considers to be a general truth.
Consider also:
a. She realized that all men are fools.
(Si-a dat seama ca toti barbatii sint niste prosti.)
b. He knew that she thought all men were fools.
(Stia ca ea crede ca toti barbatii sint niste prosti.)
In (85b) 'he' disagrees with her opinion and that is why Past Tense is used.
2.) The rule Past ----- Past Perfect is sometimes disregarded in certain complements which contain a non-durative, simple Past Tense (that) cannot be seen as simultaneous with the verb in the main clause:
a. She suspected that Bill had left before the police arrived.
(Ea banuia ca Bill plecase inainte sa soseasca politia.)
b. She suspected that Bill left before the police arrived.
(Ea banuia ca Bill a plecat inainte sa soseasca politia.)
Both sentences are grammatical and the presence of the adverbial clause before the police arrived contributes to the optional character of the rule, since it indicates that the event of Bill's leaving is anterior to the arrival of the police.
Compare this example to
She suspected that Bill had been there.
(Banuia ca Bill fusese pe acolo.)
where the durative character of the verb be makes it impossible for the rule to be broken:
She suspected the Bill was here.
(Banuia ca Bill este acolo.)
in this case the meaning of the sentence is changed.
(87) shows the anteriority of Bill's being there whereas (88) shows that the two events suspect and be there are simultaneous.
3.Future - Future in the Past - this rule is rarely optional. There are however cases, such as
a. Peter said that John would leave at 5.
(Peter a spus ca John o sa plece la 5.)
b. Peter said that John will leave at 5.
(Peter a spus ca John o sa plece la 5.)
In (89b) the sequence of the
tenses is not observed because for us it isn't yet
Comment on the auxiliary in the complement clause:
a) John heard that Mary is pregnant. b) John heard that Mary was pregnant. c) John said that Harry is leaving. d) John said that Harry was leaving. John said that Harry will leave. f) John said that Harry would leave. g) John thought that Harry ran. h) John thought that Harry had run.
a) John said that Harry was leaving tomorrow. b)
John thought that
a) It was obvious that everyone would leave if coffee was not provided at the meeting next day. b) It was objected that people had left the meeting the day before because coffee had not been provided.
a) She thought that Maggie arrived the day before b) She thought that Maggie had arrived the day before.
I knew that poor Chris believed he was of royal blood.
a) John said that his car *has run out of gas. / b) John said that his car is out of gas.
Look the dipstick shows oil right up to the full mark. But John mumbled that his car was/*is out of oil.
John indicated to Mary that she should go to bed early.
a. John told Mary that she should bake a pie. b. *John told Mary that she had baked a pie. c) John told Mary that she had baked an excellent pie.
5 Key Concepts
That complements differ from that relatives in that they appear as required by a verb, adjective or a deverbal noun.
The most important syntactic properties they have are extraposition (by means of which the clause is placed at the end of the sentence and announced by the pronoun it), topicalization (the reverse of extraposition and means of emphasis) and clause shift (syntactic operation of placing the clause at the end of the sentence when the main clause contains, adverbial or prepositional phrases related to the main clause verb). These syntactic operations are shared by that-clauses with other complement clauses (such as TO-infinitives or wh-complements).
That-complements can hold any sort of syntactical function, from the ordinary subject, object ones up to the attributive function, which they share with wh-complements.
On certain occasions that can be deleted, on other occasions it has to stay there, or else.
That object clauses normally observe the rules of the sequence of the tenses with a few (significant) exceptions.
Activity 11 Optional Exercises
Translate the following by making use of the information on that-complements supplied in this section:
Cand m-a vazut a inchis albumul, a sarit de pe banca si a alergat spre mine. Dar cand a ajuns in fata mea mi-am dat seama ca nu-i pot spune vestea cea mare. Cum iti explici aceasta? M-am sfiit. Stiam ca orice cuvinte as alege acelea n-ar fi putut cuprinde tot ce voiam sa-i spun si nici fericirea ca venise clipa sa-i anunt ce-aveam de anuntat.
Mama, peste putin, s-a dus acasa si eu am ramas singur sa termin desenul. Regretam ca m-a lasat singur. Caci presimteam ca mi se va intampla ceva neplacut. Cand au vazut ca mama a plecat, baietii s-au adunat in jurul bancii mele. Isi tineau mainile in buzunare. Unul din ei, cel mai mare, cred ca avea vreo saptesprezece-otsprezece ani, avea albeata la un ochi si purta un tricou albastru de marinar. Parul rar ii era plin de matreata.
Il privi uimita si cu toate ca din cauza intunericului nu-i vedea chipul distingea totusi ca tremura si nu stiu daca sa rada ca pentru a-i face o asemenea declaratie o desteptase in puterea noptii, ori sa se teama de turbarea lui, care il impinsese la un asemenea gest bizar, neconvenabil si primejdios. Totusi sfarsi prin a se simti bine la ideea ca da atat pret parerilor sale si incerca dorinta tandra de a-l linisti, de a-i arata ca ia prea mult in seama niste rautati fara consecinta. Uita ora si situatia scandaloasa.
- Totusi trebuie sa stii, spuse domnul Albu la urechea lui Matei, ca nu se vorbeste atat de mult cu sora Angelei. Fiind de o idiotie celebra, s-ar putea interpreta ca ti-ai cautat langa ea un refugiu.
Se temu ca marturisirea pe care i-o facuse el pornea din orgoliu si regreta susceptibilitatea lui. Totusi era curios ca el se gandise ca, invinuindu-se de lucruri atat de neplacute, va fi mai interesant pentru ea.
Abia prinse de veste cand ea il parasi si nu se intreba de ce venise, daca va mai veni. Simplul fapt ca ea fusese acolo il stapanea ca o betie. Se mira, fericit, de ce constata in sine. Toate simturile i se ascutisera, capatase deodata puterea de a vedea consistent, luminos si apropiat si cand, venind de la avocat, ea, care il pandise, ii strecura in mana un bilet in care citi ca, cel putin pentru un timp, trebuie sa nu se mai vaada pentru a nu cadea amandoi pra ada unei iluzii vulgare ce i-ar putea costa nespus de mult si ca, stiind ca el nu ar izbuti sa se opreasca de a o cauta, va pleca din oras la vie, pentru o sedere mai indelungata care le va face bine amaandurora, nu intelese nici de data asta decat ca ea i-a scris, ca tine in mana o hartie care fusese in mana ei si peste care se aplecase gandindu-se la el.
Lui Matei i se paru ca mama stie mai multe despre motivele plecarii Dorei la vie insa ii fu cu neputinta sa o intrebe ce stie anume.
Ultima data cand ne-am vazut aci m-ai speriat pretinzand ca nu ai nici o ambitie pentru viitor. Stii ca nu-i deloc frumos pentru un tanar ca tine sa nu fie ambitios, sa nu aibaa un ideal? Cred ca nu mi-ai spus adevarul.
Nu ti-a trecut, asa, niciodata prin minte ca trebuie sa ajungi un Pasteur sau un Alexandru cel Mare, un vis de acesta nebunesc si inflacarat pentru realizarea caruia sa-ti dedici toata viata?
( . ) Matei socoti ca e mai intelept sa bata in retragere.(Radu Petrescu - Matei Iliescu)
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