09-Dec-2007, 02:03
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| Key Member | | Join Date: Aug 2006 Country: Canada
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 Re: California dreaming
Quote:
Originally Posted by Nefertiti  Hi, folks.
re 5. It is subjunctive.
Fact: He did tell his girlfriend. He did not leave. (Past Tense)
More grammatical structure: If I hadn't told her, I could've left today.
From a reading of the lyrics, it's not clear if he has said anything to "her" or not. But ENLs do use the simple past sometimes where Standard English would expect the past perfect FORM.
Another more grammatical structure in lyrics must be: If I were (not was) in LA.
This isn't true, Nefertiti. The use of 'was' is exceedingly common as a substitute for the subjunctive 'were'. The subjunctive is a moribund form in English and every form that still exists has at least one other way to express it.
Thanks for the great comments. | ### |