tenses 27/01

[hela]

Dear teachers,

1) Which versions would you accept here, please?

Treasure Island is one of the best known and most loved children’s adventure stories. It was first published in 1883 but 1 REMAINS / HAS REMAINED [are both tenses correct ?] popular 2 TO / TILL / UNTIL [are all these prepositions possible ?] this day. People 3 USED TO THINK / THOUGHT that the story was solely the work of Stevenson’s imagination, but recent research has uncovered the true origin of this thrilling tale 4 OF / ABOUT / ABOUT A [which ones are acceptable ?] hidden treasure and bloodthirsty pirates.

2) Is there any link between the choice of the verb REMAIN and the choice of the adverb TO or UNTIL ?

Thanks a million,
Hela

[Tdol]

1- I'd used remains
2- to sounds best
The others are all fine to me. The use of 'to' as the best choice is a collocation with 'this day', not because of the verb IMO.

[hela]

Dear tdol,

Would you please tell me why you would choose "remains" instead of "has remained"? And would rule out "has remained" completely?

Many thanks

[Tdol]

I wouldn't rule it out, but Treasure Island is such a classic that there seems to be no reason to suggest that its status could change. The use of the present perfect would, IMO, better suit a recent novel that hasn't achieved such greatness.

[hela]

Sorry to split hairs but which kind of nuance do you see between the simple present "remains" and the present perfect "has remained", I'd really to understand it.

Many thanks.

[Tdol]

The present perfect has a greater possibility for change implied, while the simple present carries more of a factual concept- this is a classic and will remian so. If we say 'it has remained', though not wrong, we are implying IMO that this state of afairs could change, so I'd be more likely to use it with 'Harry Potter', a book that has been very sucessful so far, but whose status as a classic over time has yet to be established, or not.

[hela]

Ok, I think I've got it now. Thanks tdol

[Tdol]