David complained

[Bassim]

I am wondering if my sentence sounds natural. Do I need the word "so" in my sentence? Would you please correct my mistakes?

David complained that his former wife has set their children against him so that they refused to visit him.

 

[Tarheel]

I am wondering if my sentence sounds natural. Do I need the word "so" in my sentence? Would you please correct my mistakes?

David complained that his former wife HAD set their children against him so that they refused to visit him.

If you didn't have "so" there you would have to replace it with something like "which was the reason".

Also, it's:

David complains...has

Or:

David complained...had

 

[GoesStation]

Use the present simple refuse.

 

[Tarheel]

If you are talking about a specific incident, "refused" is the right choice. If it's an ongoing situation, "refuse" is the right choice.

 

[GoesStation]

If you are talking about a specific incident, "refused" is the right choice. If it's an ongoing situation, "refuse" is the right choice.

I don't think refused works when the first clause is in the present perfect.