"There is a computer and a TV."

Status
Not open for further replies.

jutfrank

VIP Member
Joined
Mar 5, 2014
Member Type
English Teacher
Native Language
English
Home Country
England
Current Location
England
After reading the whole thread again, I'd like to attempt to clear up what I see as a running point of confusion, concerning only there's/there is.

Some people (myself and Declerk are two) are implying that There is a hammer and a screwdriver is correct (grammatically). For these people, there's is merely a contracted form, meant only to represent the pronunciation of there is. There is no difference at all between the two forms other than a phonological difference. A simple way to put this view is that the contracted written form is a way of writing spoken English whereas the uncontracted form is written English. To a grammarian or a logician, there are no differences between any contracted and uncontracted forms in English because these people are unconcerned with phonology.

Other members seem to me to be implying that there are other differences between the two forms, with the suggestion that there's can be used to do things that there is can't. In other words, the difference in form affects the grammar/logic. I don't see how this view can be justified.

I failed to see this way back on the first page of the thread. In post #22, I was so surprised at what GoesStation and Piscean were saying because I apparently misunderstood what they meant. They were not in fact saying that There is a computer and a TV is wrong grammatically, as I came to believe—they were just saying that it's wrong in the sense of being so unnatural as to 'sound' wrong. Is that right, GS and Piscean?
 
Last edited:

jutfrank

VIP Member
Joined
Mar 5, 2014
Member Type
English Teacher
Native Language
English
Home Country
England
Current Location
England
There are clear differences in some forms.
You can see that, can't you? [STRIKE] cannot you[/STRIKE]?
I'm right, aren't I? [STRIKE]are not I?[/STRIKE]

What are the differences? I can't see any.

If pressed, I'd say that that form was wrong grammatically.

I don't know how you'd begin to justify that. Could you please try?
 

Charlie Bernstein

VIP Member
Joined
Jan 28, 2009
Member Type
Other
Native Language
English
Home Country
United States
Current Location
United States
. . . 1A + 1B. It therefore seems reasonable to accept [8] below as natural and correct:

8. There are a computer and a TV in my room.
Can you doubt it? It's certainly natural and correct in the US. Two things are in the room: a computer and a TV.

In casual conversation, Americans often use there's — not because it's grammatical (we don't care about that), but because it rolls off the tongue more easily than there are.
 
Last edited:

jutfrank

VIP Member
Joined
Mar 5, 2014
Member Type
English Teacher
Native Language
English
Home Country
England
Current Location
England
In the first example, only the contracted form is acceptable. The uncontracted form cannot you is wrong. Can you not is possible, but that is not the uncontracted form of can't you.

In the second, not only is are not I wrong, but even are I not is wrong.

So, we have examples of utterances in which the contracted form is correct and natural; the uncontracted form is not.

This is not what I meant. Let's abandon this line, if you don't mind. The thread is becoming too complicated as it is, and my point here is not very relevant or interesting.

you didn't read post #47 very carefully. I wrote there:

I'm sorry, I can't see any justification there at all. It doesn't concern the point I'm raising in any way. It looks like you've simply copied this information from somewhere. A careful reading of my post #81 reveals that my question is how to justify saying that There is a computer and a TV is wrong whereas There's a computer and a TV is right. If I understand correctly, you are saying that it isn't just a matter of naturalness. Could you point out exactly what you consider to be wrong?
 

Rover_KE

Moderator
Staff member
Joined
Jun 20, 2010
Member Type
Retired English Teacher
Native Language
British English
Home Country
England
Current Location
England
Thread closed.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Top