It is strange that somebody should have lived and died in London...

[doletotodole]

The following sentence is taken from Unit One of the English textbook five for senior secondary school students in China. Published by PEP, the chief editor is LIU ZY, 2016 edition.

"It seems strange that the man who developed Marxism should have lived and died in London."

I am brooding over the meaning of the word "should" here. Is this word a fixed match with the preceding phrase "it seems strange", or can I remove this word, making it "...developed Marxism has lived and died in London"?

Does this word "should" mean the common meaning we encounter everyday, or does it mean otherwise?

 

[Tarheel]

I think you can substitute would for should there. I also think you can delete should have. (Why that seems strange is a different matter.)

 

[Tarheel]

It just means that it seems strange that he lived and died there. (I don't know why that would be. )

 

[PeterCW]

It just means that it seems strange that he lived and died there. (I don't know why that would be. )

Context is important. The text is from a country that is, at least nominally, Marxist, expressing surprise that the philosphy was developed in a country that didn't adopt it.

 

[Tarheel]

This might seem nitpicky, but I don't think he developed the philosophy there. That is, it was already in his head. He just put it on paper. As for why he wound up in the UK, it was, apparently, a more welcoming place than where he had been previously (Germany and France).