[Grammar] present simple

[atabitaraf]

I think that the Simple Present tense is used for habits, repetitions, scientific facts or everything that happens all the times.
There are some stories in which the verbs are in Simple Present tense, like this guy says his brother to help him and gives him some money....
Is it possible to use Simple Present tense while we are speaking about an action that is not forever? Even in a story? But I think it happens. How come? :shock:
Thanks,

 

[Hedwig]

You mean using the present tense to tell a story even when it happened in the past? This is a literary device often used by writers, and I'm sure it's got a name, only I can't remember it. The purpose is to enhance the dramatic feeling.

 

[Rover_KE]

It's called the historical present tense.

Rover

 

[atabitaraf]

It's called the historical present tense.

Rover

Is it used only for the past? I think yes because story is something happened before!

 

[Hedwig]

Is it used only for the past? I think yes because story is something happened before!

That's exactly what we're talking about. Using the present tense to narrate something, either true or imaginary, that happened in the past.

 

[emsr2d2]

You will hear people saying, for example:

"You won't believe what happened to me earlier today! I'm walking along the street and this guy says to me "Are you a model?" I say "No" and he says "You could be!" I can't believe the nerve of him and tell him to go away and leave me alone. What a cheek!!"

As you can see, only the first verb is in the past tense. The story itself is told in the present tense.

 

[atabitaraf]

You will hear people saying, for example:

"You won't believe what happened to me earlier today! I'm walking along the street and this guy says to me "Are you a model?" I say "No" and he says "You could be!" I can't believe the nerve of him and tell him to go away and leave me alone. What a cheek!!"

As you can see, only the first verb is in the past tense. The story itself is told in the present tense.

1. So the historical present is not only for using present simple but could be for present continuous.
2. Can we use the historical present for writing a scientific article too?
I find the story beautiful but would you plz tell me some of these expressions?
3. What's the meaning of "I can't believe the nerve of him"
4. "What a cheek"
I appreciate your patience teacher.

 

[emsr2d2]

1. So the historical present is not only for using present simple but could be for present continuous.
2. Can we use the historical present for writing a scientific article too?
I find the story beautiful but would you plz tell me some of these expressions?
3. What's the meaning of "I can't believe the nerve of him"
4. "What a cheek"
I appreciate your patience teacher.

If you say that someone had "the nerve to do something" it means they dared to do it, they were brave enough to do it. So "I can't believe the nerve of him" means "I can't believe that he dared to say that to me".

"What a cheek!" means "It was very cheeky".

It basically all means that the speaker thought that what the person said was quite saucy or impudent but it doesn't have a very negative tone. In this context, the speaker was probably actually quite amused by the comment but still thinks that it was rather cheeky to have said it at all.

 

[atabitaraf]

If you say that someone had "the nerve to do something" it means they dared to do it, they were brave enough to do it. So "I can't believe the nerve of him" means "I can't believe that he dared to say that to me".

"What a cheek!" means "It was very cheeky".

It basically all means that the speaker thought that what the person said was quite saucy or impudent but it doesn't have a very negative tone. In this context, the speaker was probably actually quite amused by the comment but still thinks that it was rather cheeky to have said it at all.

Thank you, can we use the historical present for writing a formal scientific article too?

 

[emsr2d2]

Thank you, can we use the historical present for writing a formal scientific article too?

That's not the kind of thing I read or write but I would say no.

I can't imagine a scientific article saying "This is what happened last week with my research - I'm doing this experiment and I'm seeing some interesting results. I'm thinking that it's really strange so I'm saying to my colleague "Let's do some more". :-D

 

[atabitaraf]

That's not the kind of thing I read or write but I would say no.

I can't imagine a scientific article saying "This is what happened last week with my research - I'm doing this experiment and I'm seeing some interesting results. I'm thinking that it's really strange so I'm saying to my colleague "Let's do some more". :-D

But I kind of think in a scientific article we can say: "As Freud says we are not suppose to ignore or hide our instinctive desires"

 

[5jj]

But I kind of think in a scientific article we can say: "As Freud says, '[STRIKE]w[/STRIKE]We are not supposed to ignore our instinctive desires.'"

Yes, but we we would generally describe our own work in the past, not the present, in formal scientific articles.