"The note (to say) that you are to blame." "She (to lie)." "Who (to lie)."

[Nonverbis]

A Grammar of Present-day English by I.P. Krylova.

"The note (to say) that you are to blame." "She (to lie)." "Who (to lie)."

The answer keys: says, lies, lies.

I can't understayd why. I did: says, is lying, is lying.

My reasoning: The note says - it is a performative. Is lying - distributing wrong information at the current period. She wrote the note (in the past), now we can see the lie in the present, and later if she is asked, she will also be telling untruth.

I seem to have been wrong in my reasoning. Could you tell me whether all of these cases are performatives? Or why the present simple is used here each time?

 

[5jj]

'Say' is not performative. It denotes the act of saying. The present simple is correct in this type of context.
'Lie' is not performative. Both forms should be progressive. In the words in the note, she is lying.

 

[emsr2d2]

It's a rather odd exchange. I would expect it to look like this if it's a dialogue:

A: The note says you're to blame.
B: She lied.
A: Who lied?

The note has already been written and still exists so it still "says" that B is to blame. B then claims that whoever wrote the note lied (when she wrote it). A needs to know who "she" is.

 

[Rover_KE]

Yet another poor question from that book. It’s not teaching you much.

 

[Nonverbis]

'Say' is not performative.

I used the present simple here because I remembered the expression "the document reads". Or "the item stipulates", which looks common for legal context.

The definition of a performative by Martin Hewings is that a verb performs the action it describes.

If this is not the case of performative, then I have a huge problem with understanding performatives.

 

[Nonverbis]

Yet another poor question from that book. It’s not teaching you much.

I'll finish that book. At least I'll try. It makes me think, which is beneficial by itself. And let's concentrate on grammar, not on our personal preference for books.

 

[jutfrank]

I have a huge problem with understanding performatives.

Yes, you've misunderstood what performative verbs are. Performative verbs are those that perform speech acts.

I agree with Rover that it is a poor question. When you try to answer poor questions, you usually get poor answers. I have no idea why the answer key wants you to use the present simple.

And let's concentrate on grammar, not on our personal preference for books.

Let's concentrate on asking productive questions.

 

[5jj]

And let's concentrate on grammar, not on our personal preference for books.

We are trying to concentrate on grammar. Your insistence on asking questions on points from a book that we have told you is not helpful does not make it easy for us.