Re: English Subjunctive

On Sat, 1 Nov 2003 17:37:30 -0500, Andrew Patterson
<endipatterson@...> wrote:
> We say I[subject 1] wish[verb] he[subject 2] would stop talking[verb
> phrase]
>
> I asked if anyone thought the subjunctive is also a type of relative
> clause. The truth is I don't know.
The subjunctive is introducing a relative clause in your sentence:

        I wish
            (that) he would stop talking.

You're right in that English is that-dropping.


> But, thinking of that great film, "She" with Ursula Andress. In the film
> Ursula was refered to as "She who must be obeyed." If I convert this
> into a
> relative clause, I could say,
>
> "I[subject 1]am going to visit she[subject 2] who must be obeyed.
>
> Somehow,
>
> "I'm going to visit her who must be obeyed," sounds wrong, so relative
> clauses (or at least the one above has two subjects but no object.
Actually, "I'm going to visit her, who must be obeyed" sounds perfectly
normal to me--any weirdness inheres in the existence of the stock phrase
"she who must be obeyed" (which on its own is actually somewhat of an odd
construction in everyday English) which competes with it.

Try these:

        - he who was wearing two hats
           Julia stared at _________.

        - I who was asleep
          She ran in and woke ________.

        - we who are about to die
          I count him among _________.

        - her whom I trust
           I'm going to visit _________.


        *Muke!
--
http://frath.net/
http://kohath.livejournal.com/

E jer savne zarjé mas ne   (You put music in my heart
Se imné koone'f metha       And with the spirit of an artist
Brissve mé kolé adâ.        I will make the dreamtime)

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