A category of verb use, typically expressing
- fact (indicative mood)
- command (imperative mood)
- question (interrogative mood)
- wish (optative mood)
- conditionality (subjunctive mood)
Elaborating on the aforementioned, I have found an old but relevant explanation about moods and that leads us to comprehend why modal verbs are called as such. Additionally, it is accompanied by an explanation about the subjunctive mood. Here comes a passage of Paul Robert's book entitled Modern Grammar, dated from 1968:
(...)
Another vestige of what was once a large system is what is called the subjunctive mood. At one time our verbs, and also be, had quite different forms according to the speaker's attitude toward the content of the sentence - for example, whether it was true or not, whether it was likely, whether it was desirable. The word mood is a variant of mode, which has the adjective form modal, and in fact, most of these feelings are now expressed in the modals of the auxiliary. But a few vestiges of the old system remain.
Compare the subordinate clauses in these two sentences:
I hope that he comes.
I asked that he come.
In both sentences, come is present tense. But whereas in the first it has the s form after he, according to the usual rule, in the second it has the simple form. A morphological rule says that a verb must have the simple form, no matter what the subject, in certain conditions - particularly, when it occurs in a subordinate clause functioning as an object of verbs like ask, urge, insist. Be has the form be:
I asked that he be here.
The same morphological rule operates when the clause serves as complement of certain adjectives:
It is important that he come.
It is important that he be here.
These forms of the verb and be are what remain of the subjunctive mood in English, so far as the present tense goes.
Now, getting back to the Oxford dictionary, such was the scrutiny on the matter that I've made up my mind to share it here, check it out:
Subjunctive: relating to or denoting a mood of verbs expressing what is imagined or wished or possible
USAGE These sentences all contain a verb in the subjunctive mood;: … if I were you;: the report recommends that he face the tribunal;: it is important that they be aware of the provisions of the act. The subjunctive is used to express situations that are hypothetical or not yet realized and is typically used for what is imagined, hoped for, demanded, or expected. In English, the subjunctive mood is fairly uncommon (esp. in comparison with other languages such as French and Spanish), mainly because most of the functions of the subjunctive are covered by modal verbs such as might, could, and should. In fact, in English the subjunctive is often indistinguishable from the ordinary indicative mood since its form in most contexts is identical. It is distinctive only in the third person singular, where the normal indicative -s ending is absent ( : he face rather than : he faces in the example above), and in the verb ‘to be’ ( : I were rather than : I was , and : they be rather than : they are in the examples above). In modern English, the subjunctive mood still exists but is regarded in many contexts as optional. Use of the subjunctive tends to convey a more formal tone, but there are few people who would regard its absence as actually wrong. Today, it survives mostly in fixed expressions, as in : be that as it may;: far be it from me;: as it were ;: lest we forget ;: God help you;: perish the thought; and : come what may.
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Now, to wrap up the research, I'll present what Michael Vince describes about subjunctives, in his book Advanced Language Practice, 2003:
Formal subjunctives:
- Insisting, demanding, etc.
After verbs such as demand, insist, suggest, require which involve an implied obligation, the subjunctive may be used in formal style. This has only one form, that of the infinitive, and there is no third person -s, or past form. The verb be has be for all forms.
They demanded that they leave at once.
The school Principal suggested that he be awarded a scholarship.
- Less formal usage
Less formally, should can be used, and colloquially no verb form change is made, or an infinitive construction is used.
They demanded that he should leave.
They demanded that he left. (informal)
Formulaic Subjunctives:
These are fixed expressions all using subjunctive. Typical expressions are:
God save the Queen!
Be that as it may...
Come what may...
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After all the research above, I'll point out what I've found of interest:
Firstly, for the first time ever, the meaning of modal has come to light to me. Never have I seen any grammar book detailing it.
The word mood is a variant of mode which has the adjective form modal. Back in time, when the subjunctive was largely used, according to the speaker's intention, the message they wanted to convey, whether true or false, whether likely or not, or whether desirable, etc. English verbs were able to express mood. Nowadays, such a capability is mostly expressed by modal verbs, that is, can, could, may, might, should, would, will, shall, etc.
In other words, subjunctive is much less used than before due to modal verbs utilization instead. It is still used to connote formal messages, in a formal tone, whether in writing or in speech, implying what is imaged, hoped for, demanded, expected, required, urged, etc. Also, as said above, it is still encountered in fixed expressions, aka Formulaic Subjunctives.
Among the verbs usually seen in use with subjunctive mood, we have: ask, urge, insist, recommend, demand, suggest, require, etc.
Summing up the post, I say that this research has come to life for I encountered the following sentence when reading an issue of the Newsweek magazine:
"The Premier League has demanded that he pass the standard test before completing..."
That promptly raised a question and I went to the WordReference English forum to open a new thread. Given the straightforward message that depicted 'subjective', that was enough to make me open the books and write everything concluded herein.
Thanks for reading!
