Date: Tue, 10 Oct 1995 15:28:46 -0700

From: Sylvia Swift madonna[AT SYMBOL GOES HERE]VIOLET.BERKELEY.EDU

Subject: Re: as it were



On Tue, 10 Oct 1995, Beth Lee Simon wrote:



According to the song's narrative, Neal McCoy's subjunctive man was,

in his real past, indeed a drinkin' man. Hence, the subjunctive

grounded in the simple past: "If I (still) was a drinkin' man"

which, for lyric writing/music purposes would be "If I was (still) a

drinkin' man".



here i would say "man *had been*, in his real past,indeed a drinkin' man"

etc.



if i was a drinkin' man

like i used to be

i'd get myself a bottle and

you'd be history



you made me a thinkin' man

when you walked out

if i was a drinkin' man

i wouldn't need you now





explicitly says that he once was, but is no longer, a drinkin' man. thus

the form of be in the first line expresses a condition contrary to fact,

and subjunctive is called for. i think it has to be expressed in past

because it is in the past relative to the "then" clauses (which are in

subjunctive; note that it's not "i'll get myself . . . /you'll be history").



geez, who would have thought the subjunctive were so complicated?



sylvia swift

madonna[AT SYMBOL GOES HERE]violet.berkeley.edu