英语动词过去时的认知解读

Exploration of the Past Tense from the Perspective of Cognition

在传统语法书里,英语动词过去时被定义为一种指称性的时态,主要用于表述以说话的时间为参照点过去发生的事情或存在的状态。然而动词的过去时态还有非过去时间用法。本文从认知的角度探讨英语动词的过去时态的用法,揭示动词过去时态的本质特征,即距离性,包括时间距离、现实距离和心理距离。

Traditionally the past tense is defined as a deietie tense mainly used to locate an event or state at some point or period in time prior to the moment of speaking,. However the past tense is alse used to express non past tense. The paper aims to explain the usages of the past tense and explore the cognitive nature of past tense, that is, remoteness in time, reality and psychology.