Manoj Srivastava wrote: > Here is how I undesrtanfd the Shall/Will distinction: > > Shall is used to express the simple future for first person I > and we, as in "Shall we meet by the river?" Will would be used > in the simple future for all other persons. Using will in the > first person would express determination on the part of the > speaker, as in "We will finish this project by tonight, by > golly!" Using shall in second and third persons would indicate > some kind of promise about the subject, as in "This shall be > revealed to you in good time."
There are three views on the shall/will distinction:
1. "What distinction?" Pretty common for modern English speakers, I think.
2. 1913 Webster warns that "shall and will are often confounded by
inaccurate speakers and writers"
3. Merriam-Webster unabridged has this to say:
From the reams of pronouncements written about the distinction
between shall and will--dating back as far as the 17th century--it
is clear that the rules laid down have never very accurately
reflected actual usage. The nationalistic statements of 18th and
19th century British grammarians, who commonly cited the misuses of
the Irish, the Scots, and occasionally the Americans, suggest that
the traditional rules may have come closest to the usage of
southern England. Some modern commentators believe that English
usage is still the closest to the traditionally prescribed norms.
Most modern commentators allow that will is more common in nearly
all uses.
Anyway, feel free to use "shall", it's probably no more incorrect than
my use of "yall".
--
see shy jo
pgpHdLRIBzBBM.pgp
Description: PGP signature
