How come in the following paragraph one verb is in present tense and another one is in past tense? Shouldn't both be in the same tense? Thank you!
4
-
1'Their mission' is the reason why they were sent into space.– Kate BuntingCommented Apr 15 at 11:39
-
1Do they still have a mission when they wake up having lost their memories? Probably not if they can't remember who they are. Is wouldn't be grammatically incorrect but it depends on what the author wants to convey.– Stuart FCommented Apr 15 at 14:24
-
2BTW, they're disorientated because they've learned British English. Had they been from the United States, they'd merely be disoriented. In either case, they can't find East.– DrMoishe PippikCommented Apr 16 at 0:36
-
1You are not wrong to question the tense change. It would certainly be correct to have both verbs in present tense. It's possible to think of the mission being more in the past because it was given to them in the past, whereas their identity is ongoing....but then so is the mission, presumably. There still is a mission, even if they don't remember it.– user8356Commented Apr 17 at 14:59
Add a comment
|
1 Answer
It's not incorrect to have multiple tenses in the same sentence. "I am sitting here (now), in a chair I purchased (past tense) a year ago, thinking (now) about what I will do (future tense) tomorrow."
Both "is" and "was" could be valid choices for the astronauts' mission.
An advantage of "was" is that it emphasizes the fact they have forgotten. Some time in the past, they were assigned a mission. At the moment, in the present tense, it's missing from their minds. What was the mission again? They don't remember.
Logically, both tenses can make sense. If you have a mission now, it is in the present tense. If you were assigned a mission in the past, it (also) existed in the past.
Does this joke make sense?
I used to do drugs. I still do, but I used to, too." ― Mitch Hedberg
