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3.1.2.1. Perfective and Resultative
This expresses the events which are completed in the recent past. Although the event is obviously the past, the speaker treats it as the present.

Moreover, when some results are left, it is called the Resultative usage, and if not, it is called the Perfective usage.

(3)
a. The clock has just struck ten.
b. The river has frozen.

If the above is classified into the two, (3a) is Perfective and (3b) is Resultative. Nothing is left in (3a), but the result of the freeze is left in (3b).

The two has some different meanings but it is often difficult to classify. And both of them express the recent past, therefore in this text, the two is explained as the one usage.
See the following figure.

(4)


This can also be represented as follows.

(5)


In the above, E is close to the present. Especially, (3b) is parallel to it. It is unknown when the present perfect form (PrPF) is not used, does it depend on the place of E? No, it depends on the speaker's mind. See the following examples.

(6)
a. She has just left.
b. She has just arrived.

We do not know the time. (6a) means before 5 minutes or 30 minutes? and (6b) means before one minute or one hour?
The speaker does not consider the event time point, s/he has the relationship with the present. See the following figure revised for this usage.

(7)


If the event is occurred in the oblique line in the above, the speaker has the present. This is also seen as follows.

(8)


This expresses the three events in the past. Some people treats the three as PrPF, but another treats (2) and (3) as PrPF and (1) as the past tense. It depends on the speaker's mind.


Now, "The river has frozen. (3b)" might be not considered the recent past. It needs some time to freeze. But the speaker does not have the frozen time point in mind, s/he has the frozen result in the present. See the following examples.

(9)
a. My watch has stopped.
b. He has received a good education.

In (9a), the stopping time is unknown. The speaker understands the event obviously occurred in the past, but s/he puts own focus on the point of the stopping result time when s/he perceives.
Moreover, (9b) is the same. The speaker does not put the focus on his leaning time, but puts it on the leaning result time in the present.


Time feeling






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