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Thu 19 Feb, 2015 10:14 am
I want to explain my problems with following sentence:
"Sor-u Pha clutches his mother's skirt as Dr Salyaveth Lekagul examines the eight-year-old's ears."
Here, this sentence has been taken from a report. Since it is a report, reporters should have used past tense. But 'clutches, examines' show that it is in present tense. Please, help me to clear that fact.
@Nousher Ahmed,
This is an example of "the dramatic or historic present".
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Historical_present
Suppose I was reporting an experience of
observing a film.
The scene opens as follows: Sor-u Pha clutches his mother's skirt as Dr Salyaveth Lekagul examines the eight-year-old's ears.
The observ
ing is a replay
ing of a past situation for an audience as though they were watching it unfold.
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