mac@uvacs.UUCP (01/12/84)
Passe' simple Interesting about the disappearance of the simple past in French. The same thing is true in German -- the praeterit tense (simple past) is considered literary for most verbs. This may be to avoid the irregularities that are apparent in the English. English may be peculiar in its retention of the simple past. What about other modern IE languages? I was once told that extensive use of the praeterit was more typical of the East European Germans.