|
|
|
The
preterite and the imperfect are two aspects or characteristics of the
simple past tense in the indicative mood of the Spanish verb system. Since
both the preterite and the imperfect refer to a past time, the choice
of one over the other is governed by the nature of the remembrance of
the action/state/event of the verb. Our memory of something in the past
focuses on one of the following features of that past action/state/event:
1) the beginning, 2) the duration, 3) the completion or, 4) the repetition.
These are the four ways in which we conceptualize the past.
Now, if we consider time to be linear and therefore, capable of being represented by a straight line, we can diagram the four ways of conceptualizing past actions/states/events as follows:
It is easy to see that the beginning of an action/state/event or the completion of an action/state/event represent precise moments on our temporal map. We can consider them independently of one another or, we can bundle them in one package and without reference to either the beginning or the end, see the experience in its entirety as a singular past event. The following sentences illustrate 1) focus on the beginning, 2) focus on the end, and 3) focus on the package without reference to either the beginning or the end:
Reflects the beginning of the action
Reflects the end of the action
|
