FUTURE TIME

118. We have learned how to express present time and past time, by changes in the form of the verb. But we very often desire to make a statement in which we do not express either present or past time, thus we may say:

We shall enjoy our rights some day.

He will join us in the struggle.

We do not mean to say that we do enjoy our rights now, in the present, or that we did in the past, but that we shall enjoy our rights some time in the future. In the second sentence, will join expresses the same idea of future time. To indicate future time, we do not make a change in the verb form, but we use shall and will with the simple form of the verb.

119. We denote future time by use of a verb phrase made by placing shall or will before the simple form of the verb.

120. The rule of some grammarians is to use shall always in the first person, the person speaking, to denote future time, and will with the second person, the person spoken to, and with the third person, the person spoken of, to denote future time. But common usage does not always follow the rules of the grammarians, and, in the course of time, affects and changes these rules. So our common usage of today uses will in the first person to express future time, as well as shall.

This rule of grammarians marks a nicety of speech and conveys a distinction of meaning which it really seems worth while to retain. The idea of the grammarians is that when we use will with the first person and shall with the second or third person, we express a promise or determination. Thus if I say, I shall go, I simply mean that my going will be in the future. But if I say, I will go, I either mean that I am promising to go or that I am expressing my determination to go. So also if we use shall in the second and third persons. If we say, You will go or He will go, we are simply stating that the going will be in the future, but if we say, You shall go, or He shall go, we mean that we promise or are determined that you or he shall go.

To be technically correct this distinction should be observed. Shall in the first person, and will in the second and third express simple futurity. Will in the first person and shall in the second and third express promise or determination. But in every day conversation this distinction is not observed, and many of our best writers do not follow this rule.

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