The PERFECT TENSE denotes past time, and also conveys an allusion to the
present; as, "I _have_ finished my letter."
The verb _have finished_, in this example, signifies that the action,
though past, was perfectly finished at a point of time immediately
preceding, or in the course of a period which comes to the present.
Under this view of the subject, the term _perfect_ may be properly
applied to this tense, for it specifies, not only the completion of the
action, but, also, alludes to the particular period of its
accomplishment.
The PLUPERFECT TENSE represents a past action or event that transpired
before some other past time specified; as, "I _had finished_ my letter
before my brother arrived."
You observe that the verb _had finished_, in this example, represents
one _past_ action, and the arrival of my brother, another _past_ action;
therefore _had finished_ is in the pluperfect tense, because the action
took place prior to the taking place of the other past action specified
in the same sentence.
The FIRST FUTURE TENSE denotes a future action or event; as "I _will
finish_; I _shall finish_ my letter.
Pages:
307
308
309
310
311
312
313
314
315
316
317
318
319
320
321
322
323
324
325
326
327
328
329
330
331