Hi teachers,
Context:
Mary: Peter! What are you thinking? We don’t have any drinks yet. Are you going to get us some drinks or we’re going to be here the whole day without them?
Peter: All right! I’ll get them.
Peter starts for the counter.
What did Peter do after Mary’s complaint?
He started for the counter to get the drinks.
Thanks in advance.
Personally I, would say, “What was Peter’s reaction to Mary’s complaint/How did he react to…?”
If you insist on ‘what he did after’, I would say, ‘after hearing Mary’s…’
Hi Eugene,
Thanks for your reply I’ll follow yours!
I would either be, ‘after hearing Mary’s…’ or ‘after he heard Mary’s…’. Right?
RtL
Precisely.
“Are you going to get us some drinks, or are we going to be here the whole day without them?”
Would you provide a link, Dozy?
Link to what, Eugene?
I meant you made an amendment relying on some grammar rule.
My take on it: it’s a case of interrogative sentence being declarative in fact, and thus used to display emotions (irritation/sarcasm/impatience) which I believe suits the situation. What she does, she doesn’t put two questions allowing him to choose between the two alternatives—she prompts him to act really.
It’s not correct as written. If the last part is not to be a question then the question mark should be moved up, and the sentence repunctuated. For example:
Mary: Peter! What are you thinking? We don’t have any drinks yet. Are you going to get us some drinks? We’re going to be here the whole day without any!
Totally agree, if you hold to grammar. But ‘in practice’? Have you ever dealt with an irritated…person?
It’s possible in casual speech for someone to say that sequence of words. However, the original punctuation is still wrong. Possibly:
“Are you going to get us some drinks? Or we’re going to be here the whole day without them.”
This feels fragmentary or disjointed; even though in reality people often speak in fragmentary ways, I would not recommend it for a student text.
Just a finishing touch: “…the whole day without them.” or “…the whole day without them!”?
It could be either, depending on whether it is perceived as an exclamation or more of a flat statement. But yes, I think you’re right, an exclamation mark often wouldn’t go amiss.