For this Thursday (3/7), please read the following book chapter, which can be downloaded from the “Readings” section of this website:
Greenbaum, Sidney & Randolph Quirk. 1990. A Student’s Grammar of the English Language, Chap. 3 (“Verbs and Auxiliaries”). Essex: Longman.
As the chapter title suggests, the reading presents an (entirely descriptive) overview of the English verb and auxiliary system. Additionally, I’ve made available Chap. 4 (“The Semantics of the Verb Phrase”) of the same book, which provides a lucid discussion of the meaning differences between various verb forms and auxiliaries. While you do *not* have to read this chapter, it is full of useful information, so I’ve gone ahead and posted it anyway.
Note: our discussion of the material in these chapters will continue after we return from spring break.