There: there played the reflection from a little pool

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Marius Hancu - 16 Jan 2004 15:06 GMT

Hello:

-----
Over her throat THERE PLAYED the reflection from a little pool of
water, left by a thunderstorm of the night before, and all the rest of
her features were in the diffused and luminous shade of her white
parasol.
[The Good Soldier, by Ford Madox Ford, Part III, ch.II, p. 121]
-----

As "there" is to be used mainly with "be" and with other verbs only in
literary contexts (Swan, Practical English Usage), what would one use
instead in this para in a non-literary context?

OK, I recognize this quote is quite complicated to be non-literary:-),
still I would like to know how/when the casual speaker feels the need
for equivalents to "there" in such situations/constructions and what
he/she uses in such instances. Examples appreciated.

Thank you,
Marius Hancu

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Jerry Friedman - 16 Jan 2004 18:54 GMT

> Hello:
>
[quoted text clipped - 14 lines]
> for equivalents to "there" in such situations/constructions and what
> he/she uses in such instances. Examples appreciated.

The sentence is fine without the "there".

A somewhat less literary option would be "A reflection from a little
pool of water from last night's thunderstorm played over her throat,
and..." You can see why Ford inverted the sentence.

Signature

Jerry Friedman

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Matthew Huntbach - 16 Jan 2004 22:36 GMT

> -----
> Over her throat THERE PLAYED the reflection from a little pool of
[quoted text clipped - 12 lines]
> for equivalents to "there" in such situations/constructions and what
> he/she uses in such instances. Examples appreciated.

The subject of the sentence is not "there" but "the reflection ...".
The first part of the sentence could be rendered "The reflection from
a little pool of water played over her throat. This use of "there"
comes in sentences where the subject is placed after the verb, but it
isn't compulsory, as it could also be "Over her throat played the
reflection from a little pool of water".

A common usage of "there" like this is in sentences beginning "There
comes a time when ...". Try googling on this to find some. The
sentences could be put starting with just "A time comes when ...", but
the form with "there" seems to add a portentousness.

Or how about

"On the hill there stood an old house where the doors were always
locked".

The "there" here could just be enabling the subject of "stood" to be
put after the verb. If it were

"An old house stood on the hill where the doors were always locked"

one might suppose the doors were on the hill not the house.

"An old house where the doors were always locked stood on the hill"

is perfectly acceptable, but lacks the portentousness of the first.

Matthew Huntbach

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Marius Hancu - 16 Jan 2004 23:49 GMT

>Matthew Huntbach wrote:
>Jerry Friedman wrote:

..............

Thank you very much to both of you.
Marius Hancu

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Discussion Groups / English Usage / January 2004

There: there played the reflection from a little pool