[ 1 ] “V-te iru” for “A Result is Persisting”
As explained in A2 S28, the functions of “V-te iru” are shown below;
<1> Action is Ongoing
– Satou-san wa Ima Denwa de Hanashite imasu. (Sato-san is now talking on a phone.)
<2-1> Action Continues
– Satou-san wa Suzuki-san o Shitte imasu. (Sato-san knows Suzuki-san.)
<2-2> Result of Action is Persisting
– Doa ga Aite imasu. (The door is left open.)
<3> Action is Repetitive
– Maiban Ku-ji no Nyu’usu o Mite imasu. (I watch the news program at 9 p.m. every night.)
What we are learning is <2-2>. Although <2-2> is sometime included in “<2-1> Action Continues”, if a verb for “V-te” is an intransitive verb that expresses action in short period of time (instantaneous verbs) *. Let us look at some examples of <2-2>.
1. Mado ga Aite imasu. (A window has kept opening.)
In some time in the past, it happened that a window opened. When that window was opening, the action didn’t take much long. Action “open” itself was short lasting. However, the consequence of the action has lasted since it happened. This “V-te iru” ‘Aite imasu’ expresses that the result of action is sustained until now.
“Aite” is the Te-form of intransitive verb “Aku”. If you want to say “open” as transitive verb, it is “Akeru”. check the difference between intransitive verb “Aku” and transitive verb “Akeru”.
– Intransitive verb sentence : Mado ga Akimashita. (The window opened.)
– Transitive verb sentence : Watashi wa Mado o Akemashita. (I opened the window.)
2. Taxi ga Tomatte imasu. (A taxi is stopping.)
A taxi stopped in some moment in past, and it keeps stopping until now. “Tomatte” is the Te-form of intransitive verb “Tomaru”. If you want to say “stop” as transitive verb, it is “Tomeru”. check the difference between intransitive verb “Tomaru” and transitive verb “Tomeru”.
– Intransitive verb sentence : Takushii ga Tomarimashita. (The taxi stopped.)
– Transitive verb sentence : Watashi wa Takushii o Tomemashita. (I stopped the taxi.)
3. Garasu no Koppu ga Warete imasu. (A glass cup is broken.)
A glass cup broke. Breaking was instantaneous. Since then, the cup is left broken until now. “Warete” is the Te-form of intransitive verb “Wareru”. If you want to say “break glass into pieces” as transitive verb, it is “Waru”.
– Intransitive verb sentence : Osara ga Waremashita. (The dish was broken.)
– Transitive verb sentence : Watashi wa Osara o Warimashita. (I broke the dish.)
The verbs for Te-form are all intransitive verbs in the example 1 to 3; Aku, Tomaru, and Wareru. These actions take very short period of time. But making “V-te iru”, you can express that the result of action is still sustained. This is one of functions of “V-te iru”, but we can learn as important aspect of “V-te iru”. It is that “V-te iru” can make an instantaneous action a stative situation.
* : Most of Verbs express actions that can be done in short period of time (instantaneous verbs). Therefore, this caveat after “that expresses” may be unnecessary. Stative intransitive verbs are not many. Knowing Aru(有る), Iru(居る), Iru(要る), is okay. There are no “V-te iru” for these. If you think you have heard “V-te iru” for these Aru and Iru, they are not, instead;
– Atte iru => 会っている(be meeting), or 合っている(be fitting, be adjusting)
– Itte itu => 言っている(be saying), or 行っている(being there)
[ 2 ] Subject Marker “-ga” for New Information
Here is another important issue for today’s sentence construction. Compare the following two;
1. Mado ga Aite imasu. (A window has kept open.)
4. Ano Mado wa Aite imasu. (That window has been kept open.)
Today we learn the sentence 1, and tomorrow, 4. What is the subject marker for 1 and 2? The subject marker is “ga” in the sentence 1, while it is “wa” in the sentence 2. Selecting “wa” or “ga” for subject marker is difficult for learners, and even for native Japanese speakers for sometimes. There are some criteria for decision making about “wa” or “ga”;
Explanation1:
“wa” : The purpose of the sentence is to explain of Known subject’s name, condition, or action.
“ga” : The purpose of the sentence is to specify what the subject is.
Explanation2:
“wa” : [Subject] wa [Important Information].
“ga” : [Important Information] ga [Predicate].
So far, I have used these two explanations when it comes to choice of “wa” or “ga” as subject marker. But when you look at today’s sentence 1;
1. Mado ga Aite imasu. (A window has kept opening.)
Which of the subject or the predicate is important in this sentence, “Mado (a window)” or “Aite imasu(has kept opening)”? You may answer both are important. Yes, probably the subject “Mado” and the predicate “Aite imasu” are both important information. And depending on a situation, “Mado wa Aite imasu” is also okay. Then, how we correctly choose “wa” or “ga”?
Case for “wa”
A : Mado wa Aite imasuka. (Is the window open?)
B : Hai, Mado wa Aite imasu.(Yes, the window is open.)
In this case, the word “window” is shared between persons A and B.
Case for “ga”
Suppose a burglar broke into a house. The next morning, a police officer arrived. He called his boss from the scene.
Boss : Anything wrong with the house?
PO: A window is open. => Mado ga Aite imasu.
The boss must have thought the house had got something unusual. But at the time of asking, the boss didn’t have a concrete idea about what was wrong. Then the police officer told him a new information. A window that should be closed during the night was left open in the morning. As this example indicates, when you say new information, “ga” is usually used as the subject marker. Window’s being left open is not surprising to police officer, but sometimes a thing happens suddenly, and it is a bit surprising, “ga” is used like below;
5. Att! Mukou kara Basu ga Kimasu. (Ah! a bus is coming from there!)
6. Hora! Shingou ga Kawarimasu. (Look at that! Trafiic light is changing!)
Therefore, another “wa” or “ga” criteria would be as follows;
“wa”; when talking about already known information
“ga”; when talking about a new information.
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This post was written with reference to the exercise A1 on Section29 of “Minna no Nihongo (2nd Edition)” published by “3A Corporation”
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