Better --- subjunctive

Question

I heard this in a movieBetter he talk to his mother that way than his father. Could you please tell me : Is this slang, are there words missing? What is the grammatically correct form?[It is] Better [that] he talk to his mother that way than his father. Are these correct grammatically? How would you write it?It is better that he fix the TV first than the window.It is more important that he fix the TV first than the window.Thank you for your help

Dokterjokkebrok · Accepted Answer

Anonymous I heard this in a movieBetter he talk to his mother that way than his father. Could you please tell me : Is this slang, are there words missing? What is the grammatically correct form?[It is] Better [that] he talk to his mother that way than his father. Are these correct grammatically? How would you write it?It is better that he fix the TV first than the window.It is more important that he fix the TV first than the window.Thank you for your help

Hi,

Typically this subjunctive form consists of [it]+[to be]+[adjective]+[that-clause].

Speech generally is a lot messier than written discourse and uses ellipsis all the time for pragmatic reasons. I think that formally, native speakers would judge this sentence to be grammatically incorrect (or rather imperfect). However, informally I do not see anything wrong with it.

CalifJim · Answer

AnonymousBetter he talk to his mother that way than his father.

It sounds correct but old-fashioned and formal. It doesn't sound like slang to me.

It's correct as it is, but a possible expansion might be:
It is better that he should talk to his mother that way rather than to his father.

CJ

Dokterjokkebrok · Answer

CalifJim AnonymousBetter he talk to his mother that way than his father.It sounds correct but old-fashioned and formal. It doesn't sound like slang to me.It's correct as it is, but a possible expansion might be: It is better that he should talk to his mother that way rather than to his father.CJ

It is funny that we use exactly the same structure in Dutch with the notable difference that in Dutch, the construction without 'it + to be' is generally considered to be informal and colloquial. I had not expected the ellision of 'it + to be' to sound formal in English.

Dutch > Beter praat hij tegen zijn moeder op die manier dan tegen zijn vader. [usually said by a Dutch teenager]
English > Better talk he to his mother that way than to his father. ( Dutch sentence order)

CalifJim · Answer

dokterjokkebrokthe ellision of 'it + to be'

It is not the dropping of "It is" in "It is better" that makes it strangely formal to my ear. What's unusual is the whole expression with its use of the subjunctive. All in all, it conveys a somewhat cautionary, somewhat accusatory, somewhat theatrical flavor. (Better he (should) die than dishonor his family.)

We have the following as well, which is quite idiomatic, but it doesn't convey the same shade of meaning. It's more like neutral advice:

It would be better if he talked to his mother that way than to his father.

CJ

Better ---> subjunctive

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