Difference between "have done to" and "have been doing to"
This is a scene from a novel:
A boy is attacked by a bull in a field, the boy defends himself with a knife and both bull and boy are wounded. Someone asks the boy: "what has the bull done to you?" but the farmer who owns the bull asks the boy angrily: "what have you been doing to my bull?"
What is the difference between "what have you done" and "'what have you been doing" in this case? Could either be used in either sentence?
Top answer
, what happened. , what was happening. It implies a connection to something that happened.
- , what happened.
- , what was happening.
- It implies a connection to something that happened.
- What has the bull done to you?
- is like What happened?
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The simple tense (have done) tells us the 'foreground', the event itself, i.e., what happened. The continuous tense (have been doing) sets up the 'background' of an event, the activity that was going on, i.e., what was happening. It implies a connection to something that happened.
What has the bull done to you? is like What happened?
What have you bee
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