Past perfect in simple past?

Question

With past perfect one is automatically referring to a time before the past. But can one not express a condition that was established in simple past by using past perfect, that was valid from there on out?

For example, basically like this: He did this, and by this he had established a condition that one will be talking about from there on out.

It seems natural to use perfect in a case when such a condition is established, even if it is basically in the same timeline of the past.

But note that is not referring to something that is necessarily still valid now, because one is referring to something that was in the (simple) past.

AlpheccaStars · Accepted Answer

AnonymousWith past perfect one is automatically referring to a time before the past.

There is nothing before the past. The past is the past.

Past perfect is used to refer to a time reference point that occurs earlier in time than another time reference point in the past. There are other occasions to use the past perfect. Here is a good explanation:
http://www.perfect-english-grammar.com/past-perfect-use.html

It seems like you are citing an example of #2 (A reason for something that happened in the past).
eg.

The River Thames has always been pronounced "Tems."
There once was a rumor that a certain old English king could not pronounce the "th" sound, and that it was he who had established the tradition of pronouncing the name of the river with the beginning "t" sound.

Anonymous · Answer

With "the" past, I meant a specific past. The correction of this element I think is unnecessary and goes without saying (there is no other possible explanation [nobody could possibly think otherwise]).

The example seems similar to what I mean.

AlpheccaStars · Answer

AnonymousWith "the" past, I meant a specific past. The correction of this element I think is unnecessary and goes without saying

In English, "the past" refers to (all) earlier time. When we mean a specific time, or time reference in the past, we phrase it differently.

My correction was just the advice to a person who is probably not a native English speaker, to learn a better and more precise way to express what you mean.

Past perfect in simple past?

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