Past simple or perfect
Last semester, John failed his finals. He hadn't studied because he was/had been depressed.
Which tense should I use here? If it were an action, I'd go with the past perfect as it happened before he failed his finals, but it's a state and I'm not sure which one's right. Can anyone explain? Thank you.
P.S
He was depressed before his finals, at the time when he couldn't study. He wasn't depressed after the finals.
Top answer
Necrophagist Last semester, John failed his finals. He hadn't studied because he was/had been depressed. "had been depressed" means that he was depressed during the time leading up to the failure.
- Necrophagist Last semester, John failed his finals.
- He hadn't studied because he was/had been depressed.
- "had been depressed" means that he was depressed during the time leading up to the failure.
- "was depressed" means that he was depressed generally at and around the time of the finals, including before and potentially afterwards.
- It sounds as if you mean the former.
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NecrophagistLast semester, John failed his finals. He hadn't studied because he was/had been depressed.
"had been depressed" means that he was depressed during the time leading up to the failure. "was depressed" means that he was depressed generally at and around the time of the finals, including before and potentially afterwards. It sounds as if you mean t
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