"As if" with future

Question

"Live as if you will never die and pray as if you will die tomorrow"

"Live as if you would never die and pray as if you would die tomorrow"

"Live as if you died tomorrow and pray as if you died tomorrow"

The first doesnt sound good to me because it is an unreal situation and should be "will"

The second doesnt sound good to me either because we dont use "would" in this part. On the contrary,for example "Were I the president,I would rule the countrz better."

So we should make the sentence past tense but the third doesnt sound good to me,either.

I confused something on somewhere but now I cannot figure it out.

Thanks for you helps.

Welkins2139 · Accepted Answer

for unreal situation, using past perfect after as if,

Live as if you had never died and pray as if you had died tomorrow.

Marius Hancu · Answer

The 3rd seems to me the best (as if may be replaced by as though). The first is, it seems, from Seneca, the famous philosopher:

http://www.shh.fi/%7Evares/work%20&%20studies.htm

"Work as if you lived forever. Love as if you died tomorrow." - Seneca, Lucius Annaeus (4 bc - 65 ad).

http://quizfarm.com/test.php?q_id=1373

Do you feel as though if you died tomorrow, no one would miss you? Disagree, Agree. 19, Do you often feel that you are being over-protected?

Redburn. His First Voyage by Melville, Herman - Chapter 17

And when you die by a pill-doctor's hands, it is never with a sweet relish
in your mouth, as though you died by a frying-pan-doctor; but your last
breath villainously savors of ipecac and rhubarb.

Patrick Mathieu Unlimited Next, take a new sheet of paper and write your obituary as though you died tomorrow. Again, cover the same points: - What will you have accomplished? ...

BarbaraPA · Answer

That's odd - I think the first one sounds best.

If you died tomorrow just sound very odd - past tense with a future date. I'm not disputing that it's used, but it sounds odd to me. In the quiz, above, for example, you are projecting even further into the future (would they miss you) so your "death" would be past tense by then... anyway, I guess this just shows that you can use it in various ways.

Does anyone like the "would" format though?

Ant_222 · Answer

«Live as if you were to die tomorrow.»

How do you find this one?

Marius Hancu · Answer

Grammar GeekDoes anyone like the "would" format though?

I think this is considered less than OK in formal use.

At:

site:literaturepost.com "as if * would never die"
has no hits, thus not too much in the online literature/fiction.

Nor is
"as if she/he would never die"
present at the New York Times.
http://www.nytimes.com

CORRECTION I'm finding it in the literature too (but mostly in older texts or translations):

The Fourth Book. Augustine, Saint. 1909-14. The Confessions of St ...

... in loving one that must die, as if he would never die? For what restored and refreshed me chiefly was the solaces of other friends, with whom I did love ...

http://www.gutenberg.org/files/17566/17566-h/17566-h.htm Their aunt was over ninety, and it did begin to seem as if she would never die.” “Was she very rich?” “Oh, very; millions; and she never gave a cent to ...
Medieval Sourcebook: William of Newburgh: Book Five ... and thinking that he would never visit the holy city Jerusalem, he began to live secure, as if he would never die, or, at least, would live very long ...

I think 1) is/it's getting quite popular in informal use. I found enough hits on the regular Google (not in fiction/literature).

BarbaraPA · Answer

Goodness, Marius. We need to crown you "king of Internet searches." I thought I knew how to do a good search, but you put me to shame.

CalifJim · Answer

In my opinion, the three are presented in order of acceptability, the most acceptable being first.

CJ

"As if" with future

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