What tense?

Question

When students at school write a summary of the story they learned in English class, is it okay to mix tenses like the below:

Tom is the student practicing the piano for the chorus contest. But he hurt his wrist. David can play the piano, so he helps him. At the chorus contest, the boy playing the piano with Tom is David.

Tina's parents came to the contest. The classmates wear the same T-shirts designed by Tina. Tina's family listens to "Heal the World." It is the song sung by Tina's class. They had a great time.

Are the different tenses in the above okay? If not, what needs correcting?

Many thanks.

Pavlides · Accepted Answer

Can anyone help with this please?

Anonymous · Answer

Tense in narrative is awfully tricky. You can get wrapped around the axle pretty easily. It is often necessary to mix tenses to keep the time frame straight, and the narrative present will get you off on the wrong foot to start with.

PavlidesTom is the student practicing the piano for the chorus contest. But he hurt his wrist. David can play the piano, so he helps him. At the chorus contest, the boy playing the piano with Tom is David.

I don't know the story, so I can't say what tense goes where. For example, was Tom's wrist hurt already? Also, there are many problems that make the whole thing limp a bit, and tense is the least of them. If Tom's wrist had already been hurt before we see him practicing, I would want "But he had hurt his wrist." If he hurt his wrist in the course of the story, I would expect "But he hurts his wrist."

PavlidesTina's parents came to the contest. The classmates wear the same T-shirts designed by Tina. Tina's family listens to "Heal the World." It is the song sung by Tina's class. They had a great time.

Again, the events in the story will dictate the tenses in the summary. Suppose that Tina's parent had previously refused to come to the contest and then decided to show up at the last minute. Then "came" would be defensible, especially if their coming is reported in retrospect. The last sentence, though, seems clear. Using the narrative present, it should be "They have a great time."

What tense?

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