What's the difference between the sentences?

Question

1. Is it typical of Ron that he should leave without saying goodbye to anybody? 2. Is it typical of Ron that he leaves without saying goodbye to anybody?

I can't understand why we use "should" in the first sentence, because usually we use "should" when we give an advice to somebody or we think that it is a good thing to do. Could you explain, please. P.S. If there are any mistakes in my question, could you correct them)

AlpheccaStars · Accepted Answer

pupilI can't understand why we use "should" in the first sentence,

It's not a common usage. It seems somewhat formal to me.

See entry #6. http://www.macmillandictionary.com/dictionary/american/should

CalifJim · Answer

pupilI can't understand why we use "should" in the first sentence

This is not advisory "should". It's called evaluative "should".

Here we are evaluating the Ron's (possible) habit of leaving without saying goodbye. We are evaluating it with regard to how typical it is. (Actually, since this is a question, we are asking someone else to evaluate it, but the idea is the same.) Various adjectives (see the examples below) can trigger the use of this evaluative "should".

It's strange that Tom should drink two glasses of water at the same time — one in each hand.
It's unfortunate that Mark should have fallen and broken his leg just after being selected for the track team.
I'm very impressed that you should take the time to help my son with his mathematics lessons.

With "should" we are not stating such bare facts as "Tom drinks two glasses of water at the same time", "Mark fell and broke his leg", or "You take time to help my son". We are also making a judgment about the fact that "Tom drinks two glasses of water ...", "Mark fell ...", or "You take time ...". These judgments, in the given examples, are "It is strange", "It is unfortunate", or "I am impressed".

CJ

What's the difference between the sentences?

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