Why use Subjunctive were here?
I clambered out upon the sill, but I hesitated to jump until I should have heard what passed between my savior and the ruffian who pursued me. If she were ill-used, then at any risks I was determined to go back to her assistance. The thought had hardly flashed through my mind before he was at the door, pushing his way past her; but she threw her arms round him and tried to hold him back.
The Adventure of the Engineer’s Thumb
Doyle, Arthur Conan
Context: With the cleaver-wielding Colonel Stark chasing him and a woman trying to protect him, he (Victor Hatherley) has climbed out onto a window ledge and is thinking of jumping to the ground in an attempt to escape. But out of concern for the safety of the woman (his “saviour”), he hesitates to do so.
Hi. Could you please explain why subjunctive “were” is used here? I don’t think it indicates something counterfactual.
Thank you.
Previously asked here: http://forum.wordreference.com/threads/if-she-were-ill-used.3630897/#post-18503328
Top answer
The Adventure of the Engineer’s Thumb was published in March 1892. It demonstrates the evolution of English from the Victorian age to the Internet age. There have been many changes in vocabulary, style and grammar over the past 100+ years.
- The Adventure of the Engineer’s Thumb was published in March 1892.
- It demonstrates the evolution of English from the Victorian age to the Internet age.
- There have been many changes in vocabulary, style and grammar over the past 100+ years.
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The Adventure of the Engineer’s Thumb was published in March 1892. It demonstrates the evolution of English from the Victorian age to the Internet age. There have been many changes in vocabulary, style and grammar over the past 100+ years.
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