Mandative subjunctive mood

‘I recommend that he go’ or ‘I recommend that he goes’?

Photo Credit: Halima Raji

I have had a hitch trying to explain this mandative subjunctive mood to my students the very first day. Some of them wouldn’t just grasp it even after some long explanation because it just sounds strange or unusual for statements to be expressed that way.

The mandative subjunctive is used with clauses that usually, but not always, begin with that and express a demand, requirement, request, recommendation, suggestion, necessity, proposal, or even prayer.

Consider the following examples:

1. It is recommended that the Board approve the policy.

2. I suggest she leave the country.

3. I demand that he pay his share.

4. It was necessary that the man be on time.

5. The manager requested that they submit the documents with them.

6. I pray Nigerians survive this season.

7. We suggested that my brother have a cook.

8. I insist that he leave immediately.

It is mandative because it indicates the quality of being a command, or something related to it. The best way to fully grasp this is to see the mandative subjunctive mood alone without the use of ‘it is/it was/I demand/I insist/we suggested.

In the first example, what is recommended is that the Board approve the policy, we would just say something like approve the policy, something like a command or recommendation, right? Or in the fourth example, be on time, something like a necessity, or leave immediately (as in the last example).

In this regard, it is grammatically incorrect to express the verbs in mandative subjunctive mood to agree with the subject or conjugate them. The verbs in the subjunctive mood must be expressed in their base forms. Simply put, the base form of a verb is the verb as it is. That is, the way it appears in a dictionary, in its plainest form, when nothing is added to it.

For example, these verbs are in their base forms: have, see, jump, be, approve, leave, pay, go, survive, do, find, etc. Nothing has yet been added to it. They are just like they are. When you add or change their forms, we say they have been conjugated in grammar. Conjugation, then, will result in their existing in singular, plural, past tense, present or past participles.

In mandative subjunctive mood, the base forms of the verbs must be used with necessity, recommendation, insistence, demand, suggestion, request, or prayer.

Please note that the request, demand, suggestion, recommendation may be in the past or present (as in examples 4, 5, and 7), the base forms of the verbs must still be used to properly express the mandative subjunctive mood.

Expressing wishes or conditions contrary to fact?

The subjunctive mood of a verb is used to express a wish or a condition contrary to fact. When it is used to express a condition contrary to fact, the clause often starts with if, as if or as though.

I wish I were you.
If I were a carpenter, would you marry me anyway?
She acted as if she were guilty.

PS. The verb in the second clause should be rendered in « were » and NOT in « was ».

Yours in English,

Francis