Copysnake Posted 18 years ago
Grammar
Gramma question
"The mystery is that this should come as a surprise to any boss. Surely it should be obvious to the dimmest executive that trust, that most valuable of economic assets, is easily destroyed and hugely expensive to restore – and that few things are more likely to destroy trust than a company letting sensitive personal data get into the wrong hands."
I'm confused that why the author use "should" here. I thought "should" means "you'd better do " or "do something correct"
I'm a Foreign Language Learners and i'm very intrested in learning english ,so i will appreciate that someone can do me a favor.thank you !
I'm confused that why the author use "should" here. I thought "should" means "you'd better do " or "do something correct"
I'm a Foreign Language Learners and i'm very intrested in learning english ,so i will appreciate that someone can do me a favor.thank you !
Top answer
Should here is the 'putative should', not the should = ought to . It avoids stating that the mystery will actually 'come as a surprise'; it is just a neutral idea (to paraphase Leech and Svartvik).
Get the Weekly English Kit 📬
New words, one handy idiom, and a 2-minute quiz — delivered to your inbox to keep your streak alive.
0
.
Should here is the 'putative should', not the should = ought to. It avoids stating that the mystery will actually 'come as a surprise'; it is just a neutral idea (to paraphase Leech and Svartvik).
Should here is the 'putative should', not the should = ought to. It avoids stating that the mystery will actually 'come as a surprise'; it is just a neutral idea (to paraphase Leech and Svartvik).
00
