The Use of Simple Past Tense

2.1.6.2 The Use of Simple Past Tense

Thomson and Martinet 1983:153 assert that simple past tense is the tense normally used for action 1 when the time given I drank coffee yesterday: 2 when the time is asked about when did you drink coffee?: when the action clearly took place at a definite time even though this time isn‟t mentioned The students was five minutes late; How did you get your present job?; I made a cake. Sometimes, the time becomes definite as a result of the question and answer in the present perfect tense, but normally continuous in the simple past tense, even when not the time given. This is because the action is previously mentioned, then it becomes definite in the minds of the speaker. The example as follows; A: Where have you been? B: I‟ve been at the supermarket. A: What did you buy? B: I bought a book. A: How much did it cost? B: It was two thousand rupiahs. The simple past tense is used for an action whose time is not given but which 1 occupied a period of time now terminated, or 2 occurred in a period now terminated. 1 ................................. He lived in Indonesia for ten years but now he is not living here She taught in Ki ndergarten for a long time but she doesn‟t teach there now 2 ................x.........,,,,.. My brother saw David Beckham Did you go to the beach? The chart of simple past tense Azar 1989:2 X It means that at one particular time in the past, this happened. It began and ended in the past. In addition, Parrot 2000:185 give clearer information of the use of past tense. According to him, we can use simple past tense are as follows: a Finished period of time The simple past is one of the tenses use to refer to completed events, states, or action. We choose the past simple when we consider that the event, state, or action took place within a finished period of time. For example Shakespeare wrote over 30 plays. i.e during his life. We know that he was dead. Sometimes the „finished period of time‟ is not only implied, it is also entirely subjective. The following example appears to contradict the rule about finished periods of time as today by definition is unfinished. However, the speaker thinks of today perhaps the working day as over. For example: I saw Harry in theoffice today. The speaker was not in the office anymore. b Precise detail We also use the Past Simple Tense when we provide precise circumstantial detail abou t an event e.g. we can say I‟ve had my appendix out but we have to use the past simple tense as soon as we specify, for example, where or how do not say I‟ve had my appendix out in Warsaw but I had my appendix out in Warsaw. c Time anchor In telling stories and describing what happened in the past we use the simple past as a „time anchor‟- to establish the key „time frame‟ of events. We also use the simple past to describe the key events that move the story forward. we use other tenses notably the past perfect and past continuous to show the relationship of other events to this „time frame‟.

2.1.7 Simple Past Tense Taught Integratedly through Narrative Text by Using Course Review Horay

Nowadays, based on the School-based Curriculum the teaching grammar is not taught explicitly but integratively. It means that in teaching grammar teacher teaches the pattern of grammar or language feature integrated with the texts as the material of learning that construct the texts. Through text or genre students can identify or analyse the language feature of the text itself. It means that the students are expected to be able to identify the tenses that used in the text. Learning