Dave's ESL Cafe's Student Discussion Forums

[SAMUEL_LYNN]

Dear CP,
Thank you for your kind reply last time.I am afraid I have to trouble you a third time.Here is my knotty problem,in the sentence 'Be careful when you walk on the street.If you don't,an accident may happen to you.',why not say 'If you aren't' instead,which can be interpreted as 'If you are not careful,' here,or is it also acceptable?In my opinion,'If you don't be careful' suggests imperative,as in the following context,'If you don't be careful,I'll give you a treat,for I'll not be criticised again by Teacher for my carelessness.'.Would you please give me a convincible explanation in
the perspective of semantics?
Yours sincerely,
Sam

[CP]

Well, I never thought about it before, but I think you are right. Most people would say, "Be careful . . . . If you don't, . . . ." It would be understandable if someone said, "Be careful . . . . If you aren't, . . . ," and probably some people would spontaneously say it that way. But most likely it is the imperative (be careful) that drives the use of "don't" instead of "aren't."

When we say, "If you don't," we're really saying, "If you don't be careful." If one were to use "careful" in the second sentence, though, one would more likely say, "If you aren't careful, . . . ," because "don't be" sounds awkward there.

I think we would use "aren't" in this case:

"You should be careful when you walk in the street. If you aren't, you could get hurt." You should be careful, and if you aren't careful, then something bad can happen.

I'm sure others will have more to say about this, but that's my take.
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