Contrastive analysis (CA)

2.1.1. Conventional meanings of “Can”

• 
  Ability
  

(Ngåi vµo mét chç, cho ®Õn khi nµo mµy biÕt nãi n¨ng ý tø, giê th× h·y c©m måm ®i! (1:26))

(2)… and eyes like Miss Scatcherd's can only see those minute defects, and are blind to the full brightness of the orb. (3: Chapter VIII)

(Vµ nh÷ng con m¾t nh­ c« Xcats¬ th× chØ cã thÓ nh×n thÊy nh÷ng khuyÕt ®iÓm vÆt v·nh, chø nh×n sao thÊy næi ¸nh s¸ng r¹ng rì cña v× tinh tó. (1: 135))

(3) You think I have no feelings, and that I can do without one bit of love or kindness; but I cannot live so: and you have no pity. (3: Chapter IV)

(Bµ nghÜ t«i lµ kÎ kh«ng cã t×nh c¶m vµ t«i cã thÓ sèng kh«ng cÇn ®Õn t×nh th­¬ng, kh«ng cÇn ®­îc ®èi xö tö tÕ; nh­ng t«i kh«ng thÓ nµo sèng nh­ vËy ®­îc, cßn bµ lµ ng­êi nhÉn t©m. (1: 78))

In (1) and (2) can expresses the ability to perform an action. We use can to talk about present or general ability; in other words, can is used to say that someone has a particular skill or ability.

In this use can is more like a full verb than any other modal. There is a past tense form with past time reference. We use could for general ability to say that somebody could do something at any time, whenever he/ she wanted.

E.g. (4) She boasted of beautiful paintings of landscapes and flowers by them executed; of songs they could sing and pieces they could play, of purses they could net, of French books they could translate; (3: Chapter III)

(Betxi t¸n d­¬ng nh÷ng bøc häa phong c¶nh vµ hoa l¸ do chÝnh tay hä vÏ, nh÷ng ca khóc hä cã thÓ h¸t, nh÷ng vë kÞch hä cã thÓ ®ãng, nh÷ng c¸i tói hä cã thÓ ®an, nh÷ng s¸ch Ph¸p v¨n häc hä cã thÓ dÞch ®­îc. (1: 58))

We also use can if we are declaring now about the future.

E.g. (5) "If I had anywhere else to go, I should be glad to leave it; but I can never get away from Gateshead till I am a woman." (3: Chapter III)

(NÕu ch¸u cã mét n¬i kh¸c th× ch¸u rÊt vui lßng tõ bá n¬i ®©y, nh­ng ch¸u kh«ng bao giê mong ra khái Gat¬het nÕu ch­a kh«n lín. (1: 56))

Can is also used to say that someone is aware of something through one of their senses. In this case, can is used with verbs of sensation but can here seems often to add nothing to the meaning of the sentence without can. It loses the sense of modality. If someone does something, he has an ability to do it. The function of can turns into the one of helping the main verb to denote a state rather than an event.

E.g. (6) Children can feel, but they cannot analyse their feelings; (3: Chapter III)

(TrÎ con cã nh÷ng t×nh c¶m mµ chóng kh«ng thÓ ph©n tÝch ®­îc. (1: 55))

Similarly, could is used to say that someone was aware of something through one of their senses on a particular occasion in the past.

E.g. (7) Leaning a little back on my bench, I could see the looks and grimaces with which they commented on this manoeuvre: it was a pity Mr. Brocklehurst could not see them too; (3: Chapter VII)

(Ngåi trªn ghÕ h¬i ng¶ ng­êi vÒ ®»ng sau, t«i tr«ng thÊy nh÷ng c¸i nh×n vµ nh¨n mÆt cña hä trong khi hä lµm theo lÖnh; thËt ®¸ng tiÕc «ng Br«ch¬n-h¬c kh«ng ®­îc chøng kiÕn c¶nh Êy; (1: 128))

E.g. (8) "Whenever I can be useful, sir." (3: Chapter XX)

(BÊt cø khi nµo t«i cã thÓ gióp Ých cho «ng. (1:421))

The passive with can is possible if the agent is unspecified, ie in agentless passives or when the agent is “anyone” (although semantically it is the agent not the subject of the passive sentence that has or does not have ability).

E.g. (9) "The human and fallible should not arrogate a power with which the divine and perfect alone can be safely intrusted." (3: Chapter XIV)

(Con ng­êi yÕu ®uèi kh«ng ®­îc tù ban cho m×nh mét quyÒn lùc mµ chØ nh÷ng bËc thÇn th¸nh v¹n toµn míi cã ®­îc. (1: 271))

Last but not least, ability can bring in the implication of willingness (especially in spoken English).

E.g. (10) "Can I help you, sir? -- I'd give my life to serve you." (3: Chapter XIX)

(T«i cã thÓ gióp ®ì «ng ®iÒu g× ch¨ng! T«i cã thÓ hy sinh c¶ cuéc ®êi t«i ®Ó phôc vô «ng. (1: 390))

• 
  Possibility
  

a) Theoretical or general possibility

We use can to say whether situations and events are possible theoretically, in general.

E.g. (11) "Because I have less confidence in my deserts than Adele has: she can prefer the claim of old acquaintance, and the right too of custom;…” (3: Chapter XIII)

(Bëi v× t«i kh«ng coi m×nh cã quyÒn nh­ A®en ®­îc. A®en cã thÓ dùa vµo chç ®· biÕt «ng tõ l©u, vµ còng do thãi quen n÷a… (1: 239))

(12) "That sounds a dangerous maxim, sir; because one can see at once that it is liable to abuse." (3: Chapter XIV)

(§ã cã thÓ lµ mét ch©m ng«n nguy h¹i, «ng ¹, v× ng­êi ta cã thÓ nhËn thÊy ngay r»ng nã cã thÓ ®­a ®Õn sù l¹m dông. (1: 270))
b) Logical possibility

We use can in questions and negative sentences to talk about the logical possibility that something is true or that something is happening.

E.g. (13) "Can it be you, Jane?" she asked, in her own gentle voice. (3: Chapter IX)

(K×a, l¹i cã thÓ lµ chÞ ­, Jªn? C« hái t«i, vÉn víi c¸i giäng dÞu dµng. (1: 160)

(14) “A stranger! -- no; who can it be? I expected no one; is he gone?" (3: Chapter XIX)

(Mét ng­êi l¹ mÆt µ! Kh«ng; ai thÕ nhØ? T«i kh«ng chê ®îi ai c¶. Ng­êi Êy ®· ®i ch­a? (1:389))

E.g. (15) "No; but I can scarcely see what Mr. Rochester has to do with the theme you had introduced." (3: Chapter XIX)

(Kh«ng ®©u, nh­ng t«i kh«ng cho r»ng «ng R«chext¬ cã liªn quan ®Õn vÊn ®Ò cô võa nãi. (1: 381))

(16) "Yes, Mrs. Rochester," said he; "young Mrs. Rochester -- Fairfax Rochester's girl-bride."

(Ph¶i, bµ R«chext¬ - «ng nãi – bµ R«chext¬ trÎ tuæi, ng­êi vî trÎ s¾p c­íi cña Fef©c R«chext¬.

Kh«ng bao giê cã thÓ nh­ vËy, th­a «ng, ®iÒu Êy cã vÎ nh­ kh«ng thùc. (2: 78))

• 
  Permission
  

E.g. (17) “… you can go and inquire in about a week after you send your letter, if any are come, and act accordingly." (3: Chapter X)

(… sau khi göi mét tuÇn, m×nh cã thÓ l¹i ®Êy mµ hái; nÕu cã th­ ®Õn, m×nh sÏ cø viÖc theo ®Êy mµ tiÕn hµnh c«ng viÖc. (1: 172))

(18) As he was returning the box to his waistcoat pocket, a loud bell rang for the servants' dinner; he knew what it was. "That's for you, nurse," said he; "you can go down; I'll give Miss Jane a lecture till you come back." (3: Chapter III)

(Lóc «ng bá hép thuèc l¸ vµo tói th× võa lóc tiÕng chu«ng b¸o giê ¨n cña c¸c gia nh©n rÐo vang, «ng còng biÕt hiÖu chu«ng nµy.

- Chu«ng gäi chÞ ®Êy, chÞ b¶o mÉu ¹, chÞ xuèng ®i. Trong lóc kh«ng cã chÞ ë ®©y, t«i sÏ gi¶ng gi¶i cho c« Jªn nghe. (1: 54))

In (18), in Vietnamese the words do not show any sense of permission but can itself implies permission as this is what Mr. Lloyd, an apothecary, sometimes called in by Mrs. Reed when the servants were ailing, talks to Bessie – a servant.

Could is used to say that someone was allowed to do something in the past.

E.g. (19) "Oh! I daresay she is crying because she could not go out with Missis in the carriage," interposed Bessie. (3: Chapter III)

(ChÞ Betxi nãi chªm vµo:

“å, t«i cho r»ng c« Êy khãc chØ v× kh«ng ®­îc ®i xe víi bµ chñ ®Êy th«i. (1: 53))

G. N. Leech states that linguistic law-makers of the past have considered may to be the correct auxiliary of permission, and have condemned the use of can. English-speaking schoolchildren used to be rebuked for saying Can I….? instead of May I….? Yet in fact, can is much more widely used as an auxiliary of permission than may. In asking and giving permission, can and may are almost interchangeable, the main difference being that may is more formal, and is sometimes felt to be more polite.

• 
  Expressing uncertainty and doubt
  

The doubt can be about something in general.

E.g. (20) "Why can she not influence him more, when she is privileged to draw so near to him?" I asked myself. (3: Chapter XVIII)

(T«i tù hái: “T¹i sao c« ta kh«ng g©y ®­îc nhiÒu ¶nh h­ëng h¬n ®èi víi «ng, trong khi c« ta cã ­u thÕ ®­îc gÇn gòi nh­ vËy?” (1: 359)

(21) "How can she bear it so quietly -- so firmly?" I asked of myself. (3: Chapter V)

(T«i tù hái: “Lµm sao mµ c« ta l¹i cã thÓ kiªn tr×, th¶n nhiªn chÞu ®ùng ®­îc nh­ vËy?” (1:106))

• 
  Can and negation
  

E.g. (22) I cannot precisely define what they expected, but it was something pleasant: not perhaps that day or that month, but at an indefinite future period. (ability) (3: Chapter X)

(T«i kh«ng sao x¸c ®Þnh ®­îc chóng chê ®îi c¸i g×, nh­ng h¼n lµ mét ®iÒu g× thó vÞ, cã thÓ kh«ng ph¶i lµ cho ngµy h«m Êy hoÆc th¸ng Êy, mµ lµ cho mét t­¬ng lai kh«ng râ rÖt. (1:195))

(23) … and John and his wife are very decent people; but then you see they are only servants, and one can't converse with them on terms of equality: one must keep them at due distance, for fear of losing one's authority. (permission) (3: Chapter XI)

(… cßn J«n vµ vî anh còng ®Òu lµ nh÷ng ng­êi rÊt dÔ chÞu, nh­ng dï sao hä vÉn chØ lµ nh÷ng kÎ ¨n ng­êi lµm, kh«ng thÓ nµo trß chuyÖn b×nh ®¼ng víi hä ®­îc, kh«ng nªn lu«n gÇn gòi víi hä, v× nh­ vËy hä sÏ ®©m nhên. (1:192))

(24) "No; impossible! my supposition cannot be correct...” (possibility) (3: Chapter XVI)

(“Kh«ng, kh«ng thÓ ®­îc; m×nh pháng ®o¸n nh­ vËy kh«ng ®óng” (1: 304))

2.1.2. Conventional meanings of “May”

• 
  Possibility
  

E.g. (25) "Well, well! who knows what may happen?" said Mr. Lloyd, as he got up. (3:Chapter III)

(¤ng L«i ®øng dËy nãi:

- §­îc, ®­îc. Ai biÕt sù viÖc x¶y ra sau nµy? (1 : 58)

(26) Oh, madam, when you put bread and cheese, instead of burnt porridge, into these children's mouths, you may indeed feed their vile bodies, but you little think how you starve their immortal souls! (3: Chapter VII)

(å, th­a bµ, khi bµ cho lò trÎ ¨n b¸nh m× vµ pho m¸t, chø kh«ng ph¶i ch¸o khª, tøc lµ bµ nu«i d­ìng c¸i thÓ x¸c tÇm th­êng cña chóng mµ kh«ng nghÜ r»ng bµ ®Ó cho linh hån bÊt diÖt cña chóng bÞ chÕt ®ãi nh­ thÕ nµo! (1: 126)

We can also use may for an uncertain prediction or intention. May in this sense usually refers to a future event when it combines with an event verb.

E.g. (27) Teachers and pupils may look coldly on you for a day or two, but friendly feelings are concealed in their hearts;… (3: Chapter VIII)

E.g. (28) Mrs. Reed might be at that time some six or seven and thirty; (3: Chapter IV)

(Håi Êy bµ chõng ba m­¬i s¸u, ba m­¬i b¶y; (1: 76))

If we put well after may, we are indicating that it is fairly likely that something is the case; in other words, may well suggests a strong possibility.

E.g. (29) "You may well say so, ma'am: it was frightful!" (3: Chapter XXXVI)

(§óng thÕ, bµ ¹, thËt lµ kinh khñng! (2: 400))

• 
  Permission
  

E.g. (30) "May I go up and speak to her?" (3: Chapter IX)

(T«i cã thÓ ®Õn nãi chuyÖn víi Hªlen ®­îc kh«ng? (1: 158))

Moreover, may is used to give permission and may not is used to refer and to forbid.

E.g. (31) "You think too much of your 'toilette,' Adele: but you may have a flower." (3:Chapter XVII)

(Em lÊy mét b«ng còng ®­îc, nh­ng em chó ý ®Õn viÖc trang ®iÓm nhiÒu qu¸ ®Êy A®en ¹! (1: 329))

(32) "You are better, then. You may sit you down in my chair on the hearthstone, if you will." (3: Chapter XXIX)

(“VËy th× c« ®· kh¸ ®Êy. C« cã muèn ngåi th× ngåi vµo ghÕ cña t«i ë bªn lß s­ëi nµy. (2:233))

(33) “… I mention this in your hearing, Jane, that you may not attempt to impose on Mr. Brocklehurst." (3: Chapter IV)

(Tao nãi ra nh÷ng ®iÒu nµy tr­íc mÆt mµy, Jªn ¹, ®Ó mµy ®õng cã hßng mµ lõa dèi «ng Br«k¬n-h¬c. (1: 73))

These are rather formal. In an informal style can and cannot/ can’t are more common. However, many people feel that it is more correct and polite to use may to ask for permission to do something rather than can.

2.1.3. Conventional meanings of “Must”

• 
  Obligation or requirement
  

E.g. (34) To this crib I always took my doll; human beings must love something,… (3:Chapter IV)

(Bao giê t«i còng ®em theo con bóp bª vµo gi­êng; ®· lµ con ng­êi th× ph¶i cã c¸i g× ®Ó yªu… (1: 64))

(35) "That proves you have a wicked heart; and you must pray to God to change it: to give you a new and clean one: to take away your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh." (3: Chapter IV)

(§iÒu ®ã tá r»ng c« cã mét tr¸i tim rÊt xÊu, c« ph¶i cÇu Chóa ®æi cho c« tr¸i tim kh¸c trong tr¾ng, vøt bá tr¸i tim b»ng ®¸ cña c« mµ thay vµo ®Êy b»ng mét tr¸i tim b»ng thÞt. (1: 72))

Moreover, the usual implication of must (= obligation) is that the speaker is the person who exerts authority over the person(s) mentioned in the clause. Consistent with this principle, I must and We must convey the idea of self-obligation the speaker exerts power over himself (and possibly others), eg through a sense of duty, through self-discipline, or merely through a sense of expediency.

E.g. (36) "But you two are my visitors to-night; I must treat you as such." (3: Chapter VIII)

(Hai em ®Òu lµ kh¸ch cña c« tèi nay; c« ph¶i ®èi ®·i víi c¸c em nh­ thÕ. (1:143))

(37) “… We all must die one day,…” (3: Chapter IX)

(Mét ngµy kia råi tÊt c¶ chóng ta ai còng ph¶i chÕt… (1: 161))

We might use such structures to paraphrase these sentences as It is obligatory that …, It is essential that…, or It is necessary to… the speaker is urging a general course of action, rather than urging a particular course of action on the hearer. However, it is hard to draw a dividing line between this use and that of general obligation: they are two variants of the same meaning.

• 
  Logical necessity
  

E.g. (38) "Eat that now," she said: "you must be hungry. Hannah says you have had nothing but some gruel since breakfast." (3: Chapter XXIX)

(C« h·y ¨n t¹m ®i, ch¾c c« ®ãi l¾m nhØ. Giµ Hanna b¶o r»ng tõ lóc ®iÓm t©m ®Õn giê c« chØ míi ¨n cã Ýt ch¸o bét. (2: 241))

(39) “… She must be eight or nine years old."(3: Chapter III)

(C« Êy lªn t¸m hay lªn chÝn råi chø cßn g×. (1: 54)

Must is used here of knowledge arrived at the inference or reasoning rather than by direct experience. In each case, a chain of logical thinking can be imagined. Nevertheless, knowledge acquired indirectly, by inference, is less certain than knowledge derived from direct experience. Thus logical necessity can easily be weakened to reasonable assumption. This weakening is evident in remarks like You must be Mr Black (i.e. I assure/ take it that you are Mr Black).

In addition, must can be used to express the conclusion that something is certain or highly probable – to suggest that there are excellent arguments for believing something. Based on particular facts or circumstances, we use must to show that we believe something is the case or something is certain to happen.

• 
  Must and negation
  

E.g. (40) And before I could draw breath, "I must not forget I have a word to say respecting her." (3: Chapter VII)

(T«i ch­a kÞp thë «ng l¹i nãi:

- T«i kh«ng ®­îc quªn r»ng t«i cã ®iÒu cÇn nãi vÒ nã. (1: 130))