simple grammar question

[MOLLY V. PEENEY]

Yes, it boils down to expectation.  

Ona ne byla v magazine = There was no expectation that she would be in the store. 
Ee ne bylo v magazine = There was some expectation that she would be there (you agreed to meet there, or she works there, etc.) but against expectation, she was not there.

Ona ne byla v Moskve = There was no expectation/no plan for her to be in Moscow.
Ee ne bylo v Moskve = There was some expectation that she would be there (she lives there, she had travel plans, etc.) but she was not there.

----- Original Message -----
From: Svetlana Grenier <greniers at GEORGETOWN.EDU>
Date: Tuesday, March 23, 2010 12:01 pm
Subject: Re: [SEELANGS] simple grammar question
To: SEELANGS at bama.ua.edu

> Dear Nola,
> 
> >Ольга не была сегодня в магазине. Olga was not in the shop today
> > 
> But really the sentence means "she did not go to/show up at  the store 
> today"
> 
> To say "She was not in the shop/She was absent from the shop today" 
> you would say:  Ольги сегодня не было в магазине (This implies that 
> she works [or normally hangs out] there but was not at work today).  Thus,
> 
> Ольга не была сегодня в магазине -- means the same as
> Ольга не ходила сегодня в магазин.
> 
> As in: Вчера мы были в кино =  Вчера мы ходили в кино.
> 
> So in such examples the subject is "present" in the sentence and 
> performs or does not perform some action (going somewhere)..  
> Therefore the verb agrees with the subject.  The sentence answers the 
> implied question about Olga's trip to the store.
> 
> In your second example the subject is absent from a place, and that is 
> the focus of the sentence; therefore, the negative verb with the 
> genitive shows that absence.  The same  goes for 
> >Тогда  её не было в Москве. At that time, she wasn't in Moscow.= She 
> was absent from Moscow.
> >
> >The implication is that she lives in Moscow and was not there.  But, 
> for example, she lives in the US.  We would say that she "never was in 
> Moscow": Ольга (никогда еще) не была в Москве.
> >
> My two cents!
> Best,
> Svetlana
> 
> -- 
> Svetlana S. Grenier
> 
> Associate Professor
> Department of Slavic Languages
> Box 571050
> Georgetown University
> Washington, DC 20057-1050
> 202-687-6108
> greniers at georgetown.edu
> 
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------
> Use your web browser to search the archives, control your subscription
>  options, and more.  Visit and bookmark the SEELANGS Web Interface at:
>                    http://seelangs.home.comcast.net/
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------

-------------------------------------------------------------------------
 Use your web browser to search the archives, control your subscription
  options, and more.  Visit and bookmark the SEELANGS Web Interface at:
                    http://seelangs.home.comcast.net/
-------------------------------------------------------------------------