ENGLISH NOTE 14 " What is all this fuss about " shall" and " will" ?

In this post,I am taking up the use of " shall " and " will ".

1. I note that in North America " shall " is not used at all.

2. Be that as may,  let us understand the traditional rules of British English for the use of" shall".

3. Kindly remember that the traditional rule is not normally followed in UK.

4. "I SHALL " and "WE SHALL" express simple future. But for all the other persons " WILL" expresses the simple future." You will "," he will "," they will " etc.

5. " I WILL" and " WE WILL" express intention or determination on the part of the speaker ( especially a promise made by him or her).

6. In respect of the other persons,

"SHALL" expresses intention or determination on the part of the speaker (especially a promise made by him or her) " You shall "," he shall", " they shall " etc.

7. But now the above difference is ignored by the British people. So we foreigners also can ignore that rule without feeling guilty about it. But in North America " SHALL " is not used at all.

8. In all legal documents," SHALL " is used especially in third persons to refer to obligations and duties.

Please note Article 74 of the CONSTITUTION OF INDIA.

" There shall be a Council of Ministers with the Prime Minister at the head to aid and advise the President who SHALL, in the exercise of his functions, act in accord with such advice."

Please note the use of " SHALL" in the above lines.  It expresses a legal obligation on the part of the President to accept the advice of his Council of Ministers and he has no choice.

Suffice it to say that "WILL" is more common than " SHALL " in modern usage of English.

Sayee Jayaraman

20/02/2015

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