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Is it okay to write this:

Her condition was that he should not be allowed into her house.

Or, is the grammatical format this:

Her condition was that he not be allowed into her house.

Peter
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skywardhope
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    Either is acceptable. – Tᴚoɯɐuo May 24 '17 at 17:54
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    Your second (subjunctive) version is significantly more formal/dated, so you'd probably be well-advised to stick with the first one. – FumbleFingers May 24 '17 at 18:05
  • Both sound good to me. – Andrew May 24 '17 at 18:09
  • @Andrew: What are you? A die-hard subjunctivist? :) – FumbleFingers May 24 '17 at 18:10
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    @FumbleFingers I'm American and easily impressed by anything that sounds remotely like posh British :) – Andrew May 24 '17 at 18:11
  • (I think anyone who's okay with asking whether something is "okay" probably *doesn't* want to get bogged down with things like the subjunctive in contexts like this! :) – FumbleFingers May 24 '17 at 18:12
  • Related, if not actual dups: [The condition that {something} be {something}](https://ell.stackexchange.com/questions/114265/) and [Why is it 'come' and not 'comes' in 'it is important that he come…'?](https://ell.stackexchange.com/questions/72518/) – FumbleFingers May 24 '17 at 18:19
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    I don't generally like questions that ask, "Is this okay?" because the answer is generally, "Sure, it's okay." In this case, though, I'll point out that it reads a little awkward to me, and I'd prefer seeing something like: "Her condition was **so grave** that he was not allowed into her house." – J.R. May 24 '17 at 18:35
  • @Andrew Posh BrE would be more "Her condition was *such* that *it would not be advisable* he be allowed in her house.: ;-) – Peter May 24 '17 at 18:44
  • @Peter - I was thinking about mentioning "such that" – I'm glad you did. – J.R. May 24 '17 at 19:07
  • I think the datedness of #2 may have to do with which side of the Atlantic you're on, and whether you tend to read the kind of texts where it's used, or not. It strikes me as formal, not dated. – Tᴚoɯɐuo May 24 '17 at 19:40
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    Guys, I think the context is that this is a *demand* or *requirement* of hers. It's not a medical condition, AFAIK. – Tᴚoɯɐuo May 24 '17 at 19:41
  • @Tᴚoɯɐuo, agreed. And, that being the case, #2 seems better to me. Cleaner, more succinct. – cydonian May 24 '17 at 19:46
  • @Tᴚoɯɐuo - Ohhhh! **That** kind of condition. (I wish the OP had explained that. I swear, sometimes questions get asked around here as if we charge by the word or something.) – J.R. May 24 '17 at 20:47

2 Answers2

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If the context of the question is that she is making a demand, as in

A condition of the agreement is that he not be allowed within 150 feet of the house.

then the subjunctive is fine. It is more formal than the modal "should not be", however, if the context demands formality (as an agreement would), the subjunctive is not dated or old-fashioned but quite common.

Tᴚoɯɐuo
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  • However, in case it was a medical condition, you could write "Her condition was *such* that he should not be allowed into her house." from the POV of a third-party. – user3169 May 24 '17 at 19:49
  • @user3169: She could also be having a bad hair day. Or she could be naked. – Tᴚoɯɐuo May 24 '17 at 19:53
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Both are correct. The second example is in the present subjunctive and is more formal, but both are grammatically correct. I like the subjunctive form you give though and I would probably use it most of the time; however that's just my choice.

Nicholas Castagnola
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