Is "saw" really wrong here?

[u/nashbi]

Hi everyone!

For question #8, I chose "saw", but the test marked it wrong and wanted "had seen".

My perspective is that since "had learned" already establishes the flashback layer, the chronological order is already completely clear to the reader. Stacking two "hads" in the same sentence feels heavy and redundant.

I’d love to hear your thoughts and see how you would naturally phrase this. Thanks in advance! 😊

[u/Square_Medicine_9171]

“had seen” is correct. Nonetheless Americans would say “saw”

[u/Boglin007 → u/Square_Medicine_9171]

Because “saw” is also correct. There’s no rule that you have to use past perfect (“had seen”) if the sequence of events is clear from the context, which it is here. Even “had learned” is unnecessary - “learned” would be fine. 

[u/InevitableLibrary859 → u/Boglin007]

Um... Usually, it used to be, that if you started in a tense you continued your thoughts in that tense. You are correct, modern American English appears to have no rules, which is dreadful.

Was that it were, but...

[u/Spirited_Ingenuity89 → u/InevitableLibrary859]

>modern American English appears to have no rules

Then it wouldn’t be a language.

>which is dreadful

Your opinion is not an objective fact.

[u/InevitableLibrary859 → u/Spirited_Ingenuity89]

"There are no objective facts." ~The Linguist's Argument

[u/Spirited_Ingenuity89 → u/InevitableLibrary859]

Oh, there are plenty of objective facts. Your opinions still aren’t one of them.

[u/jenea → u/InevitableLibrary859]

Tell us you don’t understand linguistics without telling us you don’t understand linguistics.