jethrie Posted October 8, 2012 Share Posted October 8, 2012 Hello,Non-native English reader, not mid-through ASOS yet.I just read one Jaime chapter where he is told about Bolton, the Leech Lord [edited this sentence to avoid whatever minor spoiler].The person tells him "Lord Bolton is very fond of leeches", which the reader knows, but I'm not sure whether Jaime knows as well. His replies reads like:"Yes", said Jaime. "He would be."I don't understand what Jaime means, and I suspect it's because I don't understand the English construct. What does "He would be" mean in this context?Since the proposition "Lord Bolton is very fond of leeches" is at the present of indicative, if Jaime simply acknowledged the statement, he could just say "Yes he is", or, "I'll bet he is!". Is "Yes, he would be" more idiomatic?Or is there some irony in it (like, obviously if Bolton's nicknamed after leeches, it's preferrably because he likes using them, not because he looks like one! :leer:).If Jaime replies in past tense, suggesting Bolton is dead (which at this point is not suggested to be the case), shoudn't that be "Yes he was!" instead?And if this is conditional tense, then... I don't get the meaning at all!Thanks in advance English-speaking people for your help.Happy reading, J.P.S.: I haven't posted in the existing topic [Help with some English] (http://asoiaf.westeros.org/index.php/topic/73491-help-with-some-english-please/) because there are already some spoilers in it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lummel Posted October 8, 2012 Share Posted October 8, 2012 Your first and second bullet points get the meaning.Yes, he would be = yes I can believe that he would be the kind of person who would be very fond of using leeches = that fits with his character. Because this is the westeros equivalent of going daily to the gym and eating organic health foods there is irony in this.:) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jethrie Posted October 8, 2012 Author Share Posted October 8, 2012 Thanks! :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KARMAgrinder Posted October 8, 2012 Share Posted October 8, 2012 As I was reading (I recently just finished A Storm of Swords) I took it as a jab at the people around him. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ser Lewis Posted October 8, 2012 Share Posted October 8, 2012 It could be that he is comparing him to the actual leech, being a parasite and the similarities between their traits. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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