"will" and "be going to"

[Iryna.p]

Can somebody prompt me on the difference between such two sentences:
1. The baby will be born after Christmas.
2. She's going to have a baby next year.
I thought that sent.1 could be used, say, by a doctor talking to a mum-to-be and specifying the term, while sent.2 - by a friend sharing the news. Am I right?

[OxfordBlues]

No it has nothing to do with familiarity.

will is future by volition (wanting). Shall is future by circumstance (a future brought about by forces outside of the subject's desire for it to happen). Be+going is used for future by intent (the speaker intends on making this future happen).

Technically the first one should be 'The baby shall be born after Christmas.' because whether it is born then is determined by nature, not the desire of the mother, doctor, or baby to be born at a given time.

'She's going to have a baby next year' means that she intends to have a baby next year, but she is likely not pregnant now.

Warning -- most native speakers are not familiar with the actual uses of these forms and mix them up.
_________________
There's no such thing as an exception to the rule...

My blog: http://calleteach.wordpress.com

[Iryna.p]

That's what I had expected before I came round such a text on this site. "I hear Joan's going to have a baby next year. I expect it'll be a boy this time I wouldn't be surprised. She's having a nurse come next week to help her with her 5 girls and maybe a boy will make life easier for her!"
Do you think this "going to" is still an intention? I presumed it is already something to happen for sure and it puzzled me a lot.

[OxfordBlues]

It's probably not being used for intention. I make this mistake myself all the time! Old habits are hard to break ;)

If you really want to know about the technically correct side of this I have written a (long) paper that details the 10 ways of expressing the future in English. It explains their history, the reason for their forms and usage, and the correct usage.

http://calleteach.wordpress.com/2009/12/17/an-inventory-and-discussion-of-english-futurity/
_________________
There's no such thing as an exception to the rule...

My blog: http://calleteach.wordpress.com

[Jorgedon]

The first sentence is correct. Why? It establishes a given fact that the mother is pregnant and is about to give birth to a child that has reached 9 month maturity (normally) starting from the month the baby was conceived. But it will also be just a mere probable speculation if the baby will not be born after Christmas, say, the time of birth will lapse. I believe this will vary from person to person on how well they understand such statement. Though such statement expresses certainty that the child be born at a calculated time, still there is a possibility it won't happen under unexpected circumstances like, delay of giving birth, divine intervention, etc. So, "The baby shall be born after Christmas" is ideally proper to use.

[Jorgedon]

Your second sentence would be logically understood if the "subject" is really sure of getting pregnant; that is, she has a clear intention of having a baby. This sentence is a reported statement from another person who was given or have learned about such information that such plan is going to happen in the coming year. So, it will only be justified if such plan will be carried out at the expected time; otherwise if the plan fails, it will be considered as a lost of thought. However, your second sentence follows the rules in grammar, so it is still correct.

[Jorgedon]

I am pleased to learn about your site and am grateful for providing a more descriptive definition about the usage of future forms. I am an ESL teacher and I want to learn and expound more my knowledge in grammar. I hope you would be kind enough to share your expertise and knowledge in the English language. Thanks!

[OxfordBlues]

Welcome Jorge!

Be careful though as will is not one of the certain (definite) futures. Will expresses future likelihood with higher certainty than most forms, but is still a speculative form. For future events the speaker assumes to be certain, the present tense form is used with an additional future time phase. If background knowledge about the details of the pregnancy (which we aren't aware of in the OP's examples) are known so that the birth after christmas is viewed as certain, the form to use would be "The baby is being born after Christmas."

However, things like this are never certain, and the most ideal future form is likely should in this instance. Should expresses reasonable certainty that a given future will become reality given the circumstances known (which is I believe what your post above is saying). Thus, under that logic it should be "The baby should be born after Christmas."
_________________
There's no such thing as an exception to the rule...

My blog: http://calleteach.wordpress.com

[Jorgedon]

Thanks for the explanation. As for me, I really make it sure that what I teach every time, especially grammar, is correct. Anyway, can you send me a soft copy on the uses of "futures"? I really want to study it, but I couldn't copy your manuscript posted at CALLE's website.

[OxfordBlues]

Sure Jorge,

Here is the direct link to the file. Either click the link and choose the "save as" option or right-click and choose "download linked file":

http://calleteach.files.wordpress.com/2009/11/an-inventory-and-discussion-of-english-futurity1.pdf

Where do you teach? (which country)
_________________
There's no such thing as an exception to the rule...

My blog: http://calleteach.wordpress.com