Shall / Will
"Shall" is a formal version of "will" but they are not always interchangeable. The use of "shall" seems to be on the decline, unless you want to affect a certain sense of formality or emphasis. It means "will have to, is determined to, promises to, or definitely will." The past tense of "shall" is "should," which carries with it a sense of requirement or necessity. It is an auxiliary verb meaning "must, ought or would."
Warriner, 1968, says, "The old distinction between these words is no longer observed by most people."Shall," which was once considered the only correct form for the expression of the simple future in the first person, has been replaced by "will" in speech and writing of most people. . . . In a few expressions "shall" is the only form ever used and so presents no usage problem: "Shall we go?" "Shall I help you?" To use "will" in these expressions would change the meaning. With the exception of these special uses, "will" is as correct as "shall."
British usage differs slightly. In American English, "shall" remains entrenched in legal usage and some other constructions as mentioned above. Otherwise, it is often seen as pretentious.
Interrogative forms may depend on your preference, but I see no problem with saying, "Shall we go to the park this afternoon?" I would presume that you would be willing to go with me if I asked it that way. If I had no idea and wondered what our plans might be, I would say, "Will we go to the park this afternoon?"
Webster"s Online has an interesting usage note following these definitions and usage points:
- archaic
a : will have to : MUST
b : will be able to : CAN
a -- used to express a command or exhortation
b -- used in laws, regulations, or directives to express what is mandatory
a -- used to express what is inevitable or seems likely to happen in the future
b -- used to express simple futurity 4 -- used to express determination
Usage: From the reams of pronouncements written about the distinction between shall and will-dating back as far as the 17th century-it is clear that the rules laid down have never very accurately reflected actual usage. The nationalistic statements of 18th and 19th century British grammarians, who commonly cited the misuses of the Irish, the Scots, and occasionally the Americans, suggest that the traditional rules may have come closest to the usage of southern England. Some modern commentators believe that English usage is still the closest to the traditionally prescribed norms. Most modern commentators allow that will is more common in nearly all uses. The entries for shall and will in this dictionary show current usage.
Here is The American Heritage Dictionary"s usage note:
The traditional rules for using shall and will prescribe a highly complicated pattern of use in which the meanings of the forms change according to the person of the subject. In the first person, shall is used to indicate simple futurity: I shall (not will) have to buy another ticket. In the second and third persons, the same sense of futurity is expressed by will: The comet will (not shall) return in 87 years. You will (not shall) probably encounter some heavy seas when you round the point. The use of will in the first person and of shall in the second and third may express determination, promise, obligation, or permission, depending on the context. Thus I will leave tomorrow indicates that the speaker is determined to leave; You and she shall leave tomorrow is likely to be interpreted as a command. The sentence You shall have your money expresses a promise ("I will see that you get your money"), whereas You will have your money makes a simple prediction. ·Such, at least, a! re the traditional rules. The English and some traditionalists about usage are probably the only people who follow these rules, and then not with perfect consistency. In America, people who try to adhere to them run the risk of sounding pretentious or haughty. Americans normally use will to express most of the senses reserved for shall in English usage. Americans use shall chiefly in first person invitations and questions that request an opinion or agreement, such as Shall we go? and in certain fixed expressions, such as We shall overcome. In formal style, Americans use shall to express an explicit obligation, as in Applicants shall provide a proof of residence, though this sense is also expressed by must or should. In speech the distinction that the English signal by the choice of shall or will may be rendered by stressing the auxiliary, as in I will leave tomorrow ("I intend to leave"); by choosing another auxiliary, such as must or have to; or by using an adverb such as ! Certainly. ·In addition to its sense of obligation, shall also can con vey high moral seriousness that derives in part from its extensive use in the King James Bible, as in "Righteousness shall go before him and shall set us in the way of his steps" (Ps 85:13) and "He that shall humble himself shall be exalted" (Mt 23:12). The prophetic overtones that shall bears with it have no doubt led to its use in some of the loftiest rhetoric in English. This may be why Lincoln chose to use it instead of will in the Gettysburg Address: "government of the people, by the people, for the people shall not perish from the earth." See Usage Note at "should."
grammarNOW! says:
Upon his decision not to seek re-nomination, President Lyndon B. Johnson said, "I shall not seek, and I will not accept, the nomination of my party for another term as your president." He was being formal, but I think he was also making a slight connotative distinction: His "shall" was an intent, and his "will" was an absolute, irrevocable purpose.
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