Choice of past tense in these examples

This is from a post on Instagram from someone, they said

"冬の海もまた違った良さあるよね "

To me this sort of modification of 良さ with 違った in past tense surprised me and I was not sure why the sentence wouldn’t have been "冬の海もまた違う良さあったよね” Instead?

I can see how if you are to say something like "食べたケーキ” You’re saying “Cake I ate” or more literally “Ate cake” but I believe the thing that hangs me up is two fold, one is the verb itself which I guess I just haven’t seen used in the past tense modifying way, but two that in a sentence like this a native wouldn’t opt to modify the ある at the end. Or to simply not put either in a past tense and just say “冬の海もまた違う良さあるよね” In the case of あった making it sound wrong because it’s as if it was existing and no longer is, then why not just make neither past tense the 違った or ある


A second example where I am confused:

Since it is often asked for some context and I think it could be helpful, the speaker is a character from the game “Live a live” a 1994 JRPG. The character was asleep in a cryogenic freezer on some sort of space station, and has been woken up and greeted by a sentient robot creature. He introduces himself to the robot with his name and then says after.

“あ、そうか!まだ名前がなかったね”

Now obviously I can understand the point of this - “Oh that’s right! You still don’t have a name yet” But if I were to make this sentence myself I would not have thought to make it past tense, or that I even could.

“あ、そうか!まだ名前がないね” This is what I would have figured was the way to say it.

I think this is even more so because of the use of まだ not yet/still. I guess “You didn’t have a name” is a bit weird but not inconceivable, but once its becoming “you still didn’t have a name”, I am really not getting why it would be put that way. I understand saying it in English is a fools errand, I am only doing so because to exercise my point. I just am curious to your guys explanation of why this phrasing is correct in Japanese and hoping to further educate myself on the ways of thinking of these tense usages and why it is one way or another.

As usual I genuinely appreciate all help you guys can give me and am happy to learn.

1 Like

After thinking about this harder. I wonder if for the second one the logic isn’t something like

Because he used そうか! he is now “recalling” setting him in the past or at least setting the following sentence into the past of his “Recollection”

“Oh right! You still didn’t have a name didn’t you?” and it sounds weird in English but I think checks out with what’s happening inside of the Japanese. Feel free to disagree if you think this line of logic is wrong.

1 Like

Eaten cake

In your example it also has to do with まだ.

まだ〜ない・まだ〜なかった

Have different meaning.

The first is a simple present, “not yet”.

The latter is “Had/Have not yet” perfect past/present(depending on context).

あ、そうか!まだ名前がなかったね
Is better translated as:

  • Oh, right! You Had not been named yet huh.

あ、そうか!まだ名前がないね

  • Oh right! You don’t have a name yet.

To be honest is is a subtle distinction but that is the difference as far as I can tell.