sequence of tenses in Latin

Описание: Why is that subjunctive verb present tense? Why isn't that imperfect subjunctive verb translated like an imperfect indicative verb?

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LYRICS
The sequence of tenses dictates the tense of the subjunctive verb in the subordinate clause, relative to the time of the indicative verb in the main clause.

Primary sequence deals with the present and the future time.
Secondary sequence deals with the past.

In the primary sequence, if you have a present tense subjunctive it doesn't mean it's happening now. It means that it's happening at the same time or after the action of the indicative verb in the main clause. In other words, it represents an action that hasn't yet been completed in the time of the sentence. A perfect tense subjunctive means that the action has been completed.

Similar for the imperfect and pluperfect in secondary sequence: the imperfect subjunctive represents an action that hasn't yet been completed and the pluperfect represents an action that has.

Interesting fact about the perfect tense: you'll see that it's in both sequences. That's because in Latin there's the true perfect, like with "have" or "has," like "I have fallen" or "he has eaten," which has some bearing on the present time. Or there's the aorist, which just happened in the past, the simple past, "I fell," "he ate." That's secondary sequence.

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