Reported Speech (Modal verbs and Passive voice)

Hello, everyone in EnglishForums. Here I am again with some doubts, now related to reported speech but when in direct speech were used modal verbs and passive voice. Could you help me, please? Tell me if the followings reported speeches are correctly stated by me:

Direct Speech: I said: “She could read the paper everyday”.
Reported Speech: I said that she could have read the paper everyday.

Direct Speech: I said: “She should read the paper everyday”.
Reported Speech: I said that she should have read the paper everyday.
Reported Speech: I said that she should read the paper everyday. I think both ways are correct.

Direct Speech: I said: “She would read the paper everyday”.
Reported Speech: I said that she would have read the paper everyday.

Direct Speech: I said: “She must read the paper everyday”.
Reported Speech: I said that she had to read the paper everyday.

Direct Speech: I said: “She might read the paper everyday”.
Reported Speech: I said that she might have read the paper everyday.

Direct Speech: I said: “She may read the paper everyday”.
Reported Speech: I said that she may have read the paper everyday.

Direct Speech: I said: “The paper was read everyday”.
Reported Speech: I said that the paper was read everyday. I think that if we use passive voice, we don’t have to change it in reported speech. Am I right?

And thank you in advance,
Eladio

Hello, paco!
Thank you. So it seems to me that my problem with the reported speech still stays at level of the passive voice then.
I used to think that passive voice doesn’t change, but once you have changed it, my question is: Does exist any rule (rules) to change (as you did in your answer for modal verbs) each kind of passive voice in order to put them in correct reported speech? For example, for the following ones, how can I put them in reported speech?
I know, I know and I’m sorry because I’m asking you for a lot of work! But could you help me anyway, please, Paco? And thank you again for your answer!

I said: “A letter is written to her”
I said: “A letter was written to her”
I said: “A letter will be written to her”
I said: “A letter is going to be written to her”
I said: “A letter must be written to her”
I said: “A letter might be written to her”
I said: “A letter should be written to her”
I said: “A letter could be written to her”
I said: “A letter would be written to her”
I said: “A letter has been written to her”
I said: “A letter will have been written to her”
I said: “A letter would have been written to her”
I said: “A letter had been written to been her”
I said: “A letter had been being written to her“
I said: “A letter is being written to her”
I said: “A letter will be being written to her”
I said: “A letter will have been being written to her”
I said: “A letter has been being written to her”
I said: “A letter would have been being written to her”
I said: “A letter was being written to her”

1. Direct Speech: I said: “She could read the paper everyday”.
Reported Speech: I said that she could read the paper everyday.

2. Direct Speech: I said: “She should read the paper everyday”.
X Reported Speech: I said that she should have read the paper everyday. X
Reported Speech: I said that she should read the paper everyday.

I think both ways are correct.

JTT: No, Eladio, both ways aren't correct. Using "have +PP" points to a specific event but these are all future general conditions.


3. Direct Speech: I said: “She would read the paper everyday”.
X Reported Speech: I said that she would have read the paper everyday. X

JTT: It depends on your meaning, Eladio but don't use modal perfects for reported speech

4. Direct Speech: I said: “She must read the paper everyday”.
OK Reported Speech: I said that she had to read the paper everyday. OK

5. Direct Speech: I said: “She might read the paper everyday”.
X Reported Speech: I said that she might have read the paper everyday. X

JTT: Don't use modal perfects. The meaning has been changed when you do that.

6. Direct Speech: I said: “She may read the paper everyday”.
X Reported Speech: I said that she may have read the paper everyday. X

Same as the ones above.

7. Direct Speech: I said: “The paper was read everyday”.
Reported Speech: I said that the paper was read everyday.

I think that if we use passive voice, we don’t have to change it in reported speech. Am I right?

JTT: That's right.

True?

"Yesterday President Bush said that America was dominated by British soldiers."

Huurm.. English is a quite queer language.


Hi Paco,

Again, if you want to believe that the sequence of tenses "rule" describes how language actually works, then you're going to be severely disappointed. Of course, your offering using a backshift to a past perfect is okay and it is often used in newspapers and other writing situations. That doesn't mean it must be used.

Thanks paco and just the truth, ever so much. So, I've concluded that passive voice doesn't change OR AT LEAST it's preferable not to change it in reported speech IF what we're reporting has no confusion or ambiguity (as in the case cited by paco: "the yesterday British invasion to America"). Am I right now?
Eladio