2. Las construcciones recíprocas: nos y se Capítulo 11 1. Se impersonal 2. Las construcciones recíprocas: nos y se 3. El se inocente (Se for unplanned occurences) 4. La voz pasiva

Capítulo 11 1 Se impersonal

Se impersonal Marta se lava el pelo los lunes. You will remember using the reflexive pronoun se to talk about what people do to or for themselves. Marta se lava el pelo los lunes. Marta washes her hair on Mondays. Spanish often uses this se in an impersonal sense, that is, without mentioning a particular person. Aquí se lava la ropa los martes. Some English equivalents would be: Here you wash clothes on Tuesdays. Here one washes clothes on Tuesdays. Here they wash clothes on Tuesdays.

Se impersonal Se dice que hay oro al final del arco iris. Following are other examples of this type of usage: Se dice que hay oro al final del arco iris. They say that there is gold at the end of the rainbow. People say that there is gold at the end of the rainbow. It is said that there is gold at the end of the rainbow. ¿Aquí se permite fumar? Is smoking permitted here? Do they permit smoking here? Can you smoke here?

Se impersonal Creen que Dora es muy aplicada. The third-person plural of the verb may be used without se to express these impersonal subjects. Creen que Dora es muy aplicada. People think that Dora is very studious. Dicen que no hay mal que por bien no venga. They say that every cloud has a silver lining.

Las construcciones recíprocas: nos y se Capítulo 11 2 Las construcciones recíprocas: nos y se

Las construcciones recíprocas: nos y se The plural reflexive pronouns nos and se can be used to express reciprocal actions, conveyed in English by each other or one another. See the following examples.

Las construcciones recíprocas: nos y se Nosotros nos habíamos comunicado por e-mail todos los días. We had communicated with each other every day by e-mail. Ellos se llamaban cada mañana antes de levantarse. They called/used to call one another each morning before they got up. Los novios van a verse de nuevo este verano en Santo Domingo. The sweethearts are going to see each other again this summer in Santo Domingo.

Las construcciones recíprocas: nos y se It is possible to have a sentence in which the pronoun can be interpreted as either reciprocal or reflexive. You must rely on context for the exact meaning. Fabiola y Beltrán se están mirando en el espejo. (Fabiola and Beltran are looking at each other in the mirror. OR Fabiola and Beltran are looking at themselves in the mirror.)

(Se for unplanned occurences) Capítulo 11 3 El se inocente (Se for unplanned occurences)

El se inocente Se me perdió el discurso. My speech got lost. In order to describe an involuntary or unplanned event, Spanish frequently uses se in conjunction with the third-person singular or plural of the verb. The action is not viewed as being carried out by someone, but rather as happening to someone. Hence, that someone is an indirect object, and an indirect object pronoun is used. Se me perdió el discurso. My speech got lost. Se les quedaron las estadísticas en casa. Their statistics were left behind at home.

El se inocente ¿A ustedes se les olvidó la tarea otra vez? Where English uses the possessive adjective, Spanish uses the definite article, since possession is indicated by the indirect object pronoun. The preposition a + noun or pronoun may be added for clarity or emphasis. ¿A ustedes se les olvidó la tarea otra vez? You forgot your homework again? Al senador se le perdieron los papeles. The senator lost his papers.

El se inocente Se perdió el dinero. If the indirect object and/or its pronoun is omitted, the sentence is de-personalized, to the extent that we know that something happened, but we do not know who was involved. This sentence tells us that the money got lost (literally, that it lost itself), but not who was the unlucky person involved.

El se inocente Se me perdió el dinero. Let’s say that I lost the money. Losing things is not considered desirable behavior, so we continue to say literally that the money lost itself and I was the unfortunate person involved by simply adding an indirect object pronoun. Notice that nothing has changed except the addition of the indirect object pronoun. The subject is still el dinero and the verb structure is still se perdió, and I am not seen as the causal agent.

El se inocente Se te perdió el dinero. Now if we wish to say that you lost the money, all that needs to change is the indirect object pronoun. Notice that nothing else in the sentence has changed and you are absolved of guilt because, again, the money lost itself. The same process is used for le, nos, os, and les to indicate the person or persons involved.

Capítulo 11 4 La voz pasiva

La voz pasiva Spanish and English both have active and passive voices. In an active voice construction, the subject of the sentence is the doer of the action. Óscar Arias fundó el Centro para la Paz. Óscar Arias founded the Center for Peace. Los dos bandos hicieron la guerra. The two sides waged war.

La voz pasiva El Centro para la Paz fue fundado por Óscar Arias. In the passive voice, the agent of the action can be expressed in a prepositional phrase most often introduced by por. El Centro para la Paz fue fundado por Óscar Arias. The Center for Peace was founded by Óscar Arias. La guerra fue hecha por los dos bandos. The war was waged by the two sides.

Ser is followed by the past participle of the active verb. The passive voice construction in Spanish is very similar to English. The direct object of the active sentence becomes the subject of the verb ser. Ser is followed by the past participle of the active verb. ACTIVE VOICE El Congreso aprobó la abolición del ejército panameño en 1994. a abolición del ejército panameño The Congress approved the abolition of the Panamanian army in 1994. PASSIVE VOICE aprobada por el Congreso en 1994. L fue Note: Ser is always expressed in the same tense as the verb in the active sentence. The abolition of the Panamanian army was approved by Congress in 1994. The past participle agrees in number and gender with the subject because it is used as an adjective.

Ser is followed by the past participle of the active verb. The passive voice construction in Spanish is very similar to English. The direct object of the active sentence becomes the subject of the verb ser. Ser is followed by the past participle of the active verb. ACTIVE VOICE La sociedad civil ha tratado muy mal a las mujeres centroamericanas. as mujeres Civil society has treated Central American women very poorly. PASSIVE VOICE L tratadas muy mal por la sociedad civil. han sido Central American women have been treated very poorly by civil society. NOTE: Generally, the passive voice is used less frequently in spoken Spanish than in written narratives and documents.

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