Subjunctive after "Me gusta que..."

Question

I want to say: "I like that the text is written in a more casual manner."

In this case, "the text is written in a more casual manner" is a fact. I thought that "Me gusta que..." was supposed to be followed by subjunctive, but I don't get why. I understand using subjunctive when you are talking about desires or things that haven't happened yet, etc. But why would I use subjunctive to refer to something that is a fact? Thanks

¿Por qué hay que usar el subjuntivo después de "Me gusta que..." cuando lo que siga sea un hecho?

No entiendo por qué debo usar el subjuntivo para referir a algo que sea un hecho.

Gracias

Answer 1

Just think about the purpose of your sentence or the parts of it - you usually have a reason for forming a sentence - declaring something to be a certain way or sharing something subjectively.

If the purpose of your sentence is just to share a fact - eg. 'The text is written in a more casual manner.' - then use the indicative that's used to declare this fact (or what you believe/perceive to be a fact).

This is chocolate cake. declaring a fact (indicative mood)

But if the purpose of your sentence is to share something subjective, such as your feelings, your hopes etc about something, even if that something is a fact, then you declare your feelings etc in the indicative which shows where the focus is. The rest of the information is still factual, nothing's changed there, but the subjunctive takes it out of the lime-light so to speak, your listeners will then focus on what your thoughts are etc.

I love that this cake is chocolate. giving your opinion about a fact (indic + subj)

Thanks, I really like this answer - arh1, Feb 4, 2013

thank you arh :) I hope it helps somewhat - Kiwi-Girl, Feb 4, 2013

Answer 2

That is a great question. To the best of my understanding, the subjunctive is used because gustar is still an expression of emotion, despite the fact that the thing you like is already a fact.

Hopefully we can get a native speaker and/or person with a deeper knowledge of the subjunctive to help out here.

Sounds good to me - gsdfsggs, Jan 31, 2013

Answer 3

My grammer text agrees ..."Some verbs that express an emotional state, an attitude or a bais are followed by a dependent clause in the subjuctive. Examples of these verbs are alegrarse (de), extrañar, gustar, and others

Answer 4

As a beginner at Spanish, I hesitate to speak up but, I do not see a mandatory connection between "me gusta" and the subjunctive. Remember that in Spanish it is not so much that "we like" but, that "isomething is pleasing to us." But either way, if we say we like something or that something is pleasing to us, that seems like an indicative statement to me. Now if we were say "Pienso que me gusta así el texto se escribe en una manera más informal" the subjunctive might be in order but, I am not sure that "I" or the speaker can control the mood of "gustar" since the "texto en una manera más informal" is the subject (the thing doing the pleasing) and "I" am only the indirect object. Whew! I'm in way over my head (and that is not subjunctive).

Try thinking of the word 'subjunctive' linked with 'subjective'. When you say 'I like' such and such because of this reason, you're sharing your subjective view in the reason part. That's your opinion. It may or may not be true, that's not the important - Kiwi-Girl, Feb 4, 2013

thing, the fact is that your sentence is focusing on sharing the way you feel so you declare that feeling in the indicative 'me gusta que' but the second part doesn't have as it's objective declaring a fact, it just presents your subjective opinion so it - Kiwi-Girl, Feb 4, 2013

uses the subjunctive. Same with expressions such as 'es bueno que', 'es importante que' - what follows may or may not be good or important but your opinions are best presented in the subjunctive. - Kiwi-Girl, Feb 4, 2013

Answer 5

Even though this is from a translator and isn't in the subjunctive it doesn't look wrong to me.

Me gusta que el texto está escrito de una manera más informal.

No change of subject maybe?

Estoy contenta de estar aquí. I'm glad I'm here.

Estoy contenta que estés aquí. I'm glad you're here.

Just a guess. - swampy, Feb 1, 2013

I think it would sound more natural to use the indicative if you said something like - 'lo que' me gusta es que el texto está ... here as well as sharing your feelings you're also presenting a new fact that the text is .... (a certain way). - Kiwi-Girl, Feb 4, 2013

Answer 6

Subjunctive is to do with things sounding a bit like they might or might not happen and your sentence sounds like a fact.So why would you use the subjunctive?

that is just a guideline - not an exclusive definition - gsdfsggs, Feb 1, 2013

It's not so much whether the information is factual or not, it's whether the purpose of your sentence is purely to present that fact as new information to someone or if it's to share some emotion that this fact engenders in you. If it's the second one - Kiwi-Girl, Feb 4, 2013

your emotion gets the focus with the indicative and the rest of the information get relegated to a place of secondary importance by putting it in the subjunctive. - Kiwi-Girl, Feb 4, 2013

Answer 7

You're still expressing an emotion, and specifically desire, so between the both of those, it seems subjunctive, but I think sinmeta has it, and it's really the expression of emotion.