irse + gerundio in this phrase: "se iran potenciando"

Question

Here is the sentence from a newspaper article I am having trouble with:

Por el momento, el nerviosismo y malestar generalizados se irán potenciando hasta que el Gobierno no logre una solución con los fondos buitre y desactive el peligro de default con los consecuentes embargos latentes.

I know that ir + gerund is used to express gradual change, so that, for example, it is my understanding that "algo va cambiando" would express the fact that something is gradually changing. I'd be inclined therefore to translate "se irán potenciando" as will be gradually strengthening, but I'm a bit thrown by the use of "se irán" rather than just "irán" potenciando. Further confusing me here is that if "se irán potenciando" means gradually gaining strenth, or perhaps gradually building strength, it makes no sense that this widespread nervousness and unease (nerviosismo y malestar generalizados) will gradually gain strength until (hasta) the government does notachieve a solution (el Gobierno no logre una solución). In other words, it would make sense that the widespread nervousness and unease would cease building up until the government doesachieve a solution, not in the case that the government doesn't reach one.

How would others understand the above-quoted sentence? Why irse potenciando rather than ir potenciando?

Answer 1

Potenciar is a transitive verb, so in this article nervousness and uneasiness are strengthening not something else but themselves, hence se is used for reflexive.

... hasta que el Gobierno no logre una solución... This is Spanish sentence structure. You can consider it something akin to double negative such as "no hay nada." This double negative" usage will always follow hasta que as it does in this article.

Answer 2

JulianChivi:

I'm so appreciative of your answer.

I should have realized that the idea was potenciandose, not irse.

I'm not quite sure I understand the double negative thing. It seems so counterintuitive, not that I'm doubting your explanation at all. So is the sentence saying it will keep strengthening until a solution is reached? Literally, isn't this sentence saying until the Government does not reach a solution? , Would it be possible to say, "hasta que el Gobierno logre una solución"?

This is how we say it. If you insist on translating word-for-word you will never feel comfortable with this sentence structure. Just say it as you know it to be correct, after a while it will become second nature to you - 005faa61, Jul 9, 2014