despertar v despertarse

Question

Here is a sentence I came across in an article called " La leyenda de la Colosuca":

Al día siguiente, cuando la mujer despertó, vio a sus hijos felices y jugando en el bosque.

Shouldn't that be "se despertó"? She woke up; she didn't wake someone else up.

Answer 1

Both are correct.

Despertó or se despertó.

;)) - 00cc0117, Apr 27, 2016

Answer 2

Both are correct and commom. If you looking for a diference maybe that "se despertó" is an action for yourself and "despertó" could be used for other people or animals too. "Despertó a su perrito con una caricia", "Despertó a su hija con un beso en la frente". but you can use perfectly like you used in your sentence.

(I'm learning English if don't understand me, please tell me and I will try to explain me better) I hope this can help you.

¡Hola, Daniel! mucho gusto verte aquí en el foro. Podemos ayudarnos mucho como todos los hispanohablantes nativos. ¡Gracias! - Jubilado, Apr 27, 2016

Corrección: No "podemos" pero "puedes" arriba. - Jubilado, Apr 27, 2016

Gracias por la bienvenida. Un saludo desde Madrid. - DanielV, Apr 27, 2016

Answer 3

Thanks to everyone. I must say I was surprised to learn that both despertó and se despertó were correct.

I was taught that despertarse (like acostarse, lavarse, sentarse, and vestirse) is a reflexive verb, meaning it is a verb that has a reflexive pronoun that refers to the same person or thing as the subject. So, for example, "se despertó" would mean she woke up. "Se" in that sentence is the reflexive pronoun that refers to "she, " the subject. I was taught that for most reflexive verbs there is a corresponding transitive verb in which the subject and direct object refer to different things or objects. So, "Ella nos despierta" would mean "She wakes us up." "Nos" in that sentence is not a reflexive pronoun; rather it is a direct object. So, when people on this forum say that both "despertó" and "se despertó" are correct is that because, grammatically, despertarse is not necessarily a reflexive verb? Or is it that both are acceptable due to common usage? Is it a regional thing?

I admit I had the same idea but two native speakers, one Chilean and one Colombian now living in Spain have seemed to dispel that notion. Given those 2 responses I don't think it's regional. Daniela our teacher may be able to offer more advice in a PM. - Jubilado, Apr 27, 2016

Answer 4

Both are correct, but I've always been taught that despertarse or similar verbs are more common when associated with a specific moment/time.

For example: La mujer se despertó a las ocho. Instead of in your example where the woman is just waking up at some unknown moment.

Again, I believe both to be correct, but this is just something I was taught as a contextual tip.

Thanks for parttcipating but please put you gender and proficiency in English and Spanish in your profile. We don't know a person's credentials unless he / she puts them in the profile. Thanks. - Jubilado, Apr 27, 2016

Answer 5

As you know I'm not a fluent native speaker, but despertar means wake up. So she woke up is despertó and fine. I think in Spanish as in English you have the variation of saying "wake up" or "get yourself up" but I don't understand the nuance (in Spanish, I do understand it in English).