la paloma blanca
Estaba la paloma blanca. Sentada en el verde limón. Con el pico cortaba la rama. Con la rama le daba a la flor.
My questions...
1) How do we know when participles become adjectives... In this case with 'sentada' it is obvious because of the gender matching. But in this case would "La paloma blanca estaba sentado en el verde limón" be proper? More correct? Less correct? I am wondering if there is artistic licence in the way things are written here because it is a nursery rhyme.
2) "Con la rama le daba a la flor." This line always confused me. I always think it is saying "with the branch it gave him to the flower" but I know that isn't quite right. I know there are other uses for "dar", the most basic of which translates "to give". What is a better interpretation? Before you answer, please consider question 3 as well...
3) The "le" in "Con la rama le daba a la flor." Is this "le" referring to "the dove" or "the flower". My guess is the dove, but I am not certain. Also "daba", is it the branch that is doing the giving, or the dove, or even the flower. Help! I'm confused!
Thank you
4 Answers
Just a little on-the-side clarification
Estaba la paloma blanca. Sentada en el verde limón. Con el pico cortaba la rama. Con la rama le daba a la flor.
Estaba la paloma blanca
sentada en el verde limón.
Con el pico cortaba la rama.
Con la rama le daba a la flor.
Verses in Spanish follow common punctuation and capitalization rules, not the English ones, unlike some not-so-native-as-they-should-be fellows tend to think within the Spanishphere.
But in this case would "La paloma blanca estaba sentado en el verde limón" be proper?
No, Estar plus participle, the participle will always be an adjective. Truly. So it must match. Estar plus sentado= in the condition of being seated. The sentada is still using the estaba from the prior sentence.
La paloma blanca estaba sentada en el verde limón. Sounds okay to me except I normally say limón verde.
In the true passive. Ser plus participle, the participle is treated as an adjective. (I will not debate whether it is or not, as that is a grammar point of no use to me, it is treated as one, that is what matters) La revista fue escrita. The magazine was written. Las revistas fue escritas. It matches. This focuses on the act of writing it, not that is in the condition of being written. ( I switched the sentence because some things lend better to estar, some to ser).
Haber plus participle. No change, they remain true participles. Ella ha escrito las revistas. She has written the magazines. Escrito matches nothing in the sentence, it is invariable.
2) "Con la rama le daba a la flor." This line always confused me. I always think it is saying "with the branch it gave him to the flower" but I know that isn't quite right. I know there are other uses for "dar", the most basic of which translates "to give". What is a better interpretation? Before you answer, please consider question 3 as well...
http://www.spanishdict.com/translate/dar
- (to strike)
a. to hit
El boxeador le dio en la cara a su oponente y ganó la pelea. The boxer hit his opponent in the face and won the fight.
So “with the branch it (the dove) was striking (at) the flower”.
Think of the English statement, informal, after a fight: I really gave it to him good.
3) The "le" in "Con la rama le daba a la flor." Is this "le" referring to "the dove" or "the flower". My guess is the dove, but I am not certain. Also "daba", is it the branch that is doing the giving, or the dove, or even the flower. Help! I'm confused!
The flower. This is the “redundant” io pronoun. In this use dar takes an IO, Note in my informal English above with give, it was to him (IO):
Con la rama= with the branch
Le= at it (it=the flower)
Daba= (the dove=it) was striking
a la flor." (at) the flower.
Remember Spanish likes to leave subjects implicit and not mark them with pronouns, so the dove is only in the conjugation of the verb. But they like to mark the IO even if it is present explicitly so le tells you "a la flor" is coming.
I am learner too, wait for other comments.
La blanca paloma estaba sentado Is incorrect. It must be sentada.
The verb daba coming from dar doesn't have the meaning give.
Dar en el blanco. Hit a target.
Dar una paliza. Beat (a child or a person).
Example.
Tiré una piedra y le di en la cabeza.
I threw a stone and hit him in his head.
So dar Is like to hit ir touch.
Con la rama (la paloma) le daba a la flor.
The dove hit or touched the flower with the branch..
In all the sentences the subject Is la paloma.
So you are in agreement with bosquederoble that the "le" represents "to it", "to the flower"? Thank you! - Joe124236.
Yes, that's it.
Look, one of the meanings of "dar"
intr. Chocar, golpear contra algo. U. t. c. prnl. ¿Dónde te has dado? Aquellos dos se daban con furia.
