URLLesson Introduction
Today in the big podcast, Leo and JP tackle questions from listerners norrisx0, donperigo, annajo, and chillosk. Topics covered: a discussion on three ways to talk about the future, a couple of translation questions, and a question about comic book superheroes in Spanish!
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donperigo says
August 21, 2008
Thanks once again for answering my questions guys. you can pronounce perigo however is easiest for you but i thought that don périgo sounded a bit french (perignon) and that perígo had a more latin vibe.
speaking of french sounding names isnt the blue lady mystique?
whatever. my theory about ir + a is far more interesting than yours :-)
idle conjecture warning.this may well be complete twaddle
if voy a is followed by a location, then its a spatial movement.
if its followed by a verb, then its temporal movement
voy a salamanca = I go(now) to salamanca
voy a salir ( i go to the future) to leave
notice that the "to" implicit in the infinitive of a verb signifies action
and that the "to" of i'm going to is one of direction ie "a"
quiero comer alli = i want to eat there
voy a comer alli = i go to the future, to eat there
since the future is uncertain it makes sense to think of Voy a as meaning “I intend to ”
we don’t need “to go” into the past because it has happened .we have already been there. but we still need to be able speak of past intentions ie “I was going to” = Iba a
however, it seems to me that i was going to also has two different meanings depending on whether it is followed by a location or a verb. I was going to eat makes sense but "i was going to salamanca" is a fragment which means "while i was travelling to salamanca....." it needs to be resolved with a “when I realised I had left my front door unlocked”.
perhaps what i should have said was
i was going TO GO to salamanca which contains the to of the infinitive and the to for direction.
Iba (i was going) a (to) ir (to go)
thus proving my conservation of infinitive energy theory. To's can be converted but never destroyed.
jrepp1178 says
August 21, 2008
Well my comment is not nearly as insightful but it helped me understand "Hay que." I had a teacher once tell us to just think of the slogan of the fast-food hamburger joint "Ralley's"..."You gotta eat!" simply could be translated as "¡Hay que comer!"
norrisx0 says
August 21, 2008
Thanks for the response guys but you did bring up one more question. Is voy al cine (in the future sense) more immediate than voy a ir al cine? Does the latter sound strange?
jpvillanueva says
August 21, 2008
norrisx0,
Both your sentences sound great; yes, "voy al cine" seems a little more immediate to me. :)
chillosk says
August 21, 2008
thanks for answering my question guys! haha, i love the translation of storm! and the man bat! and espiderman, that cracked me up!! hahaha :)
good job guys!
leoguerrero says
August 21, 2008
Thanks for the good comments, I'd like to encourage you to visit this SpanishPod blog where our friend Maryan writes about very interesting and useful stuff for Spanish learners. Here is the link: http://blogs.spanishpod.com/intermediate
annajo says
August 22, 2008
Thanks SpanishPod team for addressing the use of Hay que and it's translation to English.
thesmithtopher says
August 24, 2008
The shape shifting woman was called Mystique!
pussycat says
August 25, 2008
Hola todos,
It is easier for me just to think of the translation of "hay que" as "it is necessary"!
jpvillanueva says
August 25, 2008
Hi pussycat, ¡it is necessary is a great way to think about hay que!
powhatansage says
August 27, 2008
Thanks for another great Pa' que sepas. I look forward to them; they're entertaining and answer a lot of my questions.
You asked for compliments, there you are, and it's sincere.
wasow says
August 30, 2008
Has anyone noticed that the new Woody Allen movie (set in Barcelona) uses the wonderful drum riffs in its transitions the same way that you use them in pa' que sepas. I was watching the film trying to remember where I heard that familiar little set of beats. When I finally figured it out I was ready to stand up in the theater and shout hey I'm used to hearing those in Spanishpod!!!
wasow
marti says
September 1, 2008
Hola JP...
Esto es la manera que pienso de "poder + inf."
To be able + inf...
así:
puedo correr = I am able to run = I can run