Catalan

by Max Wheeler

  No se m’acut cap alternativa, si no és canviar el motor/(non-standard) a no ser que canviem el motor.

  Unless I’m mistaken, tomorrow is her birthday.

  Si no m’equivoco, demà fa anys.

  Provided we’re not interrupted we’ll finish it today.

  Sempre que no ens interrompin/si no ens interrompen, ho enllestirem avui.

  Should you write to them, send them my regards.

  Si els escrius, envia’ls records de part meva.

  PART V INFORMATION STRUCTURE AND WORD ORDER

  35 CLEFT SENTENCES

  35.1 CLEFT AND PSEUDO-CLEFT SENTENCES

  Cleft and pseudo-cleft sentences have similar characteristics and functions in Catalan to those they have in English. The unmarked structure En Vicenç va sortir ahir amb la Núria ‘Vicenç went out with Núria yesterday’ could, for specific emphasis, become one of the following cleft sentences:

  Va ser amb la Núria amb qui va sortir ahir en Vicenç.

  It was Núria that Vicenç went out with yesterday./Núria is the one that…

  Va ser en Vicenç qui va sortir ahir amb la Núria.

  It was Vicenç that went out with Núria yesterday./Vicenç is the one who …

  Va ser ahir que en Vicenç va sortir amb la Núria.

  It was yesterday that Vicenç went out with Núria./Yesterday is when …

  or (pseudo-cleft):

  El qui va sortir ahir amb la Núria va ser en Vicenç.

  (The one) who went out with Núria yesterday was Vicenç.

  Amb qui va sortir ahir en Vicenç va ser amb la Núria.

  (The one) whom Vicenç went out with yesterday was Núria.

  Quan va sortir en Vicenç amb la Núria va ser ahir.

  When Vicenç went out with Núria was yesterday.

  In each case both languages achieve similar effects of focus by these procedures. We deal separately below with the two types (cleft and pseudo-cleft) paying particular attention to some distinctive structural features of Catalan. The alternative translations given above ‘Núria is the one who …’ correspond more literally to the ‘reverse pseudo-cleft’ pattern of 35.1.2ii.

  35.1.1 CLEFT SENTENCES

  Cleft sentences conform to the basic pattern of copular verb (ser ‘be’) + focused phrase + (nominalized) relative clause. (Logically, cleft sentences are equational sentences of the form noun phrase = noun phrase.) When the unmarked sentence En Miquel ha telefonat ‘Miquel phoned’ is transformed in this way into És en Miquel el qui ha telefonat ‘It is Miquel who phoned’, focus is placed on Miquel, in relation to a previous assertion, question, or supposition about the agent of the action. The implication would then be something like ‘It is Miquel who phoned’ (and not Glòria, for example). Similar effects can be observed in the following examples:

  Son aquests pantalons els que hauries de dur (i no aquells altres).

  It’s these trousers you ought to wear (and not those other ones).

  És al meu poble on fan bons torrons (i no al teu).

  It’s my village that they make good torrons in (and not yours).

  És caminar aviat el que ens cal fer (i no quedar aquí asseguts).

  Getting a move on soon is what we must do (and not stay sitting here).

  In cleft structures the relative clause functions as a noun phrase complement, not as an (attributive) adjective and this explains why these cleft sentences are linked not merely with que but rather with a nominalizer el que or (el) qui (agreeing in number and gender with the noun antecedent; see 31.6.2, 31.7):

  Són aquestes joguines les que vam comprar ahir.

  *Són aquestes joguines que vam comprar ahir.

  It is these toys that we bought yesterday./These toys are the ones …

  Va ser la manera en què va xisclar el que em va posar els pèls de punta.

  *Va ser la manera en què va xisclar que em va posar els pèls de punta.

  It was the way she screamed that made my hair stand on end.

  Differences between Catalan and English versions of this type of cleft sentence centre on two aspects as described in the following sections: the use of prepositions, and the behaviour of the copular verb.

  35.1.1.1 Cleft sentences with prepositions

  If the focused phrase is the object of a preposition, then in Catalan the preposition must also appear in the focus position. As in all other constructions, and in contrast to English, prepositions may not be left stranded. Thus to focus on Jaume in He d’escriure a en Jaume ‘I must write to Jaume’ we have to say És a en Jaume a qui he d’escriure ‘It’s to Jaume that I must write/It’s Jaume that I must write to’. For the second part of such sentences, though, the option exists either to use the stressed relative with the same preposition (a qui in the last example) or just the weak relative pronoun que: És a en Jaume que he d’escriure. No difference in meaning is involved, although with a or de the repeated pronoun + stressed relative is generally felt to be more formal.

  Hem d’entregar aquest paquet al secretari.

  We have to deliver this parcel to the secretary.

  → És al secretari a qui hem d’entregar aquest paquet.

  = És al secretari que hem d’entregar aquest paquet.

  *És el secretari a qui hem d’entregar aquest paquet.

  It’s the secretary that we must give this parcel to.

  Tothom parlava d’una cosina seva.

  Everybody was talking about a cousin of his.

  → Era d’una cosina seva de qui parlava tothom.

  = Era d’una cosina seva que parlava tothom.

  *Era una cosina seva de qui parlava tothom.

  It was a cousin of his that everybody was talking about.

  With prepositions other than a or de, and where inanimate complements are involved, preference seems to be for que rather than for the repeated preposition.

  Va ser amb el nostre permís que ho varen fer.

  It was with our permission that they did it.

  Deu ser per això que no em vol veure més.

  That must be why she doesn’t want to see me again.

  Clauses of place, time, or manner may use on, quan, or com, although que is again preferred in informal speech:

  Va ser en aquest carrer on/que se’l van carregar.

  It was this street that they wiped him out in.

  Serà demà potser quan/que ens ho faran saber.

  It’ll perhaps be tomorrow that they’ll let us know.

  És entrenant-se cada dia com/que ha arribat a ser campió.

  It’s by training every day that he has become champion.

  35.1.1.2 Agreement of the copular verb in cleft sentences

  The Catalan copular verb in these structures agrees in number and gender with the focused phrase (if it is nominal; third-person singular if it is not, as in the last example of 35.1.1.1). The English equivalent always begins with ‘it is’, ‘it was’, etc.:

  Sóc jo el qui ha dit que vinguéssiu.

  It is I who told you to come.

  Ets tu el qui posa emperons a la nostra voluntat.

  It’s you who are putting difficulties in the way of what we want.

  No era la Maria la qui plorava?

  Wasn’t it Maria who was crying?

  Person agreement of the verb in the relative clause may also occur when, as in the examples above, this is in the singular (Sóc jo el qui he dit…, Ets tu el qui poses …); strict person agreement of the verb in the relative clause must occur when it has a plural subject.

  Som nosaltres els qui hem acusat els perjurs.

  * Som nosaltres els qui han acusat els perjurs.

  It is we who have accused the perjurers./We are the ones who …

  Sou vosaltres els qui viviu bé.

  *Sou vosaltres els qui viuen bé.

  It is you who live well./You are the ones who …

  Són ells els qui fan la feina bruta.

  It is they who do the dirty work./They are the ones who …

  Consequently c
are must be exercised when translating English ‘it is’/‘it was’/‘it will be’ at the beginning of a cleft sentence with an original plural subject, as ser remains plural in such constructions:

  Eren els de la dreta els que insistien més en aquesta política.

  It was those on the right who were insisting most on this policy.

  Són les seves manies el que m’irrita.

  It’s his obsessions which irritate me. (more literally: His obsessions are what irritates me.)

  The preceding example illustrates the important point mentioned earlier: that unlike in the English cleft pattern the Catalan structure has to involve two noun phrases. Here the second is the neuter free relative el que m’irrita ‘what irritates me’. Similar examples are:

  Fou la seva fe el que la va salvar.

  It was her faith that saved her.

  -Què duia? -Si no m’equivoco, era una camisa rosa el que portava aquell dia.

  ‘What was he wearing?’ ‘If I’m not mistaken it was a pink shirt he was wearing that day.’

  Tense of copula in clefts

  Several examples already given show how the tense of the copular verb is frequently attracted by that of the verb in the relative clause. While Catalan has more latitude in using the present tense at the head of the cleft sentence (És la Maria la qui ha telefonat = Ha estat la Maria la qui ha telefonat ‘It is Maria who phoned’, És amb tu amb qui vaig parlar = Va ser amb tu amb qui vaig parlar ‘It is/was you that I spoke to’), the copula more often matches the tense of the original main verb, especially when this is in the past:

  Serà/És amb ell que hauràs de parlar.

  It will be/is him that you will have to speak to.

  Va ser en aquell poble que es van conèixer.

  * Era en aquell poble que es van conèixer.

  It was in that town that they met.

  Era captant pel carrer que mantenien la família.

  *Va ser captant pel carrer que mantenien la família.

  It was by begging in the street that they kept their families.

  35.1.2 Pseudo-Cleft Sentences

  Relative to the cleft construction, the pseudo-cleft construction (i) inverts the order of the focused phrase and the relative clause: relative clause + copula + focused phrase. Thus, for example, El que em fa falta és un mapa de la regió ‘What I need is a map of the region’. The reverse pseudo-cleft (ii) has the order: focused phrase + copula + relative clause: Un mapa de la regió és el que em fa falta Ά map of the region is what I need’. Pragmatic circumstances of communication can give rise to reinforcement, by these means, of either the focused phrase component of the sentence or the relative clause. Note the possible translations of Catalan cleft sentences in 35.1 and 35.1.1 by English reverse pseudo-clefts.

  (i) pseudo-cleft:

  (El) qui ha dit això és en Miquel.

  (The person) who said this was Miquel.

  (EI/La) qui ha fet taques en terra ets tu.

  (The one) who made a mess on the floor was you.

  Amb qui vaig fer el tracte va ser amb tu.

  The person who I made the deal with was you.

  A qui he de consultar és a en Mateu.

  The person (who) I must consult is Mateu.

  (ii) reverse pseudo-cleft:

  En Miquel és (el) qui ha dit això.

  Miquel is the one who said this.

  Tu ets (el/la) qui ha fet taques en terra.

  You are the one who made a mess on the floor.

  Amb tu va ser amb qui vaig fer el tracte.

  You are the one I made the deal with.

  A en Mateu és a qui he de consultar.

  Mateu is the one (who) I must consult.

  Caminar aviat és el que ens cal fer.

  Walk quickly is what we must do.

  35.1.2.1 Prepositions in pseudo-cleft sentences

  When the focused term is a prepositional complement, repetition of the preposition is always required (see 35.1.1.1), so that, for the example used in 35.1.2, Amb qui vaig fer el tracte va ser amb tu, we cannot have *Qui vaig fer el tracte va ser amb tu/* Amb qui vaig fer el tracte va ser tu, and for Amb tu va ser amb qui vaig fer el tracte we cannot have *Tu va ser amb qui vaig fer el tracte/ *Amb tu va ser qui vaig fer el tracte.

  Other examples:

  Per on han vingut és pel camí de dalt.

  The way they have come is along the high route.

  D’aquells col·legues era de qui havíem d’extreure la informació.

  Those colleagues were the ones who we had to extract the information from.

  35.7.2.2 Agreement of the verb in pseudo-clefts

  In comparison with the cleft construction, the pseudo-cleft pattern (35.1.2i) shows a strong tendency towards the non-agreement of the verb in the relative clause with the subject of the copular verb:

  (El/La) qui ha fet taques en terra ets tu.

  ?(EI/La) qui has fet taques en terra ets tu.

  This tendency is less strongly felt in the plural, especially when the relative is preceded by the plural article:

  Qui ha fet taques en terra som nosaltres.

  = Els qui han fet taques en terra som nosaltres.

  = Els qui hem fet taques en terra som nosaltres.

  For the reverse pseudo-cleft examples (35.1.2ii) verbal agreement in the relative clause is usual when the preceding phrase contains the actual subject of the copular verb:

  Tu ets (el/la) qui ha fet taques en terra.

  = Tu ets (el/la) qui has fet taques en terra.

  As in cleft sentences (35.1.1.2), the tense of the copular verb is often attracted by that of the verb in the relative clause, so that for the example used in 35.1.2 there are alternatives:

  Amb qui vaig fer el tracte va ser amb tu.

  = Amb qui vaig fer el tracte és amb tu.

  Amb tu va ser amb qui vaig fer el tracte.

  = Amb tu és amb qui vaig fer el tracte.

  Other examples:

  Contra els liberals era contra qui sempre despotricava.

  The liberals were the ones he was always ranting on against.

  El que ens va impressionar més va ser l’eloqüència d’aquell home.

  What most impressed us was that man’s eloquence.

  Vosaltres sereu els qui haureu de salvar la pàtria.

  You will be the ones who will have to save our homeland.

  35.2 MISCELLANEOUS POINTS ON CLEFT STRUCTURES

  Translating’that’s why’

  The regularly used cleft construction in English ‘that’s why …’ does not transfer directly into Catalan. A variety of alternatives is available.

  Va ser per això que ho vam fer. That’s/That was why we did it.

  Per això t’ho dic. = És per això que t’ho dic. That’s why I’m telling you.

  Aquest és el motiu pel qual no hi han assistit. That’s why they didn’t attend.

  Style and the use of clefting

  The complexities of some cleft sentences (especially those involving long prepositional phrases) can lead to a cumbersome style in writing. This may be avoided by introducing emphasis in alternative ways within the unmarked sentence:

  Va ser tenint en compte aquestes objeccions que vam madurar el nostre projecte.

  It was with these objections being taken into account that we rounded out our plan.

  → Així, tenint en compte aquestes objeccions, vam madurar el nostre projecte.

  This general stylistic advice may be particularly appreciated by English speakers on account of uncertainty over ‘who’/‘whom’, the overlap in function of ‘that’ (demonstrative/conjunction/relative) and the radical difference of Catalan with respect to preposition stranding. Nevertheless, sentences like:

  ‘It’s not that that I meant.’

  ‘The one who we must be grateful to is Frederic.’

  ‘It’s Frederic that we must be grateful to.’

  ‘It was that sort of expression that he always came out with/out with which he always came.’

  whi
ch are not particularly comfortable in English, have Catalan equivalents that are formed spontaneously in very neat ‘cleft’ constructions:

  No és això el que jo volia dir.

  A qui hem de donar les gràcies és a en Frederic.

  És a en Frederic que (= a qui) hem de donar les gràcies.

  Era aquella mena d’expressió la que sempre amollava.

  These simple examples provide a convenient summary of some main points to be borne in mind about Catalan syntax in this area: the function of the relative link, the repetition of prepositions, tense agreement (especially affecting past tenses).

  36 WORD ORDER

  This chapter discusses the order of the main elements in declarative sentences. For the position of attributive adjectives, see 4.2; for order in questions, see 27.1; for cleft constructions see Chapter 35.

  Catalan shares with English the basic word-order pattern, in transitive main clauses, of subject + verb + object + remainder. However, in general, word order in Catalan is freer, and it is by no means unusual to deviate from the pattern mentioned. An important reason for this is that, in Catalan, it is the end position in a sentence that carries the information focus; it is the place where the major pitch movement takes place in speech, and it is the place where the most informative element of the sentence goes. Elements of the basic word-order sequence may have to be dislocated to achieve this. (In English, information focus is often indicated, in the spoken language, at least, by a special intonation contour placed on the focused word or phrase, which need not be at the end of a clause, as it must in Catalan.)