Talk:Restrictiveness/En otras palabras
The following is a quote from En otras palabras: Perfeccionamiento del español por medio de traducción, by Patricia V. Lunn and Ernest J. Lunsford (ISBN 0-87840-133-4), pp. 30–31:
- Cuando el adjetivo descriptivo sirve para distinguir un sustantivo de otros miembros de una misma categoria, se pospone al sustantivo. "Una modelo francesa" se distingue de otras modelos; "la Copa Davis" se diferencia de otras copas, etc. En la gran mayoría de los casos, el adjetivo tiene esta función diferenciadora, lo que hace que la posposición del adjetivo sea muy común.
- Sin embargo, existe otra posibilidad: el sustantivo puede nombrar algo único, una entidad que, por definición, no necesita diferenciarse de otras. En estos casos, es lógicamente imposible que el adjetivo tenga una función diferenciador. Los adjetivos que modifican a sustantivos únicos, entonces, tienen que anteponerse al sustantivo:
- La mujer reaccionó con una sonrisa enigmática. (hay otros tipos de sonrisa)
vs.
- La Mona Lisa es famosa por su enigmática sonrisa. (esta sonrisa es única)
- Otras veces, el adjetivo nombra una cualidad inherente del sustantivo. En estos casos, el adjetivo sólo sirve para destacar esta cualidad y no tiene un papel diferenciador. Estos adjetivos se anteponen al sustantivo. En el ejemplo que sigue, el adjetivo delicioso se antepone al sustantivo chocolate porque se supone que todo el chocolate es delicioso.
- El caramelo está cubierto por una capa de delicioso chocolate.
Which, for those who don't speak Spanish, means roughly:
- When the descriptive adjective serves to distinguish a noun from other members of the same class, it is placed after the noun. "A French model" [with "French" following "model"] is being distinguished from other models; "the Davis Cup" [with "Davis" following "Cup" — technically "Davis" is a noun, but it's being used here as an adjective of sorts] is being distinguished from other cups, etc. In the great majority of cases, the adjective has this differentiating function, which causes the after-placement of adjectives to be very common.
- However, there exists another possibility: the noun can name something one-of-a-kind, an entity that, by definition, does not need to be distinguished from others. In these cases, it's a logical impossibility for the adjective to have a differentiating function. Adjectives that modify one-of-a-kind nouns, then, must be placed before the noun:
- The woman reacted with an enigmatic smile. [with "enigmatic" following "smile"] (there are other kinds of smile)
vs.
- The Mona Lisa is famous for its enigmatic smile. [with "enigmatic" preceding "smile"] (this smile is one of a kind)
- Other times, the adjective names an inherent quality of the noun. In these cases, the adjective only serves to emphasize this quality and does not have a differentiating role. These adjectives, too, are placed after their nouns. In the following example, the adjective delicious follows the noun chocolate because it is assumed that all chocolate is delicious:
- The caramel is coated with delicious chocolate. [with "delicious" preceding "chocolate"]
The book goes on to give an exercise asking the reader to explain the placement of the bolded adjectives in the following sentences (again, translations mine — I've italicized the nouns in the Spanish to make it clear where the adjective is placed relative to it):
- El primer ministro habló con la sutil ironía que la caracteriza. (The prime minister spoke with the subtle irony that characterizes him.)
- La triste noticia de su muerte nos conmovió a todos. (The sad notice of his death moved all of us.)
- La película consigue plasmar el maravilloso mundo de la infancia. (The movie captured the marvelous world of childhood.)
- A la Virgen María la llaman la Blanca Paloma. (The Virgin Mary is called as the White Dove.)
- Estamos aquí para reconocer a nuestro distinguido colega. (We are here to recognize our distinguished colleague.)
- Muchos criticos han alabado la hermosa voz de Plácido Domingo. (Many critics have praised the lovely voice of Plácido Domingo.)
(there were several more, but you get the idea.)