Le pass

1
Le passé

• Imparfait et Passé Composé

2
Three forms

• Imparfait
• Passé Composé
• Passé Simple (written tense only)
• In this presentation, we will only see the first
  two Imparfait Passé Composé.

3
What is the difference?

• Use the Imparfait when

• Use the passé composé when

• You want to express
• What you used to do.
• What used to be.
• What you were doing.
• What was going on.
• The description of the scene (time, weather)
• The description of the people involved (looks,
  feelings, age)

• You want to express
• What you did.
• What happened.
• Action.
• An event that began and ended at a particular
  point in time in the past.
• The action was finite it began and ended at a
  point in time in the past.

4
What does the imparfait look like?

• These are the imparfait endings
• ais
• ais
• ait
• ions
• iez
• aient

5
This is the verb Regarder (to watch) in the
imparfait.

• Je regardais (I used to watch)
• Tu regardais (You were watching)
• Il, elle, on regardait

• Nous regardions
• Vous regardiez
• Ils, elles regardaient

6
The best way to form the imparfait.

• Begin with the NOUS form of the present tense.
• Manger in the present tense Nous mangeons
• Je mangeais
• Tu mangeais
• Il, elle, on mangeait
• Nous mangions
• Vous mangiez
• Ils, elles mangeaient

7
Je mangeais au restaurant.

• When French people hear this, they understand
• You used to eat at the restaurant.
• or
• You were eating at the restaurant

8
Forming the ImparfaitTwo Important exceptions

• Être to be
• Jétais
• Tu étais
• Il, elle, on était
• Nous étions
• Vous étiez
• Ils, elles étaient
• Ils étaient jeunes. (They were young) Description.

• Aller to go
• Jallais
• Tu allais
• Il, elle, on allait
• Nous allions
• Vous alliez
• Ils, elles allaient
• Nous allions au bord de la mer pendant les
  vacances. (We used to go to the seashore during
  our vacations)

9
What does the passé composé look like?

• The passé composé will have 2 words, just like
  its name.
• The first is the helper verb or auxiliary verb.
• The second is the past participle.

10
This is the verb regarder in the passé composé!

• Jai regardé (I watched)
• Tu as regardé
• Il, elle, on a regardé

• Nous avons regardé
• Vous avez regardé
• Ils, elles ont regardé

11
Jai regardé un bon film.

• When French people read this
• They understand you saw a good movie.
• They also understand this was a finite event at a
  particular point in time in the past.

12
Jai regardé

• Jai is the helper verb.
• Regardé is the past participle.
• The passé composé is composed of 2 words!

13
Only two helper verbs

• Avoir

• Être

• Jai
• Tu as
• Il, elle, on a
• Nous avons
• Vous avez
• Ils, elles ont

• Je suis
• Tu es
• Il, elle, on est
• Nous sommes
• Vous êtes
• Ils, elles sont

14
When do you use the helper verb AVOIR?

• With the passé composé
• MOST OF THE TIME.

15
When do you use the helper verb être?

• In the passé composé
• When the verb is on the list.
• When the verb is reflexive.

16
(No Transcript)
17
What list?

• DR and MRS P VANDERTRAMP, is an acronym-mnemonic.
  Each capital letter stands for a verb which pairs
  with the verb être (to be) when conjugating into
  the passé composé tense.
• Descendre (past participle) descendu)Rester
  (past participle resté)
• Monter (past participle monté)Revenir (past
  participle revenu)Sortir (past participle sorti)
  
• Passer (past participle passé)
• Venir (past participle venu)Arriver (past
  participle arrivé)Naître (past participle
  né)Devenir (past participle devenu)Entrer (past
  participle entré)Retourner (past participle
  retourné)Tomber (past participle tombé)Rentrer
  (past participle rentré)Aller (past participle
  allé)Mourir (past participle mort)Partir (past
  participle parti)

18
What is a reflexive verb?

• A reflexive verb infinitive is identified by its
  reflexive pronoun se, which is placed before the
  infinitive. (se regarder)
• A reflexive verb shows that the subject is
  performing the action upon itself and, therefore,
  the subject and the reflexive pronoun refer to
  the same person or thing.
• Je me regarde Im looking at myself.

19
Compare the reflexive verb in the present in
the passé composé.

• In the present

• In the passé composé
• Verb ÊTRE past participle.

• The verb se regarder
• Je me regarde (I look at myself)
• Tu te regardes
• Il, elle, on se regarde
• Nous nous regardons
• Vous vous regarge
• Ils, elles se regardent

• The verb se regarder
• Je me suis regardé (I looked at myself)
• Tu tes regardé
• Il, elle, on sest regardé
• Nous nous sommes regardés
• Vous vous étes regardés
• Ils se sont regardés

20
Okay so

• The passé composé is composed of 2 words
• The helper (auxiliary) verb the past
  participle.
• There are two helper verbs Avoir and Être.
• Use avoir most of the time.
• Use être when the verb is
• on the list (aller for example) Je suis allé au
  parc. I went to the park.
• or reflexive (se regarder for example) Je me suis
  regardé dans le lac. I looked at myself in the
  lake.
• But what about the past participle?

21
Past participles

• Past participles are generally related to verb
  infinitives.
• Infinitives ending in er, for example, generally
  drop this ending and substitute é Jai chanté
  (I sang) Je suis tombé (I fell)
• Infinitives ending in ir generally drop this
  ending and substitute i Jai fini (I finished)
  Je suis sorti ( I went out)
• Infinitives ending in re generally drop this
  ending and substitute u Jai rendu (I returned)
  Je suis descendu (I went down)

22
A number of common verbs have irregular past
participles

• avoir to have eu
• boire to drink bu
• connaître to know connu
• courir to run couru
• devoir must dû (due)
• être to be été
• faire to do, make fait
• falloir must, have to fallu
• lire to read lu

• mettre to put mis
• ouvrir to open ouvert
• pouvoir can, may pu
• prendre to take pris
• recevoir to receive reçu
• rire to laugh ri
• savoir to know su
• vivre to live vécu
• vouloir to want voulu

23
(No Transcript)
24
A) Il a chanté une belle chanson.B) Elle
chantait très bien.

• In A) When I see the passé composé, I
  understand
• He sang a nice song at a particular moment in
  the past.
• In B) When I see the imparfait, I understand
• She used to sing very well or she was singing
  very well.

25
Un jour

• Un jour je suis allé au parc et jai vu un joli
  petit lapin. Jai attrapé le petit lapin et je
  lai apporté chez moi. Je lai donné à ma maman.
• Only the passé composé is used here because Im
  all action. Also, the action is finite (It began
  and ended at that point in time).
• One day, I went to the parc and I saw a cute
  little rabbit. I caught the little rabbit and I
  brought it home. I gave it to my mom.
• If I had described the rabbit or my mothers
  reaction, I would have use the imparfait
• Il était blanc et elle était furieuse. (It was
  white and she was furious)
• Note None of the verbs are used to describe the
  rabbit although I do know it was little and cute.

26

• Il faisait beau et la ville était très calme. Les
  oiseaux chantaient et Pierre était heureux.
• Only the imparfait is used because I am entirely
  descriptive.
• The weather was nice and the town was very clam.
  The birds were singing, and Peter was happy.

27
Tout à coup (all of a sudden)

• Tout à coup, Pierre est tombé et il sest cassé
  la jambe. Il est allé à lhôpital. Il nétait
  plus très content.
• Pierre est tombé Pierre fell at a certain moment
  in the past. (action)
• Il sest cassé la jambe He broke his leg at
  that certain moment in time. (action)
• Il est allé à lhôpital He went to the
  hospital. (action)
• Il nétait plus très content He
  wasnt very happy anymore. (Describing his
  feelings) Imparfait

28
Imparfait or passé composé?

• It was 430 in the afternoon. The weather was
  nice. A man was walking towards me. He was big
  and scary looking. I was afraid.
• Describing the scene, the man and the way I felt.

29
Imparfait of course!

• Il était quatre heures et demie de laprès-midi.
  Il faisait beau. Un homme marchait vers moi. Il
  était grand et épeurant. Javais peur.

30
Imparfait or passé composé?

• Romeo went below Juliets window to sing her a
  love song. Her father saw him and he emptied a
  bucket of water on his head. Romeo went home.
• All action here. At a finite point in time, Romeo
  went her father saw and emptied and Romeo went
  home. (the action started and ended at that
  particular time in the past finite)

31
Passé composé of course!

• Roméo est allé sous la fenêtre de Juliette pour
  lui chanter une chanson damour. Son père la vu
  et il lui a vidé un seau deau sur la tête. Roméo
  est rentré chez lui.