Question 1

Why is مجرد in the accusative case here, and how does this contrast with our current lesson on إنّما?

Accepted Answer

مجرد (mujarrada) is the predicate of ليس (laysa), which forces its predicate into the accusative case. If we used the restrictive particle from this lesson, like in إنّما الفن مجرد وظيفة (Art is only a job), إنّما does not govern the accusative case, so مجرد would remain nominative (مجردُ) as a standard predicate.

Question 2

How does the word مجرد (merely/just) work grammatically with the word وظيفة (a job)?

Accepted Answer

They form an idafa (genitive construct). مجرد acts as the first part (mudaf) and takes the case dictated by the sentence (accusative here, due to ليس). The second part, وظيفة (wazheefatin), must be in the genitive case. Literally, it translates to "the mere of a job."

Question 3

Why do we use بل (bal) here instead of لكن (lakin) for "but"?

Accepted Answer

بل is used to cancel or correct the previous statement and replace it with a new one, meaning "but rather" or "instead." Since the first clause negates an idea (Art is not merely a job), بل perfectly sets up the alternative truth (it is a passion). لكن is usually for adding contrasting information, not for outright replacing a negated concept.

Question 4

How could we rewrite the core meaning of this sentence using the restrictive particle إنّما (innama) from our current lesson?

Accepted Answer

To say "Art is exclusively a passion" using إنّما, you would say إنّما الفن شغف (innama al-fannu shaghafun). This structurally restricts art to being a passion. Remember that the ما in إنّما suspends the accusative effect that إنّ normally has, so both الفن and شغف remain in the nominative case.

ليس الفن مجرد وظيفة، بل هو شغف.

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