Breakdown of Mielenhallinta saa uhrin unohtamaan menneisyyden.
unohtaa
to forget
saada
to get
uhri
victim
menneisyys
the past
mielenhallinta
mind control
Questions & Answers about Mielenhallinta saa uhrin unohtamaan menneisyyden.
How does the verb saada work here to mean "gets the victim to forget"?
This is the causative construction you are currently studying. When saada is used with an object (uhrin) and a verb in the 3rd infinitive illative form (unohtamaan), it means to cause, get, or make someone do something. While saada usually means "to get" or "to receive," in this structure it expresses successfully causing an action.
Why do both uhri and menneisyys have the -n ending (uhrin, menneisyyden)?
They are both total objects in this sentence, taking the genitive-looking accusative ending. Uhrin is the direct object of the main verb saa, while menneisyyden is the direct object of the action verb unohtamaan. Because the forgetting is a complete action covering the whole past, they both take the -n suffix.
Could I use laittaa or tehdä instead of saada to mean "make"?
You cannot use tehdä here, as Finnish does not use it to mean "making someone do something." You could use laittaa (e.g., laittaa uhrin unohtamaan), which is very common in spoken Finnish for making or putting someone to do a task. However, saada is the standard, most natural choice here for expressing that a condition like mind control caused a specific outcome.
How is the word menneisyys (the past) formed?
It is built from the verb mennä (to go). First, it becomes the past participle mennyt (gone or past), and then the noun-forming suffix -isyys is added to create menneisyys, meaning "the past" or "history." In this sentence, the basic form changes to menneisyyden because it is in the accusative case.
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