Breakdown of L'éthique exige souvent de faire attention à soi.
souvent
often
à
at / to / in (general locations) / about (what one thinks about / reacts to)
faire attention
to pay attention, to be careful
exiger
to require
de
to (introducing an infinitive after a verb)
soi
oneself
l'éthique
the ethics (f)
Questions & Answers about L'éthique exige souvent de faire attention à soi.
Why do we use soi here instead of lui or se?
Soi is the indefinite stressed pronoun for "oneself". We use it here because the sentence is a general statement that applies to anyone, rather than being about a specific person. After a preposition like à, if the statement is general, you must use soi. If it were about a specific man, you would use lui (e.g., il fait attention à lui).
Why is there a de right before faire?
The verb exiger (to demand or require) requires the preposition de when it is followed by an infinitive verb. You will often see this pattern in French: exiger de followed by an infinitive action.
"Ethics" ends in an "s" in English. Why is L'éthique singular?
In English, abstract nouns ending in "-ics" often look plural. In French, l'éthique is a standard singular feminine noun referring to the concept of moral principles. You treat it just like any other singular subject.
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