Learn French: Ce châtiment est terrible, qu'il périsse ! - This punishment is terrible, let him perish!

The phrase qu'il périsse is a third-person command or strong wish, which requires the subjunctive mood. Instead of using a full introductory phrase like 'I want him to perish', French simply starts with que followed by the subjunctive to express 'let him perish' or 'may he perish'.

Does 'let him perish' mean someone is asking for permission here?

Not at all! While 'let him' in English can sometimes be a request for permission, here it is used as a strong decree or curse, similar to 'may he perish!'. In French, starting an independent clause with que and the subjunctive is a classic way to express a royal command, a curse, or an absolute wish.

How do we form this subjunctive form for the verb périr?

Périr (to perish) is a regular -ir verb. To find its subjunctive stem, take the present tense nous form (nous périssons) and drop the -ons. This gives you the stem périss-. Then, add the regular subjunctive ending for il, which is -e, resulting in qu'il périsse.

The word châtiment feels formal. Is there a trick to remembering its meaning?

Yes! The circumflex accent over the â often replaces an 's' that was dropped from Old French over the centuries. If you imagine an 's' after the 'a', châtiment looks like 'chastiment', which is directly related to the English words 'chastise' and 'chastisement' (meaning punishment). This is a highly reliable trick for decoding advanced French vocabulary.