Question 1

Why use On lui a permis instead of a passive structure like Elle a été permise to mean 'She was allowed'?

Accepted Answer

In French, you generally cannot use the passive voice with verbs that take an indirect object with à (indirect transitive verbs). Because the expression is permettre à quelqu'un, you cannot make that person the subject of a passive sentence. Instead, you must use the active voice with the indefinite pronoun on and the indirect object pronoun lui.

Question 2

Since the sentence uses the pronoun lui, couldn't it also translate to 'He was allowed'?

Accepted Answer

Yes, absolutely. As an indirect object pronoun, lui means both 'to him' and 'to her'. Without outside context, On lui a permis could be translated as either 'He was allowed' or 'She was allowed'. The English translation uses 'she' simply based on an assumed context.

Question 3

What does voire mean here, and is it related to the verb voir?

Accepted Answer

voire is an adverb meaning 'and even' or 'indeed'. It is used to introduce a stronger or more surprising addition to what was just said. Despite sounding identical to the verb voir (to see), it is completely unrelated and is always spelled with an 'e' at the end.

Question 4

Does le générique refer to a generic brand or product in this sentence?

Accepted Answer

While un générique can mean a generic drug in pharmacy contexts, in television, film, or radio, le générique refers to 'the credits' or 'the title sequence'. The pairing with la chanson (the song) makes it clear we are talking about media here.

On lui a permis de choisir le générique, voire la chanson, n'est-ce pas ?

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