Breakdown of Elle a l'audace d'en parler avant sa vengeance.
elle
she
avoir
to have
parler
to speak
son
his/her/its (son, sa, ses)
en
in, to
avant
before
de
to (introducing an infinitive after a verb)
l'audace
the audacity (f)
la vengeance
the revenge
Questions & Answers about Elle a l'audace d'en parler avant sa vengeance.
This lesson is about the indignant independent subjunctive, but this sentence is in the indicative. How would you rewrite it to express pure outrage using the lesson's structure?
You would drop the standard subject-verb statement and use Que plus the subjunctive: Qu'elle ait l'audace d'en parler ! (That she should have the audacity to talk about it!). This independent clause acts as a standalone exclamation of shock.
Why do we have d'en before parler?
The d' comes from the phrase avoir l'audace de (to have the audacity to). The pronoun en means "about it." Because you say parler de quelque chose (to talk about something), the pronoun en steps in to replace the idea being discussed.
Could I use avant de instead of just avant in this sentence?
No, because sa vengeance is a noun. You use the preposition avant directly before a noun. You only use avant de when it is followed by an infinitive verb, such as avant de se venger (before taking revenge).
Is audace always a negative word like "audacity" in English?
Not necessarily. While in this context it means "audacity" or "nerve" in a very negative way, l'audace can also be a highly positive trait in French, meaning "boldness" or "daring."
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