Breakdown of J'étais triste que cette situation ait provoqué une telle déception.
je
I
être
to be
un
a / an (masculine)
avoir
to have
ce
this (before a noun)
que
that (introducing a clause)
triste
sad
provoquer
to cause
tel
such, such a
la situation
the situation
la déception
the disappointment
Questions & Answers about J'étais triste que cette situation ait provoqué une telle déception.
Why is ait provoqué in the subjonctif passé when the English translation says "had caused"?
The phrase J'étais triste que expresses an emotion, which triggers the subjunctive. To show that the disappointment was caused before you felt sad, you must use a past tense of the subjunctive. In modern French, the subjonctif passé is used for this earlier action, even when the main clause is already in the past.
Could I use the subjonctif présent (provoque) here since the main clause is in the imparfait?
No, because the subjonctif présent would mean the situation was causing disappointment at the exact same time you were sad. You need the subjonctif passé to show that the action of causing disappointment happened before your feeling of sadness.
Doesn't formal French use a different tense when the main clause is in the past?
Yes, strict traditional grammar rules (the sequence of tenses) would use the subjonctif plus-que-parfait (eût provoqué) here because the main verb is in the past. However, in modern everyday French, this literary tense is entirely replaced by the subjonctif passé.
Why is the word order une telle déception instead of telle une déception for "such a disappointment"?
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