Breakdown of Les fantômes sont figés pour avoir oublié de quitter le château.
être
to be
pour
for
avoir
to have
le château
the castle
oublier
to forget
le fantôme
the ghost
quitter
to leave (a place or person)
de
to (introducing an infinitive after a verb)
figé
frozen
Questions & Answers about Les fantômes sont figés pour avoir oublié de quitter le château.
Why is it pour avoir oublié instead of pour oublier?
The structure pour + past infinitive (avoir or être + past participle) is used to express "for having [done something]". Using pour oublier would mean "in order to forget", which changes the meaning completely. The past infinitive shows that the action of forgetting happened before they became frozen.
Why do we use de in oublié de quitter?
The verb oublier requires the preposition de when it is followed by an infinitive verb, translating to "to forget to [do something]". If you simply forget a noun, no preposition is needed, as in J'ai oublié mes clés (I forgot my keys).
Why use quitter here instead of partir or sortir for "to leave"?
Quitter must be followed by a direct object, meaning you leave a specific place or person behind. Since the ghosts are leaving the castle (le château), quitter is required. Partir is intransitive (used for the general act of departing without a direct object), and sortir means "to go out" (which would need de to specify what you are exiting).
What exactly does figés mean here? Is it related to the cold?
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