Learn Hardcore German: Im Sommer schwitzt der Bauer im Feld, während er bei der Ernte hilft. - In summer the farmer sweats in the field while he helps with the harvest.

German main clauses follow the verb-second rule (V2): the conjugated verb must be the second element in the sentence, not necessarily the second word.

In this sentence:

Im Sommer = first element (time phrase)
schwitzt = second element (verb)
der Bauer = third element (subject)
im Feld = more information (place)

So Im Sommer schwitzt der Bauer im Feld is correct German.
If you start with the subject instead, the verb is still second:

Der Bauer schwitzt im Sommer im Feld.

Both are fine; the choice mainly affects emphasis and rhythm.

What does im Sommer literally mean, and why not just in Sommer?

Im Sommer literally means “in the summer”.

im is a contraction of in dem.
Sommer is masculine, so dem Sommer is the dative singular.
For time expressions like seasons, in + dative is standard:
- im Frühling (in the spring)
- im Herbst (in the autumn)

You cannot say in Sommer here; you must use im (in dem).

Should there be a comma after Im Sommer?

No comma is needed here.

German does not normally put a comma after a short, single fronted element such as a time phrase:

Im Sommer schwitzt der Bauer im Feld.

A comma after Im Sommer would only be used if the fronted part were long and complex or if you wanted a very strong pause for stylistic reasons. In this simple sentence, no comma is standard.

Why is it der Bauer and not something like den Bauer or dem Bauer?

Because der Bauer is the subject of the sentence, so it is in the nominative case.

The noun Bauer (farmer) is masculine.
Masculine nominative singular definite article = der.

Other forms for comparison:

Nominative: der Bauer (the farmer – subject)
Accusative: den Bauer (the farmer – direct object)
Dative: dem Bauern (to/for the farmer)

Here, the farmer is the one sweating, so der Bauer is correct.

What case is im Feld, and why is im used again?

im Feld is dative case:

Preposition: in
Article: dem (dative singular of neuter das Feld)
Contracted form: in dem → im

So im Feld = “in the field” (location, dative).

German often uses in + dative to indicate location (“where something is”):

im Haus (in the house)
im Garten (in the garden)
im Feld (in the field)

Is there a difference between im Feld and auf dem Feld?

Yes, there is a nuance:

im Feld = literally “in the field” (inside the area of the field)
auf dem Feld = literally “on the field”, but idiomatically often used for “out working in/at the field”

In everyday German, especially when talking about a farmer working, auf dem Feld is more common and sounds more idiomatic:

Im Sommer schwitzt der Bauer auf dem Feld.

Im Feld is not wrong, but auf dem Feld is what many native speakers would naturally say in this context.

What does während mean here, and how is it used grammatically?

Here während means “while” (introducing a time-related subordinate clause).

It introduces the clause während er bei der Ernte hilft.
während is a subordinating conjunction. That means:
- It starts a subordinate clause.
- In that clause, the conjugated verb goes to the end.

So:

während (while)
er (he)
bei der Ernte (with the harvest)
hilft (helps – verb at the end)

There is also another use of während with a noun (no verb), where it means “during”:

während der Ernte = during the harvest
während des Sommers = during the summer

In the sentence you gave, it’s the conjunction use (“while” + clause), not the “during + noun” use.

Why is there a comma before während er bei der Ernte hilft?

German always puts a comma before a subordinate clause introduced by a subordinating conjunction such as:

weil, dass, wenn, obwohl, während, etc.

So you must write:

Im Sommer schwitzt der Bauer im Feld, während er bei der Ernte hilft.

The comma marks the boundary between the main clause and the subordinate clause.

Why does hilft come at the very end of während er bei der Ernte hilft?

Because this is a subordinate clause, and in subordinate clauses in German, the conjugated verb goes to the final position.

Pattern:

Subordinating conjunction (während)
Subject (er)
Other elements (bei der Ernte)
Conjugated verb at the end (hilft)

So:

während er bei der Ernte hilft

Compare with a main clause, where the verb is in second position:

Er hilft bei der Ernte. (main clause, verb = second element)
…, während er bei der Ernte hilft. (subordinate clause, verb at the end)

What does bei der Ernte mean exactly, and why is it dative?

bei der Ernte means “with the harvest” / “during the harvest work” in the sense of “helping with” something.

Grammatically:

bei is a preposition that always takes the dative case.
Ernte is feminine (die Ernte).
Feminine dative singular of die is der.

So:

die Ernte (nominative)
bei der Ernte (dative after bei)

The verb helfen commonly uses bei + dative to express what you are helping with:

bei der Ernte helfen (to help with the harvest)
bei den Hausaufgaben helfen (to help with the homework)

Why hilft and not something like helf or helfet? How is helfen conjugated?

hilft is the 3rd person singular form of the verb helfen (to help), which is irregular.

Present tense of helfen:

ich helfe (I help)
du hilfst (you help – singular informal)
er/sie/es hilft (he/she/it helps)
wir helfen (we help)
ihr helft (you help – plural informal)
sie helfen (they help / you help – formal)

So for er (he), the correct form is hilft.
The vowel changes from e → i in du hilfst and er/sie/es hilft.

Who does er refer to in während er bei der Ernte hilft?

er refers back to der Bauer.

German usually refers to the last suitable noun that matches in gender and number. Here:

der Bauer = masculine singular
er = masculine singular pronoun

So er = the farmer.
You could repeat the noun (während der Bauer bei der Ernte hilft), but using er sounds more natural and avoids repetition.

Why is the German present tense (schwitzt) translated as “sweats” or “is sweating” in English?

German has only one present tense, which covers both:

English simple present: he sweats
English present continuous: he is sweating

So der Bauer schwitzt can mean:

“the farmer sweats (in general / regularly)”
“the farmer is sweating (right now / whenever this happens)”

Context tells you whether English should use simple or continuous form.
You do not usually form a separate progressive in German; schwitzt covers both readings.