Learn Hardcore Japanese: tenin ha 「isoide kudasai」 to iimasita.

In Japanese, は is the topic‐marker, not the subject‐marker. By using 店員は, you’re saying “As for the clerk…” and assuming your listener knows who the clerk is.

が would introduce “the clerk” as new or focused information (“It was the clerk who said…”).
は often carries a nuance of contrast or known context, whereas が simply identifies the doer of the action.

What do the brackets 「」 and the particle と indicate in this sentence?

The 「」 are Japanese quotation marks, enclosing the exact words someone spoke. The particle と immediately after a quoted phrase marks it as a quotation. In effect, 「急いでください」と言いました means “said ‘Please hurry.’”

Without と, you can’t link the quoted words grammatically to 言いました.
This construction is used for direct speech; there are other patterns (like ～と言っていました for indirect or reported speech).

How is the polite request 急いでください constructed?

It’s formed by taking the verb’s te-form and adding ください. For 急ぐ (to hurry):

Change 急ぐ (u-verb) to its te-form → 急いで
Attach ください → 急いでください (“Please hurry.”)
This pattern (verb-te ＋ください) is the standard way to make polite requests in Japanese.

Why is 急いで used instead of 急ぐ before ください?

Because ください attaches only to the te-form of verbs when making a request. You can’t say 急ぐください; it must be 急いでください. The te-form (here 急いで) connects the action verb to ください grammatically.

What is the difference in nuance between 急いでください and the plain imperative 急げ?

急いでください is a polite request form, suitable when speaking to customers, strangers, or superiors.
急げ is the plain (informal) imperative of an u-verb. It’s stronger and more abrupt—like a command you might give to a subordinate or friend in an emergency.
Choosing between them depends on your relationship with the listener and the level of politeness desired.

Could you say just 急いで without ください?

Yes, in very casual situations the te-form alone can function as a request (“Hurry!”), especially among friends.

Casual: 急いで！
Polite: 急いでください！
However, dropping ください in a service context (e.g., a clerk speaking to a customer) would sound too abrupt or rude.

Why does 言いました come at the end of the sentence?

Japanese follows a subject-object-verb (SOV) order. When quoting, you place the quoted clause first, then the quotation marker と, and finally the main verb (言いました, “said”). So:
【Topic + “quoted words” + と + main verb】
This is the normal word order for reported speech in Japanese.

Why is there no explicit pronoun for “you” in 急いでください?

Japanese often omits pronouns when the subject or object is clear from context. Here, the clerk is addressing the listener directly, so “you” is implied. Adding あなた (“you”) would be unnecessary and can even sound stiff or overly direct in service settings.

Could we replace 店員は with 店員が in this sentence?

Yes, grammatically 店員が「急いでください」と言いました is correct. The difference is subtle:

店員は sets the clerk as the topic and implies the statement is part of known or contrasted information.
店員が simply marks the clerk as the new, focused subject performing the action of saying.
In practice, both are used, but は is more common if the clerk has already been mentioned or is the assumed topic.