Learn Hardcore Japanese: hondana ha kabe ni koteisite atte, zisin no toki mo taorenikui. - The bookshelf is fixed to the wall, so it’s hard for it to fall over during an earthquake.

You could grammatically say 本棚が壁に固定してあって…, but that would sound more like you’re newly presenting the bookshelf as information (“the bookshelf is the thing that is fixed to the wall”).

In context, we usually already know we’re talking about “the bookshelf,” so は is natural to set it as the topic and then describe its condition.

What does 壁に固定してあって mean exactly? How does this grammar work?

Literally:

壁に = to the wall / on the wall (particle に = target/location)
固定して = fixing / having fixed (て-form of 固定する, “to fix, secure, fasten”)
あって = て-form of ある

The pattern ～てある describes:

a resulting state that exists because someone intentionally did something.

So 壁に固定してある ≈ “(it) has been fixed to the wall and is (now) in that fixed state.”

In the sentence, the verb is in て-form with あって and then linked with 、 to the next clause:

壁に固定してあって、地震のときも倒れにくい。
= “It is (in the state of) being fixed to the wall, and (therefore) it’s hard to fall over even in an earthquake.”

What’s the difference between 固定してある and 固定している?

Both can describe something being “fixed/attached,” but the nuance is different:

固定してある
- Focuses on the result of an intentional action.
- Implies “someone fixed it, and now it remains in that fixed state.”
- Very natural for things like “The picture has been hung (up),” “The chair has been placed (there).”
固定している
- More neutral, a simple continuous/progressive state: “is fixed.”
- Can feel less like “was intentionally set up” and more like “is in that condition.”

In this kind of safety explanation (about earthquakes), 固定してある is better because we care about the bookshelf being secured by design.

Why is the particle に used with 壁 (壁に)? Could we use へ or で?

Here に marks the target/surface to which the bookshelf is fixed:

壁に固定する = “to fix/secure (something) to the wall.”

Comparisons:

壁に: correct, “to the wall / on the wall” as a target location.
壁へ: usually indicates direction (“towards the wall”), not appropriate here.
壁で: would mean “at/by the wall (as a place where something happens),” not “onto the wall” in the sense of fastening.

So 壁に固定する is the natural pattern: verb of attaching + に (target).

What does 地震のとき mean? Is it “when there is an earthquake” or “during earthquakes”?

地震のとき literally means “at the time of an earthquake.”

In context it can mean:

“when there is an earthquake,”
“during an earthquake,”
or more generally “in an earthquake situation.”

So 地震のときも倒れにくい = “even when there is an earthquake, it doesn’t fall over easily.”

What is the role of も in 地震のときも?

も adds the nuance of “even / also.”

Without も: 地震のとき倒れにくい
→ “It’s hard to fall over in an earthquake.”
With も: 地震のときも倒れにくい
→ “It’s also hard to fall over even in an earthquake.”

The implication is:

It doesn’t fall over easily in general, and even when there’s an earthquake, it still doesn’t fall over easily.

So も emphasizes that even under that extra stress (earthquake), the property still holds.

What does 倒れにくい mean exactly, and how is it different from just saying 倒れない?

倒れにくい is:

倒れる (to fall over)
- にくい (difficult to do)

So 倒れにくい literally = “hard to fall over” / “difficult to topple,” often translated as “unlikely to fall over” or “not easy to fall over.”

Difference from 倒れない:

倒れない = “doesn’t fall (over)” or “won’t fall (over)”
→ stronger, more absolute-sounding.
倒れにくい = “doesn’t fall over easily” / “hard to make it fall”
→ softer, more realistic, acknowledges that it could fall, but is resistant.

For safety descriptions, 倒れにくい is common because you rarely want to claim 100% impossibility.

How does the grammar of ～にくい work? Can I use it with any verb?

～にくい attaches to the stem of a verb to mean “hard/difficult to do X.”

Pattern:

Verb in ます-stem (連用形) + にくい

Examples:

読む → 読み
- にくい = 読みにくい (“hard to read”)
分かる → 分かりにくい (“hard to understand”)
使う → 使いにくい (“hard to use”)
倒れる → 倒れにくい (“hard to fall over”)

You can generally use it with most verbs, especially for physical actions or ease/difficulty of doing something.

Why is the subject omitted in the second part? How do we know 倒れにくい is still talking about the bookshelf?

Japanese often omits repeated subjects when they’re clear from context.

The sentence is:

本棚は壁に固定してあって、地震のときも倒れにくい。

Once you say 本棚は at the start, everything that follows is normally understood to describe 本棚 unless there is a clear change of subject. So the full underlying meaning is:

本棚は 壁に固定してあって、
（本棚は）地震のときも倒れにくい。

The second 本棚は is simply left out because it would sound redundant. Listeners naturally interpret 倒れにくい as referring to the bookshelf.

Why is the verb ある used (してあって) instead of いる?

ある is used for inanimate objects (things that don’t move on their own), whereas いる is for animate beings (people, animals, etc.).

A 本棚 is an inanimate object, so:

本棚が壁に固定してある = correct
本棚が壁に固定している = grammatically possible, but then you aren’t using the ～てある pattern; you’re just using the ordinary progressive form of the verb 固定する.

The structure ～てある is always built with ある, not いる, because it describes a state resulting from an intentional action done to some object.

Could this sentence be rephrased more literally in English to match the Japanese structure?

A closer, more literal rendering that follows the structure would be:

“As for the bookshelf, it is in the state of having been fixed to the wall, so it doesn’t fall over easily even at the time of an earthquake.”

Natural English simplifies this to something like:

“The bookshelf is fixed to the wall, so it’s unlikely to fall over even during an earthquake.”

But knowing the literal structure helps you understand patterns like ～てある, Xは … にくい, and the topic–comment style of Japanese.