Learn Hardcore Spanish (Latin America): Obedezco la ley para vivir tranquilo con mi familia. - I obey the law to live peacefully with my family.

Spanish usually omits subject pronouns (like yo, tú, él) because the verb ending already shows who the subject is. Obedezco can only be yo, so saying yo is optional and often sounds a bit more emphatic:

Obedezco la ley… = I obey the law… (neutral)
Yo obedezco la ley… = I obey the law… (stressing “I”)

Why is it la ley and not just ley?

In Spanish, general concepts like the law, the family, the environment usually take the definite article (el / la / los / las) when English might omit the:

Obedezco la ley = I obey the law (in general).
La familia es importante = Family is important.

Saying obedezco ley sounds wrong or very incomplete in standard Spanish. You need the article: la ley.

Could I say obedezco las leyes instead of obedezco la ley? Is there a difference?

Yes, you can say both:

Obedezco la ley → focuses on “the law” as a general system or principle.
Obedezco las leyes → emphasizes the individual laws (plural), like specific rules.

In many everyday contexts, they’re almost interchangeable, but la ley sounds a bit more abstract and general.

Do I need a before la ley? Should it be obedezco a la ley?

With obedecer, Spanish normally uses a when the direct object is a person:

Obedezco a mi jefe. – I obey my boss.
Los niños obedecen a sus padres.

With things or abstract concepts (like la ley), a is usually optional and often omitted:

Obedezco la ley. ✅ (very common)
Obedezco a la ley. ✅ (possible, a bit more formal or emphatic)

So the sentence without a is completely standard.

Why is para used here and not por?

Para often expresses purpose or goal: “in order to…”.

Obedezco la ley para vivir tranquilo…
= I obey the law in order to live peacefully…

Por usually talks about cause, reason, or motivation: because of, due to.

Obedezco la ley por miedo a las multas.
= I obey the law because of fear of fines.

Here we are talking about the purpose (goal) of obeying the law, so para is correct.

Why is vivir in the infinitive and not conjugated, like vivo?

After para to express purpose, Spanish normally uses the infinitive when the subject is the same in both parts of the sentence:

(Yo) obedezco la ley para vivir tranquilo…
Subject of obedezco = yo
Subject of vivir = also yo

If the subject changed, you would typically use para que + subjunctive:

Obedezco la ley para que mi familia viva tranquila.
I obey the law so that my family may live peacefully.

So with the same subject, para + infinitive (para vivir) is the normal structure.

What does tranquilo mean here exactly?

Tranquilo literally means calm, peaceful, relaxed, without worries or problems.

In this sentence, vivir tranquilo suggests:

to live without legal problems
to live at peace, without stress, without trouble from the authorities
more broadly, to live in a calm, secure way

So it’s not just “physically quiet”; it’s more like “at ease / without trouble” with your family.

If the speaker is a woman, should it be tranquila instead of tranquilo?

Yes, normally tranquilo / tranquila agrees with the person who is living:

A man: Obedezco la ley para vivir tranquilo.
A woman: Obedezco la ley para vivir tranquila.

Grammatically, tranquilo is an adjective describing yo (the speaker), even though it comes after vivir. So it usually matches the speaker’s gender and number:

Vivimos tranquilos. (we, all men or mixed group)
Vivimos tranquilas. (we, all women)

Is tranquilo working like an adverb here, like “peacefully”?

Functionally, yes, it’s similar to the English adverb “peacefully,” but grammatically in Spanish it is still an adjective.

Structure:

vivir tranquilo = “to live [being] calm / peaceful”

It’s called a predicative adjective: it describes the subject through the verb. That’s why it agrees in gender and number with the subject (tranquilo / tranquila / tranquilos / tranquilas), unlike a real adverb, which wouldn’t change.

Can I move the words around, like Obedezco la ley para vivir con mi familia tranquilo?

You can say para vivir tranquilo con mi familia or para vivir con mi familia tranquilo, and both are understandable.

para vivir tranquilo con mi familia → more neutral, very natural.
para vivir con mi familia tranquilo → still okay, but tranquilo sounds a bit more separated from vivir, and some speakers may find the first version smoother.

In practice, para vivir tranquilo con mi familia is the most common and natural order.