Breakdown of Piangeva tremante, come se quella follia gli avesse provocato un infarto.
un
a / an (masculine)
quello
that
avere
to have
se
if
come
as (in comparisons)
piangere
to cry
provocare
to cause
l'infarto
the heart attack (m)
tremante
trembling
la follia
the madness
Questions & Answers about Piangeva tremante, come se quella follia gli avesse provocato un infarto.
Why do we use the pluperfect subjunctive (avesse provocato) after come se here?
The phrase come se (as if) introduces a hypothetical or unreal situation, which always requires the subjunctive. Because the main action (piangeva) is in the past, and the imaginary cause (the heart attack) represents an unreal event that would have happened prior to or leading up to the crying, we use the pluperfect subjunctive (congiuntivo trapassato).
Could I use the gerund tremando instead of tremante?
Yes, but there is a slight nuance. Tremando focuses on the action happening alongside the crying (crying while trembling). Tremante is a present participle acting as an adjective here. It describes his physical state or condition. In descriptive writing, present participles are often used this way to paint a vivid picture of someone's state.
Why does gli go before the auxiliary verb avesse?
Gli is an indirect object pronoun meaning "to him". With conjugated compound tenses like the pluperfect subjunctive, object pronouns must always be placed directly before the auxiliary verb (avesse). They are never attached to the past participle (provocato).
Is provocato un infarto the standard way to say "caused a heart attack"?
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