Question 1

Why is veda in the subjunctive here instead of the indicative vede?

Accepted Answer

In this sentence, perché doesn't mean "because" (giving a reason); it means "so that" or "in order that" (expressing a purpose). When perché is used to express purpose, it triggers the subjunctive. If it meant "because," it would take the indicative: Nascondiamo la telecamera perché l'intruso la vede (We are hiding the camera because the intruder sees it).

Question 2

Could we use affinché instead of perché in this sentence?

Accepted Answer

Yes! Affinché strictly means "so that" or "in order that" and always takes the subjunctive. You could say ...affinché l'intruso non la veda. It is slightly more formal than perché, which is very common in everyday speech for both "because" and "so that."

Question 3

Why can't we use per + infinitive here, like per non vederla?

Accepted Answer

You can only use per + infinitive when the subject of both actions is the same. Here, the subjects are different: we hide the camera, but the intruder is the one who shouldn't see it. Because the subjects change, you must use a conjunction like perché plus a conjugated verb in the subjunctive.

Question 4

Where does the pronoun la (referring to the camera) go when the verb is in the subjunctive?

Accepted Answer

Direct object pronouns follow the normal placement rules even in the subjunctive: they go immediately before the conjugated verb. Here, la goes right before veda. Notice that the negative non always comes before the object pronoun, giving us non la veda.

Nascondiamo la telecamera perché l'intruso non la veda.

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