Breakdown of Dlaczego w końcu okazało się, że to tylko mit?
to
this
w
in / on (a day)
tylko
only
dlaczego
why
że
that
koniec
end
okazać się
to turn out (perf)
mit
myth
w końcu
finally, at last; after all
Questions & Answers about Dlaczego w końcu okazało się, że to tylko mit?
Why is okazało in the neuter form here?
In English, we use the dummy subject 'it' ('it turned out'). In Polish, when there is no specific noun acting as the subject for a general state or result, we use the third-person singular neuter form of the verb, which is okazało się.
The lesson mentions a Dative experiencer. Why isn't there one in this sentence?
The Dative experiencer is optional and shows who experienced the realization. If you wanted to say 'Why did it turn out TO ME', you would add the Dative pronoun mi, like this: Dlaczego w końcu okazało mi się. Since this sentence describes a general fact that turned out to be true for everyone, the Dative pronoun is left out.
Why is mit in the Nominative case? Shouldn't a noun describing what something is take the Instrumental?
We only use the Instrumental case when a form of the verb być (to be) is explicitly in the sentence, for example: że to było mitem. When we use just the word to to link the subject and the noun, we keep the noun in the basic Nominative case: to tylko mit.
Could I use the imperfective verb okazywało się instead of okazało się here?
You could, but it changes the meaning. Okazało się is perfective, meaning a single, completed realization. If you used the imperfective okazywało się, it would mean it kept turning out or it was turning out over a period of time. That wouldn't make much sense next to w końcu (in the end/finally).
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