Breakdown of Даже вопреки здравому смыслу, она продолжала верить в этот план.
она
she / it (for a feminine noun)
этот
this [f: эта, n: это]
в
in / to (direction)
план
plan
Questions & Answers about Даже вопреки здравому смыслу, она продолжала верить в этот план.
Why is здравому смыслу in the Dative case here?
It follows the preposition вопреки (contrary to), which strictly requires the Dative case. You will use the Dative case with вопреки to express that an action happened despite or against a specific obstacle, rule, or expectation.
What is the literal meaning of здравому смыслу?
The nominative form is здравый смысл, which literally translates to "healthy sense" or "sound sense." It is the standard Russian equivalent for the English phrase "common sense."
Could we use the perfective verb поверить instead of the imperfective верить after продолжала?
No, you must use the imperfective верить here. In Russian, phase verbs that indicate the start, continuation, or end of an action (like начинать, продолжать, and заканчивать) are always followed by an imperfective infinitive, because they describe an ongoing process.
Why does верить в этот план use the Accusative case rather than the Prepositional?
When the verb верить (to believe) is followed by the preposition в, it takes the Accusative case to mean "to believe in" a concept, plan, or person. The Prepositional case with в is generally reserved for physical location, not abstract beliefs.