Breakdown of Blir översättningen en succé? Trots att författaren hoppas det, förväntar jag mig inte det.
jag
I
det
it (neuter)
en
a, an (common)
inte
not
författaren
the author
bli
to become
hoppas
to hope
trots att
although, in spite of the fact that
översättningen
the translation
succén
the success (hit, event)
förvänta sig
to expect
Questions & Answers about Blir översättningen en succé? Trots att författaren hoppas det, förväntar jag mig inte det.
Both halves of the second sentence end with det. What exactly does det replace here?
In both cases, det acts as a placeholder for the entire idea of the first sentence: att översättningen blir en succé (that the translation will be a success). Notice that in English you say "hopes so" but "expect it". In Swedish, you consistently use det after verbs of thinking or communicating to stand in for a whole clause.
Why is the word order förväntar jag mig instead of jag förväntar mig?
This is the Swedish V2 (verb-second) rule in action. The entire subordinate clause at the beginning—Trots att författaren hoppas det—counts as position number one. Therefore, the main verb förväntar must take the second position, immediately followed by the subject jag.
Why is there a mig after jag in förväntar jag mig?
The verb for "to expect" is reflexive in Swedish: att förvänta sig. Because the subject is jag (I), the reflexive pronoun must match it and become mig. Even though we don't say "expect myself" in English, the reflexive pronoun is required in Swedish.
Why does hoppas end in an -s? Is it a passive verb?
No, hoppas (to hope) is what we call a "deponent" verb. This means it always ends in an -s but has an active meaning. It works just like other common B1 verbs you may have seen, such as minns (remember), trivs (thrive/feel comfortable), and känns (feel).
Could I leave out att and just say Trots författaren hoppas det?
No, you need att. By itself, trots is a preposition meaning "despite" and must be followed by a noun (like trots regnet - despite the rain). Because you are introducing a full phrase with a subject and a verb (författaren hoppas), you must use trots att (even though / despite the fact that).
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