Learn Swedish: Vad är det som gör rollen svår att gestalta? - What is it that makes the role difficult to portray?

Vad är det som gör rollen svår att gestalta?

What is it that makes the role difficult to portray?

Breakdown of Vad är det som gör rollen svår att gestalta?

Questions & Answers about Vad är det som gör rollen svår att gestalta?

Why use the longer phrase Vad är det som instead of simply asking Vad gör rollen svår?

Both are correct, but Vad är det som is a cleft construction (meaning it splits the sentence to add focus). Just like "What is it that..." in English, it emphasizes the question word to zero in on the specific cause. Swedish uses this structure very frequently in spoken language to make questions sound more natural and focused.

Is it possible to drop the word som in this sentence?

No, som is absolutely required here. In Swedish, you can only drop som if it replaces the object of the clause. In this cleft construction, som acts as the subject for the verb gör (it represents the "what" doing the making), so leaving it out is grammatically incorrect.

Why is the adjective svår rather than svårt here?

The adjective describes rollen (the role), which is an en-word. Even though it comes after the verb gör, it is an object complement (an adjective describing the direct object) and must agree with the noun it modifies. If the noun were an ett-word, like jobbet, it would be gör jobbet svårt.

What is the difference between using gestalta and just using spela for "portray" or "play"?