Breakdown of Pankartları hazırlamak bir yana, onlara bakmaya bile utanıyorum.
o
that / he / she / it
bakmak
to look
hazırlamak
to prepare / to pack
utanmak
to feel ashamed
Questions & Answers about Pankartları hazırlamak bir yana, onlara bakmaya bile utanıyorum.
How does bir yana work with hazırlamak to create the meaning 'let alone'?
The phrase bir yana literally means 'to one side.' When placed directly after a full infinitive ending in -mAk (like hazırlamak), it acts as a dismissive contrast meaning 'let alone' or 'never mind.' You use it to push aside the first, more demanding action to emphasize that even a much simpler action is practically impossible.
Could I replace bir yana with the other target phrase from this lesson, şöyle dursun?
Yes, absolutely. You could say Pankartları hazırlamak şöyle dursun, onlara bakmaya bile utanıyorum. Both phrases are interchangeable when following a -mAk infinitive and carry the exact same 'let alone' meaning. Şöyle dursun literally means 'let it stand like that,' giving a similar dismissive visual of leaving the first action aside.
Why does bakmaya end in the dative suffix -a here? Doesn't the verb utanmak usually take the ablative -dan?
This is a tricky distinction! While you use the ablative when you are ashamed of a noun or person (like kediden utanıyorum), being embarrassed or too shy to perform an action uses the short infinitive -mA plus the dative suffix -y-a. So bakmaya utanıyorum means 'I am ashamed to look.' Using the ablative bakmaktan utanıyorum is also grammatically correct but translates more closely to 'I am ashamed of looking.'