L E S S O N S I X

SIEGMUND

Wer bist du, sag, die so schön und ernst mir erscheint?

Who are you, say, who appear to me so beautiful and serious?

R. Wagner

GRAMMAR 6

6) THE “DIESER” WORDS

a) Six words, which include the demonstrative adjectives (words meaning ‘this’ and ‘that’), are declined alike. All six words in the group have endings like dieser:

	masc.	fem.	neuter	pl.

nominative	dieser	diese	dieses	diese
accusative	diesen	diese	dieses	diese
genitive	dieses	dieser	dieses	dieser
dative	diesem	dieser	diesem	diesen

The other words in the group are jeder (each, every), jener (that, those bookish), mancher (many a, some), solcher (such), and welcher (which , what)

b) The “dieser” words. The six words above, plus the definite article ‘der’ (die, das) form a special list of seven known as the dieser-words. As opposed to the kein-words, which are the subject of the next lesson, all forms of the dieser words carry endings. These endings serve to mark the gender, number and case.

c) Adjectives or pronouns? If a dieser-word precedes a noun, it is a type of adjective. (According to modern grammatical thinking, it would be called a determiner.) If no noun follows, then the dieser-word is a pronoun.

SIEGLINDE
”Auf mich blickte er und blitzte auf jene.” (R. Wagner) He glanced at me, and glared at those. (or alternatively) ,,,
Auf mich blickte er und blitzte auf jene Leute. He glanced at me, and glared at those people.

d) Gern or gerne (gladly). Adverbs are usually marked by the lack of an ending; however, a few adverbs are used with or without an –e , and have no governing rule. Another example is allein, alleine (alone).

VOCABULARY 6

dieser (-e, -es) this, these jeder (-e, -es) each, every	das Klassenzimmer (-) classroom; synonym for Schulzimmer
jener (-e, -es) that, those mancher (-e, -es) many (a); some	der Kugelschreiber (-) ball-point pen; synonym for Kuli (m.)
solcher (-e, -es) such	das Lineal (-e) ruler (say: lee-nay-AHL)
welcher (-e, -es) which, what das Automobil (-e) or das Auto (-s) automobile; auto	die Person (-en) person (say: paeh-ZONE) die Leute (plur.) people
der Bauer (-n) farmer	der Wirt (-e) landlord; innkeeper
die Katze (-n) cat	der Landwirt (-e) farmer
die Klasse (-n) class (that is, the student-body, as distinct from the instruction)	arm poor reich rich
der Unterricht (-e) instruction, class (that is, the instruction, as distinct from the student-body)	glücklich fortunate, happy zufrieden satisfied gern (or gerne) gladly

bleiben (blieb, geblieben) stay, remain

finden (fand, gefunden) find

Note carefully the following phrases:

(1) zu Fuß gehen - go on foot, walk

(2) Ich habe dieses Buch gern. - I like this book.

(3) Ich lerne gern. - I like to study.

(4) mit einem Auto fahren - ride in an automobile

PRACTICE 6

Wie heißt dieser Landwirt? Er heißt Bruno Werther. Wie heißt jener Landwirt? Er heißt Felix Ackermann. Dieser Landwirt ist reich, er hat zwei Automobile. Jener Landwirt ist arm, er hat kein Automobil. Das Haus und die Autos dieses Landwirts sind schön, und er ist glücklich. Die Frau und die Kinder jenes Landwirts sind schön, und er ist auch glücklich.

Bruno Werther fährt gern mit dem Auto. Er fährt oft in die Stadt, aber er bleibt nicht gern da. Er bleibt gern zu Hause.

Herr und Frau Werther bleiben gern zu Hause und arbeiten sehr. Sie sind mit dem Leben auf dem Land zufrieden. Sie haben keine Kinder.

Jener Landwirt, Felix Ackermann, geht immer zu Fuß. Er geht nicht oft in die Stadt. Er wohnt und bleibt gern auf dem Land. Er arbeitet nicht viel. Er isst gern zu Hause. Er liest die Zeitungen, spielt mit den Kindern und er schläft gut. Solche Leute sind immer glücklich. Sie finden das Leben schön. Sie haben das Leben auf dem Land gern.

Nicht jeder Landwirt wohnt auf dem Land. Mancher Landwirt wohnt in der Stadt. Manche Landwirte fahren gern mit dem Auto; sie fahren oft auf das Land aber sie bleiben nicht gern da. Sie sind gewöhnlich reich und finden das Leben auf dem Land uninteressant. Solche Leute sind gewöhnlich unglücklich. Sie sind mit dem Leben in der Stadt und auf dem Land unzufrieden.

Welche Leute sind glücklich? Welcher Landwirt findet das Leben schön? Jene Landwirte auf dem Land arbeiten gern. Diese Schüler lernen die Aufgaben gern. Der Lehrer lehrt gern. Solche Leute sind gewöhnlich glücklich und finden das Leben interessant. Nicht oft werden sie reich; sie bleiben gewöhnlich arm.

Exercise. Choose a noun other than Landwirt to insert into the blank. It need not agree with the story, but it should make sense in its own right. Choose from Bauer (-n), Lehrer (-), Mann (Männer). Be ready to supply endings when needed.

1. Wie heißt dieser ________? 2. Wie heißt jener ________? 3. Dieser ________ ist reich. 4. Jener ________ ist arm, er hat kein Automobil. 5. Das Haus und die Autos dieses ________ sind schön. 6. Die Frau und die Kinder jenes ________ sind schön. 7. Jener ________, Felix Ackermann, geht immer zu Fuß. 8. Nicht jeder ________ wohnt auf dem Land. 9. Mancher ________ wohnt in der Stadt. 10. Manche ________ fahren gern mit dem Auto. 11. Welcher ________ findet das Leben schön? 12. Jene ________ auf dem Land arbeiten gern.

Repeat the above exercise using Person (-en) in each blank. Change the preceding dieser-word so that it agrees in gender, number and case.

Translate into German:

1. I like to ride in an auto. 2. We like to ride in the country. 3. Those farmers often go into town. 4. They don’t like to stay in town. 5. Are the teacher’s parents rich? 6. No, they are very poor, but they are happy. 7. Are you satisfied with that chair, Wolfgang? 8. With which children does he play? 9. Why do you always stay at home, Bruno? 10. That farmer is always talking, isn’t he? 11. Doesn’t he like to work? 12. No, he likes to play with the children. 13. What book are you reading now, Ms. Lang? 14. Do you like it? 15. The pupils like this book. 16. They are studying in that schoolroom. 17. Why are you going to the country today, Mr. Ackermann? 18. Every farmer has an auto. 19. Many farmers don’t like to stay at home. 20. What people find life uninteresting? 21. My name is Winkel; what is yours? 22. I like to walk.

Translate into German:

1. Anna’s pen. 2. the farmer’s house. 3. the farmers’ children. 4. every pupil’s room. 5. which child’s book? 6. the parents’ house. 7. these pupils’ books. 8. the doors and windows of the room. 9. such weather. 10. of that school.

Guidlines: After mastering the “dieser” words, you may want to skip the supplementary material below and stay focused on the essential surface-grammar. Meanwhile re-reading the elementary texts will be beneficial. The subject matter may seem boring, but that is because the vocabulary is sharply reduced, in order to allow you to concentrate on the grammar. Note in particular the formation of the German sentences with their strict verb-second word-order, and the use of cases and endings. The next important surface-grammar topic is the “kein” words in Lesson 7.

SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL

Dieser and jener – fine points

Dieser and jener are two demonstrative adjectives in German. They correspond roughly to “this” and “that”.

“This” is expressed by dieser alone, or dieser reinforced by hier.
Ich will etwas über dieses Buch erklären. I want to explain something about this book.
Dieser Filtzstift hier ist kaputt. This felt-marker is finished.
“That” is expressed as follows:

For objects at a moderate distance, dieser is used together with da.
Dieser Filzstift da noch schreibt. That marker still writes.
For objects at a considerable distance, jener is used, but it is rather formal and seldom heard in speech. The related English root “yon” is heard in Shakespeare’s “What light through yonder window breaks?”

Dieser and jener can be used together to compare the values of a certain property as follows: Dieser Berg ist nicht so hoch wie jener. This mountain is not as high as that one.
Dieser and jener are sometimes used where dieser means “the latter”, and jener, “the former”.

Web References -- canoo.net, LEO-GmbH Dictionary

What is a determiner? The answer is found on the web at http://www.canoo.net/services/OnlineGrammar/Wort/Artikel/Artikelwort/index.html?MenuId=Word61&lang=en . Also from this website, repeated below are “die gebräuchlichsten Artikelwörter” - the most commonly used determiners. They are only called determiners when they accompany nouns. When used alone, they are called pronouns.

I have found the canoo.net website to be very good. It is really a whole German grammar book that goes beyond surface grammsr. Navigation in the box on the left tells you where you are in the big picture. Each web page of grammar can be displayed in either English or German. The good quality of the website is not surprising when you learn that Canoo Engineering is a web-design compny in Basil, Switzerland. It also will link to the “LEO-GmbH” dictionary, and here is the link that will get you there directly: http://dict.leo.org/?lang=de&searchLoc=1&search= .

However, canoo.net is more of a grammatical reference than a tutorial, and is probably too detailed for beginners. The U.S. Naval Academy has a website of German information that is suitable for beginners. Here is the complete list of determiners:

Definite article der, die, das; die

Indefinite article ein, eine, ein

Demonstrative determiners dieser, diese, dieses; diese

jener, jene, jenes; jene

derjenige, diejenige, dasjenige; diejenigen

derselbe, dieselbe, dasselbe; dieselben

dergleichen, derlei

Possessive determiners mein, dein, sein, sein, ihr; unser, eurer, ihr

dessen, deren

Interrogative determiners welcher, welche, welches; welche

wessen

Indefinite determiners aller, alle, alles; alle

einiger, einige, einiges; einige

etlicher, etliche, etliches; etliche

irgendein, irgendeine, irgendein

irgendwelcher, irgendwelche, irgendwelches; irgendwelche

jeder, jede, jedes; jede

jedweder, jedwede, jedwedes; jedwede

kein, keine, kein; keine

mancher, manche, manches; manche

mehrere

Applying what has been learned – Intermediate level

Franz Kafka authored most of the following German excerpts. If you Google a portion of the text on the web, you will find the text of the whole narrative, Die Verwandlung. (Literally, „The Transformation“, but in English the story is traditionally called The Metamorphosis.) It is a rich source for perfect examples of the German language. Franz was a consumptive and often couldn’t sleep. He would often get up and write in German. The story is a strange fantasy, but it is also written with a simple clarity, and has been read and translated by students of German for much of the last century. In the examples shown below, he makes use of dieser-words introduced in this lesson: dieser, jeder, jener, mancher, solcher and welcher.

Dieser

Die Mutter beruhigte sich mit dieser Erklärung. The [his] mother calmed herself with this explanation.

Zum Zähneputzen braucht man eine Zahnbürste und Zahnpaste. Diese ist in einer Tube. For brushing teeth, one needs a toothbrush and toothpaste. The latter is in a tube.

Jeder

Der Mangel jeder unmittelbaren menschlichen Ansprache... The lack of any immediate human speech...[or, as we would say, direct human contact]

[JS ]– The complete sentence is too good to pass up. It is also challenging and could be analyzed in detail later in the lessons. The sentence is shown below, separated structurally, and with a free translation. Much can be learned by studying its five clauses:

Gregor erkannte ...
daß der Mangel ... hatte verwirren müssen,
er konnte ... erklären,
daß er ... hatte verlangen können,
daß sein Zimmer ausgeleert würde.

... so my advice to the student is: highlight it and come back to it later when your grammatical tool-kit is complete. [The Spelling Reform of 1998 changed daß to its modern form, dass.]

Beim Anhören dieser Worte der Mutter erkannte Gregor,

daß der Mangel jeder unmittelbaren menschlichen Ansprache,

verbunden mit dem einförmigen Leben inmitten der Familie,

im Laufe dieser zwei Monate seinen Verstand hatte verwirren müssen,

denn anders konnte er es sich nicht erklären,

daß er ernsthaft darnach hatte verlangen können,

daß sein Zimmer ausgeleert würde.

On hearing these words from his mother, Gregor realized

that the lack of any immediate human speech,

together with the monotonous life in the midst of his family

during the course of these two months, must have confused his understanding;

for he could not otherwise explain

why he would have seriously been yearning

for his room to be emptied out.

Jener

Er war noch mit jener schwierigen Bewegung beschäftigt. He was still occupied with that difficult movement.

Er war ... beschäftigt -- he was occupied
noch -- still
mit jener schwierigen Bewegung -- with that difficult movement (The endings –er and –en will be explained much later under „adjective declension“.)
Note the word order in the German sentence. What is the first element? What is the second? What is the last? -- The author has chosen the subject to be first. The verb ‘war’ must come second. There is no choice, like the mandatory eight-count in boxing. The middle-field is a catch-all, here occupied by adverbials – that is, adverbs and adverbial phrases. The last position here holds the predicate adjective, or past participle, and both terms could describe the way ‘beschäftigt’ is used.

Mancher

Da die Zimmerherren manchmal auch ihr Abendessen zu Hause im gemeinsamen Wohnzimmer einnahmen, blieb die Wohnzimmertür an manchen Abenden geschlossen, aber Gregor verzichtete ganz leicht auf das Öffnen der Tür, hatte er doch schon manche Abende, an denen sie geöffnet war, nicht ausgenützt, sondern war, ohne daß es die Familie merkte, im dunkelsten Winkel seines Zimmers gelegen.

Since the boarders also sometimes took their evening meals at home in the communal living-room, the living-room door remained closed on many evenings, but Gregor very easily did without the open door. He had already on many evenings when it was open, not taken advantage of it, but had lain instead, without the family noticing, in the darkest corner of his room.

Solcher

In solchen Augenblicken richtete er die Augen möglichst scharf auf das Fenster. In such moments he directed his eyes [sight] as sharply as possible at the window.

Welcher

Mit welcher Kraft er sich auch auf die rechte Seite warf, ... (Literally) With what force he even, ... Note that welcher together with auch are expressed in English as follows: With whatever force he threw himself onto the [his] right side, ...

8/25/2009

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