Question on subjunctive from lesson.

In Lesson 1.5 of the Second Course (Premium Plus), the following phrase is encountered: para la música buena uno hace lo que se pueda This lession does not cover the subjunctive but I am a bit thrown off by poder being in subjunctive. Since I am one of those who likes to understand how things adhere to grammatical rules, can anyone explain why poder is in the subjunctive in this sentence? Thank you.

Hola Daran, I'm certainly no expert in subjunctive. Can you translate your sentence to English? I would translate it to: In order to have good music, one does what he/she can. I am familiar with a saying: "Se hace lo que se puede". I have understood this to mean: One does what one can. Mine all refers to the same individual. My entry level understanding of the subjunctive is one party wanting another party to feel/see/do or whatever. Let's see what others have to say. Christian, Dan, Diane, Terry, Rich,...

http://www.studyspanish.com/lessons/subj1.htm Probably cut and paste to the http:// address It talks about the subjunctive mood. Is that what is being talked here? I spend a lot of my time just memorizing words, phrases and sentences and practice them with my friends. I am very good with conjugations in the present tense. No idea what infinitive, indicative and other grammar rules are. I just trust that by just doing the lessons, it will click. I want to thank Dan for the website on "Destino". I actually understood a lot more of the conversations.

Aurora: De Nada. In addition to the learning aspect Destinos is a lot of fun to watch. The story line is a bit cheesy (as soap operas are supposed to be) but it was interesting to me to learn a bit about the various countries and cultures that "Raquel" visited during her search. I was recently talking about Destinos with a college Spanish professor. She told me that when she first went to the college they used Destinos as THE Spanish language curriculum. They later changed but kept Destinos on the college's internal TV network for the Spanish language students to use as an adjunct. They then found out that other students were watching Destinos as well. It developed sort of a cult following and the kids were even having Destinos parties!

Can someone explain what the subjunctive is? I have been trying to read up on it and still can't have a handle on it. It says that it is a mood, the subjunctive mood. I would like to see some examples. When do you use it. Is it very common?

I have also been listening to songs in Spanish and I don't get the lyrics. I realize that I also don't get the lyrics of English songs that are sung by the newer artists. I know the oldies like songs by Frank Sinatra, Nat King Cole, Paul Anka because I memorized them when I was younger. I guess, for me I need to see the written words for the songs and just keep repeating them until I become familiar with them. Just sharing a thought.......Au

Aurora: I am far from an expert in the subjunctive, but just yesterday I was talking about it with a fluent speaker, who commented that when you wish something was or hope it is so, it is the subjunctive. It is an emotion, a desire, not a hard, cold fact. As he was talking, "How I Wish You Were Here" by Pink Floyd immediately came to mind. How is that for tying both of your questions together???

Hola Aurora, If you scroll down, you will see a topic: 10 video lessons on the subjunctive. There is a link I posted and I hope it is helpful for you. Saludos, Ricardo

Rich & everyone, The 10 video lessons on the subjunctive are very good. My husband is now using those particular podcasts which are about 10 minutes in length for some of his Spanish studies. He enjoys it. It is another great resource.

Patrice y todos, Patrice, I'm glad the videos are helpful for you and your husband and I agree, they are definitely a great resource. I struggled with the subjunctive for a long time, a really long time. I came across these videos after I finally got an understanding of the subjunctive and now it is becoming more natural to me. I have now internalized a lot of it's usage, but, I have a long way to go. I urge everyone to keep at the subjunctive as it will eventually "click" and actually become something that will be rewarding and enriching. Saludos. Ricardo

Thanks Ricardo. Now that I watch the first video on subjunctive, I'm seeing them all over the place. I saw an estes (with the accent on the second e), a tengas, quiera. They seem to be all over the place and my friends at work are using them all the time. I was just stuck with the conjugation in the present tense. My friends at work has no idea what a subjunctive is. They said that it just is plus they sound better.

I was telling a friend "Tiene buen dia" and she said no, should be "Tenga buen dia. I guess she's talking about subjunctive.

Aurora: I have not yet studied the subjunctive much, but I think you are correct. You are hoping or wishing that your friend has a good day, so it seems like it should be the subjunctive. Also, my friend and occasional mentor Estela who runs my favorite Cuban restaurant sometimes imparts the same wish when I leave the restaurant.

In Lesson 1.5 of the Second Course (Premium Plus), the following phrase is encountered: This is a question from Daran last March 2014. I would like to revisit. Did we have a good answer to this question or were we just speculating. Looking at it now, I could see why "pueda" is subjunctive, just because of the uncertainty of the mood. . "para la música buena uno hace lo que se pueda" This lession does not cover the subjunctive but I am a bit thrown off by poder being in subjunctive. Since I am one of those who likes to understand how things adhere to grammatical rules, can anyone explain why poder is in the subjunctive in this sentence?

The subjunctive hits a lot of different areas, one of which is what is hypothetical. In the above phrase: "for good music one does what can be done" (or better English would probably be "for good music you do what you can"). What can be done (se pueda) is hypothetical in the present and so it is in the subjective present. Thanks to French and this terrific RS course, I am getting pretty comfortable with the subjunctive in Spanish and so hopefully can answer a fair amount of questions on this. The subjunctive is extremely powerful in communicating subtle nuances in meaning (particularly when its use is optional). If you listen to Latin music, you will see most of the verbs in the subjunctive!

Apologies! I woke up this morning and realized that I messed up this explanation: "hypothetical" is not the word I was looking for here, it's "speculative". Other examples of this would be: - When you can: "Cuando puedas" - As you like: "Como quieras" An example of hypothetical (in the past) would be: - If I had never met you: "Si no te hubiera conocido" (Christina Aguilera)