Swick - German problem solver

German Problem Solver

Ed Swick

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ISBN: 978-0-07-179116-8

MHID: 0-07-179116-7

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Contents

Preface

This book is aptly named a problem solver. Unlike other approaches to the German language, this book does not look at all aspects of German grammar and structure; rather, it isolates those things in the language that English speakers find problematic. It then describes them, analyzes the complexities that cause consternation, and provides explanations and examples of how the problem areas work.

There are nineteen chapters in the book that delve into nineteen specific areas of difficulty. After these areas have been described, explained, and illustrated, they are placed in a wide variety of exercises, in which the reader can manipulate the problem areas and become more familiar with how they function and thereby take control of them. If a particular subject still seems difficult after working through a chapter, the reader should simply repeat the chapter and practice with the exercises again.

German irregular verbs are a special problem for English speakers, even though the English language has numerous irregular verbs that are similar to German verbs. To make working with German irregular verbs more convenient, the reader will find an appendix comprising a list of all irregular verbs in German. This appendix shows the verb in its infinitive form, with any present tense irregularity, in its past tense, in its participial form, and as a subjunctive II conjugation. This resource will prove to be essential for working with verbs in this book.

The twentieth chapter of the book does not discuss a specific problem area or describe any particular linguistic difficulty in German. Instead, it is a miniature linguistic laboratory that the reader can use to practice all aspects of the language simultaneously. German, like any language, is not a random series of conjugations, declensions, and usages of vocabulary. It is a combination of all those things that make communication in the language comprehensible and accurate. Therefore, in the twentieth chapter the reader will be writing creatively and not just practicing with isolated concepts. The exercises are not for grammatical or vocabulary practice; rather, they are a forum for the reader to apply his or her knowledge of German in a personal way. Of course, there will be some guidelines for this type of creative writing, but generally the reader will have ample opportunities to experiment in writing.

This series of books is intentionally called Practice Makes Perfect because that idea is basic to learning and mastering a new language. bung macht den Meister.

Acknowledgment

I would like to express my gratitude to my friend Stefan Feyen for his generous help and suggestions.

Many who are learning German struggle with the seemingly illogical approach that the language takes when determining gender. This is particularly true for English speakers, who are accustomed to a simple method for assigning gender to a noun: If the noun refers to a male, its masculine. If it refers to a female, it s feminine. And if it refers to an inanimate object, the noun is neuter. There are a few exceptions, but for the most part, gender in the English language is determined by the obvious sexual gender of a person or the fact that an object is inanimate.

In small measure, German often considers males and females as masculine and feminine nouns, respectively. This is easy for an English speaker to understand. But it is the other ways of assigning gender to a noun that cause consternation. There often seems to be no rhyme or reason for why a noun is assigned a certain gender. But that is only what it seems. Let s look at the various patterns to German gender, which will help make sense of why a noun is considered masculine, feminine, or neuter.