French language Q&A Forum

hi 

can someone please explain why " je suis desolée que tu es triste" is in indicative but 

"je suis desolée que ton roman n'aie pas été publié en france "is in the subjunctive

i assume it is to do with negativity but the je suis desoléé hasn't changed

thanks

I have just run across this sentence in my reading, and I don't understand how/why the adverbial pronoun is used:

The introductory sentence is part of a conversation: 

-Vous ignorez qu'il est le propriétaire des parfums et des produits de beauté Mylène?

This is followed by the following sentence, which is the author's omnipotent observation about how little Maigret knew about perfumes:  

Il s'y connaissait si peu en produits de beauté! 

I understand what is being communicated, but I don't understand the grammar!

Please explain why the "s'y" construction is in this sentence.  

Merci!

Paul me fait mal  vs.  Elle me fait du mal quand elle dit ça.   I understand that du is for emotional pain and à is for physical pain, so why does the first example have neither?

I'm really confused, so I thought in prnounciation "ai" = "ay" as in "way."

But it's being pronounced with J'ai with "i" as in "ice." What's going on?