French language Q&A Forum

Thanks for clarifying the use of de qui v. dont. Can I use de qui to refer back to an animal? For example: "Le chat de qui je parle est très mignon." Or is "qui" really just for people?

I understand that the general rule of thumb is to use "c'est" when followed by a noun (even when qualified by an adjective) and "il / elle est" when followed by an adjective - so why is it "C'est nuageux" rather than Il est nuageux."  Is it to do with 'the weather' being inanimate and non specific? Or something else?

One of the examples given here is "Mon stylo s'est cassé alors j'en ai acheté un autre".

It seems to me that "Mon stylo s'est cassé alors j'ai acheté un autre" would work just as well, because "un autre" implies "un stylo". So would the second version (i.e. without "en") be: a) OK; b) clumsy; or c) just plain wrong?

Thanks

I found Chris' post very helpful. Merci! What remains unclear is the use of de qui. Couple of specific questions 1) Can I say both "La fille dont je parle" or "la fille de qui je parle"? Or does the verbal clause (parler de) require dont even if it's a person? 2) Do I use de qui with a prep phrase in stead of duquel (and its derivatives)? For example, "La fille près de qui je me suis assise"  Would "'de laquelle" be equally acceptable in that sentence?

I'm confused about this. Aren't they the same thing?