avoir+descendu

Question

My apologies for having multiple questions on this lesson. It is not that the lesson is unclear. It is that the two test questions that test the understanding of the lesson are awkward if not downright counter productive to reinforcing the lesson.

For example: the lesson states that when 'avoir + descendu' is used with an animated being as the object then it means to kill/shoot that being. Unless the test question really means that Jack took the giant's dead body(and hence no longer animated (LOL) ) downstairs then it is misleading and confusing. In English "to take someone downstairs" simply means to usher them to your basement.

Accepted Answer

Hi Jameson,
I see your point...
Grammatically speaking only those two are correct -
Jack took down the giant ( he killed him)
or
Jack took the giant downstairs ( he carried him downstairs)
Logically speaking unlikely but grammatically correct I am afraid.
Hope this helps!

Answer

In English there is also the phrase: "to take someone down". It means to kill someone.

Answer

Jameson is talking about this question:"Jacques a descendu le géant." can meanThe correct answers are given as:-	Jack took down the giant. (i.e. killed him)-	Jack took the giant downstairs.The second answer also seems wrong to me. Either the giant is an animated being or it's a thing, but it can't be both, surely?

Answer

Isn't avoir déscendu qqc/qqn just parallel to the English "to take someone/something down"? In French it can mean to take something downstairs but also to kill someone. Just as in English. It requires context to differentiate.

Answer

Perhaps Chris, but it's not what the lesson says:

= to take [something] down -> physically move [something] to a lower position

= to take [someone / animated being] down -> to shoot down, kill

I'd expect "take somebody down" to be emmener or something like that.

Answer

Yes, if you want to "take a person downstairs", I think you'd have to use a different verb to avoid confusion. There are other options:

Je l'ai fait descendre à la cave.
Je l'ai mis en bas.

Je l'ai amené en bas.

Answer

Apart from the implausibility of carrying a giant, there is a problem with the translation. To "take a person downstairs" does not mean to carry them. (Unless it's a baby that is obviously unable to walk.)