Complicated or what!!!

Question

It seems I am not the only one to have difficulty with these three concepts using rappeler.  I get it wrong in every A2 kwiz.  I think I need a simpler explanation.  I feel brain-dead with it at the moment, so I'm going to leave it and come back later.  That diamond is going to be elusive!

Chris Wirt · Answer

Marie rappelle ma soeur à ma mère. -- Marie reminds my mother of my sister.The problem with this construction is that the grammatical roles of the sister and the mother are different in French and English. French: Marie recalls my sister to my mother. -- Sister=direct object, mother=indirect object.English: Marie reminds my mother of my sister. -- Mother=direct object, sister=indirect object.Further confusion usually arises when a personal pronoun is used for one or the other person because in this case the personal pronoun moves to a new place in the sentence, according to the rules of word order for pronouns:Marie la rappelle à ma mère. -- Marie reminds my mother of her.Marie lui rappelle ma soeur. -- Marie reminds her of my sister.Marie la lui rappelle. -- Marie reminds her of her.