LinkBack URL
About LinkBacks
Throbert, yes, it is impossible (at least if used out of a specific context).Originally Posted by Throbert McGee
But there are some examples when it is possible:
1. (However it's used not as a question, but as a statement):
You write: "Как проходило моё утро:" and then write a long story with a detailed description of your morning activities.
So, the imperfective would consider the action in its time duration here.
But still, "Как прошло моё утро:" is also possible in this context.
If you refer to a single action, you might say "Моё утро проходило так:" or "Моё утро прошло так:" if describing its details.
But if you only give an appraisal of the process as a whole, you can only say "Моё утро прошло хорошо" or "Моё утро прошло неудачно" etc. - you do not view it "from inside the process", you view it "from outside" as a whole.
2. When it is perfectly possible, is when you refer to systematic actions.
Example: you come back from a business trip where you spent, say, a month. And you tell me a story about your life there. Then I would ask:
"А как проходило твоё утро?" - 'cause I mean not a single morning, but all your mornings within that period.
The usage of perf./imperf. aspects is sometimes very hard to explain. We just "feel" what sounds right and what sounds wrong. But we do not know all the rules
But I would say: when you describe "the whole process" from the "outside view", you use perfective. Imperfective somewhat changes you "reference frame" as if you were viewing the process from its inside.
We ask: "Как ты поработал?" "Как ты отдохнул?" etc. when we expect an appraisal (хорошо/плохо etc.), but we ask: "Как ты работал?" "Как ты отдыхал?" when we expect a description of process details.
And "Я работал хорошо" implies "I worked carefully, following all the technology rules, etc." when "Я поработал хорошо" implies "I achieved good results with my work".
Reply With Quote
