2024-02-17 06:02:36
The French Academy is known for its… academic rigor. Even if the Immortals have sometimes been forced to make concessions to the usage or arguments of certain grammarians, they are often intractable on certain heretical expressions. This is the case with the expression “so that”.
Good manners
Academicians recognize the existence of two expressions which they consider honorable: “in order to” and “in order that”. Be careful, however: there is no question of using them just anyhow. Each is accompanied by a very particular syntactic structure.
In a way to
“In such a way as to” is a prepositive phrase which is constructed with an infinitive, or an unconjugated verb:
- I hurry so as to be on time.
- He cheats, in order to succeed without working.
Whereby
“In such a way that” is, for its part, a conjunctive phrase which is combined with a subordinate clause, that is to say which depends on the first clause:
- I speak in such a way that my interlocutors listen to me.
- He sings so that it will rain tomorrow.
OUR FRENCH LANGUAGE FILE
A “strange monster”
According to the French Academy, the phrase “so that” is a “strange monster”, born from an unfortunate hybridization between the two expressions in question. Like Theseus slaying the Minotaur, the Immortals will fight mercilessly. In short, don’t say that in their presence if you want to get old, because you are not (immortal).
#correct