Quote:
Originally Posted by BobRitter
Should the example above be
Este libro trata sobre un mago joven.
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"Este libro trata sobre un mago joven", as opposed to a book about a "mago viejo" or a "mago de mediana edad".
"Este libro trata sobre un joven mago"; being "joven" and "mago" are both essential qualities of the main character.
There are many elements in adjective + noun order, but let's start with:
adjective + noun ---> the adjective qualifies the noun as a whole
noun + adjective ---> the adjective differentiates the noun from others belonging to a set.
los viejos árboles del parque (the trees in this park are old, as a general rule)
los arboles viejos del parque (among all the trees in this park, just the old ones)
¡Buenos días! -a wish for each individual person to have a good whole (to)day, for having "good" as the characteristic of this day as a whole-
Hoy tuve un día bueno. Trabajé de sol a sol y gané 400 euros, cuando normalmente gano 200. -a good day as opposed to a bad or average day-.
If you play with the order you'll find some instances are not used because they don't make sense, or they force you to chose one of many meanings:
Es un muy mal momento para hablar (inconvenient)
Vivimos un momento muy malo (bad)
Eligió la habitación grande (big size)
Ésta es una gran habitación (great qualities)