"Ser" in the imperative

[tacuba]

Just curious. I don't think I've ever heard "ser" used here (Mexico) in the imperative except in negative commands. In English we commonly say things like "be nice" or "be good" etc. I've heard "no seas malo" or "no seas sangrón", or "no seas pesado" but I don't think I've ever heard "sé amable" or "sé puntual" etc. (or maybe I have and just didn't realize it).

Is it more common than I think? Thanks in advance.

[Bolboreta]

I don't know in Mexico, but in Spain it's very used by mothers :-) : Sé bueno.
If we have a date and you had been late other times, I may probably say: Nos vemos a las ocho. Por favor, sé puntual.
Another example, if my husband hates my sister and she is coming today for lunch, I can say to him: Por favor, sé amable con ella.

[tacuba]

Originally Posted by Bolboreta

I don't know in Mexico, but in Spain it's very much used by mothers :-) : Sé bueno.
If we have a date and you had been late other times, I may probably say: Nos vemos a las ocho. Por favor, sé puntual.
Another example, if my husband hates my sister and she is coming today for lunch, I might/may say to him: Por favor, sé amable con ella.

Thanks Bolboreta, this helps a lot.

BTW, your English is excellent.

[laepelba]

Originally Posted by tacuba

Just curious. I don't think I've ever heard "ser" used here (Mexico) in the imperative except in negative commands. In English we commonly say things like "be nice" or "be good" etc. I've heard "no seas malo" or "no seas sangrón", or "no seas pesado" but I don't think I've ever heard "sé amable" or "sé puntual" etc. (or maybe I have and just didn't realize it).

Is it more common than I think? Thanks in advance.

You've been living in Mexico for awhile. Have you ever seen any evidence there to lead you to believe that anyone has ever been told to "sé puntual"? (I'm just curious.....)

[chileno]

Originally Posted by Bolboreta

I don't know in Mexico, but in Spain it's very used by mothers :-) : Sé bueno.
If we have a date and you had been late other times, I may probably say: Nos vemos a las ocho. Por favor, sé puntual.
Another example, if my husband hates my sister and she is coming today for lunch, I can say to him: Por favor, sé amable con ella.

Same in chile. :-)

[tacuba]

Originally Posted by laepelba

You've been living in Mexico for awhile. Have you ever seen any evidence there to lead you to believe that anyone has ever been told to "sé puntual"? (I'm just curious.....)

Funny you would use the "sé puntual" example. Time in Mexico is a very different animal than time NOB. There's the old joke about how "los relojes corren en inglés, pero andan en español. :>))

I'm sure the "sé ...." commands are used all of the time and as usual I'm just being obtuse.

[AngelicaDeAlquezar]

@tacuba: I think you're right. Imperative can be heard more easily from people with a higher education background, and still they might prefer the colloquial change for a negative command... I think it has to do with our "slight phobia" for sounding rude at using imperative. You might also have noticed we often change it for questions.
Much people prefers "¿me da un refresco?" instead of "déme un refresco" (even saying "por favor").


@Lou Ann: It's fun for a cliché, but it's not a universal rule that Mexicans are never on time.

[tacuba]

Originally Posted by AngelicaDeAlquezar

@Lou Ann: It's fun for a cliché, but it's not a universal rule that Mexicans are never on time.

Es verdad. Tengo un amigo que vive en Monterrey y me dice que la gente allá son mas puntuales que casi todos sus amigos de EE.UU.

Muchas gracias por la ayuda y las explicaciónes tan claras, Angelica.

[laepelba]

Originally Posted by tacuba

Funny you would use the "sé puntual" example. Time in Mexico is a very different animal than time NOB. There's the old joke about how "los relojes corren en inglés, pero andan en español. :>))

I'm sure the "sé ...." commands are used all of the time and as usual I'm just being obtuse.

Originally Posted by AngelicaDeAlquezar

@tacuba: I think you're right. Imperative can be heard more easily from people with a higher education background, and still they might prefer the colloquial change for a negative command... I think it has to do with our "slight phobia" for sounding rude at using imperative. You might also have noticed we often change it for questions.
Much people prefers "¿me da un refresco?" instead of "déme un refresco" (even saying "por favor").


@Lou Ann: It's fun for a cliché, but it's not a universal rule that Mexicans are never on time.

Originally Posted by tacuba

Es verdad. Tengo un amigo que vive en Monterrey y me dice que la gente allá son mas puntuales que casi todos sus amigos de EE.UU.

Muchas gracias por la ayuda y las explicaciónes tan claras, Angelica.

First of all, absolutely no offense was meant! I LOVE you folks - and am learning so much here!

I am one of those people who is SO hyper-punctual that I know it is a FAULT. I envy people who are comfortable being more flexible with their schedules.

My Latin friends always joke about punctuality. My Latin students definitely don't see any need for me to mark them "tardy" if they're only 20 or 30 minutes late for class. How silly! The only reason I joked about the punctuality was because I have heard Latinos joke about it themselves. My Peruvian friend mentioned that I must have some Latin blood in me since I was a minute late for something once. LOL!!

[chileno]

Originally Posted by laepelba

First of all, absolutely no offense was meant! I LOVE you folks - and am learning so much here!

I am one of those people who is SO hyper-punctual that I know it is a FAULT. I envy people who are comfortable being more flexible with their schedules.

My Latin friends always joke about punctuality. My Latin students definitely don't see any need for me to mark them "tardy" if they're only 20 or 30 minutes late for class. How silly! The only reason I joked about the punctuality was because I have heard Latinos joke about it themselves. My Peruvian friend mentioned that I must have some Latin blood in me since I was a minute late for something once. LOL!!

In chile it said that if you are to invite people over, you have to tell them an hour or hour and a half before the real starting time...

However, I like to be on time. Always.