Why do we add "a" in some sentences?

[cherry]

HI everyone,

I got a problem recently. I found in many places that though the English translation clearly does not require the "a", the spanish sentence usually has an "a" in certain places. For example:

La madre culpa a su hijo.
Yo motivo a mis alumnos.
Ella mantiene a su hijo.

Could you guys share some of your thoughts on that? Thanks

[Perikles]

I find this use of a really annoying, but it's quite common. A has many uses, and you would expect it only to introduce an indirect object, as in

Mateo dio un beso a su madre

But the a you are asking about is the 'personal a' which relates the subject to a personal and known direct object

Vi ayer a Juan

As an example, you would use a for animals kept as pets, but not for animals in general.

¡Ven a ver a mi cachorrito!
El gato cogió el gorrión

That's a very general statement for a start, I bet there is a thread on it here somewhere.

[cherry]

Thanks very much Perikles and the website above, these are very detailed explanations and I got your points

Here is another concern about it. As for the usage of "personal A", can this "a" be emitted in some cases or it is required whenever the direct object is a person or person-alike?

[LearningSpanish]

No it can't be omitted in that case. If you do the meaning will change.

[cherry]

Thanks a lot~!