Telling a story using SImple Past and Imperfect Past

The SIMPLE PAST

• Probably going to be used at the start of your story to locate your story in the timeline of life (e.g., Eu TIREI esta foto quando FUI visitar o meu amigo em Boston- I TOOK this photo when I WENT to visit my friend in Boston].
• The SIMPLE PAST gives you the idea of a ONE-OFF situation. So when you VISITED your friend, you did it ONCE at that particular time.
• Add some more information to your story by giving some more details which also occurred just ONCE. (e.g., Eu CONHECI meu amigo a primeira vez que eu VISITEI EUA. [I MET my friend the first time I VISITED the US.]
• Adding some more information that occurred ONLY ONCE 
• Automatically limiting the situation in the time line with a BEGINNING and an END

The IMPERFECT PAST

• Once you have added all the detailed information - that have occurred once - in order for you to keep on telling your story, you will need to DESCRIBE the scenario. So, to describe the scenario you'll need the IMPERFECT.
• You will use the IMPERFECT tense in Portuguese specifically in 4 situations:
• When you are DESCRIBING a situation that OCCURRED MANY TIMES in the past giving you the sense of "I USED TO": e.g. "Lá, euJOGAVA futebol na praia com o Artur e os amigos dele" - [There, I USED TO PLAY football with Artur and his friends".
• When you talk about AGE and TIME in the past you must use the IMPERFECT as well.
• When you want to express an idea which took place at ten o'clock for instance, you will also use the IMPERFECT. e.g. "ERAM dez horasquando o restaurant fechou" - "It WAS ten o'clock when the restaurant closed".
• When you need to differentiate in a sentence two actions in whichONE IS LONGER THAN THE OTHER ONE.
• "O Telefone TOCOU enquanto eu ALMOÇAVA" - ["The phone RANG whilst I WAS HAVING LUNCH".]
• When you are narrating a particular event is for instance: "She WAS already in the party, when we CALLED her." "Ela já ESTAVA na festa quando LIGÁMOS para ela." (in Brazilian Portuguese).

More thoughts on the subjunctive

Ok - I just finished a Portuguese class and am starting to realize I need to think about the subjunctive in a slightly different way. Here were some of my questions and the responses from my teacher:

Q: Why do I have to use the present subjunctive after an emotion related subjunctive trigger when I want to express a wish for something to happen in the future.

• An example in English: I hope that you will read the rest of this email. 
• How I wanted to write it in Portuguese (WRONG): Eu espero que você ler o resto deste email.
• Correct answer: Eu espero que você leia o resto deste email. 

A: When you are using a subjunctive trigger that uses a verb conjugated in the present tense - you are always going to follow it up with the present subjunctive. Most of the time triggers are emotional based. The subjunctive verb is going to match up to when you were having that emotion. So let's say you wish something will happen in the future. It doesn't matter that you want it to happen, what is important is that you are wishing in that present moment. (You can include details surrounding when you want it to happen in your sentence, but that won't change the verb tenses used.)

• Correct answer with additional timing details: Eu espero que [present] você leia [present subjunctive] o resto deste email antes do fim do dia.

Q: So how will I know when to use the future subjunctive?

A: There are 7 key future subjunctive triggers.

• Quando = when 
• Assim que = as soon as 
• Logo que = as soon as 
• Sempre que = whenever 
• Depois que = after 
• Enquanto = while 
• Se=if

Q: But I know that some of those "future"triggers are used with the present indicative tense (or what I like to call - the normal present). How do I know what tense to use when.

A: You will use the future subjunctive + a future tense (or imperative tense) whenever you are talking about something to happen in the future. You will use the trigger + the normal present or past when you are referring to something that happens all the time (starting in the past continuing to today) or that happened exclusively in the past. 

• Use Normal Tense: Depois que eu como carne eu me sinto mal (After I eat meat, I feel bad [and this happens every time I eat meat - I know from experience]) 
• Future Subjunctive (+normal future): Depois que eu comer carne vou dormir (After I eat meat, I will sleep [ I haven't eaten the meat yet but I suspect this will happen.])

• Use Normal Tense: Sempre que eu converso com minha filha, fico orgulhosa (Whenever I talk to my daughter, I am proud [and this happens every time I talk to her]) 
• Future Subjunctive (+normal future): Sempre que eu conversar com a minha filha ficarei orgulhosa (Whenever I talk to my daughter, I will be proud [Assume for a minute that I've never talked to her in the past, but I'm going to start doing it from now onwards. I know that everytime I talk to her in the future, this is how I will feel.])

• Use Normal : Quando você foi o supermercado, você comprou leite (When you went to the store, you bought milk. [This happened in the past, it's a fact]) 
• Future Subjunctive (plus the imperative): Quando você for o supermercado, compre leite, por favor. (When you go to the store, buy milk please. [You haven't gone yet, when you go in the future, whenever that might be, be sure to pick up milk.)

Q: What if I want express an emotion for something I wish had happened in the past? (E.g., I wish I knew now what I knew then or I wish now that I had money then.)

A: Need to get an answer for this - this was a question that came to me after class.

Subjunctive Mood: Overview

From: Portuguese, An Essential Guide 

The Indicative mood expresses real facts whereas the Subjunctive mood expresses facts which are uncertain, doubtful, eventual or even unreal:

• Hoje vamos fazer um piquenique, por isso espero que não chova.
• Today we are going for a picnic, so I hope it does not rain.

The use of the Subjunctive in Portuguese is far more frequent than in English. In English, the Subjunctive mood usually expresses a hypothetical situation. That is why it is often used in children’s books where make believe plays an important role in the child’s imagination.

• Example:
• Jack slipped into the giant’s room without making a noise, as if he were a little mouse.
• João entrou no quarto do gigante sem fazer barulho, como se fosse um ratinho.

The tenses of the Subjunctive mood in Portuguese have regular conjugations, thus they should not present a problem for the foreign student/learner. There are set circumstances, verbs and phrases that require its use. Above all, remember that the Subjunctive in Portuguese is the mood that expresses doubts and hypotheses. It is also linked to the idea of commands, wishing, feeling and necessity. It normally appears in subordinate or dependent clauses.

The mnemonic below may help you remember when to use the Subjunctive in Portuguese:

W E I R D
W Wishes
E Emotion or feeling
I Imperatives and indirect commands
R Requests
D Doubt, uncertainty and hypotheses

The Subjunctive is used after the following verbs and expressions:

(a) Wishing:

• oxalá 
• esperar que 
• querer que
• tomara que 
• ser bom que/se 
• pedir que
• Deus queira que

(b) Emotion or feeling:

• lamentar que 
• estar contente que
• ser pena que/se 
• estar triste que
• ser bom que/se 
• estar satisfeito que

(c) Imperatives and indirect commands:

The Imperative form is usually borrowed from the Subjunctive, except for the second person, tu and vós. It is also used after verbs that express an indirect command:

• querer que 
• mandar que 
• requerer que
• recomendar que
• ordenar que
• exigir que

(d) Requests:

• desejar que 
• esperar que
• agradecer que 
• pedir que

(e) Doubt, uncertainty or hypotheses:

• duvidar que
• pode ser que 
• talvez
• não achar que 
• ser provável/improvável que 
• se
• não parecer que 
• ser possível/impossível que 
• caso

(f) Necessity:

• ser preciso que 
• ser necessário que 
• ser importante que

(g) Other conjunctions and adverbs:

• embora 
• por muito que
• logo que
• mesmo que 
• por pouco que 
• enquanto
• ainda que 
• quem quer que 
• sempre que
• para que 
• onde quer que 
• como se
• por mais que 
• o que quer que 
• assim que
• por menos que 
• quando

Additional note: The following require the use of the present or imperfect subjunctive: caso (in case), antes que (before), ainda que/posto que (although or even if), unless (a nao ser que or a menos que), a que (to), in order to (a fim de que), unless or without (sem que), para que (so that, in order to), even if (mesmo que, nem que), although (embora), provided that (contanto que), as soon as (logo que/assim que)).