21.10: Structure - Causatif refléchi vs forme passive
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In this section, you will learn how to use the reflexive causative
On étudie !
Causatif réfléchi
The reflexive causative uses a reflexive pronoun to indicate something a person has done to him/herself, whether this action is by his choice or not. It’s equivalent to “get/have something done to/for oneself.”
The French reflexive causative is formed with two or three components:
Se faire + infinitif ➔ Je me suis fait prendre
(a) Deliberate action. The reflexive causative can indicate that the subject chooses to have something done to himself.
Il se fait raser régulièrement. (He gets shaved regularly.)
Je me suis fait réveiller à 8h. (I got woken up at 8am).
Nous voulons nous faire faire* des robes. (We want to have some dresses made).
(b) Accidental / passive event. The reflexive causative can also state that something happens to the subject due to carelessness or some event out of the subject’s control.
Tu te fais toujours avoir. (You’re always getting fooled.)
Il s’est fait virer. (He got fired.)
Attention, vous allez vous faire tuer ! (Be careful, you’re going to get yourselves killed!)
(c) Direct object. There may be a direct object.
Il se fait raser la tête. (He gets his head shaved.)
Je me suis fait couper les cheveux. (I got my hair cut.)
Vas-tu te faire faire un gâteau ? (Are you going to get a cake made for yourself?)
Unlike in the regular causative, there can be no named agent in the reflexive causative, because the reflexive pronoun indicates that either the subject is his own agent, or the agent is unknown.
Causatif réfléchi vs. forme passive
The reflexive causative (causatif réfléchi) is another way to use a passive voice.
In case you don't know (or remember) what passive voice is, compare these:
| Active voice | Passive voice |
|---|---|
| Paul ate the cake. | The cake was eaten (by Paul) |
| People speak French. | French is spoken (by people) |
In these examples, you can see that the object of each verb in the active form (i.e., "cake" and "French") become the subjects in the passive form.
The reflexive causative is a special type of passive construction. The choice to use the reflexive causative over the passive voice implies that the subject had something to do with what happened to him – it probably wasn’t a complete accident. Compare:
| Se faire + infinitif | Voix passive |
|---|---|
|
Il s’est fait tuer. (He got [himself] killed.) |
Il a été tué. (He got/was killed.) |
|
Elle s’est fait arrêter. (She got [herself] arrested.) |
Elle a été arrêtée. (She got arrested.) |
|
Ils se sont fait voler. (They got [themselves] robbed.) |
Ils ont été volés. (They got robbed.) |
|
Elle s’est fait connaître/ (She made a name for herself.) |
Elle a été connue (pour)… (She was known [for]…) |
|
Elle s’est fait reconnaître. (She made herself known.) |
Elle a été reconnnu (pour)… (She was recognized, received recognition [for]…) |
In the first example, the causative reflexive implies that the subject did something reckless and was killed, i.e., he was at least partially responsible for getting killed. In the second, the passive voice gives no indication as to whether the subject did anything wrong.
When le faire pronominal causatif (se faire + verbe à l'infinitif) is used in the passé composé, the past participle does not have to agree with the subject. See the left column above.
On pratique !
Activité
Discussion.
1. Quelle est la dernière fois que vous vous êtes fait couper les cheveux ?
2. Vous faites-vous coiffer toutes les semaines ?
3. Combien de fois par mois est-ce que tu te faisais examiner par un médecin quand tu étais enfant ?
4. Est-ce que tu faisais faire un gâteau pour ton anniversaire quand tu était petit(e) ?
5. Est-ce que tu t'es déjà fait voler une fois ?
On approfondit !
Use the following resources to type accents and/or search for words:
- Accents: ç, à, é, è, â, ê, î, ô, û, ù, ë, ï, ü
- Dictionnaire français-anglais