LE POTENTIEL SERBE ET LE CONDITIONNEL FRANCAIS : SUR LA TRADUCTION DE LEURS EMPLOIS TEMPORELS

Abstract

In this work we present the temporal uses of the Potential in Serbian and the Conditional in French. According to recent theories (Dendale and Tasmowski 2001; Bres 2009; 2010; 2012), the French conditional represents one of the verb tenses of the indicative and we distinguish its temporal uses: objective and subjective (Bres 2009; 2010; 2012). The Serbian potential; on the other hand, is a mode, but this verb form also knows temporal usages. Building upon the works of Popović (1977), Ašić et al. (2017), and Dodig (2018), we examine the use of habitual Potential and Potential in so-called non-teleonomic sentences in Serbian, which represent its temporal uses. Our objective is to identify the semantic equivalents of the temporal uses of the Potential and the Conditional in both languages, aiming to contribute to the field of traductology.