An event that freezes
Normally the imparfait narrates background, states and habits. The imparfait narratif, also called imparfait de rupture, breaks this rule on purpose: it is used for a single, completed event where you would expect the passé simple or passé composé. The event seems to stand still, as if the camera lingered on it.
Same event, two effects
Passé simple
Le lendemain, il partit pour Paris.
The next day he left for Paris.
One step in the chain of events.
Imparfait narratif
Le lendemain, il partait pour Paris.
The next day he left for Paris.
The event is singled out, often as a turning point or ending.
What it needs
A punctual verb: partir, signer, mourir, éclater, se marier. A state such as être fatigué does not become an event this way.
Turning point or ending: the form often comes at the end of a narrative or at the moment everything changes.
Where you find it
The imparfait narratif is no rarity of the classics. It thrives in the press, in biography and in history writing, exactly where events are meant to carry weight.
À 22 heures, les pompiers maîtrisaient l'incendie.
At 10 p.m. the fire brigade brought the blaze under control.
Local news
En 1910, elle s'installait à Paris et, deux ans plus tard, publiait son premier roman.
In 1910 she settled in Paris and two years later published her first novel.
Biography
Le 14 juillet 1789, la foule prenait la Bastille.
On 14 July 1789 the crowd stormed the Bastille.
History writing
Ils se rencontrèrent en mai. Trois mois plus tard, ils se mariaient.
They met in May. Three months later they were married.
Pointed ending
