Is this sentence referring to an individual or a group of people?

Question

それでもあいつが絶対的[窮地]{きゅうち}に立ったら迷わず[助太刀]{すけだち}に入る事

I know it says something like "If he gets into a really dangerous situation, I'll/We'll be at his side in a second!"

My question is, would a more correct translation of this be "I'll" or "We'll"? Could it be either one, depending on context? And could it have a double meaning, depending on the speaker's intention? Thank you.

score 3 · Answer 1 · edited May 11 '17 at 05:34

3

Usually, it means neither. こと like this at the end of the sentence forms a command, "You must (be at his side)".

In an uncommon context, it is also possible that this こと is just a normal nominalizer. "Being at his side once he gets into ..."

edited May 11 '17 at 05:34

Chocolate

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answered May 10 '17 at 20:54

naruto

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In the OP's example, would you expect こと to be written in kana? – May 17 '17 at 08:42
@snailplane Yes, usually. – naruto May 17 '17 at 12:19

Is this sentence referring to an individual or a group of people?

1 Answers1