Andare + present gerund in ~1740's Italian?

Question

Italian newbie here, so forgive me if this is a simple question. I've got an Italian book review of something by Voltaire, written about 1740. Here's a brief part of it:> Egli in 25 capitoli va stendendo la filosofia del famoso NewtonAccording to what I've read, the present progressive is formed with "stare" + present gerund (and less commonly with "venire"). What I'm wondering is whether this is an alternate form of the present progressive, or whether it's a special construction that has a different meaning.For example, in Spanish you could use a form of "ir" + present participle to say,> en 25 capítulos el va explicando la filosofía del famoso NewtonThis construction draws attention to the gradual, extended nature of the exposition, so roughly it could be, "in 25 chapters, he goes through and explains the philosophy of the famous Newton."Is there a comparable construction in Italian? Or is this something else entirely?

Answer 1

Il gerundio si usa anche insieme a “stare” e “andare”. So, it’s not a problem that andare was used in place of stare - grammatically it is correct. Stare is used to show the progression of an action whereas andare shows the duration of an action. Does this make sense ?

Answer 2

Both "stare + gerundio" and "andare + gerundio" are grammatically correct, but they each indicate a different "unfolding" of time.

"Stare + gerundio" is an action that is happening here and now (or then and there, if in the past) in real time. "Andare + gerundio" is an action that is happening in a time period that is not defined. "Andare + gerundio" is therefore normally used when talking about history or historical narratives. It is quite an elegant choice in today's Italian.

Answer 3

I think the meaning of this phrase in this context is more in the passive progressive meaning that Voltaire is actually "stretching out or extending" his review or summation of Newton's philosophy to cover over 25 chapters. The verb "Stendere" in this context means to stretch out over a period, If you were to use the same verb form in the sentence "lei va stendendo il bucato", it would mean she is 'hanging out the laundry.

Let me know if this is not clear. Thanks and good luck.