You and I can never be.
In an American movie called Spider-man 2, Mary Jane finds out that Peter Parker, the man she loves, is Spider-man - a super-hero.
Mary Jane: I think I always knew all this time who you really were.
Peter Parker: Then you know why we can't be together. Spider-Man will always have enemies. I can't let you take that risk. I will always be Spider-Man. You and I can never be.
Could you explain the last sentence, please? Does it have the same meaning as "You and I can never be together"?
Thank you!
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Answers · 10
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Hi Nikita,
Yes, that's exactly what it means. They can never be together.
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Glad to help! :)
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Thank you very much, Gray! That's exactly what I wanted to know and wasn't sure about. Best answer.
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You're right (and Jo G is right) that the implied meaning is "You and I can never be together." The reason why some commenters are offering other options ("can never marry" / "can't be life partners" / etc.) is because "together" isn't actually implied *grammatically*, and there are other ways to paraphrase the same meaning.
What the sentence literally means is that "you and I" (as a single unit) "can never be" (can never exist). In other words, there can never be a single, combined romantic unit that is composed of the two of us together (you and I). It's not clear whether Peter Parker is thinking about marriage, long-term commitment, or just a dating relationship. He could mean any of these things.
The simple phrase "We can never be together" works well as a paraphrase because it means pretty much the same thing: our relationship can't exist / we can't have any kind of relationship. But you won't always be able to understand this construction by adding "together" at the end. For instance:
"This relationship can never be."
"I once aspired to become a famous musician, but sadly, that dream will never be."
If something can "never be," this simply means it "can't exist" or "can't happen." So "we can never be together" means the same thing, but is definitely not the same structure as "we (as a couple) can never be."
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They love each other.Because of Peter's identity,he does not want his lover to take the risk.
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