In English: "I saw the girl"
In German: "I have the girl seen"
Since I propose the "moving topic" as a substitute for grammar-n-syntax, the matter if word order being different in German and in English becomes another kind of puzzle. Let's stipulate that, regardless of one's preferred language, the ultimate narrative structure [after the sentence is complete] is 'I-saw->girl' and it is not clear if there is any basic difference between the languages as far as the basic meaning of the phrase. But there is the difference in word order.
I propose that the sentence, in either language, is designed for maximum drama. So in English the drama is the fact that it is a girl. In German the drama is that the speaker is taking action.
If one explores the moving topic, it shows how a German mind would be organized differently from an English mind. For me in English, the "I saw" has integrity missing from "I have the girl". Can I assume that a German has the reverse feeling of integrity? Since I eat lunch with a German woman and other people who constantly argue about language, we'll do the experiment.
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Consensus is that the German mind is different from the English (American) one.
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