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What's the difference between [V-ながら][V2] and [V-ている]間[V2] ?

For example, is there any difference in nuance between these 2 sentences:

  1. トムはテレビを見てる間勉強していた

  2. トムはテレビを見ながら勉強していた
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2011-09-07T03:52:29.347
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2011-12-29T05:45:11.203
2011-12-29T05:45:11.203
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usage nuances conjugations て-form
What's the difference between [V-ながら][V2] and [V-ている]間[V2]?
This is the impression I get from the sentences:

  1. Tom was studying for (at least) the entire time he was watching TV. He may have studied later too, it's unclear; but we can at least say that while he was watching TV, he was definitely studying. The sentence is interested in **telling us what Tom was doing during the time he was watching TV**.

  2. Tom was studying while watching TV. He may also at some point have just watched the TV without studying, but this isn't important. The sentence is interested in **describing (the nature of) Tom's action of studying** and is not interested in when he was watching TV.

I've answered your examples rather than your actual question, I'm afraid. ^^;
Perhaps someone else will be able to tackle it better?
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2011-09-07T04:21:32.320
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2011-09-07T04:21:32.320
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> 田中さんは、AをしながらBをします

means that Mr Tanaka primarily does A. Incidentally, he also does B.

> 田中さんは、友達と飲みながら通常会話を学びます。 Mr Tanaka learns casual conversation skills while
> drinking with his friends.

The main action is drinking, it's the whole context. Incidentally, it's also
the unrelated opportunity to practice conversation.

Some grammar books would tell you that "ながら" is similar to "のに", to show that
it's linking two different actions, and does not concern time (even though
they are simultaneous):

> テレビを見ながら、宿題に集中する

is almost "even though I'm watching the telly, I'm concentrating on my
homework." It's a kind of opposition showing that the two actions are not
logically connected.
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2011-09-07T06:13:18.177
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2011-09-07T09:27:59.277
2011-09-07T09:27:59.277
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Your example sentences sound pretty much the same. My preference is for the
～ながら version, since both actions share a subject and are volitional.

The main difference, I think, between these two forms shows up when we add a
second subject to the mix:

> ○ トムは **弟が** テレビを見てる間勉強していた。 Tom was studying while his brother watched TV.
>
> × トムは **弟が** テレビを見ながら勉強していた。 (incorrect)

The two actions in a ～ながら construction must have the same subject, so you
can't use ～ながら to construct a sentence of the form, "Person #1 did A while
Person #2 did B." ～ている間, on the other hand, merely means "While [action] is
happening…" or "While [condition] is true…", so you can have different
subjects:

> 雨が降っている間、このカフェでコーヒーでも飲みましょう。 While it's raining, let's grab something to
> drink at this coffee shop.
>
> ねこがいない間はネズミは遊ぶ。 While the cat's away the mice will play.

I'm going to avoid the discussion of which is the primary action and which is
the secondary; those kinds of rules tend to break down in everyday usage and
don't contribute much to learning.
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2011-09-07T13:42:44.307
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