I'm reading an article about two pets rescuing their owners. After the cat managed to wake up the mother, she tried to wake up other members but they wouldn't wake up.
Cathy tried to tell her husband and son to leave the house, but they wouldn't wake up.
Why wouldn't and not didn't?
(I checked possible duplicates but they weren't convincing at all. Besides, none of the answers were confirmed. One said would is used for permission and another said it's for emphasis!)
Best Answer
Wouldn't, in such sentences, means roughly "couldn't be caused to"; that is, "X wouldn't Y" means roughly "[someone] couldn't get X to Y". For example:
Likewise, won't means roughly "can't be caused to":