In some of these sentences it seems that para would work just as well, for example, in the following: Por [eso/aquello de] no tener que pelar las gambas con las manos decidió pedir mejor calamares fritos.
So that he wouldn't have to peel the prawns with his hands he decided to order fried calamari.
Hola Devin P.
Great question — por and para can feel interchangeable at times, but in this structure they’re doing very different jobs.
In the expression “por eso / por aquello”, the word por introduces a cause or reason. It answers the question “Why?” (¿Por qué?).
So in your example:
Por no tener que pelar las gambas…
= Because he didn’t want to peel the prawns…
Here por is marking the cause of his decision.
On the other hand, para expresses purpose or intention — what something is for, or what someone wants to achieve. It answers the question “What for?” (¿Para qué?).
If you used para here, the meaning would shift and become incorrect, because we are not expressing the goal of the action, but rather the reason behind it.
So:
Por → the reason why he made the decision
Para → the purpose for which he does something
In your sentence, the clause is clearly causal, so por is the correct choice.
I hope this helps clarify the difference a bit more — let me know if you’d like more examples!
Saludos
Silvia
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