Showing posts with label Classical Grammar. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Classical Grammar. Show all posts

Monday 13 July 2020

LATIN VOCABULARY: NOTES

A.  DEMONSTRATIVE ADVERBS OF PLACE AND TIME:

                              PLACE:                                                                      TIME

WHERE:       ubi        where(?), in which place(?)                                   when, whenever
                      ibi         there, in that place                                                  then
                      illic       there, in that place
                      hic        here, in this place                                                   at this point

WHITHER:  quo       whither(?), to which place(?)
                      eo         thither, to that place                                               so long 
                      illuc      thither, to that place
                      huc       hither, to this place                                                so far

WHENCE:   unde      whence(?), from which place(?)                         
                     inde       from there, thenceforth, from that place              after that, ever since
                     illinc      thence, from that place
                     hinc       hence, from this place                                          after this


B.  CONFUSINGLY SIMILAR WORDS:

aer, aeris, m. air, atmosphere, weather;
aes, aeris, n. copper, bronze, brass, money.
aes alienum, debt

aestas, aestatis, f. summer;
aestus, aestus, m. heat, passion, surge of the sea;
aetas, aetatis, f. age, life, time, lifetime.

atqui, conj. yes but, and yet, nevertheless
atque, conj. and, and in fact, and then, and so.

cado, cadere, cecidi, casum. to fall, die, am killed, fail, subside, happen (events);
caedo, caedere, cecidi, caesum. to cut, slaughter, sacrifice, kill, strike;
cedo, cedere, cessi, cessum. to walk, depart, withdraw, retreat, die, yield, concede.

compello, compellare, compellavi, compellatum. to call, address, reproach, arraign;
compello, compellere, compuli, compulsum. to drive, bring together, impel, compel; concentrate;

consisto, consistere, constiti. to stand, stand firm, take up a position, endure;
constituo, constituere, constitui, constitutum. to put, place, set down, station, halt, determine;
consto, constare, constiti, constatum. to stand together, agree, remain constant.

contineo, continere, continui, continentum. to contain, keep together, confine, control, check.
continuo, continuare, continuavi, continuatum. to join together, continue without a break. 

fulgur, fulguris, n. lightning;
fulmen, fulminis, n. thunderbolt.

iaceo, iacere, iacui. to lie, lie ill, lie dead; (places) to be situated;
iacio,iacere, ieci, iactum. to throw, lay, build; (seed) to sow.
iacto, iactare, iactavi, iactatum. to throw, scatter, shake, toss about; (speech) to boast.

incedo, incedere, incessi, incessum. to walk, parade, march, advance, (feelings) come upon
incendo, incendere, incendi, incensum. to burn, set fire to, set alight, inflame, rouse, incense, brighten.
incido, incidere, incidi, incasum. to fall upon, meet, come across, befall, occur, happen.
incido, incidere, incidi, incisum. to cut open, cut up, engrave, inscribe, interrupt, cut short.

insisto, insistere, institi. to stand on, stand firm, halt, press on, pursue, begin, persist, continue
instituo, instituere, institui, institutum. to set up. implant, establish, build, appoint, arrange, teach 
insto, instare, institi. to stand on, pursue, approach, work hard at, insist, urge

lenis (long 'e'), soft, smooth, mild, gentle, calm
levis (short 'e'), adj. light, gentle, easy, trivial, fickle, nimble;
levis (long 'e'), adj. smooth, beardless, youthful, delicate.

nequaquam, adv. by no means, not at all;
nequiquam, adj. in vain, to no purpose, without good reason, fruitlessly, for nothing

onus, oneris, n. load, burden, weight, trouble, difficulty.
ops, opis, f. power, aid, help, assistance; plural (opes): wealth, riches, property, resources.
opus, operis, n. labour, work, toil, fortification, book of writing, need.

ora, orae, f. edge, border, boundary, sea-coast, country, region, ship's hawser;
os, oris, n. mouth, jaws, beak, tongue, lips, speech, face.
os, ossis, n. bone, marrow, heart, very soul.

parumper, adv. for a little while, for a time;
paulatim, adv. gradually, little by little;
paulisper, adv. for a little while.

pecu (pl. pecua), n. cattle, flock of sheep, plural: pastures, money;
pecus, pecoris, n. cattle, swine, sheep, flock, herd;
pecus, pecudis, f. a sheep, a head of cattle, a domestic animal.

praeterea, adv. besides, in addition, moreover, henceforth, further.
propterea, adv. therefore, on that account.

primitus, adv. originally.
primo, adv. at first, firstly.
primum, adv. first, in the first place, first of all, for the first time, to begin with.

resisto, resistere, restiti. to stop, halt, stand still, resist.
restito, restitare, restitavi, restitatum. to stay behind, hesitate.
restituo, restituere, restitui, restitutum. to replace, rebuild, restore, give back, return, reverse
resto, restare, restiti. to resist, stand firm, remain, be left. 

socer, soceri, m. father-in-law;
socrus, socrus, f. mother-in-law. 

somnium, somn(i)i, n. dream, fancy, imagination, nonsense;
somnus, somni, m. sleep, sleep (of death), slumber, drowsiness.

subsisto, subsistere, substiti. to stand still, halt, stop.
substituo, substituere, substitui, substitutum. to put next to, substitute, present, imagine.
substo, substare, substiti, substatum. to hold out, stand firm.

vero, adv. indeed, really, in truth;
verum, cj. but, but in truth, but still.

C.  OTHER USEFUL WORDS/ PHRASES:

ab latere           on the flank
absit a me         far be it from me
actum est de      it is all up with
adeo                  so, thus, in fact
adice                 add to this
ad hoc               for this purpose, besides,  moreover
ad irritum cadere  come to nothing
admodum          very, quite, fully
ad speciem        for the sake of appearances
ad tempora        on a temporary basis, for the moment, at the right time
ad ultimum        finally, in the end, ultimately, for the last time
ad unum            to a man, unanimously
adusque            right up to, eventually, entirely
ad voluntatem   with the consent (of)
aegre patior      to be displeased with
aes alienum       debt
ager                   land, field, countryside, territory
alias                  at another time, some other time, at other times 
alibi                  otherwise, elsewhere
alicubi              somewhere, in some place
alii alio             some in one place, some in another
alioqui              otherwise, besides
aliquamdiu       for sometime
aliquando         sometimes, now at last, at long last, for once
aliquanto          somewhat, rather
aliquotiens       several times
alius alii           from one to another
alterum tantum twice as much
ambitiose         ostentatiously, insolently
ante                  before that, until then, in the past
apud                beside, by, among, near, in the presence of, in the opinion of
autem               but, on the other hand, and yet, now, moreover
avare                greedily, avariciously, covetously, eagerly
bene quidem    very well
causa indicta   without a hearing
cavillans          jeeringly
certatim           eagerly, zealously, firmly, vied, emulously
ceterum            besides, otherwise, but for all that
cito                   quickly, soon
citra                 short of
comminus         hand to hand, at close quarters
confestim          immediately, shortly, suddenly, without delay, speedily, forthwith
consensu          unanimously
constanter        constantly, resolutely, steadily, firmly, consistently
consulto            deliberately
continuo           immediately, without delay, forthwith, directly
contumaciter    stubbornly, obstinately, with defiance
cottidie             daily, on a daily basis, every day
crastino die      tomorrow
cum maxime     just as
cum primis        especially
cum primum     as soon as
cum ... tum        both ... and; not only ... but also
cursu                at a run, at the double
dedita opera     intentionally, deliberately, on purpose
dehinc               henceforth, then, next, from now on
deinceps            successively, in order, in succession, one after another
deinde               then, next, from there, thereafter
de improviso     unexpectedly
de industria      purposely, on purpose
de integro          afresh
de more             according to custom
demum              at last, just, precisely
denique             lastly, finally, in the end
denuo                again, once more, afresh
desuper             from above
diem dicere       to impeach          
diu                     for a long time, a long time ago
diutius               any longer
divinitus            from heaven, by a god, by divine inspiration/influence
domi militiaeque  at home and abroad
dummodo          provided that, so long as
dumtaxat           at least, only, merely
eadem               in the same way, at the same time
ea gratia           on this account
eiusmodi           such
eminus              at/from a distance
enimvero          certainly, for indeed
enixe                earnestly, strenuously, zealously
eo                     for that reason, on that account
eodem cursu    in the same direction
eo magis          all the more
eo plus             the more
eo quod           for the reason that 
eo ... unde        to the place ... from which
eo usque          so far, to such an extent
equidem           verily, truly, indeed, of course, at all events, for my part, to be sure
est apud se      they have
et                     and, both, also, even, too
etenim              but in fact, furthermore, and indeed
etiam               also, even, actually, besides
etiamnum         till now
etiamsi             even if, although
etiamtum          till then
etsi                   even if, and yet, though
e vestigio         instantly
ex alto              on the horizon
ex composito    as agreed, as planned
exim                 then, next
ex improviso    unexpectedly, all of a sudden
ex industria     on purpose, deliberately, diligently
ex insperato     unexpectedly
ex ordine          in order, in turn, one after the other
ex parte            partly, to some extent
ex quo              since
extemplo          immediately, instantly, straightway, forthwith, without delay
ex transverso   sideways, from the side
extrinsecus      on the outside, from the outside
facile patior     to be well pleased with
fere                  usually, generally, almost, nearly, about, quite, just
ferme               almost
foras                out, outside, out of doors
forte                 by chance, happened
fortuito            by chance, fortuitously, haply
frustra             in vain, for nothing
funditus           completely, utterly, from the bottom
gratia + gen.   for the sake of, in order to
hactenus          thus far, so far, till now
haud aliter quam   just like, just as
haud gravatim not unwillingly
haud secus quam just as (lit. not otherwise than) 
haud scio an    I feel sure
hauddum         not yet
hesterno die    yesterday, on the previous day
hic                   the latter
iamdiu             long since
iamdudum       long ago, for a long time 
iamiam            right now, any moment now
iam nunc          just now
iampridem       long ago, for a long time
iam tum           even at that time
idem                likewise, also
identidem        repeatedly, again and again, often, continually, constantly, regularly 
ideo                 therefore, for this reason, that is why
ilico                 on the spot, instantly, at once
illa                   that way, in that direction
ille                   the former
immo               no, on the contrary, or rather
immensum       exceedingly
improviso        unexpectedly
in cassum        in vain
in commune    for the common good, for a common end
indidem           from the same place
in dies              daily, everyday, on a daily basis, day by day
in incerto         in doubt
in loco             on the spot
in maius           too greatly, too highly, greater than it is, in an exaggerated fashion
in manibus       well-known, at hand, available
in medium        for the common good
in praesens      for the present 
in pretio           valuable 
in primis          especially
insuper            above, on top, besides, over and above, still further
in tantum         to such an extent
interdiu            by day, during the day, in the daytime
interdum          sometimes, now and then, occasionally
interea              meanwhile, in the meantime, nevertheless
interim             meanwhile, in the meantime, sometimes, someday, all the same 
inter se             mutually, one another
in vicem           each other, in turn, alternately, mutually
item                  likewise, also, besides, further, moreover, too, as well
itidem               in the same way, similarly, likewise
iure                   justly, rightly
iuxta                 alike, just the same, close by
licet                  although, even if
magis               more
magnis itineribus  by forced marches
magnopere      greatly, very much, exceedingly, particularly
mature             promptly, at the right time
maxime            most, especially, particularly, above all, very much
minime vero     certainly not
modo                only, at all, in any way, just now, a moment ago, if only
modo demum   only now
multo praestat it is much better
necdum            and ... not yet
nec mora          without delay, at once
neglegenter     carelessly, with neglect
ne quidem        not even
nimirum           doubtless, undoubtedly, of course, certainly, surely
nimius              excessive
non cassum      in vain
non saltem       not even
nondum            not yet
non iam            no longer
nonnumquam   sometimes
non secus         even so
nulla parte       not at all
nunc quoque    even now
obviam ierat    had gone to meet
olim                  once, at times, sometime, one day
omnino             at all, altogether, entirely, utterly, undoubtedly, to be sure
omni parte       entirely
ordine              properly, in an orderly manner, in good order
otiose               leisurely, idly, quietly
paene               nearly, almost
palam               openly, publicly
pariter              alike, equally, at the same time, together
parum               not very, too little, not enough, scarcely
passim              here and there, at random, indiscriminately, in every direction, far and wide
paulo                a little, somewhat
paulo ante        recently, a short time before
paulum             somewhat, slightly, a little
paulum modo   just a little
penes + acc.     in the power of, in the possession of, in the house of, in the hands of, with
penitus              deep within, from the depths, utterly, thoroughly
per ambages    in a roundabout way. in an equivocal manner
perinde             just as, in the same manner, equally
per omnia        by all means, in all respects
peropportune   very opportunely, in the nick of time
perperam         wrongly, falsely
per se               in itself
pessum dare     to put an end to, to ruin, to destroy
plerumque        generally, usually, mostly
pone                 behind
porro                next, in turn, moreover, long ago, in future, onward, forwards, a long way off
posthac             hereafter, in future, afterwards
postmodo          presently, shortly, soon after, a little later
postremo          finally, eventually, besides, at any rate
potissimum       especially, in particular
potius               rather, more, instead
praesens           in person 
praesertim        especially
praesto             at hand, ready, in readiness, there by your side
praeter             except, besides, beyond, in addition to, more than, contrary to
praeterea          besides, moreover, henceforth
praeterquam     except, other than, save, beyond, besides
prima luce        at dawn, at daybreak, at first light
primo                at first
primitus            originally, in the first place, first of all
primum             firstly, in the first place, first of all, to begin with
probe                well, properly, thoroughly
procul               from afar, far away, at a distance, in the distance
profecto            really, certainly, surely, truly, actually, indeed
proin(de)          consequently, therefore, just as
propalam         openly, publicly
pro parte          to the best of one's ability
propediem        shortly, before long, very soon, prematurely
propterea          therefore
prorsus             forwards, absolutely, quite, in short
pro contione     publicly
pro se               on his own behalf
pro tempore      to suit the occasion, as the circumstances permitted
protinus            forthwith, right away, at once, immediately, continuously
publice              for the state, by the state, at the public expense, all together
qua ... qua         partly ... partly
quamdiu            as long as
quamobrem       why, wherefore, for what reason
quam primum   as soon as possible
quamquam        although, and yet
quandoque        whenever, someday, eventually, seeing that 
quandoquidem  seeing that, since, for
quapropter         and therefore
quatenus            since, in so far as, as far as
quemadmodum  just as
quidem               in fact, indeed, at any rate, it is true
quid sibi vult?    what does he mean? what is he driving at? what is the point?
quippe                certainly, of course, for in fact
quispiam            some one
quisquam           anyone
quisque              each, every, everyone
quisquis             whoever, whatever
quocirca            therefore, for this reason
quodsi                but if, whereas if
quomodo           how
quondam           once, formerly, long ago, sometimes, at that time
quotidie             daily
quotie(n)s          how often
quotus quisque? how few?
reapse                in fact, actually, in reality, really, in truth
recte                  rightly, properly, correctly
rem deferre       to adjourn
res repeto          I demand satisfaction, I seek restitution
retro                  back, backwards, behind
robigo                rust, blight, mould, mildew
saepe                 often, frequently
saepenumero     very often, on many occasions
saltem                at least, at all events
sane                   indeed, doubtless, to be sure, of course, certainly, surely, if you please
satin                  quite, really
satis                   enough, sufficiently, tolerably, quite
satisne               quite, really
secus                 otherwise, differently, badly
sed enim            but in fact, but actually
seditose            seditiously, in a rebellious manner
sedulo               deliberately, on purpose
segniter            slowly, lazily, slothfully
se habere          to find oneself, to  be
sensim               gradually, slowly, tentatively, little by little
separatim         apart, separately, on an individual basis
sero                   late, too late
sic quoque         even so
sicuti                 just as if
signa conferre   to join battle
signo dato         at a given signal
sine fraude        without harm
si quando          whenever, if ever
siquidem            if only
sua sponte         of its own accord, spontaneously, by oneself, unaided
subinde              repeatedly, immediately after, forthwith, thereupon
superne              from above, at the top
susque deque     up and down, neither here nor there, of no consequence
tacite                  silently, secretly
talis                    such, the following
talis ... qualis     such as 
tam                     so, so much, so very
tamen                 however, nevertheless, yet, but, all the same
tamdiu                so long, as long
tametsi               although
tamquam            just as, just like
tam ... quam       as ... as
tandem               at last, at length, finally
tanti esse           to be worth so much, to be so important, to be worth having
tantisper            meanwhile, in the meantime, for so long as
tanto opere        so much
tantum               so, so much, only, merely
tantummodo      only
tantum ... quantum  as much as
tantus                so big
tantus ... quantus  as big as
temere               rashly, at random, without design, casually, thoughtlessly
terga vertere     to turn to flight (lit. to turn their backs)
tot                     so many
totie(n)s             as often, so often
toties ... quoties as often as 
tot ... quot          as many as
tria tanta           three times as much
tum cum             at the time when
tum demum        only then
tunc                   then, at that time, next
turbide              in disorder, in a disorderly manner
turpiter             shamefully, in a shameful manner
ubi primum        as soon as
ultra                   beyond, farther, deeper
ultro                   of one's own accord, unasked, voluntarily, unsolicited
ultro et citro       to and fro, hither and thither, this way and that, in one way or another
una secum          together with him
uno tenore          without a break, uniformly
unusquisque       every single one of us 
uspiam               anywhere, somewhere, in some place
usque                 continuously
usque ad            right up to, all the way to as far as, leading to
usquequaque      everywhere, on every occasion
utcumque           one way or another
ut fit                   as usually happens
utique                 especially, at any rate, by all means, surely, still, completely, certainly
ut primum          as soon as
utrimque            on both sides, on either side
venit usu            it happens
veri similis         probable, likely
vero                    indeed
versus                 turned towards, in the direction of, facing
verum                 but
verumtamen       but nevertheless
vicissim              in turn, again
videlicet             clearly, evidently, obviously, namely 
viritim                invidually, on an individual basis, separately, to each man, man by man
vixdum               hardly, as yet
vulgo                  publicly, commonly, everywhere





          

Thursday 3 May 2018

IMPARASYLLABIC NOUNS OF THE OF THE THIRD DECLENSION AND EXCEPTIONS TO THE RULES FOR THE QUANTITY OF FINAL SYLLABLES IN LATIN

Imparasyllabic nouns are those which have one more syllable in their Genitive Singulars than in their Nominative Singulars. The majority of such nouns are in the Third Declension, and within this declension there are two groups, or categories, of nouns (and related adjectives) which are of significance in relation to the length of syllables at the end of words, i.e. final syllables: 

1) Imparasyllabic Third Declension nouns with nominative Singulars ending in '- es', which have a short penultimate syllable in the Genitive Singular. In almost all Latin words ending in '- es', that syllable is pronounced long. However, in the case of this group of nouns, the final '- es' is short. Such nouns, and related adjectives, are listed below:  

ales, alitis.  c. bird, omen.  adj. winged, swift.  

caeles, caelitis.  adj. celestial. m.pl. the gods.

caespes, caespitis. m. sod, turf, mass of  roots

comes, comitis.  c. companion, partner, attendant, follower

dives, divitis.  adj. rich, wealthy, plentiful.

eques, equitis.  m. horseman, cavalryman, knight. 

gurges, gurgitis. m. deep water, abyss, flood, spendthrift.

hebes, hebetis. adj. blunt, dull, sluggish, stupid.

hospes, hospitis.  m. host, guest, stranger, foreigner.

limes, limitis. m. path, boundary, track, way, frontier

merges, mergitis.  f. sheaf (of corn).

miles, militis.  m. soldier. 

mollipes, mollipedis.  adj. soft-footed.

obses, obsidis.  f. hostage, guarantee.

palmes, palmitis.  m. branch, vine-shoot

pedes, peditis.  m. foot-soldier, infantryman.

poples, poplitis. m. knee, ham, hough.

praepes, praepetis.  f. bird.  adj. swift, winged, of good omen.

praeses, praesidis.  m. guardian, president, chief.  adj. presiding, protecting.

praestes, praestitis.  m. protector, guardian.  adj. protecting.

reses, residis.  adj. lazy, inactive.

satelles, satellitis. c. attendant, follower, courtier, life-guard, accomplice.

seges, segetis. f. cornfield, crop.

sospes, sospitis.  m. saviour, preserver, deliverer.  adj. safe, unhurt, favourable. 

stipes, stipitis.  m. log, tree, stump, trunk of a tree.

superstes, superstitis.  c. by-stander, witness, survivor.  adj. standing by, surviving, remaining.  

teges, tegetis. f. mat.

teres, teretis.  adj. rounded, smooth, polished, elegant. 

termes, termitis. m. branch.

trames, tramitis. m. footpath, path, by-way.

veles, velitis. m. light-armed soldier, skirmisher.

(N.B. In the case of all these above words, I suspect that, when we read them in prose, we often err by pronouncing the final '-es' syllable long. At the same time, I fear we also pronounce the final 's' like a 'z', as in English 'rose'. In Latin, however, 's' is always pronounced with a hissing sound, as in English 'sit'. So, for instance, 'comes' should always be pronounced 'commess', not 'commeyz'.) 

In the case of this group of Third Declension words, there are, inevitably perhaps, some exceptions to the exceptions. In the case of the following words which end in '- ies', their Nominative Singulars end in a long syllable, even though the penultimate syllables of their Genitive Singulars are pronounced short:

abies, abietis.  f. fir-tree, ship, spear, writing-tablet.

aries, arietis.  m. ram, battering-ram.

paries, parietis.  m. wall of a building. 

Another anomaly is the monosyllabic noun pes, pedis. m. foot, and its adjectival derivatives, bipes, bipedis; tripes, tripedis; and quadrupes, quadrupedis. Although these are imparasyllabic and have Genitive Singulars with a short penultimate syllable, the Nominative Singular of pes, and the final syllable of the Nominative Singulars of its derivatives are pronounced long, unlike the final syllable of the Nominative Singulars of mollipes and pedes (listed above), which are pronounced short - very confusing!

Further anomalies are heres, heredis. c. heir, heiress; and lebes, lebetis. m. copper basin, cauldron. Although both of these words are imparasyllabic, and the final syllables of their Nominative Singulars are short (N.B. a number of Latin dictionaries err in showing them as long), the penultimate syllable of their Genitive Singulars is long in both cases. However, while these two words share that characteristic, they differ in that the initial syllable of heres is long and that of lebes short.

2) Imparasyllabic Third Declension Nouns with Nominative Singulars ending in '- us', which have a long penultimate syllable in the Genitive Singular. In almost all Latin words ending in '-us', this syllable is pronounced short. However, in the case of this second group of nouns, the final '- us' is pronounced long. Such nouns are listed below:

crus, cruris. n. leg, shin.

incus, incudis.  f. anvil.

iuventus, iuventutis.  f. youth, manhood, men, soldiers.

palus, paludis.  f. marsh, pool, lake.

rus, ruris.  n. country, countryside, farm, estate.

salus, salutis. f. safety, health.

senectus, senectutis. old age, old men.

servitus, servitutis. f. slavery, service.

tellus, telluris.  f. earth, ground, land, country.

tus, turis.  n. incense, frankincense, spice.

virtus, virtutis.  f. virtue, courage, valour, manhood, strength, prowess.

Conclusion.  These two groups of Third Declension words are almost geometrically opposed to each other in terms of their characteristics and significance. The first group has Nominative Singulars which are pronounced short, and the second group has Nominative Singulars which are pronounced long. In the first group the penultimate syllable of the Genitive Singular is short; in the second group it is long. The first group has the effect of shortening an ending ('- es') which is otherwise almost always pronounced long, and the second group has the effect of lengthening an ending ('-us') which is otherwise almost always pronounced short. In both cases, however, it is particularly necessary to remember these details when scanning verse. 















Friday 20 October 2017

READING VIRGIL'S LATIN VERSE

For any student of Latin literature who wishes to appreciate just why Romans found the poetry of Virgil so exhilarating and stimulating, it is absolutely essential to read his poetry in the original language. To seek to translate Virgil's work without attempting to read the verse condemns the learner to a mere academic exercise, dominated by the disciplines of accidence and syntax, important as they are, but in which the inspiration of the Muse is entirely lacking; but once one has learned to scan the lines and then to read them aloud, the magnificent rhythms of Virgil's poetry come alive, and carry the reader along to progressive crescendos of excitement and emotion. In addition to his mastery of poetic rhythm, Virgil is also adept at the use of onomatopoeia and alliteration, both to reinforce the meaning of his poetry, and to evoke associated moods of melancholy, gloom and horror on the one hand, and martial valour and patriotic splendour on the other, as well as of tenderness and pathos, often in the case of deathbed or funeral scenes. He also makes liberal use of the imagery of nature in similes which graphically describe the actions of the crops, the sea, the winds, the birds, the skies, and the divine powers which inspire them. To read Virgil's poetry is indeed an aesthetic delight.

But how should Virgil's poetry actually be read? We are told that by the First Century B.C.E. when Virgil wrote, Roman poets, in imitation of the Greeks, wrote 'quantitative' poetry, which consisted of the delineation or recurrence of long and short syllables in furtherance of various metrical forms. If one listens to the remarkable on-line readings of Robert Sankovsky, it would seem that the rhythms of classical Latin poetry were very different indeed from our English verse with its emphasis on stress accents. However, quantitative verse, if it really did sound like Sankovsky's renderings, is too alien for the modern ear, and would surely become unduly monotonous if declaimed for any length of time. Furthermore, some scholars have questioned the extent to which Latin poetry really did suppress the verse beat, or 'ictus', and the natural accentuation of syllables within words. Indeed, it can be argued that much of the fascination of Virgil's poetry arises from his skilful handling of beat and the stress accent of words, and that this adds to the variety of rhythms within his lines, which we consider below. In practice, therefore, it does seem appropriate to allow such accentuation to be emphasised when reading Virgil's work, while at the same time remembering that a long or heavy syllable took twice as long to read as a short or light one. 

Beneath the apparent rhythmic congruence of Virgil's hexameter lines, there is, in fact, a remarkable degree of variation, which was essential if monotony was to be avoided; this variety affected both the metrical structure of the lines themselves, and the points within them when pauses were effected. Both these areas are now considered below. (In this analysis a long syllable is shown as '--' and a short syllable as 'u').

Variation of metrical structure. In hexameters there is an almost total degree of uniformity in the structure of the last two feet of the six-foot line. The fifth foot is almost invariably a dactyl (i.e. -- uu), other than very rare exceptions when some special effect is sought, and the sixth foot is always a spondee (i.e. -- --) or a trochee (i.e. -- u), since the final syllable of all Latin verse metres is 'anceps', i.e. long or short. Whether the last syllable is long or short, however, the sixth foot was generally regarded as a spondee, by the device of 'brevis in longo', and it will be classified as a spondee in the analysis below. Despite the remarkable uniformity of the last two feet, it is, however, permissible in the case of the first four feet for the 'thesis' or the 'biceps' element of any of the dactyls (i.e. uu), to be 'contracted' into  a long syllable (i.e. --) and thus to form a spondee. In practice, therefore, there is a possible variety of 16 different syllable combinations for each hexameter line, and the number of syllables in a line can vary between 17 and 13; the metrical structure of these lines is set out below:

A.1: -- uu; -- uu; -- uu; -- uu; -- uu; -- -- (5 dactyls, 1 spondee) = 17 syllables.

A. 2: -- uu; -- uu; - uu; -- --; -- uu; -- -- (4 dactyls, 2 spondees) = 16 syllables.

A. 3: -- uu; --uu; -- --; -- uu; -- uu; -- -- (4 dactyls, 2 spondees) = 16 syllables.

A. 4: -- uu; -- uu; -- --; -- --; -- uu; -- -- (3 dactyls, 3 spondees) = 15 syllables.

B. 1: -- uu; -- --; -- uu; -- uu; -- uu;  -- -- (4 dactyls, 2 spondees) = 16 syllables.

B. 2: -- uu; -- --; -- uu; -- --; -- uu; -- -- (3 dactyls, 3 spondees) = 15 syllables.

B. 3: -- uu; -- --; -- --; -- uu; -- uu; -- -- (3 dactyls, 3 spondees) = 15 syllables.

B. 4: -- uu; -- --; -- --; -- --; -- uu; -- -- (2 dactyls, 4 spondees) = 14 syllables.

C. 1: -- --; -- uu; -- uu; -- uu; -- uu; -- -- (4 dactyls, 2 spondees) = 16 syllables.

C. 2: -- --; -- uu; -- uu; -- --; -- uu; -- -- (3 dactyls, 3 spondees) = 15 syllables.

C. 3: -- --; -- uu; -- --; -- uu; -- uu; -- -- (3 dactyls, 3 spondees) = 15 syllables.

C. 4: -- --; -- uu -- --; -- --; -- uu; -- -- (2 dactyls, 4 spondees) = 14 syllables.

D. 1: -- --; -- --; -- uu; -- uu; -- uu; -- -- (3 dactyls, 3 spondees) = 15 syllables.

D. 2: -- --; -- --; -- uu; -- --; -- uu; -- -- (2 dactyls, 4 spondees) = 14 syllables.

D. 3: -- --; -- --; -- --; -- uu; -- uu; -- -- (2 dactyls, 4 spondees) = 14 syllables.

D. 4: -- --; -- --; -- --; -- --; -- uu; -- -- (1 dactyl, 5 spondees) = 13 syllables. 

Variation in pauses. When it comes to pauses within lines - the word 'caesurae' actually means 'cuts', but this is too strong a word -, there are basically two types of main or principal caesura: 1) the penthemimiral caesura, i.e. caesura in the middle of the third foot (n.b. a penthemimer is a metrical unit of five half- feet); and 2) the hepththemimiral caesura, i.e. a caesura in the middle of the fourth foot, usually acting in combination with a trihemimiral caesura, in the middle of the second foot, which, when taken together, have the effect of separating the line into three parts. In this article a main caesura is marked 'X'. In Latin verse there was a strong preference for a strong, or masculine, caesura, i.e. one that comes after the first (always long) syllable, or the 'arsis', of the foot, as opposed to a weak, or feminine, caesura, which comes between the two short syllables which divide the 'thesis' of a dactyl. The location of the main caesura can be illustrated as follows in relation to these two types of caesura (for the purposes of these examples a hexameter line B. 2 is used:

1) -- uu| -- uu| --Xuu| -- uu| -- uu| -- --

2) -- uu| --Xuu| -- uu| --Xuu| --uu| -- --

In some instances it is possible for the reader to chose one or other of the above types of pause. Some will try to apply a penthemimiral caesura wherever possible, and avoid the two pause effect of the trihemimiral/ hepththemimiral caesurae, ignoring, in the process, the presence of commas or semi-colons in the relevant feet, designed by editors to guide the reader. However, where such punctuation marks exist, and/or the application of a pause in the third foot would involve a weak caesura, it is surely preferable to adopt the second/ fourth foot pause approach, and the relatively frequent incidence of such lines almost certainly reflects Virgil's recognition of the need for rhythmic variation. Sometimes a genuine choice remains, and in such circumstances the reader should decide which caesural system to adopt on the basis of perceived sound effect or in respect of natural breaks in meaning.

In order to illustrate how these variations in meter and pause were applied by Virgil, a short extract of 22 lines (ll. 295-316) is taken from Book VI of the "Aeneid", which contains the celebrated account of Aeneas' visit to the Underworld in the company of the Cumaean Sybil. This passage gives us a picture of what the Romans imagined would happen to the soul after death; it evokes an atmosphere of sadness and gloom, in which the main focus is the terrible figure of Charon, the ferryman of the dead across the River Styx. In this passage Virgil employs 11 of the 16 varieties of hexameter line available to him, and there is a 15:7 split of lines with penthemimiral and trihemimiral/ hepththemimiral caesurae. As set out below, the long or heavy syllables are underlined, divisions between feet are marked by '|' and the main caesura is shown by an 'X'. Where two or more long syllables, contiguous within the same word, form a spondee, they are separated by a hyphen. At the beginning of each line, the type of hexameter line is indicated in brackets:


l. 295 (A. 3):  Hinc via | Tartare|i X quae | fert Ache|rontis ad | un-das.

l. 296 (B. 3):  Turbidus | hic  cae|no X vas|taque vo|ragine | gur-ges.

l. 297 (B. 4):  aestuat | atqu(e) om|-nem X Co|-cyt(o) e|-ructat ha|re-nam.

l. 298 (B. 2):  Portitor | has X hor|rendus a|quas X et | flumina | ser-vat

l. 299 (B. 2):  terribi|li X squa|lore Cha|ron: X cui | plurima | men-to

l. 300 (B. 2):  caniti|es X inculta iacet; X stant | lumina flamma,

l. 301 (A. 4):  sordidus | ex umeris X no|-do de|-pendet a|mic-tus.

l. 302 (B. 2):  Ipse ra|tem X con|-to subi|git, X ve|-lisque mi|nis-trat,

l. 303 (C. 4):  et fer|-rugine|a X sub|-vec-tat | corpora | cum-ba,

l. 304 (B. 1):  iam seni|or; X sed | cruda de|o X viri|disque se|nec-tus.

l. 305 (D. 4):  Huc om|-nis X tur|-b(a) ad ri|-pas X ef|-fusa rue|-bat,

l. 306 (C. 3):  mat-res | atque vi|ri, X de|-functaque | corpora | vi-ta

l. 307 (B. 2):  magnani|m(um) he-ro|-um, X pue|r(i) in-nup-taeque pu|el-lae,

l. 308 (A. 2):  imposi|tique ro|gis X iuve|nes an-t(e) ora parentum:

l. 309 (D. 4):  quam mul|-t(a) in sil|-vis au|-tum-ni frigore | pri-mo.

l. 310 (A. 4):  lapsa ca|dunt foli|(a), aut X ad | ter-ram | gurgit(e) ab | al-to

l. 311 (C. 1):  quam mul|-tae X glome|rantur a|ves, X ubi | frigidus |an-nus

l. 312 (C. 4):  trans pon|-tum fugat | et X ter|-ris im|-mittit a|pri-cis.

l. 313 (D. 4):  Sta-bant o-ran-tes X pri-mi trans-mittere cur-sum,

l. 314 (C. 4):  ten-de|-bantque ma|nus X ri|-p(ae) ulteri|oris a|mo-re.

l. 315 (B. 4):  Navita | sed tris|-tis X nunc | hos nunc | accipit | il-los,

l. 316 (B. 4):  ast ali|os lon|-ge X sum|-mo-tos | arcet ha|re-na.


With regard to pauses within the lines, it will be noted that approximately two-thirds of the above lines have a strong main caesura in the third foot, and a third have two strong caesurae in the second and fourth feet; of these latter, of which there are 7, the possibility of a pause in the third foot is vitiated in ll. 298, 300, 304 and 311 by the need to employ a weak caesura as the main break, while in ll. 299, 300, 302, 304 and 311 the punctuation marks point clearly to the double break. Finally, a third foot break in l. 305 would require a main caesura to be inserted in the middle of the adverbial phrase 'ad ripas', something evidently unacceptable. However, there remains a genuine choice in ll. 312 and 315. While a third foot pause seems marginally preferable in these two cases on grounds of sound, strong caesurae are available in both the second and fourth feet to permit a combination of trihemimiral and penththemimiral caesurae in both lines.

Bucolic diaeresis. It should also be noted that Virgil had a distinct partiality for the 'Bucolic diaeresis'. A 'diaeresis' is the name given to a break where the end of a word and the end of a foot coincide. This was not generally considered to be particularly desirable if it happened too frequently, but in the case of the division between the fourth and the fifth feet it was considered good practice. Such breaks were called 'Bucolic' because they had been used by the Greek pastoral poet Theocritos in his poems about herdsmen, οἱ βουκόλοι. In the above passage Bucolic diaereses are marked with a red line between the fourth and the fifth feet, and they occur in 10 of the 22 lines. In poetic terms their main rhythmic effect is to strengthen the 'shave and a haircut' or 'blackberry pudding' sound of the last two feet.

Coincidence of word accent and 'ictus'. Another source of rhythmic variety in Virgil's poetry arises from the potential clash between natural the stress-accent of Latin words and the beat or 'ictus' of quantitative verse. With regard to the stress-accent of Latin words, this falls on the first syllable of words of two syllables, on the last syllable but one of words of more than two syllables, if that syllable is long, but on the last syllable but two if the last syllable but one is short. In quantitative verse, however, the verse accent or beat falls on the first (long) syllable of each foot, whether it is a dactyl or a spondee. In hexameter verse it is very common for the word accent and verse accent to coincide in the first foot, and in the final two feet they always do so; but in the middle feet, i.e. feet two, three, and four, they rarely coincide. In his poetry Virgil generally follows these expectations, which were necessary to avoid monotony or the development of a 'sing-songy' rhythm, and his careful management of this conflict is one of the reasons for the rhythmic beauty of his poetry. With regard to the coincidence of word accent and beat, these 22 lines show the following position:

Foot 1: All lines except 299, 300, 308, 314 (n.b. the first word in these lines is more than 3 syllables.)
Foot 2: ll. 297, (301), 306, 308, (309), 314, (315).
Foot 3: ll. 298, 299, 304, (305), (310), 311, (312).
Foot 4: 296, 297, 303, 306, 316.
Foot 5: All lines.
Foot 6: All lines.
(The brackets relate to monosyllables, on which word stress is optional and relates to the degree of emphasis that is desired.)

Models for the reading of lines. To assist the reader of hexameter verse it is very difficult to find English poems written in hexameters, against which one can model one's rendering of Virgil's Latin verse. However, Henry Longfellow's poem "Evangeline", can be used in this way with profit, particularly the earlier lines. The poem itself, while undoubtedly a poetic tour de force is difficult to recommend, as the story it tells is desperately sad and the hexameter rhythm does indeed become somewhat monotonous, despite Longfellow's manifold efforts to avoid that. Nevertheless, some of its lines, particularly at the beginning of the poem have a sort of sonorous beauty which is compelling, and they can be used as a model against which each of the 16 types of hexameter line can be measured. In the case of ll. 295-316 of "Aeneid" Book VI, a similar sounding line from "Evangeline" is identified below for each of the 11 types of line which the extract contains (n.b. long syllables are underlined, and the relevant line of "Evangeline" is shown in brackets at the end of each line. Where one English word contains a spondee, the two syllables are hyphenated):

A. 2.  White as the snow were his locks, and his cheeks brown as the oak-leaves. (l. 64)

A. 3.  Gentle Evangeline lived, his child and the pride of the vill-age. (l. 61)

A. 4.  Sweet was her breath as the breath of kine that feed in the mead-ows. (l. 68)

B. 1.  Down the long street she passed, with her chaplet of beads and her mis-sal. (l. 74)         
B. 2.  Scattered like dust and leaves, when the migh-ty blasts of Octo-ber (l. 13)         

B. 3.  Hearty and hale was he, an oak that is covered with snow flakes; (l. 63)

B. 4.  Columns of pale blue smoke, like clouds of incense ascen-ding, (l. 50)

C. 1.  Naught but tradition remains of the beautiful village of Grand-Pre (l. 15)

C. 3.  Fair was she to behold, that maiden of seventeen sum-mers. (l. 65)

C. 4.  West and south there were fields of flax, and orchards and corn-fields.(l. 27)

D. 4.  Stand like Druids of eld, with voices sad and prophe-tic. (l. 3)

(N.B. In a number of cases Longfellow uses trochees in place of spondees; this is necessitated by the relative shortage of long syllables in English, e.g. ''breath of kine that" in l. 68 above. These are really two trochees, not spondees. When reading such trochees, however, if one 'dwells' on the shorter syllables "of" and "that", the spondaic effect can, to some extent, be maintained.)

Conclusion. It is hoped that the reader will find his reading of the lines of this extract in Latin will benefit from the rhythmic modelling provided by Longfellow's lines. However, it remains important when reading quantitative verse to dwell sufficiently on long or heavy syllables, something which can be done while allowing the deployment of the verse beat which is natural to an English reader. The extract upon which this article has focused, in order to illustrate the various ways in which Virgil was able to exercise rhythmic variety, contains a greater proportion of spondees than are usually found. These spondees reflect the gloomy atmosphere which Vigil was seeking to engender at this point in the narrative, and any reading of this extract should reflect this mood.







Sunday 8 October 2017

THE LENGTHENING OF SHORT FINAL SYLLABLES IN VIRGIL

On occasions, Virgil permits himself a certain licence in his metrication, when he lengthens syllables at the end of words which would normally be short both by nature and by position. Ancient authorities commentating on these irregularities explain them either by focusing on their position in the verse, or by suggesting that Virgil's usage in these instances reflects that these syllables had been long in quantity in earlier periods of Latin poetry. With regard to the first of these tentative explanations, it is indeed the case that in all the instances where Virgil permits himself this licence, the syllables which are lengthened in this way are in arsis, that is, they fall on the last syllable of words which occur in the first part of the foot, and therefore coincide with the ictus, or the metrical beat. 

45 instances of this irregular lengthening of short final syllables are found in Virgil's works. These are divided below into certain groupings, most of which reflect different parts of speech or letter endings. In each case the whole verse is shown, and the affected syllable is underlined.

A.  Lengthening of the first 'que' at the beginning of verses

i)  Eurique Zephyrique tonat domus: omnia plenis. (Georgics I. l.371)

ii)  liminaque laurusque dei, totusque moveri. (Aeneid III. l.91)


B.  Lengthening of a syllable immediately before a Greek word:

i)  ille, latus niveum molli fultus hyacintho, (Eclogues 6. l.53)

ii)  Graius homo, infectos linquens profugus hymenaeos. (A. X. l.720)

(See also E. iii. b. and F. iii. below)

C.  Lengthening of final syllables ending in 'r': 

i)  Nouns: Masculines ending in 'or', 'er', or 'ur':

a)  Omnia vincit Amor; et nos cedamus Amori. (E. 10. l.69)

b)  Aequus uterque labor, aeque iuvenemque magistri (G. III. l.118)

c)  nam duo sunt genera: hic melior, insignis et ore (G. IV. 92)

d)  luctus, ubique pavor, et plurima mortis imago. (A. II. l.369)

e)  et Capys, et Numitor, et qui te nomine reddet (A. VI. l.768)

f)  considant, si tantus amor, et moenia condant (A. XI. l.323)

g)  quippe dolor, omnis stetit imo vulnere sanguis. (A. XII. l.422)

h)  et Messapus equum domitor, et fortis Asilas (A. XII. l.550)

i)  Desine plura, puer, et quod nunc instat agamus:(E. 9. l.66)

j)  ostentans artemque pater arcumque sonantem. (A. V. l.521)

k)  congredior. Fer sacra, pater, et concipe foedus. (A. XII. l.13)

l)  si qui ebur, aut mixta rubent ubi lilia multa (A. XII. l.68)


ii) Inflections of Verbs ending in 'r':

a)  altius ingreditur et mollia crura reponit; (G. III. l.76)

b)  Tum sic Mercurium adloquitur, ac talia mandat: (A. IV. l.222)

c)  Olli serva datur, operum haud ignara Minervae, (A. V. l.284)

d)  nostrorum obruimur, oriturque miserrima caedes (A. II. l.411)


D.  Lengthening of final syllables ending in 's'.

i)  Nouns: 

a)  per terram, et versa pulvis inscribitur hasta. (A. I. l.478)

b)  invalidus, etiamque tremens, etiam inscius aevi. (G. III. l.189)

c)  Non te nullius exercent numinis irae; (G. IV. l.453)

d)  Emicat Euryalus, et munere victor amici (A. V. l.337)

e)  fatalesque manus, infensa Etruria Turno: (A. XII. l.232)

f)  sicula magna Iovis, antiquo robore quercus (G. III. l.332)

g)  pectoribus inhians spirantia consulit exta. (A. IV. l.64)

ii)  Verbs: 

a)  terga fatigamus hasta; nec tarda senectus (A. IX. l.610)


E.  Words ending in 't': Third Person Singular of Verbs

i)  Imperfect Indicative Active (-at):

a) Tityrus hunc aberat. Ipsae te, Tityre, pinus, (E. 1. l.39)

b)  nusquam amittebat, oculosque sub astra tenebat. (A. V. l.853)

c)  regibus omen erat, hoc illis curia templum, (A. VII. l.174)

d)  per mediam qua spina dabat, hastamque receptat (A. X. l.383)

e)  Hic hasta Aeneae stabat, huc impetus illam (A. XII. l.772) 

ii)  Present Indicative Active and Imperfect Subjunctive Active (-et):

a)  qui teneant, nam inculta videt, hominesque feraene, (A. I. l.308)

b)  Pergama cum peteret inconcessosque hymenaeos, (A. I. l.651) 

iii)  Present, Future, and Perfect Indicative Active (-it):

a)  versibus ille facit; aut, si non possumus omnes, (E. 7. l.23)

b)  sceptra Palatini sedemque petit Evandri. (A. IX. l.9)

c)  tela manusque sinit. Hinc Pallas instat et urget, (A. X. l.433)

d)  ipse, ubi tempus erit, omnes in fonte lavabo. (E. 3. l.97)

e)  te sine, frater, erit? O quae satis ima dehiscat (A. 12. l.883)

f)  at rudis enituit impulso vomere campus. (G. II. l.211)

g)  Alcides subiit, haec illum regia cepit. (A. VIII. l.363)


F.  Stand alone instances. The following exceptional instances of the lengthening of the final syllable of a word are also found: 

i)  pingue super oleum fundens ardentibus extis. (A. VI. l.254)

ii)  cum muros arcemque procul ac rara domorum (A. VIII. l.98)  

iii)  nam tibi, Thymbre, caput Evandrius abstitit ensis; (A. X. l.394).

Conclusion. It can be seen clearly from the above instances that Virgil never allows himself the licence to lengthen a vowel that would normally be short unless the word concerned is in arsis, and, indeed, seldom where the lengthened syllable is not immediately followed by a main caesura, i.e. a slight break in the line. Of the above instances, it is only in 7 cases that the lengthened syllable is not followed by the main caesura. These are the first four, where it could not be applicable in any case; and D. i. g; E. i. b, and F. i. So in the overwhelming majority of cases the lengthening of a final short syllable only occurs when the word concerned is in arsis and comes immediately before the line's main caesura. Another possibly relevant factor is that in the case of 17 of the above instances the short syllable ends in 'r'. If 'r' is considered as a trilled consonant, it can be 'dwelt upon' in pronunciation, so as to lengthen the preceding vowel. 




Saturday 6 May 2017

THE USE OF HENDIADYS IN LATIN

Hendiadys is a figure of speech, more correctly a figure of syntax, in which a phrase normally constituted by a noun and a modifying adjective is converted into one involving two nouns joined by a conjunction, usually 'and'. The word 'hendiadys' itself is a Latinised version of the Greek phrase 'ἓν διὰ δυοῖν' (one through two). Hendiadys is a form of emphasis, and it achieves its purpose by utilising a word structure which is relatively unusual and thereby grabs one's attention. Its best known exponent in the English language is William Shakespeare, who made particular use of it in "Hamlet" but also in other famous tragedies, such as "King Lear" and "Macbeth". In the latter, he describes life as "a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing" (Act 5, Sc. 5, ll. 25-27). In his most entertaining book "The Elements of Eloquence", Mark Forsyth writes as follows: "Whether Shakespeare was thinking of furious sound or sounding fury hardly signifies. The point and beauty of hendiadys is that it sets the words next to each other, that it removes the grammar and relation, that it doubles the words out to give breadth and beauty" (p. 77). 

Shakespeare acquired the taste for using hendiadys by reading Latin authors, particularly Virgil. Hendiadys is particularly suited to poetry where verbal exactness can legitimately be subordinated to atmospheric impression and rhythmic beauty. When it comes to translation, however, hendiadys will often present a challenge, particularly to those such as Sabidius, who are seeking to keep as closely as possible to the grammatical structure and word order of the original Latin. Firstly, one has to decide whether a hendiadys is actually intended - sometimes this is not quite clear, and translators clearly differ in their interpretations. Then, there may be a case for letting the literal words stand: retaining the two-noun phrase may be legitimate as a means of maintaining the emphasis which the author intended, or of portraying the poetic imprecision inherent in the original wording. Then, where it is unclear which of the nouns should receive primacy in the translation, there may be a case for a literal translation which then allows the reader to determine how best the hendiadys should be expressed. With regard to these dilemmas, Sabidius' usual policy is, firstly, to determine whether a hendiadys is intended by the author, and, if so, to then effect a translation which sounds most natural in the context. In some cases the hendiadys can best be retained in the English translation. However, these decisions are often difficult to make, and frequently involve some uncertainty and misgiving.  

In this item, Sabidius sets out to exemplify the way in which Latin authors, copying the usage of the Greeks, use the figure of hendiadys in their works. In the following examples the Latin (or Greek) is shown first in italics, followed by an English translation which renders the hendiadys colloquially, but then provides a literal translation of it in parenthesis. At the same time, the words of the hendiadys itself are underlined both in the original Greek and Latin and then in both versions of the English.

Firstly we look at some examples of hendiadys in Greek:

Demosthenes:

Orationes:

19.123.  αἵ τε πόλεις ... χαλεπαὶ λαβεῖν ... μὴ οὐ χρόνῳ καὶ πολιορκίᾳ.  the cities were difficult to capture unless by protracted siege (lit. unless by length of time and siege). 

Euripides:

Helen:

l. 226-7.  ὁ δὲ σὸς ἐν ἁλὶ κύμασί τε λέλοιπε βίοτον.  your husband has lost his life in the salty waves (lit. in the salt and the waves).

Sophocles:

Electra:

l. 36-7.  ἄσκευον αὐτὸν ἀσπίδων τε καὶ στρατοῦ δόλοισι κλέψαι χειρὸς ενδίκους σφαγάς. that by cunning, without the help of armed force, (lit. of shields and an army) I should stealthily undertake my right hand's righteous slaughters.

Turning now to Latin, Virgil's poetry is the best source for the incidence of hendiadys:

Virgil:

Georgics, Book II:

l. 192.  quam pateris libamus et auro.  as we pour libations (to the gods) from golden bowls (lit. from bowls and gold).


Aeneid, Book I:

l. 52-54.  Hic vasto rex Aeolus antro / luctantes ventos tempestatesque sonoras / imperio premit ac vinclis et carcere frenat. Here King Aeolus in his vast cavern keeps the struggling winds and resounding storms in order and curbs (them) with imprisoning chains (lit. with chains and a prison).

l. 60-62.  Sed pater omnipotens speluncis abdidit atris / hoc metuens, molemque et montes insuper altos imposuit.  But, fearing this, the Almighty Father hid (them) in a black cave, and laid massive mountains high (lit. a mass and high mountains) on top (of them).

l. 110-111.  tres Eurus ab alto / in brevia et Syrtes urget  the East Wind drives three (ships) from the deep towards the shoals of the Syrtes (lit. the shoals and the Syrtes).  

l. 210.  illi se praedae accingunt dapibusque futuris.  they make ready the game for their forthcoming banquet (lit. the game and their forthcoming banquet).

l. 293.  dirae ferro et compagibus artis claudentur Belli portae.  grim with welded iron fastenings (lit. with iron and welded fastenings the gates of War will be closed.

l. 503-504.  se laeta ferebat / per medias instans operi regnisque futuris.  she joyfully rushed through the midst (of the throng) urging on the work of her future kingdom (lit. the work and her future kingdom).

l. 647-648.  Munera praeterea Iliacis erepta ruinis / ferre iubet, palam signis auroque rigentem.  In addition, he orders him to bring gifts saved from the ruins of Ilium, a robe stiff with figures (wrought) in gold (thread) (lit. stiff with figures and with gold).


Aeneid, Book II:

l. 116.  Sanguine placastis ventos et virgine caesa. You appeased the winds with the blood of a slaughtered maiden (lit. with blood and a slaughtered maiden).

l. 469-470.  Pyrrhus / exsultat, telis et luce coruscus aena.  Pyrrhus is exulting, gleaming with weapons of flashing bronze (lit. with weapons and bronze light).

l.  534.  nec voci iraeque pepercit.  nor did he hold back his angry words (lit. his voice and anger).

Aeneid, Book IV:

l. 72.  illa fuga silvas saltusque peragrat / Dictaeos.  She roams the wooded mountain-country (lit. the woods and the mountain-country) of Dicte in her flight.

l. 636.  et pecudes secum et monstrata piacula ducat.  and to bring with her the beasts for sacrifice as ordained (lit. the beasts and ordained offerings).

l. 649.  paulum lacrimis et mente morata.  she lingered for a while in tearful reflection (lit. in tears and reflection).

Aeneid, Book VI:

l. 29.  Daedalus ipse dolos tecti ambagesque resolvit.  Daedalus himself unravels the deceptive windings (lit. the deceptions and windings) of the palace.

l.  230.  spargens rore levi et ramo felicis olivae.  sprinkling them with a light dew from (lit. and with) the bough of a fruitful olive-tree.


While hendiadys lends itself naturally to poetic expression, it it also appears in works of Latin prose. Examples are as follows:

Caesar:

Bellum Gallicum V:

Ch. 19.3.  quantum labore atque itinere legionarii milites efficere poterant.  as legionary soldiers could achieve by strenuous marching (lit. by their labour and by marching).

Bellum Gallicum VI:

Ch. 26.1  ab eius summo sicut palmae ramique late diffunduntur.  from its top branching hand-palms (lit. hand-palms and branches, i.e horn and antlers), as it were, stretch out for a considerable distance

Ch. 27.1  et crura sine nodis articulisque habent.  and have legs without knotted joints (lit. without knots and joints). 


Suetonius:

Divus Claudius:

Ch. 21.6  diu cunctatus an omnes igni ferroque absumeret.  he hesitated for some time, (wondering) whether he should destroy (them) all with fire and sword. (In this case it seems appropriate to retain the hendiadys in the English translation.)








Thursday 2 February 2017

THE MULTIPLE USES OF PARTICIPLES IN GREEK

Introduction.

When one is engaged in translating a piece of Ancient Greek into English, one is often surprised at the very widespread incidence of 'Participles' or 'Verbal Adjectives' in the text. Such participles are often at the centre of 'phrases', which are units of words distinguishable from 'clauses' in that, unlike the latter, they lack the presence of a 'finite verb'. For those of us who have been taught Greek syntax principally through the medium of Greek prose composition, the extent of such phrases, and the participles which are often within them, can be somewhat disconcerting, as our early learning of the language was largely structured around an understanding of clauses, firstly main clauses, and then subordinate clauses. In most of the standard grammatical textbooks of Greek, participles and their uses are dealt with on an incidental and relatively incoherent basis, and therefore the translator is likely to be unprepared for the apparently central part they tend to play in the structure of so much written Greek. This article intends to address in some detail the numerous uses to which participles are put in Greek and to highlight those uses with actual examples of how they work in practice. 

1.  The Participle - definition and description of its use.

In Greek the participle was called by the First Century B.C. Hellenistic grammarian Dionysius Thrax as 'ἡ μετοχή' (a participation), because 'it shares the specific character of verbs and of nouns' (μετέχουσα τῆς ῥημάτων καὶ τῆς τῶν ὀνοματων ἰδιότητος). A participle, like an adjective, is used to modify or qualify nouns, with which it agrees in case, number and gender, but, unlike an adjective, it can, in accordance with its verbal functions, a) take an object in the accusative or in any other case applicable to its verb, and b) express distinctions in aspect/time and in voice. In this context, the participle is one of the 'infinite' forms of a verb, i.e. it is not limited in terms of mood and person as are finite verbs. Other forms of the Verb Infinite in Greek are the 'Infinitive' and the 'Gerundive'. With regard to time, Greek verbs have separate participles to express present, past and future time; with regard to aspect such participles can also differentiate between process, event and state; and with regard to voice, Greek participles can be active, middle or passive. 

2.  Available forms of the participle.

In terms of inflexion, Greek verbs often have as many as eleven participles available, and this remarkable number, and the flexibility which they thus provide, helps to explain why their use is so common in Greek. In order to illustrate this, the participles of the paradigmatic verb 'λύω' (I loose, I free, I ransom [Middle]) are listed below, together with the three forms of the nominative singular relating to gender:

λύων, λύουσα, λῦον                                   Present Active                  Freeing
λύσας, λύσασα, λῦσαν                               Aorist Active                    Freeing, Having freed
λελυκώς, λελυκυῖα, λελυκός                      Perfect Active                   Having freed
λύσων, λύσουσα, λῦσον                             Future Active                    Being about to free
λυόμενος, λυομένη, λυόμενον                    Present Middle                   Ransoming
                                                                  Present Passive                 Being freed
λυσάμενος, λυσαμένη, λυσάμενον           Aorist Middle          Ransoming, Having ransomed
λελυμένος, λελυμένη, λελυμένον               Perfect Middle                  Having ransomed
                                                                  Perfect Passive                 Having been freed
λυσομένος, λυσομένη, λυσόμενον              Future Middle                  Being about to ransom
λελυσόμενος, λελυσομένη, λελυσόμενον Future Perfect Middle Having been about to ransom
                                                          Future Perfect Passive Having been about to be freed
λυθείς, λυθεῖσα, λυθέν                                Aorist Passive                   Being freed, Freed
λυθησομενος, λυθησομένη, λυθησόμενον  Future Passive                  Being about to be freed
(N.B. It should be noted that Greek lacks a participle relating to the Future Perfect Active. Such a participle could only be formed periphrastically.)

Partly because of the significant number of participles relating to each verb, the participle plays a greater part in Greek than in Latin, which only has three participles for any verb. Latin's lack of a Past Participle Active and a Present Participle Passive creates significant restrictions in practice. It is also worth remarking that English verbs only possess two participles, a Present Participle (e.g. Loosening) and a Past Participle Passive (e.g. Loosened); indeed to create other participles in our own language it is necessary in practice to employ auxiliary verbs such as 'having', 'being', and 'been' on a periphrastic basis, and we often use participles in a fairly loose manner, making the two we do have do almost all the work grammatically. The Greeks, on the contrary, having so many of them, used them with great precision.   

3.  Aspect and Time. 

Before looking in detail at the manifold uses of participles in Greek, it is necessary to outline how they relate to both aspect and time, as indicated in Section 1 above. The present participle represents the action as a process occurring simultaneously with the time of the main verb; the aorist participle as an action occurring simultaneously with, or prior to, the time of the main verb; the perfect participle relates to a state occurring in the present as the result of an action in the past; and the future participle is used when the action is subsequent to the action of the main verb, and often in order to express purpose or intention. Examples of these usages are set out below:

a)  ἐξῆλθον βοῶντες. They went out shouting. (Present participle: simultaneous process in past time.) 

b)  βοήσας εἶπεν.  He said with a shout.  (Aorist participle:  simultaneous event in past time.)

c)  τὴν γῆν καταλιπόντες ταχέως ἔπλευσαν. After leaving the land, they sailed quickly. (Aorist participle:  prior event in past time.)

d)  χαίρει ὥσπερ ἤδη πεποιημένων τῶν σπονδῶν. He is rejoicing as if a peace treaty has already been made.  (Perfect participle:  present state in present time.)

e)  ἥκουσιν ὑμῖν ἀγγελοῦντες.  They have come to tell you. (Future participle:  future intention in present time.)

Of all the matters concerning the use of participles in Greek, the above rules are perhaps of the greatest significance. The regular use of the Aorist participle to describe an event simultaneous to the time of the main verb, and which in English is therefore rendered by the Present participle, is perhaps the usage which most needs to be appreciated by the translator in this context.  

4.  Substantival and Adjectival uses of the Participle.

a.  The participle as a noun. 

In some instances the participle is used, together with the direct article, as a straight substitute for a noun. Examples are

i)   οἰ τεθνηκότες, the dead (lit. those who have died).  

ii)  οἰ θεώμενοι, spectators (lit. those who are watching).

b. Its use as a noun phrase in Indirect Statement. 

In Greek, verbs of knowing and perceiving are followed by an Accusative and Participle construction rather than the Accusative and Infinitive which follows verbs of saying and thinking. Some examples are shown below:

i) οἶδα αὐτὸν ἀφικόμενον.  I know that he has arrived (lit. I know him having arrived). 

ii) οἶδά σε σώφρονα ὄντα. I know that you are wise (lit. I know you being wise).

iii) ὄψονται τὴν γῆν τεμνομένην.  They will see that their land is being ravaged (lit. They will see their land being ravaged).

iv) ὄψονται τὰ σφέτερα διαφθειρόμενα. They will see that their own property is being destroyed (lit. They will see their own property being destroyed). 

With regard to the Indirect Statement, Greek differs from Latin in that, if the subject of the indirect statement is the same as that of the main verb, it is put into the Nominative rather than the Accusative case. In practice, however, it is not necessary to express the subject of the indirect statement at all, if it is the same as that of the main verb, although the pronoun αὐτός, αὐτή, αὐτό (self) may be used in the Nominative for the purpose of emphasis. This construction is well illustrated by the following sentences: 

i) ᾐσθόμην εἰς κίνδυνον καταστάς.  I perceived that I had got into danger.

ii) οἶδα αὐτὸς μὲν ὀρθῶς γιγνώσκων, ἐκείνους δὲ ἁμαπτάνοντας.  I know that I myself am right, and that they are wrong.

The following verbs of knowing and perceiving take a participle when used in Indirect Statement:

οἶδα                          I know
σύνοιδα ἐμαυτῳ       I am conscious of
ἀγνοέω                     I do not know
γιγνώσκω                 I come to know, I realise, I learn
ὀρθῶς γιγνώσκω      I am right
ἐπίσταμαι                 I understand, I know
συνίημι                     I understand
μανθάνω                   I learn, I understand
μέμνημαι                  I remember, I recall
ἐπιλανθάνομαι         I forget
αἰσθάνομαι              I perceive
ἀκούω                      I hear
ὁράω (aorist: εἶδον) I see
ἀποφαίνω                 I show, I reveal, I prove.

In addition to the above, some verbs which commonly take the Accusative and Infinitive also take the Participle on occasion. These verbs include:

ἀγγέλλω                   I report, I announce
ἀπαγγέλλω               I tell
πυνθάνομαι              I ascertain, I inquire, I learn.

For instance:

Κῦρον ἐπιστρατεύοντα ἤγγειλεν. He announced that Cyrus was marching against (them).


c.  The Participle used as an alternative to an Adjectival or Relative Clause. 

The participle can also be used adjectivally with the definite article to form noun phrases that are translated in English as Relative Clauses with pronominal antecedents. For instance:

i)  οἱ τὴν πατρίδα φιλοῦντες.  Those who love their country. 

ii)  ὁ ταῦτα λέγων.  He who is saying (or was saying) this. 

In such noun phrases, the negative is οὐ, when the sense is definite, and μή, when it is indefinite, e.g.

i)  οἱ οὐ Βουλόμενοι.  Those (particular persons) who do not wish. 

ii)  οἱ μὴ βουλόμενοι.  Whoever do not wish. 

The two illustrations of the participle used as a noun, given in Section 4a. above, are basically examples of this construction as well. 


5.  Adverbial uses of the Participle.

The most common and the most significant function of the participle in Greek is adverbial. Just as a participle is often used in Greek as a means of expressing what in English would be an adjectival or relative clause, so it is available as an alternative to subordinate adverbial clauses. When used in this way, it can be called the Circumstantial Participle, because it expresses the circumstances in which an action takes place, and its use in this way facilitates many different shades of meaning: time, cause, purpose, condition, manner, limitation. When a participle is so used, it is sometimes not clear exactly in what way it is being used. While the participle can be translated in a neutral manner, it is usually preferable for the translator to determine its sense within the context in which it appears. For instance, the words "εἰπὼν ἀπῄει" literally mean, "having spoken, he went away", but they can be translated as either "when he had spoken, he went away", "although he had spoken, he went away", or "as though he had spoken, he went away". This ambiguity can lead to differences in translations of the same piece. However, the various adverbial uses of the circumstantial participle are now considered.

a.  Temporal.

The use of participles as an alternative to a temporal clause is perhaps its commonest adverbial use. When translating into English, 'while' is the conjunction most likely to be used in tandem with a present participle; 'when', 'after', and 'before' are usual with aorist participles: e.g.

i.) οἴκαδε ἐπανελθόντες τὸν πατέρα ἐζήτουν. When they (had) returned home, they looked for their father.

ii) ἐν τοῖς ἀγροῖς μένοντες πολλὰ καὶ κακὰ ἔπασχον.  While (they were) staying in the country, they suffered many terrible things. 

b.  Causal.

When used to describe the cause or the ground of an action, a participle is often, but not always, introduced by "ἅτε" or "οἷον", inasmuch as, to signify the real cause, or by "ὡς", on the grounds that, to signify the alleged cause: e.g.

i) ἅτε πολλὰ καὶ κακὰ παθόντες, τοῖς πολεμίοις ἑαυτοὺς παρέδοσαν.  Because they had suffered many hardships, they surrendered to the enemy.

ii) τὸν Περικλέα ἐν αἰτίᾳ εἶχον ὡς πείσαντα σφᾶς πολεμεῖν.  They blamed Pericles because he had persuaded them to go to war.

c.  Conditional.

The participle may be used as a substitute for a conditional clause, i.e. the protasis of a conditional sentence. "Μή" is always used in the case of a negative condition: e.g.

i)  τοῦτο μὴ ποιοῦντες, οὐκ ἂν εὖ πράττοιεν.  Unless they did this, they would not prosper.

ii) οὐδέποτε μαθήσεται κιθαρίζειν, μὴ μελέτων.  He will never learn to play the lyre, if he does not practise (unless he practises).


d.  Concessive.

A participle is usually preceded by "καί or "καίπερ, although, when it is used concessively: e.g.

i) ἐποικτίρω αὐτὸν καίπερ ἐχθρὸν ὄντα.  I pity him though he is my enemy.

ii) καὶ πολλὰ και κακὰ πάσχοντες, οὐκ εἶξαν. Although they were suffering many hardships, they did not yield.


e.  Final.

The Future Participle is regularly employed in classical Greek to express purpose or intention, and is therefore an alternative to the Final Clause construction of  "ἵνα", in order that, or "ὅπως", in order to, plus the Conjunctive. In such instances the Future Participle may be introduced by the conjunction "ὡς" so as to imply that the participle is expressing the alleged or presumed purpose of the subject of the sentence: e.g.

i) ἦλθον λυσόμενοι τοὺς πολίτας.  They came to ransom the citizens.

ii) ἥκουσιν ὡς ὑμῖν τὰ γενόμενα ἀγγελοῦντες.  They have come to tell you what happened.


f.  Comparative.

Comparative clauses in English, used to express manner, are expressed in Greek by the conjunction "ὤσπερ", as if, as though, with the participle: e.g.

i) οὐκ ἐθέλετ' ἀκούειν, ὥσπερ ᾔδη εἰδότες.  You are unwilling to listen, as if you knew it all already.

ii) ἐχρώμην αὐτῳ ὥσπερ ὄντι καίπερ οὐκ ὄντι ἀδελφῷ.  Though he was not my brother I treated him as if were.


6.  Use of the Participle in the Genitive Absolute.

The Genitive Absolute phrase is used in Greek when the noun which the participle is qualifying has no grammatical relationship to the rest of the sentence in which it is placed, i.e. it is not the subject, the direct object or the indirect object of the main verb. The term "absolute" comes from the Latin word "absolutus", meaning, in this context, detached, separate, or unconnected, i.e. the Genitive Absolute stands as an independent construction with no syntactical relationship to the rest of the sentence. As in the case of the many types of adverbial clauses outlined above, the Genitive Absolute can therefore be translated in English by clauses beginning with a range of subordinating conjunctions, e.g. "when", "while", "as", "since", "because", although", "if". As in the case of its above uses as adverbial clauses, the choice of which introductory word to use must be determined from the sense of the sentence as a whole, but sometimes the presence of a word such as  "καίπερ" makes it clear. Examples are as follows:

a) θάλποντος τοῦ ἡλίου, ὑπο ελάᾳ ἐκάθηντο.  As the sun was hot, they were sitting under an olive- tree.

b) ἡμέρας γενομένης, ὁ πατὴρ τὸν παῖδα ἔπεμψε ζητήσοντα τὰ πρόβατα. When day came (or At daybreak), the father sent his son to look for the sheep.

c)  οἱ Ἀθηναῖοι ἔπλευσαν ἡγεμονεύοντος τοῦ Νικίου.  The Athenians sailed under the leadership of Nicias.

d) ληθέντων τῶν τειχῶν οἱ πολῖται ἐξέφευγον.  When the walls were taken, the citizens tried to escape.

e) ἀποθανόντος τοῦ Κύρου, οἰ στρατιῶται ἔφυγον.  When Cyrus was killed, the soldiers fled.

f) ὁ στρατηγὸς οὐκ ἤθελεν ἐπιτίθεσθαι τοῦ στρατεύματος οὐδένα σῖτον ἔχοντος.  The general did not wish to attack (the enemy) as his army had no food.

g) καίπερ θόρυβον ποιούντων τῶν προβάτων, ὁ αὐτουργὸς οὐκ ἔσπευδεν.  Although the sheep were making a noise, the farmer did not hurry.

h) νυκτὸς γενομένης, ἔδοξεν ἡμῖν ἐν τῷ ἄστει μένειν.  When night came (or At nightfall), we decided to stay in the city.

i) ἑσπέρας γιγνομένησς, οἱ ξένοι εἰς τὸ ἄστυ ἀφίκοντο.  As evening was coming, the strangers arrived in the city.

j) τοῦ ἀνεμοῦ μείζονος γενομενοῦ, ἡ ναῦς, ὀλίγη οὖσα, ἐν κινδυνῳ ἦν.  As the wind was growing stronger, the ship, being small, was in danger.

As indicated by a number of the above examples, it was common in Greek to commence sentences and paragraphs by a genitive absolute relating to the time of day or year, and to the state of the sun, the wind or the sea. Phrases such as "τοῦ ἡλίου ἀνατέλλοντος" (at the rising of the sun or at dawn) and "τοῦ ἡλίου καταδύντος" (the sun having set or at sunset) are common. 


7.  Use of the Participle in the Accusative Absolute.

Impersonal verbs use a participle in the Accusative, expressed in the Neuter Singular, in place of the Genitive. Impersonal verbs most commonly used in this way are: "δοκεῖ", it seems best, "ἔξεστι(ν)", it is possible, it is allowed/ permitted, and "δεῖ", it is necessary, it is a duty: e.g.

a) δόξαν τὸν παῖδα ἐς τὴν ἄγραν πέμψαι, ὁ Κροῖσος μάλιστα ἐφοβεῖτο.  When he had decided (lit. It having seemed best) to send his son to the hunt, Croesus was very afraid. ("δόξαν" is the aorist participle of δοκέω".)

b) ἐξὸν ἐς την ἀγραν ἰέναι. ὁ Ἄτυς εὐθὺς ὁρμᾶται. Permission having been given (lit. It being permitted) to go to the hunt, Atys sets out at once.

c) δέον τὸ θηρίον αἱρειν, ἐς τὸ ὄρος ἔσπευδον.  Since it was necessary (lit. It being necessary) to catch the beast, they hurried to the mountain.

Other Accusative Absolutes used in this way are:

ἀδυνατον ὄν   It being impossible (from "ἀδυνατον ἐστίν", it is impossible)
παρόν             It being possible/ allowed (from "πάρειμι", I am present)
προσηκόν       It being fitting (from "προσήκω", I have arrived, I am near)
παρασχόν       An opportunity offering (aorist participle from "παρέχω", I provide, allow, grant)
εἰρημένον       It having been stated/ laid down (perfect participle of "λέγω", I speak).


8.  Some idiomatic uses of the Participle.

a.  Supplementary participles which extend or limit the meaning of a verb.

Participles are used, like the Prolative infinitive, to carry on the meaning of certain verbs. (The word "prolative" comes from the Latin word "prolatus", the past participle of "proferre", to carry forward or complete [the meaning of the predicate].) Greek verbs that are followed by participles used in this prolative manner are as follows:

τυγχάνω     I happen
παύω          I bring to an end, I stop
παύομαι      I cease, I leave off
λήγω           I cease
ἄρχω           I begin
ἄρχομαι       I begin
διατελέω      I continue, I keep on
αἰσχύνομαι  I am ashamed at
φαίνομαι      I am plainly, I am shown to be , I am proved to be
δῆλος εἰμί    I am clearly
ἀνέχομαι      I endure
περιοράω     I overlook, disregard
χαίρω           I rejoice
ἥδομαι          I am pleased
φθάνω          I anticipate
λανθάνω       I elude the notice of, I remain hidden

Below are some examples of participles being used after these verbs:

i) οὐκ ἀνεχομαι ζῶσα.   I shall not endure to live.

ii) ἔτυχον ὁπλιται ἐν τῇ ἀγορᾷ καθεύδοντες.  Some hoplites happened to be sleeping in the market.

iii) διατελεῖ ὀργιζόμενος.  He continues to be angry.

iv) ἔτυχεν ἐλθών.  He happened to have come.

v) ἔτυχον ἐπὶ τοὺς Πέρσας στρατευόμενοι.  They were just then campaigning against the Persians.

vi) ἐπαύσαντο μαχόμενοι κελεύσαντος τοῦ στρατηγοῦ. They ceased fighting at the general's command.

vii) ἐφάνη σφόδρα αἰσχυνόμενος.  He was plainly very much ashamed.

viii) ἐχαίρομεν πάντες ἀκούσαντές σε ἀσφαλῶς αφικόμενον.  We all rejoiced to hear that you had arrived safely.

ix) τί διατελεῖς ταὐτά με ἐρωτῶν;  Why do you keep on asking me the same questions?

x) οἱ τυχόντες αὐτοῦ ἀκούσαντες σφόδρα ἐθαύμαζον.  Those who chanced to hear him were greatly surprised.

xi) ἐπαύσαντο πολεμοῦντες ἅτε ἀμφοτέρων τῶν στρατηγῶν ἀποθανόντων. They ceased making war because both the generals had been killed.

xii) δῆλοι εἰσιν οἱ πρέσβεις ψευδῆ λέγοντες.  The ambassadors were clearly telling lies.

In the case of some the supplementary participles introduced by the verbs in the above list, the participle sometimes contains the main idea of the predicate, e.g. the participles following "τυγχάνω". In the case of the last two verbs in the above list, "φθάνω, and "λανθάνω", it is usual for the construction of the sentence to be inverted, when translated into English: e.g.

xi)  ἐφθάσααμεν ἐλθόντες εἰς τὴν πόλιν.ἔφθασεν ἡμᾶς ἀφικόμενος. He arrived before us (lit. He anticipated us arriving).

xii) ἐφθάσαμεν ἐλθόντες εἰς τὴν πόλιν.  We reached the city first (lit. We were the first coming to the city).

xiii) ἔλαθεν αυτοὺς φυγών.  He escaped without them seeing him (He eluded their notice escaping).

xiv) αἱ νῆες ἔλαθον τοὺς πολεμίους εἰς τὸν λιμένα εἰσελθοῦσαι.  The ships came into the harbour without being seen by the enemy (lit. The ships escaped the notice of the enemy coming into the harbour).

In a similar manner, the translator may choose to invert a sentence in the case of other verbs (Cf. 8.b. ii. below).

b.  Verbs with different meaning when followed by the infinitive or the participle.

Two verbs, "αἰσχύνομαι" and "φαίνομαι", actually mean different things when followed a) by an infinitive, and b) by a participle.

"αἰσχύνομαι" plus the infinitive means "I am ashamed to do something (and therefore I don't do it), whereas "αἰσχύνομαι" plus the participle means "I am ashamed at doing a thing (which one does do); e.g.

i) αἰσχύνομαι λέγειν.  I am ashamed to say (and therefore I don't).

ii) αἰσχύνομαι λέγων. I say with shame that ...  (and I do).

"φαίνομαι" plus the infinitive means "I appear", whereas "φαίνομαι" plus the participle means "I am plainly, I am shown to be, I am proved to be".

iii) φαίνεται σοφὸς εἶναι. He appears to be wise.

iv) φαίνεται σοφὸς ὤν. He is manifestly (or He is shown to be) wise.

"φαίνομαι" is very often used in an impersonal construction. When "φαίνεται" is followed by the infinitive it is equivalent to "δοκεῖ" or "videtur" in Latin, i.e. "it seems"; when followed by the infinitive it is equivalent to "δῆλον ἐστιν" or "apparet" in Latin, it is manifest, evident, clear, plain, or certain. Thus, in its use with the infinitive "φαίνεται" denotes subjective belief,  whereas in its use with the participle it designates objective certainty. In Platonic dialogues, "φαίνεται" is used to signify "Yes", although it is unclear which of these two states is implied. Perhaps either, according to the context.

c.  Use of the present participle to mean "with".

"ἔχων", the Present Participle Active of "ἔχω", I have, I possess, is frequently used as equivalent to the English preposition, "with" and to the Latin "cum" plus the Ablative. The same participles of "ἄγω", I lead, I bring, and "φέρω", I carry, I bring, are used similarly; e.g.

i) ἀφίκετο ἐχων τριακοσίους ὁπλίτας.  He arrived with three hundred hoplites.

ii) ὤφθη πολλάκις ξίφος ἔχων.  He was often seen with a sword.

iii) ὁ στρατηγὸς προὐχώρει ἄνδρας μυρίους καὶ δισχιλίους ἄγων.  The general advanced with (an army of) eleven thousand men.

iv) οἱ δοῦλοι ἀφίκοντο πολλὰ καὶ καλὰ δῶρα παρὰ τοῦ βασιλέως φέροντες.  The slaves came with many splendid presents from the king.

d.  Use of the participle as as an adverb.

As is the case of adjectives in general, the participle, which is a verbal adjective, is often used as a simple adverb. Examples are as follows:

i) φθάσας ἀφίκετο.  He arrived first.

ii) ἀνύσας ἄνοιγε.  Open quickly.

iii) ἀρχόμενος ἔλεγεν.  He used to say when he began.

iv) λαθὼν ἐποίησε.  He did it secretly.

v) τελευτῶν εἶπε. At last he said.


Conclusion.

This article has sought to demonstrate the central role which the participle plays in classical Greek. The inflexive prolixity of the participle was undoubtedly one reason why it was used so frequently, and the ability of writers to employ it with such precision was linked to this. Once one has become accustomed to the widespread use of the participle in Greek, one begins to appreciate how similar the structure of Greek sentences is to that of our own language, where the use of participial phrases as an alternative to subordinate clauses is so common. In Latin, because of the relative paucity of participial forms, subordinate clauses are perforce more frequent, and where participial phrases are used, many of them involve the Ablative Absolute construction, which is employed much more in Latin than its equivalent, the Genitive Absolute, is in Greek. For an analysis of the "Ablative Absolute", the reader is invited to look at the article so entitled which was published on this blog on 20th May 2012.