14.11.2014 Views

A grammar of the Homeric dialect - Wilbourhall.org

A grammar of the Homeric dialect - Wilbourhall.org

A grammar of the Homeric dialect - Wilbourhall.org

SHOW MORE
SHOW LESS

Create successful ePaper yourself

Turn your PDF publications into a flip-book with our unique Google optimized e-Paper software.

234-] INFINITIVE AS SUBJECT, &C. 199<br />

It is very common with a negative : OVK eo-ri, ov mo? 2oz>,<br />

and <strong>the</strong> like.<br />

With an abstract Noun as<br />

(5)<br />

:<br />

II. 14. 80 ov yap TLS re/xea-ij (hvyetiv K.OLK.OV <strong>the</strong>re is no wrong<br />

in escaping<br />

ill.<br />

Od. 5. 345 6'0i rot /xotp' eoriz; dAveu where it is thy fate to fyc.<br />

II. 330 dAAa KCU u>prj evbtiv <strong>the</strong>re is a time for fyo.<br />

So with o2 fiacri-<br />

\VfjiV to be a king is not a lad thing. This construction however<br />

is not consistent with <strong>the</strong> original character <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> Infinitive.<br />

It is '<br />

plain that lortz; evbciv can never have meant sleeping is/<br />

but ' <strong>the</strong>re is (room &c.) for sleeping ' : and so apyaXtov ecrrt<br />

dtcrOai is<br />

originally, and in Homer, it (<strong>the</strong> case, state <strong>of</strong> tilings, fyc.)<br />

is hard m view <strong>of</strong> making. It is only in later Greek that we have<br />

<strong>the</strong> form apyaXtov<br />

crrl TO dtvQai, in which Ota-Oai is an indeclinable<br />

Neuter Noun.<br />

The process by which <strong>the</strong> Infinitive, from being a mere word

Hooray! Your file is uploaded and ready to be published.

Saved successfully!

Ooh no, something went wrong!