030 Unit 25.pdf

Unit 25
25.1 Grammar
25.1/1 Elision
When a vowel (or diphthong) at the end of a word is followed by a word
beginning with a vowel (or diphthong), the former is elided, i.e. is not
pronounced and does not count metrically. When scanning we enclose elided
vowels in brackets:
AI-bi-jDi-que pi-Itres it-jqu(e) il-taeImoe-oi-i IRo-mae
im-pii-Ie.-jrit tio- jtaeo(e) i-oi-!mis cae-Iles-ti-biisli-rae
As b does not count metrically, elision also occurs when a word beginning
with b is preceded by a word ending in a vowel:
to mi-hiIquod-ciim-Iqu(e) hOc reg-/oi toIscep-tri 10-1 vem-que
Further, we even have elision with words ending in a vowel and m. This
reflects the weak pronunciation of final m in Latin:
Ii-to-riImiil-t(um) il-II(e) et ter-I ris iiC-1 ti-tiis etIiI-to
Absence ofelision, which is called hiatus, occurs, but is rare. The purpose of
elision is to facilitate pronunciation by eliminating the slight pause necessary
when two vowels come together (compare ill(e) et with ille et). It does not,
however, take place inside words.
25.1/2 Caesura in the hexameter
A hexameter in which the end of each foot coincides with the end of a word,
such as
spar-sisIbas-tisllon-giSIcam-pus\SpleD-det etjbor-ret
was regarded by Classical Latin poets as ugly and lacking in rhythm (this
example is from the early poet Ennius). To avoid this they wrote their
hexameters in such a way that there was a break between words after the first
syllable of the third foot or after the first syllables of the second and fourth
feet. This break is called the caesura (cutting) and is marked by two vertical

Unit Twenty-five 187
(b) locus, -i place and iocus, -ijoke can have the plural neuter forms loca
(example at 6.2, 13), ioca, as well as loci, ioci, etc.
(c) A few nouns are declined in two ways; plebs, plebis (f) or plebes, plebei
(f) the common people; miteria, -ae (f) or miterles, -e i (f) malerial,
matter (some other nouns vacillate between the first and fifth declensions).
Several have a slight difference of meaning between forms, as
pecus, -oris (n) !ivestock,farm animals and pecus, -udis (f) an individual
domestic animal.
(d) Many nouns are not used in every possible form. Sometimes the same is
true ofthe corresponding English word: aurum, -i (n) gold is not used in
the plural, arma, -orum (n) arms does not occur in the singular (for
other plural only words see 8.1/4).
A few do not have a nominative singular and are listed under either a
hypothetical nominative singular or their genitive singular. The two
most common are opem (gen. opis, no dative, abl. ope) aid (the plural,
which exists in all cases, means resources), and vicem (gen.· vicis, no
dative, abl. vice) interchange (the plural exists in all cases, gen. vicium).
In the vocabularly the former is listed under ops, the latter under vicis.
Fis right and nefis wrong (both neuter) only occur in the nominative
and accusative singular.
The following only exist in the ablative singular: nitii (m) by birth
(maior/minor nitii elder/younger); iussii (m) by command; iniussii (m)
without the order (of); sponte (f) of(my, your etc.) own accord. The last
three are normally accompanied by a possessive adjective or a genitive
(examples in 19.3 1.19, 21.1/2, 23.2, 2).
Nemo no one is usually combined with nuUus (IO.I/le) to give Demo,
neminem, nullius; nemini, nullo.
(e) As Roman literature was written in the Greek tradition, we encounter
many Greek words in Latin authors, but these are almost always
common nouns or proper names. Some of the former and many of the
latter keep features of their original Greek declension (there are only
three declensions in Classical Greek).
In the first declension nearly all nouns that preserve anything of their
Greekness are proper names. These include male names, which always
have -s in the nominative singular. There are three types:
Nom. Aeneis (m) Ancbises (m) Circe (f)
Voc. Aenei Ancbisi Circe
Acc. Aenein Ancbisen Circen
Gen. Aeneae ADcbisae Circes
Dat. Aeaeae ADcbisae Circae
Abl. Aeaei Ancbisi Circe

188 Unit Twenty-five
The above declension of Aeneis and Ancbises is that used by Vergil,
but the degree of Latinization of nouns of this category varies; Circe,
for example, can be declined purely as a Latin word: Circa, Circa,
Circam, Circae, Circae, Circi.
Second declension Greek nouns (also mostly proper names) sometimes
keep their original ending in the nominative and accusative
singular: Delos, Delon (f) the island of Delos; Pelion (n) a mountain in
Greece.
The Greek tbird declension shows an even greater variety than its
Latin counterpart, but the following are the most common eccentricities
of its words which occur in Latin writers; only (iv) applies to
neuter nouns:
(i) Nouns in -es, -eus, and -is can form their vocative by dropping
their final s: Orpheu « Orpheus), Pari « Paris), Socrate
(

190 Unit Twenty-five
Of the few other occurring forms the most common are the
participles coeptus having been begun (the neuter coeptum is often
used as a noun in the sense of undertaking, scheme), and Gsus
which, like the past participle of some deponents, has a present
active sense hating (cf. 14.1/4).
(b) Nosco (-ere, Dovi, Dotum) and its compound COgDOSCO (-ere, cognovi
cogDitum; note the different supines) both mean get to know, find out in
the present tense. Their perfect tense is often used with the present sense
I know (= have found out), and likewise Doveram, cogDoveram can
mean I knew (= I hadfound out). See also CODSueSCO in the vocabulary.
(c) Only two compounds of do (2.2/1), circumdo surround and veDumdo
sell, belong to the first conjugation. The remainder are third conjugation,
e.g. prOClo, prOCIere, prOCIidi, prOCIitum betray; edo, edere, edidi,
editum bring forth, produce.
(d) Edo eat has some forms which have the same spelling as those from
either edo bringforth or sum be, but in every case the length of the initial
e is different. Of its forms the following should be noted (for the sake of
clarity the hidden quantities in est, estis and esse are marked):
Present indicative active: edo, es, est, edimus, estis, edunt
Present infinitive action: esse
(e) Four common verbs (and a few others) are semi-deponents; in their
primary tenses they have active forms and active meanings, but their
historic tenses (16.1/2) are passive in form although active in meaning:
audeO, -ere, ausus sum dare (an alternative present (originally
perfect) subjunctive follows sum: ausim, ausis, ausit, ausimus,
ausitis, ausint)
fido, -ere, fisus sum (+dat.) trust
gaudeo, -ere, givisus sum rejoice
solei, -ere, solitus sum be accustomed.
if) Fio (15.1/3) is active in form but passive in the meaning be made. The
following are also active in form but only passive in meaning:
vipulo, -ire be beaten
veDeo, veDire, veDii, veDitum be sold
veDeo is a compound ofeo (15.1/6) and follows its conjugation: veDeO,
veDis, veDit, etc. (cf. qaeo and Deqaeo above).
(g) An archaic form of the present passive infinitive (14.1/3) in which -ier
replaces -i is often used by poets: amirier (= amiri), mODerier (=
mODeri), regier (:::; regi), auelirier (= aueliri). There is no difference in
meaning.

25.2 Latin reading
Unit Twenty-five 191
1 Hectora quis nosset, felix si Troia fuisset?
2 Tu regere imperio populos, Romane, memento
(hae tibi erunt artes) pacisque imponere morem,
parcere subiectis et debellare superbos.
3 Odi et amo. quare id faciam, fortasse requiris.
nescio, sed fieri sentio et excrucior.
4 Inventa sunt specula ut homo ipse se nosset.
5 Vixere fortes ante Agamemnona
multi, sed omnes illacrimabiles
urgentur ignotique longa
nocte, carent quia vate sacro.
6 Romulus, anna ad caelum tollens,'Iuppiter, tuis' inquit 'iussus avibus
hic in Palatio prima urbi fundamenta ieci.'
7 Sic fatus validis ingentem viribus hastam contorsit.
8 Aenean fundantem arces ac tecta novantem conspicit.
9 Forsan et haec meminisse iuvabit.
10 Aut amat aut odit mulier: nihil est tertium.
11 Flectere si nequeo Superos, Acheronta movebo.
12 Tu, Tityre, lentus in umbra
formosam resonare doces Amaryllida silvas.
13 Mecum una in silvis imitabere Pana canendo.
14 Augur cum esset, dicere ausus est optimis auspiciis ea geri quae pro rei
publicae salute gerantur.
15 Nil ait esse prius, melius nil, caelibe vita.
16 Non ego mendosos ausim defendere mores.
17 Quis caelum posset, nisi caeli munere, nosse,
et reperire deum nisi qui pars ipse deorum?
18 Canis caninam non est.
Notes
1 nosset (= novisset) is the equivalent of an imperfect subjunctive
(25.1/5h).
2 populos the various peoples whom the Romans had incorporated into
their empire.
5 /.1 vixere

192 Unit Twenty-five
13 uni the feminine ablative singular of onus is regularly used as an adverb
meaning together.
17 munere

Unit Twenty-jive 193
used here for an action done to oneself); in summis ... aquas plural for
singular to the top ofthe water (21.1/3), Leander wants to see how close he is
to Sestos. 1.9 meus ignis myflame i.e. the person who is inspiring him with
love; in illo in it i.e. the light he sees-Leander somewhat fancifully supposes
that his flame, Hero, is creating the light which guides him to Sestos. 1.11
lassis lacertis to my weary shoulders, dative of advantage (28.1 lIe).
1.13 both verbs are vivid presents; with excipis supply me.