(snip)
I would like to past on something I received in second year Greek
back in college. I don't know where my prof. found this. Anyone
know, please let me know.
Theory of Deponent Verbs:
1. To show reciprocity - situation where two parties are involved
and no action possible with both. e.g. share, lie, lend, fight,
accompany (middle depondent).
2. To show reflexivity - the verbal concept inheres in the subject
and is reflected back. eg. graze = to feed oneself; step = to move
oneself; wink = to move a part of one's body; remember = to remind
oneself.
3. To show self-involvement - the self is intimately involved in the
process going on with the subject: (A) eg. words of emotion,
volition, intellect = vascillate, guess, think over, meditate. (B) eg
self-interest = use, invent, plot.
4. To show receptivity - subject is the center of emphasis and
receives the sensory preception. eg. touch, smell, get, receive,
welcome, taste.
5. To show passivity - action involving involuntary experiences
where the subject connot avoid the experiences depicted in the verb.
eg. passions, love, vomit (EREUGOMAI used metaphorically "to declare
openly"), suffer, die, born.
6. To show a state or condition - subject is center of gravity. eg.
lie down, sit down, to be raving mad.
These six uses have covered every instance of the depondents I've
come across. Does this seem a reasonable theory of deponent verbs??
************************************
Fred Haltom
Associate Prof of Christian Ministries
Central Bible College
haltom@cbcag.edu