Uses of GAR

Steven Lo Vullo slovullo at mac.com
Mon Sep 23 19:22:57 EDT 2002


Hi all:

Since we have Dr. Wheeler's ear, I thought I would take the opportunity 
to ask a question that has been on my mind for some time now, and may 
be of general interest. I think Iver has commented on this before, so I 
would welcome his input (and that of others) as well.

As I have been reading through and diagramming the GNT, I have taken 
special note of the conjunction GAR. Accordance tags it two ways, 
conjunction coordinating explanatory (796x), and conjunction 
subordinating causal (241x). The totals pretty much confirmed the 
impression I had formed while reading along: that GAR as a coordinating 
explanatory conjunction is far and away the more common of the two 
uses. I suspect, furthermore, that the causal use is even more 
infrequent than Accordance gives it credit for. For example, it is hard 
to see how its use in Rom 7.1 (GINWSKOUSIN GAR NOMON LALW) can be 
considered subordinating causal, since this clause seems to be 
parenthetical. In addition, I have found few places where I would 
consider it truly causal. As a subordinating conjunction it seems to 
mark reason rather than cause. In many of the places where cause is 
possible, reason seems to be equally possible if not more probable.

Anyway, the problem I am having is that there are times when Accordance 
chooses one tag where I would have chosen the other. There are other 
times when I have trouble deciding WHICH is more probable. To add to my 
confusion is the UBSGNT punctuation system. I am supposing (someone 
please correct me if I am wrong) that when a comma precedes the GAR 
clause, the editors' have taken GAR as subordinating, and when a period 
or semicolon/colon precedes the GAR clause, they have taken it as 
coordinating. Here too I sometimes have trouble understanding the 
decision.

So my question is this: How did you decide when to tag as coordinating 
explanatory and when to tag as subordinating causal? Did you follow a 
set of criteria, or is this more of an "art"? Does anyone have 
suggestions on how to definitively tell the two uses apart? Thanks for 
any help.
============

Steven R. Lo Vullo
Madison, WI




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