[B-Greek] ACTS 18:18 TOIS ADELFOIS

Barry nebarry at verizon.net
Sun Dec 24 09:35:21 EST 2006


----- Original Message ----- 
From: "George F Somsel" <gfsomsel at yahoo.com>
To: "Iver Larsen" <iver_larsen at sil.org>; "greek" <b-greek at lists.ibiblio.org>
Sent: Sunday, December 24, 2006 8:39 AM
Subject: Re: [B-Greek] ACTS 18:18 TOIS ADELFOIS


>>I might note that some speak of "processing" the text, but that seems too 
>>much like factory made cheese to me.  I am reminded of an old Smith-Barney 
>>ad where John Houseman says, "They make money the old-fashioned way:  They 
>>EARN it."  I deal with texts in the old-fashioned way, I READ them.  This 
>>is usually from left to right unless it happens to be Hebrew or one of the 
>>other Semitic languages that goes from right to left.  If some would 
>>rather make cheese, I suppose that's their privilege.<<

Thank you for the note of sanity.  Left order prominence?  Well that depends 
on the style of the particular writer.  Fronting?  Greek has a variety of 
means of indicating emphasis, none if it requiring the readers to have 
knowledge of invisible, or perhaps imaginary, rules.  If the Lord should 
tarry for a few millenia, I wonder if future speakers of Ingluski will make 
similar claims concerning classical English of the American Empire?  If 
"students" of Greek would reflect on the absurdity of doing with their own 
language what they often do with Greek, I think they might take a different 
approach...  Hey, but here's a way to test the "left order prominence 
thing."  When we read ancients interpreting other Greek literature, does 
such a "rule" seem to influence, in any way, their interpretation?  Do they 
mention it, or interpret in such a way as to indicate that this would be a 
factor?

 >>When we speak of genitives, we may talk of a subjective genitive or an 
objective genitive or we may simply realize that it is a genitive which 
would have been sufficient for the native speakers who would have deduced 
the proper understanding(s) of its usage.  I'm wondering if TOIS ADELFOIS 
might be similar in that being plunked down in between two verbs it might 
equally well be construed with either one or both.  Then Paul would be 
understood as remaining "with the brethren" for a some time as well as 
waving bye-bye "to the brethren."<<

When an adverbial phrase is placed ambiguously, it is possible that the 
writer is doing intentional ambiguity, or that the point the modern reader 
with all his theories his trying to nail down really wasn't important either 
to the author or his original audience...

N.E. Barry Hofstetter
Faculty Member, CUTS
http://www.cuts.edu
Classics Instructor, The American Academy
http://theamericanacademy.net
And me:
http://mysite.verizon.net





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