[B-Greek] Imperfect and Aorist Aspects

Carl W. Conrad cwconrad at artsci.wustl.edu
Fri Sep 8 21:07:42 EDT 2006


On Sep 8, 2006, at 11:27 AM, Eddie Mishoe wrote:

> "Carl W. Conrad"  wrote:
>
>> Perhaps related to Randall's remarks is the concern
>> that immediately
>> came to my mind
>> about "remoteness" -- wouldn't it make more sense to
>> distinguish the
>> moods (indicative,
>> subjunctive, optative, imperative) in terms of
>> "remoteness"?
>>
>> But in that regard, I've always found it curious
>> that the result
>> clause of a counter-factual
>> condition is generally formulated in ancient Greek
>> with an
>> indicative, e.g. HLQON AN
>> ("I would have come") or HRCOMHN AN ("I would be
>> coming"). Yea,
>> verily: forms
>> with the augment are thus used. Can anyone offer a
>> satisfactory
>> explanation for that?
>
> Well, I might contend that if the Deictic Center was
> understood as an ever-shifting reference point then
> such could answer your question. Statements are made
> in relation to some Deictic Point. HLQON AN would
> portray this event as an actual event obtaining
> (Indicative) PRIOR TO a contextually developed Deictic
> Center. Use English. "I would have come" to the party,
> but I missed the bus. Had he not missed the bus PRIOR
> TO the party beginning, he would have been there (he
> would have ACTUALLY been there had he caught the bus).

Well, as Randall has anticipated, I don't find this quite satisfactory;
granted we can relate the time of these contingent happenings to
a Deictic Center, but they are still contingencies, NOT events
that ever did happen. I don't think indication of the relative time
resolves the question why a contingency should be expressed
in the indicative mood.


Carl W. Conrad
Department of Classics, Washington University (Retired)
1989 Grindstaff Road/Burnsville, NC 28714/(828) 675-4243
cwconrad2 at mac.com
WWW: http://www.ioa.com/~cwconrad/





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