[B-Greek] Mat 8:23 Dative Absolute? (Joseph Justiss)

Elizabeth Kline kline_dekooning at earthlink.net
Thu Mar 25 15:04:22 EDT 2010


I think this is another case where meta language gets in the way of understanding what is going on.  What sort of tests do we run on a text sample to determine if it qualifies to be "absolute"? The standard criteria: the participle clause is construed with a noun or pronoun in the same case, is prior to the main clause and is syntactically independent of the main clause. But some of the participle constructions which might be considered absolutes can also be understood as having what G. Cooper[1] calls a "loose" connection to the following clause. The idea that there is some threshold of syntactic independence which is reached where a participle construction becomes absolute seems to me misguided. Dative constituents can have a whole range of subtle relationships to constituents within the main clause. Cooper concedes that in some cases it might be convenient to translate the dative participle constituent as a separate clause, but "translation strategies"[2] should not be confused with what the Greek language is doing. 

Cooper cites several examples from Thucydides which might be appear to be dative absolutes because the connection with the main clause is "loose". Here are two of them which fit several of the standard criteria: 

APOSTASI D' AUTOIS ...


Thucydides Hist., Historiae
Book 4, chapter 120, section 2, line 1

 Περὶ δὲ τὰς ἡμέρας ταύτας αἷς ἐπήρχοντο Σκιώνη ἐν
τῇ Παλλήνῃ πόλις ἀπέστη ἀπ' Ἀθηναίων πρὸς Βρασίδαν.
φασὶ δὲ οἱ Σκιωναῖοι Πελληνῆς μὲν εἶναι ἐκ Πελοποννήσου,
πλέοντας δ' ἀπὸ Τροίας σφῶν τοὺς πρώτους κατενεχθῆναι
ἐς τὸ χωρίον τοῦτο τῷ χειμῶνι ᾧ ἐχρήσαντο Ἀχαιοί, καὶ
αὐτοῦ οἰκῆσαι. ἀποστᾶσι δ' αὐτοῖς ὁ Βρασίδας διέπλευσε
νυκτὸς ἐς τὴν Σκιώνην, τριήρει μὲν φιλίᾳ προπλεούσῃ, αὐτὸς
δὲ ἐν κελητίῳ ἄπωθεν ἐφεπόμενος, ὅπως, εἰ μέν τινι τοῦ
κέλητος μείζονι πλοίῳ περιτυγχάνοι, ἡ τριήρης ἀμύνοι αὐτῷ,
ἀντιπάλου δὲ ἄλλης τριήρους ἐπιγενομένης οὐ πρὸς τὸ 

Thucydides Hist., Historiae
Book 4, chapter 120, section 2, line 1

 PERI DE TAS hHMERAS TAUTAS hAIS EPHRCONTO SKIWNH EN
THi PALLHNHi POLIS APESTH AP' AQHNAIWN PROS BRASIDAN.
FASI DE hOI SKIWNAIOI PELLHNHS MEN EINAI EK PELOPONNHSOU,
PLEONTAS D' APO TROIAS SFWN TOUS PRWTOUS KATENECQHNAI
ES TO CWRION TOUTO TWi CEIMWNI hWi ECRHSANTO ACAIOI, KAI
AUTOU OIKHSAI. APOSTASI D' AUTOIS hO BRASIDAS DIEPLEUSE
NUKTOS ES THN SKIWNHN, TRIHREI MEN FILIAi PROPLEOUSHi, AUTOS
DE EN KELHTIWi APWQEN EFEPOMENOS, hOPWS, EI MEN TINI TOU
KELHTOS MEIZONI PLOIWi PERITUGCANOI, hH TRIHRHS AMUNOI AUTWi,
ANTIPALOU DE ALLHS TRIHROUS EPIGENOMENHS OU PROS TO 


Thucydides Hist., Historiae (0003: 001)
“Thucydidis historiae, 2 vols.”, Ed. Jones, H.S., Powell, J.E.
Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1:1942 (1st edn. rev.); 2:1942 (2nd edn. rev.), Repr. 1:1970; 2:1967.
Book 8, chapter 24, section 6, line 1

ᾐσθάνοντο οὐδ' αὐτοὺς ἀντιλέγοντας ἔτι μετὰ τὴν Σικελικὴν
ξυμφορὰν ὡς οὐ πάνυ πόνηρα σφῶν [βεβαίως] τὰ πράγματα
εἴη· εἰ δέ τι ἐν τοῖς ἀνθρωπείοις τοῦ βίου παραλόγοις
ἐσφάλησαν, μετὰ πολλῶν οἷς ταὐτὰ ἔδοξε, τὰ τῶν Ἀθη-
ναίων ταχὺ ξυναναιρεθήσεσθαι, τὴν ἁμαρτίαν ξυνέγνωσαν.
εἰργομένοις οὖν αὐτοῖς τῆς θαλάσσης καὶ κατὰ γῆν πορθου-
μένοις ἐνεχείρησάν τινες πρὸς Ἀθηναίους ἀγαγεῖν τὴν
πόλιν· οὓς αἰσθόμενοι οἱ ἄρχοντες αὐτοὶ μὲν ἡσύχασαν,
Ἀστύοχον δὲ ἐξ Ἐρυθρῶν τὸν ναύαρχον μετὰ τεσσάρων
νεῶν, αἳ παρῆσαν αὐτῷ, κομίσαντες ἐσκόπουν ὅπως μετριώ-
τατα ἢ ὁμήρων λήψει ἢ ἄλλῳ τῳ τρόπῳ καταπαύσουσι τὴν 
**********

EIRGOMENOIS OUN AUTOIS ....

Thucydides Hist., Historiae (0003: 001)
“Thucydidis historiae, 2 vols.”, Ed. Jones, H.S., Powell, J.E.
Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1:1942 (1st edn. rev.); 2:1942 (2nd edn. rev.), Repr. 1:1970; 2:1967.
Book 8, chapter 24, section 6, line 1

HiSQANONTO OUD' AUTOUS ANTILEGONTAS ETI META THN SIKELIKHN
XUMFORAN hWS OU PANU PONHRA SFWN [BEBAIWS] TA PRAGMATA
EIH· EI DE TI EN TOIS ANQRWPEIOIS TOU BIOU PARALOGOIS
ESFALHSAN, META POLLWN hOIS TAU)TA EDOXE, TA TWN AQH-
NAIWN TACU XUNANAIREQHSESQAI, THN hAMARTIAN XUNEGNWSAN.
EIRGOMENOIS OUN AUTOIS THS QALASSHS KAI KATA GHN PORQOU-
MENOIS ENECEIRHSAN TINES PROS AQHNAIOUS AGAGEIN THN
POLIN· hOUS AISQOMENOI hOI ARCONTES AUTOI MEN hHSUCASAN,
ASTUOCON DE EX ERUQRWN TON NAUARCON META TESSARWN
NEWN, hAI PARHSAN AUTWi, KOMISANTES ESKOPOUN hOPWS METRIW-
TATA H hOMHRWN LHYEI H ALLWi TWi TROPWi KATAPAUSOUSI THN 

Another text Cooper cites where the participle is seperated from the noun is:


TOIS DE AQHNAIOIS ...  DHiOUSI 

Thucydides Hist., Historiae (0003: 001)
“Thucydidis historiae, 2 vols.”, Ed. Jones, H.S., Powell, J.E.
Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1:1942 (1st edn. rev.); 2:1942 (2nd edn. rev.), Repr. 1:1970; 2:1967.
Book 4, chapter 56, section 1, line 2

ἔκπληξιν μεγίστην παρεῖχε, καὶ ἐδέδισαν μή ποτε αὖθις
ξυμφορά τις αὐτοῖς περιτύχῃ οἵα καὶ ἐν τῇ νήσῳ. ἀτολμό-
τεροι δὲ δι' αὐτὸ ἐς τὰς μάχας ἦσαν, καὶ πᾶν ὅτι κινήσειαν  
ᾤοντο ἁμαρτήσεσθαι διὰ τὸ τὴν γνώμην ἀνεχέγγυον γεγε-
νῆσθαι ἐκ τῆς πρὶν ἀηθείας τοῦ κακοπραγεῖν. τοῖς δὲ
Ἀθηναίοις τότε τὴν παραθαλάσσιον δῃοῦσι τὰ μὲν πολλὰ
ἡσύχασαν, ὡς καθ' ἑκάστην φρουρὰν γίγνοιτό τις ἀπόβασις,
πλήθει τε ἐλάσσους ἕκαστοι ἡγούμενοι εἶναι καὶ ἐν τῷ
τοιούτῳ· μία δὲ φρουρά, ἥπερ καὶ ἠμύνατο περὶ Κοτύρταν
καὶ Ἀφροδιτίαν, τὸν μὲν ὄχλον τῶν ψιλῶν ἐσκεδασμένον
ἐφόβησεν ἐπιδρομῇ, τῶν δὲ ὁπλιτῶν δεξαμένων ὑπεχώρησε

 Thucydides Hist., Historiae (0003: 001)
“Thucydidis historiae, 2 vols.”, Ed. Jones, H.S., Powell, J.E.
Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1:1942 (1st edn. rev.); 2:1942 (2nd edn. rev.), Repr. 1:1970; 2:1967.
Book 4, chapter 56, section 1, line 2

EKPLHXIN MEGISTHN PAREICE, KAI EDEDISAN MH POTE AUQIS
XUMFORA TIS AUTOIS PERITUCHi hOIA KAI EN THi NHSWi. ATOLMO-
TEROI DE DI' AUTO ES TAS MACAS HSAN, KAI PAN hOTI KINHSEIAN  
WiONTO hAMARTHSESQAI DIA TO THN GNWMHN ANECEGGUON GEGE-
NHSQAI EK THS PRIN AHQEIAS TOU KAKOPRAGEIN. TOIS DE
AQHNAIOIS TOTE THN PARAQALASSION DHiOUSI TA MEN POLLA
hHSUCASAN, hWS KAQ' hEKASTHN FROURAN GIGNOITO TIS APOBASIS,
PLHQEI TE ELASSOUS hEKASTOI hHGOUMENOI EINAI KAI EN TWi
TOIOUTWi· MIA DE FROURA, hHPER KAI HMUNATO PERI KOTURTAN
KAI AFRODITIAN, TON MEN OCLON TWN YILWN ESKEDASMENON


Elizabeth Kline
 

[1] Attic Greek Prose Syntax, v1. p280 #48.5.1 

[2] borrowing Carl Conrad's terminology


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