Middle Voice Categories

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cwconrad
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Middle Voice Categories

Post by cwconrad »

In a discussion initiated in the Beginner's Forum - What does this text mean? - Romans 1:2a which he promised, questions have been raised about categories of middle verbs. If that matter is to be discussed further in the Biblical Greek Forum, the appropriate place is here under "Syntax and Grammar." Stephen Carlson listed several verbs in one of the subcategories of middle verbs, namely "speech action" verbs, whereupon the question arose about the whole list of such subcategories. Here's my response to that private message:

Suzanne Kemmer's and Neva Miller's lists are posted on my web page (http://www.artsci.wustl.edu/~cwconrad/GrkVc.html). The reference to Rutger Allan's book, The Middle Voice in Ancient Greek: A Study in Polysemy is referenced in my AGNT Newsletter presentation, a PDF of which is accessible from that web page. Allan's list:

(1) Spontaneous process middles, some with causative active forms (e.g., αὐξάνομαι, ἀπόλλυμαι, γίγνομαι);
(2) Mental process middles, some with causative active forms (e.g., φοβέομαι, βούλομαι, οἴομαι);
(3) Body motion middles, some with causative active forms (e.g., στρέφομαι, κλίνομαι, ὁρμάομαι, πορεύομαι);
(4) Collective motion middles, some with causative active forms (e.g., ἀγείρομαι, συλλέγομαι, μίσγομαι);
(5) Reciprocal middles (e.g., ἀγωνίζομαι, ἐρίζομαι, μάχομαι);
(6) Direct reflexive middles (e.g., ἕννυμαι, κείρομαι, νίζομαι);
(7) Perception middles, both volitional (e.g., γεύομαι, θεάομαι) and nonvolitional (e.g.,
αἰσθάνομαι, ὀσφραίνομαι);
(8) Mental activity middles (e.g., βουλεύομαι, λογίζομαι);
(9) Speech-act middles (e.g., ἀπολογέομαι, ψεύδομαι, ἀρνέομαι, εὔχομαι, πυνθάνομαι);
(10) Indirect reflexive middles (e.g., δέχομαι, κτάομαι, ὠνέομαι)

Allan's book as published by Brill is frightfully priced, but the dissertation form of it is accessible online at: http://dare.uva.nl/en/record/108528
οὔτοι ἀπ’ ἀρχῆς πάντα θεοὶ θνητοῖς ὑπέδειξαν,
ἀλλὰ χρόνῳ ζητέοντες ἐφευρίσκουσιν ἄμεινον. (Xenophanes, Fragment 16)

Carl W. Conrad
Department of Classics, Washington University (Retired)
Stephen Carlson
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Re: Middle Voice Categories

Post by Stephen Carlson »

I went through Louw-Nida to get a list of speech act middles. I wonder if one could do something similar with the other categories?

Stephen
Stephen C. Carlson, Ph.D.
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MAubrey
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Re: Middle Voice Categories

Post by MAubrey »

Stephen Carlson wrote:I went through Louw-Nida to get a list of speech act middles. I wonder if one could do something similar with the other categories?

Stephen
Speech act middles are probably the easiest to do this with. Mental activities (volitional) and mental processes (non-volitional) are really mixed up in domains 25-32.
Mike Aubrey, Linguist
SIL International
Koine-Greek.com
timothy_p_mcmahon
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Re: Middle Voice Categories

Post by timothy_p_mcmahon »

cwconrad wrote:Allan's book as published by Brill is frightfully priced
Every book published by Brill is frightfully priced!
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