SECTION VIII.—THE CURVES.
The Curves, or Marks of Parenthesis, are used to distinguish a clause or hint that is hastily thrown in between the parts of a sentence to which it does not properly belong; as, "Their enemies (and enemies they will always have) would have a handle for exposing their measures."—Walpole.
"To others do (the law is not severe)
What to thyself thou wishest to be done."—Beattie.
OBS.—The incidental clause should be uttered in a lower tone, and faster than the principal sentence. It always requires a pause as great as that of a comma, or greater.
RULE I.—THE PARENTHESIS.
A clause that breaks the unity of a sentence or passage too much to be incorporated with it, and only such, should be inclosed within curves, as a parenthesis; as, "For I know that in me, (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing."—Rom., vii, 18.
"Know then this truth, (enough for man to know,)
Virtue alone is happiness below."—Pope.
RULE II.—INCLUDED POINTS.
The curves do not supersede other stops; and, as the parenthesis terminates with a pause equal to that which precedes it, the same point should be included, except when the sentences differ in form: as, 1. "Now for a recompense in the same, (I speak as unto my children,) be ye also enlarged."—2 Cor., vi, 13.
2. "Man's thirst of happiness declares it is:
(For nature never gravitates to nought:)
That thirst unquench'd, declares it is not here."—Young.
3. "Night visions may befriend: (as sung above:)
Our waking dreams are fatal. How I dreamt
Of things impossible! (could sleep do more?)
Of joys perpetual in perpetual change!"—Young.
IMPROPRIETIES FOR CORRECTION.
FALSE PUNCTUATION.—ERRORS CONCERNING THE CURVES.
UNDER RULE I.—OF THE PARENTHESIS.
"Another is composed of the indefinite article an, which, etymologically means one and other, and denotes one other."—Hallock's Gram., p. 63.
[FORMULE.—Not proper, because the parenthetic expression, "which etymologically means one," is not sufficiently separated from the rest of the passage. But, according to Rule 1st for the Curves, "A clause that breaks the unity of a sentence or passage too much to be incorporated with it, and only such, should be enclosed within curves, as a parenthesis." Therefore, the curves should be here inserted; and also, by Rule 2d, a comma at the word one.]
"Each mood has its peculiar Tense, Tenses (or Times)."—Bucke's Gram., p. 58.
[FORMULE.—Not proper, because the expression, "or Times," which has not the nature of a parenthesis, is here marked with curves. But, according to Rule 1st for the Curves, "A clause that breaks the unity of a sentence or passage too much to be incorporated with it, and only such, should be enclosed within curves, as a parenthesis." Therefore, these marks should be omitted; and a comma should be set after the word "Tenses," by Rule 3d.]
"In some very ancient languages, as the Hebrew, which have been employed chiefly for expressing plain sentiments in the plainest manner, without aiming at any elaborate length or harmony of periods, this pronoun [the relative] occurs not so often."—L. Murray's Gram., 8vo, p. 127.
"Before I shall say those Things, (O conscript Fathers) about the Public
Affairs, which are to be spoken at this Time; I shall lay before you, in
few Words, the Motives of the Journey, and the Return."—Brightland's
Gram., p. 149.
"Of well-chose Words some take not care enough.
And think they should be (like the Subject) rough."
—Ib., p. 173.
"Then having shewed his wounds, he'd sit (him) down."
—Bullions, E. Gram., p. 32.
UNDER RULE II.—OF INCLUDED POINTS.
"Then Jael smote the Nail into his Temples, and fastened it to the Ground: (for he was fast asleep and weary) so he died. OLD TEST."—Ward's Gram., p. 17.
[FORMULE.—Not proper, because this parenthesis is not marked as terminating with a pause equal to that which precedes it. But, according to Rule 2d above, "The curves do not supersede other stops; and, as the parenthesis terminates with a pause equal to that which precedes it, the same point should be included, except when the sentences differ in form." Therefore, a colon should be inserted within the curve after weary.]
"Every thing in the Iliad has manners (as Aristotle expresses it) that is, every thing is acted or spoken."—Pope, Pref. to Homer, p. vi.
"Those nouns, that end in f. or fe (except some few I shall mention presently), form plurals by changing those letters into ves: as, thief, thieves; wife, wives."—Bucke's Gram., p. 35.
"As, requires as; (expressing equality) Mine is as good as yours. As,—so; (expressing equality) As the stars, so shall thy seed be. So,—as; (with a negative expressing inequality) He is not so wise as his brother. So.—that; (expressing consequence) I am so weak that I cannot walk."—Bullions, E. Gram., p. 113; Pract. Les., p. 112.
"A captious question, sir (and yours is one,)
Deserves an answer similar, or none."—Cowper, ii. 228.
MIXED EXAMPLES OF ERROR.
"Whatever words the verb TO BE serves to unite referring to the same thing, must be of the same case; §61, as, Alexander is a student."—Bullions, E. Gram., p. 75. "When the objective is a relative or interrogative, it comes before the verb that governs it. §40, R. 9. (Murray's 6th rule is unnecessary.)"—Id., ib., p. 90. "It is generally improper (except in poetry,) to omit the antecedent to a relative; and always to omit a relative when of the nominative case."—Id., ib., p. 130. "In every sentence there must be a verb and a nominative (or subject) expressed or understood."—Id., ib., p. 87; Pract. Lessons, p. 91. "Nouns and pronouns, and especially words denoting time, are often governed by prepositions understood; or are used to restrict verbs or adjectives without a governing word, §50. Rem. 6 and Rule; as, He gave (to) me a full account of the whole affair."—Bullions, E. Gram., p. 80. "When should is used instead of ought, to express present duty, §20, 4, it may be followed by the present; as, 'You should study that you may become learned.'"—Id., ib., p. 123. "The indicative present is frequently used after the words, when, till, before, as soon as, after, to express the relative time of a future action; (§24, I, 4,) as, 'When he comes, he will be welcome.'"—Id., ib., p. 124. "The relative is parsed by stating its gender, number, case, and antecedent, (the gender and number being always the same as those of the antecedent) thus, 'The boy who.' 'Who' is a relative pronoun, masculine, singular, the nominative, and refers to 'boy' as its antecedent."—Bullions, Pract. Les., p. 31.
"Now, now, I seize, I clasp thy charms,
And now you burst; ah! cruel from my arms."
Here is an unnecessary change from the second person singular to the second plural. It would have been better thus,
"Now, now I seize, I clasp your charms,
And now you burst; ah! cruel from my arms."
—J. Burn's Gram., p. 193.
SECTION IX.—THE OTHER MARKS.
There are also several other marks, which are occasionally used for various purposes, as follow:—
I. ['] The APOSTROPHE usually denotes either the possessive case of a noun, or the elision of one or more letters of a word: as, "The girl's regard to her parents' advice;"—'gan, lov'd, e'en, thro'; for began, loved, even, through. It is sometimes used in pluralizing a mere letter or sign; as, Two a's—three 6's.[467]
II. [-] The HYPHEN connects the parts of many compound words, especially such as have two accents; as, ever-living. It is also frequently inserted where a word is divided into syllables; as, con-tem-plate. Placed at the end of a line, it shows that one or more syllables of a word are can led forward to the next line.
III. ["] The DIÆRESIS, or DIALYSIS, placed over either of two contiguous vowels, shows that they are not a diphthong; as, Danäe, aërial.
IV. ['] The ACUTE ACCENT marks the syllable which requires the principal stress in pronunciation; as, e'qual, equal'ity. It is sometimes used in opposition to the grave accent, to distinguish a close or short vowel; as, "Fáncy:" (Murray:) or to denote the rising inflection of the voice; as, "Is it hé?"
V. [`] The GRAVE ACCENT is used in opposition to the acute, to distinguish an open or long vowel; as, "Fàvour:" (Murray:) or to denote the falling inflection of the voice; as, "Yès; it is hè" It is sometimes placed over a vowel to show that it is not to be suppressed in pronunciation; as,
"Let me, though in humble speech,
Thy refinèd maxims teach."—Amer. Review, May, 1848.
VI. [^] The CIRCUMFLEX generally denotes either the broad sound of a or an unusual sound given to some other vowel; as in âll, hêir, machîne. Some use it to mark a peculiar wave of the voice, and when occasion requires, reverse it; as, "If you said s=o, then I said sô."
VII. [[~]] The BREVE, or STENOTONE, is used to denote either the close, short, shut sound of a vowel, or a syllable of short quantity; as, l~ive, to have life,—r~av'en, to devour,[468]—c~al~am~us, a reed.
VIII. [=] The MACRON, or MACROTONE,[469] is used to denote either the open, long, primal sound of a vowel, or a syllable of long quantity; as, l=ive, having life,—r=a'ven, a bird,—=e'qu=ine, of a horse.
IX. [——] or [* * * *] or [….] The ELLIPSIS, or SUPPRESSION, denotes the omission of some letters or words: as, K—g, for King; c****d, for coward; d….d, for damned.
X. [^] The CARET, used only in writing, shows where to insert words or letters that have been accidentally omitted. XI [{}] The BRACE serves to unite a triplet; or, more frequently, to connect several terms with something to which they are all related. XII. [§] The SECTION marks the smaller divisions of a book or chapter; and, with the help of numbers, serves to abridge references.
XIII. [¶] The PARAGRAPH (chiefly used in the Bible) denotes the commencement of a new subject. The parts of discourse which are called paragraphs, are, in general, sufficiently distinguished by beginning a new line, and carrying the first word a little forwards or backwards. The paragraphs of books being in some instances numbered, this character may occasionally be used, in lieu of the word paragraph, to shorten references.
XIV. [""] The GUILLEMETS, or QUOTATION POINTS, distinguish words that are exhibited as those of an other author or speaker. A quotation within a quotation, is usually marked with single points; which, when both are employed, are placed within the others: as, "And again he saith, 'Rejoice, ye Gentiles, with his people.'"—Rom., xv, 10.
XV. [[]] The CROTCHETS, or BRACKETS, generally inclose some correction or explanation, but sometimes the sign or subject to be explained; as, "He [Mr. Maurice] was of a different opinion."—Allen's Gram., p. 213.
XVI. [Fist] The INDEX, or HAND, points out something remarkable, or what the reader should particularly observe.
XVII. [*] The ASTERISK, or STAR, [Dagger] the OBELISK, or DAGGER, [Double dagger] the DIESIS, or DOUBLE DAGGER, and [||] the PARALLELS, refer to marginal notes. The SECTION also [§], and the PARAGRAPH [¶], are often used for marks of reference, the former being usually applied to the fourth, and the latter to the sixth note on a page; for, by the usage of printers, these signs are commonly introduced in the following order: 1, *; 2, [Dagger]; 3, [Double dagger]; 4, §; 5, ||; 6, ¶; 7, **; 8, [Dagger][Dagger]; &c. Where many references are to be made, the small letters of the alphabet, or the numerical figures, in their order, may be conveniently used for the same purpose.
XVIII. [[Asterism]] The ASTERISM, or THREE STARS, a sign not very often used, is placed before a long or general note, to mark it as a note, without giving it a particular reference.
XIX. [,] The CEDILLA is a mark borrowed from the French, by whom it is placed under the letter c, to give it the sound of s, before a or o; as in the words, "façade," "Alençon." In Worcester's Dictionary, it is attached to three other letters, to denote their soft sounds: viz., "[,G] as J; [,S] as Z; [,x] as gz."
[Fist][Oral exercises in punctuation should not be confined to the correction of errors. An application of its principles to points rightly inserted, is as easy a process as that of ordinary syntactical parsing, and perhaps as useful. For this purpose, the teacher may select a portion of this grammar, or of any well-pointed book, to which the foregoing rules and explanations may be applied by the pupil, as reasons for the points that occur.]
IMPROPRIETIES FOR CORRECTION.
FALSE PUNCTUATION.—MIXED EXAMPLES OF ERROR.
"The principal stops are the following:—
The Comma (,) the semicolon (;) the colon (:) the period, or fall stop (.) the note of interrogation (?) the note of exclamation (!) the parenthesis () and the dash (—) [.]"—Bullions, E. Gram., p. 151; Pract. Les., p. 127. "The modern punctuation in Latin is the same as in English. The marks employed, are the Comma (,); Semicolon (;); Colon (:); Period (.); Interrogation (?); Exclamation (!)."—Bullions, Lat. Gram., p. 3.
"Plato reproving a young man for playing at some childish game; you chide me, says the youth, for a trifling fault. Custom, replied the philosopher, is no trifle. And, adds Montagnie, he was in the right; for our vices begin in infancy."—Home's Art of Thinking, (N. Y. 1818,) p. 54.
"A merchant at sea asked the skipper what death his father died? 'My father,' says the skipper, my grandfather, and my great-grandfather, were all drowned. 'Well,' replies the merchant, and are not you afraid of being drowned too?'"—Ib., p. 135.
"The use of inverted comma's derives from France, where one Guillemet was the author of them; [and] as an acknowledgement for the improvement his countrymen call them after his name GUILLEMETS."—History of Printing, (London, 1770,) p. 266.
"This, however, is seldem [sic—KTH] if ever done unless the word following the possessive begins with s; thus we do not say, 'the prince' feather,' but, 'the prince's feather.'"—Bullions, E. Gram., p. 17. "And this phrase must mean the feather of the prince but princesfeather written as one word is the name of a plant: a species of amaranth."—See Key.
"Böëthius soon had the satisfaction of obtaining the highest honour his country could bestow."—Ingersoll's Gram. 12mo., p. 279. "Boethius soon had," &c.—Murray's Gram., 8vo, Vol. ii., p. 83.
"When an example, a quotation, or a speech is introduced, it is separated from the rest of the sentence either by a semicolon or a colon; as, 'The scriptures give us an amiable representation of the Deity, in these words; God is love.'"—Hiley's Gram., p. 116. "Either the colon or semicolon may be used when an example, a quotation, or a speech is introduced; as, 'Always remember this ancient maxim; Know thyself.' 'The scriptures give us an amiable representation of the Deity, in these words: God is love.'"—Bullions, E. Gram., p. 155.
"The first word of a quotation, introduced after a colon [, must begin with a capital]; as, always remember this ancient maxim: 'Know thyself.'"— Bullions, E. Gram., p. 159; Lennie's Gram., p. 106. [Lennie has "Always" with a capital.] "The first word of a quotation, introduced after a colon, or when it is in a direct form: as, 'Always remember this ancient maxim: Know thyself.' 'Our great lawgiver says, Take up thy cross daily, and follow me.'"—Murray's Gram., 8vo, p. 284. "8. The first word of a quotation, introduced after a colon, or when it is in a direct form. EXAMPLES.—'Always remember this ancient maxim, 'Know thyself.' 'Our great Lawgiver says, Take up thy cross daily, and follow me.'"—Weld's Gram., Abridged., p. 17
"Tell me in whose house do you live."—N. Butler's Gram., p. 55. "He, that acts wisely, deserves praise."—Ib., p. 50 "He, who steals my purse, steals trash."—Ib., p. 51. "The antecedent is sometimes omitted, as, 'Who steals my purse, steals trash;' that is, he who, or person who."—Ib., p. 51. "Thus, 'Whoever steals my purse steals trash;' 'Whoever does no good does harm.'"—Ib., p. 53 "Thus, 'Whoever sins will suffer.' This means that any one without exception who sins will suffer."—Ib., p. 53.
"Letters form syllables, syllables words, words sentences, and sentences, combined and connected form discourse."—Cooper's Plain and Practical Gram., p. 1. "A letter which forms a perfect sound, when uttered by itself, is called a vowel, as: a, e, i."—Ib., p. 1. "A proper noun is the name of an individual, as: John; Boston: Hudson; America."—Ib., p. 17.
"Many men have been capable of doing a wise thing, more a cunning thing, but very few a generous thing."—P. Davis's Gram., p. 96. "In the place of an ellipsis of the verb a comma must be inserted."—Ib., p. 121. "A common noun unlimited by an article is sometimes understood in its broadest acceptation: thus, 'Fishes swim' is understood to mean all fishes. 'Man is mortal,' all men."—Ib., p. 13.
"Thus those sounds formed principally by the throat are called gutturals. Those formed principally by the palate are called palatals. Those formed by the teeth, dentals—those by the lips, labials—those by the nose, nasals, &c."—P. Davis's Gram., p. 113.
"Some adjectives are compared irregularly; as, Good, better, best. Bad, worse, worst. Little, less, least."—Felton's Gram., 1st Ed., p. 63; Ster. Ed., p. 66.
"Under the fourth head of grammar, therefore, four topics will be considered, viz. PUNCTUATION, ORTHOEPY, FIGURES, and VERSIFICATION."— Hart's Gram., p. 161.
"Direct her onward to that peaceful shore,
Where peril, pain and death are felt no more!"
Falconer's Poems, p. 136; Barrett's New Gram., p. 94
BAD ENGLISH BADLY POINTED.
LESSON I.—UNDER VARIOUS RULES.
"Discoveries of such a character are sometimes made in grammar also, and such, too, is often their origin and their end."—Bullions, E. Gram., p. 191.
"Traverse, (to cross.) To deny what the opposite party has alleged. To traverse an indictment, &c. is to deny it."—Id., ib., p. 216.
"The Ordinal [numerals] denote the order or succession in which any number of persons or things is mentioned, as first, second, third, fourth, &c."—Hiley's Gram., p. 22.
"Nouns have three persons, FIRST, SECOND, and THIRD. The First person is the speaker, the Second is the one spoken to, the Third is the one spoken of."—Hiley's Gram., p. 44.
"Nouns have three cases, NOMINATIVE, POSSESSIVE, and OBJECTIVE. The relation indicated by the case of a noun includes three ideas, viz: those of subject, object, and ownership."—Ib., p. 45.
"In speaking of animals that are of inferior size, or whose sex is not known or not regarded, they are often considered as without sex: thus, we say of a cat 'it is treacherous,' of an infant 'it is beautiful,' of a deer 'it was killed.'"—Ib., p. 39.
"When this or these, that or those, refers to a preceding sentence; this, or these, refers to the latter member or term; that, or those, to the former."—Churchill's Gram., p. 136; see Lowth's Gram., p. 102.
"The rearing of them [i. e. of plants] became his first care, their fruit his first food, and marking their kinds his first knowledge."—N. Butler's Gram., p. 44.
"After the period used with abbreviations we should employ other points, if the construction demands it; thus, after Esq. in the last example, there should be, besides a period, a comma."—Ib., p. 212.
"In the plural, the verb is the same in all the persons; and hence the principle in Rem. 5, under Rule iii. [that the first or second person takes precedence,] is not applicable to verbs."—Ib., p. 158.
"Rex and Tyrannus are of very different characters. The one rules his people by laws to which they consent; the other, by his absolute will and power: that is called freedom, this, tyranny."—Murray's Key, 8vo, p. 190.
"A noun is the name of any person, place, or thing, which can be known, or mentioned, as: George; London; America; goodness; charity."—Cooper's Plain and Pract. Gram., p. 17.
"Etymology treats of the classification of words; their various modifications and derivations."—Day's School Gram., p. 9. "To punctuate correctly implies a thorough acquaintance with the meaning of words and phrases, as well as of all their corresponding connexions"—W. Day's Punctuation, p. 31.
"All objects which belong to neither the male nor female kind are called neuter."—Weld's Gram., 2d Ed., p. 57. "All objects, which belong to neither the male nor female kind, are said to be of the neuter gender."—Weld's Gram., Abridged, p. 51.
"The Analysis of the Sounds in the English language presented in the preceding statements are sufficiently exact for the purpose in hand. Those who wish to pursue it further can consult Dr. Rush's admirable work, 'The Philosophy of the Human Voice.'"—Fowlers E. Gram., 1850, §65. "Nobody confounds the name of w or y with their sound or phonetic import."—Ib., §74.
"Order is Heaven's first law; and this confest,
Some are and must be, greater than the rest."—Ib., p. 96.
LESSON II.—UNDER VARIOUS RULES.
"In adjectives of one syllable, the Comparative is formed by adding -er to the positive; and the Superlative by adding -est; as, sweet, sweeter, sweetest."—Bullions, Prin. of E. Gram., p. 19.
"In monosyllables the comparative is formed by adding er or r to the positive, and the superlative by adding est or st; as, tall, taller, tallest; wise, wiser, wisest."—Id., Pract. Les., p. 24.
"By this method the confusion and unnecessary labor occasioned by studying grammars in these languages, constructed on different principles is avoided, the study of one is rendered a profitable introduction to the study of another, and an opportunity is furnished to the enquiring student of comparing the languages in their grammatical structure, and seeing at once wherein they agree, and wherein they differ."—Bullions, Prin. of E. Gram., Pref. to 5th Ed., p. vii.
"No larger portion should be assigned for each recitation than the class can easily master, and till this is done, a new portion should not be given out."—Id., ib., p. viii. "The acquisitions made in every new lesson should be rivetted and secured by repeated revisals."—Id., ib., p. viii.
"The personal pronouns may be parsed briefly thus; I, the first personal pronoun, masculine (or feminine), singular, the nominative. His, the third personal pronoun, masculine, singular, the possessive, &c."—Bullions, E. Gram., p. 23: Pract. Les., p. 28.
"When the male and female are expressed by distinct terms; as, shepherd, shepherdess, the masculine term has also a general meaning, expressing both male and female, and is always to be used when the office, occupation, profession, &c., and not the sex of the individual, is chiefly to be expressed. The feminine term is used only when the discrimination, of sex is indispensably necessary. Thus, when it is said 'the Poets of this country are distinguished by correctness of taste,' the term 'Poet' clearly includes both male and female writers of poetry."—Id., E. Gram., p. 12; his Analyt. and Pract. Gram., 24.
"Nouns and pronouns, connected by conjunctions, must be in the same cases."—Ingersoll's Gram., p. 78. "Verbs, connected by conjunctions, must be in the same moods and tenses, and, when in the subjunctive present, they must be in the same form."—Ib., p. 112.
"This will habituate him to reflection—exercise his judgment on the meaning of the author, and without any great effort on his part, impress indelibly on his memory, the rules which he is required to give. After the exercises under the rule have been gone through as directed in the note page 96, they may be read over again in a corrected state the pupil making an emphasis on the correction made, or they may be presented in writing at the next recitation."—Bullions, Prin. of E. Gram., 2d Ed. Revised and Cor., p. viii.
"Man, but for that, no action could attend
And but for this, be thoughtful to no end."
—O. B. Peirce's Gram., Pref. p. 5.
LESSON III.—UNDER VARIOUS RULES.
"'Johnson the bookseller and stationer,' indicates that the bookseller and the stationer are epithets belonging to the same person; 'the bookseller and the stationer' would indicate that they belong to different persons."—Bullions, E. Gram., p. 127.
"Past is an adjective; passed, the past tense or perfect participle of the verb, and they ought not, as is frequently done, to be confounded with each other."—Id., ib., p. 148.
"Not only the nature of the thoughts and sentiments, but the very selection and arrangement of the words, gives English poetry a character, which separates it widely from common prose."—Id., ib., p. 178.
"Men of sound, discriminating, and philosophical minds—men prepared for the work by long study, patient investigation, and extensive acquirements, have labored for ages to improve and perfect it, and nothing is hazarded in asserting, that should it be unwisely abandoned, it will be long before another equal in beauty, stability and usefulness, be produced in its stead."—Id., ib., p. 191.
"The Article The, on the other hand, is used to restrict, and is therefore termed Definite. Its proper office is to call the attention to a particular individual or class, or to any number of such, and is used with nouns in either the singular or plural number."—Id., ib., p. 193.
"Hence also the infinitive mood, a participle, a member of a sentence, or a proposition, forming together the subject of discourse, or the object of a verb or preposition, and being the name of an act or circumstance, are in construction, regarded as nouns, and are usually called 'substantive phrases;' as 'To play is pleasant,' 'His being an expert dancer is no recommendation,' 'Let your motto be Honesty is the best policy.'"—Id., ib., p. 194.
"In accordance with his definition, Murray has divided verbs into three classes, Active, Passive, and Neuter, and includes in the first class transitive verbs only, and in the last all verbs used intransitively"—Id., ib., p. 200.
"Moreover, as the name of the speaker or the person spoken to is seldom expressed, (the pronouns I and thou being used in its stead,) a noun is very seldom in the first person, not often in the second, and almost never in either, unless it be a proper noun, or a common noun personified."—Bullions, Pract. Les., p. 13.
"In using the above exercises it will save much time, which is all important, if the pupil be taught to say every thing belonging to the nouns in the fewest words possible, and to say them always in the same order as above."—Id., ib., p. 21.
"In any phrase or sentence the adjectives qualifying a noun may generally be found by prefixing the phrase 'What kind of,' to the noun in the form of a question; as, What kind of a horse? What kind of a stone? What kind of a way? The word containing the answer to the question is an adjective."—Id., ib., p. 22.
"In the following exercise let the pupil first point out the nouns, and then the adjectives; and tell how he knows them to be so."—Id., ib., p. 23.
"In the following sentences point out the improper ellipsis. Show why it is improper, and correct it."—Id., ib., p. 124.
"SINGULAR PRONOUNS. PLURAL PRONOUNS.
1. I—am being smitten. 1. We—are being smitten. 2. Thou—art being smitten. 2. Ye or you—are being smitten. 3. He—is being smitten. 3. They—are being smitten."
Wright's Philos. Gram., p. 98.
CHAPTER II—UTTERANCE.
Utterance Is the art or act of vocal expression. It includes the principles of articulation, of pronunciation, and of elocution.
SECTION I.—OF ARTICULATION.
Articulation is the forming of words; by the voice, with reference to their component letters and sounds.
ARTICLE I.—OF THE DEFINITION.
Articulation differs from pronunciation, in having more particular regard to the elements of words, and in not embracing accent[470]. A recent author defines it thus: "ARTICULATION is the act of forming, with the organs of speech, the elements of vocal language."—Comstock's Elocution, p. 16. And again: "A good articulation is the perfect utterance of the elements of vocal language."—Ibid.
An other describes it more elaborately thus: "ARTICULATION, in language, is the forming of the human voice, accompanied by the breath, in some few consonants, into the simple and compound sounds, called vowels, consonants, and diphthongs, by the assistance of the organs of speech; and the uniting of those vowels, consonants, and diphthongs, together, so as to form syllables and words, and constitute spoken language."—Bolles's Dict., Introd., p. 7.
ARTICLE II—OF GOOD ARTICULATION.
Correctness in articulation is of such importance, that without it speech or reading becomes not only inelegant, but often absolutely unintelligible. The opposite faults are mumbling, muttering, mincing, lisping, slurring, mouthing, drawling, hesitating, stammering, misreading, and the like. "A good articulation consists in giving every letter in a syllable its due proportion of sound, according to the most approved custom of pronouncing it; and in making such a distinction between the syllables of which words are composed, that the ear shall without difficulty acknowledge their number; and perceive, at once, to which syllable each letter belongs. Where these points are not observed, the articulation is proportionably defective."—Sheridan's Rhetorical Grammar, p. 50.
Distinctness of articulation depends, primarily, upon the ability to form the simple elements, or sounds of letters, by the organs of speech, in the manner which the custom of the language demands; and, in the next place, upon the avoidance of that precipitancy of utterance, which is greater than the full and accurate play of the organs will allow. If time be not given for the full enunciation of any word which we attempt to speak, some of the syllables will of course be either lost by elision or sounded confusedly.
Just articulation gives even to a feeble voice greater power and reach than the loudest vociferation can attain without it. It delivers words from the lips, not mutilated, distorted, or corrupted, but as the acknowledged sterling currency of thought;—"as beautiful coins newly issued from the mint, deeply and accurately impressed, perfectly finished, neatly struck by the proper organs, distinct, sharp, in due succession, and of due weight."—Austin's Chironomia, p. 38.
OBS.—The principles of articulation constitute the chief exercise of all those who are learning either to speak or to read. So far as they are specifically taught in this work, they will be found in those sections which treat of the powers of the letters.
SECTION II.—OF PRONUNCIATION.
Pronunciation, as distinguished from elocution, or delivery, is the utterance of words taken separately. The correct pronunciation of words, or that part of grammar which teaches it, is frequently called Orthoëpy.
Pronunciation, or orthoëpy, requires a knowledge of the just powers of the letters in all their combinations; of the distinction of quantity in vowels and syllables; and of the force and seat of the accent.
ARTICLE I—OF THE POWERS OF LETTERS.
The JUST POWERS of the letters, are those sounds which are given to them by the best readers. These are to be learned, as reading is learned, partly from example, and partly from such books as show or aid the pronunciation of words.
It is to be observed, however, that considerable variety, even in the powers of the letters, is produced by the character and occasion of what is uttered. It is noticed by Walker, that, "Some of the vowels, when neither under the accent, nor closed by a consonant, have a longer or a shorter, an opener or a closer sound, according to the solemnity or familiarity, the deliberation or rapidity of our delivery."—Pronouncing Dict., Preface, p. 4. In cursory speech, or in such reading as imitates it, even the best scholars utter many letters with quicker and obscurer sounds than ought ever to be given them in solemn discourse. "In public speaking," says Rippingham, "every word should be uttered, as though it were spoken singly. The solemnity of an oration justifies and demands such scrupulous distinctness. That careful pronunciation which would be ridiculously pedantic in colloquial intercourse, is an essential requisite of good elocution."—Art of Public Speaking, p. xxxvii.
ARTICLE II—OF QUANTITY.
QUANTITY, or TIME in pronunciation, is the measure of sounds or syllables in regard to their duration; and, by way of distinction, is supposed ever to determine them to be either long or short.[471]
The absolute time in which syllables are uttered, is very variable, and must be different to suit different subjects, passions, and occasions; but their relative length or shortness may nevertheless be preserved, and generally must be, especially in reciting poetry.
Our long syllables are chiefly those which, having sounds naturally capable of being lengthened at pleasure, are made long by falling under some stress either of accent or of emphasis. Our short syllables are the weaker sounds, which, being the less significant words, or parts of words, are uttered without peculiar stress.
OBS.—As quantity is chiefly to be regarded in the utterance of poetical compositions, this subject will be farther considered under the head of Versification.
ARTICLE III.—OF ACCENT.
ACCENT, as commonly understood, is the peculiar stress which we lay upon some particular syllable of a word, whereby that syllable is distinguished from and above the rest; as, gram'-mar, gram-ma'-ri-an.
Every word of more than one syllable, has one of its syllables accented; and sometimes a compound word has two accents, nearly equal in force; as, e'ven-hand'ed, home'-depart'ment.[472]
Besides the chief or primary accent, when the word is long, for the sake of harmony or distinctness, we often give a secondary or less forcible accent to an other syllable; as, to the last of tem'-per-a-ture', and to the second of in dem'-ni-fi-ca'-tion.
"Accent seems to be regulated, in a great measure, by etymology. In words from the Saxon, the accent is generally on the root; in words from the learned languages, it is generally on the termination; and if to these we add the different accent we lay on some words, to distinguish them from others, we seem to have the three great principles of accentuation; namely, the radical, the terminational, and the distinctive."—Walker's Principles, No. 491; L. Murray's Grammar, 8vo, p. 236.
A full and open pronunciation of the long vowel sounds, a clear articulation of the consonants, a forcible and well-placed accent, and a distinct utterance of the unaccented syllables, distinguish the elegant speaker.
OBSERVATIONS.
OBS. 1.—The pronunciation of the English language is confessedly very difficult to be mastered. Its rules and their exceptions are so numerous, that few become thoroughly acquainted with any general system of them. Nor, among the different systems which have been published, is there any which is worthy in all respects to be accounted a STANDARD. And, if we appeal to custom, the custom even of the best speakers is far from an entire uniformity. Perhaps the most popular directory on this subject is Walker's Critical Pronouncing Dictionary. The "Principles of English Pronunciation," which this author has furnished, occupy fifty-six closely-printed octavo pages, and are still insufficient for the purpose of teaching our orthoëpy by rule. They are, however, highly valuable, and ought to be consulted by every one who wishes to be master of this subject. In its vocabulary, or stock of words, this Dictionary is likewise deficient. Other lexicographers have produced several later works, of high value to the student; and, though no one has treated the subject of pronunciation so elaborately as did Walker, some may have given the results of their diligence in a form more useful to the generality of their consulters. Among the good ones, is the Universal and Critical Dictionary of Joseph E. Worcester.
OBS. 2.—Our modern accentuation of Greek or Latin words is regulated almost wholly by the noted rule of Sanctius, which Walker has copied and Englished in the Introduction to his Key, and of which the following is a new version or paraphrase, never before printed:
RULE FOR THE ACCENTING OF LATIN.
One syllable has stress of course,
And words of two the first enforce;
In longer words the penult guides,
Its quantity the point decides;
If long, 'tis there the accent's due,
If short, accent the last but two;
For accent, in a Latin word,
Should ne'er go higher than the third.
This rule, or the substance of it, has become very important by long and extensive use; but it should be observed, that stress on monosyllables is more properly emphasis than accent; and that, in English, the accent governs quantity, rather than quantity the accent.
SECTION III.—OF ELOCUTION.
Elocution is the graceful utterance of words that are arranged into sentences, and that form discourse.
Elocution requires a knowledge, and right application, of emphasis, pauses, inflections, and tones.
ARTICLE I—OF EMPHASIS.
EMPHASIS is the peculiar stress of voice which we lay upon some particular word or words in a sentence, which are thereby distinguished from the rest as being more especially significant.[473]
As accent enforces a syllable, and gives character to a word; so emphasis distinguishes a word, and often determines the import of a sentence. The right placing of accent, in the utterance of words, is therefore not more important, than the right placing of emphasis, in the utterance of sentences. If no emphasis be used, discourse becomes vapid and inane; if no accent, words can hardly be recognized as English.
"Emphasis, besides its other offices, is the great regulator of quantity. Though the quantity of our syllable is fixed, in words separately pronounced, yet it is mutable, when [the] words are [ar]ranged in[to] sentences; the long being changed into short, the short into long, according to the importance of the words with regard to meaning: and, as it is by emphasis only, that the meaning can be pointed out, emphasis must be the regulator of the quantity."—L. Murray's Gram., p. 246.[474] "Emphasis changes, not only the quantity of words and syllables, but also, in particular cases, the sent of the accent. This is demonstrable from the following examples: 'He shall _in_crease, but I shall _de_crease.' 'There is a difference between giving and _for_giving.' 'In this species of composition, _plaus_ibility is much more essential than _prob_ability.' In these examples, the emphasis requires the accent to be placed on syllables to which it does not commonly belong."—Ib., p. 247.
In order to know what words are to be made emphatic, the speaker or reader must give constant heed to the sense of what he utters; his only sure guide, in this matter, being a just conception of the force and spirit of the sentiment which he is about to pronounce. He must also guard against the error of multiplying emphatic words too much; for, to overdo in this way, defeats the very purpose for which emphasis is used. To manage this stress with exact propriety, is therefore one of the surest evidences both of a quick understanding, and of a delicate and just taste.
ARTICLE II.—OF PAUSES.
Pauses are cessations in utterance, which serve equally to relieve the speaker, and to render language intelligible and pleasing.
Pauses are of three kinds: first, distinctive or sentential pauses,—such as form the divisions required by the sense; secondly, emphatic or rhetorical pauses,—such as particularly call the hearer's attention to something which has been, or is about to be, uttered; and lastly, poetical or harmonic pauses,—such as are peculiar to the utterance of metrical compositions.
The duration of the distinctive pauses should be proportionate to the degree of connexion between the parts of the discourse. The shortest are long enough for the taking of some breath; and it is proper, thus to relieve the voice at every stop, if needful. This we may do, slightly at a comma, more leisurely at a semicolon, still more so at a colon, and completely at a period.
Pauses, whether in reading or in public discourse, ought always to be formed after the manner in which we naturally form them in ordinary, sensible conversation; and not after the stiff, artificial manner which many acquire at school, by a mere mechanical attention to the common punctuation.
Forced, unintentional pauses, which accidentally divide words that ought to be spoken in close connexion, are always disagreeable; and, whether they arise from exhaustion of breath, from a habit of faltering, or from unacquaintance with the text, they are errors of a kind utterly incompatible with graceful elocution.
Emphatic or rhetorical pauses, the kind least frequently used, may be made immediately before, or immediately after, something which the speaker thinks particularly important, and on which he would fix the attention of his audience. Their effect is similar to that of a strong emphasis; and, like this, they must not be employed too often.
The harmonic pauses, or those which are peculiar to poetry, are of three kinds: the final pause, which marks the end of each line; the cæsural or divisional pause, which commonly divides the line near the middle; and the minor rests, or demi-cæsuras, which often divide it still further.
In the reading of poetry, these pauses ought to be observed, as well as those which have reference to the sense; for, to read verse exactly as if it were prose, will often rob it of what chiefly distinguishes it from prose. Yet, at the same time, all appearance of singsong, or affected tone, ought to be carefully guarded against.
ARTICLE III.—OF INFLECTIONS.
INFLECTIONS are those peculiar variations of the human voice, by which a continuous sound is made to pass from one note, key, or pitch, into an other. The passage of the voice from a lower to a higher or shriller note, is called the rising or upward inflection. The passage of the voice from a higher to a lower or graver note, is called tbe falling or downward inflection. These two opposite inflections may be heard in the following examples: 1. The rising, "Do you mean to gó?" 2. The falling, "When will you gò?"
In general, questions that may be answered by yes or no, require the rising inflection; while those which demand any other answer, must be uttered with the falling inflection. These slides of the voice are not commonly marked in writing, or in our printed books; but, when there is occasion to note them, we apply the acute accent to the former, and the grave accent to the latter.[475]
A union of these two inflections upon the same syllable, is called a circumflex, a wave, or a "circumflex inflection." When the slide is first downward and then upward, it is called the rising circumflex, or "the gravo-acute circumflex;" when first upward and then downward, it is denominated the falling circumflex, or "the acuto-grave circumflex." Of these complex inflections of the voice, the emphatic words in the following sentences may be uttered as examples: "And it shall go h~ard but I will ûse the information."—"Ô! but he pa~used upon the brink."
When a passage is read without any inflection, the words are uttered in what is called a monotone; the voice being commonly pitched at a grum note, and made to move for the time, slowly and gravely, on a perfect level.
"Rising inflections are far more numerous than falling inflections; the former constitute the main body of oral language, while the latter are employed for the purposes of emphasis, and in the formation of cadences. Rising inflections are often emphatic; but their emphasis is weaker than that of falling inflections."—Comstock's Elocution, p. 50.
"Writers on Elocution have given numerous rules for the regulation of inflections; but most of these rules are better calculated to make bad readers than good ones. Those founded on the construction of sentences might, perhaps, do credit to a mechanic, but they certainly do none to an elocutionist."—Ib., p. 51.
"The reader should bear in mind that a falling inflection gives more importance to a word than a rising inflection. Hence it should never be employed merely for the sake of variety; but for emphasis and cadences. Neither should a rising inflection be used for the sake of mere 'harmony,' where a falling inflection would better express the meaning of the author. The sense should, in all cases, determine the direction of inflections."—Ib.
Cadence is a fall of the voice, which has reference not so much to pitch as to force, though it may depress both; for it seems to be generally contrasted with emphasis,[476] and by some is reprehended as a fault. "Support your voice steadily and firmly," says Rippingham, "and pronounce the concluding words of the sentence with force and vivacity, rather than with a languid cadence."—Art of Speaking, p. 17. The pauses which L. Murray denominates the suspending and the closing pause, he seems to have discriminated chiefly by the inflections preceding them, if he can be said to have distinguished them at all. For he not only teaches that the former may sometimes be used at the close of a sentence, and the latter sometimes where "the sense is not completed;" but, treating cadence merely as a defect, adds the following caution: "The closing pause must not be confounded with that fall of the voice, or cadence, with which many readers uniformly finish a sentence. Nothing is more destructive of propriety and energy than this habit. The tones and inflections of the voice at the close of a sentence, ought to be diversified, according to the general nature of the discourse, and the particular construction and meaning of the sentence."—Murray's Gram., 8vo, p. 250; 12mo, p. 200.
ARTICLE IV.—OF TONES.
Tones are those modulations of the voice which depend upon the feelings of the speaker. They are what Sheridan denominates "the language of emotions." And it is of the utmost importance, that they be natural, unaffected, and rightly adapted to the subject and to the occasion; for upon them, in a great measure, depends all that is pleasing or interesting in elocution.
"How much of the propriety, the force, and [the] grace of discourse, must depend on these, will appear from this single consideration; that to almost every sentiment we utter, more especially to every strong emotion, nature has adapted some peculiar tone of voice; insomuch, that he who should tell another that he was angry, or much grieved, in a tone that did not suit such emotions, instead of being believed, would be laughed at."—Blair's Rhet., p. 333.
"The different passions of the mind must be expressed by different tones of the voice. Love, by a soft, smooth, languishing voice; anger, by a strong, vehement, and elevated voice; joy, by a quick, sweet, and clear voice; sorrow, by a low, flexible, interrupted voice; fear, by a dejected, tremulous, hesitating voice; courage, by a full, bold, and loud voice; and perplexity, by a grave and earnest voice. In exordiums, the voice should be low, yet clear; in narrations, distinct; in reasoning, slow; in persuasions, strong: it should thunder in anger, soften in sorrow, tremble in fear, and melt in love."—Hiley's Gram., p. 121.
OBS.—Walker observes, in his remarks on the nature of Accent and Quantity, "As to the tones of the passions, which are so many and various, these, in the opinion of one of the best judges in the kingdom, are qualities of sound, occasioned by certain vibrations of the organs of speech, independent on [say of] high, low, loud, soft, quick, slow, forcible, or feeble: which last may not improperly be called different quantities of sound."—Walker's Key, p. 305.
CHAPTER III.—FIGURES.
A Figure, in grammar, is an intentional deviation from the ordinary spelling, formation, construction, or application, of words. There are, accordingly, figures of Orthography, figures of Etymology, figures of Syntax, and figures of Rhetoric. When figures are judiciously employed, they both strengthen and adorn expression. They occur more frequently in poetry than in prose; and several of them are merely poetic licenses.
SECTION I.—FIGURES OF ORTHOGRAPHY.
A Figure of Orthography is an intentional deviation from the ordinary or true spelling of a word. The principal figures of Orthography are two; namely, Mi-me'-sis and Ar'-cha-ism.
EXPLANATIONS.
I. Mimesis is a ludicrous imitation of some mistake or mispronunciation of a word, in which the error is mimicked by a false spelling, or the taking of one word for another; as, "Maister, says he, have you any wery good weal in you vâllet?"—Columbian Orator, p. 292. "Ay, he was porn at Monmouth, captain Gower."—Shak. "I will description the matter to you, if you be capacity of it."—Id.
"Perdigious! I can hardly stand." —LLOYD: Brit. Poets, Vol. viii, p. 184.
II. An Archaism is a word or phrase expressed according to ancient usage, and not according to our modern orthography; as, "Newe grene chese of smalle clammynes comfortethe a hotte stomake."—T. PAYNEL: Tooke's Diversions, ii, 132. "He hath holpen his servant Israel."—Luke, i, 54.
"With him was rev'rend Contemplation pight,
Bow-bent with eld, his beard of snowy hue."—Beattie.
OBS.—Among the figures of this section, perhaps we might include the foreign words or phrases which individual authors now and then adopt in writing English; namely, the Scotticisms, the Gallicisms, the Latinisms, the Grecisms, and the like, with which they too often garnish their English style. But these, except they stand as foreign quotations, in which case they are exempt from our rules, are in general offences against the purity of our language; and it may therefore be sufficient, just to mention them here, without expressly putting any of them into the category of grammatical figures.
SECTION II.—FIGURES OF ETYMOLOGY.
A Figure of Etymology is an intentional deviation from the ordinary formation of a word. The principal figures of Etymology are eight; namely, A-phoer'-e-sis, Pros'-the-sis, Syn'-co-pe, A-poc'-o-pe, Par-a-go'-ge, Di-oer'-e-sis, Syn-oer'-e-sis, and Tme'-sis.
EXPLANATIONS.
I. Aphæresis is the elision of some of the initial letters of a word: as, 'gainst, for against; 'gan, for began; 'neath, for beneath; 'thout, for without.
II. Prosthesis is the prefixing of an expletive syllable to a word: as, _a_down, for down; _ap_paid, for paid; _be_strown, for strown; _ev_anished, for vanished; _y_clad, for clad.
III. Syn'copè is the elision of some of the middle letters of a word: as, med'cine, for medicine; e'en, for even; o'er, for over; conq'ring, for conquering; se'nnight, for sevennight.
IV. Apoc'opè is the elision of some of the final letters of a word: as, tho' for though; th', for the; t'other, for the other; thro', for through.
V. Parago'gè is the annexing of an expletive syllable to a word: as, Johnny, for John; deary, for dear; withouten, for without.
VI. Diæresis is the separating of two vowels that might be supposed to form a diphthong: as, coöperate, not cooperate; aëronaut, not æronaut; or'thoëpy, not orthoepy.
VII. Synæresis is the sinking of two syllables into one: as, seest, for sëest; tacked, for tack-ed; drowned, for drown-ed; spoks't, for spok-est; show'dst, for show-edst; 'tis, for it is; I'll, for I will.
VIII. Tmesis is the inserting of a word between the parts of a compound, or between two words which should be united if they stood together: as, "On which side soever."—Rolla. "To us ward;" "To God ward."—Bible. "The assembling of ourselves together."—Id. "With what charms soe'er she will."—Cowper. "So new a fashion'd robe."—Shak. "Lament the live day long."—Burns.
OBS.—In all our pronunciation, except that of the solemn style, such verbal or participial terminations as can be so uttered, are usually sunk by synæresis into mere modifications of preceding syllables. The terminational consonants, if not uttered with one vowel, must be uttered with an other. When, therefore, a vowel is entirely suppressed in pronunciation, (whether retained in writing or not,) the consonants connected with it, necessarily fall into an other syllable: thus, tried, triest, sued, suest, loved, lovest, mov'd, mov'st, are monosyllables; and studied, studiest, studi'dst, argued, arguest, argu'dst, are dissyllables; except in solemn discourse, in which the e is generally retained and made vocal.
SECTION III.—FIGURES OF SYNTAX.
A Figure of Syntax is an intentional deviation from the ordinary construction of words. The principal figures of Syntax are five; namely, El-lip'-sis, Ple'-o-nasm, Syl-lep'-sis, En-al'-la-ge, and Hy-per'-ba-ton. EXPLANATIONS.
I. Ellipsis is the omission of some word or words which are necessary to complete the construction, but not necessary to convey the meaning. Such words are said, in technical phrase, to be understood;[477] because they are received as belonging to the sentence, though they are not uttered.
Of compound sentences, a vast many are more or less elliptical; and sometimes, for brevity's sake, even the most essential parts of a simple sentence, are suppressed;[478] as, "But more of this hereafter."—Harris's Hermes, p. 77. This means, "But I shall say more of this hereafter." "Prythee, peace."—Shak. That is, "I pray thee, hold thou thy peace."
There may be an omission of any of the parts of speech, or even of a whole clause, when this repeats what precedes; but the omission of mere articles or interjections can scarcely constitute a proper ellipsis, because these parts of speech, wherever they are really necessary to be recognized, ought to be expressed.
EXAMPLES OF ELLIPSIS SUPPLIED.
1. Of the ARTICLE:—"A man and [a] woman."—"The day, [the] month, and [the] year."—"She gave me an apple and [a] pear, for a fig and [an] orange."—Jaudon's Gram., p. 170.
2. Of the NOUN:—"The common [law] and the statute law."—"The twelve [apostles]."—"The same [man] is he."—"One [book] of my books."—"A dozen [bottles] of wine."—"Conscience, I say; not thine own [conscience], but [the conscience] of the other."—1 Cor., x, 29. "Every moment subtracts from [our lives] what it adds to our lives."—Dillwyn's Ref., p. 8. "Bad actions mostly lead to worse" [actions].—Ib., p. 5.
3. Of the ADJECTIVE:—"There are subjects proper for the one, and not [proper] for the other."—Kames. "A just weight and [a just] balance are the Lord's."—Prov., xvi, 11. True ellipses of the adjective alone, are but seldom met with.
4. Of the PRONOUN:—"Leave [thou] there thy gift before the altar, and go [thou] thy way; first be [thou] reconciled to thy brother, and then come [thou] and offer [thou] thy gift,"—Matt., v, 24. "Love [ye] your enemies, bless [ye] them that curse you, do [ye] good to them that hate you."—Ib., v. 44. "Chastisement does not always immediately follow error, but [it] sometimes comes when [it is] least expected."— Dillwyn, Ref., p. 31. "Men generally put a greater value upon the favours [which] they bestow, than upon those [which] they receive."—Art of Thinking, p. 48. "Wisdom and worth were all [that] he had."—Allen's Gram., p. 294.
5. Of the VERB:—"The world is crucified unto me, and I [am crucified] unto the world."—Gal., vi, 14. "Hearts should not [differ], though heads may, differ."—Dillwyn, p. 11. "Are ye not much better than they" [are]?—Matt., vi, 26. "Tribulation worketh patience; and patience [worketh] experience; and experience [worketh] hope."—Romans, v, 4. "Wrongs are engraved on marble; benefits [are engraved] on sand."—Art of Thinking, p. 41. "To whom thus Eve, yet sinless" [spoke].—Milton.
6. Of the PARTICIPLE:—"That [being] o'er, they part."—"Animals of various natures, some adapted to the wood, and some [adapted] to the wave."—Melmoth, on Scripture, p. 13.
"His knowledge [being] measured to his state and place,
His time [being] a moment, and a point [being] his space."—Pope.
7. Of the ADVERB:—"He can do this independently of me, if not [independently] of you."
"She shows a body rather than a life;
A statue, [rather] than a breather."
—Shak., Ant. and Cleo., iii, 3.
8. Of the CONJUNCTION:—"But the fruit of the Spirit is love, [and] joy, [and] peace, [and] long suffering, [and] gentleness, [and] goodness, [and] faith, [and] meekness, [and] temperance."—Gal., v, 22. The repetition of the conjunction is called Polysyndeton; and the omission of it, Asyndeton.
9. Of the PREPOSITION:—"It shall be done [on] this very day."—"We shall set off [at] some time [in] next month."—"He departed [from] this life."—"He gave [to] me a book."—"We walked [through] a mile."—"He was banished [from] the kingdom."—W. Allen. "He lived like [to] a prince."—Wells.
10. Of the INTERJECTION:—"Oh! the frailty, [oh!] the wickedness of men."—"Alas for Mexico! and [alas] for many of her invaders!"
11. Of PHRASES or CLAUSES:—"The active commonly do more than they are bound to do; the indolent [commonly do] less" [than they are bound to do].—"Young men, angry, mean less than they say; old men, [angry, mean] more" [than they say].—"It is the duty of justice, not to injure men; [it is the duty] of modesty, not to offend them."—W. Allen.
OBSERVATIONS.
OBS. 1.—Grammarians in general treat of ellipsis without defining it; and exhibit such rules and examples as suppose our language to be a hundred-fold more elliptical than it really is.[479] This is a great error, and only paralleled by that of a certain writer elsewhere noticed, who denies the existence of all ellipsis whatever. (See Syntax, Obs. 24th on Rule 22d.) Some have defined this figure in a way that betrays a very inaccurate notion of what it is: as, "ELLIPSIS is when one or more words are wanting to complete the sense."—Adam's Lat. and Eng. Gram., p. 235; Gould's, 229. "ELLIPSIS is the omission of one or more words necessary to complete the sense."—Bullions, Lat. Gram., p. 265. These definitions are decidedly worse than none; because, if they have any effect, they can only mislead. They absurdly suggest that every elliptical sentence lacks a part of its own meaning! Ellipsis is, in fact, the mere omission or absence of certain suggested words; or of words that may be spared from utterance, without defect in the sense. There never can be an ellipsis of any thing which is either unnecessary to the construction or necessary to the sense; for to say what we mean and nothing more, never can constitute a deviation from the ordinary grammatical construction of words. As a figure of Syntax, therefore, the ellipsis can only be of such words as are so evidently suggested to the reader, that the writer is as fully answerable for them as if he had written them.
OBS. 2.—To suppose an ellipsis where there is none, or to overlook one where it really occurs, is to pervert or mutilate the text, in order to accommodate it to the parser's or reader's ignorance of the principles of syntax. There never can be either a general uniformity or a self-consistency in our methods of parsing, or in our notions of grammar, till the true nature of an ellipsis is clearly ascertained; so that the writer shall distinguish it from a blundering omission that impairs the sense, and the reader or parser be barred from an arbitrary insertion of what would be cumbrous and useless. By adopting loose and extravagant ideas of the nature of this figure, some pretenders to learning and philosophy have been led into the most whimsical and opposite notions concerning the grammatical construction of language. Thus, with equal absurdity, Cardell and Sherman, in their Philosophic Grammars, attempt to confute the doctrines of their predecessors, by supposing ellipses at pleasure. And while the former teaches, that prepositions do not govern the objective case, but that every verb is transitive, and governs at least two objects, expressed or understood, its own and that of a preposition: the latter, with just as good an argument, contends that no verb is transitive, but that every objective case is governed by a preposition expressed or understood. A world of nonsense for lack of a definition!
II. PLEONASM is the introduction of superfluous words; as, "But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it."—Gen., ii, 17. This figure is allowable only, when, in animated discourse, it abruptly introduces an emphatic word, or repeats an idea to impress it more strongly; as, "He that hath ears to hear, let him hear."—Bible. "All ye inhabitants of the world, and dwellers on the earth."—Id. "There shall not be left one stone upon another that shall not be thrown down."—Id. "I know thee who thou art."—Id. A Pleonasm, as perhaps in these instances, is sometimes impressive and elegant; but an unemphatic repetition of the same idea, is one of the worst faults of bad writing.
OBS.—Strong passion is not always satisfied with saying a thing once, and in the fewest words possible; nor is it natural that it should be. Hence repetitions indicative of intense feeling may constitute a beauty of the highest kind, when, if the feeling were wanting, or supposed to be so, they would be reckoned intolerable tautologies. The following is an example, which the reader may appreciate the better, if he remembers the context: "At her feet he bowed, he fell, he lay down; at her feet he bowed, he fell; where he bowed, there he fell down dead."—Judges, v, 27.
III. SYLLEPSIS is agreement formed according to the figurative sense of a word, or the mental conception of the thing spoken of, and not according to the literal or common use of the term; it is therefore in general connected with some figure of rhetoric: as "The Word was made flesh, and dwelt amongst us, and we beheld his glory."—John, i, 14. "Then Philip went down to the city of Samaria, and preached Christ unto them."—Acts, viii, 5. "The city of London have expressed their sentiments with freedom and firmness."—Junius, p. 159. "And I said [to backsliding Israel,] after she had done all these things, Turn thou unto me; but she returned not: and her treacherous sister Judah saw it."—Jer., iii, 7. "And he surnamed them Boanerges, which is, The sons of thunder."—Mark, iii, 17.