The Cambridge Grammar of Classical Greek. A new reference grammar for Classical Greek: aims and principles

Abstract

We are grateful to the editor of JCT for offering us the opportunity of outlining our views on the need for a new Greek reference grammar, to discuss our methodological principles, and to offer some thoughts on how the book may be useful as a teaching resource.

Semantic and syntactic demarcations of Classical Greek object cases: An object(ive) study

“…In Luraghi's terms, GEN objects that are complements of highly transitive verbs are "partitive genitive" and seen to be less affected (although still "somewhat" affected) than are ACC objects. This analysis mirrors the explanation put forth by most pedagogical grammars, claiming that GEN objects are partitives and are relics of GEN indirect objecthood (Hansen & Quinn 1992, Boas et al 2019. Verbs that are subcategorized for DAT objects are, according to Luraghi, even less transitive than those that are subcategorized for ACC or GEN objects.…”

“…In Classicists' discussion of Greek case, such an analysis fundamentally changes the conversation around how GEN case-assigning verbs are described. In nearly every authoritative grammar of Classical Greek, including the most recent (Boas et al 2019), GEN case on direct objects is described as "partitive", and while there certainly are instances of partitive GEN case in the data, not all GEN objects are so. Where ACC and GEN case-assigning verbs are distinguished by the parameter of [±COS], we submit that both the case assigned by both categories of verbs is "pure" and "lexically-assigned", reflecting the core meaning of the verb.…”

“…typically given, namely that genitive-marked objects are partitive (Hansen & Quinn 1992, Boas et al 2019, which is an analysis that also ignores the systematic assignment of dative-marked direct objects.…”

Living Freedom: The Heautonomy of the Judgement of Taste

“…In the latter case, autonomy is ‘merely subjectively valid’, since the determining ground can ‘only be given in the feeling of pleasure’ ( FI , 20: 225). With the Greek prefix ‘he’ as a third-person reflexive pronoun, Kant emphasizes the reflexivity of self-legislation (see van Emde Boas et al 2018: 91, also Floyd 1998: 205). This leads to two problems.…”