Preposition question

hekkenfeldt
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Preposition question

Postby hekkenfeldt » 2010-04-01, 12:20

Hi

What's the latin equivalent of "by" in the sentence "the wolf is standing by the creek"? Is it "apud" as in "lupus apud rivum stat"?

Thanks
Please correct me!

hekkenfeldt
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Re: Preposition question

Postby hekkenfeldt » 2010-04-01, 15:59

Another thing:

I can't quite get the highlighted sentence in the excerpt below to make sense.

Gratus sum, Quirites, quod me, hominem novum, consulem fecistis; alios homines novos multis annis postquam per leges licet, consules fecistis; me unum anno meo consulem creavistis.


The best I can come up with is: "You (have) made other "new men" consuls many years after [by laws; it is permitted to]. As you see, I can't get it to add up. Any help would be much appreciated.

Oh, and I know what a homo novus is, so at least that's not a problem. :wink:
Please correct me!

KingHarvest
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Re: Preposition question

Postby KingHarvest » 2010-04-01, 19:28

Apud doesnt (sorry, cant find apostrophes on this German keyboard, bear with me) sound quite right to me. Prope, propter, or even ad would work better.

The sentence you have in red says, "Now many years later it is permitted by law that other men could become new men, and you made them consuls." (In case you dont know, a "nouus homo" was someone elected consul from a family that had never had a consul before)
Most men are rather stupid, and most of those who are not stupid are, consequently, rather vain.
-A.E. Housman

hekkenfeldt
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Re: Preposition question

Postby hekkenfeldt » 2010-04-02, 10:31

Thanks a bundle! Urgh, that sentence was complicated. There's still a few things I don't understand. Like how do you infer "could become" from the latin sentence? And "alios homines novos" is all in the accusative, right? Doesn't licet take the dative? Or is the subject an implied [it], as in:

[It] is permitted [for] other men-acc. [to become] new-acc.


Is there some sort of accusative-infinitive thingamajig at play here?
Please correct me!

KingHarvest
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Re: Preposition question

Postby KingHarvest » 2010-04-02, 17:31

Like how do you infer "could become" from the latin sentence?


You just have to learn to infer a lot of unstated copular verbs in Latin.

And "alios homines novos" is all in the accusative, right? Doesn't licet take the dative? Or is the subject an implied [it], as in:


Yes. It's indirect statement. "It is permitted that..."
Most men are rather stupid, and most of those who are not stupid are, consequently, rather vain.
-A.E. Housman


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