According to A&G, 'When quam is used, the two things compared are put into the same case':
matre quam patre dignior: more worthy of the mother than of the father.
But here's a case I came across in Wheelock:
fuit quondam in hac re publica tanta vitrus ut viri fortes civem perniciosum acrioribus poenis [ablative of means] quam acerbissimum hostem reprimerent: There was formerly such virtue in this republic that brave men repressed a pernicious citizen with harsher penalties than [they repressed] the harshest enemy. (Result, p. W198 SA 6 Ch. 29).
As I understand it, 'poenis' is the noun being compared with 'hostem', But they aren't in the same case. Could Wheelock be wrong or is there something I'm missing?
The alternative view I've come up with is:
viri fortes civem perniciosum acrioribus poenis quam acerbissimum hostem reprimerent: brave men repressed a nasty citizen with harsher penalties than the firecest enemy.
This seems to be that the two nouns being compared (civem and hostem) have a third noun (poenis) in between them. Is this possible?
question on quam
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Re: question on quam
Isn't the comparison really between the two penalties, and the second 'poenis' is understood? I do not think that penalty is being compared to enemy, nor does it sound to me like citizen is being compared to enemy, it's just the two penalties being compared.nostos wrote: As I understand it, 'poenis' is the noun being compared with 'hostem',
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Re: question on quam
it's a more compressed and less tangled way to say "fuit quondam in hac re publica tanta uirtus ut uiri fortes ciuem perniciosum acrioribus poenis quam quibus poenis (or eis quibus etc) acerbissimum hostem reprimerent", similar to what edonnelly said. quam quibus and other combinations of words that come from relative pronouns are usually avoided if possible.nostos wrote:fuit quondam in hac re publica tanta vitrus ut viri fortes civem perniciosum acrioribus poenis [ablative of means] quam acerbissimum hostem reprimerent: There was formerly such virtue in this republic that brave men repressed a pernicious citizen with harsher penalties than [they repressed] the harshest enemy. (Result, p. W198 SA 6 Ch. 29).
flebile nescio quid queritur lyra, flebile lingua murmurat exanimis, respondent flebile ripae
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