hi there, could you help me? I found this sentence in Jordani Bruni Opera Latine Conscripta:
De praefatione tenendae sunt quindecim rationes, quibus Alexandro studium rhetorices commendatur.
Harum 1...2...3.Quia indegnum est illum, qui in rebus gestis caeteros vincit et exsuperat, interdum sermone humilioribus et indignioribus cedere.
Now, after Quia the author used the accusative, but wouldn't it be better to use the nominative: Quia indegnus est ille, qui...? why the accusative?
Thank you for reading me, and a big thank you for those that would help!! Valete!!
Help with 'quia'
- bestiatrionfante
- Textkit Neophyte
- Posts: 8
- Joined: Sun Jul 16, 2006 3:13 pm
- Location: Italy
Help with 'quia'
in tristitia hilaris, in hilaritate tristis
-
- Textkit Enthusiast
- Posts: 593
- Joined: Fri Nov 09, 2007 1:35 am
Re: Help with 'quia'
Quia is not a preposition, it doesn't "take" the accusative. Instead, it is an adverb, and translates as "because..."
The confusion may be because you thought that indegnum agreed with "ille". It doesn't. Indegnum means "Unworthy", in the sense of "A shameful thing", and it is taking an infinitive sentence as its apposite. For infinitive sentences think "dicere". (Dixit eum esse bonum virum.) In them, both the subject and the object go into the accusative case.
Because it is a shameful thing for him, who in deeds overcomes all, to be lacking in rhetorical powers.
The confusion may be because you thought that indegnum agreed with "ille". It doesn't. Indegnum means "Unworthy", in the sense of "A shameful thing", and it is taking an infinitive sentence as its apposite. For infinitive sentences think "dicere". (Dixit eum esse bonum virum.) In them, both the subject and the object go into the accusative case.
Because it is a shameful thing for him, who in deeds overcomes all, to be lacking in rhetorical powers.
- bestiatrionfante
- Textkit Neophyte
- Posts: 8
- Joined: Sun Jul 16, 2006 3:13 pm
- Location: Italy
Re: Help with 'quia'
Thank you so much for answering me!! My Latin is so rusty, indeed !!
in tristitia hilaris, in hilaritate tristis