hi arkan, you asked initially if there was a pattern to pronoun positioning in latin. There are studies which do show patterns, but it is quite a complicated area. I have tried to turn these studies into a short set of rules, and will describe these below if you or anyone else wish to read about this further. (I will also scan for you copies of the authorities themselves so that you don’t need to rely on my summarisation.) as the others said above, you don't need to worry about this now if you don't want to: learning the spelling is hard enough.
The rules below suggest that the following changes should be made to Adrian’s versions of your answers: in 1 and 2, move ME one word to the right (i.e. after MONENT/MONET); in 4, choose the first of adrian’s versions; in 6, go back to your version; in 8, move DEBET two words to the left (i.e. before ME). In each case, this puts the pronoun ME in second position in its clause, and (where it falls in an infinitive phrase) first in its infinitive phrase.
Before trying to work out the rules of latin pronoun positioning, there is a complication: a latin pronoun like ME actually seems to represent two pre-latin pronouns which were spelled differently and went in different parts of the clause. Somehow these two pre-latin pronouns transformed/fused into a single latin pronoun ME, i.e. having a single spelling in latin, but nevertheless still going in different parts of the latin clause. The same complication also applies to the genitive and dative personal pronouns. The best authority I have on this is Sihler 1995: I have scanned from my copy the relevant section on this (remove spaces):
www . freewebs . com / mhninaeide / sihlerprons . pdf
So before you even try to figure out where is the “normal†position of a latin pronoun like ME, you are faced with the complication that it seems to have at least two “normal†positions (although it is spelled the same way in latin in each position).
Now for the word order rules: the latest authority I have on latin word order is Devine and Stephens 2006, “Latin Word Orderâ€. I have scanned from my copy the whole section on pronouns (remove spaces):
Link 1 of 2:
www . freewebs . com / mhninaeide / dsprons1of2 . pdf
Link 2 of 2:
www . freewebs . com / mhninaeide / dsprons2of2 . pdf
Below is my attempt to turn this into a short set of rules.
A. Definitions
"
Contrastive" means contrasting with word(s) in the same case in another clause: e.g. MIHI is contrastive with CETERIS in "
MIHI ENIM VOLO IGNOSCI, CETERIS IPSE NON IGNOSCO": De Orat. 1.130.
"
First position" means the first word of a clause plus any adjacent:
(a) word(s) agreeing with the first word, or which are part of a periphrastic construction with the first word;
(b) connective particle(s) (e.g. -QVE, ENIM, etc.);
(c) contrastive word(s); and
(d) a demonstrative pronoun referring to word(s) in a previous clause.
B. Rules
1. A contrastive pronoun goes first in its clause.
2. In an infinitive phrase, a pronoun goes first.
3. A pronoun governed by a preposition follows the preposition.
4. Otherwise, pronouns go immediately after first position.
5. Insert the following “false†punctuation to get the word order right:
(a) if a clause begins with a particle (e.g. NAM) immediately followed by a separate inserted clause (subordinate, ablative absolute, etc.) put brackets around that separate clause and ignore it;
(b) after any separate inserted clause other than as described in paragraph (a), put a vertical bar | after it, and a new first position will start after the vertical bar; and
(c) if a clause begins with a QV- word immediately followed by a prepositional phrase, put a vertical bar | after the prepositional phrase, and a new first position will start after the vertical bar.
e.g.s of the above rules from Cicero:
Rule 1: "
MIHI ENIM VOLO IGNOSCI, CETERIS IPSE NON IGNOSCO": De Orat. 1.130.
Rule 2: "CVM STATVISSES, VT AIS,
TIBI CAVSAM ESSE DICENDAM": Verr. 2.5.78.
Rule 3: “HABEMVS SENATVS CONSVLTVM IN
TE, CATILINAâ€: In Cat. 1.3.
Rule 4: “TERENTIA
TIBI SAEPE AGIT GRATIASâ€: Ad. Att. 3.9.3.
Rule 5(a): "NEC[, SI CVPERES,]
TIBI ID PER C. CVRIONEM FACERE LICVISSET": Philipp. 2.3.
Rule 5(b): "VERVM TAMEN VT ESSE POSSENT | MAGNO STVDIO
MIHI A PVERITIA EST ELABORATVM": In Caec. 40.
Rule 5(c): "QVAMQVAM IN HAC PRAESCRIPTIONE SEMIHORAE | PATRONI
MIHI PARTIS RELIQVISTI": Pro. Rab. Perd. 6.
C. Position of each MIHI in Cicero’s first Catiline
The rules above seem to work OK in latin texts I have tested them on: usually they get the pronoun word order right or miss by a word (which suggests to me that the definition of “first position†is where the most work needs to be done in order to make these rules work more accurately). I have given below as an e.g. each instance of MIHI in Cicero’s first Catiline, explaining whether the rules work or not in each case.
[5] SI TE IAM, CATILINA, COMPREHENDI, SI INTERFICI IVSSERO, CREDO, ERIT VERENDVM
MIHI, NE NON POTIVS HOC OMNES BONI SERIVS A ME QVAM QVISQVAM CRVDELIVS FACTVM ESSE DICAT.
(This follows the rules. ERIT VERENDVM is a periphrastic passive construction, and so both words make up first position: see paragraph (a) of the definition of “first positionâ€.)
[6] MVTA IAM ISTAM MENTEM,
MIHI CREDE, OBLIVISCERE CAEDIS ATQVE INCENDIORVM.
(This doesn't follow the rules, which would have given *CREDE MIHI, but MIHI CREDE appears to be the standard order in Cicero.)
[11] QVAMDIV
MIHI CONSVLI DESIGNATO, CATILINA, INSIDIATVS ES, NON PVBLICO ME PRAESIDIO, SED PRIVATA DILIGENTIA DEFENDI.
(This follows the rules. QVAMDIV is in first position.)
[18] QVAM OB REM DISCEDE ATQVE HVNC
MIHI TIMOREM ERIPE; SI EST VERVS, NE OPPRIMAR, SIN FALSVS, VT TANDEM ALIQVANDO TIMERE DESINAM.
(The rules would put MIHI one word to the left. ATQVE is in first position and so *ATQVE MIHI HVNC was therefore expected.)
[21] AT SI HOC IDEM HVIC ADVLESCENTI OPTIMO, P. SESTIO, SI FORTISSIMO VIRO, M. MARCELLO, DIXISSEM, IAM
MIHI CONSVLI HOC IPSO IN TEMPLO IVRE OPTIMO SENATVS VIM ET MANVS INTVLISSET.
(This follows the rules. IAM is in first position.)
[23] QVAM OB REM, VT SAEPE IAM DIXI, PROFICISCERE AC, SI
MIHI INIMICO, VT PRAEDICAS, TVO CONFLARE VIS INVIDIAM, RECTA PERGE IN EXILIVM; VIX FERAM SERMONES HOMINVM, SI ID FECERIS, VIX MOLEM ISTIVS INVIDIAE, SI IN EXILIVM IVSSV CONSVLIS IERIS, SVSTINEBO.
(This follows the rules. SI is in first position.)
[27] ETENIM, SI MECVM PATRIA, QVAE
MIHI VITA MEA MVLTO EST CARIOR, SI CVNCTA ITALIA, SI OMNIS RES PVBLICA LOQVATVR:
(This follows the rules. QVAE is in first position.)
[29] ETENIM SI SVMMI VIRI ET CLARISSIMI CIVES SATVRNINI ET GRACCHORVM ET FLACCI ET SVPERIORVM COMPLVRIVM SANGVINE NON MODO SE NON CONTAMINARVNT, SED ETIAM HONESTARVNT, CERTE VERENDVM
MIHI NON ERAT, NE QVID HOC PARRICIDA CIVIVM INTERFECTO INVIDIAE [
MIHI] IN POSTERITATEM REDVNDARET.
(The rules would put the first MIHI one word to the left: CERTE is in first position and so *CERTE MIHI VERENDVM… was expected.
The second MIHI follows the rules: first, put a vertical bar after the ablative absolute “HOC … INTERFECTO†pursuant to Rule 5(b), i.e. “…HOC PARRICIDA CIVIVM INTERFECTO | INVIDIAE MIHI IN…â€. INVIDIAE is then in new first position after the vertical bar pursuant to Rule 5(b).)
[29] QVODSI EA
MIHI MAXIME INPENDERET TAMEN HOC ANIMO FVI SEMPER, VT INVIDIAM VIRTVTE PARTAM GLORIAM, NON INVIDIAM PVTAREM.
(This follows the rules. First position is made up of the first word QVODSI plus the demonstrative pronoun EA referring to INVIDIAE in the previous clause: see paragraph (d) of the definition of “first positionâ€.)
cheers, chad
Unfortunately, my mistakes usually come down to grammar rather than to typos. I wish it were otherwise.
