Category Archive: Language

Limits of Subjectivity

The meaning of words and expressions are notoriously difficult to analyze. Lexicographers have their work cut out for them in building a dictionary. Most often their methodology is based on subjective methods. But this makes it difficult to challenge their conclusions — at least in a capacity that relies on more than strong personal convictions. Is there another way to doing the backend investigations of lexicography?

Spatial Prepositions and Pedagogy II, Feet

What if instructors were able to build lessons for Greek prepositions around physical actions that students could perform themselves both in class and at home? Methods such as this help connect the meaning of the prepositions not to rote memorization, but to physical behavior and actions. Below are some of the more salient uses of ποῦς, ‘foot’ with various prepositions that lend themselves to this type of experiential learning.

A brief guide to aspect in Greek: Part III, The perfect

In Part I, we tried to give a basic overview of what aspect is, along with one practical application for paying attention to aspect. In Part II, we considered some of the various points of agreement and disagreement among scholars on this topic. With this background, we are in a better place to discuss perfect aspect. Part III provides a condensation of parts of my chapter on the perfect in Black & Merkle (2020).

A brief guide to aspect in Greek: Part II, The debates

There is effectively no debate about the definition of aspect in Greek. There is also effectively no debate about the definitions of the imperfective and perfective aspects, two categories we discussed in Part I. This is true whether you’re reading Fanning (1990), Decker (2007), Campbell (2007), any of the contributors to Runge & Fresch (2016), or anyone else.