ON THE HISTORY OF THE DEFINITE TENSES IN ENGLISH

161

2636278

UC-NRLF

B

2

b3b

E7fl

ON

THE

HISTORY

OF

THE

DEFINITE

TENSES

IN

ENGLISH

BY

ALFRED

AKERLUND

A.-B.

PH.

LINDSTEDTS

UNIV.-BOKH.

LUND

1911

W.

HEFFER

ft

SONS,

LTD.

ON

THE

HISTORY

OF

THE

DEFINITE

TENSES

IN

ENGLISH

BY

ALFRED

AKERLUND

Lie. PHIL,, HB.

BY

DUE

PERMISSION OF

THE

PHILOSOPHICAL FACULTY OF

LUND

TO BE PUBLICLY DISCUSSED IN LECTURE HALL VI

SEPTEMBER23, 1911, AT4O'CLOCK P. M.

FOR

THE DEGREE

OF

DOCTOR

OF PHILOSOPHY

LUND

1911

PREFACE.

The

following investigation,

in _{an abridged form,}

was

originally

meant

to appear as part of a

more

compre-hensive work,

announced

in the _{'Englische Studien',}

band

40

_(IQOQ),

under

the title: 'The Origin

and Development

of the Definite

Tenses

in _English'.

My

interest in _{the subject}

was

at first

roused by

the

diverging

views

on

the origin of the definite tenses in

Mo-dern _English.

Thus

much may

suffice to _{say here concerning these}

views:

some

scholars _recognize in _{the -ing-iorm the}

pres-ent _participle with the

new

_ending,

and

are of _opinion

that _they

have developed

_directly

from corresponding

peri-phrastic

forms

in

Old

English,

where

we

have

to

do

with

the old _participle

—

which

is also the case in texts

be-longing to northern dialects in

Middle

_{English; other}

schol-ars,

on

the contrary, hold that their origin is to

be sought

in _{such expressions} as *he is _a-going',

a

_standing for the preposition on,

and

the

form

in _{-ingbeing not} the _participle

proper but the verbal

noun.

Later on,

when

working

out

my

material, I

grew more

and

more

interested in the various uses of _{the periphrastic}

forms,

be

their _origin

what

it

may, and

I

thought

it

worth

while to deal with

them

in a _{comparatively exhaustive}

way,

while I

was

about

it.

In the _present treatise, therefore, 1 _{altogether turn}

my

I start

from

the fact that the construction 'be _{-f- ing*}

in

Modern

_English is _{morphologically,} if not _{historically,}

the

same

as that _occurring in

Old

_English,

and

follow it

from

this _period

through Middle and

Early

Modern

Eng-lish,

adding

at the

end

a section

on

the

compound

definite

tenses.

In short, the treatise is intended _{to give,} in the first

place, a history of the periphrasis (in the active voice)

from

an

exclusively syntactical point of view,

and

secondly, to

contribute, so far as the _{investigation}

may

furnish con-clusions

on

this _point,

towards

the formation of _{an opinion}

on

its _origin,

by

comparing

its _{functions during} the

dif-ferent stages of the language.

In a later _essay I shall take

up

this _question

from

the point of

view

of the _{verbal-noun expressions,}

by

_giving

an account

of their _origin

and

their relations to the definite

tenses, in other

words:

a history of the 'a-phrases'

—

such

as the

one

quoted

above

—

in standard English,

dialects,

and

vulgar speech, this account also

comprising

the rise

and

growth

of _{the passive} definite tenses.

Finally, I desire to record

my

_hearty thanks to

my

teacher, Professor Eilert Ekwall, of

Lund,

University, for the valuable advice

and encouragement

_{he has given}

me

during the progress of

my

work;

to Mr. Charles Scott

Fearenside, formerly English Lector in the University of

Lund,

who

has read

through

the treatise in _manuscript

and

in _{proof with} a

view

to _normalizing

my

_English;

and

_lastly

to the officials of _{the University Library} at

Lund

for their

unfailing courtesy

and

help in _facilitating

my

researches.

Landskrona, September

IQIL

TABLE

OF

CONTENTS.

INTRODUCTORY REMARKS

1

I.

OLD

AND

EARLY

MIDDLE

ENGLISH

6

A.

Main

Uses ; 7

1. The Present Tense 7

2. The Past Tense 12

3. The _Imperative and the Infinitive 23

B. Futurity 25

C.

The

Inchoative 27

D. _Survey 30

II.

LATE

MIDDLE

ENGLISH

34

A. Midland

and

Southern Dialects 34

1. The Present Tense 35

2. The Past Tense 39

3. The _Imperative and the Infinitive 45

B. Northern Dialects 47

1. The Present Tense 49

2. The Past Tense 51

3. _Examples of the Periphrastic Imperative 58

4. _Examples ofCaseswhere the ParticipleisofanAdjectival

Nature 58

C. _Survey 58

IIL

EARLY

MODERN

ENGLISH

61

1. The Present Tense 62

2. The Past Tense 75

3. _Examples of _{the Periphrastic} Infinitive 80 4. The Adjectival Meaning 80

5. The _{Periphrasis Expressing} a _{Subjective Feeling} 82

IV.

THE

COMPOUND

TENSES

85

1. The Perfect and the Pluperfect 85

2. _Examples of the Future and the Preterite Future 92

WORKS

CONSULTED.

Bain,

A

Higher English Grammar, 1896.

Einenkel, Streifziige durch die mittelenglische syntax, Miinster 1887.

—

_{Syntax, p.} 100 ff. Pauls Or.^

Erdmann, Essay on the history and modern use of the verbal forms

in -ing in the _{English language,} Stockholm 1871.

Franz, Shakespeare-Grammatik, Zweite Auflage, Heidelberg 1909.

Jespersen, Growth and Structure of theEnglishLanguage, Leipzig1905. Kriiger, Schwierigkeiten des Englischen, 1897 ff.

Morris, Historical Outlines of _{English Accidence,} 1872.

Murray, The Dialect of the Southern Counties of Scotland [Trans-actions of the Philological Society, 1870—21.

Onions,

An

Advanced English Syntax, London 1905.

Pessels, The present and past periphrastic tenses in _Anglo-Saxon,

Strassburg 1896.

Piittman, Die Syntax der sogenannten Progressiven Form im Alt-und

Frfihmittelenglischen, Marburg 1908 [also in _Anglia, 31, 3; p.

405 ff.].

Sweet,

New

English Grammar, Oxford 1900, 1903.

—

A

Primer of _Spoken English, Oxford 1906.

Ten Brink, Chaucer's Sprache und Verskunst, Leipzig 1899.

Western,

Om

de

med

hjaelpeverbet be og nutids particip omskrevne

verbalformer i _{engelsk [Forhandlinger} i Videnskabsselskabet i

Christiania aar 1895]^

'

See also Grenville Grove, Modern Engelsk Larobok, Del II

TEXTS.

1.

Old and

Early

Middle

English.

Beow.

=

Beowulf, ed. Holthausen, Heidelberg 1905.

Chr.

=

Earle and Plummer,

Two

Saxon Chronicles Parallel, Oxford

1892, 1899.

Ae. L.

=

Aelfric's Lives of Saints, ed. Skeat, E. E. T.S. 76, 82, 94, 114.

O. E. H.

=

Old _{English Homilies,} ed. Morris, E. E. T. S. 29, 34, 53.

V. a V.

=

Vices and Virtues, ed. Holthausen, E. E. T. S. 89.

A. Pr.

=

The Proverbs of Alfred, ed. Borgstrom, Lund 1908.

L. o St. K.

=

Life of Saint Katherine, ed. Einenkel, E. E. T. S. 80.

O. a E.

=

Genesis and Exodus, ed. Morris, E. E. T. S. 7.

2.

Late

Middle

English.

(i)

Midland and Southern

Dialects. Hav.

=

Havelok the _Dane, ed. Skeat, E. E. T. S. e. s. 4.

Jos.

=

Joseph of Arimathie, ed. Skeat, E. E. T. S. 44.

Oaw.

=

Sir _Gawayne and the Green _Knight, ed. Morris, E. E.T. S.4.

A. P.

=

_{Early English} Alliterative Poems, ed. Morris, E. E. T. S. 1.

CI.

=

Cleanness.

Piers PL

=

Piers the _Plowman, ed. Skeat, E. E. T. S. 38.

The English Works of Wyclif, ed. Matthew, E. E. T. S. 74. Per.

=

Sir Ferumbras, ed. Herrtage E. E. T. S. e. s. 34.

Chaucer, The Complete Works of _{Geoffrey Chaucer,} ed. Skeat,

Ox-ford 1894.

C. T.

=

The _Canterbury Tales

CL

T.

=

The Clerkes Tale

Kn, T.

=

The _{Knightes Tale} M. T.

=

The Milleres Tale

P. Prol.

=

The Parson's Prologue

Prol.

=

The _Prologue

Sh. T.

=

The _Shipmannes Tale

Sq. T.

=

The Squieres Tale

Troil.

=

Troilus and Criseyde

Rom. R.

=

The Romaunt of The Rose^

Gower, The English Works of _{John Gower,} ed. _Macaulay, E. E.T. S. e. s. 81.

C.

Am.

=

Confessio Amantis.

Lydg. T. o Gl.

=

_{Lydgate's Temple of Glas, ed. Schick,} E. E. T. S. e. s. 60.

George Ashby's Poems, ed. Bateson, E. E. T. S. e. s. 76.

D

&

o.

=

Dicta et _{opiniones diversorum philosophorum}

P. Pr.:= Active Policy of a Prince

Pr. R.

=

A

Prisoner's Reflections

Gen.

=

Generydes, ed. Wright, E. E. T. S. 55, 70.

Bl.

=

_{Blanchardyn and Eglantine,} ed. Kellner, E. E. T. S. e. s. 58.

God.

—

_Godeffroy of _Boloyne, ed. _Colvin, E. E. T. S. e. s. 64.

(ii)

Northern

Dialects.

B. Br.

=

The Bruce, ed. Skeat, E. E. T. S. e. s. _11, 21, 29, 55.

K. Qu.

=

The Kingis Quair, ed. Skeat, S. T. S. 1884.

W.

Wa.

=

Schir William Wallace, ed. _Moir, S. T. S. 1889.

Du.

=

The Poems of _{William Dunbar,} ed. _Small, S. T. S. 1893. Ly. Mon.

=

The Monarche and other poems of Sir David _Lyndesay,

ed. _Small, E. E. T. S. 11, 19.

C. o Sc.

=

Complaynt of _Scotlande, ed. _Murray,E. E.T. S. e. s. 17, 18.

3.

Early

Modern

English.

Stephen Hawes, The Passetyme of Pleasure _{[Skeat's Specimens}of

Eng-lish _Literature, A. D. 1394—A. D. _1579]

The _English Works of_John Fisher, ed. _Mayor, E. E. T. S. e. s. 27.

*

Kellner, Historical Outlines of _{English Syntax,} London 1905,

England in _{the reign of King Henry the Eighth, by}

Thomas

_Starkey, ed. Cowper, E. E. T. S. e. s. _12, 32.

J, Heywood, The Four P's [The Ancient British Drama, London 1810, Vol. _I]

Lat.

=

Hugh

_Latimer; Serm. PI.

=

Sermon on the _{Ploughers [Skeat's}

Spec] Sev. Serm.

=

SevenSermonsbeforeEdward VI, ed. Arber,

London 1869.

Asch.

=

_{Roger Ascham;} Scholem.

=

The Scholemaster _{[Skeat's Spec]}

Tox.

=

_Toxophilus, ed. Arber, London 1868.

Ud. R. D.

=

Nicholas Udall, Roister Doister, ed. Arber, London.

Thomas

Sackville, Induction to 'The Mirrour _{for Magistrates' [Skeat's}

Spec]

Sackv.

&

Nort. Ferr. and Porr.

=

Sackville _{[and Norton], Ferrex} and

Porrex [The Ancient British _Drama, Vol. I]

George Gascoigne, The Steele Glas, &c., ed. _Arber, London 1868. Sp. F. Q.

=

Spenser, The Faerie _{Queene [The} Poetical Works of

Ed-mund

_Spenser, Boston _{1839, Vol. VI]}

John Lyly; Alex.

=

Alexander and Campaspe [The Ancient British

Drama, Vol. I]

Anat.

=

_{Euphues. The Anatomy} ofWit,ed. _Arber,London 1868.

Marlowe, The Works of _{Christopher Marlowe,} ed. _Cunningham,

Lon-don.

Ed. II

=

Edward the Second

Faust

=

The Tragical History of Doctor Faustus

Tamb.

=

Tamburlaine The Great

Peele, David

And

Bethsabe

The Old Wive's Tale

Greene, Friar Bacon

And

Friar _Bungay

A

Looking-Glass For London

And

England

A

Maiden's

Dream

[The Dramatic

And

Poetical Works Of

Ro-bert Greene

&

George Peele, ed. _{Dyce, London]}

Shakespeare, The Complete Works of William Shakespeare

Reprinted from the First _Folio, ed. Porter and Clarke, London.

Anth.

=

The Tragedie Of Anthonie,

And

Cleopatra vol. 12

As

=

As

You

Like It vol. 4 Cor.

=

The Tragedy Of Coriolanus vol. 9

Haml.

=

The Tragedie Of Hamlet .' vol. 11

Hy.

V

=

The Life Of _Henry The Fift voL 7 Hy. Vni

=

The Life Of _Henry The _Eight vol. 8

King L.

=

The _Tragedie Of King Lear vol. 11

L. L. L.

=

Loves Labour's Lost vol, 3

Macb.

=

The Tragedie Of Macbeth voL 11

Me

Wives

=

The _Merry Wives Of Windsor vol. 1

Mids. ^=

A

Midsommer

_Nights Dreame voK 3

Mu.

Adoe

=

Much

Adoe About _Nothing voK 2 Oth.

=

The _Tragedie Of Othello vol. 12

Taming

=

The Taming Of The Shrew vol. 4

Temp.

=

The Tempest vol. 1

Tw. N.

=

Twelfe Night,

Or

What You

Will voL 5

4.

Modern

English.

Mass.

=

_Massinger, The Plays of Philip Massinger, ed. _Cunningham,

London 1870.

O. D.

=

A New Way

to _Pay Old Debts.

Milt. P. L.==Milton, Paradise Lost, London 1903. J. M. Dent

&

Co.

Pep.

=

The Diary of Samuel _Pepys, ed. Morley, Cassells' National

Library.

Bun. _Pilgr.

=

_Bunyan, The Pilgrim's Progress, ed. _Venables, Oxford

1900.

Congr.

=

TheMermaid Series_{William Congreve,}ed. Ewald,

New

York. Bach.

=

The Old Bachelor

D.-D.

=

The Double-Dealer

W.

W.

=

The

Way

of the World

Spect.

=

The Spectator Selected Essays, ed. Ewald, London and

New

York.

Add.

=

Addison; Budg.

=

Budgell.

Def. Rob.

=

Defoe, Robinson Crusoe, ed. Clark, London 1899.

Sw. Gull.

=

_{Swift, Gulliver's Travels, London,}

J.

M.

Dent

&

Co.

Mont.

=

The Letters and Works of _{Lady Mary Wortley Montagu,} ed.

Wharncliffe, 2nd ed. London 1837.

Joh. Rass.

=

Samuel Johnson, Rasselas [Classic Tales, ed. Fearenside,

London 1906]

St. S.

J.

=

Sterne,

A

Sentimental Journey [Classic Tales]

Sher. Riv.

=

_Sheridan, The Rivals _[The British Classical _Authors,

INTRODUCTORY

REMARKS.

1.

General

Character

of

the

Definite

Tenses

in

Recent

English.

The

existence of the periphrastic

and

_simple

forms

side

by

side furnishes the _English

language

with an

ad-mirable

means

of _{expressing even very} subtle

shades

of

meaning:

the use of a definite tense

may

indeed _represent

a stylistic nicety of an exquisite effect, just strong

enough

to

be

felt

and

_appreciated, but too delicate, I

am

tempted

to _say, to allow of _{being properly analyzed.}

They

_prove, then, frequently

enough,

rather hard to _judge;

and

on

the

whole, to _get at the intrinsic character of the definite ten ses is _perhaps

no

_easy task.

Most

authors _agree,

however,

that _they

have

a

gen-eral

meaning

of duration

which

is to

be

looked

upon

as

their

main

characteristic.

Western,

who

has treated this _subject

somewhat

fully,

explains the difference

between

the simple

and

the

peri-phrastic

forms

thus:

As

a _rule,

one

_{can only say} that,

whereas

the simple

tenses _express the infinite

and

_{the unlimited,} as: 'the

church

stands

on

a _hill', *! have never seen him', or the

momentary,

as: *he _{fell dead',} or a series _{of events,} as:

'when he

had

gone, 1 sat

down

and

_wepf,

—

the periphrastic tenses

imply that the action or the state of _things is limited

within a certain _space of time, either directly expressed or

to

be

_understood, as: 'he has been _sleeping for six _hours',

or that it is simultaneous with another _action, as: *he

was

dressing

when

I entered the room'. _{(Indledning, 2).}

This

pronouncement

is not intended to stand as

an

exhaustive definition of the definite tenses _{('At g\}

nogen

udtommende

og

_noiagtig definition af

de

omskrevne

ver-balformers

brug

i _engelsk er

neppe

_muHgt'.

—

Indledning, 1.), but it covers the

main

uses.

Taking

it, therefore, as the starting-point for

forming

a

more

_general

and

comprehensive

definition,

we

may sum

up

the different statements

by

_saying that the indefinite

tenses are

used

where no

_special time is

thought

_of, whilst the definite tenses are

employed

when

this is the case.

Thus

put, I venture to _say that it _gives us the _key to

an

explanation of the other uses

^

as well,

and

I arrive at the

following

view

of the matter:

The

fundamental

_principle, that

which

underlies all

the different functions of the definite _tenses, is that the periphrasis gives, so to speak, a stronger inner stress to

the _verb,

makes

it

more

_{sentence-stressed,}

by

_calling the

interest directly to the idea of time: the indefinite tense is

more

neutral

and

_apt to act in a

way

more

as a _copula

than _{as a tense, properly taken,}

whereas

the definite tense

is

more

_pregnant in this _respect

and

is _preferred

where

the action, as such, is to

be

emphasized.

2.

Views

of

Previous

Investigators

Concer-ning

the

Old

English

Periphrasis.

Old

_{English possesses}

an

_{equivalent to the}

Modern

English definite tenses in _{a periphrasis}

formed by

the verbs 'wesan' or 'beon' with the _{present participle.}

^ _See

3

It occurs _already in the oldest texts

and

was

noticed

remarkably early

by grammarians;

but until _lately

no

tho-rough

investigation as to its character

and

_syntactical uses has

been

undertaken.

Most

of the authors

concerned

_agree in _{attributing to}

the

Old

_{English periphrasis}

about

the

same meaning

and

grammatical functions as characterize the _{corresponding}

modern

forms, e. _{g. Matzner, Einenkel, Miiller,}

and

others. Several _scholars,

however,

are of a

somewhat

different

opinion.

Thus

Sweet, in

New

_Engl. Or. _{11, § 2203, remarks}

that the

extended forms

in

Old

_{English are 'only vaguely} differentiated

from

the _simple forms'. In _§

2205 he

sup-poses

the fundamental difference to

be

that _{the periphrastic}

tenses 'are associated with _{the idea of incompletion',}

and

then admits that, as a natural result of this, they very

often occur in constructions

which

involve the idea of continuity or progression (§ 2206).

—

Thus

far, I _think.

Sweet's remarks will hold

good,

but then

he

ventures the

following restriction: 'But that this idea is _only a

second-ary

one

is

shown

by

those instances in

which

the

con-text excludes _{the idea of duration, as}

when

the _periphrase

is

accompanied by

the

adverb sona

_{'immediately', as} in

pa

sona

on _anginne pees gefeohtes wees se

munt

Garganus

bifigende

mid

orm^tre cwacunge

^'.

—

That

the periphrasis

in this _{instance, as} indeed in

some

others as _well, admits

of an inchoative

meaning

in

no

wise excludes the idea of continuity:

on

the contrary, it

must

always be understood

that the action in _question is _{not only beginning, but} also

that it continues for

some

time.

Thus

in the

above

exam-ple

we

might

very well infer that

Mount

Garganus

'started

'

This is Aelfric's translation of the Latin: _Garganus immenso

tremore concutitur.

—

Se

Max

Forster,

Zu

den Blickling Homilies,

INTRODUCTORY REMARKS

trembling' \

which

certainly implies duration.

Moreover,

one

is _justified in _{saying that,} in these _{instances, the}

dura-tive element is _{not only admissible but, as a}

rule,

predom-inant, the inchoative

meaning

being only the

secondary

one. Jespersen holds

(Growth

and

Structure _{etc., p. 205)} that

Old

_English 'he waes feohtende'

corresponds

to

Mod-ern _English 'he

used

to _fight'.

—

It will not

be

denied

that, in

some

_cases, the

Old

_{English periphrasis involves}

such

an

idea; but if _Jespersen's

interpretation

should

be

taken to

mean

that the

main use

of the

extended

tenses

in

Old

_English is that _they

denote

a _habit, it

must

be

downright

rejected.

—

It

would seem

as if _Jespersen

had

adopted

this _{interpretation} in order to _support his

conject-ure of the _altogether different _origin of the

Old

_English

periphrasis

and

its

modern

_counterpart,

by

thus

assuming

different functions for the

two

extreme

_{stages of the}

lan-guage

2.

Lately the periphrasis in

Old

English has

been

treat-ed,

on

a larger scale,

by

no

fewer than three scholars,

namely,

Erdmann

and

Pessels,

and

lastly

by

Piittman,

who

has also

brought

some

specimens

of _{the Early English}

period

under

his investigation.

Without

_entering into details in this _place I confine

myself to _stating that the results arrived at _agree

on

all

main

_points,

and

_especially in _recognizing the idea of

dura-tion or _progression as _{the general character of the} peri-phrasis.

' _{Sweet has}

(§ 2207): 'began to tremble'.

- _The

passage referred to runs as follows: 'The _periphrastic

tenses /

am

_reading, I was _reading, J have been reading, I shall be reading, etc. were not _{fully developed} even in _{Shakespeare's time}and

seem to have little, if _anything, to do with the Old _English he

was

feohtende 'he used to _fight'; the modern forms are _aphetic for /

am

Only

I think fit to _quote, in its _entirety,

Erdmann's

very interesting definition (p. 12): 'The Participle Present

is

used

to _{form, together} with the _{various parts of the} auxiliary verbs

wesan and

beon, that _periphrastic

conjuga-tion

which

is

commonly

called the _{Progressive form,}

and

the characteristic of

which

is that it denotes

an

action as

being in _progress at a _{certain time, present, future,} or _past. It differs in this

from

the

corresponding

_{simple forms,}

which

_{represent the action merely} as a fact, that takes, will

take, or has taken place.

Being

the adjective

form

of the verb, the Part. Present _naturally has in its character a

shade

of

permanence and

_durability, that

does

not

belong

to the rest of the verb. _Accordingly,

though

actions _put

in the _simple

forms

also

must

be considered to

occupy

some

_space of time

and

the

two

forms

may

not

unfre-quently

be

interchanged, without infringing the sense of the _passage, there will

however

be

found

to exist _a

per-ceptible distinction

between

their several

ways

of _giving the

same

idea. This distinction

may

be

_{greater or} less in

particular cases, but it is

seldom

_quite effaced.

By

_using

a tense of this _{periphrastic conjugation, the speaker,}

men-tally entering into the very time of events, describes the

action as

going

on, as _{continuing; whereas,} if

choosing

the _{simple form,}

he

would

take

no

notice of it

from

that

I.

OLD AND

EARLY MIDDLE

ENGLISH.

Occurrence.

Both

in

Old

and

in _Early

Middle

_English

the _periphrasis is _{very sparingly used,} as

compared

with

modern

usage.

Beowulf musters

only 3 examples,

and

in the

whole

of the

Anglo-Saxon

Chronicle

we

have

_only

about

24. In

Aelfric's Lives

of

Saints the

number

of instances

seems

at

first _{sight fairly large}

—

about

_100; but

when

we

take into

consideration _{the great length of} this

work, one

must

say

that,

even

here, the frequency is, comparatively, small. Also^

it is a _striking fact that the occurrence of the

extended

forms

is here _very

uneven:

while

some

of the _legends exhibit

no

instances at _all, e. _{g. II, IV, IX, X, XI,}

XIV^

XV,

XVII,

XIX,

etc.,

we

find

them

in comparatively great

numbers

in _{others, especially} in XXIII with 13 _instances^ and,

even

more, in XXIII _B,

where

some

two

dozen

are

on

record. This

might

partly

depend on

the

more

or less free use Aelfric

made

of the Latin sources

which

were

at his _disposal. In the

works

translated

from

the Latin, in

fact, the periphrasis is

much

more

_frequently

used

than in

the

works

that are _original or _{partly original.}

Thus

in the

Blickling Homilies

which

are, as has

been

shown

by

Max

Forster \ a _very close translation

from

the Latin, there

'

Zu

are

no

fewer than

about

130 instances, a considerable

num-ber of

which

occur in Horn. XIII,

where

we

find the

peri-phrasis

on

almost every line. In the

Old

_{English Homilies}

there are 26,

which

is _certainly

no

_great

number

for a

book

of that size.

As

_regards the Genesis

and

Exodus

I

have

gone

through

the greater part of the text itself

and

the

whole

of _{the glossary,} with the

meagre

result _{of finding only}

two

examples.

The

instances are likewise very

few

in other

texts

belonging

to this _period:

The

_Life

of

Saint Katherine

and

_{Alfreds Proverbs}

have

_only

two

or three each.

These

texts,

however,

are rather short.

An

_exception

from

the general scantiness is afforded in the Vices

and

Virtues, with

36

instances of the _periphrastic form.

The

tense

which

is

most

often

met

with is the past,

while,

owing

to the narrative nature of

most

of the texts

concerned, the present is _{comparatively} scarce.

A.

Main

Uses.

1.

The

Present Tense.

(i) Defined.

The

function of the periphrasis is

sel-dom

_quite clear, unless it is _strengthened

by

time-defini-tions, which,

however,

is the case in _only a _very limited

number

of instances.

It then _expresses the actual _present in

some

cases

where

the definitions are 'nu' _(Ae. L. _{XVI, 217),} or *nu

gyt' (Ae. L. XXIII, 452),

which

even

more

emphasizes

the

present

moment.

Occasionally the

complement

lies in a

clause, as in V. a V. _47, 14

and

A. Pr. 40.

In other cases the definitions

employed

show

'that

the periphrasis implies duration, as in

O.

E. H. II, 175, 18

ENOUSH

examples.

Ae. L. I, 45. Symble he bid gyfende.

And

he ne wanad

swa-})aeh nan J)ing his.

—

_XVI, 217. and da _synd nu ealle on _{)am ecan wuldre

for heora _claennysse mid criste _wunigende.

—

_XXIII, 452, and decius se casere is nu _{gyt smeagende}

hwaet

we

gefaran habban.

O. E. H. II, 175, 18.

De

se is _{eure wagiende.}

—

21. pis wrecche woreld. J)at eure is _{wagiende noht} fra

stede to stede '. ac fro time to time.

V. a V. 21, 12.

To

alle do _halgen de hier on Hue waren

ibo-ren, and nu mid ure lauerde _{gode wunigende bied,} ic

clepie

—

_47, 14. ic de beseche and bidde dat tu dese halwende

lore on write sette, for dan ic

am

michel_penchinde dar hwile de ic on dese wrecche lichame

am

wuniende,

—

_137, 17.

Godd

is haure_fastinde.

—

31. For dan de _gode

mann

is niht and _{daig Jjeinkinde} hu he _muge gode icwemen, and him betst _hersumen;

alswa is dies beswikene

mann

niht and _daigpeinkinde

hwu

he _muge fellen [hjis ungesali beli mid swete metes

and drenches.

A. _{Pr. p. 40.} If hit so bi-tyde}),

pzt pu bern ibidest,

J)e hwile hit is _Intel,

ler _{him mon-pewes;}

|)anne hit is _wexynde, hit schal wende par-to;

J)e betere hit schal iwurj>e

euer buuen eorpe.

Remarks.

Ae. L. I, 45.

Here

the expression involves an idea of

recurrence.

O.

E.

H.

11, 175, 18. Translated

from

the Latin

'Mare

semper

est in motu'.

(ii)

Undefined.

In the majority of the

examples found

the tense occurs

by

itself,

and

the function of the

9

form, as, for instance, in Ae. L. I,

49

and

in

O.

E. H. II,

175, 25.

Here

the

extended

tense

seems

to

be

called into existence _chiefly

by

virtue of _{the durative or rather} pro-gressive character of the verbs in _{question ('creopende'}

and

'fleonde' _{respectively).}

Rather often the _participle

approaches

an _adjective

in

meaning:

Ae. L. I, 131; Ae. L. XVI, 293; Ae. L.

XXXIV,

114; V. a V. _15, 23; V. a V. 137, 6; here the periphrasis

seems

to denote absolute duration. In the last

example

one

might

_{also say} that it stands instead of the indefinite

present, according to

modern

notions: _{the translation 'helps}

much'

is the correct

one

to render the

meaning

of the

Middle

_{English expression} Ms

— —

swiSe

_helpinde'.

Thus,

on

the _whole,

one

must

say that

where

it

stands _{undefined, the present periphrastic very}

seldom

de-notes the actual _present in the

same

strict sense as

we

have

it in

Modern

_English; a

few

_examples,

however,

might

be

singled out as fairly

good

specimens: Ae. L.

V, 417;

O.

E. H. I, 43; V. a V. 21, 3; V. a V. 95, 3;

V. a V. _107, 8. _Note,

however,

that the verbs

employed

here, 'eardigende'

and

'wunigende', are

by

nature durative.

Examples.

Ae. L. I, 49.

Da

gesceafta pe paes an scyppend gesceop

syn-den _{maenig-fealde.} and misiices hiwes. and lingeltce farad. .

Sume

syndan creopende on eordan. mid

eallum lichoman. swa swa wurmas dod.

Sume

gad on

twam

fotum. sume on feower fotum.

—

—

.

Sume

fleod

mid _fyderum. sume orpflodum svimmad.

—

131.

And

swa styrigende is seo sawul. t>aet

—

—

—

176.

Heo

is _{unge-saewenlic.} and un-lichomlic. butari haefe

and butan bleo. mid

pam

lichaman _befangen. and on

eallum limuni wunigende.

—

V, 417. Ic

me

_gebidde to

dam

gode. |>e bid eardigende on heofonum.

and Oder is halwende _paet is _t>aet se

man

for

his _{synnum geunrotsige.}

Ae. L. XXIII B, 244. god sy gebletsod se de is sawla haelu

tiligende;

—

227.

De

_gedafenad abbud Zosimus to biddenne and to bletsigenne. forpan pu eart underwreded mid{)aere

sacerd-lican lare. and j>u eart tellende cristes gerynu mid |)am

gyfum |)aera godcundlican

—

_XXXIV, 114.

We

_{habbad cyne-helmas} halige mid us

scinende swa swa rose, and snaw-hwite

swa swa lilie.

{)a {)U ne miht geseon peah [)e hiscinende

beon.

O. E. H. I, 43. ah prud heo wes swide and modi, andligereand

swikel. andwredful andontful. andfordi heo bidwuniende

inne pisse pine.

—

95.

On

culfre onlicnesse and on fures heowe wes godes

gast isceawed. fordon {)et he ded pa pe beod bilehwite.

and wid-utan ufelnesse. and birnende _{on godes} willan.

—

_{II, 175, 25.}

He

is_fleondealseshadewe and nestontneure

on one stede.

V. a V. 15, 23. de deade man[n]es Jjruh, pe is widuten ihwited,

and wid-inne stinkende and full of wernies.

—

21, 3.

To

_§eu ic _clepige iec de bied _wuni^ende mid

gemaneliche hlauerde gode,

—

_{35, 28.}

He

wissed des mannes idang[c] de he to-cumd,

Oder durh _halige writes oder durh hali sermuns, pe he

him durh sume wise

manne

de he is_{inne wuniende,}sant.

—

37, 32. §if du wilt sikerliche wunigen on karite and on

gode, panne do du alswa

we

hit a boke finden iwriten,

J)at is, dat tu mid rihte _geleaue and mid faste hope and

mid sode luue bie werchinde dat god de du iliefst.

—

57, 11.

To

sume

menu

hie

cumd

and fard, and mid

sume

men

hie is _{wunende, and on swide feawe}

menu

hie is rixende.

On

da manne de hie is rixende, J)is [is]

de tacne: al swo de woreld-mann lihtliche _{lei[c]hed of}

ydelnesse de he isiedt)der iherd, al swadegastliche

mann

de hie on rixed, lihtliche

wepd

oder sobbed,

—

59, 14. godes milsce last aeuremo (to) alle do mannen de

him bied dradinde,

—

_75, 16. and wite du te sode, bute du him bie hier

tei-dinde hwat swa hit de ratt to donne: danne du cumst

, danne du art itwamd fram dine lichame, hit te

V. a V. 75, 22. Diuicie si affluant, nolite cor apponere,

*Worl-des eihte, gif hie is swide rixinde to deward, ne do du

naht dine herte derto,

—

_95, 3. Carited arist _up fram de grundwalle, and beclepd

all de wouh, (and) alle de bied in do hali huse wuni-ende;

—

_95, 11. For di he bitt _{dat pais bie aider} on licame and on saule, and dat pies hali mihtesibsumnessebierixende

on _geu bade;

—

_{95, 23.} ic

am

on muchele aruednesses, on hungre and on

durste(s), on wacches and on swinkes, and on mani5e(s) kennes wrecchades, sori and sorhfull, woninde and

we-pinde.

—

_101, 14. _§if ani _cum|) and bri[nlg|j tidinges of

idelne(s)-ses, and is _spekende sotwordes de aroered _up hleitres,

none wunienge ne haue he mid de,

—

_107, 8. Dies ilche _hali§e mihte, hie is tur and strengpe

to alle do mihte(s) de dar inne bied wuni^ende,

—

_{133, 24.} f>at is, dat he wordliche him loki mid alle hise

lemes of his likame. Hise _ei§ene, {)at hie ne bien to swide gawrinde hider and geond; }jo earen, dat hie blide-liche ne hlesten ydelnesses,

—

—

—

_137, 6.

To

alle do nedes de

mann

hafd to donne {)anne

is _([)es)e hali mihte swide helpinde.

Remarks.

Ae. L. I, 49. It is scarcely possible to perceive

any

difference in

meaning

between

the _periphrastic tense _{'syndan creopende'}

and

the _simple

forms

'ga6', 'fleoQ'

and 'swimmad'.

—

176. 'Heo' _{applies to *seo} sawul'.

O.

E. H. 11, 175, 25. 'Qui fugitvelut

umbra

et '.

It is not _impossible that the adverb 'neure' in

the

second

clause has

been

felt as an

equiva-lent to

an

'eure' in the first,

and

thus has

brought

the periphrasis into use there.

V. a V. 57, 11.

Here

_{the periphrasis} is _{very happily}

chosen, according to

modern

notions, to

mark

Ms rixende'

—

it is

concerning God's

_grace

—

as

opposed

to 'curnd

and

far5'. This _stylistic

nicety,

however,

may

have

been

far

from

the author's

mind

:

we

find Ms rixende'

and

'on

ri-xed'

by

the side of

one

another

and under

the

same

_conditions, i. e. without

any

difference of

meaning

being perceptible.

Thus

the

appearance

of _{the periphrasis}

would seem

to

be

rather

arbi-trary.

V. a V. _59, 14.

The

extended

tense

might

here,

perhaps,

be

considered to _{imply a constancy,} a

frame of mind.

—

_75, 22. It is _possible that 'affluant' has

been

felt to

be

a verb of a

marked

_progressive

cha-racter,

perhaps

with

some

nuance

of _intensity also _(note the addition _'swide'),

and

thus the

extended form

has

been

considered as the

most

apt to

convey

this idea.

—

_95, 23.

Here

I consider the _{participles to}

be

of

an adjectival nature (note also that they are co-ordinated with real _{adjectives): the periphrasis}

denotes a habit, almost verging

on

a quality.

—

_133, 24.

Observe

_{the alternating} occurrence of periphrastic

and

simple forms: 'bien

—

—

gaw-rinde', 'hlesten'.

2.

The

Past

Tense.

(i) Defined. This tense occurs

more

often with defini-tions of time than without.

These

may

consist of

tempo-ral adverbs or adverbial _{expressions, indicating} either _point

or

_length of time.

As

examples

of the former _category,

which might

15

O.

E. H. I,

225

Cl^a ),

O.

E. H. 11, 3 ('on elche of })ese

|)rie times').

For

the latter,

which

rather represents an action or

a state _{of things as}

going on

_{for a certain time,}

and might

be

called _{qualified duration,}

we

have

many

more

_examples^

of

which

1

mention

Chr. A. 871

('oj) niht'), Chr. C.

1066

fMange

on

dseg'), Chr. E.

1100

('aefre'), Ae. L.

XX,

125

C3rittig geara'), Ae. L. XXIII,

493

('aefre'), Ae. L. XXlll B,

577

_(Mange'), V. a V. 51, 5 ('})rie

and

j)rihti wintre

and an

half).

The

complements,

as

may

be

seen _above, may-denote _perpetuity ('aefre'), or limited duration \ either in

more

general terms (Mange

on

daeg'. Mange') or else

by

distinct

statements _{('drittig geara', 'prie}

and

_Jjrihti wintre

and an

half).

Occasionally, according to the nature of the

comple-ments, it is _{hardly possible} to decide

whether

point

or

length of time is _{meant, as,} for _instance, in Chr. E. 1104,

where

'to _{Jjysan timan'}

may

be

rendered either

by

'at this time' _{or 'during} this time'.

Often

enough

the definition lies in a _separate clause,,

more

or less

connected

with the clause

where

we

have

the periphrasis. Here, at least in

many

_cases,

we

can

distin-guish

between

actuality

and

limited duration.

The

former

category I find _represented in Ae. L. _XVIII, 421; Ae. L.

XXIII, 584;

O.

E. H. I, 89; V. a V. 149, 12; the latter in

Chr. A. 755; Ae. L.

XXXVII,

_4;

O.

E. H. _II, 33

and

131.

In all these _cases,

we

have

to

do

with

an

'oddaet'-or

a

'forte _{J^at'-clause,}

and

here the action is _sometimes, as in

1 _{The terms}

1 _employ to _designate the main uses of the defi-nite tenses are these: 1, _actuality, e. g. and decius se casere is nu

gyt smeagende hwaet

we

gefaran habban. (Ae. L. _{XXIII, 452.).}

2. _{qualified duration, comprising: (a)} perpetuity, e. _g.

Godd

is haure fastinde. (V. a V. _{137, 17.); (b)} limited duration, e. _{g. fa} waes he

Chr. A. _{755, represented} as

going

on

until a certain result

is reached.

In

some

instances

we

find a

combination

of adverbial

and

clause to _{strengthen the force of the periphrasis, as} in Chr. A. 755 _(p. 48, 9); Chr. A. 855; Ae. L. XXI, 270; Ae. L. XXIII _B,

45

and

803.

On

the _whole, it

may

be

said that,

where

the

defini-tion is an

adverb

or

an

adverbial _{expression, the}

periphra-sis _{implies qualified duration} in

by

far _{the greatest}

number

of the instances found, but that,

when

the definition is a clause, the

two

categories actuality

and

limited duration

are

on

a balance with each other.

Examples.

Chr. A. 755 _(p. 48, 4). and hie alle on pone Cyning wcerun

feohtende o[) paet hie hine ofslaegenne haefdon;

[E: and he ealle on done ciningfeohtende wceron. o6pet

hig hine ofslaegen haefdon.]

—

A. 755 _(p. 48, 9). Ac hie simle feohtende waeran of) hie

alle _{laegon butan anuni Bryttiscum gisle,}

—

A. 755 (p. 48, 26). and hie pa

ymb

pa gatu feohtende waeron _op paet hie paer inne fulgon,

—

A. 855 (p. 66, 8). and py ilcan _geare ferde to

Rome

mid

micelre weorpnesse, and paer was .Xii.

monap

wuniende,

and _pa him

ham

weard for,

IE:

And

py ilcan _geare ferde to

Rome

mid mycclum

wurdscipe. and paer wunade .Xii. monad, and he feng to

Karles dohter Francna cining pa he hamweard waes.]

—

A. 871 _{(p. 70, 28).} and onfeohtende waeron op niht."

—

C. 918 (p. 105, 25). Ac swide hraedlicepaesde hi paes

ge-worden haefde heo gefor .Xii. nihtun ser middan sumera.

binnan

Tama

weorpige dy eahtopan geare paes de heo

Myrcna anweald mid riht hlaforddome healdende waes.

—

C. 1066 _(p. 198, 23). and hi paer togaedere fengon. and

swyde heardiice lange on daegfeohtende waei-on.

—

D. 1052 _{(p. 175, 15).} t>a waes Eadward cyng on

Oleaw-cestre sittende.

PAST TENSE

Englaland ge Normandige. I)is geaxode. he ferde into

Englalande

Chr. E, 1098. ToforanseeMichaeles maessan aetywde seo heofon

swilce heo for neah ealle j»a niht byrnende waere.

—

E. 1100 (p. 235, 21). and Imrh yfelra manna raedas pe

him aefre

gecweme

waeran. and j)urh his agene gitsunga.

he aefre pas leode mid here and mid ungylde tyrwigende

waes.

—

E. 1104 (p. 239, 21). Nis eade to asecgenne |)ises landes earmda pe hit to _|)ysan timan dreogende waes.

Ae. L. _XIII, 147.

Wei

we magon

gedencan hu wel hit ferde

mid lis.

|)a(Ja |)is igland waes wunigende on sibbe.

—

_{XVIII, 421.} Isaias se witega waes awaegfarande.

ac _god hine gecyrde pus him eft _secgende.

Gecyr to ezechian

—

XX, 125. pry suna he gestrynde. and hi siddan buta

drittiggeara waeron wunigendebutan haemede.

and fela aelmyssan worhton. od pact se wer

ferde

to munuclicere drohtnunge.

—

_XXI, 1.

ON

EADGARES

DAOUM D^S

^DELAN

CYNINCGES.

i)ADA

se cristendom waes wei deonde purh

god

on angel-cynne

—

—

|)a geswutelode god

— —

—

270. pa. waes he seofon mondas wunigende swa blind.

andhis hlyst naefde.oppaethemidgeleafanferde

to j>am halgan swydune.

— —

—

_{XXIII, 220.} and swa oft swa he into daere byrigcode, he

hine on waedlan _hywe aeteowde. and dearnunga waes

smeagende hu hit on daes caseres hirede ferde.

—

493. and aefre he him waes onsittende paet hine

sum man

gecneowe.

—

584.

Da

he pus waes to

heom

_sprecende. and swa

hre-owlice his ceap gedrifan haefde. hi sona ealle _up stodon.

—

621. and aefre waes his uneadnys wexende.

—

717.

Da

malchus pas word gehyrde pese portgerefahim

swa hetelice waes tosprcecende. he ofdraed sloh adun paer-rihte.

—

801. he aras pa of _{paere flora,} and of

pam

wacan saecce

pe he lange on-uppan dreorig waes sittende. and he

EARLY MIDDLE ENGLISH

Ae. L. XXIII _B, 45. swa he sylf saede Zosimus. \ixthesylfwaere

fram |>am modorlicum beordrum on {>3et mynster befaest.

and o\) [)aet |>reo and fiftigde gear he waes \tXT on |>am regole drohtnigende. and aefter _|)ysum he _{waes gecnyssed}

fram

sumum

gepancum.

—

50. and he waes |)us sprecende. hwaeder aenig

munuc

on

eordan sy. f)asandpysum gelicum him {)encendum,

him aet-stod

sum

_engel. and him to cwaed.

— —

—

415.

Ac

swilce

me

hwilc _{Strang meniu ongean} stode.

J)aet

me

pone ingang beluce. swa

me

seo faerh"ce godes

wracu J)a duru bewerede;

Odde

ic eft standende on paes

temples cafertune waes.

—

562. and pus ic_{seofontyne geare rynum}on maenig-fealdum

frecednyssum swa swa ic aer cwaed. winnende waes on

eallum _{pingum op pisne} andweardan daeg and

me

on fultunie waes. and mine wisan reccende seo _{halige godes}

cennestre.

—

577. pus ic _{waes lange} on _{maenig-fealdum.} and mislicum

nydpearfnyssum. and on unmaetum costnungum winnende.

and wraxligende.

—

803. and ] Zosimus on

pam

mynstre waes drohtnigende.

an hund wintra. and _pa to drihtne hleorde.

—

XXV,

728. lonathas

wunode

on _wurdmynte da lange.

and cynegas hine wurdodon mid

wordum

and _gifum.

and he sige geferde on

manegum

gefeohtum.

and aefre waes winnende embe godes willan.

—

_XXXI, 28. His

mod

waes _swa-peah aefre

embe

_mynstru

smeagende.

—

_XXXVII, 4.

&

he on cristes lare

wel _peonde waes. oddaet he weard ge-hadod

to halgum diacone.

O. E, H. 1, 89. Bat halie hired cristesapostlesweren wuniende

edmodliche on heore ibeoden on _{ane upflore}

— —

pa on _})isse deie

com

ferliche muchel swei of heofne

—

225.

Adam

_pa wes wniende on peses life mid _geswince.

—

II, 3.

Men

pe waren wunende on elche of pese prietimes

wisten gerne after ure lauerd ihesu cristes tocume alse

we

dod.

—

31.

On

_pe niht and on pe time. l>eure lafdiseinte marie kennede of holie lichame ure louerd ihesu crist. were

herdes wakiende bi side _{pe buregh} and wittende here

oref.

I?

forte pat ilke time '. pat ure louerd ihesu crist

hem

_t)arof

aredde.

O. E.H. II,51.J)atisraelisshe folc waswalkende towardierusalem on swinche. and on drede. and on wanrede and _|)o wile

was hersum godes hese.

—

51.

Ac

efter _|>an |)e hie weren wuniende in

ierusa-lem.

—

—

. _|)0 hie forleten godes lore.

—

131. for he nolde noht turnen ut of _{J)e hege} weie. ne of

|)e rihte pades.

— —

. and was _|)er-one werchende. and

farende. for to p^^. he [com] to de ende pat is eche lif.

147, and on _pis reuliche wei hie weren walkinde forte pat hie comen to pe lichamh'che deade.

V. a V. 51, 5. Dies ilke hlauerd lesus Crist, he was her on

dese Hue _{wuni^ende prie} and prihti wintre and an half

mang

senfulle _mannen,

—

_55, 1.

On

da time de hie was hier on Hue libbende,

hit was iwriten: Maledicta _sterilis,

—

_67, 25. an riche _iungman

cam

to Crist be do _daigen de he hier lichamliche was wuniende, and seide: Quid

faciam,

—

—

—

_149, 12. Hit seid in Vitas _patrum dat at sume salwaren de hali faderes _to-gedere igadered, and waren spekinde

bitwen

hem

on (h)williche wise

me

mihte rihtist and

sikerest to _{gode cumen.}

Sum

sade: -

—

Da

sade on

of da eldest

—

—

Remarks.

Ae. L. _XXIII, 220. *waes

smeagende' marks

what

he

was

actually

engaged

in at each of his visits to the

town.

Here

the sense of _incompletion is

especially prominent:

no

definite result is

thought

of.

The

_periphrasis

might

also

be

considered to involve a _slight

shade

of iteration: a

comprehen-sion of several _single acts.

Compare

the _simple

form

_'aeteowde',

which

denotes a _single act

completed.

—

_{801. 'waes} sittende'

=

Modern

_English 'had

been

sitting'.

—

XXIII _{B, 415.} 'standende waes'

may

perhaps be

EARLY MIDDLE ENGLISH

correctly rendered

by

'found myself standing'.

The

extended

tense

seems

to indicate that the idea of result

should

be

linked _{together with}

that of duration.

V. a V. _140, 12. This

example

_might, in

some

way,

be

compared

with Ae. L. _XXIII, 220: 'waren spekinde'

comprehends

the utterances of each speaker

('Sum

sade:

— —

',

which

appears

more

than _once.)

The

discussion is _represented as

brought

to a kind of close

by

'Da sade

—

—

'.

(ii)

Undefined.

When

undefined, the periphrasis is in

some

cases _very

vague

in

meaning

_according to

modern

notions: that is to _say,

we

should here

sooner

_expect the

indefinite tense

nowadays:

Chr. E. _{1086; Ae.} L. Ill, 566;

Ae. L. _{VI, 131;} Ae. L.

XXV,

_276; V. a V. 41, 17; L.

o

St. K. 64;

G.

a E. 2741. It

may

be observed

that the

verb in all these instances is _'wunigende'.

In other cases the _{participle partakes of}

an

_adjectival

nature, as in Ae. L. XXIII, 702; Ae. L. XXIII _{B, 90;}

O.

E.

H.

II, 119

and

L.

o

St. K. 1353.

Apart

from

these

two

groups,

however,

one

may

certainly hold that the past periphrastic, even

when

it

occurs

without

definitions, has, to a considerable extent, the

same

functions as in

Modern

_English: it _expresses that

an

action or a state of _things

was

going

on

under

spe-cial _{circumstances,} these _{being indicated,}

more

or less directly, in the context.

The

following

may

be

considered

as _especially

good

examples:

Ae. L. _VII, 67

and

421, Ae.

L. XXIII _{B, 187;} Ae. L.

XXV,

_423;

O.

E.

H.

I, 41

and

93.

Examples.

Beow. 159. _(ac se) jegl«ca ehtende waes,

19 Beow. 3028.

Swa

se _{secg hwata secggende} waes

ladra spella;

Chr, E. 994. and aet _nyxtan

naman

heom

hors. and ridon swa

wide swa hi woldon. and _{unasecgendlice} yfel wircende

waeron.

—

E. 1086, Eala reowlic _{and wependlic}tidwaes {)aes geares.

{)e swa manig ungelimp waes fordbringende.

Ae. L. Ill, 566.

AN

ae{)ele laece waes _{wunigende on {laere byrig.}

lOSEP

_gehaten.

—

_VI, 131. Se _[)egn waes _wunigende butan wifes neawiste.

—

_VII, 67. _^a cunnodan laecas hwi _{he licgende} waere.

—

421. and _{cristen-dom waes peonde.} and _{pa halgan} wurdon

gecydde.

—

_XVI, 161. fordan |)e he mid sodfaestnysse ne sohte pone

haelend.

ac _foxunga waeron _{wunigende on} him.

—

_XXI, 444.

—

—

se tima waes _gesaelig

and

wynsum

on _{angel-cynne. pa} da eadgar cynincg

pone cristen-dom ge-fyrdrode. and fela

munuclifa araerde.

and his _{cynerice waes wunigende on} sibbe.

—

_{XXIII, 702. syddan}

dyllic feoh waesfarende on eordan.

—

823. and for j)aere micelan biysse synderlice he

weop

ofer aelcne. and his _{heorte waes fcegnigende.}

—

XXIII B, 32. Das wisan he ealle on him hcebbendewaes.

and he naefre fram

pam

_{smeagungum haligra gewrita} his

mod

awenda

—

90. ac paet an waes swidost fram

heom

eailum geefst. paet heora aelc waere on lichaman dead, and on gaste

libbende;

—

141. _aeghwilc on his _{agenum ingehyde} mid him sylfum

habbende waes. his _{agenes geswinces gewitnysse hwaet}he wyrcende waes. and hwiicra _geswinca saede sawende.

—

177. i)a wisan _{Zosimus georne} behealdende waes.

—

187.

He

witodUce hireW3dsehtende. and heo

wxs

fleonde;

—

XXV,

276. and his_{feower gebrodra him fylston anraedlice}

and ealle da pe waeron wunigende mid his faeder.

—

423. and sloh da haedenan

od paet hi oncneowon paet se cena iudas

him _{wid-feohtende} waes.

—

XXX,

8. Nacodehe_scrydde.and swaic_{sodlice secge.}ealle

Ae. L.

XXX,

445. _forpam ge waeron winnende on godan life, and _ge waeron for-pyldiende maenig-fealde cos[t]nunga.

and swa-peah naeron ofer-swi|)de.

Cumad

nu on _sybbe.

—

_XXXI, 622. cwaed eac paet nan

man

naere fram him

ofslagen

buton

pam anum

pe himonfeohtende waeron.

—

1283.

— —

ac he ne ablan na swa-peah.

mid seofon-nihte faestene him _fore

to-pingi-ende.

od-paet he beget paes pe he biddende waes.

—

_XXXIII, 7. and heo pa daeghwamlice hire_speda

pearfen-dum

daelde. and gelomlice heo cyrcan sohte. and mid

halsungum god waes biddende paet

— —

XXXIV,

76. _{^a cyne-helmas} waeron wundorlice scinende

on _{rosan readnysse.} and on lilian _hwitnysse.

—

XXXV,

84. Polemius pa sona sende his _frynd

to

pam

maedene darian and micclum waes

biddende

paet

O. E. H.1,41. Mihhaleodebi-foren and pascawede mihhal

to _{sancte paul} pa wrecche sunfulle pe per were wuniende

93.

Nu

eft on _{pisse deie} purh pes halie gastes to-cume 1

weren alle _{ispechen agein} inumen. and isomeifordon pet

cristes _{apostlas weren specende} mid alle _spechen.

—

95. fordon _pet he wes dreihninde on pissere worldemid bilehwitnesse. and

—

—

. for he ne remde ne of bitere

speche nes.

—

95. fordon \>t he dude pet heo weren birnendeon godes willan. and bodiende

umbe

godes riche.

II, 119. ec hie him segen on fures hewe al ich er seide.

and weren perof wallinde on sodere luue godes and mannen.

V. a V. 41, 17. du aust te _folgin dane _riht[t]wise and onfald

lob, de was wuni^ende on dare woreld mid wiue and

mid children,

L. o St. K. 64, In _{pis ilke} burh wes

wuniende a meiden

—

1353. 't berninde as he wes

of _grome 't of teone,

bed bringen o brune

an ad amidden pe burh;

G. a E. 2741. _Raguel letro flat riche _man.

Was

wuniende in madian,

PAST TENSE

Remarks.

Beow.

3028. This occurs after a rather _lengthy

ha-rangue,

and

it

may

be

that the periphrasis can

be

ascribed to a certain idea _{of duration,} viz.

with a

view

to the time the warrior

took

to

deliver his _speech.

Ae. L. _XXI, 444.

The

translation _given in the edition used, 'and his

kingdom

continued in _peace'

exactly renders the

meaning.

XXHI,

702.

The

translation of the edition is

'since the like

money

was

current

on

the earth'.

—

XXIIl _B, 32. 'haebbende waes' is _indirectly de-fined

by

'naefre' in the next clause.

—

XXX,

8.

The

context

shows

that 'waes daelen-de' _applies to several occasions: *he

used

to

— —

', *it

was

his habit to

—

—

'.

—

XXXI,

622.

The

translation _given here:

*—

—

no

man

had been

slain

by

him

save _{those only}

who

were _fighting against him' is not _quite

accurate.

The

context leads

me

to _prefer:

'who

had

been _{fighting' (on} a certain occasion or perhaps rather

on

several different occasions dur-ing his former lifej.

—

_XXXIII, 7.

The

_periphrasis

seems

to _imply

a

certain idea of _intensity: note the

complement

'mid halsungum',

and

the coordination with the

iterative _{expressions 'daeghwamlice}

— —

daelde'

and

_'gelomlice

— —

sohte'.

—

XXXV,

84.

Here

also an intensive

meaning

seems

to

be

intended: 'micclum'.

O.

E.

H.

I, Q3.

There

is

an

indirect definition in

'Nu

eft

on

_})isse deie' in the first clause.

EARLY MIDDLE ENGLISH

worlde' is here _{equivalent to}

an

adverbial of time:

'during his

whole

life'.

O.

E.

H.

I. 95. _'birnende', 'bodiende'.

The

first

par-ticiple is here adjectival (^=: _{burning, zealous),}

and

'bodiende'

may

be

considered to share in this idea in so far that it denotes a constant

habit.

L.

o

St. K. 64. _[H]ac in

urbe

Alexandrinorum

erat

quedam

puella,

—

—

Thus

*erat' is rendered

by *wes

wuniende'.

—

1353. 'berninde as

he

wes

—

—

'.

The

Latin

has: _{furiis agitatus}

accenso

in

medio

civitatis

vehementissimo

igne. jussit

—

—

.

Additional Remarl<.

In _Aelfric's Lives

of

Saints a

few

instances of the past periphrastic occur,

where

we

should

now

use either

the perfect or the pluperfect.

These

compound

tenses

were

not _fully

developed

in

Old

English,

nor

in the earlier _{part of the}

Middle

_English

period,

and

they did not occur at all in _{the periphrastic}

conjugation.

Thus

it

may

be

_{explained that,} in case the idea of duration or _progression

was

attached to the

mean-ing of

an

expression, or if the verb in _question

was

felt

to

possess

this _{character, the past periphrastic}

might

occa-sionally

be

chosen.

We

have

_already noted

two

instances;

he

aras J)a of J)aere flora,

and

of Jjam

wacan

saecce })e

he

lange

on-uppan

dreorig wees sittende.

and

he

{)ancode

gode

aelmihtigum.

(Ae. L. XXIII, 801), and:

cwaed

eac {)aet

nan

man

naere

fram

him

_ofslagen

buton

_{)am

anum

_{)e

him

_onfeohtende

wceron. _(Ae. L.

XXXI,

_622). In the first of these

two

in-stances, at _least, the

extended

_past

corresponds

_{exactly to}

IMPERATIVE

AND

INFINITIVE

23

In the _{following examples,}

however,

Modern

English

would

sooner

_prefer

an

indefinite _perfect or pluperfect.

Ill, 113. I)a stod se haelend sylf. aet \>am halgan weofode.

and mid his halgum handum. husel senode.

and

Vam

bisceope tahte. j)aes pehe biddende

waes.

XII, 177. Eft ne mot nan

mann

ne ne sceal _{secgan on} hine

sylfne paes de he wyrcende naes.

XII, 243.

Nu

ge habbad gehyred J)aet ge forhelen ne sceolan

eowre _agenne synne ne eac secgan na mare

ponne ge wyrcende waeron.

XXIII, 210.

Da

hi dus sprecende waeron seofon da gecorenan

halgan. |)a sealdon hi

heom

faestnunge betweonan. J)aet hi ealle J)is woldon healdan.

XXIII, 386. Dyllice halige word, and ungerime odre de on halgum

bocum

synd awritene. _{pact god} aelmihtig

maenig-fealdlice. _ge durh his _{witegan. ge purh} hine sylfne. and

be daera _martyra aeriste _{waes sprecende.}

The

translations of these

examples

_given in the edi-tion

—

which

I consider to

be

_perfectly correct

—

are

the _following:

III, 113. 'and instructed the bishop in that for which he

had

prayed'.

XII, 177. 'nor ought he to _{say, respecting} himself, such [things] as he hath not donef

XII, 243. 'neither say any more than ye have done,*

XXIII, 210. 'When they had thus spoken, , they gave

each other '

XXIII, 386. 'Such [are the] holy words and numberless others

which are written in holy books, which

God

Almighty,

in

many

ways, both by His prophets and byHimself,and concerning the resurrection of _{the martyrs,} had _spoken'

3.

The

Imperative

and

the

Infinitive.

In these

two

forms

of the periphrastic conjugation

we

note a strong durative force, occasionally further

In

most

_{cases they express} a habit or a

frame

of _mind, the

participle thus

assuming

a

more

or_{less adjectival}

meaning,

although the context

may

clearly

show

that it retains its full verbal force, as in Ae. L. _XXXIII,

314

and

V. a V.

121, 9,

where

there are objects attached to 'forgitende'

and

'rewsende' _{respectively.}

(i)

Examples

of the Periphrastic Imperative.

Ae. L. _XXXIII, 314. ne beo puforgitende t)inra efenJ)eowa.

O. E. H. I