Case, when applied to nouns and pronouns, means the different state, situation, or position they have in relation to other words. Nouns have three cases, the nominative, the possessive, and the objective.
I deem the essential qualities ofcase, in English, to consist, not in thechangesorinflectionsproduced on nouns and pronouns, but in the various offices which they perform in a sentence, by assuming different positions in regard to other words. In accordance with this definition, these cases can be easily explained on reasoning principles, founded in the nature of things.
Now, five grains of common sense will enable any one to comprehend what is meant by case. Its real character is extremely simple; but in the different grammars it assumes as many meanings as Proteus had shapes. The most that has been written on it, however, is mere verbiage. What, then, is meant bycase? In speaking of a horse, for instance, we say he is in a goodcase, when he is fat, and in a badcase, when he is lean, and needs more oats; and in this sense we apply the termcaseto denote thestateorconditionof the horse. So, when we place a noun before a verb as actor or subject, we say it is in thenominative case; but when it follows a transitive verb or preposition, we say it has anothercase; that is, it assumes a newpositionorsituationin the sentence: and this we call theobjectivecase. Thus, theboygathers fruit. Here the boy is represented asacting. He is, therefore, in thenominativecase. But when I say, Jane struck theboy, I do not represent the boy as theactor, but as theobjectof the action. He is, therefore, in a newcaseorcondition. And when I say, This is theboy'shat, I do not speak of the boy either asactingor asacted upon; but as possessing something: for which reason he is in thepossessivecase. Hence, it is clear, that nouns have three cases or positions.
As the nominative and objective cases of the noun are inseparably connected with the verb, it is impossible for you to understand them until you shall have acquired some knowledge of this part of speech. I will, therefore, now give you a partial description of the verb in connexion with the noun; which will enable me to illustrate the cases of the noun so clearly, that you may easily comprehend their nature.
In the formation of language, mankind, in order to hold converse with each other, found it necessary, in the first place, to givenamesto the various objects by which they were surrounded. Hence the origin of the first part of speech, which we denominate thenoun. But merely to name the objects which they beheld or thought of, was not sufficient for their purpose. They perceived that these objects existed, moved, acted, or caused some action to be done. In looking at a man, for instance, they perceived that he lived, walked, ate, smiled, talked, ran, and so on. They perceived that plants grow, flowers bloom, and rivers flow. Hence the necessity of another part of speech, whose office it should be to express these existences and actions. This second class of words we call
A verb is a word which signifies to BE, to DO, or to SUFFER; as, Iam; Irule; Iam ruled.
Verbs are of three kinds, active, passive, and neuter. They are also divided into regular, irregular, and defective.
The termverbis derived from the Latin wordverbum, which signifies aword. This part of speech is called averborword, because it is deemed the most important word in every sentence: and without a verb and nominative, either expressed or implied, no sentence can exist. The noun is the original and leading part of speech; the verb comes next in order, and is far more complex than the noun. These two are the most useful in the language, and form the basis of the science of grammar. The other eight parts of speech are subordinate to these two, and, as you will hereafter learn, of minor importance.
For all practical purposes, the foregoing definition and division of the verb, though, perhaps, not philosophically correct, will be found asconvenientas any other. I adopt them, therefore, to be consistent with the principle, that, in arranging the materials of this treatise, I shall not alter or reject any established definition, rule, or principle of grammar, unless, in my humble judgment, somepractical advantageto the learner is thereby gained. The following, some consider a good definition.
A VERB is a word whichexpresses affirmation.
Anactive verbexpresses action; andThenominative caseis the actor, or subject of the verb; as,John writes.
In this example, which is theverb?You know it is the wordwrites, because this word signifies todo;that is, it expressesaction, therefore, according to the definition, it is anactive verb. And you know, too, that the nounJohnis theactor, therefore John is in thenominative caseto the verb writes. In the expressions, The man walks—The boy plays—Thunders roll—- Warriors fight—you perceive that the wordswalks, plays, roll, andfight, areactive verbs;and you cannot be at a loss to know, that the nounsman, boy, thunders, andwarriors, are in thenominative case.
As noactioncan be produced without some agent or moving cause, it follows, that every active verb must have someactororagent. Thisactor, doer, orproducer of the action, is the nominative.Nominative, from the Latinnomino, literally signifies toname;but in the technical sense in which it is used in grammar, it means the noun or pronoun which is thesubjectof affirmation. This subject or nominative may beactive, passive, orneuter, as hereafter exemplified.
Aneuter verbexpresses neither action nor passion, butbeing, ora state of being; as,John sits.
Now, in this example,Johnis not represented asan actor, but, as thesubjectof the verbsits, therefore John is in thenominative caseto the verb. And you know that the wordsitsdoes not expressapparent action, but acondition of being;that is, it represents John in a particularstate of existence;thereforesitsis aneuter verb. In speaking of the neuter gender of nouns, I informed you, thatneutermeansneither;from which it follows, that neuter gender implies neither gender; that is, neither masculine nor feminine. Hence, by an easy transition of thought, you learn, thatneuter, when applied to verbs, means neither of the other two classes; that is, aneuterverb is one which is neither active nor passive. In these examples, The man stands—The lady lives—The child sleeps—The world exists—the wordsstands, lives, sleeps, andexists, areneuter verbs;and the nouns,man, lady, child, andworld, are all in thenominative case, because each is thesubjectof a verb. Thus you perceive, that when a noun is in the nominative case to anactiveverb, it is theactor;and when it is nominative to aneuterverb, it isnotan actor, but thesubjectof the verb.
Some neuter verbs expressbeing in general;as, The manis; Kingdomsexist. Others expressbeing in some particular state; as, The manstands, sits, lies, orhangs.
I will now give you twosigns, which will enable you to distinguish the verb from other parts of speech, when you cannot tell it by its signification. Any word that will make sense withtobefore it, is a verb. Thus, to run, to write, to smile, to sing, to hear, to ponder, to live, to breathe, are verbs. Or, any word that willconjugate, is a verb. Thus, I run, thou runnest, he runs; I write, thou writest, he writes; I smile, &c. But the words, boy, lady, child, and world, will not make sense withtoprefixed—toboy,tolady,toworld, is nonsense. Neither will they conjugate—I lady, thou ladiest, &c. is worse than nonsense. Hence you perceive, that these words arenotverbs. There are some exceptions to these rules, for verbs are sometimes used as nouns. This will be explained by and by.
To verbs belongnumber, person, mood, andtense.
At present I shall speak only of the number and person of verbs; but hereafter I will give you a full explanation of all their properties. And permit me to inform you, that I shall not lead you into theintricaciesof the science, until, by gradual and easy progressions, you are enabled to comprehend the principles involved in them. Only such principles will be elucidated, as you are prepared to understand at the time they are unfolded before you. You must not be too anxious to get alongrapidly; but endeavor to become thoroughly acquainted with one principle, before you undertake another. This lecture will qualify you for the next.
NUMBER AND PERSON OF VERBS. You recollect, that the nominative is theactororsubject, and the active verb is theactionperformed by the nominative. By this you perceive, that a very intimate connexion or relation exists between the nominative case and the verb. If, therefore, onlyonecreature or thing acts, onlyoneaction, at the same instant, can be done; as, Thegirl writes. The nominativegirlis here of the singular number, because it signifies but one person; and the verbwritesdenotes but one action, which the girl performs; therefore the verbwritesis of thesingularnumber, agreeing with its nominativegirl. When the nominative case isplural, the verb must beplural; as,girls write. Take notice, thesingularverb ends ins, but the noun is generallypluralwhen it ends ins; thus, The girlwrites—thegirlswrite.
Person, strictly speaking, is a quality that belongsnottoverbs, but to nouns and pronouns. We say, however, that the verb must agree with its nominative inperson, as well as in number; that is, the verb must be spelled and spoken in such a manner as to correspond with thefirst, second, orthirdperson of the noun or pronoun which is its nominative.
I will now show you how the verb is varied in order to agree with its nominative in number and person. I, Thou, He, She, It; We, Ye or You, They, arepersonal pronouns.Iis of thefirstperson, andsingularnumber;Thouissecondperson,sing.;He, She, orIt, isthirdper.sing.;Weisfirstper.plural;YeorYouissecondper.plural;Theyisthirdper.plural. These pronouns are the representatives of nouns, and perform the same office that the nouns would for which they stand. When placed before the verb, they are, therefore, thenominativesto the verb.
Notice particularly, the different variations or endings of the verb, as it is thus conjugated in the
This display of the verb shows you, that whenever it ends inest, it is of thesecondpersonsingular; but when the verb ends ins, oreth, it is of thethirdperson singular.Walkest, ridest, standest, are of the second person singular; andwalksorwalketh, ridesorrideth, standsorstandeth, are of the third person singular.
I have told you, that when the nominative is singular number, the verb must be; when the nominative is plural, the verb must be; and when the nominative is first, second, or third person, the verb must be of the same person. If you look again at the foregoing conjugation ofwalk, you will notice that the verb varies if its endings in thesingular, in order to agree informwith the first, second, and third person of its nominative; but in thepluralit does not vary its endings from the first person singular. The verb, however, agrees insensewith its nominative in the plural, as well as in the singular. Exercise a little mind, and you will perceive thatagreementandgovernmentin language do not consistmerelyin theformof words. Now, is it not clear, that when I say, Iwalk, the verb walk issingular, because it expresses butoneaction? And when I say, Two menwalk, is it not equally apparent, that walk isplural, because it expressestwoactions? In the sentence, Ten menwalk, the verbwalkdenotestenactions, for there are ten actors. Common sense teaches you, that there must be as manyactionsas there areactors; and that the verb, when it hasno formorendingto show it, is as strictly plural, as when it has.—So, in the phrase,Wewalk, the verb walk isfirstperson, because it expresses the actions performed by thespeakers: Yeoryouwalk, the verb issecondperson, denoting the actions of the personsspoken to;third person,Theywalk. The verb, then, when correctly written, always agrees, insense, with its nominative in number and person.
At present you are learning two parts of speech, neither of which can be understood without a knowledge of the other. It therefore becomes necessary to explain them both, in the same lecture. You have been already informed, that nouns have three cases; the nominative, the possessive, and the objective.
POSSESSIVE CASE. Thepossessive casedenotes the possessor of something; as, This isJohn'shorse. This expression implies, thatJohnis theownerorpossessorof the horse; and, that horse is thepropertywhich he possesses.
When I say, These are themen's, and those, theboys'hats, the two words, "boys' hats," plainly convey the idea, if they have any meaning at all, that the boysownorpossessthe hats. "Samuel Badger sellsboys'hats." Whoownsthe hats? Mr. Badger. How is that fact ascertained? Not by the words, "boys' hats," which, taken by themselves, imply, not that they areMr. Badger'shats, nor that they areforboys, but that they are hatsof, orbelonging to, orpossessed byboys. But weinferfrom thewords connectedwith the phrase, "boys' hats," that the boys are not yet, as the phrase literally denotes, in the actual possession of the hats. The possession is anticipated.
In the phrases,finehats,coarsehats,high-crownedhats,broad-brimmedhats,woollen, new, ten, some, these, manyhats, the words in italics, are adjectives, because they restrict, qualify, or define the termhats;but the termboys'does notdescribeor limit the meaning ofhats. Boys', therefore, is not, as some suppose, an adjective.
"Theslave'smaster." Does the slave possess the master? Yes. The slavehasa master. If hehashim, then, hepossesseshim;—he sustains that relation to him which we call possession.
A noun in the possessive case, is always known by its having an apostrophe, and generally ansafter it; thus,John's, hat; theboy'scoat. When a plural noun in the possessive case, ends ins, the apostrophe is added, but no additionals; as, "Boys'hats;Eagles'wings." When a singular noun ends inss, the apostrophe only is added; as, "Forgoodness'sake; forrighteousness'sake;" except the word witness; as, "Thewitness'stestimony." When a noun in the possessive case ends inence, thesis omitted, but the apostrophe is retained; as, "Forconscience'sake."
Now please to turn back, and read over this and the preceding lecturethreetimes, and endeavor, not only to understand, but, also, toremember, what you read. In reading, proceed thus: read one sentence over slowly, and then look off the book, and repeat it two or three times over in your mind. After that, take another sentence and proceed in the same manner, and so on through the whole lecture. Do not presume to think, that these directions are of no real consequence to you; for, unless you follow them strictly, you need not expect to make rapid progress. On the other hand, if you proceed according to my instructions, you will be sure to acquire a practical knowledge of grammar in a short time.—When you shall have complied with this requisition, you may commit the followingorder of parsing a noun, andthe order of parsing a verb; and then you will be prepared to parse or analyze the following examples.
Do you recollect the meaning of the wordanalysis?If you do not, I will explain if: and first, I wish you to remember, that analysis is the reverse of synthesis.Synthesisis the act of combining simples so as to form a whole or compound. Thus, in putting together letters so as to form syllables, syllables so as to form words, words so as to form sentences, and sentences so as to form a discourse, the process is called synthetic.Analysis, on the contrary, is the act of decomposition; that is, the act of separating any thing compounded into its simple parts, and thereby exhibiting its elementary principles. Etymology treats of the analysis of language. To analyze a sentence, is to separate from one another and classify the different words of which it is composed; and to analyze orparsea word, means to enumerate and describe all its various properties, and its grammatical relations with respect to other words in a sentence, and trace it through all its inflections or changes. Perhaps, to you, this will, at first, appear to be of little importance; but, if you persevere, you will hereafter find it of great utility, for parsing will enable you to detect, and correct, errors in composition.
Theorder of parsinga NOUN, is—a noun, and why?—common, proper, or collective, and why?—gender, and why?—person, and why?—number, and why?—case, and why?—RULE:—decline it.
The order of parsinga VERB, is—a verb, and why?—active, passive, or neuter, and why?—ifactive—transitive or intransitive, and why?—ifpassive—how is it formed?—regular, irregular, or defective, and why?—mood, and why?—tense, and why?—person and number, and why?—with what does it agree?—RULE:—conjugate it.
I will now parse two nouns according to the order, and, in so doing, by applying the definitions and rules, I shall answer all those questions given in the order. If you haveperfectly committedthe order of parsing a noun and verb, you may proceed with me; but, recollect, you cannot parse a verbin full, until you shall have had a more complete explanation of it.
John's hand trembles.
John'sis a noun, [because it is] the name of a person—proper, the name of an individual—masculine gender, it denotes a male—third person, spoken of—singular number, it implies but one—and in the possessive case, it denotes possession—it is governed by the noun "hand," according to
RULE 12.A noun or pronoun in the possessive case, is governed by the noun it possesses.
Declined—Sing. nom. John, poss. John's, obj. John. Plural—nom. Johns, poss. Johns', obj. Johns.
Handis a noun, the name of a thing—common, the name of a sort or species of things—neuter gender, it denotes a thing without sex—third person, spoken of—sing. number, it implies but one—and in the nominative case, it is the actor and subject of the verb "trembles," and governs it agreeably to
RULE 3.The nominative case governs the verb:—that is, the nominative determines the number and person of the verb.
Declined—Sing. nom. hand, poss. hand's, obj. hand. Plur. nom. hands, poss. hands', obj. hands.
Tremblesis a verb, a word which signifies to do—active, it expresses action—third person, singular number, because the nominative "hand" is with which it agrees, according to
RULE 4.The verb must agree with its nominative in number and person.
You must not say that the verb is of the third person becauseit is spoken of. The verb is never spoken of; but it is of the third person, and singular or plural number, because its nominative is.
Conjugated—First pers. sing. I tremble, 2 pers. thou tremblest, 3 pers. he trembles, or, the hand trembles. Plural, 1 pers. we tremble, 2 pers. ye or you tremble, 3 pers. they or the hands tremble.
Government, in language, consists in the power which one word has over another, in causing that other word to be in someparticular case, number, person, mood, ortense.
ILLUSTRATION.
RULE 3.The nominative case governs the verb.
If you employ the pronounI, which is of thefirstperson, singular number, as the nominative to a verb, the verb must be of the first pers. sing, thus, Ismile; and when your nominative issecondpers. sing, your verb must be; as, thou smilest. Why, in the latter instance, does the ending of the verb change toest? Because the nominative changes. And if your nominative isthirdperson, the verb will vary again; thus, he smiles, the man smiles. How clear it is, then, thatthe nominative governs the verb; that is, the nominative has power to change theformandmeaningof the verb, in respect to num. and person. Government, thus far, is evinced in theformof the words, as well as in the sense.
RULE 4.The verb must agree with its nominative in number and person.
It is improper to say, thouhear, the menhears. Why improper? Becausehearisfirstpers. and the nominativethouissecondpers.Hearsis singular, and the nom.menisplural. Rule 4th says,The verb must agree with its nominative. The expressions should, therefore, be, thou hearest, the menhear; and then the verb wouldagreewith its nominatives. Butwhymust the verb agree with its nominative? Why must we say, thou talkest, the man talks, mentalk? Because the genius of our language, and the common consent of those who speak it,requiresuch a construction: and thisrequisitionamounts to alaworrule. Thisrule, then, is founded inthe nature of things, and sanctioned bygood usage.
RULE 12.A noun or pronoun in the possessive case, is governed by the noun which it possesses.
It is correct to say, Themaneats,heeats; but we cannot say, themandog eats,hedog eats. Why not? Because the man is here represented as thepossessor, anddog, theproperty, orthing possessed; and the genius of our language requires, that when we add to the possessor, thethingwhich he is represented as possessing, the possessor shall take a particular form to show itscase, orrelation to the property; thus, Theman'sdog eats,hisdog eats. You perceive, then, that theaddednoun, denoting the thing possessed, has powerto change the formof the noun or pronoun denoting the possessor, according to RULE 12. thus, by adding dog in the preceding examples,manis changed toman's, andhe, tohis.
Now parse the sentence which I have parsed, until the manner is quite familiar to you; and then you will be prepared to analyze correctly andsystematically, the following exercises. When you parse, you may spread the Compendium before you; and, if you have not already committed the definitions and rules, you may read them on that, as you apply them. This mode of procedure will enable you to learnallthe definitions and rules by applying them to practice.
Rain descends—Rains descend—Snow falls—Snows fall—Thunder rolls—Thunders roll—Man's works decay—Men's labors cease—John's dog barks—Eliza's voice trembles—Julia's sister's child improves—Peter's cousin's horse limps.
In the next place, I will parse a noun and aneuterverb, which verb, you will notice, differs from an active only in one respect.
"Birds reposeon the branches of trees."
Birdsis a noun, the name of a thing or creature—common, the name of a genus or class—masculine and feminine gender, it denotes both males and females—third person, spoken of—plural number, it implies more than one—and in the nominative case, it is thesubjectof the verb "repose," and governs it according to RULE 3.The nominative case governs the verb. Declined—Sing. nom. bird, poss. bird's, obj. bird. Plural, nom. birds, poss. birds', obj. birds.
Reposeis a verb, a word that signifies tobe—neuter, it expresses neither action nor passion, but a state of being—third person, plural number, because the nominative "birds" is with which it agrees, agreeably to RULE 4.The verb must agree with its nominative in number and person.
Declined—1. pers. sing. I repose, 2. pers. thou reposest, 3. pers. he reposes, or the bird reposes. Plur. 1. pers. we repose, 2. pers. ye or you repose, 3. pers. they repose, or birds repose.
Now parse those nouns and neuter verbs that are distinguished byitalics, in the following
Thebook lieson the desk—Thecloak hangson the wall—Man's days arefew—Cathmor's warriors sleepin death—Caltho reposesin the narrow house—Jocundday standstiptoe on the misty mountain tops. Thesunbeams reston the grave where herbeauty sleeps.
You may parse these and the preceding exercises, and all that follow,five or six times over, if you please.
Theobjectivecase expresses the object of an action or of a relation. It generally follows a transitive verb, a participle, or a preposition.
A noun is in the objective case when it is theobjectof something. At present I shall explain this case only as the object of anaction; but when we shall have advanced as far as to the preposition, I will also illustrate it as the object of arelation.
An active verb istransitivewhen the action passes over from the subject or nominative to an object; as, RichardstrikesJohn.
Transitivemeanspassing. In this sentence the action of the verbstrikesistransitive, because itpasses overfrom the nominative Richard to the object John; and you know that the noun John is in theobjectivecase, because it isthe object of the actionexpressed by the active-transitive verb strikes. This matter is very plain. For example: Gallileo invented the telescope. Now it is evident, that Gallileo did not exert his powers of invention, without some object in view. In order to ascertain that object, put the question, Gallileo invented what? The telescope.Telescope, then, is the real object of the action, denoted by the transitive verb invented; and, therefore, telescope is in the objective case. If I say, The horsekicksthe servant—Carpentersbuildhouses—Ossianwrotepoems—ColumbusdiscoveredAmerica—you readily perceive, that the verbskick, build, wrote, anddiscovered, express transitive actions; and you cannot be at a loss to tell which nouns are in the objective case:—they areservant, houses, poems, andAmerica.
The nominative and objective cases of nouns are generally known by the following rule: the nominativedoes something; the objectivehas something done to it. The nominative generally comesbeforethe verb; and the objective,afterit. When I say, George struck the servant,Georgeis in the nominative, andservantis in the objective case; but, when I say, The servant struck George,servantis in the nominative case, andGeorgeis in the objective. Thus you perceive, thatCasemeans the different state or situation of nouns with regard to other words.
It is sometimes very difficult to tell the case of a noun. I shall, therefore, take up this subject again, when I come to give you an explanation of the participle and preposition.
Besides the three cases already explained, nouns are sometimes in the nominative caseindependent, sometimes in the nominative case absolute, sometimes in apposition in the same case, and sometimes in the nominative or objective case after the neuter tobe, or after an active-intransitive or passive verb. These cases are illustrated in Lecture X. and in the 21 and 22 rules of Syntax.
An active verb istransitive, when the action terminates on an object: but
An active verb isintransitive, when the action doesnotterminate on an object; as, Johnwalks.
You perceive that the verbwalks, in this example, isintransitive, because the action does not pass over to an object; that is, the action is confined to the agent John. The followingsignwill generally enable you to distinguish atransitiveverb from anintransitive. Any verb that will make sense with the wordsa thingora person, after it, istransitive. Try these verbs by the sign,love, help, conquer, reach, subdue, overcome. Thus, you can say, I lovea personorthing—I can helpa personorthing—and so on. Hence you know that these verbs are transitive. But an intransitive verb will not make sense with this sign, which fact will be shown by the following examples:smile, go, come, play, bark, walk, fly. We cannot say, if we mean to speak English, I smile apersonorthing—I goa personorthing:—hence you perceive that these verbs are not transitive, but intransitive.
If you reflect upon these examples for a few moments, you will have a clear conception of the nature of transitive and intransitive verbs. Before I close this subject, however, it is necessary farther to remark, that some transitive and intransitive verbs express what is called amentalormoralaction; and others, acorporealorphysicalaction. Verbs expressing the different affections or operations of the mind, denote moral actions; as, Brutuslovedhis country; Jameshatesvice; Webelievethe tale:—torepent, torelent, tothink, toreflect, tomourn, tomuse. Those expressing the actions produced by matter, denote physical actions; as, Thedog hearsthe bell; Virgilwrotethe Aenead; ColumbusdiscoveredAmerica;—tosee, tofeel, totaste, tosmell, torun, totalk, tofly, tostrike. In the sentence, Charlesresembleshis father, the verbresemblesdoes not appear to express any action at all; yet the construction of the sentence, and the office which the verb performs, are such, that we are obliged to parse it as anactive-transitiveverb, governing the nounfatherin the objective case. This you may easily reconcile in your mind, by reflecting, that the verb has adirect referenceto its object. The following verbs are of this character:Have, own, retain; as, Ihavea book.
Activeintransitive verbs are frequently madetransitive. When I say, The birdsfly, the verbflyisintransitive; but when I say, The boyfliesthe kite, the verbflyistransitive, and governs the nounkitein the objective case. Almost any active intransitive verb, and sometimes even neuter verbs, are used as transitive. The horsewalksrapidly; The boyrunsswiftly; My friendliveswell; The mandiedof a fever. In all these examples the verbs areintransitive; in the following they aretransitive: The manwalkshis horse; The boyrana race; My friendlivesa holy life; Let mediethe death of the righteous.
The foregoing development of the character of verbs, is deemed sufficiently critical for practical purposes; but if we dip a little deeper into the verbal fountain, we shall discover qualities which do not appear on its surface. If we throw aside the veil which art has drawn over the real structure of speech, we shall find, that almost every verb has either apersonalor averbalobject, expressed or implied. Verbal objects, which are theeffectsorproductionsresulting from the actions, being necessarily implied, are seldom expressed.
The fireburns. If the fire burns, it must burnwood, coal, tallow, or some other combustible substance. The manlaughs. Laughs what? Laughslaughterorlaugh. Theywalk; that is, They walk or takewalks. Rivers flow (move or rollthem-selvesor theirwaters) into the ocean.
"Isingthe shadyregionsof the west."
"Andsmilethewrinklesfrom the brow of age."
The childwept itselfsick; and then, by taking (orsleeping) a shortnap, itslept itselfquiet and well again. "He will soonsleephis everlastingsleep"; that is, "He willsleepthesleepof death."
Thinkers thinkthoughts; Talkers talk or employwords, talk,orspeeches; The rain rainsrain. "Upon Sodom and Gomorrah the Lordrained fireandbrimstone." "I mustgothe wholelength." "I shall soongothewayof all the earth."
Now please to turn back again, and peruse this lecture attentively; after which you may parse, systematically, the following exercises containing nouns in the three cases, and active-transitive verbs.
The printerprintsbooks.
Printsis a verb, a word that signifies to do—active, it expresses action—transitive, the action passes over from the nominative "printer" to the object "books"—third pers. sing. numb. because the nominative printer is with which it agrees.
RULE 4.The verb must agree with its nominative case in number and person.
Declined—1. pers. sing. I print, 2. pers. thou printest, 3. pers. he prints, or the printer prints, and so on.
Booksis a noun, the name of a thing—common, the name of a sort of things,—neut. gend. it denotes a thing without sex—third pers. spoken of—plur. num. it implies more than one—and in the objective case, it is the object of the action, expressed by the active-transitive verb "prints," and is governed by it according to
RULE 20.Active-transitive verbs govern the objective case.
The nounbooksis thus declined—Sing. nom. book, poss. book's, obj. book—Plur. nom. books, poss. books', obj. books.
RULE 20. Transitive verbsgovernthe objective case; that is, theyrequirethe noun or pronoun following them to be in that case; and this requisition is government. Pronouns have a particularformto suit each case; but nouns have not. We cannot say, Shestruck he; I gave the bookto they. Why not? Because the genius of our language requires the pronoun following a transitive verb or preposition (tois a preposition) to assume thatformwhich we call theobjectiveform or case. Accordingly, the construction should be, She struckhim; I gave the book tothem.—Read, again, the illustration of "government" on page 52.
NOTE 1. The wordsthe, that, those, andhis, you need not parse.
2. A noun in the possessive case, is sometimes governed by a noun understood; as, Julia's lesson is longer than John's [lesson.]
As you have been analyzing nouns in their three cases, it becomes necessary to present, in the next place, the declension of nouns, for you must decline every noun you parse.Declensionmeans putting a noun through the different cases: and you will notice, that the possessive case varies from the nominative in its termination, or ending, but theobjectivecase ends like the nominative. The nominative and objective cases of nouns, must, therefore, be ascertained by their situation in the sentence, or by considering the office they perform.
Now, if you have parsed every word in the preceding examples, (exceptthe, that, those, andhis) you may proceed with me and parse the examples in the following exercises, in which are presented nouns and active-intransitive verbs.
"Myflock increasesyearly."
Flockis a noun, a name denoting animals—a noun of multitude, it signifies many in one collective body—masculine and feminine gender, denoting both sexes—third person, spoken of—singular number, it denotes but one flock—and in the nominative case, it is the active agent of the verb "increases," and governs it, according to RULE 3,The nominative case governs the verb. (Decline it.)
Increasesis a verb, a word that signifies to do—active, it expresses action—intransitive, the action does not pass over to an object—of the third person, singular number, because its nominative "flock" conveysunityof idea, and it agrees with "flock" agreeably to
RULE 10.A noun of multitude conveyingunityof idea, must have a verb or pronoun agreeing with it in the singular.
"The dividedmultitudehastilydisperse."
Multitudeis a noun, a name that denotes persons—a collective noun, or noun of multitude, it signifies many—masculine and feminine gender, it implies both sexes—third person, spoken of—singular number, it represents but one multitude, or collective body; (but in another sense, it is plural, as it conveys plurality of idea, and, also, implies moreindividualsthan one;)—and in the nominative case, it is the actor and subject of the verb "disperse," which it governs, according to RULE 3.The nom. case governs the verb.—Declined.—Sing. nom. multitude, poss. multitude's, obj. multitude—Plur. nom. multitudes, poss. multitudes', obj. multitudes.
Disperseis a verb, a word that signifies to do—active, it expresses action—intransitive, the action does not terminate on an object—third person, plural number, because its nominative "multitude" conveys plurality of idea; and it agrees with "multitude" agreeably to RULE 11.A noun of multitude conveying plurality of idea, must have a verb or pronoun agreeing with it in the plural.
Rules 10, and 11, rest on a sandy foundation. They appear not to be based on the principles of the language; and, therefore, it might, perhaps, be better to reject than to retain them. Their application is quite limited. In many instances, they will not apply to nouns of multitude. The existence of such a thing as "unity or plurality of idea," as applicable to nouns of this class, isdoubtful. It is just as correct to say, "Themeeting wasdivided initssentiments," as to say, "Themeeting weredivided intheirsentiments." Both are equally supported by the genius of the language, and by the power of custom. It is correct to say, either that, "Thefleet weredispersed;" "Thecouncil wereunanimous;" "Thecouncil weredivided;" or that, "Thefleet wasdispersed;" "Thecouncil wasunanimous;" "Thecouncil wasdivided." But, perhaps for the sake of euphony, in some instances, custom has decided in favor of a singular, and in others, of a plural construction, connected with words of this class. For example; custom gives a preference to the constructions, "Mypeople donot consider;" "Thepeasantry gobarefoot;" "Theflock ishis object;" instead of, "My people dothnot consider;" "Thepeasantry goesbarefoot;" "Theflock arehis object." In instances like these, the application of the foregoing rulesmaybe of some use; but the constructions in which they do not apply, are probably more numerous than those in which they do.
Your improvement in grammar depends, not on the number of words which you parse, but on theattentionwhich you give the subject.You may parse the same exercises several times over.
For the gratification of those who prefer it, I here present another
Verbs are of two kinds, transitive and intransitive.
A verb is transitive when the action affects an object; as, "Earthquakesrockkingdoms; thrones and palacesare shakendown; and potentates, princes, and subjects,are buriedin one common grave."