From what words is the term _preposition_ derived? - Why is it thus
named? - Repeat the list of prepositions. - Name the three parts of speech
that govern nouns and pronouns in the objective case. - When is a noun or
pronoun in the objective case, the object of an action? - When is it the
object of a relation? - Repeat the order of parsing a preposition. - What
rule do you apply in parsing a noun or pronoun governed by a
preposition? - Does every preposition require an objective case after
it? - Is a noun or pronoun ever governed by a preposition
understood? - Give examples. - What is said of verbs compounded of a verb
and preposition? - Give the origin and meaning of the prepositions
explained in the Philosophical Notes.
* * * * *
PHILOSOPHICAL NOTES.
_From_, according to H. Tooke, is the Anglo-Saxon and Gothic noun
_frum_, beginning, source, author. "He came _from (beginning_)
Rochester." _Of_, he supposes to be a fragment of the Gothic and
Saxon noun _afora_, consequence, offspring, follower. "Solomon, the
son _of (offspring_) David." _Of_ or _off_, in its modern
acceptation, signifies _disjoined, sundered_: A piece _of (off_) the
loaf, is, a piece _disjoined_, or _separated_ from the loaf. The
fragrance _of_ or _off_ the rose.
_For_ signifies _cause_. "I write _for_ your satisfaction;" i.e.
your satisfaction being the _cause. By_ or _be_ is the imperative
_byth_, of the Saxon _beon_, to be. _With_, the imperative of
_withan_, to join; or, when equivalent to _by_, of _wyr-than_, to
be. "I will go _with_ him." "I, _join_ him, will go." _In_ comes
from the Gothic noun _inna_, the interior of the body; a cave or
cell. _About_, from _boda_, the first outward boundary. _Among_ is
the past part. of _gamaengan_, to mingle. _Through_ or _thorough_ is
the Gothic substantive _dauro_, or the Teutonic _thuruh_. It means
passage, gate, door.
_Before_ - _be-fore, be-hind, be-low, be-side, be-sides, be-neath_
are formed by combining the imperative, _be_, with the nouns _fore,
hind, low, side, neath. Neath_ - Saxon _neothan, neothe_, has the
same signification as _nadir. Be-tween, be-twixt_ - _be_ and _twain_.
A dual preposition. _Be-yond_ - _be-passed. Beyond_ a place, means,
_be passed_ that place.
_Notwithstanding - not-stand-ing-with, not-withstanding_. "Any order
to the contrary not-withstanding," (this order;) i.e. _not_
effectually _withstanding_ or _opposing_ it.
* * * * *
LECTURE VIII.
OF PRONOUNS.
A PRONOUN is a word used instead of a noun, and generally to avoid the
too frequent repetition of the same word. A pronoun is, likewise,
sometimes a substitute for a sentence, or member of a sentence.
The word _pronoun_ comes from the two Latin words, _pro_, which means
_for_, or _instead of_, and _nomen_, a _name_, or _noun._ Hence you
perceive, that _pronoun_ means _for a noun_, or _instead of a noun_.
In the sentence, "The man is happy; _he_ is benevolent; _he_ is useful;"
you perceive, that the word _he_ is used instead of the noun _man;_
consequently _he_ must be a _pronoun_. You observe, too, that, by making
use of the pronoun _he_ in this sentence, we avoid the _repetition_ of
the _noun_ man, for without the pronoun, the sentence would be rendered
thus, "The man is happy; _the man_ is benevolent; _the man_ is useful."
By looking again at the definition, you will notice, that pronouns
always _stand for_ nouns, but they do not always _avoid the repetition_
of nouns. _Repetition_ means _repeating_ or mentioning the same thing
again. In the sentence, "I come to die for my country," the pronouns,
_I_ and _my, stand_ for the name of the person who speaks; but they do
not _avoid the repetition_ of that name, because the name or noun for
which the pronouns are used, is not mentioned at all. Pronouns of the
_third_ person, generally avoid the repetition of the nouns for which
they stand; but pronouns of the _first_ and _second_ person, sometimes
avoid the repetition of nouns, and sometimes they do not.
A little farther illustration of the pronoun will show you its
importance, and, also, that its nature is very easily comprehended. If
we had no pronouns in our language, we should be obliged to express
ourselves in this manner: "A woman went to a man, and told the man that
the man was in danger of being murdered by a gang of robbers; as a gang
of robbers had made preparations for attacking the man. The man thanked
the woman for the woman's kindness, and, as the man was unable to defend
the man's self, the man left the man's house, and went to a neighbor's."
This would be a laborious style indeed; but, by the help of pronouns, we
can express the same ideas with far greater ease and conciseness: "A
woman went to a man, and told _him_, that _he_ was in great danger of
being murdered by a gang of robbers, _who_ had made preparations for
attacking _him. He_ thanked _her_ for _her_ kindness, and, as _he_ was
unable to defend _himself_, _he_ left _his_ house and went to a
neighbor's."
If you look at these examples a few moments, you cannot be at a loss to
tell which words are pronouns; and you will observe too, that they all
stand for nouns.
Pronouns are generally divided into three kinds, the _Personal_, the
_Adjective_, and the _Relative_ pronouns. They are all known by the
_lists_.
1. OF PERSONAL PRONOUNS. Personal Pronouns are distinguished from the
relative, by their denoting the _person_ of the nouns for which they
stand. There are five of them; _I_, _thou, he, she, it_; with their
plurals, _We, ye_ or _you, they_.
To pronouns belong gender, person, number, and case.
GENDER. When we speak of a _man_, we say, _he, his, him_; when we speak
of a _woman_, we say, _she, hers, her_; and when we speak of a _thing_,
we say _it_. Hence you perceive, that gender belongs to pronouns as well
as to nouns. Example; "The general, in gratitude to the lady, offered
_her his_ hand; but _she_, not knowing _him_, declined accepting _it_."
The pronouns _his_ and _him_, in this sentence, personate or represent
the noun _general_; they are, therefore, of the masculine gender: _her_
and _she_ personate the _lady_; therefore, they are feminine: and _it_
represents _hand_; for which reason it is of the neuter gender. This
illustration shows you, then, that pronouns must be of the same gender
as the nouns are for which they stand. But, as it relates to the
variation of the pronouns to express the sex,
Gender has respect only to the third person singular of the pronouns,
_he, she, it. He_ is masculine; _she_ is feminine; _it_ is neuter.
You may naturally inquire, why pronouns of the first and second persons
are not varied to denote the gender of their nouns, as well as of the
third. The reason is obvious. The first person, that is, the person
speaking, and the second person, or the person spoken to, being at the
same time the subjects of the discourse, are supposed to be present;
from which, and other circumstances, their sex is commonly known, and,
therefore, the pronouns that represent these persons, need not be marked
by a distinction of gender; but the third person, that is, the person or
thing spoken of, being absent, and in many respects unknown, necessarily
requires the pronoun that stands for it, to be marked by a distinction
of gender.
In parsing, we sometimes apply gender to pronouns of the first and
second person, and also to the plural number of the third person; but
these have no peculiar form to denote their gender; therefore they have
no agreement, in this respect, with the nouns which they represent.
PERSON. Pronouns have three persons in each number.
_I_, is the first person }
_Thou_, is the second person } Singular.
_He, she_, or _it_, is the third person }
_We_, is the first person }
_Ye_ or _you_, is the second person } Plural.
_They_, is the third person }
This account of persons will be very intelligible, when you reflect,
that there are three persons who may be the subject of any discourse:
first, the person who speaks, may speak of himself; secondly, he may
speak of the person to whom he addresses himself; thirdly, he may speak
of some other person; and as the speakers, the persons spoken to, and
the persons spoken of, may be many, so each of these persons must have a
plural number.
Pronouns of the second and third person, always agree, in person with
the nouns they represent; but pronouns of the first person, do not.
Whenever a pronoun of the first person is used, it represents a noun;
but nouns are _never_ of the first person, therefore these pronouns
cannot agree in person with their nouns.
NUMBER. Pronouns, like nouns, have two numbers, the singular and the
plural; as, _I, thou, he_; _we, ye_ or _you, they_.
CASE. Pronouns have three cases, the nominative, the possessive, and the
objective.
In the next place I will present to you the _declension_ of the personal
pronouns, which declension you must commit to memory before you proceed
any farther.
The advantages resulting from the committing of the following
declension, are so great and diversified, that you cannot be too
particular in your attention to it. You recollect, that it is sometimes
very difficult to distinguish the nominative case of a noun from the
objective, because these cases of nouns are not marked by a difference
in termination; but this difficulty is removed in regard to the personal
pronouns, for their cases are always known by their termination. By
studying the declension you will learn, not only the cases of the
pronouns, but, also, their genders, persons, and numbers.
DECLENSION OF THE PERSONAL PRONOUNS.
FIRST PERSON.
_Sing. _Plur_.
_Nom_. I, we,
_Poss_. my _or_ mine, our _or_ ours,
_Obj_. me. us.
SECOND PERSON.
_Sing_. _Plur_.
_Nom_. thou, ye _or_ you,
_Poss_. thy _or_ thine, your _or_ yours,
_Obj_. thee. you.
THIRD PERSON.
_Mas. Sing._ _Plur_.
_Nom_, he, they,
_Poss_. his, their _or_ theirs,
_Obj_. him. them.
THIRD PERSON.
_Fem. Sing._ _Plur_.
_Nom_. she, they,
_Poss_. her _or_ hers, their _or_ theirs.
_Obj_. her. them.
THIRD PERSON.
_Neut. Sing._ _Plur_.
_Nom_. it, they,
_Poss_. its, their _or_ theirs,
_Obj._ it. them.
* * * * *
NOTES.
1. When _self_ is added to the personal pronouns, as himself,
myself, itself, themselves, &c. they are called _compound personal
pronouns_, and are used in the nominative or objective case, but not
in the possessive.
2. In order to avoid the disagreeable harshness of sound, occasioned
by the frequent recurrence of the terminations _est, edst_, in the
adaptation of our verbs to the nominative _thou_, a modern
innovation which substitutes _you_ for _thou_, in familiar style,
has generally been adopted. This innovation contributes greatly to
the harmony of our colloquial style. _You_ was formerly restricted
to the plural number; but now it is employed to represent either a
singular or a plural noun. It ought to be recollected, however, that
when used as the representative of a singular noun, this word
retains its original _plural form_; and, therefore, the verb
connected with it, should always be plural. Inattention to this
peculiarity, has betrayed some writers into the erroneous
conclusion, that, because _you_ implies unity when it represents a
singular noun, it ought, when thus employed, to be followed by a
singular verb; as, "When _was you_ there?" "How far _was you_ from
the parties?" Such a construction, however, is not supported by
_good_ usage, nor by analogy. It is as manifest a solecism as to
say, We _am_, or we _is_. Were it, in any case, admissible to
connect a singular verb with _you_, the use of _was_ would still be
ungrammatical, for this form of the verb is confined to the first and
third persons, and _you_ is second person. _Wast_ being second
person, it would approximate nearer to correctness to say, you
_wast_. We never use the singular of the present tense with
you: - you _art_, you _is_; you _walkest_, you _walks_. Why, then,
should any attempt be made to force a usage so unnatural and
gratuitous as the connecting of the singular verb in the past tense
with this pronoun? In every point of view, the construction, "When
_were_ you there?" "How far _were_ you from the parties?" is
preferable to the other.
3. The words _my, thy, his, her, our, your, their_, are, by many,
denominated _possessive adjective pronouns_; but they always _stand
for_ nouns in the possessive case. They ought, therefore, to be
classed with the _personal_ pronouns. That principle of
classification which ranks them with the adjective pronouns, would
also throw all nouns in the possessive case among the adjectives.
Example: "The lady gave the gentleman _her_ watch for _his_ horse."
In this sentence _her_ personates, or stands for, the noun "lady,"
and _his_ represents "gentleman." This fact is clearly shown by
rendering the sentence thus, "The lady gave the gentleman the
_lady's_ watch for the _gentleman's_ horse." If _lady's_ and
_gentleman's_ are nouns, _her_ and _his_ must be personal pronouns.
The same remarks apply to _my, thy, our, your, their_ and _its_.
This view of these words may be objected to by those who speculate
and refine upon the principles of grammar until they prove their
non-existence, but it is believed, nevertheless, to be based on
sound reason and common sense.
4. _Mine, thine, his, hers, ours, yours, theirs_, have, by many
respectable grammarians, been considered merely the possessive cases
of personal pronouns, whilst, by others, they have been denominated
pronouns or nouns in the nominative or objective case. It is
believed, however, that a little attention to the meaning and office
of these words, will clearly show the impropriety of both these
classifications. Those who pursue the former arrangement, allege,
that, in the examples, "You may imagine what kind of faith _theirs_
was; My pleasures are past; _hers_ and _yours_ are to come; they
applauded his conduct, but condemned _hers_ and _yours_," the words
_theirs, hers_, and _yours_, are personal pronouns in the possessive
case, and governed by their respective nouns understood. To prove
this, they construct the sentence thus, "You may imagine what kind
of faith _their faith_ was; - _her pleasures_ and _your pleasures_
are to come; - but condemned _her conduct_ and _your conduct_;" or
thus, "You may imagine what kind of faith the faith of them
was; - the pleasures of her and the pleasures of you, are to come; -
but condemned the conduct of her and the conduct of you." But these
constructions, (both of which are correct,) prove too much for their
purpose; for, as soon as we supply the nouns after these words, they
are resolved into personal pronouns of kindred meaning, and the
nouns which we supply: thus, _theirs_ becomes, their faith: _hers_,
her pleasures; and _yours_, your pleasures. This evidently gives us
two words instead of, and altogether distinct from, the first; so
that, in parsing, _their faith_, we are not, in reality, analyzing
_theirs_, but two other words of which _theirs_ is the proper
representative. These remarks also prove, with equal force, the
impropriety of calling these words merely simple pronouns or nouns
in the nominative or objective case. Without attempting to develop
the original or intrinsic meaning of these pluralizing adjuncts,
_ne_ and _s_, which were, no doubt, formerly detached from the
pronouns with which they now coalesce, for all practical purposes,
it is sufficient for us to know, that, in the present application of
these pronouns, they invariably stand for, not only the person
possessing, but, also the thing possessed, which gives them a
_compound_ character. They may, therefore, be properly denominated
COMPOUND PERSONAL PRONOUNS; and, as they always perform a double
office in a sentence by representing two other words, and,
consequently, including two cases, they should, like the compound
relative _what_, be parsed as two words. Thus, in the example, "You
may imagine what kind of faith theirs was," _theirs_ is a compound
personal pronoun, equivalent to _their faith. Their_ is a pronoun, a
word used instead of a noun; personal, it personates the persons
spoken of, understood; third pers. plur. numb., &c. - and in the
possessive case, and governed by "faith," according to Rule 12.
_Faith_ is a noun, the name of a thing, &c. &c. - and in the
nominative case to "was," and governs it; Rule 3. Or, if we render
the sentence thus, "You may imagine what kind of faith _the faith of
them[4]_ was," _faith_ would be in the nominative case to "was," and
_them_ would be in the objective case, and governed by "of:" Rule
31.
[4] In the note next preceding, it is asserted, that my, thy, his,
her, our your, and their, are personal pronouns. What can more
clearly demonstrate the correctness of that assertion, than this
latter construction of the word theirs? All admit, that, in the
construction, "The faith _of them_," the word _them_, is a personal
pronoun: and for this conclusive reason: - it represents a noun
understood. What, then, is _their_, in the phrase, "their faith?" Is
it not obvious, that, if _them_ is a personal pronoun, _their_ must
be, also? for the latter represents the same noun as the former.
Objections to this method of treating these pronouns, will doubtless
be preferred by those who assert, that a noun is understood after
these words, and not represented by them. But this is assertion
without proof; for, if a noun were understood, it might be supplied.
If the question be put, whose book? and the answer be, _mine, ours,
hers_, or _theirs_, the word book is included in such answer. Were
it not included, we might supply it, thus, mine _book_, ours _book_,
hers _book_, and so on. This, however, we cannot do, for it would be
giving a _double_ answer: but when the question is answered by a
noun in the possessive case, the word book is not included, but
implied; as, Whose book? John's, Richard's; that is, John's _book_;
Richard's _book_.
This view of the subject, without a parallel, except in the
compounds _what, whoever_, and _others_, is respectfully submitted
to the public; believing, that those who approve of a critical
analysis of words, will coincide with me. Should any still be
disposed to treat these words so superficially as to rank them among
the simple pronouns, let them answer the following interrogatory: If
_what_, when compound, should be parsed as two words, why not _mine,
thine, his, hers, ours, yours_, and _theirs_?
5. _Mine_ and _thine_, instead of _my_ and _thy_, are used in solemn
style, before a word beginning with a vowel or silent _h_; as, "Blot
out all _mine_ iniquities;" and when thus used, they are not
compound. _His_ always has the same form, whether simple or
compound; as, "Give John _his_ book; That desk is _his." Her_, when
placed before a noun, is in the possessive case; as, Take _her_ hat:
when standing alone, it is in the objective case; as, Give the hat
to _her_.
When you shall have studied this lecture attentively, and committed the
_declension_ of the personal pronouns, you may commit the following
SYSTEMATIC ORDER OF PARSING.
_The order of parsing a_ PERSONAL PRONOUN, is - a pronoun, and
why? - personal, and why? - person, and why? - gender and number, and
why? - RULE: case, and why? - RULE. - Decline it.
There are many peculiarities to be observed in parsing personal pronouns
in their different persons; therefore, if you wish ever to parse them
correctly, you must pay particular attention to the manner in which the
following are analyzed. Now notice, particularly, and you will perceive
that we apply only _one_ rule in parsing _I_ and _my_, and _two_ in
parsing _thou, him_, and _they_.
"_I_ saw _my_ friend."
_I_ is a pronoun, a word used instead of a noun - personal, it represents
the person speaking, understood - first person, it denotes the
speaker - singular number, it implies but one - and in the nominative
case, it represents the actor and subject of the verb "saw," and governs
it, agreeably to RULE 3. _The nom. case gov. the verb_. Declined - first
pers. sing. num. nom. I, poss. my or mine, obj. me. Plur. nom. we, poss.
our or ours, obj. us.
_My_ is a pronoun, a word used instead of a noun - personal, it
personates the person speaking, understood - first pers. it denotes the
speaker - sing. num. it implies but one - and in the possessive case, it
denotes possession; it is governed by the noun "friend", agreeably to
RULE 12. _A noun or pronoun in the possessive case, is governed by the
noun it possesses_. Declined - first pers. sing. nom. I, poss. my or
mine, obj. me. Plur. nom. we, poss. our or ours, obj. us.
"Young man, _thou_ hast deserted thy companion, and left _him_ in
distress."
_Thou_ is a pronoun, a word used instead of a noun - personal, it
personates "man" - second person, it represents the person spoken
to - mas. gend. sing. num. because the noun "man" is for which it stands,
according to RULE 13. _Personal pronouns must agree with the nouns for
which they stand in gender and number_.
_Thou_ is in the nom. case, it represents the actor and subject of the
verb "hast deserted," and governs it agreeably to RULE 3. _The nom. case
governs the verb._ Declined - sec. pers. sing. num. nom. thou, poss. thy
or thine, obj. thee. Plur. nom. ye or you, poss. your or yours, obj.
you.
_Him_ is a pronoun, a word used instead of a noun - personal, it
personates "companion" - third pers. it represents the person spoken
of - mas. gend. sing. num. because the noun "companion" is for which it
stands: RULE 13. _Pers. pro. &c_. (Repeat the Rule.) - _Him_ is in the
objective case, the object of the action expressed by the
active-transitive verb "hast left," and gov. by it: RULE 20.
_Active-trans. verbs gov. the obj. case_. Declined - third pers. mas.
gend. sing. num. nom. he, poss. his, obj. him. Plur. nom. they, poss.
their or theirs, obj. them.
"Thrice I raised my voice, and called the chiefs to combat, but
_they_ dreaded the force of my arm."
_They_ is a pronoun, a word used instead of a noun - personal, it
represents "chiefs" - third pers. it denotes the persons spoken of - mas.
gend. plur. num. because the noun "chiefs" is for which it stands: RULE
13. _Pers. Pron. &c_. (Repeat the Rule.) It is the nom. case, it
represents the actors and subject of the verb "dreaded," and governs it:
RULE 3. _The nom. case, gov. the verb_. Declined - third pers. mas. gend.
sing. num. nom. he, poss. his, obj. him. Plur. nom. they, poss. their or
theirs, obj. them.
NOTE. We do not apply gender in parsing the personal pronouns,
(excepting the third person singular,) if the nouns they represent are
understood; and therefore we do not, in such instances, apply Rule 13.
But when the noun is expressed, gender should be applied, and _two_
Rules.
EXERCISES IN PARSING.
I saw a man leading his horse slowly over the new bridge. My friends
visit me very often at my father's office. We improve ourselves by close
application. Horace, thou learnest many lessons. Charles, you, by your
diligence, make easy work of the task given you by your preceptor. Young
ladies, you run over your lessons very carelessly. The stranger drove
his horses too far into the water, and, in so doing, he drowned them.
Gray morning rose in the east. A green narrow vale appeared before us:
its winding stream murmured through the grove. The dark host of Rothmar
stood on its banks, with their glittering spears. We fought along the
vale. They fled. Rothmar sunk beneath my sword. Day was descending in
the west, when I brought his arms to Crothar. The aged hero felt them
with his hands: joy brightened his thoughts.
NOTE. _Horace, Charles_, and _ladies_, are of the second person, and
nom. case _independent_: see RULE 5, and NOTE. The first _you_ is used
in the nom. poss. and obj. case. - It represents Charles, therefore it is
_singular_ in sense, although plural in form. In the next example, _you_
personifies _ladies_, therefore it is _plural. Given_ is a perfect
participle. _You_ following given, is governed by _to_ understood,
according to NOTE 1, under Rule 32. _Run over_ is a compound verb. _And_
is a conjunction. The first _its_ personates vale; the second _its_
represents stream.
You may now parse the following examples three times over.
COMPOUND PERSONAL PRONOUNS.
"Juliet, retain her paper, and present _yours_."
_Yours_ is a compound personal pronoun, representing both the possessor
and the thing possessed, and is equivalent to _your paper_. _Your_ is a
pronoun, a word used instead of a noun - personal, it personates
"Juliet" - second person, it represents the person spoken to - fem.
gender, sing. number, (singular in sense, but _plural_ in form,) because
the noun Juliet is for which it stands: Rule 13. _Pers. Pron.
&c_. - _Your_ is in the possessive case, it denotes possession, and is
governed by "paper," according to Rule 12. _A noun or pron. &c._ (Repeat
the Rule, and decline the pronoun.) _Paper_ is a noun, the name of a
thing - common, the name of a sort of things - neuter gender, it denotes a
thing without sex - third person, spoken of - sing. number, it implies but
one - and in the obj. case, it is the object of the action expressed by
the transitive verb "present," and governed by it: Rule 20.
_Active-transitive verbs govern the obj. case_.
NOTE. Should it be objected, that _yours_ does not mean _your paper_,
any more than it means _your book, your house, your_ any thing, let it
be borne in mind, that pronouns have no _definite_ meaning, like other
words; but their _particular_ signification is always determined by the
nouns they represent.
EXERCISES IN PARSING.
Julia injured her book, and soiled mine: hers is better than mine. My
friend sacrificed his fortune to secure yours: his deeds deserve reward;
yours merit disgrace. Henry's labors are past; thine are to come. We
leave your forests of beasts for ours of men. My sword and yours are
kin.
NOTE. _She_ understood, is nominative to _soiled_, in the first example;
and the substantive part of _mine_, after than, is nom. to _is_,
understood: Rule 35. The verbs _to secure_ and _to come_ have no
nominative. The pronouns _mine, my, yours, thine, we, your, ours, my_,
and _yours_, personate nouns understood.
REMARKS ON _IT_.
For the want of a proper knowledge of this little pronoun _it_, many
grammarians have been greatly puzzled how to dispose of it, or how to
account for its multiform, and, seemingly, contradictory characters. It
is in great demand by writers of every description. They use it without
ceremony; either in the nominative or objective case; either to
represent one person or thing, or more than one. It is applied to nouns
in the masculine, feminine, or neuter gender, and, very frequently, it
represents a member of a sentence, a whole sentence, or a number of
sentences taken in a mass.
A little attention to its true character, will, at once, strip it of all
its mystery. _It_, formerly written _hit_, according to H. Tooke, is the
past participle of the Moeso-Gothic verb _haitan_. It means, _the said_,
and, therefore, like its near relative _that_, meaning, _the assumed_,
originally had no respect, in its application, to number, person, or
gender. "_It_ is a wholesome law;" i.e. _the_ _said_ (law) is a
wholesome law; or, _that_ (law) is a wholesome law; - _the assumed_ (law)
is a wholesome law. "_It_ is the man; I believe _it_ to be them:" - _the
said_ (man) is the man; _that_ (man) is the man: I believe _the said_
(persons) to be them; I believe _that_ persons (according to the ancient
application of _that_) to be them. "_It_ happened on a summer's day,
that many people were assembled," &c. - Many people were assembled: _it,
that_, or _the said_ (fact or circumstance) happened on a summer's day.
_It_, according to its accepted meaning in modern times, is not referred
to a noun understood after it, but is considered a substitute. "How is
_it_ with you?" that is, "How is your _state_ or _condition_?" "_It_
rains; _It_ freezes; _It_ is a hard winter;" - _The rain_ rains; _The
frost_ frosts or freezes; _The said_ (winter) is a hard winter. "_It_ is
delightful to see brothers and sisters living in uninterrupted love to
the end of their days." What is delightful? _To see brothers and sisters
living in uninterrupted love to the end of their days. It, this thing_,
is delightful. _It_, then, stands for all that part of the sentence
expressed in italics; and the sentence will admit of the following
construction; "To see brothers living in uninterrupted love to the end
of their days, is delightful."
* * * * *
OF ADJECTIVE PRONOUNS.
ADJECTIVE PRONOUNS, PRONOMINAL ADJECTIVES, or, more properly, SPECIFYING
ADJECTIVES, are a kind of adjectives which point out nouns by some
distinct specification.
Pronouns and adjectives are totally distinct in their character. The
former _stand for_ nouns, and never belong to them; the latter _belong
to_ nouns, and never stand for them. Hence, such a thing as an
_adjective-pronoun_ cannot exist. _Each, every, either, this, that,
some, other_, and the residue, are pure adjectives.
Those specifying adjectives commonly called Adjective Pronouns, may be
divided into three sorts; the _distributive_, the _demonstrative_, and
the _indefinite_. They are all known by the _lists_.
I. The _distributive adjectives_ are those that denote the persons or
things that make up a number, each taken separately and singly. _List:
each, every, either_, and sometimes _neither_; as, "_Each_ of his
brothers is in a favorable situation;" "_Every_ man must account for
himself;" "_Neither_ of them is industrious."
These distributives are words which are introduced into language in its
refined state, in order to express the nicest shades and colors of
thought. "_Man_ must account for himself;" "_Mankind_ must account for
themselves;" "_All men_ must account for themselves;" "_All men, women,_
and _children,_ must account for themselves;" "_Every man_ must account
for himself." Each of these assertions conveys the same fact or truth.
But the last, instead of presenting the whole human family for the mind
to contemplate in a mass, by the peculiar force of _every, distributes_
them, and presents each separately and singly; and whatever is affirmed
of one individual, the mind instantaneously transfers to the whole human
race.
_Each_ relates to two or more persons or things, and signifies either of
the two, or every one of any number taken separately.
_Every_ relates to several persons or things, and signifies each one of
them all taken separately.
_Either_ relates to _two_ persons or things taken separately, and
signifies the one or the other. "_Either_ of the _three_," is an
improper expression. It should be, "any of the three."
_Neither_ imports _not either_; that is, not one nor the other; as,
"_Neither_ of my friends was there." When an allusion is made to more
than _two, none_ should be used instead of _neither_; as, "_None_ of my
friends was there."
* * * * *
II. The _demonstrative_ are those which precisely point out the subject
to which they relate. _List: this_ and _that_, and their plurals,
_these_ and _those_, and _former_ and _latter_; as, "_This_ is true
charity; "_that_ is only its image."
There is but a slight shade of difference in the meaning and application
of _the_ and _that_. When reference is made to a particular book, we
say, "Take _the_ book;" but when we wish to be very pointed and precise,
we say, "Take _that_ book;" or, if it be near by, "Take _this_ book."
You perceive, then, that these demonstratives have all the force of the
definite article, and a little more.
_This_ and _these_ refer to the nearest persons or things, _that_ and
_those_ to the most distant; as, "_These_ goods are superior to those."
_This_ and _these_ indicate the latter, or last mentioned; _that_ and
_those_, the former, or first mentioned; as, "Both _wealth_ and
_poverty_ are temptations; _that_ tends to excite pride, _this_,
discontent."
"_Some_ place the bliss in action, _some_ in ease;
_Those_ call it pleasure, and contentment, _these_."
_They, those_. As it is the office of the personal _they_ to represent a
noun previously introduced to our notice, there appears to be a slight
departure from analogy in the following application of it: "_They_ who
seek after wisdom, are sure to find her: _They_ that sow in tears,
sometimes reap in joy." This usage, however, is well established, and
_they_, in such constructions, is generally employed in preference to
_those_.
* * * * *
III. The _indefinite_ are those which express their subjects in an
indefinite or general manner. _List: some, other, any, one, all, such,
both, same, another none_. Of these, _one_ and _other_ are declined like
nouns. _Another_ is declined, but wants the plural.
The indefinite adjectives, like the indefinite article, leave the
meaning unfixed, or, in some degree, vague. With a slight shade of
difference in meaning, we say, Give me _a_ paper, _one_ paper, _any_
paper, _some_ paper, and so on. Though these words restrict the meaning
of the noun, they do not fix it to a _particular_ object. We therefore
call them indefinite.
These adjectives, or adjective pronouns, frequently belong to nouns
understood, in which situation they should be parsed accordingly; as
"You may take _either_; He is pleased with _this_ book, but dislikes
_that_ (book;) _All_ (men) have sinned, but _some_ (men) have repented."
The words, _one, other_, and _none_, are used in both numbers; and, when
they _stand for_ nouns, they are not adjectives, but indefinite
_pronouns_; as, "The great _ones_ of the world have their failings;"
"Some men increase in wealth, while _others_ decrease;" "_None_ escape."
The word "ones," in the preceding example, does not belong to a noun
understood. If it did, we could supply the noun. The meaning is not "the
great one men, nor ones men," therefore _one_ is not an adjective
pronoun; but the meaning is, "The great _men_ of the world," therefore
_ones_ is a pronoun of the indefinite kind, representing the noun _men_
understood, and it ought to be parsed like a personal pronoun. The word
_others_, in the next example, is a compound pronoun, equivalent to
_other men_; and should be parsed like _mine, thine_, &c. See Note 4th,
page 100.
I will now parse two pronouns, and then present some examples for you to
analyze. If, in parsing the following exercises, you should be at a loss
for definitions and rules, please to refer to the compendium. But before
you proceed, you may commit the following
SYSTEMATIC ORDER OF PARSING.
The order of parsing an ADJECTIVE PRONOUN, is - an adjective pronoun, and
why? - distributive, demonstrative, or indefinite, and why? - to what
noun does it belong, or with what does it agree? - RULE.
"_One_ man instructs many _others." One_ is an adjective pronoun, or
specifying adjective, it specifically points out a noun - indefinite, it
expresses its subject in an indefinite or general manner, and belongs to
the noun "man," according to RULE 19. _Adjective pronouns belong to
nouns, expressed or understood_.
_Others_ is a compound pronoun, including both an adjective pronoun and
a noun, and is equivalent to _other men_. _Other_ is an adjective
pronoun, it is used specifically to describe its noun - indefinite, it
expresses its subject in an indefinite manner, and belongs to _men_:
Rule 19. (Repeat the rule.) _Men_ is a noun, a name denoting
persons - common, &c. (parse it in full;) and in the objective case, it
is the object of the action expressed by the transitive verb
"instructs," and gov. by it: Rule 20. _Active-transitive verbs, &c_.
"_Those_ books are _mine_."
_Those_ is an adjective pronoun, it specifies what noun is referred
to - demonstrative, it precisely points out the subject to which it
relates - and agrees with the noun "books" in the plural number,
according to NOTE 1, under Rule 19. _Adjective pronouns must agree in
number with their nouns_.
_Mine_ is a compound personal pronoun, including both the possessor and
the thing possessed, and is equivalent to _my books_. _My_ is a pron. a
word used instead of a noun - personal, it stands for the name of the
person speaking - first person, it denotes the speaker - sing. number, it
implies but one - and in the poss. case, it denotes possession, and is
gov. by "books," according to Rule 12. (Repeat the rule, and decline
the pronoun.) _Books_ is a noun, the name of a thing - common, &c. (parse
it in full;) - and in the nominative case after "are," according to RULE
21. _The verb_ to be _admits the same case after it as before it_.
EXERCISES IN PARSING.
Each individual fills a space in creation. Every man helps a little.
These men rank among the great ones of the world. That book belongs to
the tutor, this belongs to me. Some men labor, others labor not; the
former increase in wealth, the latter decrease. The boy wounded the old
bird, and stole the young ones. None performs his duty too well. None of
those poor wretches complain of their miserable lot.
NOTE. In parsing the distributive pronominal adjectives, NOTE 2, undo
Rule 19, should be applied.
* * * * *
III. OF RELATIVE PRONOUNS.
Relative Pronouns are such as relate, in general, to some word or phrase
going before, which is called the antecedent. They are _who, which_, and
_that_.
The word _antecedent_, comes from the two Latin words, _ante, before_,
and _cedo, to go_. Hence you perceive, that antecedent means going
before; thus, "The _man_ is happy _who_ lives virtuously; This is the
_lady who_ relieved my wants; _Thou who_ lovest wisdom, &c. _We who_
speak from experience," &c. The relative who, in these sentences,
relates to the several words, _man, lady, thou_, and _we_, which words,
you observe, come before the relative: they are, therefore, properly
called antecedents.
The relative is not varied on account of gender, person, or number, like
a personal pronoun. When we use a personal pronoun, in speaking of a