3rd person verērētur verērentur
Third Conjugation
SINGULAR PLURAL
1st person sequerer sequerēmur
2nd person sequerēris sequerēminī
3rd person sequerētur sequerentur
Fourth Conjugation
SINGULAR PLURAL
1st person mentīrer mentīrēmur
2nd person mentīrēris mentīrēminī
3rd person mentīrētur mentīrentur
Mixed Conjugation
SINGULAR PLURAL
1st person prōgrederer prōgrederēmur
2nd person prōgrederēris prōgrederēminī
3rd person prōgrederētur prōgrederentur
14.2.3 Perfect Subjunctive
The perfect subjunctive of deponent verbs, like the perfect indicative, has two parts: the perfect participle and in this case the present subjunctive of the verb sum.
First Conjugation
SINGULAR PLURAL
1st person arbitrātus, -a, -um sim arbitrātī, -ae, -a sīmus
2nd person arbitrātus, -a, -um sīs arbitrātī, -ae, -a sītis
3rd person arbitrātus, -a, -um sit arbitrātī, -ae, -a sint
The perfect subjunctive of the other conjugations follows this pattern.
14.2.4 Pluperfect Subjunctive
The pluperfect subjunctive of deponent verbs, like the pluperfect indicative, has two parts: the perfect participle and in this case the imperfect subjunctive of sum.
First Conjugation
SINGULAR PLURAL
1st person arbitrātus, -a, -um essem arbitrātī, -ae, -a essēmus
2nd person arbitrātus, -a, -um essēs arbitrātī, -ae, -a essētis
3rd person arbitrātus, -a, -um esset arbitrātī, -ae, -a essent
The pluperfect subjunctive of the other conjugations follows this pattern.
Try This
Deponent and passive forms of the subjunctive.
Parse the following subjunctive forms:
e.g., deligaris – 2nd person singular present subjunctive passive of deligo – choose
(i) abitrati essetis (vi) adiuveris
(ii) progredereris (vii) aequaretur
(iii) sequerentur (viii) cernantur
(iv) progrediar (ix) considerentur
(v) abstracti essent (x) corrupti sint
14.3 Sequence of Tenses
We now come to one of the fundamental rules of Latin: the so-called sequence of tenses. It should be noted first that this deals with (1) subordinate clauses and (2) only those subordinate clauses that require the subjunctive mood (we have already seen clauses, e.g., certain causal clauses, that take the indicative – the sequence of tenses does not apply to these).
Latin sentences are defined as being in primary or secondary (also called historic) sequence. The sequence is determined by the main verb in the sentence.
Primary tenses of the indicative Secondary tenses of the indicative
Present Imperfect
Present Perfect (translated as “has” or “have”) Simple perfect
Future Pluperfect
Future perfect
If the main verb in the sentence is a primary tense, the verb in a subordinate clause must also be a primary tense of the subjunctive. These are the present and perfect subjunctive. If the main verb in the sentence is a secondary tense, the verb in a subordinate clause must also be a secondary tense of the subjunctive. These are the imperfect and pluperfect subjunctive.
Primary tenses of the subjunctive Secondary tenses of the subjunctive
Present Imperfect
Perfect Pluperfect
There is a further point to note: if the action of the subordinate clause occurs at the same time or time subsequent to the action of the main verb, in primary sequence the present subjunctive is used; whereas in secondary sequence the imperfect subjunctive is used. If the action of the verb in the subordinate clause appears before the action of the main verb, in primary sequence the perfect subjunctive is used; whereas in secondary sequence the pluperfect subjunctive is used. This will become clearer as more examples are introduced.
14.4 Purpose and Result Clauses
14.4.1 Purpose Clauses (also called final clauses)
English has a number of ways to express purpose: “in order to” or by an infinitive or by a clause introduced by “that” or “in order that.” Latin similarly has a number of ways to express purpose; however, the infinitive is used only very rarely in Latin to express purpose. Instead Latin may use a subordinate clause introduced by ut (or, if negative, nē) with its verb in the subjunctive. Here the rules of sequence apply, but because the purpose is usually subsequent to the action of the main verb we regularly find either present (in primary sequence) or imperfect subjunctive (in secondary/historic sequence):
mē praemīsit ut haec nuntiem uxōrī suae (Plautus Amphitruo 195): he has sent me on ahead so that I may report these things to his wife.
[Dionysius] nē tonsōrī collum committeret, tondere filiās suās docuit (Cicero Tusculanae Disputationes 5.58): [Dionysius] had his daughters taught to cut hair so that he might not entrust his neck to a barber.
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The Bigger Picture
Tusculanae Disputationes (Tusculan Disputations), a philosophical work, taking its name from Cicero's country villa at Tusculum, written in 45 bc during a retirement from politics, after the De Finibus and before the De Natura Deorum. Composed in the form of a dialogue in five books the work takes its subject matter from earlier Greek philosophers, including Plato, and discusses such topics as death, pain, distress, and virtue.
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The regular words for the indefinite pronouns anyone, someone and anything, something in Latin are aliquis, aliqua, aliquid; however, after the conjunctions sī, nisi, nē, and num the forms quis, qua, quid are used. Except for the nominative singular and accusative singular (here the forms are: quem, quam, quid) the declension is the same as that of the relative pronoun (see Chapter 7).
HINT!
Helpful mnemonic device: the Latin for someone, anyone is aliquis, aliquid; however, after si, nisi, num, and ne, the ali- “takes a holiday.” That is: instead of aliquis, aliquid, Latin uses quis, quid.
habēs epilogum, nē quid praetermissum aut relictum putēs (Cicero Tusculanae Disputationes 1.119): you have the epilogue so that you may not think that anything has been passed over or omitted.
14.4.2 Result Clauses (also called consecutive clauses)
There is also a class of subordinate clauses in Latin which express the result of the action of the main verb: he was so seriously wounded (with the result) that he was not able to fight. In Latin such clauses are introduced by ut and have their verb in the subjunctive mood. In result clauses the tense of the subjunctive is, generally speaking, determined by the rules of sequence. Result clauses, when negative as in the example above, are introduced not by nē but by ut followed by a negative word such as nōn. Often there is a word in the main clause which signals that a result clause is coming, for example, the adverbs tam, ita, sīc, and adeō (all of which mean so) and the adjectives tantus, -a, -um – so great, tālis, -e – of such a kind, or tot – so many (indeclinable adjective).
tantus subitō timor omnem exercitum occupāvit, ut nōn mediocriter omnium mentēs animōsque perturbāret (Caesar De Bello Gallico 1.39.2): so great a fear suddenly took hold of all the army that it troubled the minds and hearts of all in no small way.
sī tanta vīs probitātis est … ut in hoste etiam dīligāmus … (Cicero De Amicitia 29): if the force of integrity is so great … that we love it even in an enemy …
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The Bigger Picture
De Amicitia (On Friendship), a philosophical dialogue on friendship composed in 44 bc, after De Senectute. The dialogue is set in 129 bc and the interlocutors are Laelius (who also figures in the De Senectute) and his two sons-in-law, Quintus Mucius Scaevola and Gaius Fannius. It was possibly influenced
by a now lost Greek treatise on friendship by Theophrastus.
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Result clauses generally follow the rules of sequence. However, here exceptions to the rules of sequence do occur: when a primary tense of the subjunctive is used in secondary sequence if the writer wishes to stress that the result is still true at the time of writing (present subjunctive) or that the action is actually completed (perfect subjunctive):
[in Lūcullō] tanta prūdentia fuit … tanta aequitās, ut hodiē stet Asia (Cicero Lucullus 3): so great was the wisdom in Lucullus … so great his sense of justice that Asia stands firm today.
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The Bigger Picture
Lucullus (Lucullus), the second of two philosophical works written in 45 bc and known later as the Academici Libri (Academic Books). The first version of this work was in two books, the first called Catulus and the second called Lucullus, after the interlocutors involved. Later Cicero changed the format of the work from two to four books, and changed the names of the interlocutors. Our copy of the Lucullus probably goes back to a private copy of this earlier version.
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There is another construction you should be aware of: if the emphasis is on the fact that the result is going to occur in the future Latin uses the future participle with the subjunctive of sum:
in eam ratiōnem vītae nōs … fortūna dēduxit ut sempiternus sermō hominum dē nōbīs futūrus sit (Cicero Epistulae ad Quintum Fratrem 1.1.38): fortune has brought us into such a position of life that the talk of men about us is going to be everlasting.
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The Bigger Picture
Epistulae ad Quintum Fratrem (Letters to His Brother Quintus), a collection of letters by Cicero to his younger brother Quintus (without replies), spanning the years 60–54 bc. Like the Letters to Friends these were collected and edited by Cicero's secretary, Tiro, and published in this case in three books.
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14.5 Noun Clauses Introduced by Ut
There are some verbs, often impersonal, that are followed by a noun clause introduced by ut. Such clauses are similar to result clauses in that they take the subjunctive mood and are regularly negated not by nē, but ut plus a negative word:
accidit – it happens (that); perfect: accīdit
ēvenit – it happens (that); perfect: ēvēnit
facio, -ere – I cause; bring it about (that)
fit – it happens (that)
fierī potest – it is possible (that)
casu accidit ut id quod Romae audierat primus nuntiaret? (Cicero Pro S. Roscio Amerino 96): did it happen by chance that he was the first to report what he had heard at Rome?
FIGURE 14.3 Cave Canem (“Beware of the dog”). 1st century ad from Pompeii, House of the Tragic Poet (named after a mosaic found in the triclinium (dining room)). Source: Pompeii, Italy/Alinari/The Bridgeman Art Library
Translation from Latin
1. ego Siciliam totam quinquaginta diebus sic obii ut omnium populorum privatorumque litteras iniuriasque cognoscerem. (Cicero In Verrem 1.1.6)
2. Iphicrates Atheniensis non tam magnitudine rerum gestarum quam disciplina militari nobilitatus est. fuit enim talis dux, ut non solum aetatis suae cum primis compararetur, sed ne de maioribus natu quidem quisquam anteponeretur. (Nepos Iphicrates 1.1)
3. Caesar primum suo, deinde omnium ex conspectu remotis equis, ut aequato omnium periculo spem fugae tolleret, cohortatus suos proelium commisit. (Caesar De Bello Gallico 1.25.1)
4. ceteros iam nosti; qui ita sunt stulti ut amissa re publica piscinas suas fore salvas sperare videantur. (Cicero Epistulae ad Atticum 1.18.6)
5. neque dixi quicquam pro testimonio nisi quod erat ita notum atque testatum ut non possem praeterire. (Cicero Epistulae ad Atticum 1.16.2)
6. nunc vero quae tua est ista vita? sic enim iam tecum loquar, non ut odio permotus esse videar, quo debeo, sed ut misericordia, quae tibi nulla debetur. venisti paulo ante in senatum. quis te ex hac tanta frequentia, tot ex tuis amicis ac necessariis salutavit? (Cicero In Catilinam 1.16)
7. ubi eum castris se tenere Caesar intellexit, ne diutius commeatu prohiberetur, ultra eum locum quo in loco Germani consederant, … castris idoneum locum delegit. (Caesar De Bello Gallico 1.49.1)
8. haec ad Antonium statim per Graecos deferuntur. ille missis ad Caesarem nuntiis unum diem sese castris tenuit, altero die ad eum pervenit Caesar. cuius adventu cognito Pompeius, ne duobus circumcluderetur exercitibus, ex eo loco discedit omnibusque copiis ad Asparagium Dyrrachinorum pervenit atque ibi idoneo loco castra ponit. (Caesar Bellum Civile 3.30.6–7)
9. sed plane nec precibus nostris nec admonitionibus relinquit locum, nam cum in sermone cotidiano tum in senatu palam sic egit causam tuam, ut neque eloquentia maiore quisquam nec gravitate nec studio nec contentione agere potuerit, cum summa testificatione tuorum in se officiorum et amoris erga te sui. (Cicero Epistulae ad Familiares 1.1.2)
Translation into Latin
1. On the same night it happened that there was a full moon. (Caesar De Bello Gallico 4.29.1)
2. Our men, in order that they might attack the enemy in difficulty, were ready in arms. (Caesar De Bello Gallico 2.9.2)
3. With a clear voice so that the whole assembly might be able to hear, he said that he knew that that man had committed perjury. (Cicero Pro Cluentio 134)
4. All these things, citizens, have been administered by me in such a way that they seem to have been done and looked after by the will and purpose of the immortal gods. (Cicero In Catilinam 3.18)
5. I shall make all these things which have lain hidden in long-lasting obscurity so clear that you may seem to see them with your own eyes. (Cicero Pro Cluentio 66)
6. Vercingetorix ordered the gates to be closed in order that the camp not be left defenseless. After many were killed, and many horses captured the Germans retreated. (Caesar De Bello Gallico 7.70.7)
7. No one at that time offended in such a way that he did not leave grounds for a defense; no one lived in such a way that no part of his life was free from the greatest shamefulness. (Cicero In Verrem 2.2.191)
8. When this battle had ended, in order that he might be able to pursue the remaining forces of the Helvetii, he built a bridge on the Arar and led his army across in this way. (Caesar De Bello Gallico 1.13.1)
9. Have you come into this city for this reason: in order that you may corrupt the laws and examples of this city? (Cicero Pro Rege Deiotaro 32)
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The Bigger Picture
Pro Rege Deiotaro (On behalf of King Deiotarus) – Deiotarus was king of Armenia Minor who had helped Cicero with troops in 51 bc during an expected Parthian invasion of the Roman province of Cilicia (in modern Turkey). He had fought for Pompey against Caesar at Pharsalia, but had later been pardoned by Caesar in 47 bc, who helped him regain his kingdom from Mithradates' son, Pharnaces, at the battle of Zama. Two years later Deiotarus was accused by his grandson, Castor, of plotting to murder Caesar after the battle of Zama. Cicero defends him before Caesar, but Caesar was assassinated before he made a decision on the matter.
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FIGURE 14.4 Lesbia and Her Sparrow, Sir Edward John Poynter (1836–1919). Lesbia was the pseudonym that the poet Catullus (c. 95 bc–c. 55 bc) gave to his mistress. A number of poems in his collection deal with his apparent affair with her. Source: Christie's Images/Photo © Christie's Images/The Bridgeman Art Library
Extra Passage
Catullus addresses a poem to Lesbia's pet sparrow. Poems addressed to pets became popular in the Hellenistic period (following the death of Alexander the Great in 323 bc).
Passer, deliciae meae puellae,
quicum1 ludere, quem in sinu tenere,
cui primum digitum dare appetenti
et acres solet incitare morsus
cum2 desiderio meo nitenti
carum nescioquid libet iocari,
credo, ut, cum gravis acquiescet ardor,
&nb
sp; sit solaciolum sui doloris:
tecum ludere, sicut ipsa, possem3
et tristes animi levare curas.
Catullus 2
1quicum = quocum.
2cum here (and in line 7 below) = when, introducing a temporal clause.
3an optative subjunctive.
Vocabulary
Nouns; Pronouns
admonitiō, -ōnis (f.) – suggestion; admonition
aetās, -ātis (f.) – life; age; generation
Antōnius, -iī (m.) – Marc Antony, a Roman general
Arar, Araris (m.) – the Arar, a river in Gaul (abl. Arari in Caesar)
Asparāgium, -iī (n.) – a town in Illyria
commeātus, -ūs (m.) – provisions; supplies
consilium, consiliī (n.) – counsel; purpose
cōnspectus, -ūs (m.) – view; sight
contentiō, -ōnis (f.) – exertion; effort
cursus, -ūs (m.) – course
dēfensiō, -ōnis (f.) – defense
Dyrrachīnī, -orum (m. pl.) – the Dyrrachini, a people of Illyria
frequentia, -ae (f.) throng; assembly
gravitās, -tātis (f.) – seriousness; dignity
iniūria, -ae (f.) – injury; injustice
Īphicrates, -is (m.) – Iphicrates, a famous Athenian general (fourth century bc)
locus, -ī (m.) – place; opportunity
lūna, -ae (f.) – moon
maiōrēs, -um natu – ancestors; previous generations
misericordia, -ae (f.) – pity
nāvis, -is (f.) – ship
necessārius, -iī (m.) – friend; relation; close associate
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