Biblical Hebrew Forum

["Bryan Rocine" <596547 AT ican.net>]

Dear Dave,
You and Niccacci are after two different objectives, I believe. Niccacci
has sought out a pragmatic or functional system for BH prose whereas I
think you are seeking out the semantics of the verb forms.  I think verbal
semantics is more or less not germane to Niccacci's model.  He has not been
able to detect the functions of the verb forms in poetic discourse.  I do
not believe he will be able to ascertain a functional system in poetry
without first accounting for the meanings of the forms.  D. Michel, by
comparison, goes to BH poetry in order to determine the meanings of the
forms.

That help? 
Shalom,
Bryan

----------
> From: Dave Washburn <dwashbur AT nyx.net>
> To: Biblical Hebrew <b-hebrew AT franklin.oit.unc.edu>
> Subject: Poetry a la Niccacci
> Date: Tuesday, February 09, 1999 9:52 AM
> 
> I just read the following statement in A. Niccacci, "Analyzing 
> Biblical Hebrew Poetry" (JSOT 74:78).  He says that one of the 
> "main characteristics of poetry versus prose" is a "non-detectable 
> versus detectable verbal system."  Looking at the other 
> characteristics he lists, it's clear that he is saying poetry has a non-
> detectable verbal system.  It seems to me that if he is correct, then 
> poetry is definitely not the place to look in our quest to understand 
> the verbal system.  I'm wondering what everyone else thinks of this 
> statement, and why.