Biblical Hebrew Forum

["Dave Washburn" <dwashbur AT nyx.net>]

> Niccacci is saying, if I understand you correctly, that the rules are
> clearer and more often followed in prose than in poetry. Does he give any
> examples?

In this particular article, not really.  He goes on to analyze the 
poetic structure of some passages, but doesn't really comment on 
the syntax to a great degree.  I can't remember where, but I do 
believe he has said before that poetry sort of suspends rules of 
syntax (my phrasing, not his) for the sake of meter, effect, word 
imagery, and a host of other causes.  This is essentially the 
position I take, as well.

> As a general observation, about any language, we can say that some rules
> are followed by prose but not by poetry, and some rules are followed by
> poetry but not by prose. It would seem to cut both ways.

Yes, but I would suggest that the rules followed by poetry are 
frequently at odds with, or perhaps override, the syntactic rules of 
prose.

Dave Washburn
http://www.nyx.net/~dwashbur
A Bible that's falling apart means a life that isn't.