Biblical Hebrew Forum

["Peter Kirk"<peter_kirk AT sil.org>]

We have here a classic issue of discourse analysis. The problem here 
is that we have the beginning of a story without any anchoring in 
time, indeed without any setting except perhaps for "Ariyel was 
walking down the road". How does BH start a story? Perhaps we need to 
look at some examples of stories.

In general we have some sort of introduction of the characters before 
the action starts, and then the main narrative starts with the 
equivalent of "One day". This is a common pattern in many languages. 
For example:

Job 1:1         )IY$ HFYFH B:)EREC-(UWC )IY.OWB $:MOW...
Job 1:6         WAY:HIY HAY.OWM WAY.FBO)UW...

The book of Ruth and Nathan's parable in 2 Samuel 12:1-4 follow a 
similar pattern.

But there are at least two cases of stories, both fables or parables, 
which start without this sort of introduction:

Judges 9:8      HFLOWK: HFL:KUW HF("CIYM...

2 Kings 14:9    HAXOWAX ):A$ER BAL.:BFNOWN $FLAX )EL-HF)EREZ...

Both use X-QATAL; in both cases this is the first event in a narrative 
and is followed by an event with WAYYIQTOL. (But the function of HLK 
in the discourse of the former is rather different here from its 
function in "Ariyel's Flower".) So the structure is similar to 
"Ariyel's Flower". Can anyone find any more examples like this?

So what can we write? We could do something like:

NA(:ARFH HFYFH ):ARIY)"L $:MFH. WAT."LEK: ... WAT.F$OAX ...

or maybe better still

NA(:ARFH HFYFH ):ARIY)"L $:MFH. WAY:HIY B:LEK:T.FH. ... WAT.F$OAX ...

(I am using the attested forms for the WAYYIQTOL of $XX Qal)

for surely the latter is the construction which "the ancient Hebrew 
would use... to say, "While (when, as) Shlomo was ---ing,
he ---ed". I guess these longer forms would have seemed more natural 
to the Hebrews, who were no doubt in no hurry when they told stories 
around the fire on a dark night. A form like Judges 9:8 would also 
work, it seems, but that might suggest something fabulous. Well, maybe 
the intended genre here is a fairy-tale rather than a realistic story.

Peter Kirk


______________________________ Reply Separator 
_________________________________
Subject: Re: Ariyel's Flower
Author:  <brocine AT earthlink.net> at Internet
Date:    26/01/2000 17:50


B-Haverim,

My student's little story begins like this:

> 1. (title) hatsitsah le'ariyel
> 2. 'ariyel halak:t `al haderek
> 3. vatishax lareyx 'et tsitsah

Ariyel was on a walk when she bent to smell a flower.  Both 
Randal Buth and Peter Kirk have suggested holeket for a verb 
in the second clause rather than a qatal (never mind for now 
that the qatal should have read halekah.)  A participle 
strikes me as inappropriate in such a case.  I don't think a 
participle would appear in a narrative, in series with a 
wayyiqtol *having the same subject*.  I would predict such a 
series given my understanding of the verbal system, but I 
just don't recall any examples.  Am I right?  I don't know 
enough about my computer to search for examples.

In other words, I don't think the ancient Hebrew would use a 
participle to say, "While (when, as) Shlomo was ---ing,
he ---ed," for instance, "While Shlomo was reading, he 
sipped the tea."   Keep in mind that I am thinking of a 
participle and a wayyiqtol clause that *have the same 
subject*.  I think the construction of choice for such a 
notion would be the infinitive prefixed with the particle 
bet.  Or might the ancient simply opt for two wayyiqtols to 
express such a notion as in Gen 2:21 vayapel yhvh 'elohim 
tardemah `al ha'adam vayishan vayiqax...  "And YHVH God put 
a deep sleep on the man, and (when) he slept, He took..."?

Thanks for your help.

Bryan


B. M. Rocine
Associate Pastor
Living Word Church
6101 Court St. Rd.
Syracuse, NY 13206

(office) 315.437.6744
(home) 315.479.8267


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