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  • From: "George Athas" <george.athas AT moore.edu.au>
  • To: <b-hebrew AT lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: Re: [b-hebrew] Verbal Aspect (was Tenses - Deut 6:4)
  • Date: Mon, 5 Mar 2007 08:28:46 +1100

Hi Yitzhak!

I see that I perhaps gave the wrong impression in my initial response about
verbal aspect. I did not mean to suggest that all Hebraists are going down
the path of verbal aspect -- they are not. However, the verbal aspect
approach is gaining momentum -- that cannot be denied.

The approach I am taking actually yields similar results to the more
conventional Aktionsart and tense approaches, but it is, I believe, far
simpler and more lucid. In particular, it makes dealing with non-narrative
sections of the Hebrew Bible far easier, and brings it into conformity with
the 'rules' of narrative. In any case, it is worth bearing in mind that any
discussion about verbal aspect which removes tense from the table has the
difficulty of communicating this in English, which is so tense-dependent.

Furthermore, you are right to question the entire approach. I am not
suggesting that verbal aspect has come down from Sinai, as it were. It needs
to be tested. What I am finding, however, is that there are numerous ways to
interpret the grammar of a language. It really depends on the assumptions
and categories one brings into the analysis. As such, the 'exceptions' of
one system might be explainable as 'regular rules' in another system. The
issue, therefore, is not whether one approach is right or wrong, but rather
how well it fits. I am not suggesting that Aktionsart is 'wrong', but rather
that verbal aspect seems to fit Hebrew better. It has, in my opinion,
greater explanatory power.



Best Regards,

GEORGE ATHAS
Moore Theological College (Sydney)
1 King St, Newtown, NSW 2042, Australia
Ph: (+61 2) 9577 9774







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