English Grammar in Familiar Lectures Part 15

2. _Monosyllables_ are generally compared by adding _er_ and _est; dissyllables, trisyllables_, &c. by _more_ and _most_; as, mild, milder, mildest; frugal, more frugal, most frugal; virtuous, more virtuous, most virtuous. Dissyllables ending in _y_; as, happy, lovely; and in _le_ after a mute; as, able, ample; and dissyllables accented on the last syllable; as, discreet, polite; easily admit of _er_ and _est_; as, happi_er_, happi_est_; polit_er_, _polit_est_.

Words of more than two syllables very seldom admit of these terminations.

3. When the positive ends in _d_, or _t_, preceded by a _single_ vowel, the consonant is doubled in forming the comparative and superlative degrees; as red, _redder, reddest_; hot, _hotter, hottest_.

4. In some words the superlative is formed by adding _most_ to the end of them; as, nethermost, uttermost or utmost, undermost, uppermost, foremost.

5. In English, as in most languages, there are some words of very common use, (in which the caprice of custom is apt to get the better of a.n.a.logy,) that are irregular in forming the degrees of comparison; as, "Good, better, best; bad, worse, worst; little, less, least; much or many, more, most; near, nearer, nearest or next; late, later, latest or last; old, older or elder, oldest or eldest;" and a few others.

6. The following adjectives, and many others, are always in the _superlative_ degree, because, by expressing a quality in the highest degree, they carry in themselves a superlative signification: _chief, extreme, perfect, right, wrong, honest, just, true, correct, sincere, vast, immense, ceaseless, infinite, endless, unparalleled, universal, supreme, unlimited, omnipotent, all-wise, eternal_.

7. Compound adjectives, and adjectives denoting qualities arising from the figure of bodies, do not admit of comparison; such as, _well-formed, frost-bitten, round, square, oblong, circular, quadrangular, conical_, &c.

8. The termination _ish_ added to adjectives, expresses a slight degree of quality below the comparative; as, _black, blackish; salt, saltish. Very_, prefixed to the comparative, expresses a degree of quality, but not always a superlative degree.

Read this Lecture carefully, particularly the NOTES; after which you may pa.r.s.e the following adjectives and neuter verb, and, likewise, the examples that follow. If you cannot repeat all the definitions and rules, spread the Compendium when you pa.r.s.e. But before you proceed, please to commit the

SYSTEMATIC ORDER OF PARSING.

_The order of parsing an_ ADJECTIVE, is--an adjective, and why?--compare it--degree of comparison, and why?--to what noun does it belong?--RULE.

That _great_ nation _was_ once _powerful_; but now it is _feeble_.

_Great_ is an adjective, a word added to a noun to express its quality--pos. great, com. greater, sup. greatest--it is in the positive degree, it expresses the quality of an object without any increase or diminution, and belongs to the noun "nation," according to

RULE 18. _Adjectives belong to, and qualify, nouns expressed or understood_.

_Was_ is a verb, a word that signifies to be--neuter, it expresses neither action nor pa.s.sion, but being or a state of being--third person singular, because its nominative "nation" is a noun of mult.i.tude conveying _unity_ of idea--it agrees with "nation," agreeably to RULE 10. _A noun of mult.i.tude conveying_ unity _of idea, may have a verb or p.r.o.noun agreeing with it in the_ singular.

_Powerful_ is an adjective belonging to "nation," according to Rule 18.

_Feeble_ belongs to "it," according to Note 1, under Rule 18. _Is_ is a neuter verb agreeing with "it," agreeably to Rule 4.

"Bonaparte entered Russia with 400,000 men."

_Four-hundred-thousand_ is a numeral adjective of the cardinal kind, it is a word used in counting, and belongs to the noun "men," according to Note 2, under Rule 18. _Numeral adjectives belong to nouns, which nouns must agree in number with their adjectives_.

If, in parsing the following examples, you find any words about which you are at a loss, you will please to turn back, and pa.r.s.e all the foregoing examples again. This course will enable you to proceed without any difficulty.

_More_ is an adverb. _Of_ and _to_ are prepositions, governing the nouns that follow them in the objective case.

EXERCISES IN PARSING. A benevolent man helps indigent beggars.

Studious scholars learn many long lessons. Wealthy merchants own large s.h.i.+ps. The heavy s.h.i.+ps bear large burdens; the lighter s.h.i.+ps carry less burdens. Just poets use figurative language. Ungrammatical expressions offend a true critic's ear. Weak critics magnify trifling errors. No composition is perfect. The rabble was tumultuous. The late-washed gra.s.s looks green. Shady trees form a delightful arbor. The setting sun makes a beautiful appearance; the variegated rainbow appears more beautiful.

Epaminondas was the greatest of the Theban generals; Pelopidas was next to Epaminondas.

The first fleet contained three hundred men; the second contained four thousand. The earth contains one thousand million inhabitants. Many a cheering ray brightens the good man's pathway.

NOTE. _Like, Worth_. The adjective _like_ is a contraction of the participle _likened_, and generally has the preposition _unto_ understood after it. "She is _like_ [_unto_] her brother." "They are _unlike_ [_to_] him." "The kingdom of heaven is _like_ [_likened_ or made _like_] _unto_ a householder."

The noun _worth_ has altogether dropped its a.s.sociated words. "The cloth is _worth_ ten dollars _a_ yard;" that is, The cloth is _of the_ worth _of_ ten dollars _by the_ yard, or _for a, one_, or _every yard_.

Some eminent philologists do not admit the propriety of supplying an ellipsis after _like, worth, ere, but, except_, and _than_, but consider them prepositions. See Anomalies, in the latter part of this work.

REMARKS ON ADJECTIVES AND NOUNS.

A critical a.n.a.lysis requires that the adjective when used without its noun, should be pa.r.s.ed as an adjective belonging to its noun understood; as, "The _virtuous_ [_persons_] and the _sincere_ [_persons_] are always respected;" "Providence rewards the _good_ [_people,_] and punishes the _bad_ [_people._]"

"The _evil_ [_deed_ or _deeds_] that men do, lives after them; "The _good_ [_deed_ or _deeds_] is oft-interred with their bones."

But sometimes the adjective, by its _manner_ of meaning, becomes a noun, and has another adjective joined to it; as, "the chief _good_;" "The vast _immense_ [_immensity_] of s.p.a.ce."

Various nouns placed before other nouns, a.s.sume the character of adjectives, according to their _manner_ of meaning; as, "_Sea_ fish, _iron_ mortar, _wine_ vessel, _gold_ watch, _corn_ field, _meadow_ ground, _mountain_ height."

The principle which recognises _custom_ as the standard of grammatical accuracy, might rest for its support on the usage of only _six_ words, and defy all the subtleties of innovating skeptics to gainsay it. If the genius and a.n.a.logy of our language were the standard, it would be correct to observe this a.n.a.logy, and say, "Good, good_er_, good_est_; bad, bad_der_, bad_dest_; little, littl_er_, littl_est_; much, much_er_; much_est_." "By _this mean_;" "What _are_ the _news_." But such a criterion betrays only the weakness of those who attempt to establish it. Regardless of the dogmas and edicts of the philosophical umpire, the good sense of the people will cause them, in this instance, as well as in a thousand others, to yield to _custom_, and say, "Good, _better, best_; bad, _worse, worst_; little, _less, least_; much, _more, most_;"

"By _this means_;" "What _is_ the _news_?"

With regard to the using of adjectives and other qualifying words, care must be taken, or your language will frequently amount to absurdity or nonsense. Let the following general remark, which is better than a dozen rules, put you on your guard. Whenever you utter a sentence, or put your pen on paper to write, weigh well in your mind _the meaning of the words_ which you are about to employ. See that they convey precisely the ideas which you wish to express by them, and thus you will avoid innumerable errors. In speaking of a man, we may say, with propriety, he is _very_ wicked, or _exceedingly_ lavish, because the terms _wicked_ and _lavish_ are adjectives that admit of comparison; but, if we take the words in their literal acceptation, there is a solecism in calling a man _very_ honest, or _exceedingly_ just, for the words _honest_ and _just_, literally admit of no comparison. In point of fact, a man is _honest_ or _dishonest, just_ or _unjust_: there can be no medium or excess in this respect. _Very_ correct, _very_ incorrect, _very_ right, _very_ wrong, are common expressions; but they are not _literally_ proper. What is not _correct_, must be _incorrect_; and that which is not _incorrect_, must be _correct_: what is not _right_, must be _wrong_; and that which is not _wrong_, must be _right_. To avoid that circ.u.mlocution which must otherwise take place, our best speakers and writers, however, frequently compare adjectives which do not literally admit of comparison: "The _most established_ practice;" "The _most uncertain_ method;" "Irving, as a writer, _is far more accurate_ than Addison;" "The metaphysical investigations of our philosophical grammars, are _still more incomprehensible_ to the learner." Comparisons like these, should generally be avoided; but sometimes they are so convenient in practice, as to render them admissible. Such expressions can be reconciled with the principles of grammar, only by considering them as figurative.

Comparative members of sentences, should be set in _direct opposition_ to each other; as, "Pope was _rich_, but Goldsmith was _poor_." The following sentences are inaccurate: "Solomon was _wiser_ than Cicero was _eloquent_." "The principles of the reformation were _deeper_ in the prince's mind than to be _easily eradicated_." This latter sentence contains _no comparison_ at all; neither does it literally convey _any meaning_. Again, if the Psalmist had said, "I am the wisest of my teachers," he would have spoken absurdly, because the phrase would imply, that he was one of his teachers. But in saying, "I am wiser _than_ my teachers," he does not consider himself one of them, but places himself in contradistinction to them.

Before you proceed any farther, you may answer the following

QUESTIONS NOT ANSWERED IN PARSING.

What is the distinction between a noun and an adjective?--By what sign may an adjective be known?--Are participles ever used as adjectives?--Does gender, person, number, or case, belong to adjectives?--How are they varied?--Name the three degrees of comparison.--What effect have _less_ and _least_ in comparing adjectives?--Repeat the order of parsing an adjective.--What rule applies in parsing an adjective?--What rule in parsing a verb agreeing with a noun of mult.i.tude conveying _unity_ of idea?--What Note should be applied in parsing an adjective which belongs to a p.r.o.noun?--What Note in parsing _numeral_ adjectives?

QUESTIONS ON THE NOTES. Repeat all the various ways of forming the degrees of comparison, mentioned in the first five NOTES.--Compare these adjectives; _ripe, frugal, mischievous, happy, able, good, little, much_ or _many, near, late, old_.--Name some adjectives that are always in the superlative, and never compared.--Are compound adjectives compared?--What is said of the termination _ish_, and of the adverb _very?_--When does an adjective become a noun?--What character does a noun a.s.sume when placed before another noun?--How can you prove that _custom_ is the standard of grammatical accuracy?

PHILOSOPHICAL NOTES.

ADNOUNS.

_Adnoun_ or _Adjective_, comes from the Latin, _ad_ and _jicio_, to _add to_.

Adnouns are a cla.s.s of words added to nouns to vary their comprehension, or to determine their extension. Those which effect the former object, are called _adjectives_, or _attributes;_ and those which effect the latter, _restrictives_. It is not, in all cases, easy to determine to which of these cla.s.ses an adnoun should be referred. Words which express simply the _qualities_ of nouns, are adjectives; and such as denote their _situation_ or _number_, are restrictives.

Adjectives were originally nouns or verbs.

Some consider the adjective, in its present application, _exactly_ equivalent to a noun connected to another noun by means of juxtaposition, of a preposition, or of a corresponding flexion. "A _golden_ cup," say they, "is the same as a _gold_ cup, or a cup _of gold_." But this principle appears to be exceptionable. "A cup _of gold_," may mean either a cup-_full_ of gold, or a cup _made_ of gold. "An _oaken_ cask," signifies an _oak_ cask, or a cask _of oak_; i.e. a cask _made_ of oak; but a _beer_ cask, and a cask _of beer_, are two different things. A _virtuous_ son; a son _of virtue_.

The distinguis.h.i.+ng characteristic of the adjective, appears to consist in its both _naming_ a quality, and _attributing_ that quality to some object.

The terminations _en, ed_, and _ig_ (our modern _y_,) signifying _give, add, join_, denote that the names of qualities to which they are postfixed, are to be attributed to other nouns possessing such qualities: wood-_en_, wood-_y_. See page 37.

_Left_ is the past participle of the verb _leave_. Horne Tooke defines _right_ to be that which is _ordered_ or _directed_. The _right_ hand is that which your parents and custom direct you to use in preference to the other. And when you employ that in preference, the other is the _leaved, leav'd_, or _left_ hand; i.e. the one _leaved_ or _left_. "The one shall be taken, and the other _(leaved) left_."

_Own_. Formerly a man's _own_ was what he _worked for, own_ being a past participle of a verb signifying to _work_.

_Restrictive_. Some restrictives, in modern times, are applied only to singular nouns; such as _a_ or _an, another, one, this, that, each, every, either_. Others, only to plural nouns; as, _these, those, two, three, few, several, all_. But most restrictives, like adjectives, are applied to both singular and plural nouns: _first, second, last, the, former, latter, any, such, same, some, which, what_.