What is in a verb? Well, more than you might think. And when learning how to use verbs, knowing their inner parts should be very helpful. So some ground rules for our upcoming posts on verbs:
1. We get no brownie points for knowing the ins and outs of verbs if we can’t then actually use them.
2. We only get some brownie points for knowing how to use verbs but not knowing how they work.
3.
What verbs do in Latin, they also do in English (and French, and
Spanish, and...), so a grasp of what verbs do is helpful beyond just one
language--but you have to make the connection.
The
first couple of posts will be background. Then I will launch into the
current verb tenses/moods we are using in class. If you think you need a
refresher, stay tuned; if your English grammar is solid, wait till the
current class topics come up.
Either way it should be a good time.
I cannot stress enough my position that we lose out if we only know the grammar. But we also lose out if we only know how to say something but don't know why it is that way. When we set our goal at only being able to comprehend (and, in modern languages, to communicate)--a very utilitarian end, and one often set as the major goal--we lose an element of intentionality in language. We need both to reach our full potential in any language.
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