ABSTRACT NOUNS USED IN THE PLURAL Which give some soil, perhaps, to my behaviours (I. ii. 42). Behaviour. ACCUSATIVE FOR NOMINATIVE AND VICE VERSA But we the doers (III. i. 95). Us. I do beseech ye (III. i. 157). "Ye" is nominative. NOUNS AS ADJECTIVES Draw them to Tiber banks (I. i. 68). His coward lips did from their color fly (I. ii. 122). DOUBLE SUPERLATIVES With the most boldest and best hearts of Rome (III. i. 121). DOUBLE NEGATIVES Yet 'twas not a crown neither (I. ii. 238). Nor to no Roman else (III. i. 91). Nor no instrument (III. i. 154). Nor nothing in your letters (IV. iii. 183). MISCELLANEOUS IRREGULAR CONSTRUCTIONS You ought not walk (I. i. 3). To walk. Modern usage drops the infinitive after certain verbs-behold, feel, hear, know, observe, see, etc. A labouring day (I. i. 4). A day for laboring. Wherefore art not in thy shop to-day (I. i. 34). Note omission of subject. To see great Pompey pass the streets of Rome (I. i. 52). Pass along. 4 That Tiber trembled underneath her banks (I. i. 55). Its. Elizabethan writers scarcely ever used the form "its." It is found only once in the Authorized Version of the Bible. Go see (I. ii. 25). Go and see. Worthy of note. And after scandal them (I. ii. 76). Afterwards. What hath proceeded worthy note to-day (I. ii. 181). Yond Cassius has a lean and hungry look (I. ii. 194). That. He put it by thrice, every time gentler than other (I. ii. 229). The other. He plucked me ope his doublet (I. ii. 270). Ethical dative; the meaning is "I saw him pluck open.'' And after this, let Cæsar seat him sure (I. ii. 330). Himself. Cf. I. iii. 156. Cassius, what night is this! (I. iii. 42). What a night. Here, as I point my sword (II. i. 106). "As" used loosely for "'where."' . What need we any spur? (II. i. 123). Why. Nor the insuppressive mettle of our spirits (II. i. 134). Insuppressible. Ay, and truly, you were best (III. iii. 12). It would be best for you. Call Claudius, and some other of my men (IV. iii. 243). Others. Bear with me, good boy, I am much forgetful (IV. iii. 256). Very. Much is now used with passive participles only. If thou dost nod, thou break'st thy instrument (IV. iii. 272). A vivid present for "thou art sure to break," "will break." In most languages the present tense can be used for either a vivid past or future. Fly o'er our heads, and downward look on us, In saving. "the As if. Cf. As it were doomsday (III. i. 97). And then I swore thee saving of thy life (V. iii. 38). "Saving" "is the gerund or verbal noun, and should be preceded by the preposition. The preposition often appears under the form ‘‘a,” e. g. house was long a-building,’' i. e. in building. Then the preposition dropped out and the verbal noun became confused with the participial adjective; e. g. a sewing machine = a machine for sewing with. Take thou the hilts (V. iii. 43). Hilt. Shakespeare uses both the singular and the plural form in speaking of one sword. My sword-hilts (V. v. 28). VERSIFICATION The arrangement and much of the subject-matter of the following pages are from Dr. Abbott's Shakespearian Grammar. The ordinary line in blank verse consists of five feet of two syllables each (iambic pentameter), the second syllable in each foot being accented. But ye's | terda'y | the wo'rd | of Ca's | ar mi'ght III. ii. 129-131. But as this line is too monotonous and formal for frequent use, the metre is varied, sometimes by changing the position of the accent, by introducing trisyllabic and monosyllabic feet, and by other devices of which Shakespeare took advantage. The accent after a pause is frequently on the first syllable, (trochee). Cow'ards die maʼn | y time's | befor'e | their dea'ths. II. ii. 32. This "pause accent" usually occurs at the beginning of a line. Sometimes it follows a full stop in the middle. He com'es | upon' | a wish. | Fo'rtune | is me'rr (y). III. ii. 275. Was Ca'ssius bor'n. | Give' me | thy ha'nd, | Messa'l(a). V. i. 72. Occasionally we have two consecutive trochees. 2 Cit. Cæsar has ha'd | great wrong. | 3 Cit. | Ha's he, | ma ́sters? III. ii. 120. An extra syllable is frequently added before a pause, especially at the end of a line. Our course will see'm | too bloo'd | y, Ca'i | us Ca'ss(ius). So le't it be' with Ca's (ar). The no' | ble Brut (us). I wi'll | not do' | thee so' | much wro'ng | to wake thee. II. i. 162. III. ii. 87. IV. iii. 271. Such extra syllables are called double-or feminine-endings, and they afford a useful indication of the approximate date of the play. Speaking generally, if double endings are rare, e. g. four per cent in Love's Labour's Lost, 1588, we may infer that the play is of early date; if they occur frequently, that it belongs to a later period, e. g. thirty-three per cent in The Tempest, 1610. Unaccented monosyllables. Provided there be only one accented syllable, there may be more than two syllables in any foot. No'ne that I kno'w | will be', | mu'ch that I fear ma'y chance. I was su're your lo'rd | ship di'd | not gi've it m'e. II. iv. 32. IV. iii. 255. down. IV. iii. 274. Accented monosyllables. Sometimes an unemphatic monosyllable, such as and, at, for, from, if, in, of, or, is allowed to stand in an emphatic place, and to receive an accent. When such syllables occur at the end of a line, they are called "weak endings.'' These appear for the first time in considerable numbers in Macbeth, 1605, and hardly appear at all in Shakespeare's earlier plays. Such m'en as he' | be n'e | ver a't | heart's e ́ase. I. ii. 208. To walk unbra'c | ed, a'nd | suck u'p|th(e) humo'urs. II. i. 262. III. ii. 247. The paucity of weak endings found in Julius Cæsar affords evidence that the play was written much earlier than either Antony and Cleopatra or Coriolanus, in which they are comparatively numerous. Two extra syllables are sometimes allowed, if unemphatic, before a pause, especially at the end of a line. To ma'sk thy mo'n | strous vis' (a) ge? | Seek no'ne, conspi'r | II. i. 81. How fo'olish do' | your fea'rs | seem now', | Calpu'r | (nia). II. ii. 105. And Bru' | tus An' | tony', | there we're | an An' | (tony). III. ii. 236. In this line the first "Antony' is more emphatic than the second. Syllables omitted. Many syllables which we now pronounce were formerly omitted in pronunciation. Thus: A soothsayer bi'ds | you bewa're |' the i'des | of Maʼrch. I. ii. 19. I. iii. 47. Submi'tting me' | unto' | the pe'ri | lous ni'ght. IV. iii. 226. Which give some so'il, | perhaps, to my behaviours. · I. ii. 42. Sometimes two syllables coalesce, or are rapidly pronounced together. Set hon' or in' | one ey'e | and dea'th | i'th'oth | er. I. ii. 86. Let u's be sacrific | ers bu't | not bu't | chers, Caius. Our pu'r | pose ne'c | essary, bu't | not en' | vious. II. i. 166. II. i. 178. Similarly "whether"-often spelt "where"-in the folios is frequently a monosyllable. Cf. I. i. 64, II. i. 194, V. iii. 97, V. iv. 30. So also "spirit" in I. ii. 29, 147; I. iii. 83, 95; II. i. 134, 169, 324, etc., and "either'' in IV. i. 23 are monosyllables. Lengthening of words.. The termination "ion" is frequently pronounced as two syllables at the end of a line-rarely in the middle. The na' | ture o'f | an in' | surrec't | ion'. II. i. 69. Similarly "satisfaction'' '' in II. ii. 73, "permission' in III. i. 239 -but a trisyllable in III. ii. 66; "proscription" in IV. i. 17 and IV. iii. 180. "Ambitious" is a quadrisyllable in III. ii. 88, 96, 100, 103, 108; "impatience" is a quadrisyllable in II. i. 248; "fashion" is a trisyllable in IV. iii. 135, and "soldier'' in IV. i. 28 and IV. iii. 51. "R" final is pronounced with a kind of “burr, ,"giving the effect of an additional syllable. Cas. Good night, | my loʻrd. | III. i. 171. Bru. Good night, good bro'th | er. IV. iii. 238. Monosyllables are frequently pronounced as dissyllables. As fi're drives | out fire, | so pit | y pi't | y. Let me tell yo' |u, Cas's | ius, yo'u | yourself. So also "hour" in II. ii. 121, "fire" in III. ii. 264, "fare"-in "farewell"-IV. iii. 232, etc. Observe the scansion of the lines: IV. iii. 9. "Speak, strike, | redre'ss!" | Am I entrea'ted. II. i. 55. III. i. 18. III. ii. 159. IV. iii. 179. Cas. Ci'cer o on' | e Mes. Ci'cer'o is dead. Monosyllabic exclamations often take the place of a foot. Struck Ca's ar on' | the ne'ck. | O', you flat't(e)rers! V. i. 44. Alexandrines containing six pronounced accents are very rare in Shakespeare. There is only one in Julius Cæsar: And the'se does she' | apply' | for wa'rn | ings an'd | porte'nts. II. ii. 80. Apparent Alexandrines are frequent. They can usually be explained by the omission of unemphatic syllables. Sometimes they are couplets of two verses of three accents each. Thus: Is like to la'y | upon us. I'm gla'd that my' | weak wor'ds. I. ii. 175 upon." can be explained by the omission of the first syllable of “ III. ii. 223. |