stitutes the perfection of the human character, whether we look to the moral principles by which men profess to be guided, or the political institutions which bind them into societies; though it must be confessed that in the arts of taste, such, for instance, as sculpture and architecture, the ancients have left us models that we are happy to imitate, but cannot boast that we have yet excelled. Whether men grow wiser as the world grows older; or the light of Christianity that shines upon us, though still but dimly and partially, enables us to see the real deformity of war: certain it is that European nations are growing less and less inclined to take up the sword against each other, and more and more disposed to reciprocate the enduring blessings of peace. 3. Periods of complicated construction which may divide, primarily, either into nominative and verb, or into verb and adverb; (adverb and verb is the same ;) but always with a preference of the one way to the other. Exercise and temperance | strengthen the constitution, and sweeten the enjoyments of life. Preferably thus: Exercise and temperance strengthen the constitution, 【 and, &c. Without stopping to weigh the consequences of the life they are leading, the young, gay votaries of pleasure, | hurry onward to their ruin. Preferably thus: Without stopping to weigh the consequences of the life they are leading, the young, &c. | Every man who speaks and reasons | is a grammarian, a logician, and a rhetorician, although unacquainted with the rules of art as exhibited in books and systems. Preferably thus: Every man who speaks and reasons is a grammarian, a logician, and a rhetorician, | although, &c. 4. Periods of complicated construction, of which the first part, (logical adverb,) is, grammatically, an adjective agreeing with the nominative included in the verb; which periods are capable of being easily reconstructed, so that instead of adverb and verb, the parts shall be nominative and verb. Oppressed by the infirmities of age, and deserted by the courtiers who daily expected the accession of his grandson, Edward the Third, notwithstanding the glories of his reign, was a miserable spectacle at its close. By beginning the period with a portion of the latter part, namely, "Edward," &c.; and introducing the logical adverb, "Oppressed," &c., as a second logical adjective after the one terminating at "reign," the period will have the form (less eligible in this case) whose primary parts are nominative and verb; the verb commencing at was a miserable," &c. 66 Seeing the many duties before us in life; considering the knowledge and the required ability which they demand; foreseeing also the disgrace that must follow a failure in them, and the reputation that rewards their due performance: who will not, while he is yet young, labour hard for the gifts of instruction, and the strength that industry brings? Let who, the nominative included in the logical verb, be placed before the logical adverb,-in other words, before the logico-grammatical adjective agreeing with who, and the period will have the form (here less eligible) that divides into nominative and verb. Distracted by jarring sounds on every side, enveloped by thick darkness, fearing to go forward, hopeless of finding his way back, and reckoning upon instant destruction if he stood still; the subject of my narrative felt every nerve in his frame vibrate with fear, and a cold, clammy damp creep over his skin. Lavish, but not generous; venturesome, but not courageous; affable, but not kind; boastful of high purposes, but muddling time away in low employments: my new companion was like a picture that pleases or dazzles at first sight, but exhibits defects of the worst kind, when we have looked at it for some time. 5. Periods of complicated construction, of which the parts are with difficulty extricated on account of the interference of Rhetoric with the plainer forms of Logic and Grammar. I think that a man who has once been convicted of a deliberate falsehood, cannot afterwards claim to be trusted, or treated with honourable regard. In This is a rhetorical sentence if we divide where a good speaker would make the principal suspension pause, namely, at falsehood. Logic and grammar would divide at I think,—an active verb, to which all that follows would be the logical objective, or, in our large application of the term adverb, a logical adverb, the conjunction that being included as a part of it. Dropping the words I think that, the period divides obviously at falsehood into nominative and verb. dividing at the same place under the suggestion of rhetoric, we must still consider the parts to be nominative and verb. I think that, is now an adverb, making sense and construction with all that follows it as its verb. But the rhetorician disregards its grammatical character, and mingles it with the nominative by the pause he makes between the nominative and verb. The example is easily reduced to a strict shape by dropping the conjunction that, and introducing 1think, as an adverb between cannot afterwards, and claim: in this shape it will have an air of greater preciseness, but therefore of less ease; that is, it will be more acceptable to logic, but, for ordinary conversational purposes, less to rhetoric. How strange that a man of so much sensibility, should be wanting in affection to a good wife, and dutiful children! This period, if reduced from the exclamatory form which rhetoric suggests, would manifestly consist of nominative and verb; e. g. "That a man," &c.; "is very strange." As it stands above, the primary division may be at strange or at sensibility. The former mode yields a verb, "How strange (it is)," and an adverb: the latter division yields a nominative and a verb, with an adverb, as in the previous example, confusedly mingled with the nominative. And yet a greater rhetorical effect is produced by the latter division, namely, that which brings the voice to a suspension at the word sensibility. From these examples, and others which follow, it may be seen that Logic and Rhetoric operate on the structure of sentences in different directions. Logic endeavours to sort, and bring together, the parts of speech which make immediate sense and construction with each other: Rhetoric delights to distribute these parts, so that, by standing away from each other, the sense which they are instru * Concerning the nature and office of the word that in a period of this kind, see PRINCIPLES (II. 282), page 154; and (III. 89), page 206. mental, and only instrumental, in forming, shall not be collectible, till a certain emotive effect is consequent upon the sense. And here, it may be added, we have the theory of a difference, which has often been stated, between Greek, Latin, and other inflexional languages, and the languages of modern Europe; namely, that the former were best fitted for poetry and oratory; the latter are superior for the objects of philosophy, and calm, considerate research. For modern languages cannot distribute the parts of speech in the free manner, almost unlimited, which we find in Greek and Latin: and Rhetoric is therefore circumscribed as to this mode of producing her effects; while Logic has gained greater power, by her opportunities to enforce attention to the preliminary steps, which lead to intended conclusions. What can long disturb the serenity of a man, who finds his happiness less in outward things, than in the comforts and delights which lie within his own breast? This period may be reduced from its figurative, to a plain form, by putting the word nothing in place of what: and whether so made a plain period, or left in its previous rhetorical shape, the primary division will be at man, which division will yield a logical verb and a logical adverb. These parts, however, are made up of parts, which a stricter form would disentangle. For the subject we collect from the whole period is this: "The serenity of a man who finds his happiness, less in outward things, than in the comforts and delights that lie within his own breast:" to which the verb, suggested by the whole sentence, is this: "cannot be long disturbed.” Oh! that I were in the land of my fathers, rambling over my native fields, or reposing under the roof that sheltered my childhood! This rhetorical period divides at fathers, and the parts yielded are verb and adverb. It is easily made a plain period by putting I-wish instead of the interjection; and it may be reduced to a more formal shape by beginning thus: "That I were in the land," &c.; and adding to the logical nominative completed at childhood, this logical verb: "is what I ardently wish." Let him who desires the happiness of being loved and honoured in his old age, take care to secure that blessing by amiable and generous conduct during his youth. In the strict description of grammar, the former part of this period is a verb imperative, governing the other part as a dependent verb infinitive; and in our large application of the term adverb, we call the latter part the adverb that makes sense and construction with the previous verb. A stricter logical form is easily deduced, thus:"He who desires," &c., which is a logical nominative; "must take care to secure,” &c., which is the correspondent logical verb. F Spring, summer, autumn, winter! how many, and how grateful, are the vicissitudes which they bring! This rhetorical period is not strictly grammatical. The four grammatical nouns substantive are used interjectionally, and, in the division of the whole period, form a logical adverb, the remaining part of the period being the logical verb. The period is easily reduced to a stricter form, to the detriment of its rhetorical force, by substituting the four substantives for the pronoun they, which, in the construction, is superfluous. The period will then divide at vicissitudes into parts of the same name, that is, into adverb and verb, the adverb being differently constituted. The period may be again reconstructed, so that the parts shall be nominative and verb: e. g. Spring, Summer, Autumn, Winter, bring many and grateful vicissitudes." This is the logical substance of the impassioned rhetorical expression, which has been thus traced to its rational foundation. What, Mary! why, she is the prime flower of the whole knot; among the whole amiable sisterhood, the most amiable. This rhetorical period divides at Mary, the two words composing the first portion of the division, being used as one interjection, and, in our view, being an adverb, which is to make sense and construction with the rest of the period, its correspondent verb. The whole period is easily reducible to a stricter form by dispensing with three words, what, why, and she; when, by transposition, the expression will consist of nominative and verb; as, "Mary, among the whole amiable sisterhood the most amiable, is the prime flower of the knot." EXERCISES FOR WRITING continued. TRANSPOSITION. Facility in transposing the parts of an intended sentence, is indispensable to the accomplishment of a speaker or writer; and the ability for this will be materially forwarded by such views of the construction of sentences, as the previous analyses of sentences are calculated to open. One more example of transposition is furnished hereunder, pursued into two or three forms of the same original subject-matter; and a very few sentences are added for practice: beyond which, the pupil may be left to himself, both in choosing examples for practice, and in the manner of transposing them. History proposes much more than she can accomplish, when she undertakes to trace the progress of mankind throughout every age, without interruption or omission. Period dividing at accomplish into verb and adverb. When history undertakes, &c., she proposes, &c. |