R. Lowth. “A Short Introduction tо English Grammar”

“A Short Introduction tо English Grammar”

CASE

Nouns have two Cases: the Nominative and the Genitive. The Genitive Case is formed by “ s” with an apostrophe added to the Nominative as Men, Men’s

It means “belonging to” and, therefore, some authors have called it the Possessive Case.

In the formation of this Case I have compiled with a late Refinement, and what I really think a corrupt custom. The Genitive Case, in my opinion, might be much more properly formed by adding “s”, or when the pronunciation requires it, “es” without an apostrophe as, men, mens; ox, oxes; horse, horses. This Case undoubtedly came from the Saxon and the best English writers after the Norman Conquest, even down to the Time of Chaucer and the Reformation, formed it just in the same manner they did the plural number, viz, by the addition of “s”, “es” or “is” and where rather sparing in the use of it. After that the “is” and “es” were discontinued by degrees, though the latter, in a few instances, is retained to this day in the version of the Bible. As to the apostrophe, it was seldom used to distinguish the genitive Case till about the beginning of the present century and seems to have been introduced by mistake. At that time the Genitive Case was supposed to have had its original form of contraction: John’s book, for John his book: but that notion has been sufficiently exploded and, therefore, the use of the apostrophe, especially in those instances where the pronunciation requires, add an additional syllable and I presume is quite indesensible. To write ox’s, ass’s, fox’s and at the same time pronounce it oxes, asses, foxes, is such a departure from the original formation, at least in writing, and such an inconsistent use of the apostrophe, as cannot be equalled perhaps in any other language; and though it may be said that the apostrophe has some propriety as a note of distinction, yet no one, I think, who has any knowledge of Grammar, can well mistake the plural, it appears to me, at present, to be a distinction of very little importance. Formerly there were notes used to distinguish to ablative Case singular of Latin nouns of the first declension, and the genitive of the fourth, which are now laid aside by correct writers. Case is the relation between nouns, pronouns, and modifiers and other nouns, pronounces or verbs in the same grammatical construction. Etymologically, the word means “a falling away” and owes its grammatical application to the erroneous Latin conception that all other Cases fell away or declined from the nominative. Fifty four Cases have been postulated for certain little known Asian languages, and North Georgian seems to possess at least twenty three. In English nouns possess no distinctive Case endings – the work is done by word order and prepositions. We attribute to nouns the primary distinction between the Nominative and the Objective Cases on analogy with the pronouns which can be substitute for them. The so-called Possessive Case is best thought of as a method of transforming a noun into a modifier.

Questions:

1. What is Case?

2. What does this word mean etymologically?

3. What does it owe its grammatical application to?

4. Does it possess any endings in the English language?

5. How is a noun distinguished in a sentence?

6. What distinction is attributed to nouns?

7. How many cases have nouns according to Dr. Lowth? What are they?

8. How are the main two cases formed?

9. What language was the Genitive Case originated from?

10. How did the English writers form the Genitive Case?

11. How did the Genitive Case endings develop?

12. What meaning had the apostrophe according to the Latin conception?