Ch. 40

HW: 40A 1, 3, 5, 6, 11, 13, 15, 20

IMPERSONAL VERBS

Impersonal verbs are so called because they do not have a personal subjective in the nominative case. What is conceptually the subject will actually be in some other case in Latin.

Section 402

Verbs of Feeling with a genitive of the object of feeling and accusative of the subject.

miseret: +acc. of subject and +gen. of object.
Translate: (acc.) feels sorry/pity for (gen.).
Note: The literal translation (which is awkward and misleading in English) is: "It makes (acc.) feel sorry for (gen.)"

NOTE: If a pronoun is the genitive object, you must use the objective genitive forms: mei, tui, sui, nostri, or vestri.

Example:
Te mei miseret.
Literally: It makes you feel sorry for me.
Good English: You feel sorry/pity for me.
Me tui miseruit.
Literally: It made me feel sorry for you.
Good English: I felt sorry/pity for you.

Other verbs that work the same way are listed below. These verbs are all 2nd conjugation so the imperfect is -ebat, the perfect -uit (except taedet has pertaesum est), and the future is -ebit.

paenitet - (acc.) feels sorry/repentant for (gen.)
piget - (acc.) feels peeved/annoyed/irked/upset about/at (gen.)
pudet - (acc.) feels ashamed about (gen.)
taedet- (acc.) feels tired/bored about/of (gen.)

Examples:
Paenitet eos erroris.
They are sorry (repentant) about the mistake.
Mox taedebit Caesarem pugnandi.
Caesar will soon be tired of fighting.
Pudebat me filiae.
I was ashamed of my daughter.
Piget hunc virum nostri.
This man is peeved/annoyed with us.

Section 403

Impersonals that tend to take an infinitive.

Some take accusative subject and infinitive verb.

oportet - (acc.) ought to (inf.), it is (acc.)'s duty to (inf.)
decet- it befits (acc.) to (inf.), it is proper for (acc.) to (inf.)

I ought to leave. It is my duty to leave.
me discedere oportet.
It will befit him to win. It will be proper for him to win.
Decebit eum vincere.

Some take dative of interest for the person involved.

libet- it pleases (dat.) to (inf.), (dat.) likes (inf.)
licet- it is permitted or allowed for (dat.) to (inf.), (dat.) may (inf.)

It pleased us to build the city. We liked to build the city.
Libuit (or "libitum est") nobis urbem aedificare.
It is permitted for you all to go. You all may go.
Licet vobis ire.

Section 404

Verbs often used as impersonals.

iuvat: It pleases (acc.) to (inf.)
It pleases us to come. Nos venire iuvat.
placet: It pleases/is pleasing for (dat.) to (inf.); (dat.) decides to (inf.)
It was pleasing for me to sail. I decided to sail.
Navigare mihi placuit.
videtur: It seems good/best to (dat.) to (inf.); (dat.) decides to (inf.)
It seems best to him to stay. He decides to stay.
Manere ei videtur.

Many of the above impersonals may sometimes take an ut clause instead of acc./dat and inf.

Examples:
Iuvat ut adsis.
It is pleasing that you are here.
Placuit ut Catilina hostis rei publicae esset.
It was decided that Catiline was an enemy of the state.

These ut clauses are typically called substantive result clauses and they also occur with verbs that mean happen.

Accidit ut vincat. It happens that he is winning.
Factum est ut adesset. It happened that he was present.

Section 405

The book is confusing here so read my notes carefully.

First, interest (3rd sing. of intersum) is a synonym of re fert (also written as one word "refert"). Both verbs are used impersonally and mean "(something) is important to/for (someone)."

Here are the possible subjects: a neuter nominative singular pronoun (hoc, id, illud), an infinitive by itself, an infinitive with accusative subject, an ut clause (substantive clause of result as mentioned above), or an indirect/reported question.

In order to show how important (the degree of importance), you may use an adverb such as maxime (very) or minime (very little) or nihil (not all all) or a genitive of indefinite value (ch. 32) such as magni (a lot, much) or parvi (a little).

No matter what subject or degree is expressed the person(s) involved will be in the genitive case, even though it sounds more like a dative in English, unless the person is a personal pronoun for which see the note below.

EXAMPLES OF EACH KIND OF SUBJECT

Pronoun
This is very important to Caesar.
Hoc (nom.s.n.) Caesaris(gen.) maxime interest/refert.

Infinitive
Canere Romanorum nihil intererat/retulit.
Singing was not at all important to the Romans.

Accusative + infinitive
Eum ridere patris magni interest/refert.
It was quite important for his father that he was smiling.
or His smiling was of much importance to his father.

ut clause (substantive result)
It will be of little importance that he came.
Ut venerit parvi intererit/referet.

Indirect question
It is very inconsequential/unimportant whether she has left.
Minime/minimi interest/refert num ea discesserit?

Peronal Pronouns with interest/refert

If the person involved is to be expressed with a personal or reflexive pronoun, then you must use the ablative singular feminine of the possessive adjective: mea, tua, sua, nostra, vestra. This is because it is meant to agree with the ablative singular femine re in refert. With interest the same construction is used by analogy.

EXAMPLES WITH PERSONAL PRONOUNS
This matters little to me.
Hoc mea parvi interest/refert.

The city's being built mattered a lot to us.
Urbem aedificari nostra magni interfuit/retulit.

Where I am going does not matter to you?
Refertne nihil tua quo eam? or Quo eam nihil refert tua?

Section 406

Warns you that you do not need a word for "it" as the subject of an impersonal infinitive.

E.g.
He says that he feels sorry about you.
Dicit se(acc. obj.) tui(gen.) miserere.
Literal translation of the Latin: He says that it* makes him feel sorry for you.
*There is not any word for the it in Latin. I have mentioned this before--impersonal verbs in Latin never have a real expressed subject only the vague understood "it" subject.

Also shows you how to make a command form of impersonal verbs with jussive subjunctive (since they cannot use imperatives).

E.g.
Do not feel sorry for me!
Ne mei te misereat!
Literally: Let it not make you feel sorry for me!
Do not be ashamed of us!
Ne nostri te pudeat!
Literally: Let it not make you ashamed of us!

Section 407

Notes that you may use a subjunctive in place of acc./dat. +inf. with the verbs licet, oportet, and necesse est.

E.g.
You must leave. It is necessary that you leave.
Necesse est discedas.
He ought to come with us. It is fitting that he come with us.
Oportet veniat nobiscum.
They may sing. It is permitted that they sing.
Licet canant.