Theophrastus · Fragments §70c.1

Relative Terms and Their Relation to Specific Subjects

Passage 71 of 196 · Greek

Summary

Based on a quotation from the second book of Theophrastus' Topics, the text explains the nature of relative terms being spoken of in relation to the subjects in which they exist, and the necessity of making distinctions in each case.

§70c.1Fr. 70c Ὅτι δὲ λέγεται τὰ πρός τι πρὸς ταῦτα ἐν οἶς ἔστιν, ὑπὸ μὲν Θεοφράστου ἐν τῷ β´ τῶν Τοπικῶν οὕτως εἴρηται· "ὧν μὲν γὰρ ἕκαστα λέγεται, καὶ ὑπάρχει τούτοις, ὥσπερ ἡ συμμετρία καὶ ἡ ἕξις καὶ ἡ σύνθεσις· μνήμη δὲ καὶ ὕπνος καὶ ὑπόληψις οὐδενὶ τῶν ἀψύχων, οὐδὲ ἡ ἑτέρου κίνησις ἄλλῳ· διὸ δὴ καθʼ ἕκαστον διοριστέον. "

\nFr. 70c\nThat relative terms are spoken of in relation to those things in which they exist has been stated by Theophrastus in the second book of his Topics as follows: "For those things of which each is said, it also belongs to them, just as symmetry, state, and composition do; but memory, sleep, and belief belong to none of the soulless things, nor does the movement of the one belong to another; wherefore indeed we must make a distinction in each case."

Notes

70c.1ὧν μὲν γὰρ ἕκαστα λέγεται, καὶ ὑπάρχει τούτοις — The antecedent `τούτοις` (dative) of the relative clause is placed after the relative clause itself, while the relative pronoun `ὧν` (genitive) serves as the complement of `λέγεται` ('is said of/in relation to...'). The conjunction `καί` has an emphatic force ('also belongs'). This expresses that relative properties (such as symmetry) not only are spoken of in relation to the things they define (genitive) but also actually belong to the subjects in which they exist (dative).
70c.1ἡ ἑτέρου κίνησις ἄλλῳ — A construction where the verb `ὑπάρχει` ('belongs to, exists in') is omitted, in parallel with the preceding clause `μνήμη δὲ καὶ ὕπνος...`. The terms `ἑτέρου` ('of the other') and `ἄλλῳ` ('to another') demonstrate exclusivity, meaning that the movement of one subject cannot belong to a different, separate subject.

Cite this passage

Theophrastus, Fragments §70c.1. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0093.tlg010x09.humanitext-grc1:70c.1

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