07.02.25: Speaking Latin on Campus (University of Dallas) [6]; notes [iii]; introduction to the subjunctive (2)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zMhOlxDaFCo

[1] Hodiē velim ostendere vōbīs ūnversitātem. │Today I would like to show you the university.

The subjunctive mood has different tenses; this is an example of the present subjunctive of the irregular verb volō:

velim

velīs

velit

velīmus

velītis

velint

velim (subjunctive) │ I would like to; Fr: je voudrais (conditional tense); German: ich möchte (subjunctive)

The subjunctive is used in Latin to express wish i.e. something that you would like to do. Now, of course, Vincent does show you the university, but the grammar of the verb indicates something that, at that point, is desired but has not yet happened i.e. the grammar gods would say: Maybe you would like to do it but that doesn’t guarantee that you will!

[2] Volō deambulāre hīc ut omnia videam. │I want to take a walk here to see everything.

This is the regular present subjunctive of a 2^nd conjugation verb:

videam

videās

videat

videāmus

videātis

videant

The sentence would translate as “I want to take a walk here to see everything” but that’s not how the Latin is actually working:

Volō deambulāre hīc ¦ ut omnia videam │ Literally: I want to take a walk ¦ so that I may see everything.

Again, although Vincent does see everything, at the moment he says it, it hasn’t in grammatical terms happened yet; he tells you what the purpose is of him walking. Compare the translation from the Vulgate:

People were bringing little children to him in order that / so that he might touch them.

The same idea is conveyed in:

Cūrāte ut valeātis │literally: take care / see to it that you are well / healthy i.e. the purpose of taking care is so that you may be well

[3]

nesciō ubi sit. │ I don’t know where it is.

nesciō utrum sit in mediō campī │I don’t know whether (or not) it is in the middle of the campus.

This is the present subjunctive of esse and appears very often in the literature:

sim

sīs

sit

sīmus

sītis

sint

Compare:

Where is it? │ direct question > I don’t know where it is │indirect question

Is it here or not? │direct question > I don’t know whether it’s here or not │indirect question

An example in English can convey the same idea as the Latin subjunctive: I’ve no idea where he might be.

There is far more involved in the subjunctive than what has been referred to here, but this at least gives you an idea as to why it is being used in the contexts above.