"The Sentence - A Discussion" - a perfect topic for grammarians.  At least for now.
 
Both sentences?  Right?  (Including the preceding!)
 
Geoff Layton> Date: Thu, 26 Jun 2008 17:10:14 -0400> From: [log in to unmask]> Subject: Re: Sentences are modern inventions. NOT; was ATEG Digest - 24 Jun 2008 to 25 Jun 2008 (#2008-144)> To: [log in to unmask]> > Scott:> > We're not questioning that Medieval writers had thoughts as complete as> ours (or at least, I know I'm not questioning that, and I doubt anyone> else would). It's just that the relation between "complete thought" and> "sentence" isn't as straightforward as it's sometimes presented. Compare> the following:> > 1. Most of us wanted pizza, although Bjarki wanted surstromming.> 2. Most of us wanted pizza. *Although Bjarki wanted> surstromming.> 3. Most of us wanted pizza. However, Bjarki wanted surstromming.> > I'd have enormous trouble trying to support the claim that "although"> gives you one complete thought in #1, but "however" leads to two> complete thoughts in #3, and that anyone who wrote #2 (both parts, not> just the second) was having incomplete thoughts. That *issue* would not,> I think, have come up in the medieval period -- you wrote it, and it> made sense, so it was complete. > > Bill Spruiell> Dept. of English> Central Michigan University> > > -----Original Message-----> From: Assembly for the Teaching of English Grammar> [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Scott> Sent: Thursday, June 26, 2008 4:40 PM> To: [log in to unmask]> Subject: Re: Sentences are modern inventions. NOT; was ATEG Digest - 24> Jun 2008 to 25 Jun 2008 (#2008-144)> > Having read facsimiles and a few original medieval documents, I am well> aware that they did not have our modern sentence structure nor did they> necessarily start with a capital and end with a period. The primary> point is that they did have complete thoughts and wrote them. That we> may choose to punctuate them by joining two independent clauses with a > colon or semicolon in lieu of having two short sentences is irrelevant > to the concept that medieval writers did not, as a general rule, write > in sentences.> > I must be missing some critical point. All I read are allegations.> Unless someone gets on line and starts citing a number of medieval > MSS that do not have complete sentences) preferably MSS in Latin, > German, or Romance languages (Koine is too argumentative), I tend to> consider such allegations specious.> > Scott> I'm from MS not MO, but show me anyway.> > ***********************************************************> > To join or leave this LISTSERV list, please visit the list's web> interface at:> http://listserv.muohio.edu/archives/ateg.html> and select "Join or leave the list"> > Visit ATEG's web site at http://ateg.org/> > To join or leave this LISTSERV list, please visit the list's web interface at:> http://listserv.muohio.edu/archives/ateg.html> and select "Join or leave the list"> > Visit ATEG's web site at http://ateg.org/
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The i’m Talkathon starts 6/24/08.  For now, give amongst yourselves.
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