tlhIngan-Hol Archive: Mon Aug 09 13:44:35 1999
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RE: KLBC: Verb for "Need"
- From: "Andeen, Eric" <[email protected]>
- Subject: RE: KLBC: Verb for "Need"
- Date: Mon, 9 Aug 1999 13:44:45 -0700
ja' DujHoD
> Since there is no Klingon verb for "need" (as far as I can find),
jatlh quljIb:
> This raises an interesting question for me: How does one convey
> the idea that you *ought* to do something? Use <-nIS>?
This question is as much about culture as language. What exactly do you mean
by "ought"? The way I understand the word, it means that some sort of moral,
ethical, or social standard suggests or demands that you do something. How
you translate depends on the standard.
If it's something important and understood, like honor, then <-nIS> is
perfect. The type six suffixes (-ba', -bej, -law', -chu') are useful for
clarifying the need. If you wish to be very clear, you could say something
like <... 'e' lupoQ tayqeq chutmey>. Phrases involving <net> are also likely
candidates: <... net pIH>; <... net raD>; <... net poQ>, etc.
As an aside, I suspect Klingons don't use <-nIS> quite as much as we might
think, especially in the second person. It is usually preferable to use an
imperative than to make a second person statment with <-nIS>. For example,
in English it's common to hear something like "You need to give this form to
that person", but in Klingon <nuvvetlhvaD navvam yInob> seems much more
likely than <... DanobnIS>. And in the first person, just doing what needs
to be done is often preferable to talking about it.
pagh
Beginners' Grammarian
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