tlhIngan-Hol Archive: Wed Oct 24 16:55:30 2001
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Re: KLBC qun
Qor'etlh:
>> "Warriors live in the present, civilization (Empire, or
>> Citizens(?)) goes on into the future."
DloraH:
: yInlI' SuvwI'pu', taHtaH tayqeq.
: Or to make a better connection in the comparison, use the same root verb.
: taHlI' SuvwI'pu', taHtaH tayqeq.
This certainly works; no question.
Voragh:
> Alternatively, use contrasting adverbials:
> DaH yInlI' SuvwI'pu', reH taHtaH tayqeq.
> As Klingon verbs have no grammatical tense, using adverbs of
> time can help.
: The english doesn't use tense either. The statement can be
: said at any point in time.
Well, you're right that this, like most proverbs, is a general "timeless"
truth, but the English verbs are in the present tense. For example, the
statement "Milk is good for you" is certainly true for all time, but the verb
"is" is in the present tense. Tenseless English verbs are known as
infinitives: "not finite" (as to time).
If you want to make some sort of timeless (aspectless?) proverbial truth,
another way is to just use the bare verb without any aspect markers at all.
For example:
bogh tlhInganpu', SuvwI'pu' moj, Hegh
Klingons are born, live as warriors, then die. TKW
SuvmeH 'ej charghmeH bogh tlhInganpu'
Klingons are born to fight and to conquer. TKW
Interestingly *not* {boghpu'}, {SuvlI'meH}, etc. perhaps because no specific
birth or conquest is mentioned.
: Warriors have yInlI' in the past, they will yInlI' in the future.
: in time. Warriors have yInlI' in the past, they will yInlI' in the future.
: There's not supposed to be tense, only aspect. Adding the adverbs isn't
: wrong, I just think DaH is too restrictive.
Qor'etlh wanted to contrast "in the present" with "goes on into the future",
and this is one way to focus on that contrast.
We may both be over-thinking this - not unknown on this list! - and should
simply say:
yIn SuvwI'pu'; taH wo'.
Hegh SuvwI'pu'; taH wo'.
Hegh SuvwI'; Heghbe' wo'.
... etc.
taHjaj wo'!
--
Voragh
Ca'Non Master of the Klingons