Complexive aorist

Participle (not in indirect discourse).—The participle, as a verbal adjective, is timeless. The tenses of the participle express only continuance, simple occurrence, and completion with permanent result. Whether the action expressed by the participle is antecedent, coincident, or subsequent to that of the leading verb (in any tense) depends on the context. The future participle has a temporal force only because its voluntative force points to the future.

a. Present (continuative). The action set forth by the present participle is generally coincident (rarely antecedent or subsequent) to that of the leading verb: ἐργαζόμεναι μὲν ἠρίστων, ἐργασάμεναι δὲ ἐδείπνουν the women took their noonday meal while they continued their work, but took their supper when they had stopped work X. M. 2.7.12.

1. Antecedent action ( = imperf.): οἱ Κῡ́ρειοι πρόσθεν σὺν ἡμῖν ταττόμενοι νῦν ἀφεστήκᾱσιν the forces of Cyrus that were formerly marshalled with us have now deserted X. A. 3.2.17, τοὺς τότε παρόντας αἰτιᾱ́σονται συμβούλους they will accuse those who were their counsellors at that time P. G. 519a, οἱ Κορίνθιοι μέχρι τούτου προθῡ́μως πρᾱ́σσοντες ἀνεῖσαν τῆς φιλονεικίᾱς the Corinthians, who up to that time had been acting zealously, now slackened in their vehemence T. 5.32. An adverb (πρότερον, πρόσθεν, τότε, ποτέ) often accompanies the participle, which is sometimes called the participle of the imperfect.

2. Subsequent action (especially when the leading verb denotes motion): ἔπεμψαν πρέσβεις ἀγγέλλοντας τὴν τοῦ Πλημυρίου λῆψιν they despatched messengers to announce the capture of Plemyrium T. 7.25. An attributive present part. w. νῦν may refer to the absolute present, though the main verb is past: τὴν νῦν Βοιωτίᾱν καλουμένην ᾤκησαν they settled in the country now called Boeotia T. 1.12.

3. The present participle denotes that an action is in process, is attempted, or is repeated.

b. Future (chiefly voluntative): οὐ συνήλθομεν ὡς βασιλεῖ πολεμήσοντες we have not come together for the purpose of waging war with the king X. A. 2.3.21.

c. Aorist (simple occurrence). The action set forth by the aorist participle is generally antecedent to that of the leading verb; but it is sometimes coincident or nearly so, when it defines, or is identical with, that of the leading verb, and the subordinate action is only a modification of the main action.

1. Antecedent: δειπνήσᾱς ἐχώρει after supper he advanced T. 3.112, τοὺς ἐλευθέρους ἀποκτείναντες ἀνεχώρησαν after killing the free men they withdrew 5. 83. ἐπομόσᾱς ἔφη he took an oath and said X. C. 4.1.23, ἤδη δ᾽ ἐπὶ ταῦτα πορεύσομαι τοσοῦτον αὐτὸν ἐρωτήσᾱς I shall at once proceed to this matter after having put to him certain questions D. 18.124. The aorist participle is often thus used when it takes up the preceding verb: νῦν μὲν δειπνεῖτε· δειπνήσαντες δὲ ἀπελαύνετε take your supper now, and when you have done so, depart X. C. 3.1.37.

2. Coincident: μή τι ἐξαμάρτητε ἐμοῦ καταψηφισάμενοι do not commit the error of condemning me P. A. 30d, εὖ γ᾽ ἐποίησας ἀναμνήσᾱς με you did well in reminding me P. Ph. 60c ( = ἀνέμνησάς με εὖ ποιῶν). So also when an aorist participle is used with a future finite verb, as ἀπαλλαχθήσομαι βίου θανοῦσα by dying I shall be delivered from life E. Hipp. 356. See also 2103.

3. The action of an attributive aorist participle is rarely subsequent to that of the leading verb. When this is the case, the action of the participle is marked as past from the point of view of the present (like the aor. indic.): οἱ Ἕλληνες ὕστερον κληθέντες οὐδὲν πρὸ τῶν Τρωϊκῶν ἁθρόοι ἔπρᾱξαν the people later called Hellenes carried out no joint enterprise prior to the Trojan war T. 1.3, Σάτυρος καὶ Χρέμων, οἱ τῶν τριᾱ́κοντα γενόμενοι, Κλεοφῶντος κατηγόρουν Satyrus and Chremon, who (afterwards) became members of the Thirty, accused Cleophon L. 30.12; cp. γενόμενος T. 2.49, 4. 81.

4. The aorist participle is often ingressive or complexive (1924, 1927).

d. Perfect (completion with permanent result): καταλαμβάνουσι Βρᾱσίδᾱν ἐπεληλυθότα they found (historical present) that Brasidas had arrived T. 3.69. A perfect participle may have the force of a pluperfect if accompanied by an adverb like πρόσθεν (cp. 1872 a. 1): ὁ πρόσθε κεκτημένος he who possessed it before S. Ph. 778.

Complexive Aorist.—The complexive aorist is used to survey at a glance the course of a past action from beginning to end: τούτῳ τῷ τρόπῳ τὴν πόλιν ἐτείχισαν it was in this manner that they fortified the city T. 1.93. It may sum up the result of a preceding narrative (often containing imperfects, as T. 2.47. 4; 3. 81). The complexive aorist appears also in other moods than the indicative.

a. This is often called the ‘concentrative’ aorist, because it concentrates the entire course of an action to a single point. When used of rapid or instantaneous action this aorist is often called ‘momentary.’

b. The complexive aorist is used either of a long or of a short period of time: τέσσαρα καὶ δέκα ἔτη ἐνέμειναν αἱ σπονδαί the peace lasted fourteen years T. 2.2, ὀλίγον χρόνον ξυνέμεινεν ἡ ὁμαιχμίᾱ the league lasted a short time 1. 18, ἦλθον, εἶδον, ἐνῑ́κησα veni, vidi, vici (“Caesar's brag of came, and saw, and conquered”) Plutarch, Caes. 50.

The participle may stand either not in indirect discourse or in indirect discourse.

a. Not in Indirect Discourse.—Here verbs of perceiving denote physical perception—the act perceived or heard of. With ἀκούω and πυνθάνομαι the participle stands in the genitive; with αἰσθάνομαι it usually stands in the accusative (as with ὁρῶ), but sometimes in the genitive. (See 1361, 1367.)

εἶδε Κλέαρχον διελαύνοντα he saw Clearchus riding through X. A. 1.5.12; αἰσθόμενος Λαμπροκλέᾱ πρὸς τὴν μητέρα χαλεπαίνοντα perceiving Lamprocles angry with his mother X. M. 2.2.1, ᾔσθησαι πώποτέ μου ἢ ψευδομαρτυροῦντος ἢ σῡκοφαντοῦντος; have you ever noticed me either bearing false witness or playing the part of an informer? 4. 4. 11; ἤκουσαν αὐτοῦ φωνήσαντος they heard him speaking X. S. 3. 13; ὡς ἐπύθοντο τῆς Πύλου κατειλημμένης when they learned of the capture of Pylos T. 4.6.

N. Verbs of physical perception, ὁρῶ (especially) and ἀκούω, regularly take the present participle in Attic prose, which usually refuses to distinguish between I see a house burning and I see a house burn. The complexive aorist, summing up the action, does however occur, as ὡς εἶδεν ἐλαφον ἐκπηδήσᾱσαν . . . ἐδίωκεν when he saw a hind break cover he gave chase X. C. 1.4.8. Cp. πεσόντα εἶδον Hdt. 9.22.

b. In Indirect Discourse.—Here verbs of perceiving denote intellectual perception—the fact that something is perceived or heard of. With ἀκούω and πυνθάνομαι the participle stands in the accusative (as with ὁρῶ, αἰσθάνομαι). Cp. 1363, 1365, 2144, 2145.

ὁρῶμεν πάντα ἀληθῆ ὄντα ἃ λέγετε we see that everything you say is true X. A. 5.5.24, αἰσθάνομαι ταῦτα οὕτως ἔχοντα I perceive that this is so X. M. 3.5.5, ἤκουσε Κῦρον ἐν Κιλικίᾳ ὄντα he heard that Cyrus was in Cilicia X. A. 1.4.5, ὅταν κλύῃ τινὸς ἥξοντ᾽ Ὀρέστην when she hears from any one that Orestes will return S. El. 293, πυθόμενοι Ἀρταξέρξην τεθνηκότα having learned that Artaxerxes was dead T. 4.50.