Herbert Weir Smyth, A Greek Grammar for Colleges

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TEMPORAL CLAUSES REFERRING TO THE FUTURE

[*] 2398. The future indicative is rarely used in temporal clauses; and when used refers to definite time.

““τηνικαῦτα . . . ὅτε οὐδ᾽ ὅ τι χρὴ ποιεῖν ἕξετε” at that time, when you will not be able to do even what is necessary” D. 19.262.

a. The future is rare because that tense does not usually make clear the difference between action continuing and action simply occurring in the future. ὅτε with the future indicative has thus been almost entirely displaced by ὅταν with the subjunctive.

b. For the future with κέ in θ 318 the subjunctive is probably correct.

[*] 2399. Temporal clauses referring indefinitely to the future take either the subjunctive with ἄν or the optative without ἄν.

a. The addition of ἄν produces the forms ὅταν, ὁπόταν; ἐπά_ν, ἐπήν (both rare in Attic), ἐπειδα?́ν. ἕως ἄν, μέχρι ἄν, ἔστ᾽ ἄν mean as long as or until. ὡς when scarcely ever takes ἄν (for ὡς ἄν while ἕως ἄν is read in S. Aj. 1117, Ph. 1330).

b. The temporal conjunctions have here, in general, the same constructions as conditional ἐά_ν or εἰ. Thus ὁπόταν ῀ ἐά_ν ποτε, ὁπότε ῀ εἴ ποτε.

[*] 2400. The present marks the action as continuing (not completed), the aorist marks the action as simply occurring (completed). The present usually sets forth an action contemporaneous with that of the leading verb; the aorist, an action antecedent to that of the leading verb.

a. The present may denote time antecedent when the verb has no aorist, and in the case of some other verbs: Thus, (ὁ πόλεμος) δ̀ς λυ_πήσει ἕκαστον, ἐπειδὰν παρῇ the war which will afflict every one when it comes D. 6.35, ἐπειδὰν ἀκούῃ . . . ἑτέρους κρί_νοντας, τί καὶ ποιήσῃ; when he hears that they are prosecuting other men, what should he then do? 19. 138.

FUTURE TEMPORAL CLAUSES WITH THE SUBJUNCTIVE

[*] 2401. Temporal clauses referring to the future take the subjunctive with ἄν in sentences corresponding to more vivid future conditions. The principal clause has the future indicative or any form of the verb referring to the future except the simple optative. The negative is μή.

ἡνίκα δ᾽ ἄν τις ὑ_μᾶς ἀδικῇ, ἡμεῖς ὑπὲρ ὑ_μῶν μαχούμεθα but when any one wrongs you, we will fight in your defence X. C. 4.4.11, ὅταν μὴ σθένω, πεπαύσομαι when my strength fails, I shall cease S. Ant. 91, ““ἐπειδὰν ἅπαντ᾽ ἀκούσητε, κρί_νατε” when you have heard everything, decide” D. 4.14, ἐμοὶ . . . δοκεῖ, ἐπὰ_ν τάχιστα ἀ_ριστήσωμεν, ἰέναι in my judgment we must go as soon as we have breakfasted X. A. 4. 6. 9, μέχρι δ᾽ ἂν ἐγὼ ἥκω, αἱ σπονδαὶ μενόντων but until I return, let the armistice continue 2. 3. 24, ““λέξω . . . ἕως ἂν ἀκούειν βούλησθε” I will speak so long as you wish to listen” D. 21.130, ““περιμένετε ἔστ᾽ ἂν ἐγὼ ἔλθω” wait until I come” X. A. 5.1.4, μὴ ἀναμείνωμεν ἕως ἂν πλείους ἡμῶν γένωνται let us not wait until the enemy outnumbers us X. C. 3.3.46, οὐκ ἀναμένομεν (present as emphatic future) ἕως ἂν ἡ ἡμετέρα_ χώρα_ κακῶται we do not wait until our land shall be ravaged 3. 3. 18. The present subjunctive is rare with ἕως until, and marks overlapping action (here = ἕως ἂν ἴδωμεν κακουμένην).

[*] 2402. The subjunctive without ἄν (κέ) is sometimes found in poetry and in Herodotus; in Attic prose only with μέχρι, μέχρι οὗ until (and πρίν, 2444 b). Thus, ““ἐβούλευσαν δεσμοῖς αὐτοὺς φυλάσσειν μέχρι οὗ τι ξυμβῶσιν” they decided to guard them in fetters until they should reach some agreement” T. 4.41. The omission of ἄν is more common after temporal conjunctions than after εἰ (2327 a) and in writers later than Homer lends an archaic colouring to the style.

[*] 2403. The principal clause may be a potential optative, which is at times nearly equivalent to the future: ἐγὼ δὲ ταύτην μὲν τὴν εἰρήνην, ἕως ἂν εἷς Ἀθηναίων λείπηται, οὐδέποτ᾽ ἂν συμβουλεύσαιμι ποιήσασθαι τῇ πόλει so long as a single Athenian is left, I never would recommend the city to make peace D. 19.14.

FUTURE TEMPORAL CLAUSES WITH THE OPTATIVE

[*] 2404. Temporal clauses referring to the future in sentences corresponding to less vivid future conditions usually take the optative without ἄν. An optative referring to the future stands in the principal clause (2186 b). The negative is μή.

τεθναίην, ὅτε μοι μηκέτι ταῦτα μέλοι may I die, when I shall no longer care for these delights Mimnermus 1. 2, ““πεινῶν φάγοι ἂν ὁπότε βούλοιτο” when hungry he would eat whenever he wished” X. M. 2.1.18, εἰ δὲ βούλοιο τῶν φίλων τινὰ προτρέψασθαι, ὁπότε ἀποδημοίης, ἐπιμελεῖσθαι τῶν σῶν, τί ἂν ποιοίης; should you desire to induce one of your friends to care for your interests when you were away from home, what would you do? 2. 3. 12, ““δέοιτό γ᾽ ἂν αὐτοῦ μένειν, ἕως ἀπέλθοις” he would beg him to remain until you should depart” X. C. 5.3.13 (here the temporal clause depends on μένειν, itself dependent on δέοιτο ἄν).

[*] 2405. The optative with ἄν (κέ) in Homer, where Attic would have the simple optative, is potential or virtually equivalent to a future. Thus, αὐτίκα γάρ με κατακτείνειεν Ἀχιλλεὺς . . ., ἐπὴν γόου ἐξ ἔρον εἵην for let Achilles slay me forthwith, when I have satisfied my desire for lamentation Ω 227. Cp. I 304, δ 222, ἕως κε β 78 (potential), εἰς ὅ κε Ο 70 (elsewhere this expression always takes the subjunctive in Homer).

[*] 2406. The potential optative or indicative (with ἄν) having its proper force may appear in temporal clauses (cp. 2353).

φυλάξα_ς . . . τὸν χειμῶν᾽ ἐπιχειρεῖ, ἡνίκ᾽ ἂν ἡμεῖς μὴ δυναίμεθ᾽ ἐκεῖσ᾽ ἀφικέσθαι by watching for winter to set in he begins his operations when we are unable (he thinks) to reach the spot D. 4.31. Cp. 2405.

[*] 2407. The principal clause rarely has the present or future indica tive, when the temporal clause has the optative without ἄν (cp. 2360, 2361, 2573 b, c).

φρονήσεως δεῖ πολλῆς πρὸς τοὺς πολὺ πλείους . . ., ὁπότε καιρὸς παραπέσοι when the critical moment arrives, he must have great judgment to cope with forces much more numerous than his own X. Hipp. 7.4, αἰπύ οἱ ἐσσεῖται . . . νῆας ἐνιπρῆσαι, ὅτε μὴ αὐτός γε Κρονί_ων ἐμβάλοι αἰθόμενον δα_λὸν νήεσσι hard will it be for him to fire the ships unless (when . . . not) Kronion himself hurl upon the ships a blazing brand N 317.

a. Homer has ἄν (κέ) with the subjunctive; as ““οὐκ ἄν τοι χραίσμῃ κίθαρις . . ., ὅτ᾽ ἐν κονίῃσι μιγείης” thy cithern will not avail thee when thou grovellest in the dust” Γ 55.

[*] 2408. After a secondary tense introducing indirect discourse (real or implied) the optative may represent the subjunctive with ἄν as the form in which the thought was conceived.

παρήγγειλαν, ἐπειδὴ δειπνήσαιεν . . . πάντας ἀναπαύεσθαι καὶ ἕπεσθαι ἡνίκ᾽ ἄν τις παραγγέλλῃ they issued orders that, when they had supped, all should rest and follow when any one should give the command ( = ἐπειδὰν δειπνήσητε . . . ἀναπαύεσθε) X. A. 3.5.18, ἐπιμεῖναι κελεύσαντες ἔστε βουλεύσαιντο, ἐθύ_οντο ordering them to wait until they had taken counsel, they proceeded to sacrifice ( = ἐπιμείνατε ἔστ᾽ ἂν βουλευσώμεθα) 5. 5. 2, ἔδοξεν αὐτοῖς . . . προϊέναι . . ., ἕως Κύ_ρῳ συμμείξειαν they resolved to keep advancing until they should join Cyrus ( = προΐωμεν ἕως ἂν συμμείξωμεν) 2. 1. 2.