William Watson Goodwin, Syntax of the Moods and Tenses of the Greek Verb

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[*] 669. When the direct form is an indicative (without ἄν) in a simple sentence, we have (667, 1) the following rules for indirect quotations after ὅτι or ὡς and for indirect questions:—

1. After primary tenses the verb stands in the indicative, in the tense of the direct discourse. E.g. Λέγει ὅτι γράφει, he says that he is writing; λέγει ὅτι ἔγραφεν, he says that he was writing; λέγει ὅτι γέγραφεν, he says that he has written; λέγει ὅτι ἐγεγράφει, he says that he had written; λέγει ὅτι ἔγραψεν, he says that he wrote; λέγει ὅτι γράψει, he says that he shall write.

Εἴφ᾽ ὅτι οἱ σῶς εἰμι καὶ ἐκ Πύλου εἰλήλουθα, “say that I am safe and have come from Pylos.” Od. xvi. 131. Ὄτρυνον δ᾽ Ἀχιλῆι εἰπεῖν ὅττι ῥά οἱ πολὺ φίλτατος ὤλεθ᾽ ἑταῖρος, “urge him to tell Achilles that his dearest friend perished.” Il. xvii. 654. (See 663, Il. 1.) Γνωτὸν δὲ ὡς ἤδη Τρώεσσιν ὀλέθρου πείρατ᾽ ἐφῆπται. Il. vii. 401.

Λέγει γὰρ ὡς οὐδέν ἐστιν ἀδικώτερον φήμης. AESCHIN. i. 125. Οὐ γὰρ ἂν τοῦτό γ᾽ εἴποις, ὡς ἔλαθεν. Id. ii. 151. Εὖ δ᾽ ἴστε, ὅτι πλεῖστον διαφέρει φήμη καὶ συκοφαντία. Ib. 145. Ἀλλ᾽ ἐννοεῖν χρὴ τοῦτο μὲν, γυναῖχ᾽ ὅτι ἔφυμεν. SOPH. Ant. 61. Καὶ ταῦθ᾽ ὡς ἀληθῆ λέγω, καὶ ὅτι οὔτε ἐδόθη ἡ ψῆφος ἐν ἅπασι πλείους τ᾽ ἐγένοντο τῶν ψηφισαμένων, μάρτυρας ὑμῖν παρέξομαι, I shall bring witnesses to show that I speak the truth, etc. DEM. lvii. 14.

(Indirect Questions.) Ἐρωτᾷ τί βούλονται, he asks what they want; ἐρωτᾷ τί ποιήσουσιν, he asks what they will do.

Σὺ δὲ φράσαι εἴ με σαώσεις (Bekker ἤ με), and do you consider whether you will save me. Il. i. 83. Σάφα δ᾽ οὐκ οἶδ᾽ εἰ θεός ἐστιν. Il. v. 183. Ὄφρα καὶ Ἕκτωρ εἴσεται ἢ καὶ ἐμὸν δόρυ μαίνεται ἐν παλάμῃσιν (v. l. εἰ καὶ). Il. viii. 111. Ὄφρα δαῶμεν ἢ ἐτεὸν Κάλχας μαντεύεται ἦε καὶ οὐκί. Il. ii. 299; so Od. iv. 487, Od. 712. Ὃς εἴπῃ ὅ τι τόσσον ἐχώσατο Φοῖβος Ἀπόλλων, εἴ τ᾽ ἄρ᾽ ὅ γ᾽ εὐχωλῆς ἐπιμέμφεται εἴ θ᾽ ἑκατόμβης (Bekker ἤ τ᾽ . . . ἤ θ̓). Il. i. 64; see ii. 349. Πύστεις ἐρωτῶντες εἰ λῃσταί εἰσιν, “asking whether they are pirates.” THUC. i. 5. Εἰ ξυμπονήσεις καὶ ξυνεργάσει σκόπει. SOPH. Ant. 41.See EUR. Alc. 784. Εὐβοιίς: ὧν δ᾽ ἔβλαστεν οὐκ ἔχω λέγειν. SOPH. Tr. 401. Ἐρωτᾷς εἰ οὐ καλή μοι δοκεῖ εἶναι, “you ask whether it does not seem to me to be fine.” PLAT. Gorg. 462D. Βουλόμενος ἐρέσθαι εἰ μαθών τίς τι μεμνημένος μὴ οἶδεν. Theaet. 163D. Σκοπῶμεν εἰ ἡμῖν πρέπει ἢ οὔ. Rep. 451D. Τοῦτ᾽ αὐτὸ, εἰ χαίρεις ἢ μὴ χαίρεις, ἀνάγκη δή πού σε ἀγνοεῖν. Phil. 21B. (For οὐ and μή in the last four examples, representing οὐ of the direct question, see 667, 5.) Θαυμάζω πότερα ὡς κρατῶν αἰτεῖ τὰ ὅπλα ἢ ὡς διὰ φιλίαν δῶρα. XEN. An. ii. 1, 10. Σήμαιν᾽ εἴτ᾽ ἔχει χῶρον πρὸς αὐτὸν τόνδε γ᾽ εἴτ᾽ ἄλλῃ κυρεῖ. SOPH. Ph. 22. Εἴτε κατὰ τρόπον κεῖται εἴτε μη, οὕτω θεᾶσθαι. PLAT. Crat. 425 B (667, 5). See also XEN. Cyr. ii. 1, 7 (εἰ . . . εἴτε μή); EUR. Alc. 139 (εἰ . . . εἴτε). Περὶ πάντων ἴδωμεν, ἆρ᾽ οὑτωσὶ γίγνεται πάντα. PLAT. Phaed. 70D. (Ἆρα regularly introduces only direct questions.)

It is to be noticed that indirect questions after primary tenses retain an indicative of the direct question in Greek, where the subjunctive is used in Latin. Thus, nescio quis sit, I know not who he is, in Greek is simply ἀγνοῶ τίς ἐστιν. This does not apply to indirect questions which would require the subjunctive in the direct form (677).

2. After secondary tenses the verb may be either changed to the optative or retained in the indicative, the tense of the direct discourse being retained in either case. The optative is the more common form. E.g. Ἔλεξεν ὅτι γράφοι (or ὅτι γράφει), he said that he was writing; i.e. he said γράφω. Ἔλεξεν ὅτι γεγραφὼς εἴη (or ὅτι γέγραφεν), he said that he had written; i.e. he said γέγραφα. Ἔλεξεν ὅτι γράψοι (or ὅτι γράψει), he said that he should write; i.e. he said γράψω. Ἔλεξεν ὅτι γράψειεν (or ὅτι ἔγραψεν), he said that he had written; i.e. he said ἔγραψα. (For the imperfect and pluperfect, see 672.)

(Optative.) Ἐνέπλησε φρονήματος τοὺς Ἀρκάδας, λέγων ὡς μόνοις μὲν αὐτοῖς πατρὶς Πελοπόννησος εἴη, πλεῖστον δὲ τῶν Ἑλληνικῶν φῦλον τὸ Ἀρκαδικὸν εἴη, καὶ σώματα ἐγκρατέστατα ἔχοι. XEN. Hell. vii. 1, 23. (He said μόνοις μὲν ὑμῖν ἐστι, πλεῖστον δέ ἐστι, καὶ σώματα ἔχει: these indicatives might have been used in the place of εἴη, εἴη, and ἔχοι.) Ἔλεγε δὲ ὁ Πελοπίδας ὅτι Αργεῖοι καὶ Ἀρκάδες μάχῃ ἡττημένοι εἶεν ὑπὸ Λακεδαιμονίων, i.e. he said that they had been defeated (he said ἥττηνται). Ib. vii. 1, Ib. 35.So HDT. i. 83 (perf. and pres.) Ὑπειπὼν τἄλλα ὅτι αὐτὸς τἀκεῖ πράξοι, ᾤχετο, “having hinted that he would himself attend to affairs there.” THUC. i. 90. (He said τἀκεῖ πράξω, and πράξει might have been retained. See 128.) Ὁ δὲ εἶπεν ὅτι ἔσοιντο (he said ἔσονται). XEN. Cyr. vii. 2, 19. Ἔλεξαν ὅτι πέμψειε σφᾶς ὁ Ἰνδῶν βασιλεὺς, κελεύων ἐρωτᾶν ἐξ ὅτου ὁ πόλεμος εἴη, they said that the king of the Indians had sent them, commanding them to ask on what account there was war. Ib. ii. 4, Ib. 7. (They said ἔπεμψεν ἡμᾶς, and the question to be asked was ἐκ τίνος ἐστὶν ὁ πόλεμος; ) Ἔλεγον ὅτι οὐ πώποθ᾽ οὗτος ὁ ποταμὸς διαβατὸς γένοιτο πεζῇ εἰ μὴ τότε, they said that this river had never been (ἐγένετο) fordable except then. Id. An. i. 4, Id. An. 18. Περικλῆς προηγόρευε τοῖς Ἀθηναίοις, ὅτι Ἀρχίδαμος μέν οἱ ξένος εἴη, οὐ μέντοι ἐπὶ κακῷ γε τῆς πόλεως γένοιτο, he announced that A. was his friend, but that he had not been made his friend to the injury of the state. THUC. ii. 13. (He said ξένος μοί ἐστιν, οὐ μέντοι ἐγένετο. See 116, THUC. 1; 124, THUC. 1.) Ἔγνωσαν ὅτι κενὸς ὁ φόβος εἴη. XEN. An. ii. 2, 21. Προϊδόντες ὅτι ἔσοιτο ὁ πόλεμος, ἐβούλοντο τὴν Πλάταιαν προκαταλαβεῖν. THUC. ii. 2. Ἐπειρώμην αὐτῷ δεικνύναι, ὅτι οἴοιτο μὲν εἶναι σοφὸς, εἴη δ᾽ οὔ. PLAT. Ap. 21 C.

(Indicative.) Ἔλεγον ὡς ἐλπίζουσιν σὲ καὶ τὴν πόλιν ἕξειν μοι χάριν, they said that they hoped, etc. ISOC. v. 23. (They said ἐλπίζομεν, which might have been changed to ἐλπίζοιεν.) Ἧκε δ᾽ ἀγγέλλων τις ὡς τοὺς πρυτάνεις ὡς Ἐλάτεια κατείληπται, “some one had come with the report that Elatea had been taken.” DEM. xviii. 169. (Here the perf. opt. might have been used.) Δεινοὺς λόγους ἐτόλμα περὶ ἐμοῦ λέγειν, ὡς ἐγὼ τὸ πρᾶγμ᾽ εἰμὶ τοῦτο δεδρακώς. Id. xxi. 104. Αἰτιασάμενος γάρ με ἃ καὶ λέγειν ἂν ὀκνήσειέ τις, τὸν πατέρα ὡς ἀπέκτονα ἐγὼ τὸν ἐμαυτοῦ, κ.τ.λ. Id. xxii. 2. Φανερῶς εἶπεν ὅτι ἡ μὲν πόλις σφῶν τετείχισται ἤδη, “he said that their city had already been fortified.” THUC. i. 91. Ἀποκρινάμενοι ὅτι πέμψουσιν πρέσβεις, εὐθὺς ἀπήλλαξαν. Id. i. 90. (Cf. ὅτι πράξοι, quoted above from the same chapter.) Ἤιδεσαν ὅτι τοὺς ἀπενεγκόντας οἰκέτας ἐξαιτήσομεν. DEM. xxx. 23. (Ἐξαιτήσοιμεν might have been used.) Ἐτόλμα λέγειν ὡς ὑπὲρ ὑμῶν ἐχθροὺς ἐφ᾽ ἑαυτὸν εἵλκυσε καὶ νῦν ἐν τοῖς ἐσχάτοις ἐστὶ κινδύνοις. Id. xxii. 59.

(Indirect Questions.) Ἠρώτησεν αὐτὸν τί ποιοίη (or τί ποιεῖ), he asked him what he was doing; i.e. he asked τί ποιεῖς; Ἠρώτησεν αὐτὸν τί πεποιηκὼς εἴη (or τί πεποίηκεν), he asked him what he had done; i.e. he asked τί πεποίηκας; Ἠρώτησεν αὐτὸν τί ποιήσοι (or τί ποιήσει), he asked him what he should do; i.e. he asked τί ποιήσεις; Ἠρώτησεν αὐτὸν τί ποιήσειεν (or τί ἐποίησεν), he asked him what he had done; i.e. he asked τί ἐποίησας;

Ὤιχετο πευσόμενος μετὰ σὸν κλέος, ἤ που ἔτ᾽ εἴης, i.e. he went to inquire whether you were still living. Od. xiii. 415. Ἀλλήλους τ᾽ εἴροντο τίς εἴη καὶ πόθεν ἔλθοι (i.e. τίς ἐστιν καὶ πόθεν ἦλθεν; ). Od. xvii. 368. Ἤρετο, εἴ τις ἐμοῦ εἴη σοφώτερος, “he asked whether any one was wiser than I.” PLAT. Ap. 21A. (The direct question was ἔστι τις σοφώτερος; ) Ὅ τι δὲ ποιήσοι οὐ διεσήμηνε, “but he did not indicate what he would do.” XEN. An. ii. 1, 23. (The direct question was τί ποιήσω; ) Ἐπειρώτα, τίνα δεύτερον μετ᾽ ἐκεῖνον ἴδοι, he asked whom he had seen (who came) next to him. HDT. i. 31. (The direct question was τίνα εἶδες; ) Εἴρετο κόθεν λάβοι τὸν παῖδα, “he asked whence he had received the boy.” Id. i. 116. Ἠρώτων αὐτὸν εἰ ἀναπλεύσειεν ἔχων ἀργύριον, I asked him whether he had set sail with the money. L. DEM. 55. (The direct question was ἀνέπλευσας; See 125 and 670, b.）

Εἴρετο ὅττευ χρηίζων ἱκόμην, “he asked what I wanted that I came.” Od. xvii. 120. Ἠπόρουν τί ποτε λέγει, “I was uncertain what he meant.” PLAT. Ap. 21B. (Here λέγοι might have been used.) Ἐβουλεύονθ᾽ οὗτοι τίν᾽ αὐτοῦ καταλείψουσιν, “they were considering whom they should leave here.” DEM. xix. 122. Ἐρωτώντων τινῶν διὰ τί ἀπέθανεν, παραγγέλλειν ἐκέλευεν, κ.τ.λ. XEN. Hell. ii. 1, 4.