A temporal clause with
cum
and the Imperfect or Pluperfect Subjunctive
describes the circumstances
that accompanied or preceded the action of the main verb:—
-
cum essem
ōtiōsus in Tusculānō, accēpī tuās litterās
(Fam. 9.18.1)
,
when I was taking my ease in my house at Tusculum
,
I received your letter.
-
cum
servīlī bellō
premerētur
(Manil. 30)
,
when she
(Italy)
was under the load of the Servile War.
-
cum
id
nūntiātum esset
, mātūrat
(B. G. 1.7)
,
when this had been reported, he made
(makes)
haste.
-
cum
ad Cybistra quīnque diēs
essem morātus
, rēgem Ariobarzānem īnsidiīs līberāvī
;
(
Fam. 15.4.6
),
after remaining at Cybistra for five days
,
I freed King Ariobarzanes from plots.
-
is
cum
ad mē Lāodicēam
vēnisset
mēcumque ego eum
vellem
, repente percussus est atrōcissimīs litterīs
(
id
. 9.25.3),
when he had come to me at Laodicea and I wished him to remain with me, he was suddenly
, etc.
This construction is very common in narrative, and
cum
in this use is often called
narrative
cum
.
Cum
with the Imperfect or Pluperfect Indicative does not (like
cum
with the Imperfect or Pluperfect Subjunctive)
describe the time by its circumstances;
it
defines the time
of the main verb by denoting a coëxistent state of things (Imperfect Indicative) or a result attained when the action of the main verb took place (Pluperfect). Thus the construction is precisely that of
postquam
etc. (§
543
.
a
).
The distinction between the uses defined in §§
545
, 546, may be illustrated by the following examples: (1)
He had a fever when he was in Spain
(Shakspere). Here the
when
-clause
defines the time
when Cæsar had the fever,—namely, in the year of his Spanish campaign (B.C. 49). In Latin we should use
cum
with the Imperfect Indicative. (2)
Columbus discovered America when he was seeking a new route to India;
here the
when
-clause does not define or date the time of the discovery; it merely
describes the circumstances
under which America was discovered,—namely, in the course of a voyage undertaken for another purpose. In Latin we should use the Imperfect Subjunctive.
The distinction explained in Note 3 is unknown to early Latin. In
Plautus quom
always has the Indicative unless the Subjunctive is required for some other reason.
When the principal action is expressed in the form of a temporal clause with
cum
, and the definition of the time becomes the main clause,
cum
takes the Indicative.
Here the logical relations of the two clauses are inverted; hence
cum
is in this use called
cum
inversum
:
—
-
diēs nōndum decem intercesserant,
cum
ille alter fīlius īnfāns
necātur
(Clu. 28)
,
ten days had not yet passed, when the other infant son was killed.
[Instead of
when ten days had not yet passed
, etc.]
-
iamque lūx appārēbat
cum prōcēdit
ad mīlitēs
(Q. C. 7.8.3)
,
and day was already dawning when he appears before the soldiers.
-
hōc facere noctū apparābant,
cum
mātrēs familiae repente in pūblicum
prōcurrērunt
(B. G. 7.26)
,
they were preparing to do this by night, when the women suddenly ran out into the streets.
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