In an elliptical sentence, pause where the ellipsis takes place. To our faith, we should add virtue; and to virtue knowledge; and to knowledge-temperance; and to temperance-patience; and to patiencegodliness; and to godliness-brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness— charity. Words placed either in opposition to, or in opposition with each other, must be distinguished by a pause. Some place the bliss in action, some—in ease; Those call it pleasure, and contentment-these. OBSERVATIONS ON THE PAUuse. As the classes of words which admit of no separation, are very small and few, take the opportunity of pausing where the sense will permit, that you may never be obliged to break in upon the sense, when you find a necessity of pausing; otherwise, by pronouncing more in a breath than is needful, and neglecting those intervals where a pause may be conveniently made, you will often find yourself obliged to pause where the sense is not separable, and consequently, to obscure and weaken the opposition. Pauses should not break the grammatical connection of words, nor be protracted to an undue length. This rule has been sometimes infringed by great speakers, but the chasm has been filled up by judicious look and action. Mr. Garrick, for instance, is said to have given peculiar force to the following passage, by taking this sort of liberty: Draw Archers; draw, your arrows to the head! These words were before generally pronounced as above, with a pause after the word, archers; but that actor pronounced them thus: 1 Draw Archers, draw-your arrows to their heads. Which was thought to make the line glow with more of the spirit and fire of Richard, and seems certainly to have admitted of much greater stage effect in the speaking. A contemporary critic, however observes, that it would have been better, had he himself not have done this too frequently; and Sterne, though he artfully makes his excuse, seems indirectly to convey something of the same censure in the passage below: And how did Garrick speak the Soliloquy last night? : Oh, my lord, out of all plumb; Between the noun substantive and the noun adjective, which your lordship knows should agree in gender, number, and case, he paused thus-while I counted twenty seconds by my stopwatch. But had he no method of supplying the pause, no attitude, no action; did you watch narrowly the effect of his eye? I was looking at the stop-watch, my lord. Excellent critic! . INFLECTION. Inflection means that sort of minor modulation in reading and speaking, which though it somewhat elevates or depresses the voice, never removes it more than a note beyond its own key or pitch(1). This alternate heightening and lowering of the voice, has from its continual sameness or uniformity, been termed, "The Upward and Downward slides," but is more generally known by the name of the Rising, and Falling Inflection; and is required more or less in every sentence or period we utter, whether the same be pronounced in a high key or a low key, swiftly or slowly, forcibly or feebly, with the tone of the passion or without: EXAMPLES OF THE TWO SLIDES, OR INFLECTIONS OF VOICE. N.B. The Acute accent (') denotes the rising, and the Grave (') the falling inflection. 1. Must we act according to law, or contrary to it? 2. Did he go willingly, or un'will ingly? 3. Did he speak cau'tiously, or incautiously? As the grammatical points or stops indicate a greater or lesser separation of the parts of a sentence, and a conclusion of the whole, so do the inflections of voice accompanying them; and are in an equal degree necessary to the sense. For, however correctly we may pause between those parts or members which are separable, if we do not do it with such an inflection of the voice, as is suited to the sense, the composition we read will not only want its true meaning, but will convey a meaning very different from that intended by the writer. Sentences and members of periods, as well as the periods themselves, require the rising or falling inflection to be changed, according to their nature and circumstances; as will be seen in the following EXAMPLES. Let us reflect on the vanity' and transient glory of this world', how, by the force of one' element breaking loose upon the rest', all the varieties of nature, (1) It seems difficult to determine the difference between Accent, Emphasis, and Inflection, as respects the degree of tone, or actual extent of elevation or depression of voice, which each admits of; or indeed, whether there is any real difference at all. They each require a small variation in the height or lowness from the key pitch, but so little, that Mr. Rice confesses, he could scarcely distinguish it, and thinks the effect may be best compared to the smartly or feebly striking of a drum, which though it seems to produce a variation of tone, yet always sounds in the same key or pitch. all the works of art, all the labours of men', are reduced to nothing'. All that we admired and adored before as great' and magnificent, is obliterated' or vanished'; and another form and face of things, plain', simple', and everywhere the samé, overspreads the whole earth, where are now the great empires' of the world, and their great imperial cities'? their pillars', trophies', and monuments of glory? Shew me where they stood', read me the inscription', tell me the victor's namé. When I look upon the tombs of the great', every emotion of envy' dies in me; when I read the epitaphs of the beautiful', every inordinate desire goes out'; when I meet with the grief of parents upon a tomb'-stone, my heart melts with compassion'; when I see the tomb of the parents themselves', I consider the vanity of grieving for those whom we must quickly follow`; when I see kings lying by those who deposed them, when I consider wits placed side by side, or the holy men that divided the world with their contests and disputes, I reflect with sorrow' and astonishment, on the little competitions, factions, and debates' of mankind. When I read the several dates' of the tombs, of some that died yesterday', and some six hundred years ago, I consider that great day when we shall all of us be contemporaries', and make our appearance together'. To exercise the pupil advantageously, upon the two slides or inflections of the voice, and make him know when to use each, various classes of periods should be treated upon, with chosen instances of compact, and loose sentences; including series, gradation, &c., and the management of the voice pointed out in pronouncing each. CLASSES OF PERIODS. The various kinds of periods which occur in composition, are variously named according to their several kinds, as Direct Periods; Inverted Periods; Final Periods, &c., as are also the sentences composing them, and the members of such sentences. DIRECT PERIOD. A period is direct when it forms a perfect sense by itself, as in the following EXAMPLE. If when we behold a well-made and well-regulated watch, we infer the operation of a skilful artificer; then none but a fool indeed can contemplate the universe, all whose parts are so admirably formed and so harmoniously adjusted, and yet say, there is no God'. RULE 1.-Direct Periods, having their two principal constructive parts connected by correspondent conjunctions, or adverbs, generally require the rising inflection at the end of the first part. EXAMPLE. Since God is eternal; since he was before any thing; then every thing must have derived its existence from Him'. RULE.-Direct Periods, commencing with participles of the present and past tense, consist of two parts; between which must come the rising inflection. EXAMPLE. 1. Having food and raiment, let us therewith be content`. 2. Professing themselves wisé, they became fools'. INVERTED PERIODS. Periods are said to be inverted, when the first part forms perfect sense by itself, but is modified or determined in its signification by the latter part. EXAMPLE. The stage might be made a perpetual source of the most noble and useful entertainment, were it under proper regulations. RULE.-Every inverted period requires the rising inflection, between its two principal constructive parts. EXAMPLE. He acted agreeably to the dictates of prudencé, though he was placed in a situation exceeding delicate. Note.-Periods constructed like the following, also fall under this rule. EXAMPLE. Poor were the expectations of the studious, the modest, and the good', if the reward of their labours were only to be expected from man. FINAL PERIODS. Final periods are those which conclude a paragraph or subject, composed of one or more sentences or periods, and which make a perfect sense. EXAMPLE. The pleasures of the imagination, the pleasure arising from science, from the fine arts, and from the principle of curiosity, are peculiar to the human' species. RULE. The falling inflection takes place, at the close of the final period. EXAMPLE. That man is little to be envied whose patriotism would not gain place upon the plains of Marathon, or whose piety would not grow warmer among the ruins of Iona. SENTENCES. NEGATIVE SENTENCES. Negative sentences, are such as deny something in the beginning, the reason of which they afterwards explain; and whether themselves forming periods, or members of periods, require the rising inflection at their close. EXAMPLE. The region beyond the grave is not a solitary land. There your forefathers are, and thither every other friend shall follow you in due season. G LOOSE SENTENCES. A loose sentence, is one whose first member makes a perfect sense of itself; and is followed by some other member or members, which do not restrain or qualify its signification. EXAMPLE. Through faith we understand that the worlds were formed by the word of God'; so that things which are seen, are not made of things which appear. RULE. The member that makes perfect sense, requires the falling inflection. EXAMPLE. By faith Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place, which he should after receive for an inheritance, obeyed'; and he went out not knowing whither he went. COMPACT SENTENCES. A compact sentence, is one whose first member makes a perfect sense of itself, and contrary to the loose sentence, does not require to be followed by any other member or members, to restrain or qualify its signification. EXAMPLE. Nothing can atone for the want of modesty'; without it, beauty is ungraceful; and wit detestable. INTERROGATIVE SENTENCES. Interrogative sentences, require the rising and falling inflection at their close, according to their nature and circumstances; as will appear from the following rules and examples : RULE 1.-Questions asked by pronouns or adverbs, end with the falling inflection. EXAMPLE. Who continually keeps this world on which we dwell in its orbit'? Who giveth day and night, summer and winter, seed-time and harvest? Who produces every plant, and brings forth successively every animal'? Who sendeth the early and latter rains`? Who supplies the returning wants of every human being'? RULE 2. Questions asked by verbs require the rising inflection. EXAMPLE. -yet say, should tyrants learn at last to feel, RULE 3.-When interrogative sentences, connected by the disjunctive or, expressed or understood, succeed each other, the first ends with the rising, and the rest with the falling inflection. EXAMPLES. 1. Are you toiling for famé, or labouring to heap up a fortune'? 2. Does God, after having made his creatures, take no further care of them'? Has he left them to blind fate, or undirected choicé? Or, does he always graciously preserve, and keep, and guidè ? |