Editing Hyperbaton (section)

====Poetry====
In poetry, especially poetry from the 1st century BC onwards, hyperbaton is very common; some 40% of [[Horace]]'s adjectives are separated from their nouns.<ref>Nisbet (1999), p. 137.</ref>

Frequently two hyperbata are used in the same sentence, as in the following example:
*''<u>quam</u> Catullus <u>unam</u>/ plus quam se atque '''suos''' amavit '''omnes''''' (Catullus 58a) 
:"<u>whom alone</u> (''quam unam'') Catullus loved (''amavit'') more than himself and <u>all his own</u> (''suos omnes'')."

Often two noun phrases are interleaved in a double hyperbaton:
*''<u>saevae</u> '''memorem''' <u>Iunonis</u> ob '''iram''''' ([[Virgil]], ''Aeneid'', 1.5)
:"on account of the <u>mindful anger</u> (''memorem iram'') of <u>cruel [[Juno (mythology)|Juno]]</u> (''saevae Iunonis'')".

The type in the examples below, where two adjectives are followed by a verb and then two nouns in the same order as the adjectives, is often referred to as a "[[golden line]]":

*''<u>lurida</u> '''terribiles''' miscent <u>aconita</u> '''novercae''''' ([[Ovid]], ''Metamorphoses'', 1.147)
:"<u>Fearsome stepmothers</u> (''terribiles novercae'') mix <u>lurid [[aconitum|aconites]]</u> (''lurida aconita'')."

*{{lang|la|<u>irrita</u> '''ventosae''' linquens <u>promissa</u> '''procellae'''}} (Catullus 64.55)
:"abandoning his useless promises ({{lang|la|irrita promissa}}) to the windy storm ({{lang|la|ventosae procellae}})"

Occasionally (but rarely) three separate noun phrases can be interleaved, for example:

*{{lang|la|<u>nullum</u> '''Martia''' summo / altius <u>imperium</u> consule '''Roma''' videt}} (Ovid, ''Ex Ponto'' 4.9.65–6.)
:"Martial Rome ({{lang|la|Martia Roma}}) sees no higher command ({{lang|la|nullum altius imperium}}) than supreme Consul ({{lang|la|summo consule}})"

In the following line, a conjunct hyperbaton is interleaved with another noun phrase:
:''<u>venator</u> '''cursu''' <u>canis</u> '''et latratibus''' instat'' (Virgil, ''Aeneid'' 12.751)
:"the <u>hunting dog</u> (''venator canis'') threatens him <u>with running and barking</u> (''cursu et latratibus'')."

In other cases one hyperbaton is inserted inside another:
*''in <u>nova</u> fert animus '''mutatas''' dicere '''formas''' / <u>corpora</u>'' (Ovid, ''Metamorphoses'' 1.1)
:"My spirit leads me to tell of <u>forms transformed</u> (''mutatas formas'') into <u>new bodies</u> (''nova corpora'')."
*''ab <u>Hyrcanis</u> '''Indo'''que a '''litore''' <u>silvis</u>'' ([[Marcus Annaeus Lucanus|Lucan]] 8.343)
:"from the <u>[[Caspian Hyrcanian mixed forests|Hyrcanian]] forests</u> (''Hyrcanis silvis'') and from the <u>Indian shore</u> (''Indo litore'')."

The following example is from [[Ovid]]'s ''Metamorphoses''. Here the clause {{lang|la|quae duri colerent iuvenci}} "which patient bullocks might cultivate", which already contains a hyperbaton of the phrase {{lang|la|duri iuvenci}} "patient bullocks", is in turn is split up by the words {{lang|la|pater arva}}:

:{{lang|la|non mihi <u>quae '''duri''' colerent</u> pater arva <u>'''iuvenci'''</u> ... reliquit}} (Ovid, ''Met.'' 3.584)<ref>Quoted by Kenney, E. J. (2002). "Ovid's language and style". In ''Brill's Companion to Ovid'' (pp. 27-89). Brill; p. 71.</ref>
:"My father did not leave me any fields ({{lang|la|arva}}) <u>which patient bullocks</u> ({{lang|la|duri iuvenci}}) <u>might cultivate</u>"

In some cases, the placing of two adjectives together may highlight a contrast between them, for example, in the following sentence from [[Horace]], where the fragility of the boat is contrasted with the roughness of the sea:<ref>Nisbet (1999), p. 139.</ref>
*''qui <u>fragilem</u> '''truci''' commisit '''pelago''' <u>ratem</u>'' (Horace, ''Odes'', 1.3.10f) 
:"who committed a <u>fragile boat</u> (''fragilem ratem'') to the <u>rough sea</u> (''truci pelago'')"

Similarly in the example from Ovid below "transparent" is contrasted with "dense":
*''et <u>liquidum</u> '''spisso''' secrevit ab '''aere''' <u>caelum</u>'' (Ovid, ''Metamorphoses'' 1.23)
:"and He separated the <u>transparent heaven</u> (''liquidum caelum'') from the <u>dense atmosphere</u> (''spisso aere'')."

Sometimes pretty effects are obtained by apparently switching the order of the adjectives:
:{{lang|la|<u>gratia</u> sic '''minimo''' <u>magna</u> '''labore''' venit}} (Ovid, ''Amores'', 3.4.46)
:"thus <u>great influence</u> ({{lang|la|gratia magna}}) comes with very little labour ({{lang|la|minimo labore}})"

Usually the adjective in a discontinuous noun phrase comes first, as in the above examples, but the opposite is also possible: 
*''<u>cristā</u>que tegit galea aurea <u>rubrā</u>'' (Virgil, ''Aeneid'' 9.50)
:"And a golden helmet <u>with a red crest</u> (''crista rubra'') covers him."
*''<u>silva</u> lupus in <u>Sabina</u>'' (Horace, ''Odes'', 1.22) 
:"a wolf (''lupus'') (lurking) in the <u>[[Sabines|Sabine]] forest</u> (''silva Sabina'')."

The above example illustrates another occasional feature of hyperbaton, since the word "wolf" (''lupus'') is actually inside the phrase "Sabine forest" (''silva Sabina''). This kind of word-play is found elsewhere in Horace also, e.g. ''<u>grato</u>, Pyrrha, sub <u>antro</u>'' "Pyrrha, beneath a <u>pleasant grotto</u>", where Pyrrha is indeed in a grotto; and in the quotation from Horace ''Odes'' 1.5 below, the girl is surrounded by the graceful boy, who in turn is surrounded by a profusion of roses:<ref>Nisbet (1999), p. 140.</ref>
*''<u>quis</u> '''multa''' <u>gracilis</u> te <u>puer</u> in '''rosa''''' (Horace, ''Odes'', 1.5)
:"what <u>graceful boy</u> (''gracilis puer'') (is embracing) you (''te'') amidst <u>many a rose</u> (''multa rosa'')?"

In [[Ovid]], hyperbaton or dislocated word order is particularly common in his elegiac poetry. Kenney quotes the following. Here the words {{lang|la|timebam ne caperer}} "I was afraid lest I might be captured", which are already dislocated into {{lang|la|caperer ne timebam}}, are interleaved with the phrase {{lang|la|si progressa forem nocte}} "if I had gone out in the night":<ref>Kenney (2002), p. 43.</ref>
*{{lang|la|si <u>progressa forem</u> '''caperer ne''' <u>nocte</u> '''timebam'''}} (Ovid, ''Her.'' 3.19)
:"If <u>I had gone out</u> ({{lang|la|progressa forem}}) <u>at night</u> ({{lang|la|nocte}}), I was afraid I might be captured"

Housman<ref>Quoted by Kenney (2002), p 43.</ref> comments: "the dislocation of {{lang|la|nocte}} together with its juxtaposition with {{lang|la|timebam}} lends emphasis to [Briseis's] fears of getting lost in the dark."