"Don't let the bastards get you down!" 1945

[Eric Nielsen]

I believe you're right. Without the "esse" is less periphrastic.

Eric



On Mon, May 21, 2012 at 5:43 PM, Jonathan Lighter <wuxxmupp2000 at gmail.com>wrote:

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> Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> Poster:       Jonathan Lighter <wuxxmupp2000 at GMAIL.COM>
> Subject:      Re: "Don't let the bastards get you down!" 1945
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> But isn't it true that the Romans made gerundive constructions snappier by
> dropping the conjugated form of _esse_?
>
> Anyway, my high-school Latin teacher (ca1964) was familiar with one form of
> the phrase ("Illegitimis non carborundum," IIRC, but don't quote me), which
> he associated with his Army service in WW2.
>
> JL
>
> On Mon, May 21, 2012 at 5:27 PM, Eric Nielsen <ericbarnak at gmail.com>
> wrote:
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> > Poster:       Eric Nielsen <ericbarnak at GMAIL.COM>
> > Subject:      Re: "Don't let the bastards get you down!" 1945
> >
> >
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> >
> > Possibility: Illegitimis non carborundum est. Dative of agent
> (illegitimis)
> > used with the passive periphrastic (carborundum is a gerundive)
> > construction. At least that's how one of my Latin professors solved the
> > puzzle when I asked her about the more common variant, "Illegitimi non
> > carborundum"--which I just couldn't parse.
> >
> > Eric
> >
> > On Mon, May 21, 2012 at 11:35 AM, Baker, John <JBAKER at stradley.com>
> wrote:
> >
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> > > Poster:       "Baker, John" <JBAKER at STRADLEY.COM>
> > > Subject:      Re: "Don't let the bastards get you down!" 1945
> > >
> > >
> >
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> > >
> > > So what would the real Latin be?  Enquiring minds want to know.
> > >
> > >
> > > John Baker
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
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