Literary notes about Genitive (AI summary)
The term “genitive” has been employed in literature both as a technical grammatical descriptor and as a tool for conveying deeper meaning. In classical texts such as Snorri Sturluson’s Edda, the genitive signifies a relationship of belonging or origin—for example, “Ragna” is explained as the genitive plural of a word meaning “of the gods” ([1]). In Latin grammar texts, it appears in discussions of signifiers like gĕn-ĕtivus, indicating origin or possession ([2]), and continues to be discussed in detailed analyses of dependent constructions and case comparisons ([3], [4], [5]). Furthermore, literary works such as James Joyce’s Ulysses exploit the dual nature of the genitive—as both subjective and objective—to express nuanced relationships like “amor matris” ([6], [7]), while other sources extend its discussion to Greek usage and syntactic function within broader linguistic frameworks ([8], [9]). This variety of usage across genres and centuries underscores its enduring role in clarifying relationships between words in diverse scholarly and literary traditions.
- Ragna is genitive plural, from the word regin (god), and means of the gods.
— from The Younger Edda; Also called Snorre's Edda, or The Prose Edda by Snorri Sturluson - gĕn-ĕtivus = of or belonging to birth, genitive .
— from Helps to Latin Translation at Sight by Edmund Luce - ( c ) A dependent genitive impetus GLADIORUM.
— from Helps to Latin Translation at Sight by Edmund Luce - —— Genitive in as , 50 . —— Ablative in as , 50 . —— Locative in i , 50 . —— Locative in sani , 54 .
— from The Declaration of Independence of the United States of America by Thomas Jefferson - Genitive in as , as infinitive, 50 .
— from The Declaration of Independence of the United States of America by Thomas Jefferson - Amor matris , subjective and objective genitive, may be the only true thing in life.
— from Ulysses by James Joyce - Amor matris: subjective and objective genitive.
— from Ulysses by James Joyce - sese flexere viae , a Greek genitive.
— from Helps to Latin Translation at Sight by Edmund Luce - The oblique cases, are the genitive, the dative, and the accusative.
— from The Lives and Opinions of Eminent Philosophers by Diogenes Laertius