A Greek Grammar

Rating:
Summary: Greek Grammar By: William W. Goodwin
Review: As I tend to shy away from Grammar;and this book does
have an air of rigor;it sat on the shelf for quite some time.
Also,I am primarily interested in Biblical Greek;the so
called "crappy greek". However,I can handle a little Aristophones
et al from time to time.
At any rate,the book found it's way into my hands and I
decided to roll with it. Allowing for several breaks in order to
freshen up the mind and eyesight;I was able to patiently work
my way through it.
This book is based on the Attic dialect with plenty examples
of the others. This authoritative,compact book has:breadth,depth,
and mass.
Most of the time you will find clarification of definitions
and concepts when you most need them-as you are reading along.
In addition,this book is thorouhly annotated and indexed-virtualy
self referencing. There is something to be said for 19th century
scholasticism.
This 451 page book is divided into five main sections(with
a lot of little sections). They are: Part 1 - Letters,Syllables,
and Accents Part 2 - Inflection Part 3 - Formation of Words
Part 4 - Syntax Part 5 - is a brief treatment of Versification.
The Author does not call upon you to worship at his Altar;
but rather,intends to make this difficult subject accessible to
those who are willing to make the effort and take the time. Also,
makes for an excellent general reference.
Whatever works for you. Although,I still don't find the
Grammar aspect of language overly exciting;for those who want to increase thier understanding and appreciation of Greek-this one
will do it.
This book suits my purposes well-it's a keeper.

Rating:
Summary: Not a good place to start, but buy it anyway.
Review: Like the reviewer below, it took me some time to get the hang of using this book--and I agree also that it was worth the effort. _Greek Grammar_ is not a textbook, and it is definitely not a good place to start if you are teaching yourself. Like other nineteenth-century grammars (Gildersleeve's Latin grammar, for example, also highly recommended), this work starts from the assumption that you already know the basics. Once you've got a fair grounding in accidence (inflections, etc.) and can read a little prose, however, you are bound to start wondering "why" about all those rules. That's where Goodwin comes in. Thorough, systematic, carefully cross-referenced with plenty of examples (all translated), this is a veritable encyclopedia of classical Greek. It demands careful study, but it repays you for it handsomely. The only two provisos I have are that the print is very fine and may be hard on tired eyes, and that some of the terminology may differ from that used in modern texts (e.g., Gavin & Betts "strong aorist" vs. Goodwin "2nd aorist"). I bought my copy when I was just starting Greek, and it sat on my shelf untouched for over a year. Now, however, I use it all the time.

Rating:
Summary: Not a good place to start, but buy it anyway.
Review: Like the reviewer below, it took me some time to get the hang of using this book--and I agree also that it was worth the effort. _Greek Grammar_ is not a textbook, and it is definitely not a good place to start if you are teaching yourself. Like other nineteenth-century grammars (Gildersleeve's Latin grammar, for example, also highly recommended), this work starts from the assumption that you already know the basics. Once you've got a fair grounding in accidence (inflections, etc.) and can read a little prose, however, you are bound to start wondering "why" about all those rules. That's where Goodwin comes in. Thorough, systematic, carefully cross-referenced with plenty of examples (all translated), this is a veritable encyclopedia of classical Greek. It demands careful study, but it repays you for it handsomely. The only two provisos I have are that the print is very fine and may be hard on tired eyes, and that some of the terminology may differ from that used in modern texts (e.g., Gavin & Betts "strong aorist" vs. Goodwin "2nd aorist"). I bought my copy when I was just starting Greek, and it sat on my shelf untouched for over a year. Now, however, I use it all the time.

Rating:
Summary: Dense, but still the classic
Review: When I first tried to work through Goodwin's Grammar in learning ancient Greek, I was astounded at the sheer impenetrability of his system. It took me at least two weeks to find the verb "to be"! But once you get the hang of it, there's nothing like it for systematicity, thoroughness, and detail. Next to the LSJ lexicon, it's the most important volume for any student of classical Greek.