W. M. Lindsay, Syntax of Plautus

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Copulative.

(Sjögren: de particulis copulativis apud Plautum et Terentium. Upsala, 1900.)

Asyndeton is common in Early Latin, e.g. “aequom bonum” Men. 580 (but elsewhere with Copula, e.g. Curc. 65, Ter. Heaut. 788 “istuc, Chremes, aequi bonique facio”); often in alliterative phrases, e.g.

• “vi violentia” Rud. 839
• “oro obsecro” Rud. 882,
Ter. Ad. 472
• (cf. Cicero's letters).

In Terence it is restricted to certain formulas, e.g. ancillas servos.

Two Pronouns never stand in Asyndeton in the Dramatists; we find a Copula always employed, e.g. ego et tu, me atque te, etc. Two Prepositions rarely, e.g. Cas. 664 “sub arcis, sub tectis latentes” (but normally cum . . . cum, etc., e.g. Most. 392, “cum hac cum istac”, Curc. 289 “cum libris cum sportulis”). With some phrases in Plautus we find that this or that Copula has associated itself; thus atque (ac) is normally found

• with abi ac suspende te,
• with aurum atque argentum,
• with di atque homines,
• with vale atque salve;

-que normally

• with Juppiter dique omnes,
• with di deaeque ‘gods and goddesses;’

et normally joins sanus and salvus, etc., e.g.

sana et salva (Amph. 730, etc.),
salvom et servatum (Trin. 1076, etc.);
similarly oro et quaeso, Curc. 432, etc.;
memini et scio Curc. 384, etc.;

also Numerals, whether the smaller or the larger one precedes, e.g. Merc. 673 “octoginta et quattuor” (but Most. 630 “quattuor quadraginta”).

Both que and et appear in Pronominal phrases like me meosque, me et meos, etc., while atque is usual in me atque hos, etc.; both atque and et in Commands like i (abi) atque (et) fac, etc., although Asyndeton, i (abi) fac, is more usual (on abi ac suspende te, see above); and two Imperatives normally stand in Asyndeton, when the second has the Particle ne, e.g.

• Asin. 638 “bono animo es, ne formida”,
• Rud. 1254 “abi intro, ne molestu's”,
• Poen. 261 “sine amem, ne obturba”.

Atque is the favourite Copula for Prepositions which begin with a Vowel, e.g.

• Aul. 221 “abs te atque abs tuis”,
• Amph. 259 “in dicionem atque in arbitratum.”

Ve is the Copula used, as in classical Latin, with nē, si (see 2 on sive), with avoidance of ‘nēque,’ ‘sique’; also with ni ‘unless,’ e.g. Rud. 1420 “ad cenam vocem, ni daturus nihil sim . . nive adeo vocatos credam vos esse ad cenam foras.” ‘Utque’ is also avoided, perhaps through fear of confusion with utique; and although quique is found (e.g. Pseud. 1086 “qui nili faciat quique infitias non eat”), still quive seems to take its place in a line like Poen. 451 “qui . . immolarit quive ullum turis granum sacruficaverit.” (For other examples see Langen Beiträge, p. 96.) The phrases plus minusque and plus minusve, malum damnumque and malum damnumve, and the like are practically equivalent.

Noteworthy combinations of Copulas are

et—et—et, e.g.
• Truc. 45 “extemplo et ipsus periit et res et fides”,
Ter. Andr. 49,
que—que—que, e.g.
• Aul. 218 “quae res recte vortat mihique tibique tuaeque filiae”,
Ter. Adelph. 301.

Among the Plautine Copulas must be included qua—qua, e.g.

• Mil. 1392 “qua viri qua mulieres”,
• Trin. 1044 “mores autem rapere properant qua sacrum qua publicum.”

On special uses of atque and et, see 2 s.vv.