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Jan 30, 2021 at 13:49 comment added Joonas Ilmavirta @tony Notice that the same thing can't be both direct and indirect. As cnread wrote, the entire sentence containing the indirect question can be a direct question. For example, the sentence "Do you know where John is?" is a direct question but the subordinate clause "where John is" is an indirect question, not a direct one. Compare the Seneca quote to: "Do you know where John is? Or where he's been? Or why he's gone?" The direct part of the question is implicit in the following indirect questions.
Jan 30, 2021 at 10:31 comment added cnread @tony, Now I see. The entire sentence that contains an indirect question can itself be a direct question. Here, the main clause that introduces the indirect questions (ego nesciam) happens to have been ellipsed after the first occurrence and must be understood from context. However, Seneca is still asking a series of 'Am I not to know...?' questions. And yes, I suppose sint has a sort of dual role, as you say.
Jan 30, 2021 at 9:39 comment added tony Thank you. Why do these indirect questions end in a question mark? This is what caused my confusion. In "semel haec mihi vivenda sint, an saepe nascendum?" does "sint" have a dual role: (i) the subjunctive required for the indirect question; (ii) the part of "sum" required for the gerundive-of-obligation?
Jan 28, 2021 at 9:27 vote accept tony
Jan 27, 2021 at 22:37 history answered cnread CC BY-SA 4.0