Re: Let's get this party started...
Rob Zook 
Sat, 09 May 1998 20:53:42 -0500

At 09:55 AM 5/9/98 -0500, Saul Epstein wrote:
<snicker-snack>
>> >All Klingons have furrowed brows, regardless of their emotional
>> >state.
>> >I am a Klingon.
>> >I have a furrowed brow, regardless of my emotional state.
>> >
>> >My idea was to have the character simply state the, um, minor?
>> >premise.
>> 
>> Well, something like, "I am a klingon, that of course follows"
>would
>> seem pretty Vulcan in it's sarcasticness :)
>
>That's what I was going for. Sort of an unstated, "Do the math,
>goofball."
> 
>> >So, <basro s'forhed>?
>> 
>> If we go ahead and make them seperate words yes. I would have
>originally
>> said <basros'[forehead]>, but I think the seperate words make more
>sense.
>
>So, to restate my tentative translation, with some progress made:
>
>G: Is something bothering you, Barf?
>   qa en'[bo]xe[ther]       e[thing]  s'hi           lahe    barfa
>   ?  it-bother-PROGRESSIVE something you-ACCUSATIVE PRESENT
>Barf-VOCATIVE

Two more bits of pickiness. [something] needs to get some kind of
suffix to specify it as the the object doing the bothering to barfa.
Or, the object of barfa's bothering feelings. Otherwise it looks a 
little confusing as to which is the subject.

Also, since we have the form, <ni->+<-a> "not-A yes-B", and -a as a 
vocative suffix, should we not figure out some way of differentiating
the two?

I suggest: -a vocative suffix, -ah, affirming suffix.


>B: All Klingoffs have those, you fool!
>   th'klingofje       s'[foofool]a
>   I-Klingof-HABITUAL, you-fool(INTENSIVE)-VOCATIVE

If you want something like "I'm Klingon of course", how about this: 
the middle premise in an argument gets represented by <its>, and the
conclusion with <ahz>. Let's use those and the self-identification
suffix in ST:III <-wimic>, and say:

its klingoffwimic ahzahz s'[foofool]a

its             klingoff-wimic                 
[minor premise] klingoff-[I identify myself as]

ahzahz                  s' -[foofool]      -a
[conclusion][intensive] you-fool[intensive]-[vocative]

"(premise) I am klingon (and the rest is obvious), you fool!"

<its> identifies <klingoffwimic> as the minor premise in an argument,
and the intensive reduplication of the conclusion marker, makes
the ironical statement, "and the conclusion is obvious".


>And the missing words:
>
>     bother/trouble
>     thing
>     ask
>     forehead
>     fool
>
>If anyone has candidate forms for these, speak up. Otherwise we'll
>have Rob press some for us with his mystery machine.

How about if no one answers before Monday morning, I'll go ahead and
generate these words?


Rob Z.