A Change in the Distribution of Accents in Homer in Verses with Trochaic Words Ending in the Fourth Trochee

Abstract

AbstractThe goal of this paper is to present an accentual rule for a combination of locations of the Homeric hexameter, the fourth and the sixth metra. The author shows that, when there is a trochaic word ending in the fourth trochee, the location of Hermann’s bridge, there is a change in the distribution of accent types in the sixth metron, favoring what he calls “barytone falls”, that is, post-acute long syllables. After presenting the regular distribution of accents in the sixth metron, the author shows how that distribution is modified when there is a trochaic ending word in the fourth trochee. The results are later revised for possible formulaic interferences. Finally, he considers the implications of this phenomenon for the interpretation of Hermann’s law and speculates on its influence on current explanations of that rule.