Beginning Greek: A Functional Approach [Hardcover]

Stephen W. Paine (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 31, 1961 | ISBN-10: 0195010132 | ISBN-13: 978-0195010138

Employing an inductive approach to learning Greek, this popular book emphasizes reading substantial passages from original literature rather than memorizing rules and forms. Grammar and syntax are introduced as the reading progresses. Beginning Greek features: * Explanatory notes accompanying each passage * An appendix containing literal translations of the readings * Presentation of grammar in large units rather than in fragments, giving students a unitary view * A progression of passages, from the easier New Testament Greek to the more difficult Attic Greek

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Stephen W. Paine is at Houghton College.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 352 pages
• Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA (December 31, 1961)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0195010132
• ISBN-13: 978-0195010138
• Product Dimensions: 8.1 x 5.3 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #910,818 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An Inductive Introduction, June 1, 2000

By 

Alfred H. Wallace (Springfield, MO) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Beginning Greek: A Functional Approach (Hardcover)

If you want to learn greek, but tend not to fare too well with programs that teach you deductively--have you memorize vast charts of inflections--then this may be the best book for you. It begins with teaching you Koine--a relatively simple ancient dialect--with the Gospel of John. You translate your first verses without having seen a single grammatical chart! After John, you begin Attic greek with Xenophon's Anabasis. You pick up the language gradually, with practice, much as you would learning a language naturally. For me, this was the book that finally taught me ancient greek.

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars For the serious student, November 11, 2004

By 

John R. Dunlap (Santa Clara University) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Beginning Greek: A Functional Approach (Hardcover)

In more than 30 years of teaching the classical languages, I have used several different Greek texts, and I can attest that Paine's Beginning Greek is an ingeniously developed "inductive" approach to acquiring the rudiments of Classical Greek. Most other texts proceed by minute grammatical increments with practice drills and contrived readings. Paine uses the more accessible koine Greek of the New Testament to move students right into reading real Greek (the Gospel of St. John) and to work back historically to the more difficult Attic Greek of Xenophon and the other classical authors. The grammar is dealt with in a more or less traditional order, but always tied to real Greek; yet-to-study points of grammar are dealt with ad hoc by footnotes to each lesson's short reading. By the time students reach a particular grammatical form for concentrated study (consonant declension nouns, for example), they have already experienced the form several times in natural contexts. This approach requires no more (but no less) patience and steady application than does any other Greek text of my acquaintance, but I believe that, for the assiduous student, the results are deeper and more lasting. Over the years, Paine has become my preferred text for introductory courses in Greek. I am glad it is still in print, available in quantity from Oxford.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent! But intended for the classroom, March 15, 2007

By 

L. M. Jordan - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Beginning Greek: A Functional Approach (Hardcover)

I evaluated several Greek texts before choosing this one to teach Koine/Attic Greek to six homeschool students three years ago. I considered Chase & Phillips' "A New Introduction to Greek" (what I used to learn Greek for my B.A. in Classics), Mounces' "Basics of Biblical Greek", and a third title which I do not recall. I wanted to focus on Koine, so I eliminated Chase & Phillips with its focus on the Attic dialect. Mounce spent too much time on deep things other than reading Greek. So, that left Paine. We took two years to work through the text.

What I like about this text is the analytical approach it takes to introducing declensions and conjugations. If you know the rules you can generate the forms, even the 2nd person forms which are subject to reduction and contraction. Combine the verb stems, thematic vowels, tense sign, primary and secondary endings and voila! It works within limits. Does the verb have a 1st or 2nd aorist? Does it have all principal parts? Irregular nouns and verbs are another story.

Some may have described this book as adopting an inductive approach. It is true that students are given real Koine Greek (Gospel of John) and not didactic constructions, but that hardly makes it inductive. The beauty of using the Gospel of John is that students already familiar with the gospel can use this knowledge to direct their beginning efforts.

The first half of the text deals with Koine and first several chapters from the Gospel of John. The text is itself the reference, so, no appendices as in other texts. The second half introduces students to the Attic dialect and readings from Xenophon's the "Anabasis." The text has an excellent but small index. And although the mini-Greek lexicon in the back is adequate, I encouraged many of the students to get Liddell and Scott's "Intermediate Greek Lexicon."

I can't imagine anyone using this to learn Greek on their own--nigh on to impossible unless you know other languages (and highly inflected ones at that, such as Latin). A teacher is needed to set the pace and keep students on track to mastery. If someone were going to attempt it alone, I'd suggest a tape series using a deductive approach. But be warned, your results will probably not be satisfying. Better yet, find a seminary or college which offers Greek courses.