Re: Ethical Dative, was Re: Polysynthetic Languages

David Barrow scripsit:

> "He that kills me some six or seven dozens of Scots before breakfast"
>
> To me above dative  and the one in the Spanish  "El nene no me come la
> comida" is more than parenthical. It conveys the idea of 'you do it for
> me as a favour even if you are not keen on doing it for your own sake'
I think that's a poor example.  Better is Casca's from "Julius Caesar":

        Marry, before he [i.e. Caesar] fell down, when he perceived
        the common herd was glad he refused the crown, he plucked me
        [eth. dat.] ope[n] his doublet and offered them his throat
        to cut.

This plainly does not mean that Caesar plucked open his doublet
*for Casca*, but rather that he feels himself relevant to the action.

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