This paper challenges the commonly held view that the Classical Greek potential optative has a subjective epistemic semantics, the result of a conceptual confusion of subjectivity and epistemic modality inherited from our standard grammars. I propose that this view becomes less convincing when the optative’s unique interaction with the subjective particles ἦ and ἄρα is incorporated into the analysis. Rather, the potential optative has a non-subjective epistemic semantics presenting an epistemic judgment as interpersonally accessible to the conversational participants. Frequencies of combination with ἦ and ἄρα, linguistic tests for subjectivity on the potential optative, and contrastive contextual analyses corroborate this view.

本文挑战了普遍持有的观点，即古典希腊语潜在的选择具有主观认知语义，这是从我们的标准语法继承的主观性和认知模态的概念混淆的结果。我建议，当将选择性与主观颗粒ἦ和ἄρα的独特相互作用纳入分析时，这种观点变得不那么令人信服。相反，潜在选项具有非主观的认知语义，将认知判断呈现为对话参与者可以通过人际方式访问。与 ἦ 和 ἄρα 的组合频率、对潜在选择的主观性的语言测试以及对比上下文分析证实了这一观点。