[8]
An indefinite question is always the
more comprehensive, since it is from the indefinite
question that the definite is derived. I will illustrate
what I mean by an example. The question “Should
a man marry?” is indefinite; the question “Should
Cato marry?” is definite, and consequently may be
regarded as a subject for a deliberative theme. But
even those which have no connexion with particular
persons are generally given a specific reference.
For instance the question “Ought we to take a share
in the government of our country?” is abstract,
whereas “Ought we to take part in the government
of our country under the sway of a tyrant?” has a
specific reference.
Quintilian. With an English Translation. Harold Edgeworth Butler. Cambridge. Cambridge, Mass., Harvard University Press; London, William Heinemann, Ltd. 1920.
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