Alternate Spanish Review Grammar and Composition
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| Alternate Spanish Review Grammar |
Study Notes
Source: Arthur Romeyn Seymour, Alternate Spanish Review Grammar and Composition (1928)
Compact summary and 2027-use guidance for a 1920s high-school/early-college review text.
I. Author & Context
• Arthur Romeyn Seymour (1872–?) – U.S. college professor of Romance languages.
• Written as a concise “second-year” or “rapid-review” manual to consolidate grammar before introducing composition and free writing.
• 1928 edition → pre-1950s spelling and terminology; still useful for systematic grammar tables.
II. Overall Layout
1. Diagnostic pre-test (50 items)
2. 25 short, numbered lessons (each 3–4 pages)
3. End-of-lesson “oral practice” and “written composition”
4. 12 appendix verb tables (full paradigms)
5. Spanish–English vocabulary (~1,200 words) and English–Spanish glossary
III. Grammar Points Emphasised
Lesson topic (modern tag) | Key 1928 rule or table |
Definite articles | el, la, los, las; neuter lo | unchanged
Stem-changing verbs | o>ue, e>ie, e>i lists | same; add -uir verbs
Ser vs. estar | 6-point comparison table | same core rules
Preterite vs. imperfect | timeline diagrams | same; add pretérito vs imperfecto flow-chart
Subjunctive triggers | WEIRDO mnemonic (not named) | same triggers; WEIRDO now standard acronym
Por / para | 8-rule list | unchanged
Personal a | mandatory before human DO | unchanged
Reflexives & reciprocal | “se” constructions | same; add “se” passive vs impersonal
Conditional sentences | si-clauses (3 types) | same; add indicative vs subjunctive contrast
Orthography | accent rules 1928 | revise: solo vs sólo, diacritics after 2010 RAE
IV. Composition Programme
• Guided sentences → paragraph templates → free 100-word essays.
• Topics rotate: school life, travel, family, festivals.
• Error-correction drills follow each composition.