nekonote
What is the structure of "what thought had I been but just conceiving of starving myself to death" ? All said I was wicked, and perhaps I might be so; what thought had I been but just conceiving of starving myself to death? That certainly was a crime: and was I fit to die? Or was the vault under the chancel of Gateshead Church an inviting bourne? (from Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte, who died in 1865) Could you please tell me the structure of "what thought had I been but just conceiving of starving myself to death" in the sentences above and paraphrase it.
Aug 18, 2018 1:45 AM
Answers · 5
'what' is used in the sense of 'which'. 'had I been' is an old-fashioned form of 'was I'. 'but just' is again a somewhat old form, meaning 'other than just'. 'conceiving of' means 'thinking of'. The whole idea is something like: 'What was I just thinking? Starving myself to death?' Sorry, I'm not sure what you mean by 'structure'. If you are asking what the grammatical structure is, I don't really know, as I have never studied grammar.
August 18, 2018
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