III. Uses of the Possessive
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60. The possessive case always modifies another word, expressed or
understood. There are three forms of possessive showing how a word is
related in sense to the modified word:--
(1) _Appositional possessive_, as in these expressions,--
The blind old man of _Scio's_ rocky isle.--BYRON.
Beside a pumice isle in _Baiæ's_ bay.--SHELLEY.
In these sentences the phrases are equivalent to _of the rocky isle
[of] Scio_, and _in the bay [of] Baiæ_, the possessive being really
equivalent here to an appositional objective. It is a poetic
expression, the equivalent phrase being used in prose.
(2) _Objective possessive_, as shown in the sentences,--
Ann Turner had taught her the secret before this last good lady
had been hanged for _Sir Thomas Overbury's_ murder.--HAWTHORNE.
He passes to-day in building an air castle for to-morrow, or in
writing _yesterday's_ elegy.--THACKERAY
In these the possessives are equivalent to an objective after a verbal
expression: as, _for murdering Sir Thomas Overbury_; _an elegy to
commemorate yesterday_. For this reason the use of the possessive here
is called objective.
(3) _Subjective possessive_, the most common of all; as,--
The unwearied sun, from day to day,
Does his Creator's power display.
--ADDISON.
If this were expanded into _the power which his Creator possesses_,
the word _Creator_ would be the subject of the verb: hence it is
called a subjective possessive.
61. This last-named possessive expresses a variety of relations.
_Possession_ in some sense is the most common. The kind of relation
may usually be found by expanding the possessive into an equivalent
phrase: for example, "_Winter's_ rude tempests are gathering now"
(i.e., tempests that winter is likely to have); "His beard was of
_several days'_ growth" (i.e., growth which several days had
developed); "The _forest's_ leaping panther shall yield his spotted
hide" (i.e., the panther which the forest hides); "Whoso sheddeth
_man's_ blood" (blood that man possesses).
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