- Source
- Terence. Publii Terentii Comoediae Sex. Parry, Edward St. John, editor. London: Whittaker and Co.; George Bell, 1857.
- Translation
- AI-generated (gemini-3.5-flash) — machine translation; may contain errors
- Languages
- 日本語 · English · 简体中文 · 한국어
- CTS URN
- urn:cts:latinLit:phi0134.phi006.humanitext-lat2:259-311
- Generated
- Humanitext Reader · reader.humanitext.ai · 2026-10-27
Ctesipho deeply praises Aeschinus's self-sacrificing devotion, and Aeschinus encourages him warmly. Meanwhile, at Sostrata's house, the daughter's labor begins, and the servant Geta returns home in despair and rage, having misunderstood Aeschinus's actions as a betrayal.
Fratrem homini nemini esse primarum artium1 magis principem.
that no other man has a brother more preeminent in the highest virtues.
O Ctesipho.
O Ctesipho.
O Syre, Aeschinus ubi est?
O Syrus, where is Aeschinus?
Ellum, te exspectat domi.
Look, there he is, waiting for you at home.
Hem.
Ah.
Quid est?
What is it?
Quid sit? illius opera, Syre, nunc vivo: festivum caput,
What is it, you ask? By his help, Syrus, I am now alive: delightful fellow,
Qui omnia sibi post putavit esse prae meo commodo;
who thought that all things of his own were of secondary importance compared to my convenience;
Maledicta, famam, meum amorem, et peccatum in se transtulit:
reproaches, ill repute, my love, and my sin, he transferred onto himself:
Nihil pote supra. Quidnam foris crepuit?
nothing can be beyond this. What sound is that at the door?
Mane, mane: ipse exit foras.
Wait, wait: he is coming out himself.
Ubi ille est sacrilegus?
Where is that temple-robber?
Men quaerit? numquidnam effert? Occidi:
Is he looking for me? Is he bringing anything out? I am ruined:
Nihil video.
I see nothing.
Ehem, opportune; te ipsum quaero. Quid fit, Ctesipho?
Ah, opportunely; I was looking for you. How goes it, Ctesipho?
In tuto est omnis res: omitte vero tristitiam tuam.
Everything is in safety: do dismiss your sadness indeed.
Ego illam hercle vero omitto qui quidem te habeam fratrem. O mi Aeschine,
By Hercules, I do indeed dismiss it, since I have you as a brother. O my Aeschinus,
O mi germane; ah, vereor coram in os te laudare amplius,
O my brother; ah, I fear to praise you more to your face,
Ne id assentandi magis quam quo habeam gratum2 facere existimes.
lest you should think I do it more for the sake of flattering than because I feel grateful.
Age inepte; quasi nunc non norimus nos inter nos, Ctesipho.
Come, foolish boy; as if we do not know each other now, Ctesipho.
Hoc mihi dolet, nos paene sero scisse, et paene in eum locum
This pains me, that we knew of it almost too late, and had almost returned to such a state
Redisse ut si omnes cuperent nihil tibi possent auxiliarier.
that if everyone wished it, they could not help you at all.
Pudebat.
I was ashamed.
Ah, stultitia est istaec, non pudor. Tam ob parvulam
Ah, that is foolishness, not shame. For such a trifling
Rem paene ex patria!3—Turpe dictu. Deos quaeso ut istaec prohibeant.
matter, almost to flee the country! — shameful to say. I pray the gods that they prevent such things.
Peccavi.
I did wrong.
Quid ait tandem nobis Sannio?
What, pray, does Sannio say to us?
Iam mitis est.
He is already gentle.
Ego ad forum ibo ut hunc absolvam: tu intro ad illam, Ctesipho.
I will go to the forum to pay this man off: you go inside to her, Ctesipho.
Syre, insta.
Syrus, push on.
Eamus; namque hic properat in Cyprum.
Let us go; for this man is in a hurry for Cyprus.
Ne tam quidem;
Not so very much;
Quamvis etiam maneo otiosus hic.
although I am staying here at leisure.
Reddetur; ne time.
It will be paid; do not fear.
At ut omne reddat.
But see that he pays all.
Omne reddet: tace modo, ac sequere hac.
He will pay all: only be silent, and follow this way.
Sequor.
I follow.
Heus, heus, Syre.
Ho, ho, Syrus.
Hem, quid est?
Well, what is it?
Obsecro hercle, hominem istum impurissimum
I beseech you, by Hercules, pay off that most vile man
Quamprimum absolvitote; ne, si magis irritatus siet,
as soon as possible; lest, if he should be more angered,
Aliqua ad patrem hoc permanet, atque ego tum perpetuo perierim.
this should somehow leak through to my father, and then I should be ruined forever.
Non fiet; bono animo es: tu cum illa te intus oblecta interim;
It will not happen; be of good courage: you amuse yourself inside with her meanwhile;
Et lectulos iube sterni nobis, et parari caetera.
and order the couches to be spread for us, and the rest to be prepared.
Ego iam transacta re convertam me domum cum obsonio.
I, as soon as the business is transacted, will return home with the provisions.
Ita quaeso: quando hoc bene successit, hilarem hunc sumamus diem.
Do so, I pray: since this has turned out well, let us spend a merry day.
Obsecro, mea nutrix, quid nunc fiet?
I beseech you, my nurse, what will happen now?
Quid fiat rogas?
What will happen, you ask?
Recte edepol spero.
By Pollux, I hope for the best.
Modo dolores, mea tu, occipiunt primulum.
Only the pains, my dear, are just beginning.
Iam nunc times, quasi nunquam affueris, nunquam tute pepereris.
Now you are afraid, as if you had never been present, never given birth yourself.
Miseram me, neminem habeo; solae sumus: Geta autem hic non adest;
Miserable me, I have no one; we are alone: Geta, moreover, is not here;
Nec quem ad obstetricem mittam; nec qui arcessat Aeschinum.
nor have I anyone to send for the midwife; nor anyone to call Aeschinus.
Pol is quidem iam hic aderit; nam nunquam unum intermittit diem
By Pollux, he indeed will be here soon; for he never lets a single day pass
Quin semper veniat.
without coming.
Solus mearum miseriarum est remedium.
He alone is the remedy for my miseries.
E re nata4 melius fieri haud potuit quam factum est hera;
Under the circumstances, mistress, it could not have turned out better than it has;
Quando vitium oblatum est; quod ad illum attinet potissimum
since the fault was committed, that it should concern him of all people,
Talem, tali genere atque animo, natum ex tanta familia.
such a man, of such a family and character, born of so great a house.
Ita pol est ut dicis: salvus nobis Deos quaeso ut siet.
By Pollux, it is as you say: I pray the gods that he may be safe for us.
Nunc illud est quod si omnes omnia sua consilia conferant,
Now there is that situation which, even if everyone should bring together all their counsels,
Atque huic malo salutem quaerant, auxili nihil afferant,
and seek a remedy for this evil, they could bring no help,
Quod mihique heraeque filiaeque herili5 est. Vae misero mihi!
which is upon me, my mistress, and my master’s daughter. Woe to miserable me!
Tot res repente circumvallant, unde emergi non potest,
So many things suddenly surround us, from which there is no emerging,
Vis, egestas, iniustitia, solitudo, infamia.
violence, poverty, injustice, loneliness, infamy.
Hocine saeclum? O scelera, O genera sacrilega, O hominem impium!
Is this the age? O crimes, O sacrilegious race, O impious man!
Me miseram! quidnam est quod sic video timidum et properantem Getam?
Miserable me! why do I see Geta so frightened and hurrying?
Quem neque fides neque iusiurandum neque illum misericordia
Whom neither good faith nor oath nor mercy
Repressit neque reflexit, neque quod partus instabat prope,
restrained or turned back, nor the fact that childbirth was near at hand
Cui miserae indigne per vim vitium obtulerat.
for her, upon whom, miserable one, he had infamously forced himself by violence.
Non intelligo
I do not understand
Satis quae loquatur.
well what he says.
Propius obsecro accedamus, Sostrata.
Let us go closer, Sostrata, I pray.
Ah,
Ah,
Me miserum! vix sum compos animi; ita ardeo iracundia.
miserable me! I am scarcely master of my mind; so do I burn with anger.
Nihil est quod malim quam illam totam familiam mihi dari obviam,
There is nothing I would rather have than to meet that whole family,
- 259primarum artium
A genitive of quality (characterizing 'highest arts or qualities') modifying 'principem' or restricting it contextually. It emphasizes that Aeschinus is outstanding in his human and moral qualities.
- 270quo habeam gratum
The ablative 'quo' with subjunctive 'habeam', functioning similarly to a rejected reason clause ('not because... but...'), indicating 'not because I feel grateful (but rather out of flattery)'.
- 275Rem paene ex patria!
An exclamatory syntax where a verb (such as an imperfect or historical infinitive of 'fugere' or 'exulare', meaning to flee or be exiled) is omitted due to the context.
- 295E re nata
A Latin idiomatic prepositional phrase meaning 'under the circumstances' or 'as things turned out'. It refers to a situation where, after an unexpected difficulty or tragedy has occurred, one must make the best of the limited conditions.
- 301mihique heraeque filiaeque herili
A dative of interest expressing the persons affected, complementing the relative pronoun 'quod' (the 'situation' in §299). Three nouns/adjectives are connected by the coordinating conjunction '-que'.