- 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-lat2:882-945b
- Generated
- Humanitext Reader · reader.humanitext.ai · 2026-10-27
Demea begins acting affably toward the slaves Syrus and Geta, and orders the wall between Micio's and the bride's houses to be demolished to join them. He then pressures Micio into marrying the bride's elderly mother.
Si id fit dando atque obsequendo, non posteriores feram.
Demea: If that is done by giving and yielding, I will not be left behind.
Deerit. Id mea minime refert qui sum natu maximus.1
Money will run short, but that is of very little concern to me, who am the oldest.
Heus, Demea, rogat frater ne abeas longius.
Syrus: Hey, Demea, your brother asks that you do not go too far away.
Quis homo? O Syre noster salve: quid fit? quid agitur?
Demea: Who is that? Oh, our Syrus, greetings! How goes it? What’s doing?
Recte.
Syrus: Fine.
Optime est. Iam nunc haec tria primum addidi
Demea: [To himself] Excellent. Just now I have added these three expressions first,
Praeter naturam: "O noster! quid fit? quid agitur?"
contrary to my nature: “Our Syrus! How goes it? What’s doing?”
Servum haud illiberalem praebes te; et tibi
[To Syrus] You show yourself to be a servant by no means illiberal; and to you
Libens bene faxim.2
I would gladly do a favor.
Gratiam habeo.
Syrus: I am grateful.
Atqui, Syre,
Demea: But, Syrus,
Hoc verum est; et ipsa re experiere propediem.
this is true; and you will soon experience it in reality.
Hera, ego huc ad hos provisam quam mox virginem
Geta: [To himself] Mistress, I will go look in on these people to see how soon they will summon
Arcessant: sed eccum Demeam. Salvus sies.
the young lady. But here is Demea. Greetings.
O, qui vocare?
Demea: Oh, what is your name?
Geta.
Geta: Geta.
Geta, hominem maximi
Demea: Geta, I have judged in my mind today that you are a man of the greatest
Preti te esse hodie animo iudicavi meo:
worth.
Nam is mihi profecto est servus spectatus satis
For indeed he is a sufficiently proven servant to me
Cui dominus curae est, ita uti tibi sensi, Geta:
who cares for his master, just as I perceived in you, Geta.
Et tibi ob eam rem, si quid usus venerit,
And for that reason, if any opportunity arises,
Libens bene faxim. Meditor esse affabilis;
I would gladly do you a favor. [To himself] I am practicing being affable,
Et bene procedit.
and it is going well.
Bonus es quum haec existimas.
Geta: You are kind when you think so.
Paulatim plebem primulum facio meam.
Demea: [To himself] Little by little I am making the common folk my own first.
Occidunt me quidem dum nimis sanctas nuptias
Aeschinus: [To himself] They are killing me indeed while they are eager to make the wedding
Student facere: in apparando consumunt diem.
too solemn; they waste the whole day in preparation.
Quid agitur, Aeschine?
Demea: What is doing, Aeschines?
Ehem, pater mi, tu hic eras?
Aeschinus: Ah, my father, were you here?
Tuus hercle vero et animo et natura pater,
Demea: Your father indeed, by Jove, both in affection and by nature,
Qui te amat plus quam hosce oculos: sed cur non domum
who loves you more than these eyes. But why do you not summon your wife
Uxorem arcessis?
home?
Cupio: verum hoc mihi morae est;
Aeschinus: I wish to, but this is a delay to me:
Tibicina, et Hymenaeum qui cantent.
the flute-player and those who should sing the wedding-hymn.
Eho,
Demea: Hey,
Vin tu huic seni auscultare?
are you willing to listen to this old man?
Quid?
Aeschinus: What?
Missa haec face,
Demea: Let all these things go:
Hymenaeum, turbas, lampadas, tibicinas;
the wedding-hymn, the crowds, the torches, the flute-players.
Atque hanc in horto maceriam iube dirui,
And order this garden wall to be pulled down,
Quantum potest; hac transfer; unam fac domum;
as quickly as possible. Bring her over through here; make it one house;
Traduce et matrem et familiam omnem ad nos.
bring both her mother and the whole household over to us.
Placet,
Aeschinus: I like that,
Pater lepidissime.
most delightful father!
Euge! iam lepidus vocor.3
Demea: [To himself] Bravo! Now I am called “delightful.”
Fratri aedes fient perviae: turbam domum
My brother’s house will be made passable; he will bring a crowd home,
Adducet; sumtum admittet; multa. Quid mea?
he will incur expense; many things will happen. What is that to me?
Ego lepidus ineo gratiam. Iube nunc iam
I, being delightful, win favor. Let him now order
Dinumeret illi Babylo viginti minas.
Babylo to count out twenty minae for him.
Syre, cessas ire ac facere?
[To Syrus] Syrus, do you hesitate to go and do it?
Quid ago?
Syrus: What should I do?
Dirue.
Demea: Pull it down.
Tu illas abi et traduce.
[To Aeschines] You, go and bring them over.
Di tibi, Demea,
Aeschinus: May the gods, Demea,
Bene faciant quum te video nostrae familiae
bless you when I see you wish our family’s interest
Tam ex animo factum velle.
so heartily.
Dignos arbitror.
Demea: I judge you worthy.
Quid ais tu?
Aeschinus: What do you say?
Sic opinor.
Demea: So I think.
Multo rectius est
It is much better
Quam illam puerperam nunc duci huc per viam
than for that sick girl who has just given birth to be led here
Aegrotam.
through the street.
Nihil enim vidi melius, mi pater.
Aeschinus: Indeed, I have seen nothing better, my father.
Sic soleo: sed eccum Micio egreditur foras.
Demea: That is my way. But here is Micio coming out.
Iubet frater? ubi is est? Tun iubes hoc, Demea?
Micio: My brother orders? Where is he? Did you order this, Demea?
Ego vero iubeo et in hac re et aliis omnibus
Demea: Indeed I order it, both in this matter and in all others:
Quam maxime unam facere nos hanc familiam,
that we make this household one as much as possible,
Colere, adiuvare, adiungere.
to cherish, help, and join together.
Ita quaeso, pater.
Aeschinus: Please, father.
Haud aliter censeo.
Micio: I do not think otherwise.
Immo hercle ita nobis decet.
Demea: Nay, by Jove, so it is fitting for us.
Primum huius uxoris est mater.
First, there is the mother of his wife.
Quid postea?
Micio: What then?
Proba et modesta.
Demea: A good and respectable woman.
Ita aiunt.
Micio: So they say.
Natu grandior.
Demea: Advanced in years.
Scio.
Micio: I know.
Parere iam diu haec per annos non potest;
Demea: She cannot bear children anymore due to her age;
Nec qui eam respiciat quisquam est: sola est.
nor is there anyone to care for her: she is alone.
Quam hic rem agit?
Micio: [To himself] What is he driving at?
Hanc te aequum est ducere; et te operam ut fiat dare.
Demea: It is right for you to marry her; and for you to see that it is done.
Me ducere autem?
Micio: Me marry her?
Te.
Demea: You.
Me?
Micio: Me?
Te inquam.
Demea: You, I say.
Ineptis.
Micio: You are silly.
Si tu sis homo,4
Demea: [To Aeschines] If you are a man,
Hic faciat.
he should do it.
Mi pater.
Aeschinus: My father.
Quid? tu autem huic, asine, auscultas?
Micio: What? Do you listen to this ass, you blockhead?
Nihil agis:
Demea: It is no use:
Fieri aliter non potest.
it cannot be done otherwise.
Deliras.
Micio: You are mad.
Sine te exorem, mi pater.
Aeschinus: Let me persuade you, my father.
Insanis: aufer.
Micio: You are insane; stop.
Age da veniam filio.
Demea: Come, yield to your son.
Satin sanus es? ego
Micio: Are you quite in your senses? Am I,
Novus maritus anno demum quinto et sexagesimo
a new bridegroom at sixty-five years of age,
Fiam, atque anum decrepitam ducam? Idne estis auctores mihi?
to marry a decrepit old woman? Is that what you advise me?
Fac: promisi ego illis.
Aeschinus: Do it; I have promised them.
Promisti autem? de te largitor, puer.
Micio: You promised, did you? Be generous from your own resources, boy.
Age; quid si quid te maius oret?
Demea: Come; what if he asked something greater of you?
Quasi non hoc sit maximum.
Micio: As if this were not the greatest.
Da veniam.
Demea: Yield.
Ne gravere.
Aeschinus: Do not be reluctant.
Fac promitte.
Demea: Go on, promise.
Non omittis?
Micio: Won’t you leave me alone?
Non, nisi te exorem.
Aeschinus: No, not unless I persuade you.
Vis est haec quidem.
Micio: This is indeed force.
- 883qui sum natu maximus
The antecedent of the relative pronoun "qui" is the first-person singular "I" implied in the possessive adjective "mea" (my) of the preceding clause "id mea minime refert". Thus, the verb "sum" in the relative clause is in the first person singular.
- 889bene faxim
"faxim" is an archaic or colloquial perfect subjunctive form (equivalent to "fecerim") in the first person singular. Here, it functions as an optative or potential subjunctive, expressing the speaker's willingness to perform a favor.
- 913biam lepidus vocor
"lepidus" is a characteristic adjective in Roman comedy meaning "charming, delightful, or witty." Demea, who has just been praised as "pater lepidissime" (most delightful father) by his son for granting his wish, reflects on this title with self-mockery and satisfaction.
- 936fSi tu sis homo
"sis" is a present subjunctive (conditional), and "faciat" is a present subjunctive of command or hortatory in the main clause. It translates to "If you were a man, he (Micio) should do this (marry)."
Translated by Gemini 3.5 Flash (published 2026-05-22) · Revision history (1, latest 2026-09-22)
- 2026-09-22 AI review — source 1