- Source
- Horace, Satires, Epistles and Ars Poetica. Fairclough, H. Rushton (Henry Rushton), editor. London: William Heinemann Ltd.; Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1929.
- 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:phi0893.phi005.humanitext-lat2:1.20.1-1.20.28
- Generated
- Humanitext Reader · reader.humanitext.ai · 2026-10-28
Horace addresses his book, which is eager for publication, warning it of its eventual decay and neglect. He then instructs the book on how to describe its author—his humble origins, character, appearance, and age—to future readers.
Vertumnum Ianumque, liber, spectare videris,
You seem, my book, to be looking toward Vertumnum and Janus,
scilicet ut prostes Sosiorum pumice mundus.1
doubtless that you may stand exposed for sale, polished by the pumice of the Sosii.
odisti clavis et grata sigilla pudico;
You hate the keys and seals which are pleasing to the modest;
paucis ostendi gemis et communia laudas,
you groan at being shown to few, and praise public exposure,
non ita nutritus, fuge quo descendere gestis.
not brought up thus. Fly whither you long to descend.
non erit emisso reditus tibi. “quid miser egi?
Once let out, there will be no return for you. ‘What have I done, wretch that I am?’
quid volui?” dices, ubi quis te laeserit, et scis
’What did I want?’ you will say, when someone hurts you, and you know
in breve te cogi,2 cum plenus languet amator.
that you are packed into a narrow space, when your sated lover languishes.
Quod si non odio peccantis desipit augur,
But if the prophet does not lose his senses through hatred of the offender,
carus eris Romae, donec te deserat aetas;
you will be dear to Rome until your youth leaves you;
contrectatus ubi manibus sordeseere volgi
when, handled by the hands of the vulgar, you begin to grow dirty,
coeperis, aut tineas pasees taciturnus inertis
you will either feed the sluggish moths in silence,
aut fugies Uticam aut vinctus mitteris Ilerdam.
or you will flee to Utica, or be sent bound to Ilerda.
ridebit monitor non exauditus, ut ille
Your unheeded adviser will laugh, like that man
qui male parentem in rupes protrusit asellum
who in anger pushed his disobedient donkey over the cliffs:
iratus: quis enim invitum servare laboret?
for who would toil to save one against his will?
hoc quoque te manet, ut pueros elementa docentem
This also awaits you, that stuttering old age should overtake you
occupet extremis in vicis balba senectus.3
teaching boys their elements in the outskirts of the town.
Cum tibi sol tepidus pluris admoverit auris,
When the warm sun has brought you more listeners,
me libertino natum patre et in tenui re
you shall tell them that I, born of a freedman father and in slender circumstances,
maiores pinnas nido extendisse4 loqueris,
spread wings larger than my nest,
ut quantum generi demas virtutibus addas;
so that what you take from my birth, you may add to my virtues;
me primis urbis belli placuisse domique,
that I pleased the foremost men of the city, in war and in peace,
corporis exigui, praecanum. solibus aptum,
of small stature, gray before my time, fond of the sun,
irasci celerem, tamen ut placabilis essem.
quick to anger, yet so as to be easily appeased.
forte meum si quis te percontabitur aevum,
If by chance anyone should ask you my age,
me quater undenos sciat implevisse Decembris,
let him know that I completed forty-four Decembers,
collegam Lepidum quo duxit Lollius anno.
in the year when Lollius took Lepidus as his colleague.
- 1.20.2prostes Sosiorum pumice mundus
The verb prostes (present subjunctive of prosto, "to stand exposed for sale") carries a strong double meaning of a slave prostitute standing in the street. This is paired with pumice mundus ("polished with pumice"), which refers to the bookseller's finishing process of smoothing the edges of a papyrus scroll, while also playing on the physical grooming and depilation of a prostitute.
- 1.20.8in breve te cogi
The phrase in breve can mean "into a narrow space" or "tightly." The passive infinitive cogi (from cogo, "to pack" or "to compress") refers to the scroll being rolled up tightly and stuffed into a narrow book-box (scrinium) by a sated reader, mirroring a rejected prostitute being confined to a small room.
- 1.20.17ut pueros elementa docentem / occupet extremis in vicis balba senectus
Structurally, the subject of the ut-clause is balba senectus ("stammering old age"), the main verb is occupet, and the direct object is the pronoun te (from the preceding line), which is modified by the participle docentem ("teaching"). The hyperbaton separates docentem and senectus, creating a complex clause order meaning "that stuttering old age should overtake you as you teach boys their elements."
- 1.20.21maiores pinnas nido extendisse
The word nido is an ablative of comparison, meaning "wings larger than the nest." This is a metaphorical expression for rising above one's humble origin or achieving things beyond expectation, likened to a bird spreading wings too large for its nest. While some take it as an ablative of place ("from the nest"), the ablative of comparison is the standard and more poetic interpretation.
Translated by Gemini 3.5 Flash (published 2026-05-22) · Revision history (1, latest 2026-09-21)
- 2026-09-21 AI review — note 1