- Source
- Seneca, Lucius Annaeus. Tragoediae. Peiper, Rudolf; Richter, Gustav, editors. Leipzig: Teubner, 1921.
- 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:phi1017.phi005.humanitext-lat2:470-561
- Generated
- Humanitext Reader · reader.humanitext.ai · 2026-10-27
The nurse advises following nature and city life, but Hippolytus rejects this, praising the virtues of an innocent and simple life in the forest. He goes on to describe the end of the Golden Age, the moral decay of humanity, and woman as the source of all evils.
quae supplet ac restituit exhaustum genus:
she who replenishes and restores the exhausted race:
orbis iacebit squalido turpis situ,
the world will lie in ugly, squalid neglect,
vacuum sine ullis piscibus stabit mare,
the sea will stand empty without any fish,
alesque caelo derit et silvis fera
and bird will be lacking to the sky, and wild beast to the woods,
solis et aer pervius ventis erit.
and the air will be passable only to the winds.
proinde vitae sequere naturam ducem:
Therefore, follow nature as the guide of life:
urbem frequenta, civium coetum cole.
frequent the city, cultivate the assembly of citizens.
Non alia magis est libera et vitio carens
There is no other life more free and lacking in vice,
ritusque melius vita quae1 priscos colat,
and which better preserves ancient rites,
quam quae relictis moenibus silvas amat.
than that which, having left behind the city walls, loves the woods.
non illum avarae mentis inflammat furor
The madness of a greedy mind does not inflame him
qui se dicavit montium insontem iugis,
who has dedicated himself, guiltless, to the ridges of the mountains;
non aura populi et vulgus infidum bonis,
not the favor of the people and the crowd unfaithful to the good,
non pestilens invidia, non fragilis favor;
nor pestilential envy, nor fragile favor;
.non ille regno servit aut regno imminens
He does not serve a kingdom, nor, grasping for power,
vanos honores sequitur aut fluxas opes,
does he pursue vain honors or fleeting wealth,
spei metusque liber, haud illum niger
free from hope and fear; him no black
edaxque livor dente degeneri petit;
and consuming envy does not attack with base tooth;
nec scelera populos inter atque urbes sata
Neither does he know the crimes sown among peoples and cities,
novit nec omnes conscius strepitus pavet
nor, conscious of guilt, does he tremble at every noise
aut verba fingit; mille non quaerit tegi
or feign words; wealthy, he does not seek to be sheltered
dives columnis nec trabes multo insolens
by a thousand columns, nor insolently does he fasten
suffigit auro; non cruor largus pias
beams with much gold; no copious blood floods
inundat aras, fruge nec sparsi sacra
pious altars, nor do hundreds of snowy bulls,
centena nivei colla summittunt boves:
sprinkled with sacred meal, bow their necks:
sed rure vacuo potitur2 et aperto aethere
But he enjoys the empty countryside and, under the open sky,
innocuus errat, callidas tantum feris
wanders harmlessly; he knows only how to set crafty
struxisse fraudes novit et fessus gravi
snares for wild beasts, and, weary with heavy labor,
labore niveo corpus Iliso fovet:
refreshes his body in the snowy Ilissus:
nunc ille ripam celeris Alphei legit,
now he traces the bank of swift Alpheus,
nunc nemoris alti densa metatur loca,
now he traverses the dense places of the high grove,
ubi Lerna puro gelida perlucet vado,
where cold Lerna shines through with its pure ford,
sedesque mutas: hinc aves querulae fremunt
and the silent abodes: hence plaintive birds murmur,
ornique ventis lene percussae tremunt
and mountain-ashes, gently struck by the winds, tremble,
veteresque fagi. iuvit aut amnis vagi
and ancient beeches. Or it pleases him to have pressed the banks
pressisse ripas, caespite aut nudo leves
of a wandering stream, or on the bare turf to have drawn
duxisse somnos, sive fons largus citas
light sleep, whether a generous spring pours down swift
defundit undas sive per flores novos
waters, or through fresh flowers
fugiente dulcis murmurat rivo sonus.
a sweet sound murmurs with the fleeing stream.
excussa silvis poma compescunt famem
Apples shaken from the woods satisfy hunger,
et fraga parvis vulsa dumetis cibos
and strawberries plucked from low bushes provide
faciles ministrant, regios luxus procul
easy food; far off from royal luxury
est impetus fugisse: sollicito bibunt
is the impulse to flee: with anxiety they drink
auro superbi; quam iuvat nuda manu
from proud gold; how pleasing it is with bare hand
captasse fontem! certior somnus premit
to have scooped the spring! More secure sleep oppresses him
secura duro membra versantem toro.3
who turns secure limbs on a hard bed.
non in recessu furta et obscuro improbus
The wicked man does not seek secret thefts in a retreat
quaerit cubili seque multiplici timens
and obscure bedchamber, and, fearing, hide himself
domo recondit: aethera ac lucem petit
in a complex house: he seeks the air and the light,
et teste caelo vivit, hoc equidem reor
and lives with heaven as his witness. Indeed I believe
vixisse ritu prima quos mixtos deis
that they lived in this manner whom the first age,
profudit aetas, nullus his auri fuit
mingled with gods, brought forth. They had no
caecus cupido, nullus in campo sacer
blind desire for gold, no sacred boundary stone
divisit agros arbiter populis lapis;
dividing fields in the plain acted as a judge for peoples;
nondum secabant credulae pontum rates:
not yet did trusting rafts cut the sea:
sua quisque norat maria; non vasto aggere
each man knew only his own seas; not with a vast rampart
crebraque turre duxerant urbes latus;
and frequent towers had cities surrounded their flanks;
non arma saeva miles aptabat manu
the soldier did not fit savage weapons with his hand,
nec torta clausas fregerat saxo gravi
nor had the twisted ballista broken closed gates
ballista portas, iussa nec dominum pati
with a heavy stone, nor did the earth, ordered to endure a master,
iuncto ferebat terra servitium bove:
bear servitude with the yoked ox:
sed arva per se feta poscentes nihil
but the fields, fertile of themselves, preserved the nations
pavere gentes, silva nativas opes
who asked for nothing; the wood gave its native wealth,
et opaca dederant antra nativas domos.
and shady caves gave native homes.
rupere foedus impius lucri furor
An impious madness for gain broke this treaty,
et ira praeceps quaeque succensas agit
and headlong anger, and the lust which drives
libido mentes; venit imperii sitis
minds inflamed; there came a bloody thirst
cruenta, factus praeda maiori minor:
for empire, and the lesser became a prey to the greater:
pro iure vires esse.4 tum primum manu
might was in place of right. Then first with bare hand
bellare nuda saxaque et ramos rudes
did they fight, and they turned rocks and rough branches
vertere in arma: non erat gracili levis
into weapons: there was no light cornel-wood spear armed
armata ferro cornus aut longo latus
with slender iron, nor a sword girding the side
mucrone cingens ensis aut crista procul
with its long blade, nor plumed helmets waving from afar:
galeae comantes: tela faciebat dolor.
anger made weapons.
invenit artes bellicus Mavors novas
Warlike Mars invented new arts
et mille formas mortis, hinc terras cruor
and a thousand forms of death; hence poured-out blood
infecit omnis fusus et rubuit mare.
stained all lands and the sea grew red.
tum scelera dempto fine per cunctas domos
Then crimes without limit went through all homes,
iere, nullum caruit exemplo nefas:
no impiety lacked an example:
a fratre frater, dextera gnati parens
brother fell by brother, parent by the right hand of a son,
cecidit, maritus coniugis ferro iacet
husband lies low by the iron of his wife,
perimuntque fetus impiae matres suos;
and impious mothers destroy their own offspring;
sed dux malorum femina: haec scelerum artifex
but the leader of evils is woman: she, the artificer of crimes,
obsedit animos, huius incestis stupris
besieged minds; by her unchaste adulteries
fumant tot urbes, bella tot gentes gerunt
so many cities smoke, so many nations wage wars
- 483Non alia magis est libera... quam quae...
The subject is "Non alia [vita]", which is compared with the clause introduced by "quam quae..." (that life which, having left behind the walls, loves the woods). This comparative structure with a double negative expresses that no other life is more free than the woodland life.
- 501potitur
The deponent verb "potior" takes the ablative of the thing possessed or enjoyed. Here, "rure vacuo" and "aperto aethere" act as its ablative objects.
- 520certior somnus premit secura duro membra versantem toro
The present participle "versantem" (accusative) serves as the direct object of the main verb "premit", substantively meaning "one who turns". "secura membra" (accusative plural neuter) is the object of "versantem", and "duro toro" is an ablative of place.
- 544pro iure vires esse
Accusative with infinitive construction (or historical infinitive) representing the state of affairs: "might (vires) stood in place of right (pro iure)." It concisely describes a degraded social condition where physical power rules over law.