§4ΦΟΥΝΔ.καθάπερ οὖν τὴν φλόγα θριξὶ λαγῴαις ἀναπτομένην καὶ θρυαλλίσι καὶ συρφετῷ ῥᾴδιόν ἐστιν ἐπισχεῖν· ἐὰν δʼ ἐπιλάβηται τῶν στερεῶν καὶ βάθος ἐχόντων, ταχὺ διέφθειρε καὶ συνεῖλεν
ὑψηλὸν ἡβάσασα τεκτόνων πόνον
ὥς φησιν Αἰσχύλος· οὕτως ὁ τῷ θυμῷ προσέχων ἐν ἀρχῇ καὶ κατὰ μικρὸν ἔκ τινος λαλιᾶς καὶ βωμολοχίας συρφετώδους ὁρῶν καπνίζοντα καὶ διακαόμενον οὐ μεγάλης δεῖται πραγματείας, ἀλλὰ πολλάκις αὐτῷ τῷ σιωπῆσαι καὶ καταμελῆσαι κατέπαυσε.
FUNDANUS. Therefore, just as it is easy to check a flame that is being kindled by hare’s hair, lamp-wicks, and sweepings; but if it takes hold of solid things that have depth, it quickly destroys and sweeps away, having grown to its height, as Aeschylus says, "the tall-reared work of builders"; so the man who attends to his anger in the beginning, and sees it from some babbling and vulgar buffoonery gradually smoking and burning up, does not need great trouble, but often, by the very act of keeping silent and ignoring it, extinguishes it.
καὶ γὰρ τὸ πῦρ ὁ μὴ παρασχὼν ὕλην ἔσβεσε, καὶ ὀργὴν ὁ μὴ θρέψας ἐν ἀρχῇ καὶ μὴ φυσήσας ἑαυτὸν ἐφυλάξατο καὶ καθεῖλεν.
For indeed, just as he who does not supply fuel puts out a fire, so he who does not nourish anger in the beginning and does not blow upon it, guards himself and brings it down.
οὐκ ἤρεσκεν οὖν μοι, καίπερ ἄλλα χρήσιμα λέγων καὶ παραινῶν ὁ Ἱερώνυμος, ἐν οἷς οὔ φησι γιγνομένης ἀλλὰ γεγενημένης καὶ οὔσης αἴσθησιν ὀργῆς εἶναι διὰ τὸ τάχος.
Therefore, I was not pleased with Hieronymus, although he says and advises other useful things, in his assertion that there is no perception of anger when it is coming into being, but only when it has already come into being and exists, because of its speed.
οὐθὲν γὰρ οὕτω τῶν παθῶν συλλεγόμενον καὶ διακινούμενον ἔχει τὴν γένεσιν ἐμφανῆ καὶ τὴν αὔξησιν· ὡς δὴ καὶ Ὅμηρος ἐμπείρως διδάσκει, λυπηθέντα μὲν εὐθὺς ἐξαίφνης ποιῶν τὸν Ἀχιλλέα τοῦ λόγου προσπεσόντος, ἐν οἷς λέγει
"ὣς φάτο· τὸν δʼ ἄχεος νεφέλη ἐκάλυψε μέλαινα· "
θυμούμενον δὲ βραδέως τῷ Ἀγαμέμνονι καὶ διὰ λόγων πολλῶν ἐκκαόμενον· οὓς εἴ τις ὑφεῖλεν αὐτῶν ἐν ἀρχῇ καὶ διεκώλυσεν, οὐκ ἂν ἔσχεν αὔξησιν ἡ διαφορὰ τηλικαύτην καὶ μέγεθος.
For no other of the passions, when being gathered and set in motion, has its origin and its growth so visible; as indeed Homer also experiences and teaches, representing Achilles as immediately and suddenly grieved when the report came to him, in the words: "So he spoke; and a black cloud of grief covered him"; but representing him as growing angry slowly with Agamemnon, and being kindled through many words; which if anyone had withdrawn from them in the beginning and prevented, their dispute would not have had so great an increase and magnitude.
ὅθεν ὁ Σωκράτης ὁσάκις αἴσθοιτο κινουμένου τραχύτερον αὑτοῦ πρός τινα τῶν φίλων,
"πρὸ χείματος ὥστʼ ἀνὰ ποντίαν ἄκραν στελλόμενος"
ἐνεδίδου τε τῇ φωνῇ καὶ διεμειδία τῷ προσώπῳ καὶ τὸ βλέμμα πραότερον παρεῖχε, τῷ ῥέπειν ἐπὶ θάτερα καὶ πρὸς τοὐναντίον ἀντικινεῖσθαι τῷ πάθει διαφυλάττων ἑαυτὸν ἀπτῶτα καὶ ἀήττητον.
Hence Socrates, as often as he perceived himself moving rather harshly towards any of his friends, "lowering his sail, as before a storm on a sea-cape," would both soften his voice and smile with his face and present a gentler look, keeping himself from falling and undefeated by inclining to the other side and moving himself in opposition to the passion.
§5ΦΟΥΝΔ.ἔστι γάρ τις, ὦ ἑταῖρε, πρώτη καθάπερ τυράννου κατάλυσις τοῦ θυμοῦ, μὴ πείθεσθαι μηδʼ ὑπακούειν προστάττοντος αὐτοῦ μέγα βοᾶν καὶ δεινὸν βλέπειν καὶ κόπτειν ἑαυτόν, ἀλλʼ ἡσυχάζειν καὶ μὴ συνεπιτείνειν ὥσπερ νόσημα ῥιπτασμῷ καὶ διαβοήσει τὸ πάθος.
FUNDANUS. For indeed, my friend, there is a certain first overthrow of anger, as of a tyrant: not to obey or harken to it when it commands us to cry out loudly, look terrible, and beat ourselves, but to keep quiet and not to intensify the passion like a disease by tossing about and shouting.
αἱ μὲν γὰρ ἐρωτικαὶ πράξεις, οἷον ἐπικωμάσαι καὶ ᾆσαι καὶ στεφανῶσαι θύραν, ἔχουσιν ἁμωσγέπως κουφισμὸν οὐκ ἄχαριν οὐδʼ ἄμουσον
"
ἐλθὼν δʼ οὐκ ἐβόησα τίς ἢ τίνος, ἀλλʼ ἐφίλησα
τὴν φλιήν.
For indeed, amorous actions, such as making a revel, singing, and crowning a door with garlands, have a certain relief that is not without charm or culture: "And when I came, I did not shout who I was or whose son, but I kissed the doorpost.
εἰ τοῦτʼ ἔστʼ ἀδίκημʼ, ἀδικῶ. "
αἵ τε τοῖς πενθοῦσιν ἐφέσεις τοῦ ἀποκλαῦσαι καὶ ἀποδύρασθαι πολύ τι τῆς λύπης ἅμα τῷ δακρύῳ συνεξάγουσιν· ὁ δὲ θυμὸς ἐκριπίζεται μᾶλλον οἷς πράττουσι καὶ λέγουσιν οἱ ἐν αὐτῷ καθεστῶτες.
If this is an offense, I offend." And the permissions given to those in mourning to weep and lament carry away much of their grief together with their tears; but anger is rather fanned into flame by what those who are in it do and say.
ἀτρεμεῖν οὖν κράτιστον ἢ φεύγειν καὶ ἀποκρύπτειν. καὶ καθορμίζειν ἑαυτὸν εἰς ἡσυχίαν, ὥσπερ ἐπιληψίας ἀρχομένης συναισθανομένους, ἵνα μὴ πέσωμεν μᾶλλον δʼ ἐπιπέσωμεν· ἐπιπίπτομεν δέ γε τοῖς φίλοις μάλιστά τε καὶ πλειστάκις.
Therefore, it is best to be still, or to flee and hide ourselves, and to bring ourselves to anchor in quietness, as if we felt an onset of epilepsy coming on, so that we may not fall, or rather, so that we may not fall upon others; and indeed we fall upon our friends most of all and most frequently.
οὐ γὰρ πάντων ἐρῶμεν οὐδὲ πᾶσι φθονοῦμεν οὐδὲ πάντας φοβούμεθα, θυμῷ δʼ ἄθικτον οὐδὲν οὐδʼ ἀνεπιχείρητον ἀλλʼ ὀργιζόμεθα καὶ πολεμίοις καὶ φίλοις καὶ τέκνοις καὶ γονεῦσι καὶ θεοῖς νὴ Δία καὶ θηρίοις καὶ ἀψύχοις σκεύεσιν, ὡς ὁ Θάμυρις
"
ῥηγνὺς χρυσόδετον κέρας,
ῥηγνὺς ἁρμονίαν χορδοτόνου λύρας· "
καὶ ὁ Πάνδαρος αὑτῷ καταρώμενος, εἰ μὴ τὰ τόξα καταπρήσειε
χερσὶ διακλάσσας.
For we do not love all men, nor do we envy all, nor do we fear all; but nothing is untouched or unattacked by anger, for we are angry both with enemies and with friends, with children and with parents, and even, by Zeus, with gods, with beasts, and with inanimate utensils, like Thamyris, "breaking the gold-bound horn, breaking the harmony of the string-stretched lyre"; and Pandarus cursing himself if he should not burn his bow, breaking it with his hands.
ὁ δὲ Ξέρξης καὶ τῇ θαλάττῃ στίγματα καὶ πληγὰς ἐνέβαλλε καὶ πρὸς τὸ ὄρος ἐξέπεμπεν ἐπιστολὰς
Ἄθω δαιμόνιε οὐρανόμηκες, μὴ ποιεῖν ἐν ἐμοῖς ἔργοις λίθους μεγάλους καὶ δυσκατεργάστους· εἰ δὲ μὴ, τεμὼν ῥίψω σʼ εἰς θάλασσαν
πολλὰ γάρ ἐστι τοῦ θυμοῦ φοβερά, πολλὰ δὲ καὶ γελοῖα· διὸ καὶ μισεῖται καὶ καταφρονεῖται μάλιστα τῶν παθῶν.
And Xerxes even inflicted brands and blows upon the sea, and sent letters to the mountain: "Divine Athos, reaching to heaven, do not produce great and hard-to-work stones in my works; otherwise, cutting you down, I will cast you into the sea." For there are many things in anger that are fearsome, and many also that are ridiculous; therefore it is both hated and despised most of all the passions.
ἀμφότερα δʼ ἐσκέφθαι χρήσιμον.
And it is useful to have considered both.