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Dionysius of Halicarnassus · Roman Antiquities §4.68.1-4.68.2

The Lineage of Brutus and His Feigned Madness

Passage 312 of 962 · Greek

Summary

The noble lineage and excellent nature of Lucius Junius Brutus are introduced, and it is explained how he chose to feign madness to protect himself after his father and elder brother were murdered by King Tarquinius.

§4.68.1τῷ ἀνδρὶ τούτῳ πατὴρ μὲν ἦν Μάρκος Ἰούνιος ἑνὸς τῶν σὺν Αἰνείᾳ τὴν ἀποικίαν στειλάντων ἀπόγονος, ἐν τοῖς ἐπιφανεστάτοις Ῥωμαίων ἀριθμούμενος δι’ ἀρενήν, μήτηρ δὲ Ταρκυνία τοῦ προτέρου βασιλέως Ταρκυνίου θυγάτηρ·
For this man, the father was Marcus Junius, a descendant of one of those who had established the colony with Aeneas, who was numbered among the most illustrious of the Romans because of his male lineage (or virtue), and the mother was Tarquinia, the daughter of the former king Tarquinius.
αὐτὸς δὲ τροφῆς τε καὶ παιδείας τῆς ἐπιχωρίου πάσης μετέλαβε καὶ φύσιν εἶχε πρὸς οὐδὲν τῶν καλῶν ἀντιπράττουσαν.
He himself partook of all the native nurture and education, and possessed a nature that in no way opposed any noble pursuits.
§4.68.2ἐπεὶ δὲ Τύλλιον ἀποκτείνας Ταρκύνιος σὺν ἄλλοις ἀνδράσι πολλοῖς καὶ ἀγαθοῖς καὶ τὸν ἐκείνου πατέρα διεχρήσατο ἀφανεῖ θανάτῳ διʼ οὐδὲν μὲν ἀδίκημα, τοῦ δὲ πλούτου προαχθεὶς εἰς ἐπιθυμίαν, ὃν ἐκ παλαιᾶς τε καὶ προγονικῆς παραλαβὼν εὐτυχίας ἐκέκτητο, καὶ σὺν αὐτῷ τὸν πρεσβύτερον υἱὸν εὐγενές τι φρόνημα διαφαίνοντα καὶ τὸ μὴ τιμωρῆσαι τῷ θανάτῳ τοῦ πατρὸς οὐκ ἂν ὑπομείναντα, νέος ὢν ὁ Βροῦτος ἔτι καὶ κομιδῇ βοηθείας συγγενικῆς ἔρημος ἔργον ἐπεχείρησε ποιῆσαι πάντων φρονιμώτατον, ἐπίθετον ἑαυτοῦ καταψεύσασθαι μωρίαν·
But when Tarquinius, after killing Tullius, made away with his father also by an obscure death along with many other good men, for no crime indeed, but because he was led into a desire for his wealth, which he possessed having received it from an ancient and ancestral fortune, and with him his elder son, who showed a noble spirit and would not have endured not avenging his father's death; Brutus, being still young and utterly destitute of any help from relatives, undertook to perform a deed the wisest of all, namely, to falsely assume for himself a feigned folly.
καὶ διέμεινεν ἅπαντα τὸν ἐξ ἐκείνου χρόνον, ἕως τὸν ἐπιτήδειον ἔδοξε καιρὸν ἔχειν, φυλάττων τὸ προσποίημα τῆς ἀνοίας, ἐξ οὗ ταύτης ἔτυχε τῆς ἐπωνυμίας·
And he continued through all the time from then on, until he seemed to have the fitting opportunity, keeping up the pretense of silliness, from which he obtained this surname.
τοῦτʼ αὐτὸν ἐρρύσατο μηδὲν δεινὸν ὑπὸ τοῦ τυράννου παθεῖν πολλῶν καὶ ἀγαθῶν ἀνδρῶν ἀπολλυμένων.
This saved him from suffering any harm at the hands of the tyrant, while many good men were being destroyed.

Notes

  1. 804δι’ ἀρενήν — The manuscripts transmit δι' ἀρενήν ('by male lineage' or 'masculinity'), though it is often emended to δι' ἀρετήν ('by virtue'). If retained, it refers to his noble descent through the male line.
  2. 804οὐκ ἂν ὑπομείναντα — The participle ὑπομείναντα with the particle ἄν represents a potential or unreal condition in the past, meaning 'who would not have endured' (if he had lived).
  3. 805τοῦτʼ αὐτὸν ἐρρύσατο μηδὲν δεινὸν ὑπὸ τοῦ τυράννου παθεῖν — The verb ἐρρύσατο ('saved, protected') naturally implies preventing something, hence the infinitive clause is accompanied by the redundant negative μηδέν (sympathetic or redundant negative after verbs of preventing).

Cite this passage

Dionysius of Halicarnassus, Roman Antiquities §4.68.1-4.68.2. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0081.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:4.68.1-4.68.2

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