Humanitext Reader

Plautus · Persa §193-243b

Exchange of Sarcasm between Paegnium and Sophoclidisca

Passage 4 of 14 · Latin

Summary

Paegnium, sent off with a letter by Toxilus, encounters Sophoclidisca on the street. The two young slaves engage in a battle of wits, exchanging sarcastic remarks while trying to pry into each other's destination.

§193Scio fide hercle erili ut soleat impudicitia opprobrari §194nec subigi queantur umquam, ut pro éa fide habeant iudicem.
(Paegnium) I know, by Hercules, how unchastity is accustomed to be reproached to a master's trust, nor can they ever be compelled to have a judge for that trust.
§195Abi modo.
(Toxilus) Just go.
§195bEgo laudabis faxo.
(Paegnium) I will make sure you praise me.
§195cSed has tabellas, Paegnium, §196ipsi Lemniseleni fac des et quae iussi nuntiato.
(Toxilus) But these tablets, Paegnium, make sure you give to Lemniselene herself and deliver what I ordered.
§197Cesso ire ego quo missa sum?
(Sophoclidisca) Am I delaying to go where I was sent?
§198Eo ego.
I am going.
§198bI sane.
(Toxilus) Go indeed.
ego domum ibo.
I will go home.
face rem hanc cum cura geras.
Make sure you conduct this matter with care.
§199vola curriculo. —
Fly on the run.
§199bIstuc marinus passer per circum solet.
(Paegnium) That is what a sea-sparrow is accustomed to do through the circus.
§200illic hinc abiit intro huc.
(Sophoclidisca) He has gone in here from here.
sed quis haec ést quae med advorsum incedit?
But who is this woman who comes towards me?
§201Paegnium hic quidem est.
Indeed, this is Paegnium.
§201bSophoclidisca haéc peculiarest eius
(Paegnium) This is Sophoclidisca, the personal slave of her...
§202quo ego sum missus.
...to whom I am sent.
§202bNullus esse hodie hóc puero peior perhibetur.
(Sophoclidisca) No one today is said to be worse than this boy.
§203Compellabo.
I will accost him.
§203bCommorandust.
(Paegnium) I must stop.
§203cApud hanc obieci
I stopped near her.
§204Paegnium, deliciae pueri, salve.
(Sophoclidisca) Paegnium, darling boy, hello.
quid agis? ut vales?
What are you doing? How are you?
§205Sophoclidisca, di me amabunt.
(Paegnium) Sophoclidisca, the gods will love me.
§205bQuid me?
(Sophoclidisca) What about me?
§205cVtrum hercle di volent; §206sed si ut digna es faciant, odio hercle habeant et faciant male.
(Paegnium) Whichever, by Hercules, the gods wish; but if they should do as you deserve, by Hercules, they would hate you and treat you badly.
§207Mitte male loqui.
(Sophoclidisca) Stop speaking badly.
§207bQuom ut digna es dico, bene, non male loquor.
(Paegnium) When I speak as you deserve, I speak well, not badly.
§208Quid agis?
(Sophoclidisca) What are you doing?
§208bFeminam scelestam te astans contra contuor.
(Paegnium) Standing opposite you, I look at a wicked woman.
§209Certe equidem puerum peiorem quam te novi neminem.
(Sophoclidisca) Certainly indeed, I know no boy worse than you.
§210Quid male facio aut quoi male dico?
(Paegnium) What evil do I do, or to whom do I speak badly?
§210bQuoi pol cumque occasio est.
(Sophoclidisca) To whomever, by Pollux, there is an opportunity.
§211Nemo homo umquam ita arbitratust.
(Paegnium) No man has ever thought so.
§211bAt pol multi esse ita sciunt.
(Sophoclidisca) But, by Pollux, many know that it is so.
§212Heia.
(Paegnium) Ha!
§212bBeia.
(Sophoclidisca) Bah!
§212cTuo ex ingenio mores alienos probas.
(Paegnium) You judge others' manners by your own character.
§213Fateor ego profecto me esse ut decet lenonis familiae.
(Sophoclidisca) Indeed, I confess that I am as is fitting for a pimp's household.
§214Satis iam dictum habeo.
(Paegnium) I have enough said now.
§214bSed quid tu? confitere ut te autumo?
But what about you? Do you confess as I declare you to be?
§215Fatear, si ita sim.
(Sophoclidisca) I would confess, if I were so.
§215bIam ábi, vicisti.
(Paegnium) Now go, you have won.
§215cAbi núnciam ergo.
(Sophoclidisca) Go then right now.
§215dHoc mi expedi, §216quó agis?
(Paegnium) Explain this to me, where are you going?
§216bQuo tu?
(Sophoclidisca) Where are you going?
§216cDic tu.
(Paegnium) You tell.
§216dDic tu.
(Sophoclidisca) You tell.
§216ePrior rogavi.
(Paegnium) I asked first.
§216fAt post scies.
(Sophoclidisca) But you shall know later.
§217Eo ego hinc haud longe.
(Paegnium) I am going not far from here.
§217bEt quidem ego haud longe hinc eo.
(Sophoclidisca) And indeed I am going not far from here.
§217cQuo ergo is, scelus?
(Paegnium) Where are you going then, you wicked girl?
§218Nisi scieró prius ex te, tu ex me numquam hoc quod rogitas scies.
(Sophoclidisca) Unless I know first from you, you shall never know from me what you keep asking.
§219Numquam ecastor hodie scibis prius quam ex te audivero.
(Paegnium) By Pollux, you shall never know today before I hear it from you.
§220Itane est?
Is that so?
§220bItane est.
(Sophoclidisca) It is so.
§220cMala es.
(Paegnium) You are bad.
§220dScelestu's.
(Sophoclidisca) You are wicked.
§220eDecet me.
(Paegnium) It suits me.
§220fMe quidem addecet.
(Sophoclidisca) It certainly suits me well.
§221Quid ais? certumnest celare, quó iter facias, pessuma?
(Paegnium) What do you say? Is it fixed to conceal where you make your way, you worst of girls?
§222Offirmastin occultare quo te immittas, pessume?
(Sophoclidisca) Have you resolved to hide where you are sending yourself, you worst of boys?
§223Par pari respondes dicto.
(Paegnium) You return word for word, equal for equal.
abi iam, quando ita certa res.
Go now, since the matter is so fixed.
§224nihili facio scire.
I care nothing to know.
valeas.
Farewell.
§224bAsta.
(Sophoclidisca) Stop.
§224cAt propero.
(Paegnium) But I am in a hurry.
§224dEt pol ego item.
(Sophoclidisca) And by Pollux, I too likewise.
§225Ecquid habes?
(Paegnium) Do you have anything?
§225bEcquid tú?
(Sophoclidisca) Do you?
§225cNil equidem.
(Paegnium) Nothing indeed.
§225dCedo manum ergo.
(Sophoclidisca) Give me your hand then.
§225eEstne haec manus?
(Paegnium) Is this a hand?
§226Vbi illa altera ést furtifica laeva?
(Sophoclidisca) Where is that other thieving left hand?
§226bDomi eccam.
(Paegnium) Look, it's at home.
huc nullam attuli.
I brought none here.
§227Habes nescio quid.
(Sophoclidisca) You have something.
§227bNe me attrecta, subigitatrix.
(Paegnium) Don't touch me, you groper.
§227cSin te amo?
(Sophoclidisca) But what if I love you?
§228Male operam locas.
(Paegnium) You employ your effort badly.
§228bQui?
(Sophoclidisca) How?
§228cQuia enim nihil amas, quom ingratum amas.
(Paegnium) Because indeed you love nothing, when you love an ungrateful person.
§229Temperi hanc vigilare oportet formulam atque aetatulam, §230né, ubi versicapillus fias, foede semper servias.
It is proper for this beauty and youth to keep watch in good time, lest, when you become grey-haired, you always serve shamefully.
§231tu quidem haud étiam es octoginta pondo.
(Sophoclidisca) You indeed are not yet eighty pounds.
§231bAt confidentia §232illa militia militatur multo magis quam pondere.
(Paegnium) But with confidence, that warfare is waged much more than with weight.
§233atque ego hanc operam perdo.
And I am wasting this effort.
§233bQuid iam?
(Sophoclidisca) Why so?
§233cQuia peritae praedico.
(Paegnium) Because I am preaching to an expert.
§234sed ego cesso.
But I am delaying.
§234bMane.
(Sophoclidisca) Wait.
§234cMolesta es.
(Paegnium) You are annoying.
§234dErgo ero quoque, nisi scio, §235quó agas te.
(Sophoclidisca) Therefore I will be so too, unless I know where you are taking yourself.
§235bAd vos.
(Paegnium) To your house.
§235cEt pol ego ad vos.
(Sophoclidisca) And by Pollux, I to your house.
§235dQuid eo?
(Paegnium) Why there?
§235eQuid id ad te attinet?
(Sophoclidisca) What does that matter to you?
§236Enim non ibis nunc, vicissim nisi scio.
(Paegnium) Indeed you shall not go now, unless I know in turn.
§236bOdiosu's.
(Sophoclidisca) You are hateful.
§236cLubet.
(Paegnium) It pleases me.
§237numquam hercle istuc exterebrabis, tu ut sis peior quam ego siem.
(Sophoclidisca) By Hercules, you will never worm that out of me, so that you should be worse than I am.
§238Malitia certare tecum miseria est.
(Paegnium) To strive with you in malice is misery.
§238bMers tu mala es.
You are a bad piece of goods.
§239Quid est quod metuas?
(Sophoclidisca) What is it that you fear?
§239bIdem istuc quod tu.
(Paegnium) That very same thing that you do.
§239cDic ergo
(Sophoclidisca) Tell me then...
§241Edictum est magno opere mihi, ne quoiquam hoc homini crederem, §242omnes muti ut eloquerentur prius hoc quám ego.
(Paegnium) It has been strictly ordered to me that I should not trust this to any man, so that all dumb people should speak of this before I do.
§242bAt tu hoc face: §243fide data credamus.
(Sophoclidisca) But you do this: let us trust each other, having given our word.
§243bNovi: omnes sunt lenae levifidae,
(Paegnium) I know: all handmaids are of light faith,

Notes

  1. 193fide erili ut soleat impudicitia opprobrari — The ablative `fide` inside the indirect question clause `ut soleat...` is used either with `opprobrari` in the sense of 'reproaching someone on account of a trust' or contextually meaning 'under the master's trust.'
  2. 195bEgo laudabis faxo — `faxo` is an archaic form of `fecero`. It directly takes the future indicative `laudabis` with `ut` omitted, expressing a strong intention: 'I will make sure you praise me.'
  3. 199bIstuc marinus passer per circum solet — `marinus passer` (literally 'sea sparrow') is a colloquial term for an ostrich. A verb of motion (like `facere` or `currere`) is omitted, with only `solet` ('is accustomed to') remaining.
  4. 232illa militia militatur multo magis quam pondere — `militatur` is the impersonal passive of the intransitive verb `militare` ('to wage war'), meaning 'that warfare is waged.' `pondere` ('weight') is an ablative of means.
  5. 242omnes muti ut eloquerentur prius hoc quam ego — The `ut` clause expresses the exaggerated degree or result of the preceding command (`Edictum est... ne...`): 'so strictly was it ordered that all dumb people would speak of this before I would.'

Cite this passage

Plautus, Persa §193-243b. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi0119.phi014.humanitext-lat2:193-243b

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