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Plautus · Pseudolus §440-511b

Simo's Confrontation and Pseudolus's Bold Boast

Passage 8 of 21 · Latin

Summary

Simo and Callipho confront the slave Pseudolus about his son's love affair, but Pseudolus confidently defends his silence and boldly declares that he will eventually extract the needed money from Simo himself.

§440nam tu quod damni et quod fecisti flagiti §441populo viritim potuit dispertirier.
For what damage and what outrage you have committed could have been distributed to the people man by man.
§442idne tú mirare, si patrissat filius?
Do you wonder at that, if the son acts like his father?
§443ὦ Ζεῦ, quam pauci éstis homines commodi.
O Zeus, how few of you convenient men there are!
em, §444illic ést pater patrem esse ut aequom est filio.
Look, there is a father, just as it is proper for a father to be to his son.
§445Quis hic lóquitur? meus est hic quidem sérvos Pseudolus.
Who is speaking here? Why, this is indeed my servant Pseudolus.
§446hic mihi corrumpit filium, scelerum caput; §447hic dux, hic illi est paedagogus, hunc ego §448cupio excruciari.
This guy corrupts my son for me, the fountainhead of crimes; he is the leader, he is the tutor for him, I desire him to be tortured.
§448bIam istaec insipientiast, §449iram in promptu gerere.
Already that is foolishness, to wear anger on display.
quanto satius est §450adire blandis verbis atque exquaerere, §451sintne illa necne sint quae tibi renuntiant.
How much better it is to approach with mild words and inquire whether those things which they report to you are so or not.
§452bonus animus in mala re dimidiumst mali.
A good mind in a bad situation is half of the evil.
§453Tibi auscultabo.
I will listen to you.
§453bItur ad te, Pseudole.
They are coming toward you, Pseudolus.
§454orationem tibi para advorsum senem.
Prepare your speech against the old man.
§455erum saluto primum, ut aequomst; postea, §456si quid superfit, vicinos impertio.
I greet my master first, as is proper; afterwards, if anything is left over, I bestow it upon the neighbors.
§457Salve.
Hello.
quid agitur?
What is being done?
§457bStatur hic ad hunc modum.
Standing is being done here in this manner.
§458Statum vide hominis, Callipho, quam basilicum.
See the posture of the man, Callipho, how royal it is.
§459Bene confidenterque adstitisse intellego.
I perceive that he has stood quite confidently.
§460Decet innocentem qui sit atque innoxium §461servom superbum esse, apud erum potissimum.
It is fitting for a servant who is innocent and harmless to be proud, especially in the presence of his master.
§462Sunt quae te volumus percontari, quae quasi §463per nebulam nosmet scimus atque audivimus.
There are things we want to ask you, which we ourselves know and have heard as if through a mist.
§464Conficiet iam te hic verbis, ut tu censeas §465non Pseudolum, sed Socratem tecum loqui.
This fellow will soon finish you with words, so that you would think not Pseudolus, but Socrates is speaking with you.
§466Itast, iam pridem tu me spernis, sentio.
So it is, for a long time now you despise me, I feel it.
§467parvam esse apud te mihi fidem ipse intellego.
I myself understand that there is little faith in me with you.
§468cupis me ésse nequam: tamen ero frugi bonae.
You desire me to be worthless: yet I shall be of good value.
§469Fac sis vocivas, Pseudole, aedis aurium, §470mea ut migrare dicta possint quo volo.
Make the chambers of your ears vacant, Pseudolus, so that my words can migrate where I wish.
§471Age loquere quidvis, tametsi tibi suscenseo.
Come, speak whatever you wish, although I am angry with you.
§472Mihin dómino servos tu suscenses?
You, a servant, are angry with me, your master?
§472bTam tibi §473mirum id videtur?
Does that seem so strange to you?
§473bHercle qui, ut tu praedicas, §474cavendum est mi aps te irato; atque alio tu modo §475me verberare atque ego te soleo cogitas.
By Hercules, according to what you declare, I must be on my guard against you when you are angry; and you are thinking of beating me in another way than I am accustomed to beat you.
§476quid censes?
What do you think?
§476bEdepol merito esse iratum arbitror, §477quom apud te parvast ei fides.
By Pollux, I think he is angry with good reason, since there is little trust in him with you.
§477bIam sic sino; §478iratus sit: ego, ne quid noceat, cavero.
Now I let it be so; let him be angry: I will take care that he does no harm.
§479sed quid ais? quid hoc, quod te rogo?
But what do you say? What about this which I ask you?
§479bSí quid vis, roga.
If you wish anything, ask.
§480quod scibo, Delphis tibi responsum dicito.
What I shall know, consider it spoken to you as an oracle from Delphi.
§481Advorte ergo animum et fac sis promissi memor.
Pay attention then and see that you are mindful of your promise.
§482quid ais? ecquam scis filium tibicinam §483meum amare?
What do you say? Do you know that my son loves a certain flute-girl?
§483bναὶ γάρ.
Yes, indeed.
§483cLiberare quam velit?
Whom he wants to set free?
§484καὶ τοῦτο ναὶ γάρ.
And that too, yes indeed.
§484bEcquas viginti minas §486paritas ut auferas a me?
Are you planning to take twenty minae away from me?
§486bAbs te ego auferam?
I take away from you?
§487Ita, quas meo gnato des, qui amicam liberet?
Yes, which you may give to my son, so that he may set his mistress free?
§488fatere, dic.
Confess, speak.
§488bκαὶ τοῦτο ναί, καὶ τοῦτο ναί.
And that too is yes, and that too is yes.
§489Fatetur.
He confesses.
§489bDixin, Callipho, dudum tibi?
Did I not tell you just now, Callipho?
§490Memini.
I remember.
§490bQuor haec, tu ubi rescivisti ilico, §491celata me sunt? quor non rescivi?
Why were these things, as soon as you found them out, concealed from me? Why did I not find out?
§491bEloquar.
I will speak out.
§492quia nolebam ex me morem progigni malum, §493erum ut servos criminaret apud erum.
Because I did not want a bad custom to be produced from me, that a servant should accuse his master in the presence of his master.
§494Iuberes hunc praecipitem in pistrinum trahi.
You would have ordered him to be dragged headlong into the tread-mill.
§495Numquid peccatum est, Simo?
Has there been any wrongdoing, Simo?
§495bImmo maxime.
On the contrary, very much so.
§496Desiste, recte ego meam rem sapio, Callipho; §497peccata mea sunt.
Desist, Callipho, I understand my own business well; the faults are mine.
animum advorte nunciam.
Pay attention now.
§498quapropter te expertem amoris nati habuerim? † §499pistrinum in mundo scibam, si dixem, mihi.
Why I kept you ignorant of your son's love, I knew the tread-mill was ready for me, if I had spoken.
§500Non a me scibas pistrinum in mundo tibi, §501cum ea mussitabas?
Did you not know the tread-mill was ready for you from me, when you kept quiet about those things?
§501bScibam.
I knew it.
§501cQuin dictum est mihi?
Why then was it not told to me?
§502Quia illúd malum aderat, istuc aberat longius; §503illud erat praesens, huic erant dieculae.
Because that evil was near, while this one was further away; that one was present, while this one had some days of delay.
§504Quid nunc agetis? nam hinc quidem a me non potest §505argentum auferri, qui praesertim senserim.
What will you do now? For from me indeed money cannot be taken, especially since I have perceived it.
§506ne quisquam credat nummum, iam edicam omnibus.
I will now proclaim to everyone, so that no one may trust him with a single coin.
§507Numquam edepol quoiquam supplicabo, dum quidem §508tu vives.
By Pollux, I will never beg of anyone, as long as you live.
tu mihi hercle árgentum dabis, §509abs te equidem sumam.
By Hercules, you will give me the money, I will indeed take it from you.
§509bTu a me sumes?
You will take it from me?
§509cStrenue.
Vigorously.
§510Excludito mi hercle oculum, si dedero.
By Hercules, knock out my eye, if I give it.
§510bDabis.
You will give it.
§511iam dico ut a me caveas.
Now I tell you to be on your guard against me.
§511bCerte edepol scio,
By Pollux, I know it indeed,

Notes

  1. §440quod damni et quod ... flagiti — The relative pronoun `quod` (neuter singular) incorporating its antecedent takes the partitive genitives `damni` (damage) and `flagiti` (outrage). The phrase means "whatever damage and whatever outrage you have committed."
  2. §443commodi — Genitive of the adjective `commodus` (agreeable, obliging, fit), serving here as a genitive of quality that modifies `homines`. It means "obliging men" or "men of convenient character."
  3. §468frugi bonae — The word `frugi` (originally the dative of `frux`, meaning fruit or value) is used here as an indeclinable adjective ("honest, useful") and is modified by `bonae`, functioning together as a descriptive phrase meaning "of excellent value" or "highly respectable."
  4. §494Iuberes — Subjunctive imperfect second-person singular, expressing a past potentiality or what would have naturally occurred under a hypothetical condition ("you would have ordered"). The subject is Simo, addressed by Callipho.
  5. §503dieculae — The nominative plural of `diecula`, which is a diminutive of `dies` (day, appointed time). It expresses a nuance of a small, slight respite or "a few little days" of postponement.
  6. §510Excludito — The future imperative second-person singular. Used in the apodosis of the conditional clause `si dedero` (if I give) to convey a defiant and challenging command ("knock out [my eye]").

Cite this passage

Plautus, Pseudolus §440-511b. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi0119.phi016.humanitext-lat2:440-511b

Please note the AI-draft status of the translation and the date accessed.

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