Humanitext Reader

Plautus · Rudens §821-891

Plesidippus Drags Labrax to Court

Passage 13 of 22 · Latin

Summary

Plesidippus arrives and drags the pimp Labrax to court, while Charmides refuses to help him and mocks his fate.

§821Heu hercle, ne istic fana mutantur cito:
Ah, by Hercules, how quickly indeed the temples over there are changed!
§822iam hoc Herculi est, Veneris fanum quod fuit, §823ita duo destituit signa hic cum clavis senex.
Now this is Hercules' temple, which was Venus's, so has this old man set up two statues with clubs here.
§824non hercle quo hinc nunc gentium aufugiam scio, §825ita nunc mi utrumque saevit, et terra et mare.
By Hercules, I do not know where in the world I should flee from here now, so now both are raging against me, both land and sea.
§826Palaestra.
Palaestra.
§826bQuid vis?
What do you want?
§826cApage, controversia est, §827haec quidem Palaestra, quae respondit, non mea est.
Away, there is a dispute, this Palaestra indeed, who answered, is not mine.
§828heus, Ampelisca.
Ho, Ampelisca.
§828bCave sis infortunio.
Watch out, please, for trouble.
§829Vltro te.
Go hang yourself.
signa ut homines satis recte monent.
How well the statues warn, just like men.
§830sed vobis dico, heús vos, num molestiaest, §831me adire ad illas propius?
But I say to you, ho you, is it any trouble, for me to approach closer to them?
§831bNil nobis quidem.
Nothing to us, indeed.
§832Numquid molestum mihi erit?
Will there be any trouble for me?
§832bNil, si caveris.
Nothing, if you take care.
§833Quid est quod caveam?
What is it that I should watch out for?
§833bEm, a crasso infortunio.
Lo, against heavy trouble.
§834Quaeso hercle, abire ut liceat.
I pray, by Hercules, that it may be allowed to depart.
§834bAbeas, si velis.
You may depart, if you wish.
§835Bene hercle factum.
Excellently done, by Hercules.
habeo vobis gratiam.
I thank you.
§836accedam potius.
I will approach rather.
§836bIllic astato ilico.
Stand there on the spot.
§837Edepol proveni nequiter multis modis.
By Pollux, I have come off badly in many ways.
§838certumst hasce hodie usque obsidione vincere.
I am resolved to conquer these girls today by a siege.
§839Meamne ílle amicam leno vi, violentia §840de ara deripere Veneris voluit?
Did that pimp, by force and violence, want to drag my girlfriend away from the altar of Venus?
§840bAdmodum.
Exactly.
§841Quin occidisti extemplo?
Why didn't you kill him instantly?
§841bGladius non erat.
There was no sword.
§842Caperes aut fustem aut lapidem.
You should have taken either a club or a stone.
§842bQuid? ego quasi canem
What?
§843hominem insectarer lapidibus nequissimum?
Should I, like a dog, have pursued that most worthless fellow with stones?
§844Nunc pol ego perii, Plesidippus eccum adest.
Now, by Pollux, I am undone; look, Plesidippus is here.
§845converret iam hic me totum cum pulvisculo.
He will soon sweep me clean, dust and all.
§846Etiamne in ara tunc sedebant mulieres, §847quom ad me profectu's ire?
Were the women still sitting on the altar then, when you set out to come to me?
§847bIbidem nunc sedent.
They are sitting in the very same place now.
§848Quis illás nunc illic servat?
Who is keeping guard over them there now?
§848bNescio quis senex, §849vicinus Veneris;
Some old man or other, a neighbor of Venus; he did excellent service.
is dedit operam optumam. §850is nunc cum servis servat.
He is guarding them now with his slaves.
ego mandaveram.
I had commissioned him.
§851Duc me ad lenonem recta.
Lead me straight to the pimp.
ubi illic est homo?
Where is that man?
§852Salve.
Hello.
§852bSalutem nil moror.
I care nothing for your greeting.
opta ocius: §853rapi te obtorto collo mavis an trahi?
Choose quickly: do you prefer to be dragged off by your twisted neck, or to be trailed along?
§854utrum vis opta, dum licet.
Choose which you want, while it is allowed.
§854bNeutrum volo.
I want neither.
§855Abi sáne ad litus curriculo, Trachalio, §856iube illós in urbem ire obviam ad portum mihi, §857quos mecum duxi, hunc qui ad carnificem traderent.
Go, indeed, to the shore at a run, Trachalio, order those whom I brought with me to go into the city to meet me at the harbor, to hand this fellow over to the executioner.
§858post huc redito atque agitato hic custodiam.
Afterwards, return here and keep guard here.
§859ego hunc scelestum ín ius rapiam éxulem.
I will drag this wicked exile to court.
§860age, ambula in ius.
Come, walk to court.
§860bQuid ego deliqui?
What have I done wrong?
§860cRogas,
Do you ask?
§861quin arrabonem a me accepisti ob mulierem §862et eam hinc abduxti?
Did you not receive an earnest-money from me for the woman, and lead her away from here?
§862bNon avexi.
I did not carry her off.
§862cCur negas?
Why do you deny it?
§863Quia pol provexi: avehere non quivi miser.
Because, by Pollux, I only sailed her out; I could not carry her off, wretch that I am.
§864equidem tibi me dixeram praesto fore §865apud Véneris fanum: numquid muto? sumne ibi?
Indeed, I told you I would be ready for you at Venus's temple: do I change anything? Am I not there?
§866In iure causam dicito, hic verbum sat est: §867sequere.
Plead your cause in court, here a word is enough: Follow.
§867bObsecro te, subveni mi, Charmides.
I beseech you, help me, Charmides.
§868rapior optorto collo.
I am dragged off by my twisted neck.
§868bQuis me nominat?
Who calls my name?
§869Viden me ut rapior?
Do you see how I am being dragged?
§869bVideo, atque inspecto lubens.
I see, and I look on with pleasure.
§870Non subvenire mi audes?
Do you not dare to help me?
§870bQuis homo te rapit?
What man is dragging you?
§871Adulescens Plesidippus.
The youth Plesidippus.
§871bVt nanctu's, habe.
Since you've found him, keep him.
§872bono animo meliust te in nervom conrepere.
It is better for you to crawl into the prison with a good heart.
§873tibi optigit quod plurimi exoptant sibi.
What many wish for themselves has fallen to your lot.
§874Quid id est?
What is that?
§874bVt id quod quaerant inveniant sibi.
That they find for themselves what they are looking for.
§875Sequere, obsecro, me.
Follow me, I beseech you.
§875bPariter suades qualis es: §876tu in nervom rapere, eo me óbsecras ut te sequar.
You advise just as you are yourself: you are dragged to prison, and on that account you beseech me to follow you.
§877etiam retentas?
Are you still resisting?
§877bPerii.
I am ruined.
§877cVerum sit velim.
I wish it were true.
§878tu, mea Palaestra et Ampelisca, ibidem ilico §879manete, dúm ego huc redeo.
You, my Palaestra and Ampelisca, remain right there on the spot, while I return here.
§879bEquidem suadeo, §880ut ad nos abeant potius, dum recipis.
Indeed, I advise that they rather go away to our house until you return.
§880bPlacet, §881bene facitis.
That pleases me, you do well.
§881bFures mi estis.
You are thieves to me.
§881cQuid, fures? rape.
What, thieves? Drag him off!
§882Oro obsecro, Palaestra.
I pray, I beseech you, Palaestra.
§882bSequere, carnufex.
Follow, scoundrel.
§883Hospes— §883bNon sum hospes, repudio hospitium tuom.
Guest— I am no guest; I repudiate your hospitality.
§884Sicine me spernis?
Do you despise me thus?
§884bSic ago: semel bibo.
Thus I act: I drink once.
§885Di te infelicent. —
May the gods bring you misfortune.
§885bIsti capiti dicito.
Say that to your own head.
§886credo alium in aliam beluam hominem vortier: §887illic ín columbum, credo, leno vortitur, §888nam in collumbari collus haud multo post erit; §889in nervom ille hodie nidamenta congeret.
I believe that one man turns into one beast, and another into another: that pimp yonder, I believe, is turning into a dove, for before long his neck will be in a dove-cot; today he will gather nesting materials into the prison-shackle.
§890verum tamen ibo, ei advocatus ut siem, §891si qui mea opera citius addici potest. —
But nevertheless, I will go to be a supporter for him, to see if by my assistance he can be condemned all the sooner.

Notes

  1. 823duo destituit signa — `signa` (statues) refers to the two slaves (Turbalio and Sparax) stationed by Daemones. Their standing with clubs (`clavis`) in hand is likened to statues of Hercules with his characteristic club, forming the joke that the temple has changed from Venus's to Hercules'.
  2. 842binsectarer — The imperfect subjunctive `insectarer` is used as a deliberative subjunctive in the past, expressing indignation or a rhetorical question of propriety ("Was I to pursue...?").
  3. 863provexi — A play on the verbs `avehere` (to carry off/away) and `provehere` (to carry forward/sail out). Labrax uses a quibble to evade legal responsibility, arguing that he merely sailed out (`provexi`) but did not succeed in carrying her away (`avehere`) because of the shipwreck.
  4. 872Vt nanctu's, habe. — A colloquial idiom meaning "Since you have got it, keep it," used here to suggest that Labrax must accept his fate and the consequences of his actions.
  5. 888collumbari — A double-entendre play on `columbarium` (dove-cot), which slangily refers to a pillory or wooden shackle with neck-holes. Charmides jokes that since the pimp's neck (`collus`) will soon be in this "dove-cot", he must be turning into a "dove" (`columbus`), and will gather "nest-materials" (`nidamenta`) in the prison (`nervus`).

Cite this passage

Plautus, Rudens §821-891. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi0119.phi017.humanitext-lat2:821-891

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