Humanitext Reader

Cicero · Letters to Friends §15.8.1

Congratulations on Marcellus' Election and Plea for Protection

Passage 377 of 413 · Latin

Summary

The author expresses his great joy at Marcellus' election as consul and the recipient's happiness, conveys his gratitude to the entire family, and requests that his congratulations be given to the recipient's wife, along with continued protection during his absence.

§15.8.1Marcellum tuum cos. factum teque ea laetitia adfectum esse, quam maxime optasti, mirandum in modum gaudeo, idque cum ipsius causa, tum quod te omnibus secundissimis rebus dignissimum iudico, cuius erga me singularem benevolentiam vel in labore meo vel in honore perspexi, totam denique domum vestram vel salutis vel dignitatis meae studiosissimam cupidissimamque cognovi.
I rejoice in a wonderful manner that your Marcellus has been made consul, and that you have been affected with that joy which you especially desired; and I do so both for his own sake and because I judge you to be most worthy of all the most prosperous circumstances, you whose singular goodwill toward me I have perceived both in my trouble and in my honor, and indeed have known your whole house to be most zealous and desirous of either my safety or my dignity.
qua re gratum mihi feceris, si uxori tuae Iuniae, gravissimae atque optimae feminae, meis verbis eris gratulatus.
Therefore, you will do me a favor if you congratulate your wife Junia, a most grave and excellent woman, in my name.
A te, id quod consuesti, peto me absentem diligas atque defendas.
I beg of you, as you have been accustomed to do, that you love and defend me in my absence.

Notes

  1. §15.8.1idque cum ipsius causa, tum quod — The accusative pronoun "id" refers to the content of the preceding infinitive clauses (rejoicing at Marcellus' election and the addressee's joy) and functions as the object of "gaudeo." The correlative construction "cum... tum..." contrasts the two reasons: "for his own sake (ipsius causa)" and "because... (quod...)".
  2. §15.8.1cuius erga me singularem benevolentiam — The antecedent of the relative pronoun "cuius" (genitive) is the preceding "te." This relative clause contains two verbs, "perspexi" and "cognovi," explaining the speaker's grounds for confidence in the addressee (te) rather than Marcellus.
  3. §15.8.1peto me absentem diligas atque defendas — A noun clause functioning as the object of "peto," with the conjunction "ut" omitted. "Diligas" and "defendas" are in the present subjunctive, active, second person singular, expressing an indirect command or entreaty.

Cite this passage

Cicero, Letters to Friends §15.8.1. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi0474.phi056.humanitext-lat1:15.8.1

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