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Cicero · Letters to Brutus §1.1.1-1.1.2

Assurance and Commendation of Clodius's Goodwill

Passage 1 of 30 · Latin

Summary

Cicero strongly assures Brutus of the sincere goodwill of the tribune-elect Clodius towards them, urging Brutus to trust Cicero's judgment over any external detractors.

§1.1.1L. Clodius, tribunus plebis designatus, valde me diligit vel, ut e)mfatikw/teron dicam, valde me amat.
L. Clodius, the tribune of the plebs elect, values me highly, or, to use a more emphatic word, loves me dearly.
quod cum mihi ita persuasum sit, non dubito (bene enim me nosti) quin illum quoque iudices a me amari.
Since I am so fully convinced of this, I do not doubt—for you know me well—that you too will judge that he is loved by me.
nihil enim mihi minus hominis videtur quam non respondere in amore iis a quibus provocere.
For nothing seems to me less human than not to respond in love to those by whom you are invited to love.
is mihi visus est suspicari nec sine magno quidem dolore aliquid a suis vel per suos potius iniquos ad te esse delatum quo tuus animus a se esset alienior.
He seemed to me to suspect, and indeed not without great pain, that something had been reported to you by his own people, or rather through his own detractors, in order that your mind might be more alienated from him.
non soleo, mi Brute, quod tibi notum esse arbitror, temere adfirmare de altero; est enim periculosum propter occultas hominum voluntates multiplicisque naturas; sed Clodi animum perspectum habeo, cognitum, iudicatum.
I am not accustomed, my dear Brutus, as I think is well known to you, to make assertions about another person rashly; for it is dangerous on account of the hidden desires and complex natures of men; but I have thoroughly examined, known, and proved the mind of Clodius.
multa eius indicia sed ad scribendum non necessaria.
There are many indications of this, but they are not necessary to write down.
volo enim testimonium hoc tibi videri potius quam epistulam.
For I wish this to seem to you a testimony rather than a letter.
auctus Antoni beneficio est.
He has been advanced by the favor of Antony.
eius ipsius benefici magna pars a te est.
A great part of that very favor is from you.
itaque eum salvis nobis vellet salvum.
Therefore, he would wish himself to be safe, provided we are safe.
§1.1.2in eum autem locum rem adductam intellegit (est enim, ut scis, minime stultus) ut utrique salvi esse non possint.
But he understands—for he is, as you know, by no means foolish—that the matter has been brought to such a point that both cannot be safe.
itaque nos mavult; de te vero amicissime et loquitur et sentit.
Therefore, he prefers us; and indeed, regarding you, he both speaks and thinks in the most friendly manner.
qua re si quis secus ad te de eo scripsit aut si coram locutus est, peto a te etiam atque etiam mihi ut potius credas, qui et facilius iudicare possum quam ille nescio quis et te plus diligo.
Wherefore, if anyone has written to you otherwise about him, or has spoken face to face, I entreat you again and again to believe me rather, who can both judge more easily than that whoever-he-is and love you more.
Clodium tibi amicissimum existima civemque talem qualis et prudentissimus et fortuna optima esse debet.
Regard Clodius as a man most friendly to you, and as such a citizen as one who is both most prudent and blessed with the best fortune ought to be.

Notes

  1. 1.1.1quod cum mihi ita persuasum sit — quod is a relative connection referring to the preceding clause. Since persuadeo governs the dative, it is used impersonally in the passive (persuasum sit), with the dative mihi expressing the person who is persuaded.
  2. 1.1.1nihil enim mihi minus hominis videtur — hominis is a genitive of characteristic (or partitive genitive), meaning 'what belongs to a human.' minus hominis thus translates to 'less characteristic of a human' or 'least human.'
  3. 1.1.1quo tuus animus a se esset alienior — A purpose clause introduced by the conjunction quo (= ut eo), which is regularly used when the clause contains a comparative (alienior). The verb esset is in the imperfect subjunctive, in accordance with the secondary sequence after visus est.
  4. 1.1.1salvis nobis vellet salvum — salvis nobis is an ablative absolute consisting of a pronoun and an adjective ('provided we are safe'). vellet salvum contains the imperfect subjunctive vellet (potential or apodosis of a conditional) with the omission of salvum esse [eum] ('he would wish himself to be safe').
  5. 1.1.2qui et facilius iudicare possum... et te plus diligo — The relative pronoun qui refers back to mihi (dative), and the verbs in the relative clause (possum and diligo) are in the first person singular. This relative clause carries a causal force ('believe me, since I can... and love...').

Cite this passage

Cicero, Letters to Brutus §1.1.1-1.1.2. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi0474.phi059.humanitext-lat1:1.1.1-1.1.2

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