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Cornelius Nepos · Atticus §17.1-17.3

Atticus's Filial Piety toward His Mother and Sister

Passage 17 of 22 · Latin

Summary

Describes Atticus's remarkable filial piety as shown by his proud statement at his mother's funeral that he never had to reconcile with her or quarreled with his sister, attributing this to both his nature and his practical application of philosophy.

§17.1De pietate autem Attici quid plura commemorem? cum hoc ipsum vere gloriantem audierim in funere matris suae, quam extulit annorum nonaginta, cum ipse esset septem et sexaginta, se numquam cum matre in gratiam redisse, numquam cum sorore fuisse in simultate, quam prope aequalem habebat.
But why should I say more about the filial piety of Atticus? Since I myself heard him truly boasting of this very thing at the funeral of his mother, whom he buried at the age of ninety when he himself was sixty-seven: that he had never been reconciled with his mother, and had never been at variance with his sister, who was nearly of his own age.
§17.2quod est signum aut nullam umquam inter eos querimoniam intercessisse, aut hunc ea fuisse in suos indulgentia, ut, quos amare deberet, irasci eis nefas duceret.
Which is a sign either that no complaint had ever arisen between them, or that he was of such indulgence toward his own relatives that he deemed it a sin to be angry with those whom he ought to love.
§17.3neque id fecit natura solum, quamquam omnes ei paremus, sed etiam doctrina: nam principum philosophorum ita percepta habuit praecepta, ut iis ad vitam agendam, non ad ostentationem uteretur.
Nor did he do this by nature alone, although we all obey her, but also by learning; for he had so mastered the precepts of the leading philosophers that he used them for conducting his life, and not for display.

Notes

  1. 17.1se numquam cum matre in gratiam redisse — An accusative with infinitive clause expressing the content of Atticus's boast (gloriantem). Denying 'in gratiam redire' (to be reconciled) emphasizes that there had never been any quarrel or discord in the first place, making reconciliation unnecessary.
  2. 17.2hunc ea fuisse in suos indulgentia — The pronoun hunc (Atticus) is the subject of the infinitive fuisse, and 'ea indulgentia' is an ablative of quality used predicatively ('was of such indulgence'). The prepositional phrase 'in suos' means 'toward his own family or relatives'.
  3. 17.3percepta habuit praecepta — The construction of habeo with the perfect passive participle (percepta habuit) emphasizes the completed action and the continued possession of the state (similar to 'had fully mastered'). 'percepta' agrees in gender, number, and case with the object 'praecepta'.

Cite this passage

Cornelius Nepos, Atticus §17.1-17.3. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi0588.abo025.humanitext-lat2:17.1-17.3

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