Humanitext Reader

Horace · Epistles §1.8.1-1.8.17

Letter to Celsus: Moral Malaise and Advice on Humility

Passage 9 of 29 · Latin

Summary

The poet asks the Muse to report to his friend Celsus about his own mental ailment and inconsistency, and advises Celsus to remain humble in his success.

§1.8.1Celso gaudere et bene rem gerere Albinovano §1.8.2Musa rogata refer, comiti scribaeque Neronis,
To Celsus Albinovanus, joy and good success, Musa, being requested, report, to the companion and scribe of Nero.
§1.8.3si quaeret quid agam, dic multa et pulchra minantem §1.8.4vivere nec recte nec suaviter; haud quia grando §1.8.5contuderit vitis oleamque momorderit aestus, §1.8.6nec quia longinquis armentum aegrotet in agris; §1.8.7sed quia mente minus validus quam corpore toto §1.8.8nil audire velim, nil discere, quod levet aegrum;
If he inquires what I am doing, say that, though promising many fine things, I live neither rightly nor pleasantly; not because the hail has crushed my vines, or the heat has parched my olives, nor because my herd is sick in distant pastures; but because, less sound in mind than in my whole body, I wish to hear nothing, to learn nothing, that may relieve my sickness.
§1.8.9fidis offendar medicis, irascar amicis, §1.8.10cur me funesto properent arcere veterno; §1.8.11quae nocuere sequar, fugiam quae profore credam; §1.8.12Romae Tibur amem ventosus, Tibure Romam.
I am offended with my faithful physicians, I am angry with my friends, asking why they hasten to rescue me from this fatal lethargy; I pursue what has harmed me, I flee what I believe will do me good; at Rome, fickle as the wind, I love Tibur; at Tibur, Rome.
§1.8.13Post haec, ut valeat, quo pacto rem gerat et se, §1.8.14ut placeat iuveni percontare utque cohorti,
After this, inquire how he is, how he manages his affairs and himself, and how he pleases the young prince and his cohort.
§1.8.15si dicet, recte, primum gaudere, subinde §1.8.16praeceptum auriculis hoc instillare memento: §1.8.17ut tu fortunam, sic nos te, Celse, feremus.
If he says, "Well," first rejoice, and then immediately remember to instill this precept into his ears: "As you bear your fortune, Celsus, so shall we bear you."

Notes

  1. 1.8.1gaudere et bene rem gerere — An infinitive used as a formula of greeting at the beginning of a letter, mimicking the Greek custom of using the infinitive (χαίρειν) instead of the typical Latin formula "salutem dicit."
  2. 1.8.3multa et pulchra minantem — The present participle minantem (accusative singular masculine) modifies the implied subject 'me' of the infinitive 'vivere'. Here, 'minari' means to make big promises or boast of grand literary or philosophical plans, rather than to threaten.
  3. 1.8.4haud quia — Followed by the subjunctive mood (contuderit, momorderit, aegrotet) to introduce a rejected, subjective reason (not because... but because...).
  4. 1.8.10cur me funesto properent — An indirect question clause introduced by cur, explaining the ground or content of the anger implied in the preceding main verb 'irascar amicis'.
  5. 1.8.15primum gaudere — An infinitive acting as the complement of the imperative 'memento' in the next line: 'primum [te] gaudere [memento]' (first remember to rejoice).

Cite this passage

Horace, Epistles §1.8.1-1.8.17. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi0893.phi005.humanitext-lat2:1.8.1-1.8.17

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

Translation, notes and summary are AI-generated drafts, revised through reader feedback.