Humanitext Reader

Ovid · Sorrows §4.7.1-4.7.26

Reproaching a Silent Friend and Trusting His Loyalty

Passage 42 of 60 · Latin

Summary

The poet reproaches his close friend for not sending any letters during his two years in exile, yet firmly refuses to believe in any change of heart, attributing the silence to geographical barriers and pleading for more frequent correspondence.

§4.7.1Bis me sol adiit gelidae post frigora brumae, §4.7.2bisque suum tacto Pisce peregit iter.
Twice the sun has approached me after the frosts of icy winter, and twice has completed his journey, having touched the sign of Pisces.
§4.7.3tempore tam longo cur non tua dextera versus §4.7.4quamlibet in paucos officiosa fuit?
In so long a time, why has your right hand not been dutiful, if only in writing a few verses?
§4.7.5cur tua cessavit pietas, scribentibus illis, §4.7.6exiguus nobis cum quibus usus erat?
Why has your loyalty ceased, while those write to me with whom I had but slight acquaintance?
§4.7.7cur, quotiens alicui chartae sua vincula dempsi, §4.7.8illam speravi nomen habere tuum?
Why, as often as I untied the threads of any letter, did I hope that it bore your name?
§4.7.9di faciant ut saepe tua sit epistula dextra §4.7.10scripta, sed e multis reddita nulla mihi.
May the gods grant that your letter has been frequently written by your right hand, but out of many none has been delivered to me.
§4.7.11quod precor, esse liquet.
What I pray for, is clearly true.
credam prius ora Medusae §4.7.12Gorgonis anguineis cincta fuisse comis, §4.7.13esse canes utero sub virginis, esse Chimaeram, §4.7.14a truce quae flammis separet angue leam. §4.7.15quadrupedesque hominis cum pectore pectora iunctos, §4.7.16tergeminumque virum tergeminumque canem, §4.7.17Sphingaque et Harpyias serpentipedesque Gigantes, §4.7.18centimanumque Gyan semibovemque virum. §4.7.19haec ego cuncta prius, quam te, carissime, credam §4.7.20mutatum curam deposuisse mei,
I would sooner believe that the face of Medusa the Gorgon was girt with snaky hair, that there were dogs beneath the virgin's belly, that the Chimaera existed, which separates the lioness from the fierce snake with flames, and the quadrupeds joined to a human breast, and the triple-bodied man, and the triple-headed dog, and the Sphinx and the Harpies, and the snake-footed Giants, and the hundred-handed Gyas, and the half-bull man— I would believe all these things sooner than that you, my dearest friend, have changed and cast off your care for me.
§4.7.21innumeri montes inter me teque viaeque §4.7.22Summaque et campi nec freta pauca iacent,
Innumerable mountains and roads, peaks and plains, and no few seas lie between me and you.
§4.7.23mille potest causis a te quae littera saepe §4.7.24missa sit in nostras rara venire manus;
By a thousand causes it can happen that the letter which has been often sent by you comes but rarely into our hands.
§4.7.25mille tamen causas scribendo vince frequenter, §4.7.26excusem ne te semper, amice, mihi.
Yet overcome those thousand causes by writing frequently, my friend, so that I may not have to excuse you to myself forever.

Notes

  1. §4.7.2Pisce — The sun completing its journey upon touching the constellation of Pisces (Piscis) represents the end of winter or the start of spring. The repetition of this event twice ('bis') astronomically signifies that two full years (two winters) have passed in exile.
  2. §4.7.5scribentibus illis — Ablative absolute construction. The pronoun `illis`, modified by the relative clause `cum quibus...`, acts as the subject of the participle `scribentibus`, expressing a concessive or contrasting situation ('while those write to me...').
  3. §4.7.11credam prius ... quam — A strong expression of denial using the correlatives `prius... quam` ('sooner than...'). The speaker declares he would sooner believe in the existence of unbelievable mythical monsters (listed as accusative-with-infinitive objects of `credam`) than believe that his friend has changed (`te... deposuisse`).
  4. §4.7.23quae littera ... missa sit — The relative pronoun `quae` acts as a relative adjective modifying `littera`. This clause serves as the logical subject for `potest... rara venire`, meaning 'it can happen that the letter, which was frequently sent by you, arrives but rarely.'

Cite this passage

Ovid, Sorrows §4.7.1-4.7.26. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi0959.phi008.humanitext-lat2:4.7.1-4.7.26

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