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Quintilian · Institutes of Oratory §8.1.1-8.1.3

Definition and Division of Style and Linguistic Purity

Passage 218 of 366 · Latin

Summary

Quintilian defines "elocution" (expression) and divides it into single and conjoined words. He also discusses the purity of the Latin language, emphasizing the importance of avoiding foreign elements and excessive refinement to maintain a genuinely Roman style.

§8.1.1igitur, quam Graeci φράσιν vocant, Latine dicimus elocutionem.
Therefore, what the Greeks call phrasis, we in Latin call elocution.
ea spectatur verbis aut singulis aut coniunctis.
It is observed either in single words or in words conjoined.
in singulis intuendum est ut sint Latina, perspicua, ornata, ad id quod efficere volumus accommodata, in coniunctis, ut emendata, ut collocata, ut figurata.
In single words, we must see to it that they are Latin, clear, ornate, and adapted to what we wish to achieve; in conjoined words, that they are correct, appropriately arranged, and figurative.
§8.1.2sed ea, quae de ratione Latine atque emendate loquendi fuerunt dicenda, in libro primo, cum de grammatice loqueremur, exsecuti sumus.
But those things which had to be said about the principle of speaking Latin and speaking correctly, we have already executed in the first book, when we were speaking of grammar.
verum illic tantum ne vitiosa essent praecepimus; hic non alienum est admonere ut sint quam minime peregrina et externa.
However, there we only commanded that they should not be faulty; here, it is not out of place to advise that they should be as little foreign and external as possible.
multos enim, quibus loquendi ratio non desit, invenias quos curiose potius loqui dixeris quam Latine, quomodo et illa Attica anus Theophrastum, hominem alioqui disertissimum, adnotata unius adfectatione verbi, hospitem dixit nec alio se id deprehendisse interrogata respondit, quam quod nimium Attice loqueretur.
For you may find many who, though they do not lack the principle of speaking, you would say speak with an over-refined care rather than in a Latin manner, just as that famous Attic old woman called Theophrastus—a man otherwise extremely eloquent—a stranger, having noticed his affectation of a single word, and when asked, answered that she had detected it from no other reason than that he spoke too Atticly.
§8.1.3et in Tito Livio, mirae facundiae viro, putat inesse Pollio Asinius quandam Patavinitatem.
And in Titus Livius, a man of wonderful eloquence, Asinius Pollio thinks there is a certain Patavinity.
quare, si fieri potest et verba omnia et vox huius aluminum urbis oleant, ut oratio Romana plane videatur, non civitate donata.
Therefore, if it is possible, let both all the words and the pronunciation smell of the foster-child of this city, so that the speech may seem plainly Roman, not merely gifted with citizenship.

Notes

  1. §8.1.1quam Graeci φράσιν vocant, Latine dicimus elocutionem — The word `elocutionem`, which functions as the antecedent or in apposition to the relative clause, is placed outside the relative clause as the object of the main verb `dicimus` (in a double accusative construction: "we call [it] elocutionem"). The overall structure means "what the Greeks call phrasis, we in Latin call elocution."
  2. §8.1.2quos curiose potius loqui dixeris quam Latine — `quos` is the object of `invenias` and functions as the subject accusative of the infinitive `loqui` (accusative with infinitive construction). The adverb `curiose` (carefully, studiously) is used here with a negative nuance of over-refinement or affectation, contrasting with `Latine` (in a natural Latin manner).
  3. §8.1.2adnotata unius adfectatione verbi — `adnotata` is the perfect passive participle (nominative feminine singular) of `adnoto` (to note, observe), modifying the subject `anus` (old woman). Although passive in form, it is used here with an active (or middle) meaning ("having noticed"), with `unius adfectatione verbi` (by the affectation of a single word) functioning as an ablative of cause or means.
  4. §8.1.3huius alumni urbis — An instance of hyperbaton. The demonstrative `huius` can modify `urbis`, yielding the sense "of the foster-child of this city" (i.e., a native Roman orator) modifying `verba... et vox`. Alternatively, `huius` may directly modify `alumni` ("of this foster-child of the city"). In either case, it refers to the speech of a native born and bred in Rome.

Cite this passage

Quintilian, Institutes of Oratory §8.1.1-8.1.3. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi1002.phi001.humanitext-lat2:8.1.1-8.1.3

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