[1] Prima (Camena): ablative, and a tongue-in-cheek fitting first word of the collection. Maecenas is also mentioned in opening poem of Satires, Odes, and Epodes.
dicte: Vocative case (of Maecenas).
mihi: dative of agent with the perfect passive participle (A&G 374)
summa…Camena: ablative, Camena was the Italian muse of poetry and was associated with a spring in Rome, near the Porta Capena. The opening line of the translation of the Odyssey by Livius Andronicus had addressed Camena for the Greek Muse (virum mihi Camena insece versutum ~ἄνδρα μοι ἔννεπε Μοῦσα πολύτροπον). In the Epistles, Horace also mentions the Camenae at 1.18.47 and 1.19.5, and here it is indicative of his own poetry. As in the first poem, so in the last Maecenas will be sung.
dicende: Another vocative. Future passive participle (a.k.a. gerundive, A&G 500, has a sense of necessity/obligation, past tense of dicte answered by future tense). See Bowditch 2001: 171ff. for a reading of these opening lines that stresses Horace’s artful design of the poet’s “debt”.
[2] spectatum: supply me from next line and take with satis. There is a visual resonance to the word, and the sense of sight is stressed often in this poem. Take as “sufficiently distinguished” (OLD 2, spectatus). He has been distinguished by the number of “fights” or number of poems for which he is renowned. For the importance of sight and this verb, spectare, for the Epistles, see Speriani 2018.
donatum…rude: Gladiatorial language. Horace as a retired gladiator (who has been “gifted with the rod” – OLD 2, rudis remarks that such wooden swords/rods were given to gladiators “after long or meritorious service”). See Carter MJ. 2006. “Buttons and Wooden Swords: Polybius 10.20.3, Livy 26.51, and the Rudis.” C. Ph. 101(2):153-160.
quaeris…includere: One may wonder how insistent should we think this is? If Maecenas “seeks after” something from his poets, does he necessarily get it? Patronage and personal freedom on display as Maecenas wants something from his poet and is getting it, even if it is couched in the language of recusatio (a common way for Augustan poets to figure their poetic independence). Patronage will be a major issue for the Epistles (see 1.7, 1.17). includere is a complementary infinitive (A&G 456).
[3] Maecenas: Gaius Maecenas was one of Octavian’s earliest supporters, who wielded tremendous influence after Augustus came into power as his friend and advisor. He was the patron to many of the Augustan poets, from Vergil (the Georgics are dedicated to Maecenas) to Propertius (Books 2-4) and had a special relationship with Horace. Vergil is said to have introduced Horace to Maecenas and Horace dedicates his Satires, Epodes, Odes, and Epistles 1 to Maecenas. He was responsible for giving Horace the Sabine villa he writes about often in his poetry (near Licenza). Maecenas seems to have been involved in a possible conspiracy in 23 BCE and thereafter loses his influence in the Augustan court. He dies in 8 BCE and, among his dying words was the request that Augustus look after Horace ([Suet] Vita Horati), who dies shortly after his patron. He was said to be a dandy in his lifestyle and his own writings that have survived are marked by a rather precious quality (see Sen. Ep. 114).
antiquo…ludo: ludi were public shows dedicated to a god (e.g. ludi Romani, ludi Apollinares), but here there is a sense that this “old show” is the public poetic world of Rome. There is wordplay with includere ludo (which stresses the “show”) and Horace (me) is physically “captured/enclosed” by the concrete word-order of antiquo…ludo. If Maecenas wants Horace to take part in his “old fashioned game” it may hearken back to the “old fashioned” meters/poetry he emulated in his Odes. For poetry as “play” see C. 4.9.10-11: nec siquid olim lusit Anacreon / delevit aetas “time has not destroyed whatever Anacreon once played”, Ep. 1.18.65-66 and for more on the resonance of this term see West 1967: 23-24 and Porter 2002.
[4] non…non: Anaphora (repetition) stresses the change in perspective.
aetas: Horace tells us he was 44 when writing the Epistles (cf. Ep. 1.20.27).
mens: He cannot be who he once was because he is older and has a different mindset. Cf. C. 4.10.7 for a similar use of mens.
Veianius: A gladiator who has retired to the countryside (much like Horace himself has retired), which continues the parallel of Horace as a retired gladiator. Horace compares poets to gladiators later in Ep. 2.2.92-101.
armis: Ablative plural as part of an ablative absolute (A&G 419) with fixis in the next line. One would affix arms as dedications in temples to thank the gods (cf. C. 3.26.3-6). In this case, his arms would also then no longer be able to be used in the arena.
[5] Herculis: Greek genitive of Hercules (although genitives in -i, and -ei are also found, see the example of Pericles at A&G 82). Hercules was the patron god of gladiators and Vitruvius notes that amphitheaters are suitable locations for shrines to Hercules (Vitr. 1.7.1).
latet: such hiding was anathema to the courage that gladiators were meant to show in the arena. It can, on its own, mean “to live a retired life” (OLD 4).
abditus agro: abditus often is paired with a conspectu to mean “hidden from view” and Cicero writes quis…locus… tam abditus ut lateret? Man. 31. agro is a locative ablative (A&G 421). Horace may be alluding to Vergil’s G. 3.95-6 of the aged horse: hunc…abde domo, nec turpi ignosce senectae.
[6] ne…exoret: Negative purpose clause = “so that he does not have to beg” (A&G 563).
populum: What is he hoping to get from the crowd? Some scholars believe he hopes for money, favors, or gifts, others a missio (“reprieve”) because of injury, but I follow Mayer and Pseudo-Acro that he begs for his freedom after a successful career (and another successful fight).
totiens: The adverb stresses that he has to do this repeatedly and there is some resonance with iterum in line 3.
extrema…harena: ablative of time within which “at the finale of a match” (A&G 424). harena “sand” stands for the amphitheater as a whole as well as the games that happened inside of it. Others take this as locative, indicating the edge of the arena so as to be closer to the spectators.
[7] est mihi…qui: mihi is dative of possession with the verb esse (A&G 373). Does qui stand for a person or a sort of daimon (à la Socrates) who offers this advice? Mayer 1985 finds that, in the end, “Horace is a Socratic” (72). Regardless, Horace offers this advice to his patron, and it is the sort of common-sense folk wisdom that reappears often in the Epistles, whether in the form of animal fables (1.1.73-75), children’s games (1.1.59-60), or common sententiae (1.1.41-42).
purgatam…aurem: Horace’s ear is “cleansed” which means he is paying close attention (it was a colloquialism, cf. Pl. Mil. 774: perpurgatis…auribus). This sort of internal personification of the narrator is meant to encourage the reader to pay attention as well.
crebro: The idea that such guidance has to be given again and again reappears elsewhere, see below at 1.1.36-37. Such a voice or internal mantra may help to remind Horace of his own age and limitations.
personet: “to make [the ears] ring” (OLD 2b). The subjunctive here is necessary in this relative clause of characteristic (A&G 535).
[8] solve: the imperative (A&G 157). “Put to pasture” or “release”. Horace now compares himself ostensibly to an aging stallion (Ep. 2.1.217-18, Ibycus wrote a famous poem making such a comparison - PMG 287). The dual references to gladiators and chariot racing stress public entertainments in Rome and his way of figuring poetry as part of this very public entertainment? Horsemanship and chariot-riding are common metapoetic images in Roman poetry (see Nelson 2019 s.v. Équittation, Char in Guez, Klein, Peigney and Prioux (eds.) Dictionnaire des images métapoétiques anciennes).
mature: its position next to senescentem highlights the question of behavior that befits a certain age. Here “in good time” (OLD 2).
sanus: The question of sanus behavior will reappear at the conclusion of this poem (1.1.108) and is conspicuous throughout the Epistles (e.g. 1.2.34, 1.7.3, 1.16.21). Here one should grant it a concessive meaning “if you are wise”. Horace is telling Maecenas what “wise” behavior would look like in regards to Horace himself (although Horace is already doing what Maecenas asked in the very composition of the poem – does he protesteth too much?).
[9] peccet: Subjunctive in a negative purpose clause (with ne above). Here applied to the horse which may stumble and fail because of its old age. The verb will appear elsewhere to refer to “mistakes/sins” of varying severity (1.2.16, 1.13.4, 1.16.52, 1.16.62, 1.18.77).
ad extremum: At the conclusion of the race, picking up on the use of extrema…harena above. Both competitors need a reprieve.
ridendus: “A laughing-stock” - the horse will become a figure of mockery, as would the poet or gladiator who is unable to perform well. Laughter, whether good-natured, or more pointed, appears frequently in this work, see below on lines 91, 95, 97, and e.g. 1.3.19.
ilia ducat: The second half of the negative purpose clause with ne from line 8. ilia (only exists in the plural) = “the side of the body” and with ducere or trahere means “wheeze” or “heave (for breath)”. The racehorse is out-of-breath and can only stumble across the finish-line.
[10] itaque: “therefore/accordingly” strongly connects this line with the exempla offered above. A&G 324i stresses that itaque “is used in proofs or inferences from the nature of things rather than in formal logical proof” (where ergo is expected).
et…et: the anaphora strongly connects versus and cetera ludicra.
versus: how can he write this (in dactylic hexameter) and expect to be believed? Critics have commented that he must mean lyric poetry (as the Carmina) or the sort of youthful elegy embodied in ludicra.
cetera ludicra: While these “other amusements” can imply poetry (OLD 1c), ludicrum can also indicate “public entertainment/show” (OLD 2a) like the sort he just described (cf. Ep. 1.14.36: nec lusisse pudet sed non incidere ludum). Could versus imply the turns of a racehorse? Horace thus updates such metaphorical applications to contemporary Roman entertainments and points out an interesting connection between the games and poetry, namely the audience and audience reaction to the events being watched (recited?). The reception of his odes may be behind some of his hesitancy to pick up the pen again (see Ep. 1.19.35ff. and the remarks of Fraenkel “The unsympathetic reception given to his carmina by the majority of the public hurt him greatly” (1957: 308)).
pono: for depono (OLD 10).
[11] quid…curo et rogo: Horace sets up an indirect question (with sit elided) with the verbs (A&G 573-575). The verbs indicate a two-part process of interest and self-inquiry leading to the action of the following line. There is a notable amount of elision in this line.
verum: the neuter substantive here to mean “just” or “honest” (OLD 9). Horace is more interested in practical ethics than some grandiose concept of “truth” here. Cf. Ep. 1.12.23. The ver- beginning may also recall the versus of the previous line. See his other uses of verum in his works, e.g. S. 1.1.23-25, S. 1.3.97, Ep. 1.12.23, Ep. 2.2.45. The appearance of this at 2.2.45: inter silvas Academi quaerer verum leads Cucchiarelli 2019 to stress Horace's Academic leanings throughout this work.
decens: “fitting/appropriate”. Both of these terms could also be representative of literary “truth” and “decorum” and, in as much as Horace writes himself in his poetry, his portrait should adhere to literary standards as much as the ethical standards he professes. For decens of poetry, see his Ars 308 and the comments of Brink 1971: ad loc. From a philosophical standpoint, it also recalls Panaetius’s ethical idea of what was “appropriate” (τὸ πρέπον) and would therefore recall Stoicism.
omnis in hoc sum: “I am wholly engrossed in this”. hoc is anticipatory (A&G 297e) and looks forward to the next sentence
[12] condo et compono: Both verbs have poetic overtones (Ep. 1.3.24, S. 2.1.82), but here with the idea of material/ideas that will be beneficial in the future. The verbs seem to invite comparison to an animal (ant/bee?) that stores materials for later use (S. 1.1.32-38, C. 4.2.27-32). Horace is storing and organizing such material in his mind (as well as on the page) in order to address quid verum atque decens. Cuchiarelli sees this also as indicative of his need to write epistles “He sends messages because he can communicate in no other way: he is isolated, turned in on himself and distant from his recipients” (p. 292 “Return to Sender: Horace’s sermo from the Epistles to the Satires” in Blackwell’s Companion to Horace, ed. G. Davis).
quae: ea is the unexpressed antecedent of the relative pronoun (A&G 307c).
mox: “in the future”.
depromere: often used of fetching stored food/wine (C. 1.9.7, 1.37.5), but can be applied to words and ideas “to utter, bring out” (OLD 2).
possim: The subjunctive to complete the relative clause of purpose (A&G 531).
[13] forte: There is a pleasant informal aspect to this moment, which epistles as a genre are supposed to embody – as if it just came to Horace’s mind.
roges: The subjunctive with ne in a parenthetical statement meant to justify what follows (OLD 13) = “to avoid your possible question”. The OLD waffles whether this construction should be seen as hortatory in nature (A&G 439) or an elliptical final clause (A&G 563). While the second person is ostensibly addressed to Maecenas, it also brings the general reader into the poem. This is the sort of question that would come to mind if your friend suddenly said he is going to study philosophy – what school of philosophy will s/he follow? In his earlier poetry, Horace often touched upon philosophical issues and the Odes often center around a broad Epicureanism.
quo…duce: While dux often has a military connotation, it can be used for a general guide or the leader of a school of thought, (Cic. Tusc. 3.2.3 of Epicurus). Instrumental ablative (A&G 408-409). Quo in both cases in this line is an interrogative adjective.
me: The reflexive object of the deponent verb tuter.
quo lare: lar can stand metonymically for the house itself. The “house” here would not only provide the sense of physical protection necessary for the verb, but also could stand for the philosophical school – the Epicureans famously lived in the house and grounds of Epicurus himself (“The Garden”).
tuter: Subjunctive a part of an indirect question (A&G 573-575).
[14] nullius…magistri: Emphatic enclosing word-order which modifies the verba. Magister can mean “teacher/professor” but it also is used of a manager of a troupe of gladiators and the driver or rider of a horse, which would keep with the previous analogies.
addictus iurare: addictus usually means “a slave of”, but here it takes the complementary infinitive “bound to swear” (A&G 457).
in verba: with iurare “to swear allegiance” as gladiators had to do to their masters (OLD 5). Horace asserts his freedom to create his own opinions and judgments.
[15] quo…cumque: tmesis (“cutting”) of the indefinite relative adverb (A&G 151a) places me firmly “wherever” the “storm” takes Horace.
tempestas: with rapit one expects it to mean a “storm” as opposed to simply “the season/day” (OLD 1) or “weather” (OLD 2), but is this metaphorical storm because of his stormy points of view or something more indicative of the social/political world of Rome? Seneca will often use such storm imagery for the proper behavior of the philosopher/helmsman in such trying times (Ep. 85.30-31, 108.37).
deferor: Horace is “carried away” wherever the winds may blow (OLD 5).
hospes: Guest-host relationship now applied to the philosophical “house” that Horace settles on/in. Mayer 1994: ad loc. points to the saying of Aristippus “I am a guest (ξένος) everywhere” (Xen. Mem. 2.2.13).
[16] nunc…nunc (line 18): For these adverbs being used as conjunctions (A&G 323f).
agilis: “active” (OLD 3) in public life, although at Ep. 1.3.21 he will use it of the “energetic” intellectual activity required to write poetry. It is a common Stoic position that the virtuous man will be involved in public activity.
mersor: While Horace may only be “dipping” himself into such affairs, it is possible he will be submerged and drowned by such waves (OLD 2). The line is a probable allusion to Cat. 68 an “epistolary” poem in which he writes quis merser fortunae fluctibus ipse (68.13). Elsewhere, Horace uses the verb when writing a recipe (doctus eris vivam [gallinam] mixto mersare Falerno / hoc teneram faciet, S. 2.4.19-20.
civilibus undis: unda can be used of a mass of people as at Verg. G. 2.462: [domus] mane salutantum totis vomit aedibus undam. Horace uses such wave-imagery about the bustle of civic life at Ep. 2.2.84-85 and one might think of the famous “ship-of-state” ode (C. 1.14).This also may call forward to when he calls the populum Romanum a monster (belua) in line 76
[17] virtutis verae: virtus is the primary goal for the Stoic sage and this initial portrait is very much Horace-as-Stoic “sage” (the scare quotes are because of the infrequency of such “sage” figures – for Seneca as rare as the phoenix, Ep. 42.1). The sing-song coupling of these words made it a common expression from Ennius (sed virum vera virtutue vivere, fr. 254 from his tragedy, Phoenix) and Plautus (Cas. 88, Cist. 198) to elsewhere in Horace (C. 3.5.29) and Ep. 1.18.8. Horace’s own (polyvalent) definition of virtus will be a major topic of the Epistulae.
custos: “guardian/protector”. With the imagery of homes and animal-care, this word is well-chosen.
rigidus satelles: rigidus should be taken with both custos and satelles. satelles is usually a bodyguard or attendant of a king or leader so one gets the impression of virtus as a despot. The implied stern and unflagging behavior fits in with the stereotype of the Stoic philosopher/follower who is unbending in his pursuit of virtus (would Horace’s reader remember Cato the Younger in particular?). While he plays the Stoic here, at the close of the poem he admits that Maecenas is the “guardian of his affairs/means” (rerum tutela mearum, 102).
[18] nunc: Picks up on the previous use (16) and makes the movement from Stoic to Aristippean/Cyrenaic philosophy seem like quick flip.
Aristippi: Aristippus of Cyrene (c. 435 – c. 355 BCE) was a follower of Socrates who is the founder of the Cyrenaic philosophical school. While most of his writings are lost, there are a number of proverbs attributed to him that provide a cogent impression of the “ethical hedonism” he espoused. Here we might have expected reference to Epicureanism, but Horace surprises the reader and is especially interested in Aristippus’ attitude towards circumstances. It may be important, in light of the imagery that Horace has been highlighting, that one of the stories about Aristippus involved a shipwreck that he survived and his belief that one have the sort of resources “that could swim with them even out of a shipwreck” (Vitr. 6.1).
furtim: “imperceptibly” (cf. C. 1.13.7). Aristippus (with Ulysses from Ep. 1.2) as exemplum is well-analyzed in Mascio 2018. Moles 2002 and 2007 are well-balanced pieces about the blend of philosophy and poetry in these works.
praecepta: Often used of philosophical principles and teachings. Diogenes Laertius collects a number of Aristippus’ praecepta at 2.65ff and for more on Aristippus and Horace, see Traina’s “Horace and Aristippus: The Epistles and the Art of Convivere” in Oxford Readings in Classical Studies Horace: Satires and Epistles, ed. K. Freudenburg (2009).
relabor: to “slip back/revert” makes it sound as if this is Horace’s natural state of being. Horace uses it elsewhere of water (C. 1.29.11). This verb also humorously contrasts the work (labor) of Stoicism with the ease of Cyrenaic philosophy.
[19] res: Accusative pl. direct object of subiungere. Here indicates “circumstances” although the larger concern in this epistle with wealth may lead one to translate it as “wealth/possessions”. For the way Horace renders such one-liners (sententiae) in his hexameter verse, see Harrison 1995: 275-77.
subiungere: Yoking imagery fits with the horse-riding earlier (8-9) and general question of one’s freedom. Aristippus was willing to “go with the flow” and enjoy the circumstances in which he found himself. Horace is hoping to live in a similar way.
conor: Horace does not claim that he is able to do so, but that he is trying to do this. This not only humanizes Horace, but also points to the varying positions he will take up as the Epistles continues and his own attempts to make good on Aristippus’ precepts. John Moles writes of Aristippus’ position in this opening poem, “Horace’s basic procedure is to provide preliminary sketches of the main figures of the philosophical landscape, which he then tries out on the real people of the Epistles, himself included, matching temperament to philosophical choice, in a series of dramatic situations, whose individual rationales and interlocking permutations are characteristically explored though recognizable philosophical positions” (p. 322 “Poetry, Philosophy, Politics, and Play” in Freudenburg (ed.) Oxford Readings in Classical Studies: Horace: Satires and Epistles).
[20] ut: “just as” (with the same meaning in the following line), answered by sic in line 23.
nox longa: supply videtur from the following line and take longa as a predicate. Could there be an allusion to Propertius 2.15.24: nox tibi longa venit, nec reditura dies (the poem itself deals with the troubles of a lover, much like Horace’s situation).
quibus: dative of agent (A&G 374) with videtur.
mentitur: The deception of the beloved in Latin love elegy is a common trope and can be found elsewhere in Horace (S. 1.3.38-39).
amica: “girlfriend”.
dies: Contrasting the night-time activities with those during the day.
[21] lenta: another predicate with dies. “slow, sluggish”.
opus debentibus: opus is the direct object of the dative present active participle (debentibus). Those who owe labor are probably to be associated with hired farm hands but it could also indicate any day-laborer.
piger annus: supply videtur again. The reversal of adjective and noun and the shift to a full year makes this rising tricolon not only be in terms of Latin words used but also amount of time.
[22] pupillis: Originally pupillus meant “orphan” but can indicate any young child who is the ward of another, in this case their harsh mothers, which would seem to indicate that their fathers are deceased.
premit: in the sense of “restrain/repress”.
custodia: “oversight/custody”. It could recall custos of line 17 above. This seems focalized from the perspective of the child chafing under a mother’s care.
[23] sic: “so” answering ut in previous lines.
mihi: Dative of reference (a.k.a “Dative of advantage/disadvantage” A&G 376), it shows that the action happens to the disadvantage of the poet.
tarda: As ingrata, these adjectives should be taken with tempora and translated adverbially (A&G 290).
fluunt: The idea of time “flowing” is a topos in Greek and Roman thought at least as old as Heraclitus (fl. 490 BCE), for whom all nature was continually in flux (for a similar expression in Latin, see Ov. Met. 15: 179-80 “time itself slips by in constant motion, just like a river” ipsa quoque adsiduo labuntur tempora motu, / non secus ac flumen). The fact that Greeks and Romans measured time with a water clock would only reinforce such ideas. (link to klypsedra image). At Epistle 1.2.41-43, Horace imagines a yokel waiting for the river to flow by.
spem: with consilium the direct objects of morantur. spem is further modified by the gerund agendi in the following line (A&G 504 for this objective genitive of the gerund).
[24] consilium: More concrete than spem. Also takes agendi.
morantur: Horace feels that various commitments are a waste of time and delay his ability to live the philosophical life. tempora is the subject of morantur (which is from moror and not morior).
naviter: Take this adverb “diligently/industriously” with agendi. If the Stoic position is to be agilis, this adverb with agendi (ago is the root of agilis) shows Horace’s own devotion to living according to Stoic ideals (at times).
id quod: id is the direct object of agendi and the antecedent of quod.
[25] aeque pauperibus prodest, locupletibus aeque: Nice chiastic structure (adverb d.o / / d.o. adverb) surrounding the verb and calling attention to its centrality (in thought as well as syntax) and equal benefit for all. quod is the subject of prodest. prosum+dat. = “to help, benefit (someone)”. The question of wealth will be central to many of the Epistles (see notes on 52-55 below).
[26] aeque: One might think the parallelism will continue, but Horace breaks it up to highlight the harm (nocebit) at the end of the line. The strong repetition of aeque and use of moror might link this poem to C. 2.17.5-9, which is likewise addressed to Maecenas, although the topic is different.
neglectum: The antecedent is id quod and the translation should be circumstantial (“if it has been neglected”), A&G 496 for the possible ways to translate participles.
nocebit: Takes the dative (A&G 367), hence pueris and senibus. Young and old parallel the wealthy and poor and add to Horace’s universalizing perspective in this poem. If prodest is present tense (=it will help immediately), nocebit shows the future results of neglecting to act virtuously.
[27] restat ut: This construction introduces a substantive clause of result (A&G 569), hence the subjunctives regam and soler.
ego me ipse regam: Strong self-sufficiency and self-rule stressed by the collocation. me is the direct object of regam and soler. He does not need a dux (13), but will rely on himself.
his…elementis: ablative of means (A&G 409). elementa can be foundational philosophical rules (OLD 4), but Horace is probably referring to the sort of advice and credos that he has been offering, and will continue to offer in the Epistles. There is a ring composition with his use of elementa in Ep. 1.20.17, although the meaning there is slightly different.
[28] non possis…: “Although you are not able to see as far as Lynceus”. Lynceus was the lookout of Jason’s ship, the Argo, during the quest for the Golden Fleece, and was the most sharp-sighted of ancient heroes. tamen in the following line suggests the concessive sense of this subjunctive (A&G 440). One may not ever attain the stature and abilities of mythological heroes, but one should still try to progress and better oneself. This is probably to be directed the general reader more than Maecenas per se.
oculo…contendere: literally “to contend with the eye” (OLD 4). contendere is a complementary infinitive with possis (A&G 456).
[29] idcirco: This conjunction (A&G 324i) meaning “for this reason” ties the heights of the mythological comparison with the poor sufferer of eye problems. Horace himself suffered from such problems at S. 1.5.30-31 and these lines would recall that earlier moment from Horace’s corpus.
non…contemnas…inungi: inungi “to be annointed” is another complementary infinitive (middle sense?), but with contemnas.
lippus: “if/when your eyes hurt”. Such eye-problems are common complaints in Roman medicine (see the citations in OLD). In these lines (and the following) the larger analogy is that, just as there are cures for bodily ailments, so philosophy is medicine for the soul (for similar advice see Ep. 1.6.28-31.
[30] quia desperes: The subjunctive “of a supposed reason” with quia (OLD2b). desperare = “to give up hope for”. Again, the second person is more generalized than advice simply for Maecenas.
invicti membra Glyconis: Glycon was an athlete contemporary to Horace, who had been a victor at Isthmia in pankration and was “the thunderbolt of the pankration” (according to his funerary epigram). While athletics in Rome were not nearly as important as in Greece, there was still lively interest in the major Greek athletic contests, especially by Hellenophiles in Rome and the reference parallels the gladiator reference earlier.
[31] nodosa…cheragra: The ablative of separation with prohibere. cheragra was used of arthritis or gout in the hands especially (Gr. χειράγρα), and the knotty swellings are well-served by the adjective nodosa.
corpus: The accusative direct object of the infinitive.
nolis: While hortatory subjunctive in the second person is more polite than the imperative (A&G 439a), the double-negative (with nec) – an example of litotes (A&G 326c and 641) – makes this wish that much more emphatic.
prohibere: “to keep/protect something (acc.) from something (abl.)” (OLD 3) as seen at C. 1.27.3-4: verecundumque Bacchum / sanguineis prohibete rixis “protect modest Bacchus from bloody brawls”.
[32] est: here = “it is possible” (OLD 9) + infinitive. Horace sums up his advice for this section with a sententia expressing the possibility for one’s personal advancement, even if one will not reach the heights of Glycon or Lynceus. Such exemplarity is common in Roman ethical advice and the Stoics, for instance, rarely expect one to attain the level of Socrates or Cato the Younger, but one should try.
quādam: The ablative should be taken with tenus (A&G 221) “up to a certain point/level”.
prodire: Here in the sense “to advance/progress” (OLD 4). This may be a positive rewriting of Catullus 88.7: nam nihil est quicquam sceleris, quo prodeat ultra “since there is no further crime for him to progress beyond”.
si: “even if” introduces the prodosis of this present simple condition.
non datur ultra: supply prodire with datur. The basic idea of the line is “It is possible (and positive) for one to advance to a certain level, even if it is not possible to advance all the way.”
[33] fervet: from the previous section’s concentration on medical imagery, Horace shifts to charms and “magic” as cure for emotional/ethical troubles. fervet is a strong word for the effects of greed and passion on the body (pectus is the subject). See C. 1.30.5 of Venus: fervidus tecum puer [Cupid].
avaritia: Ablative - the means by which the body “boils/is fevered”. Greed is often the target of Horace’s Satires and Epistles (S. 1.4.26, 2.3.82; Ep. 1.2.56, 1.16.63 and note below on line 78). For Horace, who has his Sabine estate and comfortable life it is perhaps easy to decry avarice, but his portraits of greedy men show that it is often the rich that suffer from this vice most perniciously.
miseroque cupidine: The force of misero should be applied to both avaritia and cupidine. Cupido here probably indicates passionate love, especially since the spells and remedies he mentions are common in love magic.
[34] verba et voces: A traditional alliterative pair, see Lucr. 4.533, Verg. Aen. 4.460. Mayer 1994 ad loc. is very good and details Platonic and Euripidean antecedents for such sayings. “Words and utterances” - often magic spells involved “magic” utterances (e.g. abracadabra) that were not recognizable Latin words.
quibus: verba and voces are the antecedent of this ablative relative pronoun. It introduces a relative clause of purpose with possis in the next line (A&G 531).
lenire: The pain felt by those in love is stressed in ancient love magic (see Faraone 1999: passim).
dolorem: These lines will be evoked in Ep. 1.2.55-61. There is a sense that Horace is setting up a number of other poems in the collection in this programmatic opening poem and encourages the reader to make connections between the poems through the repetition of language, themes, even addressees throughout the book.
[35] magnam morbi...partem: Horace implies that it may be impossible to be completely devoid of passion and greed, but a great part of such a disease (morbus) can be dispelled by these means.
deponere: Note how Horace put aside (ponere) his frivolous poetry in line 10 and ponere there was the simple form for deponere. He is making these intratextual connections within the poem to unify the predominant themes of this Epistle.
[36] laudis amore: A common problem, according to Roman moralists. For the expression, cf. Verg. G. 3.112, Aen. 5.394.
tumes: “to swell” or “be puffed up” with pride or vanity (cf. S. 2.3.213), but also evoking infection or a medical condition such as the gout or arthritis of line 31. Horace continually plays with connections between moral and medical ailments and one might think of the bodily humors here.
piacula: piaculum originally meant a small offering or expiation, it can mean “remedy” in general with the implication that the remedy was originally thought to be granted by the gods. These remedies are “sure” (certa) and Horace indicates as much with the relative clause (quae) + the future indicative (poterunt)
te: Direct object of recreare in the following line.
[37] ter: Three is the magic number but it can also mean “repeatedly, often”. Take with the ablative absolute lecto libello (A&G 419).
pure: adverb “clearly”. One should read out a spell clearly if one wants it to be effective.
recreare: “to restore”.
libello: The “little book” to be read may be a book of charms, but it is also used of books of poetry (Cat. 1.1, S. 1.10.92), although this book of Epistles is called a liber at 1.20.1.
[38] invidus: The first of five adjectives in asyndeton (A&G 323b, 601c). The pernicious effects of envy will appear elsewhere in the Epistles and Horace writes that Homer can help against envy at Ep. 1.2.37.
iracundus: Philosophical tracts about anger were relatively common in the ancient world and Seneca’s de Ira gives a good sense of the sort of advice. In his Ars Poetica Horace has a similar asyndetic line about Achilles (inpiger, iracundus, inexorabilis, acer, 121).
iners: At Ep. 1.11.28 it is oxymoronically paired with strenua to describe Horace, but here the idea is more one of “sloth”.
vinosus: “Drunkenness”. Although Horace often writes of the pleasures of wine, it has to be taken in moderation.
amator: Absolute usage (without a modifying genitive such as ruris, Ep. 1.10.2) indicates that Horace is thinking specifically of those focused on sexual love, especially illicit affairs (OLD 1).
[39] adeo ferus: The adverb sets up the result clause (A&G 537). ferus can be used of passions that are wild, so it may be acting to further modify the list of vices (i.e. you can still enjoy a glass of wine with dinner, but don’t be a drunk; it’s ok to relax now and then, but don’t be slothful). Forms of ferus will reappear at Ep. 1.3.34, 1.13.8, and 1.19.12.
mitescere: “to become milder, to soften”. The inceptive/inchoative verb form (A&G 263.1) denote “the beginning of an action” and at C. 4.7.9 Horace uses it about spring (frigora mitescunt Zephyris). A figure like Gaius Laelius - the famous statesman and friend of Scipio Aemelianus - may be the exemplum here (mitis sapientia Laeli, S. 2.1.72).
[40] si modo: “if only” takes the potential subjunctive commodet (A&G 445-447).
culturae: What sort of “training” does Horace have in mind? cultura usually is applied to agricultural “cultivation” (OLD 1), but note Cicero Tusc. 2.13: “Philosophy is the training of the mind” cultura... animi philosophia est. Genitive with patientem (“susceptible to, tolerant of”). Note how A&G 349b remarks “participles in -ns govern the genitive when they are used as adjectives, i.e. when they denote a constant disposition and not a particular act”. Don't you love Latin...
commodet: with aurem = “lend an ear, listen”. Earlier Horace had mentioned his own attentive ear (7).
[41] The proverb here resembles the advice of Demetrius on letter-writing in general: “The beauty of a letter lies in the feelings of warm friendship it conveys and the many proverbs (πυκναὶ παροιμίαι) it contains; this should be the only element of philosophy in it (Demetr. Eloc. 232). For more on this see Morrison 2007: 128-29.
virtus: hearkening back to his use in 17, but now part of a sententia. Ulysses in Ep. 1.2.17 has both virtus and sapientia.
vitium: The antithesis of virtus. For the Stoics, questions of vice and virtue were paramount and the virtuous man was susceptible to no vices at all.
fugere: A rather simplistic view of virtus/vitium perhaps befitting the simple advice given later. Or possibly the process of achieving virtus may not be as difficult as Stoic dialecticians would want us to believe. Quintilian probably has this line in mind when he writes prima virtus est vitio carere (I.O.8.3.41).
sapientia: For the wise man earlier in Horace’s ouvre, see S. 1.3.124ff., S. 2.3.passim. Forms of sapiens/sapientia will appear in below at line 106, and nine further times in the first book of Epistles.
prima: Take with both statements.
[42] stultitia: Ablative of separation with caruisse (A&G 401). The perfect infinitive could be seen as chosen metri causa, but it also indicates that one made the effort in the past for refrain from some folly and that it has ramifications in the present.
vides: Sets up the indirect question of quanto...labore in line 44. “You see by what great effort you avoid…”
quae: Two of these evils will be listed in the following line.
maxima...mala: In this case poverty and political failure, but Horace’s Epicurean sensibility would not consider these evils and Stoics would probably class them as “indifferents” (see Long and Sedley's The Hellenistic Philosophers, Vol. 1, pp. 354-59).
credis: Clearly Horace does not believe all of these to be the worst evils imaginable. While the “you” is probably meant to be the general reader, it could also certainly refer to Maecenas who was wealthy and politically connected (even if his influence had waned by the time of the Epistles).
[43] exiguum censum: “scant wealth” (s.v. census OLD 3) with the following accusative, they stand in apposition to the mala. Although census here indicates wealth, the associations with the census and one’s classification in society (according to property) would also resonate.
turpem repulsam: “an ugly electoral defeat”. Stoics preached involvement in politics and, as part of the cursus honorum, Romans would be subject to a number of possible defeats at the polls.
[44] quanto...animi capitisque labore: Ablative of means and interrogative phrase that requires the subjunctive as part of this indirect question (A&G 574). labor animi = “mental effort” and labor capitis = “risk of life” show that one applies great physical and mental toil to avoid such evils.
devites: “steer clear of”.
[45] impiger...mercator: Horace addresses the poor merchant who risks life and limb at sea for fiscal gain as an example of such behavior (cf. C. 1.1.16, S. 1.1.3-8). impiger should be given an adverbial connotation “rashly” (OLD 1b).
curris: “you dash” (technically this merchant would travel to India via ship not by foot, OLD 3a).
extremos...ad Indos: extremos resonates with extrema...harena (6) and ad extremum (9). The people of India, Indos, standing for the country, cf. Ep. 1.6.6 for a similar phrase.
per mare: The first of three obstacles that must be overcome and the one that makes the most sense for a merchant.
pauperiem fugiens: cf. C. 1.1.17-18 again of the mercator: “soon he outfits his worn ships again, unable to endure poverty” (mox reficit rates quassas indocilis pauperiem pati). Poverty will come up often in the Epistles, e.g. 1.1.91, 1.5.20, 1.10.32, 1.10.39, 1.18.24.
per saxa, per ignes: The anaphora of per picks up pauperies. ignes may seem hyperbolic, but could indicate the heat of the sun or lightning bolts from storms at sea (OLD 4). The final letters of fugiens could offer a metathesis of ignes (A&G 640).
[47] Ne introduces a negative purpose clause, “so that you do not…” (A&G 531). Note that the “you” here is not the addressee Maecenas, but the more general “one.”
It may be beneficial to take line 48 first in order to set up this purpose clause.
stulte: adverb with miraris and optas. Indicative to indicate the factual nature of statement, A&G 593note1.
[48] discere: Didactic aspect about the Epistles highlighted here. There’s a three-part process here working right to left with trust, listening, and learning emphasized.
audire: “to be informed about, learn” (OLD 8).
credere: takes the dative meliori (A&G 367).
[49-50] Another analogy from the world of athletics.
The Roman world of athletics and spectacle was broad: main events consisted of ludi (games), gladiatorial fights, chariot races, animal hunting, and staged battles. Greek athletics took a while to become widespread in Roman culture; their first staging was in 186 BCE, but they were not put on again until Pompey sponsored them in 55, which he complained was a “waste of resources.” Greek athletics were more tame compared to their violent Roman counterparts. Their popularity did not begin to increase until the time of Augustus, who sponsored them twice and “increased their much privileged prizes,” according to Suetonius, 45.3. For more, cf. Christesen and Kyle 2013.
pagos: A country district or community (OLD). pagos et compita also mentioned at Verg. G. 2.382 to discuss rural rituals that led to dramatic festivals.
compita: A place where three crossroads meet (OLD 1) The conjunction of circum pagos et circum compita would probably remind the Roman of the Paganalia (a rural festival of surround pagi) and Compitalia (for the Lars Compitalis). The Lares were spiritual guardians of crossroads, in the country or the city. Their shrines were usually attended by freedman and were in charge of their festivals. Banned in the late Republic but brought back by Augustus, they grew into guardians of travelers and the state at large (see the article in the Oxford Classical Dictionary).
pugnax: “Tough, brawler” Take substantively (A&G 288).
quis... contemnat: Conditional relative clause (A&G 519) “who... would...”.
[50] magna... Olympia: At Olympia, one would win a crown of olive leaves. Mayer states that magna signifies this to be the oldest victory crown (founded 776 BCE), as there were many games at this time for the sake of Zeus the Olympian (Mayer 1994: ad loc.). That crown itself may not have been of much pecuniary value, but its meaning was more valuable than money (line 52). See Herodotus, Histories, 8.26.
[51] dulcis: with palmae. The “palm of victory” was proverbial (e.g. Cic. de Orat. 3.143).
[52] An example of an epiphonema (Gr. “a witty saying”). This sums up Horace’s thought on the matter. With the following section we see how questions of wealth and money are central to this Epistle (and the Epistles as a whole). For more on the Roman capitalist mentality, see Ep. 2.1.106-7.
auro... virtutibus: Abl. of comparison (A&G 406).
vilius: “worthless” (OLD 2).
[53] quaerenda: passive periphrastic, supply vobis.
O cives, cives: While O cives is found in epic (e.g. Ennius Ann. 14.385, Verg. Aen. 9.36, 11.243), this precise phrase is only found in Plautus’ Cur. 626. For the anaphora of cives, see Cic. Mur. 80.6.
[54] Janus summus ab imo: This refers to the Basilica Aemilia. The forum was full of iani, or gateways (Janus was the god of bridges and gates), but three particular arches bore significance to the cult of Janus, the Janus Imus was just the western arch of the Basilica Aemilia and was essentially the same thing as the Janus Geminus, the temple of Janus. The Janus Medius was on the eastern end of the basilica Aemilia, and part of the structure that connected the Basilica Aemilia to the temple of the Divus Julius. The Janus Summus was the archway of the Fornix Fabianus along the via sacra.
[55] prodocet: “teaches by dictation” (OLD) This is the only time this word appears in Latin Literature. The desired effect may be for the reader to imagine the words of the lenders and bankers literally repeating themselves as they echoed off the arches of the Basilica. The prefix pro- is an intensifier.
iuvenes… senesque: perhaps the same pueris senesque of line 26, now shown in the act of neglecting philosophy.
[56] laevo… lacerto: Take suspensi as a Greek middle voice, and loculos… tabulam as Greek accusatives, which are often common with parts of the body (A&G 397 c.). Some editors believe this line is included erroneously because it repeats a line from S. 1.6.74 where it is used to describe children going to school. In Sermones 1.6, the boys are said to be swinging their satchels are called “mighty sons of centurions.” They are spoken of highly, even if the quality of their education is contrasted with the superior teachers in Rome. In Epistle 1.1, the best interpretation would be to take this line as an insult, as rich school children didn’t carry their own bags, it displays their misguided pursuit of wealth over philosophy. (see Mayer 1994 ad loc.). The repetition of a line from his earlier poetry might be a clever way of showing the echoing of lines that the money lenders or other would repeat in their teaching.
[57] est animus tibi: Dative of possession with the verb esse, see line 7 above.
[58] sex septem: Appears one other time in Latin poetry (Mart. 8.3.1: sex septumve, which very clearly means “six or seven” in that context).
quadrigentis = Dative with desunt (A&G 373b).
[59] pueri ludentes: The wisdom of children at play. Their game’s cry can be applied to philosophical progress and the use of ludere ties it into the opening lines (3, 10). It is unsure what the rules of this game were. Plato’s Theatetus (146a ff.) mentions a ball game in which the loser is called an “ass” (ὄνος) and the winner a “king” (βασιλεύς). For more on play, especially children’s play, in the Epistles, see Reckford 2002 and Moles 2002.
rex eris: To match the plebs eris at the start of the line. It becomes proverbial and Horace stresses the connections with recte (and see line 63). The is the apodosis of a Future More Vivid condition (A&G 516).
[60] si recte facies: Being or aspiring to be a rex is frowned upon, politically speaking (note Caesar’s famous statement - “My name is Caesar not Rex” (Suet. 79.2). Here it speaks to a moral/ethical leadership, as emphasized in the following lines. Living and acting recte is a leit-motif in the Epistles, see e.g. 1.6.29, 1.8.4, 1.16.17.
hic murus aeneus esto: The tone of this line seems out-of-place in the Epistle, which has led editors to reject it as an interpolation. esto is the 3rd person singular imperative of esse. hic is anticipatory and looks forward to the following line. The bronze wall would be an impenetrable fortification against vice, cf. C. 3.3.65.
[61] nil conscire sibi: conscire = “to be conscious of wrong” - only appears here in classical Latin. Self-consciousness is key and one must be aware of one’s own vices (sibi). It is notable that acting rightly and defending against vice is figured by absence (nil / nulla).
nulla pallescere culpa: nulla...culpa is ablative of means “to grow pale from no fault”.
[62] Roscia...lex: The Roscian law reserved the first 14 rows of seats in the theater for those of equestrian status. Horace is again drawing the contrast between wealth and ethical behavior.
sodes: A colloquial contraction of si+audes “if you please”.
puerorum...nenia: The jingle of children is emblematic of the verba et voces of 34.
[64] maribus Curiis...Camillis: “manly” (maribus) old families of Rome who would have known the jingle of this children’s game. maribus Curiis...Camillis are datives of agent with the perfect passive participle decantata (A&G 375). These figures are also mentioned together at C. 1.12.41-43. M’ Curius Dentatus was an important figure in the Samnite and Pyrrhic wars of the 3rd C. BCE. M. Furius Camillus was victorious over Veii and refounded the city of Rome after the sack by the Gauls in the 4th C. BCE.
decantata: These nenia are sung again and again, but should be preferred to those sayings (dictata) of Janus that echo (recinunt) in the Forum.
[65] Further explicating the meaning of the children’s song in comparison with those who teach that “greed is good” and money needs to be acquired in any manner necessary. According to Dio 43.20, during Caesar’s quadruple triumph of 46 BCE, his soldiers riffed on this by exclaiming, “If you do right, you will be punished. If you do wrong, you will be king".
isne: -ne suffix indicating a question (A&G 332 a-c). is = the teacher who endorses the following view.
“Does he persuade you better who [persuades] you to make money, if possible, fairly; if not, in any way possible or....”
tibi: suadere takes the dative (A&G 367).
qui: supply suadet.
rem facias: Indirect command with suadere (A&G 588). For rem = “money” (OLD 1).
[66] recte once again stresses correct actions/attitudes (60, 63, 66) and is repeated three times (60, 63, 66) within a short span of lines (cf. line 37 for repeating charms 3 times). This action will not make you a “king” like in the children’s song (lines 59-60), only an eques (of questionable virtue).
si non: supply possis.
quocumque modo rem: supply facias. This is also the third time rem is mentioned in only two lines, stressing the insistent Roman devotion towards wealth. Horace is playing with various derivations of the word rex - is it the amount of stuff/money (res) you have or is it acting correctly (recte) that matters?
[67] ut propius spectes: The “benefit” of such lust for wealth is merely the ability to see plays of questionable quality from a closer distance. These plays would have been part of ludi scaenici and may recall the spectatorial events and ludus of the opening lines of the poem. ut introduces a purpose clause (A&G 529).
lacrimosa poemata Pupi: The tears such writings move may be seen to be both the result of their tragic themes or, possibly, their poor literary quality (cf. C. 2.9.9 and the comments of Nisbet and Hubbard ad loc.). We know nothing of Pupius - in the words of Greenough - “(perhaps deservedly) unknown”.
[68] an qui: The other teacher (who follows the ideas found in the children’s song).
Fortunae...superbae: Fortune is not often given the epithet “haughty” or “proud” but the slight personification befits the attitude of the rich who look down on those who have less money (and thus less status in Roman society). The ability for the sapiens to withstand Fortune is a commonplace in Stoicism.
te responsare: Subject accusative and infinitive with hortatur (A&G 579). responsare is not simply “to respond” but “to withstand, resist, bid defiance to” (Lewis and Short II).
[69] liberum et erectum: The proud and free attitude of one who has learned the proper ethical lessons. These adjectives are also paired at Sen. Dial. 7.4.3 and Pliny Ep. 3.5.5. This is Horace's only use of erectus-a-um in his corpus, but he will often tie being free (liber) into the Stoic idea that only the Stoic sage is free (see S. 2.7.83, and line 107 below).
praesens: Take adverbially “effectively, resolutely”.
hortatur et aptat: The teacher encourages by such precepts (hortatur) and the student will collect them as part of his arsenal against Fortune. “Encourages and preps you”.
[70] quodsi: As a conjunction, “But if” (OLD 1a).
populus Romanus: Horace makes the Roman people a foil for his individual excellence. Horace shows that marches by the beat of another drum.
cur… odit: Indirect Question with cur (A&G 586); fruar, sequar, and fugiam are all accordingly subjunctive, while diligit and odit in the relative clause are indicative to emphasize the reality of what the populace believes.
[71] ut...sic are correlatives joining porticibus and iudiciis (A&G 323 A).
porticibus and iudiciis: Horace is referring to the fact that he does not use the same porticoes as the Roman people, and so does not share the same judgements and opinions as them. They are ablative since fruor takes the ablative, one of six deponent verbs to do so (A&G 410).
[72] Mayer 1994: ad loc. notes to take diligit with sequar and odit with fugiam.
[74] It may be useful to take referam ahead of this fable.
Fables were incredibly popular in the ancient world, and the Roman tradition closely follows that of the Greek, who employed them often in literature as colorful examples for their argumentative points. One of the most famous of the numerous collections of fables are Aesop’s and those of Phaedrus.
[75] adversum: “A point or direction opposite to or facing (something)” (OLD, 1); in this scenario, the footprints face the lion.
[76] belva… capitum: belva = “monster/brute” (applied to persons as a term of reproach or abuse) (OLD 3) referring to the public having multiple opinions. belua is used commonly by Cicero, nine times in the Philippics alone, as an insult. References to powerful political forces as many-headed monsters are not uncommon either, see Plato Rep. 9.12 and Varro’s Tricarnus, a non-extant comedy about the first triumvirate. In C. 2.13, Cerberus is deemed a belua with one-hundred heads (34).
sequar: deliberative subjunctive (A&G 443).
[77] conducere = to farm the taxes of a province (OLD 5b) with publica = “to take public contracts”.
publica: nominative feminine adjective with pars.
qui: introduces a relative clause of characteristic (A&G 535) with the subjunctives venentur, excipiant, and mittant.
[78-79] Widows and widowers are literally “hunted” for their wealth. Hunting was morally ambiguous to the Romans, and comparing it to the ruthless pursuit of wealth is in keeping with H’s theme thus far (see Manolaraki 2012). Hunting, of course, was a male pastime, so it is also telling that widows are hunted by men, while old men, presumably pursued by women or younger men, are kept in ponds and fished for.
[79] excipiant = to pick up out of the water. (OLD 1b)
vivaria = fish ponds or aquariums. (OLD 2). Here, the rich old men of Rome are fish, and the young men and women who wish to inherit are fishermen, an interesting reversal of the usual top-down social power of the ancient world. At this period such fishponds are becoming prevalent in the villas of the uber-rich, such as Lucullus so the rich men, by metonomy, become similar to the creatures that stock their ponds (see Higginbotham 1997). For a similar image see S. 2.5.44.
[80] occulto...fenore = ablative of means (A&G 409). occulto has a hint of unlawful usury.
[81] esto = “let it be” (introducing indirect speech). Horace grants the point that people should be able to make money in different ways.
aliis … rebus studiis: Datives of agent with teneri (A&G 375a). The repetition of aliis alios expresses a double statement, i.e. “some by some interests, others by other interests”.
[82] idem: take as nominative plural (īdem can be either, metrically speaking), and the subject of possunt.
horam = Accusative of extent of time (A&G 423).
[83] nullus...sinus: “no bay” or possibly “retreat” (OLD 3). Baiae was on the Bay of Naples.
Bais...amoenis: Baiae was considered the playground for the rich, famous, and notorious from the Late Republic through the Roman Empire (cf. Prop. 1.11, Cic. Cael. 38, 49). Thermal baths and exquisite villas dotted the hills around Baiae (C. 3.4.24) and its pleasantness is remarked upon by later authors as well (Stat. Sil. 4.7.18-19, Juv. 3.4). Nisbet and Hubbard wonder if Maecenas had a villa maritima at Baiae (ad 2.18 introduction, and cf. C. 3.1.33-40).
praelucet: “to be superior in brightness/splendor than” (+dat.). The conspicuous consumption on display in Baiae was notable for moralists (Sen. Ep. 51.3-13) as was the famous light of the Bay of Naples. “Who has been in Baiae knows well fish and the ocean; Being in Venice, you know all about frogs and the pool.” (Goethe, epigram XXV, trans. Paul Dyrsen). In Baiae, there were many fishponds (think of vivaria above) - this would be the place to hunt rich legacies.
[84] dives: The building projects of the rich in the Bay of Naples were particularly grand and we read of villas the projected in the bay and many projects that altered the natural landscape (Vergil’s G. 2.161-64, when writing of this area focuses on the artificial lakes and bays created by Agrippa and Octavian).
lacus: Referring to the Lucrine Lake which was known for its oysters and luxurious villas, including Cicero’s villa in which the Academia takes place.
sentit: The personification of the lake and sea which “feel” the “love” (i.e. the building projects) of those who build along the shores and into the waters. There is a sexualization of the watery areas feeling the penetration of these building projects. Roman poets write about the massive piles built into these areas for artificial harbors, fishponds, and docks (see C. 2.18.19-21, and the note of Nisbet and Hubbard ad loc.).
[85] festinantis eri: the owner (cf. S. 2.2.129: propriae telluris erus) rush to build mirrors his restlessness and general instability.
cui si: cui = at ei so you can render this “but if his…” (see note in Mayer).
vitiosa libido: “depraved/vice-addled passion” strong language to describe the driving force of the rich. libido will reappear at Ep. 1.2.15, and 2.1.107.
[86] fecerit auspicium: Future perfect with si “If his passion will have given the sign” with the quotation acting as the result of such an auspicium. Horace’s point is that passions should not give such auspicia - usually such auspicia occur through events in the natural world (cf. Sen. Nat. 2.32.5: aquilae hic honor datus est ut magnarum rerum faceret auspicia “The honor has been given to the eagle to give signs of great events”).
ferramenta: “tools” (note the root of ferrum = “iron”).
Teanum: Modern Teano. A city in the mountains of Campania showing the whims of this particular rich man.
[87] tolletis: Lit. “you will lift”, but better understood as “you will carry”.
fabri: “builders/workmen”.
lectus genialis: The bridal bed indicated whether the man of the house was married. If it was in the courtyard (aula) it indicates that he was married. We see another example of someone unhappy in his current state, much like the rich man blowing hot and cold about seaside vs. mountain life.
[88] nil prius...melius nil: Chiastic structure emphasizing the thought that nothing is better than being single, in spite of the fact that the speaker is married.
caelibe...vita: “bachelor’s life” ablative of comparison (A&G 406).
[89] si non est: supply lectus genialis in aula, i.e. if the speaker is single.
bene esse: lit. “it is well” i.e. “life is good”. Might Horace be thinking of Augustus’ moral legislation (the lex Iulia was implemented in 23 BCE)?
solitis….maritis: Dative with the verb esse. Only married men live the good life.
[90] quo...nodo: Enclosing word order with this “knot” of words holding the subject.
teneam: deliberative subjunctive (A&G 443).
Protea: A Greek accusative (A&G 81). In the Odyssey (4.454-61) Proteus, the prophetic Old Man of the Sea, is a shapeshifter and transforms into a number of forms (lion, serpent, water) when trying to avoid the grasp of Menelaus. Vergil had recently revisited this in his Georgics 4.388ff. and Horace writes of Proteus at C. 1.2.7 and S. 2.3.71.
[91] quid pauper?: If the examples above are primarily about the rich (dives, 84), are the poor any better?
ride: Addressed to both Maecenas as well as the general reader, who will see such aemulatio of rich habits as humorous - just how mean-spirited the laughter will be may be up to the reader. Note that Horace in his Satires mentioned the ability to teach moral tenets with laughter (1.1.24-25: ridentem dicere verum / quid vetat? “Who forbids teaching the truth through laughter?”).
cenacula: “lodgings” beginning a catalogue of changes the poor man makes.
lectos: Echoing the lectus up above, but here meaning “beds” in general.
[92] balnea: The various baths in Rome were available free of charge to the populace (see Adkins' Handbook to Life in Ancient Rome). balnea usually means smaller baths than the large imperial thermae.
conducto navigio: “In a hired boat” (Ablative of Means, A&G 409).
aeque...ac: “as much as, in the same way as” (A&G 384 n.2).
[93] nauseat: “to be sea-sick”.
locuples: the rich man who owns his own trireme.
triremis: Horace mentions such a ship (with three banks of oars) at C. 3.1.39.
[94-7] These lines compare the outer appearance with the inner, and what matters truly. Mayer 1994: ad loc. notes that Maecenas himself was known for his “foppish” appearance and he may have had a critical eye for the sort of inconsistency in Horace’s appearance (see S. 1.3.29-34 for some similar characteristics). For patrons possibly deriving laughter from clients, see Ep. 1.7.79.
si… occurri, rides: General Conditional Clause- protasis (the half of the clause with si) in perfect, the apodosis in the present; both can be translated as present (A&G 514 General 1b).
inaequali tonsore: Ablative of Agent without ab (A&G 405), both referring to curatus. Mayer 1994 ad loc. also notes that inaequali should be taken adverbially and is probably to be thought of as a transferred epithet = it is Horace’s hair that is “uneven”.
capillos: Greek Accusative (A&G 397b).
[95] occurri: supplying tibi as a Direct Object may prove to be helpful.
si… subest...dissidet…, rides: Two General Conditional Clauses with both protasis and apodosis in the present (A&G 514 General 1a).
subuncla: an undertunic worn close to the skin below the normal tunic (tunicae in the following line). The inconcinnity between the brand-new (pexae) tunic and the worn undergarment would be equivalent to a ratty t-shirt being worn under a suit jacket. Cf. Mart. 2.58.1: “In your new fancy robe you laugh at my worn out clothes, Zoilus” (pexatus pulchre rides mea, Zoile, trita).
[96] dissidet: “to be placed out of alignment, to sit awry” (OLD 2). One must make sure the toga does not hang in a slanted manner.
[97] Scanning this line will reveal that sententia has to be nominative.
quid...cum: Mayer 1994 ad loc. notes it should be taken as “how do you react when” (OLD quis 13b).
[98] quod is accusative.
petiit spernit, repeti...omisit: Horace nicely sets the reader to expect spernit again at the close of the line, but substitutes omisit. It seems even in his word choice, he is unable to stay consistent!
[99] aestuat: “vacillates” (OLD 6) as water in motion or the tides (OLD 4c).
vitae ordine toto : “in the whole course of life”
[100] For the building metaphor, see Wickham ad loc. who relates the story found in Plutarch’s life of Agesilaeus that the Spartan, on seeing square wooden beams, “asked if trees in that country were square, and being told that they were round said, ‘then if trees grew square would you make your beams round’” (27). The change in plans resembles the building plans of the rich man above.
muto: “to give in exchange for, to give up in favour of (w/ ablative)” (OLD 3b).
[101-105] in lines 94-96, Horace points out that Maecenas ridicules his lack of grooming. In lines 101-105, he points out that Maecenas would be unconcerned with the more serious issue of living un-recte.
[101] insanire: to behave like a madman (OLD 2) Here, it also means “ill,” conflating philosophical and physical illness, and thus justifying the need for medici and curatores. It also looks to the end of the poem with sanus in line 108.
putas: introducing indirect speech (A&G 577ff.).
sollemnia: A customary practice (OLD 2). Here used adverbially in the accusative plural. (A&G 397). Maecenas believes that Horace’s hypothetical illness is a common cold or another mundane illness, rather than the serious philosophical malaise that it is.
[102] credis: Introducing more indirect speech.
curatoris = a legal guardian appointed to administer the property of minors, women, and insane people, such as Horace. (OLD 3)
egere: To need, want, or require (OLD 1). Here it takes the genitives medici and curatoris (A&G 356).
[103] praetore: “Praetor,” a magistracy established in the early republic to relieve consuls of their judicial duties (Livy 6.42), although praetors could also traditionally lead armies. By the time of Augustus, they were handling mostly minor duties, such as assigning power of attorney.
dati: genitive perfect passive participle of dare with curatoris.
tutela: lit. “guardianship” (OLD 1), but here standing in for “tutor,” in either case, a predicate nominative with sis in the next line.
[104] cum sis: Concessive cum clause (A&G 549).
stomacheris: "to be angry at" (OLD 1). Take with cum as another concessive clause, linked by et
unguem: “Finger nail.” Grooming was very important to the upper-class Romans such as Maecenas, who their choice of clothing and grooming styles to display their wealth, see Toner 2015. As with Horace’s haircut (line 94) and his clothes (line 96), his manicure is also a source of disappointment for his wealth-concerned patron.
[105] amici: governs the participles of this line, take with unguem.
After ten lines of admonishing Maecenas’ priorities, Horace reassures his patron of his goodwill with use of the word amici, and anaphora of the word te. Damon writes of this line that this assertion of Horace as dependent is used to justify Horace's plans for the future" (1997: 135).
[106] ad summam: “to conclude”
sapiens: This sets up a Stoic maxim about the nearly divine status of the Stoic sage. According to Stobaeus, the Stoics believe the sage “does everything well...so far as concerns what he does, and not of course also what he does not do. In their opinion the doctrine that the wise man does everything well is a consequence of his accomplishing everything in accordance with right reason and in accordance with virtue, which is expertise concerned with the whole of life” (Stobaeus 2.66.14ff. In Long and Sedley Vol. 1: 61 G). Horace will deflate this view of the Stoic sage in the final line of the poem. This passage as a whole responds to his earlier, and similar, description of the sage at S. 1.3.124-26.
uno...Jove: Ablative of comparison (A&G 406).
dives: not necessarily “rich” with monetary wealth, but the idea that the sage is perfect in all ways leads to the idea that he is rich, even with little. See Cicero’s Paradoxa Stoicorum 5 “Only the sage is rich” solum sapientem esse divitem.
[107] liber: Freedom has been strongly asserted in this poem (e.g. line 69) and it will come up often in this book. That the Stoic sage is free and has true freedom is a commonplace in Stoic thought (e.g. Cic. Paradoxa Stoicorum 5 “Only the sage is free, and every foolish man is a slave” solum sapientem esse liberum, et omnem stultum servum).
honoratus: cf. Ep. 1.16.39-40, 1.18.101-103 for further mentions of honor in the Epistles.
pulcher: At this one might think Horace is being rather silly, but this is also a part of the conception of the Stoic sage, who is perfect in every way (according to the Stoics).
rex denique regum: what would seem to be the final designation of the Stoic sage as equivalent to “king of kings” like Agamemnon (about whom this phrase applies at Sen. Ag. 39 and Vell. Pat. 1.1.2). As mentioned above, Horace will often muse on self-control and philosophical rectitude as equivalent to kingship in some manner, see e.g. Ep. 1.10.33 and 1.12.5-6 (for additional connections with riches and health).
[108] praecipue sanus: praecipue is used “to add a final statement to those preceding” (OLD 2b), translate as “above all”. The sanity and rational way of living of the Stoic sage is embodied in the opposite correlative, “every foolish man is insane” (omnem stultam insanire, Cic. Paradoxa Stoicorum 4). All this Stoic doctrine, however, will be put to the test by a simple cold. sanus can mean both "sane" and "healthy" so Horace is setting us up for a joke.
pituita: The u should be taken as a consonant - a change necessitated by the metre. This strange sound and the final elision gives the line the sound of someone who is sick and who has a stuffed-up nose. The Stoic sage may appear to be perfect, but will suffer from colds and, Horace implies, not handle this with the indifference and stiff upper lip expected of a Stoic. The poem thus ends with a sense that even the Stoic sage may be unable to be as consistent and steadfast as one might expect. If this is the case, how can Horace be expected to be? The Epistles will explore Horace’s own struggles even if this opening would seem to imply that Horace himself can be a teacher of such virtue.
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