Sagae Thessalae Flashcards
cum haec etiam loca prōvinciae clārae vīsitāre cuperem,
Since I also wanted to visit these places of a famous province,
iuvenis ego Mīlētō profectus ad spectāculum Olympicum,
(When I was) a young man having set out from Miletus to the Olympic Games,
peragrātā tōtā Thessaliā Lārissam pervēnī.
I travelled through the whole of Thessaly, and arrived at Larissa.
ac dum urbem pererrāns tenuātō viāticō paupertātī meae fōmenta quaerō,
And while wandering through the city with my travelling allowance diminished I looked for* remedies for my poverty,
mediō in forō senem cōnspiciō. īnsistēbat lapidem magnāque vōce praedicābat,
(and) I caught sight of an old man in the middle of the forum. He was standing on a stone and proclaiming in a loud voice,
- magnāque, historic present, the importance of what he is about to say
sī quis mortuum custōdīre vellet,
(that) if anyone wished / was willing to guard a dead man,
- alliteration Mortuum and magnum(next card) show the great danger
- assonance of um sound joins these words together
Magnum praemium acceptūrum esse.
he would receive a big reward.
- alliteration Mortuum(previous card) and magnum show the great danger
- assonance of um sound joins these words together
et cuīdam praetereuntī “quid hoc” inquam “audiō? hīc mortuī solent aufugere
And I said to somebody passing by, “What’s this I hear? Do the dead usually run away around here
- short snappy sentences
- emphatic positioning
- his ignorance in making fun
“tacē,” respondit ille “nam puer et satis peregrīnus es,
“Be quiet,” he replied, “for you are a boy and a mere stranger,
meritōque nescīs in Thessaliā tē esse,
and naturally you don’t know that you are in Thessaly,
- in Thessaliā, emphatic positioning
- importance of the place
ubi sāgae ōra mortuōrum semper dēmorsicant, quae sunt illīs artis magicae suplēmenta”
where witches always bite pieces out of the faces of the dead, which are extra-ingredients for them in their magic art”
- assonance of mor
- eating away to death
- vivid, frightening
contrā ego: “quālī custōdēlā” inquam “opus est?”
In reply I said, “What sort of protection is needed?”
“iam prīmum” respondit ille “tōtam noctem eximiē vigilandum est apertīs et incōnīvīs oculīs semper in cadāver intentīs,
“To begin with,” he replied, “all night you must stay fully awake with eyes open and sleepless, directed always at the corpse,
- totam, first word of speech
- WHOLE night, very important as first word
nec aciēs usquam dēvertenda est,
and your glance must not be turned away anywhere (else),
-acies, line of battle, deadly, this is his only defence
cum illae pessimae sāgae latenter arrēpant,
since those very wicked witches creep up secretly,
-latenter, used in an evil sense
fōrmā in quodvīs animal conversā.
with their shape changed into any animal.
nam et avēs et canēs et mūrēs, immō vērō etiam muscās, induunt
For they take the form of birds, (and) dogs (and) mice, and indeed
Even flies
hīs cognitīs animum meum commasculō et statim accēdēns senem,
After finding this out, I strengthened* my spirit and approaching the old man at once,
- statim, quickens pace, building tension
- desine,adest, juxtaposition, mo vivid
“clāmāre” inquam “iam dēsine. adest custōs parātus.”
I said, “Stop shouting now! A guard is here (and) ready.”
vix fīnieram, et statim mē perdūcit ad domum quandam,
Scarcely had I finished, when he led* me at once to a certain house,
-finieram to statim, change to the historic present, reflects a quickening of pace
ubi dēmōnstrat mātrōnam flēbilem fuscīs vestīmentīs contēctam.
where he pointed* to a weeping woman dressed in dark clothes.
-flebilem fuscis, chiasmus
illa surrēxit et ad cubiculum mē indūxit.
She got up and led me into a bedroom.
-short, STRAIGHT to the bedroom -a quick BJ
Ibi corpus splendentibus linteīs coopertum manū revēlāvit.
There she uncovered with her hand a body wrapped in shining-white sheets.
- Corpus, then description, a build up
- contrast body and shining white sheet
ubi singula anxiē dēmōnstrāvit, exiit.
When she (had) anxiously pointed out the individual features, she went out.
sīc desōlātus ad cadāveris sōlācium,
Thus left alone to the care of the corpse,
-SOL, long vowels, gloomy
perfrictīs oculīs et parātīs ad vigiliam,
with my eyes rubbed and ready for guard duty,
- vigiliam
- guard/ sleeplessness
dum animum meum permulcēbam cantātiōnibus,
while I was soothing my mind/spirit with songs,
usque ad mediam noctem pervigilābam.
I stayed awake until midnight.
tum autem mihi formīdō cumulātior cum repente intrōrēpēns mustēla contrā mē cōnstitit oculōsque in mē fixit.
But then my terror (became) greater when suddenly a weasel, creeping in, stopped in front of me and fixed its eyes on me.
- Rep,rep,con,con
- alliteration of t
- something’s not right, eery
tanta fidūcia in tantulō animālī mihi turbāvit animum.
Such great self-confidence in so small an animal disturbed my mind.
-tanta, tantulo, contort, something scarier under its appearance
dēnique sīc illī “abī,” inquam “scelesta bēstia,
Finally I spoke to it in this way, “Go away, you wicked beast,
-Abi beginning and end, his panic building
Antequam meam vim celeriter experiāris! abī!”
Before you quickly experience my strength! Go away!”
-Abi beginning and end, his panic building
mustēla terga vertit et ē cubiculō prōtinus exit.
The weasel turned its back and immediately went out of the bedroom.
- terra vertit, two backs, two sides, a darker side
- often used to describe fleeing armies
sine morā somnus tam profundus mē repente dēmergit,
Without delay a sleep so deep suddenly overwhelmed me,
ut nē deus quidem Delphicus ipse facile discernere posset ex duōbus nōbīs iacentibus, quis esset magis mortuus.
that not even the god of Delphi himself could easily decide from the two of us lying down, who was the more dead!
tandem prīmā lūce expergitus et magnō pavōre perterritus cadāver accurrō,
Having woken up at last at dawn and terrified by great panic
I ran over* to the corpse,
-p,p,p, strong emotion, plosive
et admōtō lūmine revēlātōque eius vultū,
and after I brought a lamp near and uncovered his face,
omnia dīligenter īnspiciō: nihil dēest.
I carefully inspected* everything: nothing was* missing.
ecce uxor misera flēns intrōrumpit: cadāvere īnspectō reddit sine morā praemium.
Look, the miserable wife burst* in weeping: when she had inspected the corpse she gave* (me) my reward without delay.
“per fidem vestram” inquit “cīvēs, per pietātem pūblicam,
“For the sake of your honour, citizens,” he said, “for the sake of public duty,
- per, used for oaths
- extremum, the extreme of wickedness
perēmptō cīvī subsistite et extrēmum facinus istīus fēminae nefāriae scelestaeque sevēriter vindicāte.
help a murdered citizen and severely punish the vilest crime of that
wicked and evil woman over there.
-nefaria(fas divine law) legally and religiously wrong
in adulterī grātiam et ob praedam hērēditāriam exstīnxit venēnō.”
to please her lover and to steal the inheritance.
-veneno, emphatic, emphasises her reasons
illa, lacrimīs effūsīs quamque sānctissimē poterat adiūrāns cūnctōs deōs,
She, with tears streaming down and swearing by all the gods as piously as she could,
tantum scelus abnuēbat. ergō senex ille: “vēritātis arbitrium in dīvīnam prōvidentiam pōnāmus.
was denying such a great crime. Therefore that old man
(said): “Let us place the judgement of the truth in divine providence.
-lots of ‘p’ alliteration, stresses the wisdom of seeking divine help
Zatchlas adest Aegyptius prophēta nōtissimus,
Zatchlas, the very famous Egyptian prophet,
quī mihi prōmīsit sē prō magnō praemiō spīritum istīus cadāveris paulīsper ab īnferīs reductūrum esse corpusque animātūrum,
is here who has promised me that (in return) for a large reward, he would lead back from the dead the spirit of that corpse for a little while and bring the dead-body back to life,
- inferis, means the underworld
- dark
immittō mē turbae et pōne ipsum lectulum lapidem īnsistēns omnia cūriōsīs oculīs spectābam.
I pushed* myself into the crowd and standing on a stone behind the bier itself I was watching everything with curious eyes.
iam tumōre pectus cadāveris extollī, iam spīritū corpus implērī.
Now the chest of the corpse rose with a swell, now the dead-body was filled with breath.
- repetition of iam, historic infinitives
- sentence more vivid
et surgit cadāver et profatur:
And the corpse rose up* and spoke out:
- strange word order
- life is reversed
“cūr, ōrō, mē post Lēthaea pōcula iam Stygiīs palūdibus innatantem ad mōmentāriae vītae officia redūcitis?
“Why, I beg, after I have drunk from the waters of Lethe and
was already sailing on the Stygian marshes do you bring me back to the duties of a momentary life?
- ‘u’ sounds
- oozy swamp sounds
dēsine iam, precor, dēsine, ac mē in meam quiētem permitte”
Stop now, I pray, stop, and let me go to my rest”
-petition of desine emphasises anger
haec vōx dē corpore audīta est, sed prophēta aliquantō commōtior
This voice was heard from the dead-body, but the prophet somewhat more forcefully said,
“quīn nārrās” inquit “populō omnia dē morte tūa?”
“Why do you not tell the people all about your death?”
respondet ille dē lectulō et īmō cum gemitū populum sīc adloquitur:
He replied* from the bier and with a deep groan he addressed* the people in this way:
-imo, lowest/deep but also used as a reference to the underworld
“malīs novae nūptae artibus perēmptus et addictus noxiō pōculō,
“(Having been) murdered by the evil arts of my new bride and the victim of a poisoned cup,
- malis,emphatic stresses evil methods
- an involved chiasmus
torum tepentem adulterō reddidī.
I have handed over my (still) warm bed to her lover.
dabō vōbīs documenta vēritātis perlūcida,
I shall give you very clear proof(s) of the truth,
et quod prōrsus alius nēmō cognōverit vel ōmināverit indicābō.”
and I shall reveal what absolutely nobody else could know or predict.”
-emphatic, absolutely No One could have found this out
tunc digitō mē dēmōnstrāns:
Then pointing me out with his finger (he said):
-digito, creepy imagery
“nam cum corporis meī custōs hic sagācissimus exsertam vigiliam mihi tenēret,
“For when this very keen-witted guard of my body was keeping an intensive watch for/on me,
- sagacissimus
- witches/to clever for them
sāgae quaedam exuviīs meīs imminentēs fōrmā mūtātā apparuērunt.
certain witches, eager for my remains, appeared in changed form.
- imminentes
- stand over threaten
cum industriam sēdulam eius fallere nōn potuissent,
When they had been unable to deceive his determined efforts,
postrēmō iniectā somnī nebulā eum in profundam quiētem sepelīvērunt.
finally they threw a cloud of sleep upon him and buried him in a deep slumber.
- nebula, depth of sleep
- sepeliverunt, bury, image of death
tum mē nōmine excitāre coepērunt neque prius dēsiērunt quam dum hebetēs artūs meī et membra frīgida ad artis magicae obsequia sēgniter nītuntur.
Then they began to wake me with my name and did not stop until my sluggish joints and cold limbs slowly struggled* to obey (the commands of) their magic art.
- habetes, emphatic in its clause
- stresses the sluggishness of the corps joints
hic autem, quī vīvus erat, et tantum sopōre mortuus,
But this man, who was alive, and only dead asleep,
idem mēcum nōmen forte habet.
by chance has the same name as me.
ad suum nōmen igitur ignārus exsurgit,
At (the sound of) his own name therefore he unwittingly got up*,
From here onwards (line93h) historic present for vividness
Et, in exanimis umbrae modum ultrō gradiēns, iānuam adit.
and proceeding mechanically in the manner of a lifeless ghost, he went to* the door.
Quamquam forēs cubiculī dīligenter occlūsae erant,
Although the bedroom doors had been carefully locked,
per quoddam forāmen prōsectīs nāsō prius ac mox auribus laniēnam prō mē passus est.
(the witches reached in) through a certain hole and with first his nose and soon his ears cut off he suffered mutilation in stead of me!
-lanienam, a butchers shop, a butchery, horrible
tum sāgae cēram in modum prōsectārum fōrmātam aurium eī applicant nāsumque similem prōsectō comparant.
Then the witches attached* wax to him, shaped in the form of the cut off ears and fitted on* a nose like the one (which had been) cut off.
et nunc stat miser hīc, praemium nōn industriae sed laniēnae cōnsecūtus.”
And now here stands the poor man, who has earned a reward not for his diligence but for a mutilation!”
- et nunc hac, 3 short words, arouse pity for the young man
- neat contrast laeniena,industriae
hīs dictīs perterritus temptāre fōrmam incipiō.
Terrified by these words, I began* to examine my appearance.
Manū nāsum prehendō: sequitur; aurēs pertractō: dēruunt.
With my hand I grasped* my nose: it came off! I touched my ears: they fell off*!
-4 short sentences, dramatic, realisation, worry
Ac dum turba dīrēctīs digitīs et nūtibus mē dēnotat, inter pedēs circumstantium frīgidō sūdōre dēfluēns effugiō.
Abd while the crowd identified* me with pointed fingers and nods, I made my escape* dripping with cold sweat, between the feet of the people standing arounds.
- ddd, direct at him, shows everyone is looking at him
- escape through feet, pathos, feels small, shame
nec posteā sīc dēbilis ac sīc rīdiculus ad patriam redīre potuī,
Nor afterwards could I return to my homeland, so maimed and so ridiculous,
- sic sic, so so
- emphasis mutilation, ridiculousness
Sed capillīs hinc inde dēiectīs aurium vulnera cēlāvī, nāsī vērō dēdecus linteolō istō decenter obtēxī.
But with my hair grown long on both sides I have hidden the wounds of my ears, and indeed I have covered the disgrace of my nose for decency’s sake with this patch.
