Paired words: et…et, nec…nec, vel…vel, cum…tum, non tam…quam, sive…sive

Pairs of words that work together across a clause: et … et "both … and", nec … nec "neither … nor", vel … vel, aut … aut "either … or", sive … sive "whether … or", cum … tum "both … and especially", non tam … quam "not so much … as".

Examples

• non tam quod sanguinis seminisque ejusdem, quam quod mentis ac portionis divinae mecum particeps 2.1not so much because he shares the same blood and seed as because he shares with me in mind and a portion of the divine
• si vero, vel nulli sunt, vel nullam rerum humanarum curam gerunt 2.11but if they either do not exist or take no care of human affairs
• nec bona itaque, nec mala sunt 2.11so they are neither good nor bad
• cum ea quae subter terram sunt, quod ille ait, scrutatur, tum quae in animis alienis, conjectura nititur indagare 2.13both searches out what is beneath the earth, as the poet says, and tries by guesswork to track down what is in other people's minds

In the text 326

• I.2 A fama memoriaque genitoris mei, modestam simul ac masculam indolem.simul ac often means "as soon as", but not here: simul "at the same time" goes with the two adjectives joined by ac, "at once modest and manly".
• I.3 A matre, pietatis studium, et largiendi promptitudinem: nec a malo patrando tantum, sed cogitando etiam, continere.
• I.7 quodque ad aemulationem ambitionemque Sophisticam nullus declinaverim, vel de theorematibus aliquid conscribendo, vel oratiunculas hortatorias declamando, vel exercitia obire operasque edere potis speciem praebendo, quo ad stuporem ac admirationem mei homines traherem.
• I.8 adhaec, quod in ipso, tanquam in exemplari vivo, evidenter cernere licuit, posse eundem, prout occasiones se dabant, et vehementissimum et remissum esse.
• I.8 ab isto didici, et quo modo beneficia, quae dicuntur, ab amicis accipere oporteret, ut nec acceptis obnoxius fierem, nec citra sensum tamen omnem transmitterem.
• I.9 adhaec dilucidam ac methodicam cum inventionem, tum et dispositionem, decretorum ejusmodi, quae ad vitam recte instituendam conducerent.cum … tum "both … and": this cum is neither the preposition (which would take the ablative) nor "when", but the first of a pair, and tum et "and also" gives the second more weight. inventio and dispositio are terms of rhetoric, the finding of the material and its arrangement; the adjectives dilucidam ac methodicam go with both.
• I.9 quodque nec iracundiae, nec perturbationis alius alicujus, indicium exhibebat; sed cum affectibus immunis prorsus existeret, ad affectum genuinum erat tamen propensissimus:
• I.10 idque sub specie vel respondendi, vel calculum dictis contribuendi, vel de re ipsa, non autem de dictione, una dispiciendi, vel per aliam aliquam istiusmodi scitam, sed quae oblique facta sit, commonefactionem.
• I.12 Ab Alexandro Platonico, ne crebro, neve nisi necessitate adactus, aut dicto aut scripto significem alicui, non vacare me:aut … aut "either … or". dicto and scripto are neuter participles used as nouns, "by a thing said" and "by a thing written": by word of mouth or by letter.
• I.15 sed et animo bono esse, cum in morbis, tum et in aliis casibus adversis;cum … tum pairs two things, "both … and also": "not only in illness but in other mishaps too". This cum is not "when"; it has no verb.
• I.15 quod nemo quisquam inventus sit, qui vel contemptui ab illo haberi se existimaret, vel praestantiorem se illo opinaretur.
• I.16 quod laboribus ferendis cum libens, tum et assiduus, se dederit.cum … tum "not only … but (especially)", and et adds "too". libens and assiduus are nominative because they describe the subject of dederit, the father: "he gave himself, (being) not only willing but tireless too".
• I.16 quod amicis vel coenandi secum, vel abstinendi optionem liberam permittebat, nec peregre euntem comitari, nisi ipsis allubesceret, necesse erat:
• I.16 quod etiam amicorum retinendi studiosus; nec fastidio mutans, nec insane diligens.
• I.16 nec in Deis colendis superstitiosus, nec in hominibus, aut muneribus, aut blanditiis auram captans popularem; sed in rebus quibusque sobrius, solidus, nusquam ineptus, aut novitatis studiosus.
• I.16 Porro quod ad vitam commodius transigendam conducentibus rebus, quarum copiam illi dapsilem sors suppeditabat, citra fastum, nec libere tamen minus, utebatur; ut et praesentibus simpliciter frueretur, neque absentia multum desideraret.
• I.16 quod maximum est, quod citra invidentiam eis concedebat, qui in facultate aliqua claruerunt, sive oratoria, sive legum vel morum vel aliarum quarumvis rerum notitia:Both words are ablative and explain facultate: "some faculty, whether oratorical, or (a) knowledge of laws or customs or of any other matters". quarumvis is from quivis "any you please".
• I.16 quod nec dimoveri proclivis, nec divagari, sed cum locis, tum et rebus eisdem, immorari consuetus.cum … tum et "both … and also"; eisdem "the same" goes with both nouns. immorari "to linger" takes a plain ablative here: "to stay in the same places and over the same matters".
• I.16 ita quadrabat in illum, quod de Socrate perhibetur, quod et abstinere et frui rebus eis norat, quibus plerique nec per infirmitatem abstinere, nec frui citra intemperantiam possunt.
• I.17 quod liberi mihi neque ingenio tardi, nec corpore distorti obtigere,
• I.17 quod nec Benedictam, nec Theodotum attingerem: sed et postea, ex affectibus amatoriis, quibus correptus fueram, ad sanitatem redierim.
• I.17 quod per insomnia remedia mihi fuerint indicata, cum alia, tum adversus sanguinis excreationem et capitis vertiginem; quod et Cajetae aliquando factum est.cum … tum 'both … and especially': 'both other (remedies), and in particular (remedies) against …'. alia agrees with remedia.
• II.1 ego vero, cum et naturam boni norim, quod honestum, malique, quod inhonestum sit, ipsamque adeo delinquentis naturam, quod congener mihi sit, non tam quod sanguinis seminisque ejusdem, quam quod mentis ac portionis divinae mecum particeps;"Not so much because … as because". Supply sit particeps "he is a sharer" in both halves; particeps takes the genitive: sanguinis seminisque ejusdem "of the same blood and seed", mentis ac portionis divinae "of mind and of a divine portion".
• II.1 nec laedi posse me ab horum ullo compertum habeo; (neque enim inhonesta re aliqua me quisquam involverit) sed nec succensere congeneri possum, eumve odisse.nec … sed nec "neither … nor yet": the two halves answer each other. I cannot be harmed by them, and so I cannot be angry with them.
• II.2 tu ergo sic tecum: senex es: partem tui principem servire ulterius ne siveris; sed nec motibus a communione humana alienis raptari, nec quicquam, quod fato destinatum tibi fuerit, vel jam ascitum aversari, vel futurum pavere.quicquam "anything" is the object of both infinitives, aversari and pavere, which still depend on ne siveris. ascitum and futurum agree with it: "nor (let it) either turn away from anything fate has destined for you when it has already come, or dread it while it is still to come". vel … vel "either … or".
• II.3 inde profluunt omnia. accedit et necessitas quaedam, et totius mundi, cujus tu pars es, utilitas.accedit "there comes in besides, there is added" has two subjects joined by et … et "both … and": necessitas and utilitas; the second is held back until after the relative clause cujus tu pars es.
• II.3 porro conservant mundum hunc, sicut elementorum, ita et concretorum ex his mutationes.The subject comes last: mutationes "the changes" preserve this world. sicut … ita et "as … so also" joins the two genitives that depend on it, much like "both … and".
• II.11 si vero, vel nulli sunt, vel nullam rerum humanarum curam gerunt, quid attinet tandem vivere in mundo vel Deorum, vel providentiae inani?vel … vel 'either … or'. nulli sunt 'they are none' = 'they do not exist'; the subject, the gods, carries over from the sentences before.
• II.11 caeterum et sunt illi, et res humanas curant:et … et 'both … and'. sunt again means 'exist'; illi 'they' are the gods.
• II.11 nec imprudens autem, nec prudens utique, sed praecavere aut corrigere impotens, universi natura neglexit ista;All three adjectives describe natura, the subject, which comes near the end: 'neither unaware, nor aware but unable to prevent or correct them, has nature overlooked these things'. Both possible excuses for neglect are ruled out.
• II.11 nec errorem tam immanem admisisset unquam, sive per impotentiam, sive per imperitiam, ut bona ac mala, bonis malisque ex aequo hominibus, nullo facto discrimine, contingere pateretur.sive … sive 'whether … or'. The two nouns pick up the excuses of the sentence before: lack of power (impotens) and lack of knowledge (imprudens).
• II.11 atqui mors, et vita, honor et ignominia, dolor et voluptas, opes et paupertas, ista omnia bonis pariter malisque contingunt, cum nec honesta ea nec inhonesta sint.
• II.11 nec bona itaque nec mala sunt.
• II.12 cujusmodi sint omnia quae sub sensum cadunt; horumque ea maxime, quae vel voluptate alliciunt, vel dolore percellunt, vel cum fastu celebrantur;
• II.12 verum enimvero mori non est opus tantum naturae, sed quod eidem et conducat.non … tantum … sed … et is "not only … but also". verum enimvero at the start, "but indeed", marks a step beyond what was just said.
• II.13 Nihil homine illo miserius est, qui omnia undique pervagatur, et cum ea quae subter terram sunt, quod ille ait, scrutatur, tum quae in animis alienis, conjectura nititur indagare;cum … tum means "both … and above all": here cum is not "when" but the first half of a pair, and its verb is indicative (scrutatur). The second member, tum … nititur indagare, carries the weight: prying into other people's minds is worse.
• II.13 colet autem, si affectibus immunem custodierit, et temeritate alienum, nec offensum re aliqua, quam vel Dii vel homines egerint.
• II.14 Etiamsi ter mille annos victurus esses, et totidem insuper myriadas, illud tamen meminisse debes, nec ullam aliam vitam ab ea, quam degit, amittere quenquam; nec aliam ab ea, quam amittit, degere.
• II.14 neque enim aut praeteritum, aut futurum amittere quis potest.
• II.16 deinde cum vel hominem quemcunque aversatur, vel laedendi consilio adversatur alicui. hujusmodi sunt autem irascentium animae.
• II.17 et ut verbo dicam, omnia, corporis quidem, fluvius; animae vero, somnium et fumus: vita, militia, et hospitis in peregrino mora: fama posthuma, oblivio mera.quidem … vero ("on the one hand … on the other") divides omnia: "all things: those of the body (are) a river, those of the soul a dream and smoke". The verbs, and the word "those", must be supplied.
• II.17 porro quaecunque eveniunt ac destinantur sibi ita excipientem, tanquam inde obvenientia, unde venerit ipse:
• III.1 Non est hoc tantum nobis cogitandum, singulis diebus absumi vitam, minoremque ejusdem superesse portionem:
• III.2 quia tamen rebus naturalibus adnascuntur, et ornatum illis adjiciunt, et contemplantium quoque animos afficiunt.Here at last are the main verbs of the long list in the last part: "yet, because they grow upon natural things, they both add ornament to them and move …". tamen "yet" answers sunt venustate omni procul: unlovely on their own, attractive as parts of nature. et … et is "both … and".
• III.2 tam vetulae item vetulive maturitatem quandam ac decorem, quam et quicquid in pueris venustatis animum allicientis deprehenditur, castis oculis spectare poterit.tam … quam "as much … as" pairs the two things he will look at: the ripeness of the old, and the charm of the young. et after quam is "also". Both are objects of spectare at the end, and the subject is still idem from the last part.
• III.4 sors enim unicuique assignata, et conducit ei, et in eum finem est eidem collata.et … et "both … and". conducere with the dative means "to be of benefit to": the lot "benefits him". in eum finem "for that end" means for his good. est collata is the perfect passive of confero "bestow", whose participle collatus comes from a different stem; eidem "to the same man" avoids repeating ei.
• III.4 porro nec a quibuslibet existimationem esse capessendam, sed ab eis tantum, qui naturae consentaneam vitam agunt.
• III.5 Neque invitus quicquam agas, neque societatis communis immemor, nec nisi re probe prius explorata, aggressus, nec affectibus abreptus.
• III.9 in hoc enim sita sunt omnia, ut menti tuae nulla insit cogitatio quae vel naturae, vel animantis ratione praediti conditioni non sit consentanea.
• III.10 reliquum tempus vel jam exactum, vel in incerto plane situm.
• III.11 utque apud te perpendas, et quodnam sit nomen ejus, quaeque eorum ex quibus constat, et in quae futurum est ut resolvatur denuo, nomina.
• III.11 nihil enim perinde magnanimitatem ingenerat, atque expedite vereque discutere posse unumquodque eorum quae in vita contingunt;perinde … atque "in the same degree … as"; with nihil it makes a comparison: "nothing produces greatness of mind so much as …". atque after words of likeness or equality means "as".
• III.13 Quemadmodum chirurgi instrumenta et ferramenta sua ad curationes subitaneas semper habent ad manum: ita tu dogmata in promptu apud te habeas, quorum ope res cum divinas tum et humanas dignoscas;Quemadmodum … ita "just as … so": the first half gives the comparison (the surgeons), the second the lesson (you). quemadmodum is literally "in which manner" (quem ad modum).cum … tum "both … and", with the weight on the second: "divine things, and human ones too". This cum is not the preposition "with" and takes no ablative; et after tum adds "also".
• III.16 genium vero intra se in pectore situm, nec polluere, nec visorum congerie perturbare; sed placidum servare;"Neither … nor … but": the first two infinitives say what he must not do to the spirit, the third what he must.
• IV.1 quemadmodum ignis validior, ubi ea, vel obvia facta, vel injecta, corripuerit, quae lucernam exilem cito extinxissent, accommodat sibi et absumit, et ex eis ipsis incrementa capit.ubi … corripuerit "when it has seized" is future perfect, as in the first part of the section. Its object ea "those things" is described by two participles: vel obvia facta, vel injecta "either having come in its way or having been thrown on"; obvia facta is literally "made to meet (it)".
• IV.3 nusquam enim aut quietior aut otii amplioris cuiquam secessus datur, quam in suam ipsius animam.
• IV.3 reduc tibi in memoriam disjunctivum illud, aut numinis providentia, aut atomorum concursu constant universa: vel ea etiam argumenta, quibus liquido demonstratur, mundum istum civitatis instar obtinere.disjunctivum "a disjunctive" is a term of logic: a statement of the form "either … or". illud "that (well-known)" points ahead to it: aut numinis providentia, aut atomorum concursu constant universa "either all things hold together by the providence of a divinity, or by a chance meeting of atoms", the Stoic view and the Epicurean. Either way, there is nothing to complain of.
• IV.3 at tu considera, mentem tuam ubi semel agnita vi propria, subduxerit sese, spiritui sive leniter sive aspere moto neutiquam immisceri.
• IV.4 sicut enim quicquid in me terreum existit, a terra aliqua mihi pro parte mea obvenit;sicut "just as" opens a long comparison that is only completed by sic et "so too" in the last part: four parts of the body, each drawn from its own source in the world, and then the understanding. enim "for" gives the proof of what was just said.
• IV.4 (nihil enim aut ex nihilo provenit, aut ad nihilum redit) sic et intellectus alicunde manat.A parenthesis, in brackets as in the Latin, giving the principle behind the comparison. nihil … aut … aut "nothing either … or" means "nothing comes out of nothing, and nothing goes back into nothing". nihilo and nihilum are the ablative and accusative of nihilum, the full form of nihil.The main clause the long sicut clause was waiting for: "so too the understanding flows from somewhere". et here means "also". The "somewhere" is the common city of the world, named two sentences before.
• IV.5 Tale quiddam mors est, quale nativitas; naturae utrumque mysterium est.talis … qualis "such … as" is a pair of correlatives: tale quiddam mors est, quale nativitas (est) "death is something such as birth is", i.e. "death is the same kind of thing as birth". Both words are neuter, agreeing with quiddam "something", not with the feminine nouns.
• IV.8 Quod hominem ipsum sese deteriorem non facit, nec vitam illius fecerit deteriorem; sed nec damno aut interiore aut exteriore affecerit.
• IV.10 id quod si sedulo observaveris, facile deprehendes; non ex connexione duntaxat necessaria, sed ex ratione justa consequi universa, et tanquam ab eo, qui pro dignitate cuique suum tribuit, provenire.
• IV.12 veruntamen sententiae mutatio ista niti semper debet probabilitate aliqua, vel justum esse, vel in publicum utile, vel aliud hujusmodi, id ad quod transitur, non autem quod jucundum aut gloriosum existat.
• IV.15 Multae thuris glebulae in ara eadem; alia citius, alia serius decidit: citius autem an serius, nihil interest.alia … alia is "one … another"; alia is feminine singular because each stands for one glebula. citius and serius are the comparative adverbs of cito "quickly" and sero "late": "sooner", "later". One verb, decidit "falls (into the fire)", serves both halves; its perfect "fell" is spelled the same.
• IV.20 itaque laudando nec melius, nec deterius efficitur.
• IV.20 ecquid enim horum vel laude fit bonum, vel corrumpitur vituperio?vel … vel "either … or". laude and vituperio are ablatives of means, "by praise", "by blame"; fit "becomes" is from fio, with bonum as predicate.
• IV.21 sicut enim hic corpora, ubi ad spatium aliquod temporis in terra permanserint, mutata et dissipata, cadaveribus aliis locum concedunt:sicut … ita "just as … so" builds a comparison over two parts: as bodies here make room in the earth, so souls make room in the air. hic with a long i is the adverb "here", on earth, not the pronoun hic.
• IV.21 ita et animae, in aerem translatae, ubi aliquandiu ibi perstiterint, mutantur, funduntur, succenduntur, in seminalem universi rationem receptae:
• IV.21 quin et reputanda est non sepultorum tantum hoc modo corporum multitudo, sed et animalium, quae quotidie tum a nobis, tum a bestiis, comeduntur.non … tantum … sed et "not only … but also". sepultorum hoc modo corporum "of bodies buried in this way", in the earth, is a genitive with multitudo, and animalium "of animals" depends on multitudo too.
• IV.21 et tamen capit haec omnia locus iste, dum partim in sanguinem, partim in aeriam, igneamque naturam transmutantur.
• IV.24 istud enim non eam duntaxat, quae bona agendo, sed et eam, quae pauca agendo comparatur, tranquillitatem producit.Both eam "that" go with tranquillitatem, which is held back to the end: "not only that tranquillity which …, but also that which …". non duntaxat … sed et means "not only … but also". comparo here is "get, procure", not "compare".
• IV.24 nec actiones tantum, sed cogitationes etiam minus necessariae sunt recidendae.nec … tantum, sed … etiam "and not only … but also". minus necessariae "less (than) necessary" is a mild way of saying "unnecessary", and it goes with both nouns.
• IV.27 Mundus vel est ordine justo dispositus, vel miscela temeraria, congesta quidem ea, sed ut mundus sit tamen.vel … vel "either … or" sets out two possibilities. In the first, est … dispositus "is arranged", with ordine justo "in due order" as an ablative of manner. In the second, est is understood: "or (it is) a random mixture".
• IV.31 quod autem vitae reliquum est, ita exigito, ut qui Diis tua omnia ex toto animo commiseris; nullique homini vel servum vel tyrannum te exhibeas.-que joins exhibeas to commiseris, so it is still part of the ut qui clause: "and who show yourself to no man …". te exhibere with a predicate accusative is "to show oneself (as)": vel servum vel tyrannum "either a slave or a tyrant". With nulli "to no man" the whole is negative: cringing to no one, lording it over no one.
• IV.35 Dieculae fere unius sunt, et quod commemorat et quod commemoratur.The subjects come last: et … et "both … and", and each quod is a relative with no antecedent, "that which": "both that which remembers and that which is remembered". The same verb commemoro "recall" stands first in the active, then in the passive: the rememberer and the remembered.
• IV.36 et assuesce te cogitationi isti, nihil aeque diligere universi naturam, ac ea quae jam existunt mutare, et ex eis sic mutatis nova germina refingere.aeque … ac "equally … as": nihil aeque diligere … ac … mutare "loves nothing so much as to change". ac (short for atque) after words of likeness means "as". The two infinitives mutare and refingere name what Nature loves most.
• IV.39 hoc est, ne censeat aut malum aut bonum esse, quod viro malo bonoque pariter potest obvenire.
• IV.39 quicquid enim et secundum naturam et praeter eandem viventi ex aequo contingit, id ipsum neque secundum neque praeter naturam est.
• IV.43 simul enim atque comparuerit quicquam, abripitur; et aliud quidem abripitur, illud vero denuo inferetur.aliud … illud work as a pair, "one thing … another", and quidem … vero sharpen the contrast: "one thing is being swept off, while another will be brought in afresh". The river never stops: as one thing goes past, the next is already on its way.
• IV.44 Quodcunque contingit, tam consuetum tamque notum est, quam aut rosa vere, aut aestate fructus.tam … quam is "as … as". The first tam is repeated with -que "and": "as usual and as familiar as …". The comparison after quam has no verb: "as the rose (is) in spring".
• IV.44 tale quiddam et morbus, et mors, et calumnia, et insidiae, et quicquid fatuos homines vel exhilarat, vel contristat.
• IV.45 et quemadmodum ea quae in mundo existunt, concinne admodum certo inter se ordine componuntur: ita et quae fiunt, non successionem nudam, sed admirabilem quandam concinnitatem prae se ferunt.quemadmodum … ita "just as … so" compares two orders: the things that exist (ea quae … existunt) and the things that happen (quae fiunt, with ea left out). The et after ita means "too, also".
• IV.47 Quemadmodum si Deorum quis praediceret tibi, aut cras, aut summum perendie, moriturum te, haud in magno poneres, nisi animi esses abjectissimi, perendie potius quam crastino mori.
• IV.49 imo, felicem me, quod etiamsi contigerit, nil doleam tamen, nec aut praesentibus frangar, aut futura reformidem.nec aut … aut "and neither … nor". praesentibus "by present things" and futura "things to come" are neuter plurals used as nouns; futura is the future participle of sum. frangar is passive: "I am (not) broken".
• IV.50 Vulgare quidem hoc est, efficax tamen ad mortem contemnendam adminiculum, si eos recolas qui vitae avidi eidem fuerint diu immorati.quidem … tamen "it is true … yet": Marcus grants one thing and asserts another. hoc "this" has two predicates: it is vulgare "commonplace", and yet an efficax … adminiculum "effective aid". What "this" is comes in the si clause.
• IV.51 compendiosa est ea, quae secundum naturam est. in omni nimirum cum dictione, tum actione veri rectique curam habere.cum … tum "both … and (above all)": here simply "in all speech and action alike", with in omni going with both nouns. nimirum "namely" introduces what the road of nature is; Gataker sets it off with a full stop, but it still explains the sentence before. What follows is an infinitive phrase, veri rectique curam habere "to take care for the true and the right", where veri and recti are objective genitives with curam.
• V.1 et isti enim, ubi rebus hisce addicti fuerint, nec cibum, nec somnum capere magis expetunt, quam ista, ad quae tam enixe feruntur, promovere:
• V.2 Quam facile est imaginationem omnem vel turbulentam vel inconvenientem ita amoliri et abstergere, ut in summa statim tranquillitate consistas?imaginatio is Gataker's word for the Stoic phantasia, an impression or picture presented to the mind, not "imagination" in the English sense. vel … vel "either … or". amoliri, a deponent, is "to push away (with effort)"; abstergere "to wipe off", as one wipes away a stain.
• V.3 Nullum aut sermonem aut actionem indignum te censeas, qui naturae fuerit consentaneus.
• V.3 quae tu noli attendere, sed recta perge, naturae tum propriae, tum et communi obsecutus.
• V.4 eoque recidendo, unde et seminium mei pater, et sanguinem mater, et lac nutrix collegit;
• V.5 hoc tantummodo nomine si notari poteras, quod tardiori hebetiorique ingenio natus sis, exercitatione vitium istud corrigere conandum fuerat, hebetudinem tuam neque insuper habendo, neque in eadem tibi complacendo.
• V.6 sicut equus, ubi cucurrerit, canis venatus fuerit, apes mel confecerit; ita iste, ubi benefecerit, non clamore prosequitur, sed ad aliud ejusmodi opus se transfert; quemadmodum vitis ad racemos alios denuo suo tempore producendos.sicut … ita "just as … so". The horse, the dog and the bee are given only their ubi clauses ("when it has run", "(when) it has hunted", "(when) it has made honey"); what they then do is supplied from the ita half: none of them makes a fuss, each simply goes on. Each does the work it was made for, and so does the good man: doing good is his nature, not a loan.
• V.7 aut nihil omnino precari, aut hoc modo simpliciter et ingenue precari par est.aut … aut "either … or": the two infinitives precari "to pray" are the subjects of par est "it is right, it is fitting". nihil omnino precari "to pray for nothing at all", i.e. not to pray at all. precari is a deponent infinitive: passive form, active meaning.
• V.8 Cujusmodi illud est, quod dici solet, Aesculapium huic vel illi coordinasse, ut equitet, ut frigida proluatur, ut discalceatus incedat:cujusmodi … ejusmodi "of what kind … of that kind" are a correlative pair, like English "as … so": cujusmodi opens this half and ejusmodi the next sentence. illud quod dici solet "that which is usually said" is the common saying, given in the accusative and infinitive that follows.
• V.8 ejusmodi quiddam est, et quod huic vel illi coordinavit universi natura, ut morbo teneatur, corpore mutiletur, liberos amittat, aut aliud tale quippiam.ejusmodi answers cujusmodi in the last sentence: "of that kind too is …". The subject of est is the clause quod … coordinavit universi natura "(the saying) that the nature of the universe has prescribed"; quod is the conjunction "that", and et means "also".
• V.8 et quemadmodum ex cunctis corporibus mundus iste, quo corpus ejusmodi sit, consummatur; ita ex caussis universis, quo caussa sit ejusmodi fatum conficitur.quemadmodum … ita "just as … so". As the world is one body made up of all bodies, so fate is one cause made up of all causes. Each thing that happens to us is one of the causes that make up fate, as each stone is part of the wall.
• V.8 ejusmodi itaque quiddam videatur tibi, eorum quae naturae communi visa sunt, perfectio et consummatio, cujusmodi est valetudo tua.
• V.8 altera, quod tibi natum, et tibi coordinatum, et ad te quodammodo affectum est, a caussis antiquissimis retro tibi contextum.altera … altera (in the next sentence) "the one … the other": altera agrees with ratio understood from duplici ratione. Each reason is a quod clause, "because …".
• V.8 altera, quod universi gubernatori prosperitatis et consummationis, atque adeo permansionis ipsius procurandae ex parte caussa sit.
• V.8 mutilatur enim integrum ipsum, si quid vel minimum abscindas a connexione et continuitate, ut partium universi, ita et caussarum.ut … ita et "as … so also": the connection and continuity are of the parts of the universe and equally of the causes. The world is one body and fate one cause, as Marcus said above.
• V.9 nec, tanquam ad paedagogum, ad philosophiam redeas; sed quomodo ad ovum et penicillum, qui oculis laborant, quomodo ad emplastrum alius, alius ad perfusionem, confugit.
• V.10 altero nimirum, nihil obtingere sibi posse, quod non sit universi naturae consentaneum; altero, in sua esse potestate situm, ut nihil faciat praeter genii Deique sui voluntatem.altero … altero "in the one … in the other" take up duobus hisce; each is explained by an accusative and infinitive: nihil obtingere sibi posse "that nothing can befall him", and in sua esse potestate situm "that it lies in his own power". sibi and sua refer to quemque, the man consoling himself.
• V.13 mutationis autem hujusmodi opera et ipse extiti, et qui me genuerant, atque ita retro in aliud infinitum.
• V.15 ista enim nec ab homine exiguntur, nec pollicetur ea natura humana, nec ad eam perficiendam ferunt.
• V.15 nec proinde in istis consistit, aut naturae humanae finis, aut bonum aliquod quod ad finem hunc conficiendum conducat.The verb comes first and its two subjects after it, linked by aut … aut "either … or"; after nec this amounts to "neither … nor". consistere in "to consist in, to lie in". A man's end and his good lie in the same place; since these things do not touch his nature, they hold neither.
• V.16 Talis futura est mens tua, qualia ea sunt quae creberrime cogitaveris.talis … qualis "such … as" is a pair: talis points forward and qualis answers it. Each agrees with its own noun: talis with mens (feminine singular), qualia with ea (neuter plural). Word for word: "of such a kind will your mind be, of what kind are the things which you will have thought most often"; in English, "your mind will be like the things you think about most".
• V.18 aliis eadem contigere, qui vel casuum suorum ignari, vel animi magni specimen dare cupidi, immoti illaesique manserunt.Two reasons, "either … or": they did not know what had happened to them, or they wanted to show a great spirit. ignarus "not knowing" takes a genitive, casuum suorum "of their own mishaps". cupidi "eager" here takes an infinitive, dare; classical prose would rather say cupidi dandi. specimen dare "to give proof".
• V.19 qualia autem decreta fuerint, quibus ipsa in se locum dederit, talia facit sibi adventitia quaeque.qualis … talis again, now with qualia first: "of whatever kind its judgements are, of that kind it makes …". qualia agrees with decreta, talia with adventitia. facere aliquid tale "to make a thing such": the soul gives outward events the character of its own judgements, as in §16 the mind takes the character of its thoughts.
• V.20 ita fit, ut et quod opus meum hoc inhibet, ad opus conducat; et ad viam conferat, quod viae initae obstabat.
• V.23 qui igitur non pro fatuo merito habeatur, qui istis vel inflatur, vel cruciatur, vel de re aliqua, quae ad spatium perbreve molestiam exhibeat, quiritatur, quasi diu id fiat.The second qui is the relative "who", with three verbs joined by vel … vel … vel "either … or … or". istis "by these things", the things that pass so quickly, is an ablative of cause with the first two: puffed up by them, or tormented by them. quiritatur "complains loudly" is a passive form with an active meaning, as if from a deponent quiritor; in Book IV Gataker used the active quiritantes.
• V.26 sed sistenda partis principalis censura, ne de his tanquam aut bonis aut malis sententiam ullam ferat.
• V.28 (Nec tragoedus, nec scortum.)
• V.34 communia sunt animae ratione praeditae, sive Dei, sive hominis sive alius alicujus animantis duo ista:The subject comes last: duo ista "these two things" communia sunt "are common" to animae ratione praeditae "a soul endowed with reason" (communis takes the dative). The soul may be sive Dei, sive hominis sive alius alicujus animantis "whether of a god, or of a man, or of any other living being": what follows holds for every rational being alike, divine or human.
• VI.1 mens rectrix ejusdem, nullam in se maleficii caussam habet; cum malitiam in se nullam habeat; neque malefacit cuiquam, nec a quoquam laeditur.neque … nec "neither … nor". malefacit "does harm" takes the dative, cuiquam "to anyone"; the second half turns the same thought round into the passive, with a quoquam "by anyone" for the agent: the mind can neither harm nor be harmed. quisquam "anyone" is the indefinite used in negative sentences; cuiquam is its dative and quoquam its ablative.
• VI.2 item utrum dormituriens, an somni satur; male audiens, an collaudatus; moriens itidem, an aliud quid agens.utrum … an "whether … or" frames a double question; each pair is a further case of the question just asked, with feceris understood. dormituriens "wanting to sleep" is from dormiturio, a verb of desire made from dormio "sleep". satur "full" takes a genitive: somni satur "full of sleep", well rested.
• VI.4 Praesentia haec omnia quam citissime mutabuntur; et vel in exhalationem abibunt, (siquidem unita sit rerum omnium substantia) vel dissipabuntur.vel … vel "either … or" sets out two possible ends. If the world is one unified substance, as the Stoics held, things will pass back into the whole as vapour; if it is a mass of atoms, as the Epicureans held, they will be scattered. Either way they will not last.
• VI.8 Pars animae principalis se suscitat, se vertit; se facit, qualem ipsa voluerit;
• VI.8 quaeque contingunt quaelibet, talia sibi videri facit, qualia ipsa voluerit.facere with an infinitive is "to make (something) do": videri facit "makes (them) seem". talia … qualia "such … as" pair up: "it makes them seem to itself such as it wishes". The events do not change; the ruling part's judgement of them does.
• VI.9 neque enim secundum aliam ullam, quae vel exterius contineat, vel interius contineatur, vel extra etiam quasi appensa sit.
• VI.10 Universum aut est cinnus quidam rerum, nunc concursu fortuito invicem implexarum, mox dissipatarum denuo;aut … aut "either … or": the first aut is here, the second opens the next sentence. This is the great either-or of the Meditations: the world is either a chance jumble of atoms, as Epicurus taught, or an ordered whole governed by providence, as the Stoics taught. cinnus is a mixed drink, Gataker's word for the Greek kykeon, a potion of barley, cheese and wine stirred together: a jumble. quidam "a kind of" softens the metaphor.
• VI.10 aut est compages rerum in unum ordine justo convenientium, quae providentia regatur.
• VI.12 ad hanc saepius accede, hac acquiesce, cujus ope, cum quae ibi occurrunt tibi futura sunt toleratu facilia, tum et ipse in eis toleratu facilis.cujus ope "by whose help", philosophy's. cum … tum "both … and also" joins two results: the things you meet there, at court, will be bearable, and so will you. The subject of the first half is the whole clause quae ibi occurrunt "what you meet there"; with the second half, supply futurus es "you will be".
• VI.13 Quemadmodum de obsoniis atque eduliis ejusmodi cogitare licet, hoc piscis esse cadaver, hoc avis, hoc suis:quemadmodum "just as" opens a comparison that runs through the next sentences. Its other half comes only after all the examples, at ad eundem modum "in the same way": as we may think of food, wine, purple and sex, so we must deal with everything in life.
• VI.13 gravis enim impostor fastus est; et tum maxime effascinat, cum circa ea quis versatur, quae studio digna videntur.tum … cum "then … when": "it bewitches most at the very time when …". cum with the indicative here simply marks the time. quis is the indefinite "one, anyone"; versari circa "to be busy about". dignus "worthy" takes the ablative: studio digna "worthy of zeal", things that seem serious and important. That is just when pride is most dangerous.
• VI.14 Eorum quae vulgus hominum admiratur, pleraque ad generalissima rerum capita referuntur, quae vel forma mera vel natura continentur; qualia sunt lapides, ligna, ficus, vites, oleae:
• VI.15 quale enim quiddam est aerem semel traxisse, mox reddere, quod momentis singulis facimus; tale quiddam est et totam illam respirandi facultatem, quam heri et nudiustertius in ortu acceperas, eo redonare, unde primo hauseras.quale … tale "of what sort … of that sort" compares two acts done with breath: "what kind of thing it is to …, that kind of thing it is to …". Each est has infinitives as its subject: first traxisse … reddere, then redonare. Both adjectives are neuter, agreeing with quiddam "something".
• VI.16 Non est aestimatione multa dignum, aut perspirari, quod et plantarum est; aut respirare, quod et pecudum et belluarum est; aut a sensibus rerum imagines impressas admittere;
• VI.16 non tu desines tandem in pretio alia multa habere? nec liber itaque futurus es, nec tibi sufficies, nec perturbationibus immunis eris.
• VI.16 at contra mentem propriam si in veneratione ac honore habueris, et tibi gratum id te faciat, et communioni accommodum, et Diis consentientem, dum quaecunque illi attribuunt ac constituunt, laudas.facere with an object and a predicate means "to make (someone) so": id te faciat gratum "this would make you pleasing". et … et … et "both … and … and" joins three predicates, each with its dative: tibi gratum "pleasing to yourself", communioni accommodum "suited to fellowship", Diis consentientem "in harmony with the Gods" (a present participle used as an adjective). id "this" is holding your mind in honour.
• VI.18 eos, qui eodem secum tempore vivunt, laudare cum renuant; ipsi a posteris, qui eos nec norint unquam nec viderint, celebrari plurimi faciunt.
• VI.21 Si quis convincere me poterit, palamque mihi facere, quod in re ulla minus recte vel sentiam vel me geram, laeto lubentique animo mutabo.minus recte "less than rightly" is a polite way of saying "wrongly". vel … vel "either … or" covers both thought and action: sentire "to think, hold an opinion", se gerere "to behave".
• VI.22 aut enim sunt inanima, aut rationis expertia, aut aberrantia, viaeque nescia.aut … aut "either … or", here three times, sets out sharply distinct alternatives. They are the kinds of thing that might trouble us: things without soul (stones, wood), things without reason (beasts), and men who have lost their way.
• VI.24 vel enim in easdem mundi rationes seminales recepti, vel in atomos pariter sunt dissipati.vel … vel "either … or", like aut … aut in 6.22, sets out the two accounts of the world that Marcus often weighs: the Stoic, in which all things are taken back into the reason of the universe, and the Epicurean, in which they fall apart into atoms. Either way, king and muleteer end alike.
• VI.25 Cogita tecum, quot intra nostrum unumquemque, tam in corpore, quam et in anima, uno eodemque temporis momento simul fiant.tam … quam "as much … as", here simply "both … and"; et adds "also". uno eodemque temporis momento "in one and the same moment of time" is an ablative of time.
• VI.26 quibus observatis, oportet te nec perturbatum, nec indignationem indignatione pensantem, sed recta pergentem perficere quod prae manibus est.
• VI.30 contende, talis ut persistas, qualem facere te philosophia volebat.talis … qualis "such … as". Each word takes the case its own clause needs: talis is nominative with persistas ("that you remain such"), qualem accusative with te facere ("to make you such").
• VI.36 proveniunt indidem universa, a mente communi illa vel directe profecta, vel per consequentiam necessariam;vel … vel "either … or": things come from the common mind either as it intends them, or as necessary side effects of what it intends.
• VI.37 Qui praesentia vidit, cuncta vidit, tum quae ab aeterno fuere, tum quae in aeternum futura sunt.tum … tum "both … and" spells out cuncta: what has been "from eternity" (ab aeterno) and what will be "to eternity" (in aeternum, "for ever"). The Stoics held that the world runs the same course again and again, so that every age shows the same kinds of thing: one honest look at the present is a look at all of time.
• VI.37 cuncta enim et cognata sunt et uniformia.
• VI.38 alterum enim alterius consequens est, et per connexionem localem, et per conspirationem mutuam, et per materiae continuitatem.Three ties bind the world: things touch one another in space (connexio localis "connection in place"); they act in concert, conspiratio, literally "a breathing together", the Stoic idea that one breath or spirit runs through the whole world; and they are made of one continuous stuff (materiae continuitas), with no gaps between them.
• VI.41 necesse erit, ut ubi istiusmodi vel in malum incideris, vel bono excideris, Deos incuses, oderis homines, qui horum alterutrius tibi vel autores fuerint, vel etiam fore suspicaris.
• VI.41 at si ea sola, quae arbitrii sunt nostri, bona malaque censuerimus, nulla jam supererit amplius caussa, aut Deum incusandi, aut inimicitias adversus hominem quenquam gerendi.
• VI.42 Ad unum eundemque effectum operam conferunt universi suam, alii scientes ac intelligentes, alii effectionis inscii.alii … alii "some … others". Some work knowingly, as rational beings can; others, without knowing it, do their share all the same. inscius "not knowing" takes the genitive: effectionis inscii "unaware of the doing", i.e. of what they are bringing about.
• VI.42 ex abundanti vero et is qui quiritatur, et qui in adversum nititur, et qui ea quae fiunt, tollere conatur.
• VI.42 tu vero cave pars ejusmodi sis, qualis in fabula vilis et ridiculus versus ille, cujus meminit Chrysippus.
• VI.44 ecquid enim vel illis ipsis, vel universo, cujus praecipue curam gerunt, inde accederet?
• VI.46 Quemadmodum afficere te solent ea quae in theatro locisque ejusmodi repraesentantur, ut eadem semper uniformiter exhibita, spectandi satietatem pariant: eodem modo et in vita tota sis affectus.Quemadmodum "just as" is answered by eodem modo "in the same way": the first half says how the shows affect you, the second tells you to feel the same about life. The Greek speaks of the amphitheatre, with its gladiators and beast-hunts; the ancient Life of Marcus says that he read and signed papers while the games went on.
• VI.47 Istud jugiter cogita, omnis generis, omniumque tam studiorum, quam et nationum, homines, mortem obiisse.These genitives describe homines: "men of every kind". tam … quam et "as much … as also" links two kinds of difference, studiorum "pursuits, walks of life" and nationum "nations"; omnium "all" goes with both.
• VI.49 Sicut enim staturae, sic et temporis, quantum assignatum est tibi, tanto contentus sis oportet.quantum … tanto "as much as … with so much" is a correlative pair: quantum is the subject of assignatum est "has been allotted", and tanto the ablative with contentus "content (with)". The genitives staturae "of stature" and temporis "of time" depend on quantum: "as much of stature, and so of time, as has been allotted".
• VII.3 intelligere nihilominus, tanti quemque esse, quanti illud est in quo studium posuerit.Latin puts the worth of a thing in the genitive, the genitive of value: tanti "of so much (worth)", quanti "of how much". As a pair of correlatives, tanti … quanti means "worth as much … as": tanti quemque esse, quanti illud est "that each man is worth as much as that thing is worth". It is an accusative and infinitive after intelligere, with quemque "each one" as subject and esse as verb.
• VII.4 et in altero quidem, quid designetur; in altero vero, quorsum referatur, considerandum.alter … alter "the one … the other (of two)": the first altero is conversation, the second the undertaking, in the order just named. quidem … vero balances them: "in the one case … in the other".
• VII.5 si non sufficit, aut opus illi concedo, qui me melius id efficere potest, nisi aliter ad officium meum pertinuerit;
• VII.5 vel quod possum facio, eo adscito qui mentis meae opera usus id possit, quod ad societatem humanam est hoc ipso tempore tempestivum ac utile.
• VII.5 quicquid enim, vel per me, vel cum alio fecero, ad id duntaxat tendere fas est, quod est societati utile et congruum.vel … vel "either … or": per me "through myself, on my own", cum alio "with another", the two ways just described.
• VII.9 Omnia sunt sibi invicem implexa, et vinculo quodam sacro sibi invicem sic devincta, ut nihil alterum ab altero sit alienum.
• VII.9 etenim et mundus unus, et Deus unus est in omnibus, et materia una, et lex una; ratio nempe animantium intelligentium omnium communis; et veritas una:A chain of et … et … "both … and …" with one verb, est, serving every member: "there is one world, and one God in all things, and one matter, and one law …". unus, una are predicates: "the world is one, God is one". in omnibus "in all things" goes with Deus: one God present throughout everything (the Greek says "through all").
• VII.11 Animali ratione praedito eadem actio est, et secundum naturam, et secundum rationem.et … et "both … and"; secundum with the accusative means "according to". The point is Stoic: the nature of a rational creature is reason, so acting by nature and acting by reason are one and the same act.
• VII.12 Aut rectus, aut erectus sis.aut … aut "either … or". rectus "straight, upright" is the man who stands by himself; erectus, the perfect passive participle of erigo "raise up, set upright", is the man who has been set upright by someone or something else. In 3.5 Marcus asked for the first only (Rectum … non surrectum esse oportet); here he allows the second as the next best.
• VII.13 Quomodo se habent in continuis corporis membra, eodem se habent in dissitis quae ratione sunt praedita.se habere "to hold oneself" means "to be in a certain state, to stand in a certain relation". eodem is the ablative of idem with modo understood, answering Quomodo: "in what way … in the same (way)". The first habent has the subject membra; the second has the whole clause quae ratione sunt praedita.
• VII.15 Quicquid vel fecerit vel dixerit quisquam, probum esse me oportet.
• VII.16 eademque ratione et perturbatione et impedimento omni immunis, nisi ipsa se perturbaverit aut impediverit.
• VII.18 ecquid autem aut gratius aut familiarius universi naturae?
• VII.19 idem tibi de quovis tum homine, tum re succurrat.tum … tum "both … and": "about any man and any thing whatever". One quovis serves both nouns; with re alone it would be quavis.
• VII.20 Hoc unum me solicitum habet, nequid ipse faciam, quod hominis conditio vel minus velit, vel secus velit, vel nunc nolit.Three cases joined by vel … vel … vel "either … or … or": what our nature does not want at all, what it wants done another way, and what it does not want at this moment. minus velit is literally "wants less", a polite way of saying "does not want"; secus is "otherwise". The verbs are subjunctive because the relative clause stands inside the subjunctive ne clause.
• VII.22 hoc fiet, si una succurrat tibi, tum esse tibi cognatos, tum inscios invitosque peccare: adhaec, paulo post utrosque vestrum morti concessuros: prae omnibus denique, nihil eos te laesisse.
• VII.26 hoc enim perspecto, misereberis illius, nec aut miraberis, aut succensebis.nec aut … aut "and not either … or": "and you will neither be surprised nor angry".
• VII.26 forsan enim vel idem illud, quod ille, vel aliud quidpiam ejusmodi, ipse pariter cum illo bonum esse opinaris.
• VII.26 sin ejusmodi nec bona nec mala censueris, ex errore animi delinquentem aequanimiter feras.
• VII.27 Non tam quae desunt tibi, quam quae adsunt, cogita.non tam … quam "not so much … as". Each half is a relative clause with no antecedent, standing as an object of cogita: quae desunt tibi "(the things) which are lacking to you", quae adsunt "(the things) which are at hand". desum "be missing" and adsum "be present" are compounds of sum. The Greek says rather "do not think of what is absent as if it were already here"; Gataker's Latin makes it a comparison.
• VII.29 dignosce, quicquid vel tibi, vel alii cuiquam contingit.
• VII.32 Mortem quod attinet, sive fuerit dissipatio, sive in atomos redactio, sive exinanitio; vel est extinctio, vel translatio.sive … sive … sive "whether … or … or" sets out three accounts of what happens at death, and the one verb fuerit "it be" (perfect subjunctive, used like a present) serves all three. in atomos redactio "a reduction into atoms" keeps the in with the accusative of its verb, redigere in "reduce into": this is the Epicurean view. exinanitio is "an emptying out", from inanis "empty".Whatever the physics, there are two outcomes: vel … vel "either … or", the self is put out like a flame, or it moves elsewhere (the Greek says "a change of home"). Gataker's list of three sive clauses departs from the Greek, which reads roughly "a scattering, if there are atoms; but if we are a unity, either extinction or a change of home".
• VII.34 Quod ad gloriam, animos eorum, a quibus ea expetitur, considera, quales existant, et qualia tum fugiant, tum et sectentur.
• VII.34 illud item dispice, sicut arenarum cumuli alii aliis superingesti priora abscondunt; perinde in vita contingere, ut antegressa a succedentibus quam celerrime abscondantur.
• VII.35 Cui igitur animus sublimis fuerit, quique et tempus omne, et substantiam omnem contempletur; nunquid huic magnum quiddam putas posse videri hominis vitam?
• VII.40 Spicas velut frugiferas, sic vitam meti: Ut hic sit, ille non sit.velut … sic "as … so" sets the picture beside the thing: "as fruitful ears (are reaped), so life is reaped". spicas is accusative because it stands in the same construction as vitam; velut comes second in its phrase, as often in verse.
• VII.50 aut hoc est atomorum invicem implexorum dissolutio, aut elementorum sensus expertium dispersio.Marcus's own comment on the verses. aut … aut 'either … or' sets out the two accounts of death he often puts side by side: the Epicurean, for whom we are atoms that come apart, and the Stoic, for whom we are elements scattered back into the whole. On either view death is only a coming apart.
• VII.54 Omni loco omnique tempore, in te situm est, et casu praesenti pie acquiescere, et cum hominibus praesentibus secundum jus fasque versari, et visa praesentia perite explorare, nequid incompertum clam subrepat.
• VII.55 est enim hoc motus rationalis et intellectualis proprium, circumscribere semet, et nec sensus nec affectus motibus unquam superari: animalis enim uterque est.nec … nec 'neither … nor'. sensus and affectus are genitive singular (fourth declension), and both depend on motibus: 'by the movements neither of sense nor of passion'. With unquam 'ever' the negative becomes 'never'.
• VII.60 quale enim in vultu specimen sui exhibet mens, dum scite eum atque decenter componit; tale quiddam et in toto corpore exigitur.qualis … talis "of what kind … of that kind": quale specimen sui exhibet mens "the sort of display of itself the mind gives", answered by tale quiddam … exigitur "something of that sort is required". English turns it round: "what the mind shows of itself in the face, the like is required of the whole body". sui is the genitive of the reflexive pronoun, "of itself", referring to mens.
• VII.62 ita neque aut incusabis eos, ubi impingunt inviti, nec approbationem eorum expetes, si opinionis affectuumque fontes quos habeant, perspexeris.neque … nec "neither … nor". The aut after neque is Gataker's own, for his edition (1652) prints it so: he seems to have begun "neque aut … aut" ("neither … or") and finished with nec. After a negative, aut only carries the "not" on, so it adds nothing to the sense. Read it as "you will neither blame them … nor seek their approval".
• VII.65 Cave erga inhumanos sic afficiaris, quomodo ipsi erga homines solent.
• VII.68 etenim semper mihi praesens res omnis materiam praebet virtutis rationalis et socialis, artisque prorsus vel humanae vel divinae exercendae.
• VII.68 siquidem quicquid contingit, vel ad hominem spectat vel ad Deum, nec aut novum est, aut tractatu difficile, sed familiare et facile.spectare ad "to look towards" means "to concern, bear on". vel … vel "either … or": every event belongs either to man's sphere or to God's.
• VII.69 Hoc in se habet morum perfectio, quod diem omnem tanquam novissimum exigit, nec aut festinat, aut torpescit, aut simulate quicquam agit.nec "and not" negates all three aut clauses: "and neither rushes, nor grows sluggish, nor does anything with pretence". torpescere is an inchoative verb in -sco, "begin to be numb": "sink into sluggishness".
• VII.72 Quicquid intellectualis socialisque facultas, nec ad intellectum nec ad usum socialem facere deprehenderit, idipsum inferius se merito judicat.
• VII.75 nunc vero, aut quicquid fit, consequentiae necessariae lege certa producitur, aut principalia etiam illa, ad quae mundi mens peculiariter intenta est, ratione nulla gubernantur.aut … aut "either … or" sets out a dilemma. Either everything that happens follows by fixed, necessary consequence from nature's first impulse, or even the chief things, those the world's mind most aims at, are governed by no reason at all. To a Stoic the second is absurd, so the first must hold: whatever happens belongs to the plan.
• VIII.1 siquidem cum aliis haud paucis, tum et tibiipsi compertum est, a philosophia longe te abesse.cum … tum means "both … and above all": the second member is the weightier. haud paucis "not few" means "a good many", saying less to mean more; et here is "also". tibiipsi is tibi ipsi "to you yourself", written as one word, as Gataker often joins a pronoun to ipse: "and to you yourself too".
• VIII.7 haec autem et tempora, et materiam, et formam, et facultates, et casus ex aequo distribuit singulis quibusque pro uniuscujusque dignitate.Five objects, each with et: "times, matter, form, powers and events", that is, how long a thing lasts, what it is made of, what it is, what it can do, and what befalls it. The repeated et gives each item its weight.
• VIII.9 Nemo, aut vitam aulicam, aut tuam etiam, insimulantem te audiat.aut … aut "either … or" sets out the two things not to be blamed; after nemo English may say "either … or" or "neither … nor". tuam agrees with vitam understood: "or even your own (life)". vitam aulicam is life at court (aula), the life Marcus led as emperor.
• VIII.10 neque utile itaque, neque bonum voluptas est.utile and bonum are neuter although voluptas is feminine: a neuter adjective in the predicate means "a useful thing, a good". neque … neque "neither … nor"; itaque "and so" draws the conclusion.
• VIII.12 Quando somnum gravatim excutis, reminiscere, et conditioni tuae et naturae humanae consentaneum esse, ut actiones ad communitatem conducentes edas, cum dormire etiam brutis animantibus commune sit.
• VIII.15 Memineris, aeque turpe esse mirari quenquam tanquam de re insueta, quod ea mundus, quorum ferax est, profert; ac mirari quenquam, quod ficus ficus ferat, aut mirari medicum, quod quis febricitaverit, gubernatorem, quod ventus adversus flaverit.
• VIII.16 Memineris, aeque tibi liberum esse sententiam mutare et corrigenti parere, atque in re cepta ulla persistere.
• VIII.18 istic autem si manet ac mutat, istic et in sua, quae et mundi et tui eadem sunt, elementa resolvitur.
• VIII.20 Natura rei cujusque rationem habet; tam finem, quam ortum et durationem, quod attinet: quemadmodum et is qui pilam mittit, pilae pariter rationem habet.tam … quam "as much … as". quod attinet "as far as concerns, as regards" is usually followed by ad; here Gataker sets the accusatives before it with no ad: "as regards its end as much as its beginning and its duration". Nature plans a thing's ending as surely as its coming to be.
• VIII.20 ecquid autem pilae, vel sursum missae boni, vel descendenti cadentique mali?
• VIII.21 brevis autem est vitae et qui celebrat, et qui celebratur; et qui commemorat pariter, et qui commemoratur.
• VIII.21 adhaec et in plagae istius angulo duntaxat id geritur; ubi etiam neque omnes inter se consentiunt, neque quisquam sibi.
• VIII.22 Animum adverte praesenti vel decreto, vel facto, vel dicto.
• VIII.24 tale quiddam est et vitae pars quaevis, et materia subjecta quaelibet.
• VIII.25 quin et solertes illi, aut futurorum praescii, aut fastu inflati, ubinam jam sunt?
• VIII.25 alii nec brevem sui memoriam sunt consecuti; alii in fabulas abierunt; alii etiam e fabulis evanuerunt.alii … alii … alii "some … others … others": three fates of the dead, each worse than the last. nec here means "not even" (= ne … quidem): some did not win even a short memory of themselves. sui "of themselves" is the genitive of the reflexive, depending on memoriam.
• VIII.25 horum ergo memineris, aut compagem tui dissipatum iri, aut extinctum spiritum, aut migraturum, atque alibi iri dispositum.
• VIII.28 Dolor aut est corpori malum. quod si sit, corpus id censeat. aut animae.aut … aut "either … or" frames the sentence: pain is an evil corpori "to the body" or animae "to the soul", both datives. Gataker sets off the aside between them with full stops. The second half is cut short: supply malum est.
• VIII.30 Et in senatu, et apud quemlibet privatim, curae sit modeste potius quam diserte loqui.
• VIII.34 talem plane se facit, quantum in ipso est, qui abscindit sese, dum vel id quod contingit non vult, vel adversus societatis jus aliquid perpetrat.vel … vel "either … or" names the two ways of cutting oneself off: not willing what happens, i.e. resenting the course of nature, and doing something against societatis jus "the law of fellowship", the bond with other men. dum "while" here comes close to "in that, by".
• VIII.34 Verum benignitatem ejus considera, qua hominem cohonestavit: cum et in ipso posuerit, ne primitus ab universo revelleretur, et facultatem tribuerit, ubi fuerit revulsus, redeundi denuoque coalescendi, et partis ordinem, quem tenuerat, recuperandi.
• VIII.35 Sicut reliquas facultates rationalium unusquisque fere ab universi natura accepit; ita hanc nos ab eadem facultatem accepimus:sicut … ita "just as … so" sets the two halves side by side: the other powers each rational being has received, and the one power Marcus is about to name. fere "more or less" softens the claim.
• VIII.35 quod quemadmodum illa quicquid obstat et renititur, in usum suum circumvertit, et in fato disponit, atque ita partem sui facit;quod "namely that" spells out hanc facultatem; its own verb, possit, does not come until the next part, after a comparison: quemadmodum illa … ita et animal rationale "just as she … so the rational creature too". illa "she" is the nature of the universe.
• VIII.35 ita et animal rationale, ex impedimento omni materiam creare sibi possit, eoque uti ad illud quod intenderat, quodcunque tandem id fuerit.
• VIII.36 tum cogita tecum, nec quod futurum est, nec quod praeteritum est, sed id semper duntaxat quod praesens est, molestiam tibi facessere.nec … nec … sed "neither … nor … but": the future is not yet and the past is gone, so only the present can weigh on you. semper duntaxat "always only" presses the point.
• VIII.41 at, si id quod communiter fieri solet, tibi proponebas, nondum aut laesus es, aut impeditus etiam.aut … aut "either … or" after the negative nondum "not yet": "you have not yet been either harmed or even hindered". laesus es is the perfect passive of laedo; supply es again with impeditus. etiam "even" goes with impeditus: far from being harmed, you have not even been hindered.
• VIII.41 hanc enim nec ignis, nec ferrum, nec tyrannus, nec vituperium, nec aliud quidlibet attingit, ubi facta fuerit sphaerae instar, teres tota atque rotunda.hanc "it" is the mind, the object, put first. Then five subjects, each with nec "neither … nor", share one singular verb, attingit "touches". ferrum "iron" means the sword or the executioner's blade; aliud quidlibet "anything else you please".
• VIII.44 qui famam posthumam affectant potius, non cogitant, alios quosdam ejusmodi fore posteros illos, quales isti sunt, quos nunc gravatim ferunt.
• VIII.46 Si ergo contingit id cuique, quod et usui et naturae ejus est consentaneum, quid est, aegre quod feras?
• VIII.50 adeo ut nec materia extranea opus habeat, nec quo putrefacta projiciat, desideret.
• VIII.50 ita contenta manet et loco suo, et materia sua, et arte sibi propria.contenta "content" takes the ablative, here three of them joined by et … et … et. proprius "one's own" takes a dative: sibi propria "proper to herself". The words echo §48, where the mind too stays se contenta, content with itself.
• VIII.51 Nec in actionibus languidus; nec in congressibus turbidus sis; nec in cogitationibus vagus;
• VIII.52 qui nescit ad quid natus sit, nec quis ipse, nec quid mundus sit, novit.nec … nec "neither … nor" with two more indirect questions; with quis ipse supply sit. novit "he knows" is the perfect of nosco "get to know", used as a present: having learnt, one knows.
• VIII.52 qualis ergo tibi videtur is, qui vanos hominum eorum plausus vel aversatur vel aucupatur, qui nec ubi sint, nec qui sint ipsi, norunt?vel … vel "either … or". The noun plausus (accusative plural, "applause") comes last, after vanos "empty" and hominum eorum "of those men". aversari "to turn away from" and aucupari "to go bird-catching, lie in wait for" are deponents. Shunning praise and angling for it are one mistake: both take it seriously.
• VIII.54 Curae tibi deinceps sit, non tam cum aere ambiente te conspirare, quam menti cuncta ambienti consentire.non tam … quam "not so much … as" weighs two aims against each other, and the halves match. conspirare is literally "to breathe together" (con- + spirare), consentire "to feel together, agree" (con- + sentire); the air that surrounds you answers the mind that surrounds all things. For the Stoics a divine reason fills the world as the air fills the space round our bodies.
• VIII.57 ibi autem consistit, et nec delabitur, nec decidit.nec … nec "neither … nor". delabitur "slips down" is a deponent (delabor). decidit "falls off" comes from decido = de + cado "fall", with a short i, not from decido = de + caedo "cut off". consistit "stands still, stays": the light rests on the body it meets.
• VIII.58 Qui mortem formidat, vel sensus extinctionem, vel aliusmodi aliquem sensum formidat.vel … vel "either … or" sets out the two things death can be: the end of all feeling, or a change to a different kind of feeling. sensus is genitive singular of the 4th declension (sensūs), with extinctionem "the putting out of sensation" (extinctio is Gataker's spelling of exstinctio). aliusmodi "of another kind" (alius modi) is an indeclinable genitive of description.
• VIII.59 itaque aut doce, aut sustine.
• VIII.60 Aliter sagitta, aliter mens fertur.aliter … aliter "in one way … in another": the verb fertur is said once for both subjects. fertur, the passive of fero "carry", means "is carried, moves".
• VIII.60 mens enim tam cum cavet, quam cum considerat, recta fertur, nec minus ad scopum sibi propositum tendit.
• IX.3 cujusmodi enim res est, adolescere, senescere, crescere, adultum esse, barbatum esse, dentire, canescere, serere, praegnantem esse, parere, aliaque id genus opera naturalia, quae vitae tuae secum ferunt aetates, ejusmodi plane res est et dissolvi.cujusmodi … ejusmodi "of what kind … of that kind" are a pair: "whatever kind of thing growing up … is, that very kind of thing is being dissolved too". Both are genitives of description with res. The long list between them is the subject of the first est; dissolvi is the subject of the second.
• IX.3 hominis est igitur considerati, nec temerarie, nec impetuose, nec fastuose adversus mortem se gerere: sed tanquam opus naturale, eam praestolari,se gerere "to carry oneself" means "to behave". The three adverbs, joined by nec … nec … nec "neither … nor … nor", say how not to behave adversus mortem "towards death": neither rushing at it, nor hurrying it on, nor looking down on it.
• IX.3 quo modo nunc praestolaris, donec uxoris tuae utero foetus prodeat. ita expectanda est hora, qua animula tua involucro isti excidet.quo modo "in the way in which" sets two kinds of waiting side by side: a father's for a birth, and a man's for his own death. The first half hangs on praestolari at the end of the sentence before; Gataker then puts a full stop and begins the second half with ita "so, in the same way", which takes up the comparison. praestolaris looks passive, but praestolor is deponent: "you wait".
• IX.5 Saepenumero contingit ut injuste agat, tam qui non facit aliquid, quam et qui facit.tam … quam "as much … as" joins two relative clauses, each without an antecedent and each a subject of agat: "the one who does not do something, as much as the one who does". et after quam means "also". The point is that leaving undone what one ought to do is injustice too.
• IX.10 Fructum fert et homo, et Deus, et mundus. et in propria tempestate fert horum unumquodque,et … et … et is "both … and … and": man, God and the world all bear fruit. The verb fert comes first and is singular because each subject is thought of by itself: man bears fruit, God bears fruit, the world bears fruit.
• IX.10 ratio vero fructum habet et communem et proprium. oriunturque ex ea alia ejusmodi, cujusmodi ipsa est ratio.et … et "both … and". Reason's fruit is communis, shared with all rational beings, and proprius, its own; both adjectives agree with fructum.oriuntur is a deponent, passive in form but active in meaning, "they arise, spring". ejusmodi … cujusmodi "of such a kind … of what kind" is a correlative pair: "of the same kind as reason itself is". Reason's fruit is more reason, in others and in ourselves.
• IX.12 sed hoc unum velis, ita moveri motumve sistere, prout ratio civilis exigit.ita … prout "in such a way … as". ratio civilis is the reason of a member of a city, the reason that looks to the common good: act or hold back just as that requires.
• IX.15 Res ipsae foris apud semet consistunt; nec de se quicquam aut norunt ipsae, aut narrant nobis.
• IX.16 Non in passione, sed actione situm est, rationalis ac civilis animantis bonum malumque: quo modo nec virtus vitiumve illius in passione, sed in actione consistit.quo modo "in the way in which" means "just as". nec … vitiumve is "not … or": neither its virtue nor its vice lies in being acted upon. illius "of that (being)" is the rational and social creature.
• IX.23 Sicut ipse es ad coetum civilem complendum constitutus: ita actio tua quaevis ad vitam ejusmodi consummandam referatur.
• IX.23 quaecunque igitur actio tua ad finem hunc vel immediate vel mediate non tendit, ita vitam tuam divellit, nec unam eandemque esse patitur,vel … vel "either … or". immediate and mediate are not classical but the Latin of the schools, from mediatus "with something in between": immediate "directly", with nothing between the act and the end, mediate "indirectly", through some other step. They render the Greek "near at hand or from afar".
• IX.28 mens autem universi vel ad singula quaeque se promovet. quod si fuerit, ad quod illa se promoverit, tu excipe.mens universi "the mind of the universe" is the Stoic world-reason, God thought of as the mind of the whole. This vel "either" is the first of three, each opening an account of how the world is run: here, the world-mind acts afresh for each single thing; next, vel semel operi se admovit, it set to work once and all since follows in a chain; last, vel atomi …, there is no mind at all, only atoms. Each alternative has a sentence of its own.
• IX.28 vel semel operi se admovit; reliqua vero per consequentiam necessariam a primis illis ita profluunt, ut serie quadam continua unum quiddam constituant.The second alternative: the world-mind "set itself to the work once" (semel "once, once for all"; se admovere with the dative, "to apply oneself to"), at the beginning, and since then everything follows of itself, per consequentiam necessariam "by necessary consequence" a primis illis "from those first things", the first acts of the world-mind.
• IX.28 vel atomi et corpora indivisibilia pro rerum principiis habenda erunt.The third alternative is Epicurus's: there is no governing mind, only atoms. corpora indivisibilia "indivisible bodies" translates the Greek word atomos "uncuttable", so the two nouns say the same thing twice. The Greek of this part of the section is uncertain, but the choice between providence and atoms is one Marcus often sets out, as in 4.3.
• IX.30 quod denique, neque memoria, neque gloria, neque ejusmodi quicquam aestimatione ulla dignum est.quod "the fact that", with the indicative, is the last thing to consider. neque … neque … neque "neither … nor … nor"; after these negatives Latin uses quicquam "anything" and ullus "any". dignus "worthy" takes the ablative: aestimatione ulla dignum "worthy of any esteem". The verb and the adjective are singular and neuter, agreeing with the nearest subject, quicquam.
• IX.39 Vel ab una mente, quasi fonte communi, tanquam uni corpori superveniunt universa: nec partem oportet de eis conqueri, quae a toto fiunt.The section is a dilemma, vel … vel "either … or", running over two sentences: Vel ab una mente here, vel atomi obtinent in the next. Either all things come from a single mind, which is Providence, or atoms rule, as Epicurus taught. Either way, the end of the section asks, why be troubled?
• IX.40 Aut nihil possunt Dii, aut possunt.Another dilemma, aut … aut "either … or". possum with a neuter object says how much one can do: nihil possunt "they can do nothing, have no power". The second possunt stands alone: "or they have power". Dii is one of the plurals of deus.
• IX.41 eadem tu, quae ille, sive in morbo, si contigerit, sive in alio quovis casu adverso, feceris.sive … sive "whether … or". si contigerit "if it befalls (you)", with sickness understood as its subject, is another future perfect where English uses the present. alio quovis casu adverso "in any other adverse event whatever": quivis is "any you like", and casus adversus is a misfortune.
• IX.42 peccatum enim proculdubio est tuum, sive quod hominem sic affectum credidisti fidem tibi servaturum, sive beneficium cum dares, quod non absolute dedisti nec tanquam qui totum actionis tuae fructum jam statim percepisses.sive … sive "either … or" sets out two possible reasons, each given by quod "because" with the indicative (credidisti, dedisti), as plain statements of fact.
• IX.42 quemadmodum enim membra ista ad munus aliquod obeundum condita sunt, quod ubi pro conditionis suae ratione obierint, quicquid suum est adepta sunt;
• IX.42 ad eundem et homo cum ad benefaciendum natus sit, ubi beneficum quippiam, aut quod in commune conducat, egerit, illud fecit ad quod conditus est, et quod suum est obtinuit.
• X.1 ecquando futura es plena, rei nullius indiga, nihil desiderans ulterius, nihil expetens vel animatum vel inanime, quo frui tibi volupe sit,
• X.1 ecquando ita affecta futura es, quo cum Deis hominibusque ita verseris, ut nec eos quicquam insimules, neque ab eis ipsa condemneris?
• X.3 Quicquid contingit, vel ita contingit, ut id ferre natus sis, vel ut non sis.
• X.3 memineris tamen, natura esse comparatum te, ad quidlibet ferendum, quod in opinione tua situm est, ut tolerabile faciat, vel conducere tibi, vel officii esse, ut illud facias, censendo.
• X.6 Sive atomi obtinent, sive natura regit universa; hoc primo statuatur, partem esse me universi a natura administrati.sive … sive "whether … or" sets out two views of the world: the Epicurean, in which atoms obtinent "hold sway", and the Stoic, in which a guiding nature governs everything. obtinere without an object is "to prevail". What follows is meant to hold on either view.
• X.7 nunquid autem dicemus, aut naturam ipsam instituisse partes suas malo afficere, et ita condidisse, ut in malum incidere non nata tantum essent, sed in malum etiam necessario inciderent?
• X.7 aut clam ipsa istiusmodi factas esse? neutrum est verisimile.
• X.7 aut est enim elementorum, ex quibus concretum fuerat, dissipatio, aut conversio, quicquid est solidi in terram, quicquid aerii est in aerem;est "there is" has two subjects, dissipatio "a scattering" and conversio "a turning", offered as alternatives by aut … aut. The subject of concretum fuerat "had been compounded" is unumquodque "each thing" from the last sentence.
• X.7 ut et ista in universi rationem redigantur, sive illud certo temporis spatio revoluto deflagret, sive vicissitudinibus perpetuis jugiter renovetur.
• X.8 etenim talis persistere, qualis hactenus fueris, et in vita istiusmodi foede volutari ac discerpi, hominis est sensus expertis plane vitaeque nimis avidi,
• X.11 quid autem alius quispiam de ipso sive dicat, sive existimet, aut adversus ipsum faciat, ne cogitat quidem.
• X.18 Rerum praesentium unamquamque advertendo, considera eam jam dissolutam, et in mutatione et quasi putrefactione quadam, aut dissipatione, constitutam, sive ut mori quodammodo nata sit.
• X.20 et tum confert, quando illa fert.tum … quando "then … when": a thing does good at the very time nature brings it, not sooner or later. illa "she, that one" is natura.
• X.22 Vel istic vivis, et vitae huic jam assuevisti; vel foris vadis, et hoc volebas; vel moreris, et munere defunctus es.vel … vel … vel "either … or … or" sets out the only three cases. istic "there where you are" means here, in this life; foris vadis "you go outside" means you leave life of your own accord. assuesco "grow used to" takes the dative (vitae huic), and its perfect assuevisti "you have grown used" means "you are used to it".
• X.23 Illud tibi semper constet, ejusmodi quiddam agrum esse, cujusmodi est locus alius quilibet.ejusmodi … cujusmodi "of such a kind … as" are correlatives: "that the country is something of the same kind as any other place you like". ager here is "the country", where a man goes to get away from it all: Marcus's point is that going there changes nothing. quilibet "any you please" is qui + libet "it pleases".
• X.26 facultatemque ita intueri quae ista facit, prout vim eam cernimus, qua vel deorsum, vel sursum corpora feruntur, non oculis quidem externis, sed nec minus clare tamen.ita … prout "in the same way … as". In facultatem … quae ista facit "the power which makes these things", the relative clause is parted from its antecedent by ita intueri. Just as we perceive weight and lightness, the force that carries bodies down or up, so we can perceive the power that forms a living being.
• X.27 Cogita tecum jugiter, qualia nunc sunt omnia, talia prius actitata; cogita et talia futura esse.qualia … talia "of what sort … of that sort": "such as all things are now, such things were played out before". It is an accusative and infinitive after cogita, with esse left out: talia … actitata (esse). actito "do often" is a frequentative of ago, used of acting plays again and again; it prepares the picture of plays and scenes that follows.
• X.33 Ecquid est, quod de materia ista rectissime vel fieri vel dici possit?
• X.33 quicquid enim hoc fuerit, vel facere idipsum, vel dicere licet, nec obtendas, impediri te.
• X.33 ante ingemiscere non desinas, quam eo te adegeris, ut quod voluptuariis hominibus est luxu diffluere, hoc tibi fuerit de subjecta quaque oblata tibi materia ea facere, quae humanae constitutioni conveniant.
• X.33 siquidem cylindro quidem non conceditur, ut motu proprio ubique feratur; sed nec aquae, nec igni, nec alii rei cuiquam, quae a natura mera, vel anima regitur irrationali.
• X.33 reliqua enim obstacula, vel sunt corporis, quod cadaveris instar habet, vel opinione, et rationis inclinatione semota, non infringunt, aut mali quicquam efficiunt. alioqui ea qui patitur, malus fieret.
• X.33 horum autem, quae infortunia dicimus, nihil legem laedit. quod autem legem non laedit, nec civitatem, nec civem laeserit.
• X.34 Sternit humi frondes alias vis aspera venti: Ast alias natura parat, quae vere virescent.alias … alias "some … others": the first goes with frondes "leaves", the second stands alone with frondes understood. Ast is an old, poetic form of at "but".
• X.36 quin rursus, nec tanquam vitae avulsus, sed, prout eis, quibus mortis felicitas quaedam obtigit, animula a corpore leniter exolvitur, talis et tua ab istis etiam esto discessio.prout … talis "just as … such": the picture comes first and the command last. esto is the future imperative of sum, third person: "let (your departure) be such". talis agrees with discessio; et and etiam both mean "too".
• XI.1 se cernit, fingit, artatque, ut lubet, qualemque vult ipsa, facit: fructum, quem profert, ipsa carpit.lubet is Gataker's spelling of libet "it pleases", used impersonally: ut lubet "as it pleases (it)". In qualemque vult ipsa, facit the object se is understood again, and qualem "of the kind which" stands for talem qualem: "it makes itself such as it itself wants".
• XI.1 neque enim sic se habet, quo modo in saltando aut in fabulam agendo aliisque ejusmodi, in quibus siquid incideris, actio tota fit mutila;se habere with an adverb means "to be in a certain state": sic se habet "it is so". sic … quo modo "so … in the way that" compares the soul's life with the arts named next: it is not with the soul as it is with them.
• XI.3 Qualis est anima ea, quae parata est jam statim, si oportuerit, e corpore emigrare, et vel extingui, vel dispergi, vel permanere?vel … vel … vel "either … or … or". These are the fates of the soul after death that the philosophers argued over: to be put out like a flame, to be scattered into atoms, or to remain in being for a time. The ready soul does not need to know which. extingui is Gataker's spelling of exstingui, from exstinguo "put out".
• XI.5 hoc quo modo melius fit, quam documentorum ope, quorum alia sint de universi natura, alia de hominis conditione propria.alia … alia "some … others": quorum alia "of which some". The subjunctive sint describes the kind of principles meant. conditio here is "make-up, constitution": the two great subjects of Stoic study are the nature of the whole and the nature of man.
• XI.6 Et, Spicas velut frugiferas, sic vitam meti.
• XI.8 quanquam hoc frequentius si fiat, dissociatio istiusmodi et difficilius resarcitur, et restitutio aegre procedere consuevit.et … et "both … and". resarcitur "is patched, mended" is a tailor's word; difficilius is the comparative of the adverb difficulter "with difficulty". consuevit, perfect of consuesco "grow used to", means "is accustomed" in the present: procedere consuevit "usually goes forward".
• XI.8 omnino denique non pariter se habent surculi duo, quorum alter a prima germinatione cohaesit, et cum stirpe reliqua constanter quasi conspiravit; alter post abscissionem insertus est:alter … alter "the one … the other" of two. quorum "of which" is a partitive genitive with the first alter: "of which (shoots) the one …". The second alter begins its clause with no joining word, a sharp contrast.
• XI.9 Qui ad rationis rectae normam progredienti obsistunt tibi, sicut a recte agendo avertere te nequeunt, ita nec benevolum erga illos affectum excutiant tibi.sicut … ita "just as … so" sets a fact beside a command. The fact is in the indicative: nequeunt (from nequeo "be unable") "they cannot turn you aside from acting rightly", with a and the ablative of the gerund agendo. The command is a jussive subjunctive, excutiant "let them (not) shake out"; Latin usually says ne, but Gataker continues with nec "and not".
• XI.9 sed ad utrumque horum teneas te, ut et in judicio actioneque constanti persistas, et in mansuetudine erga illos, qui vel impedire te conantur, vel alio modo quopiam molesti tibi sunt.et … et "both … and". persistas serves both halves: supply it again with in mansuetudine. constanti agrees with the nearer noun, actione, but describes judicio as well: "steady judgement and action".
• XI.9 etenim tam hoc imbecillis est animi, succensere istis, quam ab actione desistere, et consternatum succumbere.
• XI.9 uterque enim ex aequo stationis desertae reus est, et qui metu perculsus, et qui natura cognatum sibi atque amicum fuerit aversatus.
• XI.10 neque enim quod est justum aequumque servabitur, si vel ad res medias anxie feramur, vel deceptu faciles et temerarii et inconstantes fuerimus.
• XI.11 judicium proinde tuum de eis quiescat, easque nec prosequeris amplius, nec fugies.
• XI.12 Uniformis prorsus est animae sphaera, cum nec ad exterius quicquam se extendit, nec cum eodem ullo intus concurrit, nec considit et comprimitur;
• XI.12 sed lumine illo illustratur, quo veritatem, tum rerum omnium caeterarum, tum et in ipsa sitam, cernit.tum … tum "both … and" divides veritatem into two: the truth "of all other things" (genitive rerum) and the truth "placed in itself" (sitam, from sino "place", agreeing with veritatem). ipsa is the soul, and et adds "also".
• XI.13 ego mihi cavebo, nequid contemptu dignum vel egisse vel dixisse deprehendar.
• XI.15 talem plane virum simplicem bonumque oportet esse, qualis is qui hircum olet; ut qui astiterit, simulac accesserit, velit, nolit ipse, protinus persentiscat.oportet takes an accusative and infinitive: virum simplicem bonumque … esse "that the simple and good man be". talis … qualis "such … as" makes the comparison, with est understood after qualis: "just such as is the man who smells of the goat". plane "quite, altogether" strengthens talem.
• XI.18 quin et altius rem repete: vel atomos obtinere, vel naturam universa disponere.
• XI.18 omnis etenim anima, prout veritate privatur invita, sic etiam erga quemque pro dignitate cujusque gerendi se peritia.
• XI.18 Quarto, quod et ipse multa peccas, et alias ejusmodi es plane, quales illi sunt.et … et "both … and". In multa peccas "you do wrong in many things", the neuter multa is the inner object of pecco. ipse "you yourself" stresses that the fault is yours as well. alias is the adverb "at other times, in other respects" (Gataker marks it with an accent, aliàs): over and above the wrongs you do, you are in other ways of the same stamp as they are. Marcus's Greek says "you are another such".
• XI.18 atque etiamsi peccatis quibusdam abstineas, habes tamen intra te habitum talia perpetrare proclivem, licet vel ignaviae, vel famae, vel alius alicujus ratione a peccatis paribus te cohibeas.
• XI.18 nisi enim malum id sit duntaxat quod inhonestum est, necesse futurum est, ut et tu multa pecces, et latro, vel quidlibet etiam, fias.
• XI.18 monstraveris etiam scite, et generatim ostenderis, nec apes ita se gerere, nec eorum ullum, quae gregatim agere nata sunt, animantium.
• XI.18 quin neque irrisorie faciendum hoc, neque contumeliose, sed cum genuino amoris affectu;
• XI.18 neque animo quasi attacto et exulcerato, neque tanquam in schola, neque ut astanti alicui sis admirationi, sed ita semper, ut cum solo agas, etiamsi alii forsan circumstiterint nonnulli.
• XI.18 Veruntamen ex aequo cavendum, sicut ne irascaris eis, ita etiam ne aduleris.
• XI.18 adversus iram vero praesto sit illud; irasci haud virile esse; sed mansuetum placidumque animi affectum, ut humanius quiddam, ita et masculum magis.
• XI.18 quemadmodum autem tristitia, sic et ira, imbecillis est animi. utraque enim vulnus accepit, et succubuit.
• XI.18 tum concedere, ut adversus alios tales sint, sed ne in te peccent postulare, et stolidum est et tyrannicum etiam.
• XI.21 quemadmodum enim opinio eadem non est de omnibus quae vulgo hominum quoquo modo bona videntur, sed de certis quibusdam, communibus nempe: ad eundem modum et scopum illum qui est civilis et communioni congruus proponi oportet.quemadmodum "just as" is answered by ad eundem modum "in the same way": the long first half is the comparison, the second half the point.
• XI.29 Nec in scribendo, nec in legendo aliis praecipias, nisi prius praeceptum fuerit tibi.
• XII.1 ad pietatis normam, dum quicquid destinatur tibi diligis; cum et tibi hoc natura tulerit, et huic te:
• XII.1 nec impediverit te, quo minus sic te geras, aut aliena sive vitiositas, sive opinio, sive sermo, aut sensus etiam cingentis te massae istius carneae.Two aut "either … or" mark the two kinds of hindrance, both negated by nec: "neither … nor". The first is divided by sive … sive … sive "whether … or … or"; aliena "another's" stands before all three and goes with them all, though it agrees with the nearest, vitiositas. The second is sensus … massae istius carneae "the feeling of that lump of flesh", the body which cingentis te "surrounds you".
• XII.3 et quaecunque ipse aliquando dixeris fecerisque; et quaecunque te tanquam futura conturbant, et quaecunque vel circundati tibi corpusculi, vel huic coalitae animulae, arbitrii tui non sunt;
• XII.3 si a mente, inquam, tua haec sejunxeris, quae ex affectu vehementiore ei adhaerere solent, et temporis quicquid vel praeteritum vel futurum est;
• XII.3 fecerisque te talem, qualis mundus hic Empedocli dicitur, Orbis habens instar jugi vertigine gaudens.talem … qualis "such … as": te talem "yourself such" is object and predicate of feceris, and qualis is the predicate of the comparison, "as this world is described". Empedocli is dative: with a passive verb Latin, chiefly in verse and later prose, can give the agent in the dative instead of ab Empedocle. Empedocles wrote his philosophy in verse; his world, when Love has drawn all its parts together, is one perfect sphere.
• XII.4 itaque si vel Deus vel praeceptor prudens quis astans praeceperit cuiquam, ne quid apud se cogitet menteve agitet quod non simul ac conceperit proferat, ne ad dieculam quidem id sustineret.
• XII.7 Cogita qualem te, tum corpore, tum anima, a morte deprehendi oporteat: vitae etiam hujus brevitatem; aevi retrorsum prorsumque vastitatem immensam: materiae denique cujusque imbecillitatem.
• XII.12 Quicquid naturae consentaneum contingit, de eo nec Dii sunt incusandi; nihil enim vel sponte vel inviti peccant: nec homines: nihil enim et ipsi sponte.nihil with a verb like peccare is "in nothing, not at all": "they do no wrong at all". vel … vel "either … or" joins two different kinds of word: sponte "of their own accord" is an ablative noun, inviti "unwilling" an adjective agreeing with the subject. The gods do no wrong in either way.
• XII.14 Aut est necessitas fatalis, et ordo inviolabilis, aut providentia placabilis, aut confusio temeraria, et rectoris orba.Three possibilities about the world, which Marcus weighs often (compare 4.3 and 6.10): aut … aut … aut "either … or … or". The one est "there is" at the head serves all three. Adjectives in -bilis mean "that can be …": inviolabilis "that cannot be violated", placabilis "that can be appeased" by prayer and right living.
• XII.22 quandocunque ergo volueris, opinionem tolle, et sicut promontorium praetervecto tranquillitas, sic stabilia tibi futura sunt omnia, et sinus aestu immunis.
• XII.24 in eis vero quae extrinsecus eveniunt, vel forte fortuna quodque vel providentia obvenire.
• XII.24 atqui nec de fortuna conquerendum est, nec providentiam incusandum.
• XII.26 neque enim tam sanguinis aut seminis, quam mentis existit communio.non tam … quam "not so much … as": the kinship is "not so much a sharing of blood or seed as a sharing of mind". All three genitives depend on communio "a sharing, fellowship" at the end. Gataker softens the Greek, which says flatly "not of blood or seed, but of mind".
• XII.26 oblitus es, et mentem cujusque Deum esse, et divinitus defluxisse. et, nihil esse cujusquam proprium;
• XII.26 et quod tempus denique praesens tantum cuique et vivitur, et amittitur.
• XII.27 Eos apud te crebro recolas, qui de re aliqua vehementer indignati fuerint, qui vel in summa gloria, vel in insigni miseria, inimicitia, fortuna qualibet extitere.
• XII.28 Primo etiam visu percipi possunt.
• XII.28 deinde, animam meam, cum nullus unquam viderim, in honore tamen habeo.deinde "next" answers primo "first" at the head of the sentence before: primo … deinde set out the two answers. animam meam "my soul" is the object of habeo, put first as the new topic.
• XII.28 pari igitur ratione et Deos, cum eorum potentiam jugiter experiar, propterea et esse compertum habeo et veneror.et … et "both … and": "I both know for certain that they exist and worship them", answering the two parts of the question in reverse.
• XII.33 reliqua, sive arbitrii tui sint, sive non sint, cadavera sunt et fumus.
• XII.36 ecquid igitur grave pateris, si te non tyrannus, nec judex iniquus, sed natura, quae induxit, emittat;Three subjects for emittat: "not a tyrant, nor an unjust judge, but nature which brought you in". Banishment by a tyrant or a corrupt court would be a wrong; but the same nature that brought you into the city now sends you out. te is the object of both induxit and emittat.