19. A mosaic from Pompeii, dating to the first-century CE, showing a chorus leader and actors post scaenam or backstage, in various states of dress and undress. The actor on the right is putting on a padded costume.

 

Explōrātiō Nōna (IX) Adventure Nine

Where and When Are We Today?

Roman Mime: Decimus Laberius and Publilius Syrus

Publilius Syrus’ Quotable Lines

Second Declension Neuter Nouns

Universal Features of Neuter Nouns

Vocabulary

Second Declension Neuter Case Forms

2nd Declension Masculine and Neuter Case Forms Compared

Drill

Identifying and Translating Neuter Nouns

Exercises 1-7

Adjective Declension, Continued

Formation of US-A-UM Adjectives (First and Second Declension Adjectives)

Exercises 8-11

Adjectives Used as Nouns (Substantives)

Exercises 12-18

The Demonstrative Adjective is, ea, id

3rd Person Pronoun is, ea, id, All Case Forms, Singular and Plural

Exercises 19-22

Vocabulary

Exercises 23-26

Caesar and Decimus Laberius

Decimus Laberius: A Fragment from a Mime

Laberius Criticizes Caesar?

Where and When Are We Today?

 

Campus Martius, Rōma

Mēnsis Octōber

C. Treboniō Q. Fabiō Maximō cōnsulibus

Campus Martius, Rome

October, 46 BCE

 

“I’m glad you enjoyed Pompey’s theātrum,” Latinitas remarked before we left, “because we’re going back there today. Only this time, the massive stone seats those workmen laid down will not be empty.”

 

And indeed they were not. It was impossible to count heads – 10,000? 30,000? – but the great theater was packed. The crowd was a cross-section of Romans who lived in the city: young and old, men and women, slave and free; some were sitting quiet and dignified, others loud and rowdy, all waiting for the next show. Latinitas pointed out how the seating was explicitly arranged by ōrdō, or social class. Senators, who were distinguished by the two wide purple stripes running over the shoulders of their tunics, occupied the front three rows. The next dozen rows were occupied by equitēs, or knights. Don’t be misled by the name, reader: they did not wear metal armor; ‘knights’ was just the name for a class of men who were of high net-worth, but who had never served in office. Their tunics also have purple stripes, but thinner ones than the senators’. The rest of the seats, including ours, were general admission, and filled by the common people, the plēbs.

 

“Julius Caesar is sitting down there in the front row; do you see the man in the purple cloak who has a comb-over? Yes, him. A lot has changed since the last time we talked about him. Just over a month ago, all across the Mediterranean, an enormous bellum cīvīle, a civil war, was fought that pitted one half of the Roman army against the other. Caesar was the winner. The loser was the man behind this building, Pompey the Great.” Latinitas suddenly had to shout, as Caesar stood up for a moment to face the crowd, which responded with cheers and some boos.

 

“Pompey’s army lost to Caesar’s in Greece, near the town of Pharsalus. After the battle Pompey fled to Egypt, where he met a miserable end, stabbed to death by bounty-hunters. The remnants of the pro-Senate forces made a stand in North Africa, then in Spain, but Caesar’s troops emerged victorious both times. Now Caesar is back in Rome, triumphant and without any serious rivals. His allies, who dominate the Senate, have voted him the powers of dictātor, which as the name suggests are very nearly unlimited. The Roman state now effectively belongs to Caesar, and the entire imperium, ‘Empire’ – a body of land and sea nearly as large as the United States – is technically under his command.”

 

“With the end of the civil war, business in the city is returning to normal. Caesar wants to fix what is broken in the Roman state. He is pragmatic and smart enough to understand the problems; he knows that settling scores will just waste his time and effort, so he has forgiven all those former enemies who want to work with him. But not everyone is so ready to forgive and forget: the sepulchra, ‘graves’, dug for those who died in the civil war are still fresh. Many important men, like Cicero, cannot bear to have all public policies and decisions depend on the say-so of one man; they are waiting for a chance to change things. In short, there is no normal in Rome, only a pretense of normality. Caesar is trying to reinforce that pretense by attending this performance, to show that he is just another Roman who likes watching plays.”

 

Roman Mime: Decimus Laberius and Publilius Syrus

 

“The lineup for today’s show features short plays by Rome’s best mime-writers, Decimus Laberius and Publilius Syrus. They’re called ‘mimes’, but don’t be mislead by the name – the actors speak. The Sorōrēs, “Sisters,” by Publilius Syrus, has just been performed…”

 

As it happened we were sitting right behind Syrus, whose entourage was patting him on the back and discussing the merits of the actors performing his script. Syrus, Latinitas said, was a slave who was brought to Rome when he was a young man, just like Terence had been. As you might guess from his name, he was originally from Syria. His enslaver’s patron was attracted to him by his wit and talent and, it is said, by his good looks. Syrus received a quality education and was granted his freedom, thanks to his ingenium, his talent as a writer. He had a knack for coining memorable lines, and people in the audience were quoting them. With some help from Latinitas I could even decipher a few of them. I’ll share the words that she gave me with you; see if you can translate them:

 

Publilius Syrus’ Quotable Lines

 

Lēx videt īrātum; īrātus lēgem nōn videt.

“An īrātus (nom. sg.) is an angry man.”

 

Virum bonum nātūra, nōn ōrdō, facit.

“ōrdō, (nom. sg.) means rank or social class; facit (3rd sg. pres.) means ‘makes’.”

 

In amōre fōrma plūs valet quam auctōritās.

“Plūs … quam means ‘more than’; fōrma (nom. sg.) ‘beauty’; auctōritās (nom. sg.) ‘authority’.”

 

A man sitting near us shouted at Publilius, formōsa faciēs mūta commendātiō est, ‘a beautiful face is a wordless recommendation’, and kept repeating the line. I think he was trying to tease Syrus for supposedly once being his patron’s lover, but Syrus paid him no attention.

 

The next performance was a mime by Decimus Laberius; behind the curtains I could hear the shifting of stage sets and props. Laberius and Syrus were rivals: Laberius was the older established artist with a large fanbase, Syrus the young upstart. This was more than a set of performances: it was a competition; and Caesar got to decide who won. The winner would receive a palm leaf, signifying victory, and the endorsement of the most powerful man in the known world. The loser would receive five-hundred sesterces – a large prize but, in this context, just small enough to be humiliating.

 

As we waited, Latinitas had me take out my notebook – something that attracted some odd looks from those sitting near us – and began her tutorial again.

 

Second Declension Neuter Nouns

 

“All the nouns you’ve learned so far have been masculine or feminine in gender, like vir or fēmina. Today we will study nouns that are neither masculine nor feminine; their gender is called neuter. Most neuter nouns belong either to the 2nd or 3rd declension, though there are a handful of neuter 4th declension nouns. Today we will focus on some 2nd declension neuter nouns. All neuter nouns in Latin have these important features:”

 

Universal Features of Neuter Nouns

The nominative and accusative singular forms are always identical.

The nominative and accusative plural forms are always identical.

The nominative and accusative plural forms always end in –a.

 

“Repeat what I just said.” And I did.

 

“For 2nd declension neuter nouns, the ending of the nominative and accusative singular is –um. You can recognize a 2nd declension neuter noun in the dictionary because the nominative ends in –um, while the genitive, like all 2nd declension nouns, ends in –ī:”

 

Vocabulary

 

Second Declension Neuter Nouns

Latin Noun	Noun Gender	English Meaning
bellum, bell-ī	neuter	war
fātum, fāt-ī	n.	fate
imperium, imperi-ī	n.	command; empire
ingenium, ingeni-ī	n.	talent
membrum, membr-ī	n.	limb
oppidum, oppid-ī	n.	town; city
sepulchrum, sepulchr-ī	n.	tomb
signum, sign-ī	n.	sign; flag
studium, studi-ī	n.	enthusiasm, zeal
moenia, moeni-ōrum	n.	walls (of a city) “This word only exists in the plural!”

 

Second Declension Neuter Case Forms

 

“And here are the endings for 2nd declension neuter nouns; the ones distinctive to neuter nouns (as opposed to 2nd declension masculine nouns) are bolded:”

 

2nd Declension Neuter Case Endings

	Singular	Plural
Nom.	–um	–a
Gen.	-ī	-ōrum
Dat.	-ō	-īs
Acc.	-um	–a
Abl.	-ō	-īs

 

“Compare the forms of a 2nd declension neuter noun like bellum, bell-ī, n. with those of a 2nd declension masculine noun like amīcus, amīc-ī, m. Again, the endings distinctive to neuter nouns are bolded:”

 

2nd Declension Masculine and Neuter Case Forms Compared

Singular	2nd Decl. Masc.	2nd Decl. Neuter
Nom.	amīc-us	bell-um
Gen.	amīc-ī	bell-ī
Dat.	amīc-ō	bell-ō
Acc.	amīc-um	bell-um
Abl.	amīc-ō	bell-ō
Plural
Nom.	amīc-ī	bell-a
Gen.	amīc-ōrum	bell-ōrum
Dat.	amīc-īs	bell-īs
Acc.	amīc-ōs	bell-a
Abl.	amīc-īs	bell-īs

 

Drill

 

“Provide all the case forms (genitive, dative, accusative, ablative singular; nominative, genitive, dative, accusative, ablative plural) for the following 2nd declension nouns, which are given in the nominative singular form. Check your vocabulary to verify whether the noun is masculine or neuter.”

 

Singular
Nom.	populus	fātum	studium	vir
Gen.
Dat.
Acc.
Abl.
Plural
Nom.
Gen.
Dat.
Acc.
Abl.

 

Identifying and Translating Neuter Nouns

 

“The principles for translating neuter nouns are the same as those for other nouns. Be careful not to mistake a neuter noun in the nominative or accusative plural – like fāta – for a 1st declension noun in the nominative singular, like puella. You need to know the gender and declension of the noun to identify its forms correctly (see How to Identify the Declension of a Noun in Explōrātiō IV).”

 

“Another tricky feature is that the same form could be either nominative or accusative. Take this sentence. There are three different nouns that, out of context, could be the nominative subject! Be sure to keep all possibilities in mind when you mark up the sentence:”

 

Identifying and Translating Neuter Nouns: Example

I. Nōs bellum parāre iubent fāta.

II. Nōs (nom./acc. pl.) bellum (nom./acc. sg.) parāre (inf.) iubent (3rd pl. pres.) fāta (nom./acc. pl.).

 

“Which is the subject? The verb form helps you answer this question: because it is 3rd person and plural, it cannot be nōs (wrong person) or bellum (wrong number). So fāta must be the nominative subject.”

 

III. The fates (nom. subj.) order (3rd pl. pres.) us (acc. obj.) to prepare (inf.) a war (acc. obj.).

 

Exercises 1-7

 

“Now try these sentences.”

 

1. Sī imperium parāre cōgitās, parā pācem!

2. Equitēs signum manent, et dē bellō cōgitant.

3. Vōcēs nōs per viās et sepulchra oppidī vocant.

4. Membra mēns hominis movet.

5. In manibus deōrum fāta urbis et populī iacent.

6. The boy asks (his) mother about the fate of the town.

7. The citizens were fearing the enthusiasm of Caesar.

Adjective Declension, Continued

 

“Now you can complete your chart of US-A-UM adjectives. Remember that the masculine form of these adjectives follows the pattern of 2nd declension masculine nouns like amīcus, amīcī, m., and the feminine form follows the pattern of 1st declension nouns like vīta, vītae, f.”

 

Formation of US-A-UM Adjectives (First and Second Declension Adjectives)

 

“When an US-A-UM adjective modifies a neuter noun, the adjective follows the pattern of 2nd declension neuter nouns like bellum, bellī, n.”

 

US-A-UM Adjective Modifying and Agreeing with a Neuter Noun

	signum, sign-ī, n. + magnus, magn-a, magnum
	Singular	Plural
Nom.	signum magnum	signa magna
Gen.	signī magnī	signōrum magnōrum
Dat.	signō magnō	signīs magnīs
Acc.	signum magnum	signa magna
Abl.	signō magnō	signīs magnīs

 

“Here are all the case forms of an US-A-UM adjective in all three genders:”

 

US-A-UM Adjective Forms (First and Second Declension Adjectives)

Singular	Masculine	Feminine	Neuter
Nom.	bonus	bona	bonum
Gen.	bonī	bonae	bonī
Dat.	bonō	bonae	bonō
Acc.	bonum	bonam	bonum
Abl.	bonō	bonā	bonō
Plural
Nom.	bonī	bonae	bona
Gen.	bonōrum	bonārum	bonōrum
Dat.	bonīs	bonīs	bonīs
Acc.	bonōs	bonās	bona
Abl.	bonīs	bonīs	bonīs

 

Exercises 8-11

 

“Now see if you can put these noun and adjective pairings into the specified case form. Remember that the gender of the noun determines the gender you use for the adjective, and keep in mind that the noun may belong to a different declension than the adjective (for example, urbs is a 3rd declension feminine noun, but the feminine form of the adjective bonus, bon-a, bonum is 1st declension):”

 

8. dīvīnus, dīvīn-a, dīvīnum + fātum, fāt-ī, n. in the accusative plural form.

9. magnus, magn-a, magnum + pars, part-is, f. in the accusative singular form.

10. meus, me-a, meum + amīcus, amīc-ī, m. in nominative plural form.

11. tuus, tu-a, tuum + ingenium, ingeni-ī, n. in the dative singular form.

 

“Prōcēderene possumus? Can we proceed?”

 

Okay.

 

Adjectives Used as Nouns (Substantives)

 

“Optimē, excellent. Sometimes, a sentence will contain an adjective that does not have an expressed noun or pronoun with which it agrees. When this occurs, the adjective is being used like a noun. This is called the substantive use of an adjective. In English translation, we have to supply a suitable noun to complete the sense. For example, if a sentence has a neuter adjective without a noun or pronoun in agreement, you can add a word like ‘thing’ or ‘things’ when you translate the adjective.

 

Neuter Adjectives as Substantives: Examples

Neuter Adjective Form	English Translation
malum (nom. /acc. sg.)	a bad (thing); an evil (thing)
bonum (nom./acc. sg.)	a good (thing)
mea (nom./acc. pl.)	my (things)

 

“The same principle holds for masculine adjectives or feminine adjectives lacking a noun or pronoun in agreement: you must supply a word like ‘man’ or ‘men’ (for a masculine adjective) or ‘woman’ or ‘women’ (for a feminine adjective):”

 

Masculine and Feminine Adjectives as Substantives: Examples

Masc. or Fem. Adjective Form	English Translation
malus (nom. sg. m.)	a bad (man)
bonōs (acc. pl. m.)	good (men)
bonārum (gen. pl. f.)	of good (women)
malam (acc. sg. f.)	a bad (woman)

 

Exercises 12-18

 

“Now try some sentences featuring adjectives. Some of these adjectives are used as substantives –they do not have a noun or pronoun or agreement.”

 

12. Vir ingeniī magnī pater tuus est.

13. Dē dīvīnīs cōgitābāmus.

14. Servābitne malōs dux mīlitum?

15. Cuius ars magna aut ingenium nōs ad ratiōnem vocābit?

16. Mala exercitus Caesaris nocte timēbat.

17. Reason will give a limit to the evils of life.

18. With a sign the leaders were preparing a part of the army.

 

The Demonstrative Adjective is, ea, id

 

“One more thing today. Do you remember the 3rd person pronouns – is, ea, id? Let’s review them together:”

 

3rd Person Pronoun is, ea, id, All Case Forms, Singular and Plural

	Singular (m., f., n.)	Plural (m., f., n.)
Nominative	is, ea, id	eī, eae, ea
Genitive	eius, eius, eius	eōrum, eārum, eōrum
Dative	eī, eī, eī	eīs, eīs, eīs
Accusative	eum, eam, id	eōs, eās, ea
Ablative	eō, eā, eō	eīs, eīs, eīs

 

“These forms are pronouns, as you know, and they can take the place of a noun in a sentence: is amat, ‘he loves’ instead of vir amat ‘the man loves’.

 

“But these forms can also be used in agreement with a noun to point to it or give it some emphasis. When these forms are used in this way, you can translate them ‘this’ or ‘that’ (if singular) or ‘these’ or ‘those’ (if plural), and we can call them demonstrative adjectives.”

 

Demonstrative Adjective Examples

Demonstrative Adjective with Noun	English Translation
is cōnsul	this/that consul (nom. sg. m.)
id bellum	this/that war (nom. / acc. sg. n.)
eōrum deōrum	of these/those gods (gen. pl. m.)
eius reī	of this/that thing (gen. sg. f.)

 

How can I tell whether one of these forms is a pronoun or demonstrative adjective?

 

“If a form of is, ea, id agrees in case, gender, and number with an adjacent noun, it is likely functioning as a demonstrative adjective.” If there is no nearby noun that agrees in case, gender, and, number, then it is likely functioning as a pronoun.”

 

Exercises 19-22

 

“Here are a few sentences featuring the 3rd person pronoun and demonstrative adjective is, ea, id:”

 

19. In terrā eā magna is vidēbit.

20. Moenia oppidī eius eōs nōn servābunt.

21. Quid nunc puer is rogat? Sine modō studium eius est.

22. Id sepulchrum manūs, membra, atque caput virī eius habet.

 

As soon as I finished that sentence there was a little drama on the stage. Four slaves were carrying a litter on which sat a handsome man with purple robes and grapes hanging from a crown around his head. In his arms there lay a woman who was wearing a beautiful diadem and a black dress with a colorful labyrinth pattern on it. They were surrounded by a wild mix of dancers: children dressed as cupīdinēs or cupids holding little bows and arrows, women beating drums and tambourines and holding fake snakes, and a fat, bald old man riding on a donkey and holding a massive cup of wine. The crowd went wild at the sight.

 

“That’s Mark Antony,” Latinitas informed me, “one of Caesar’s generals. He’s dressed up as Bacchus. His mistress Cytheris, a famous mime actress, is dressed up as Ariadne of Crete, one of Bacchus’ lovers. The madwomen are Bacchants, and the old man on the donkey is supposed to be Bacchus’ follower Silenus. Just a little extra entertainment for the people.”

 

“See if you can write down this vocabulary before the next play starts:”

 

Vocabulary

 

First Declension Nouns

Latin Noun	Noun Gender	English Meaning
fōrma, fōrm-ae	f.	beauty; appearance
littera, litter-ae	f.	letter (of the alphabet); plural: literature; a letter (piece of mail)

 

Third Declension Nouns

Latin Noun	Noun Gender	English Meaning
dignitās, dignitāt-is	f.	dignity
laus, laud-is	f.	praise
ōrdō, ōrdin-is	m.	rank; order

 

Conjunctions

Latin Conjunction	English Meaning
minus quam	less than
plus quam	more than

 

US-A-UM Adjectives (First and Second Declension Adjectives)

Latin Adjective	English Meaning
maximus, maxim-a, maximum	greatest
multus, mult-a, multum	much; many “Usually ‘much’ if singular, ‘many’ if plural.”
Rōmānus, Rōmān-a, Rōmānum	Roman

 

Exercises 23-26

 

23. Māter mē multa docēbat: litterās, ratiōnem, mōrēs bonōs.

24. Rōmānī maximī ōrdinem, fāmam, atque laudem nōn plus quam pācem amābant.

25. Hominibus vīta bona amōrem multum et dignitātem habēbit.

26. Beauty loves praise not less than virtue (does).

 

Caesar and Decimus Laberius

 

“Now let me set the stage for what’s about to happen. Laberius, the author of the next mime, has criticized Caesar’s dictatorship in his recent script. After ignoring him for a while, Caesar decided to respond. In front of an audience he declared, ‘Let Laberius go act in his own mimes’ – dismissing his criticism as meaningless, pure performance.”

 

“But telling Laberius to do so was a major insult. Laberius is a knight, and for a Roman knight, to appear onstage as an actor would be a deep humiliation, since actors were considered infāmis, scandalous and undignified. Maybe Caesar didn’t intend it as an insult, but Laberius has chosen to take it as one. Now he can say: Caesar forced me, a proud Roman knight, to act in my own play. How humiliating! And if he can do that to me, he can do that to you too, no matter what your rank is!”

 

As she spoke, the curtain dropped. (Roman curtains fell to the floor, instead of rising.) And there on the stage stood Laberius himself, an old man dressed in dark mourning clothes, introducing his mime. The speech he gave was full of indignation and self-pity; this last portion of it may give you the general idea.

 

Decimus Laberius: A Fragment from a Mime

 

“Try to identify the Latin words that correspond to the bolded portions of the English translation:”

 

Ego, bis tricēnīs annīs āctīs sine notā,

eques Rōmānus ē Lare ēgressus meō

domum revertar mīmus: nīmīrum hōc diē

ūnō plūs vīxī mihi quam vīvendum fuit.

 

I, having passed twice thirty years without a mark,

after leaving my house as a Roman knight

will return home a mime; truly on this day

I have lived one more (day) than I should have lived.

 

Fortūna, inmoderāta in bonō aequē atque in malō:

sī tibi erat libitum litterārum laudibus

flōris cacūmen nostrae fāmae frangere,

cūr, cum vigēbam membrīs praeviridantibus,

satisfacere populō et tālī cum poteram virō,

nōn flexibilem mē concurvāstī ut carperēs?

Nuncin mē dēicis? Quō? Quid ad scēnam adferō?

 

Fortune, immoderate in good and in bad equally:

if it was pleasing to you, in the praises of literature,

to break off the tip of the flower of our fame,

why, when I was strong, with very fresh limbs,

when I was able to satisfy the people and a man like this,

why didn’t you bend and flex me then so that you could pluck (it)?

You throw me down now? Why? What do I bring to the stage?

 

Decōrem fōrmae an dignitātem corporis,

animī virtūtem an vōcis iocundae sonum?

Ut hedera serpēns vīrēs arboreās necat,

ita mē vetustās amplexū annōrum ēnecat.

Sepulchrī similis, nīl nisi nōmen retineō.

 

Charm of beauty, or dignity of body,

virtue of mind or the sound of a pleasant voice?

Just as creeping ivy kills the strength of trees,

so old age kills me with the embrace of years.

Just like a tomb, I retain nothing except a name.

 

Laberius was clearly playing to the senators and knights in the front row, with the message: if Caesar can humiliate me like this, he could do the same to any one of you. But the plebs weren’t having it; I heard a bit of polite applause from the audience, but mostly silence or derisive laughter.

 

Then, after a quick costume change, the play itself began. Laberius came out again, this time – casting all subtlety aside – dressed as a slave. He was playing a character named, of all things, ‘Syrus’! He wasn’t just taking on Caesar, no, he was openly insulting his rival, picking on his slave background. But the act failed; Syrus’ fans were laughing at him, and the rest of the audience was muttering uncomfortably. Just to drive the point home, Laberius’ script contained these two pointed lines:

 

Laberius Criticizes Caesar?

 

Porrō, Quirītēs, lībertātem perdimus

Even further, citizens of Rome, we are losing freedom.

 

Necesse est multōs timeat quem multī timent.

It is necessary that he whom many men fear should fear many men.

 

It was a brave stunt but ultimately not so smart.

 

At the end of the show, Caesar stood up to deliver his verdict: favente tibi mē, victus es, Laberī, ā Syrō, “While I favored you, you have been defeated, Laberius, by Syrus.” He handed the palm of victory to Publilius – who came down to the stage to take it, bowing to the cheering audience – and placed a gold ring and 500 sesterces on the stage for Laberius, who refused to touch it. As Laberius was storming out, Publilius shouted after him: Quīcum contendistī scriptor, hunc spectātor sublevā, “That man you contended with as a writer – go support him as a spectator!”

 

It was clearly a triumph for Syrus. But Caesar’s involvement threw everything out of balance, making the spectacle cringeworthy, and a little sinister. It was not a good day for ‘freedom’, or art, or the fabric of Roman society.

 

20. A denarius coin issued under the authority (imperiō = IMP on the coin) of Gaius Cassius Longinus and Lentulus Spinther in 42 BCE. It alludes to the assassination of Julius Caesar two years earlier by featuring the goddess Liberty, Leibertās (~ Lībertās). Note the extra e in the spelling of her name – this was one way of marking the long vowel.