RITCHIE'S FABULAE FACILES RITCHIE'S SIMPLE STORIES: 57 RITCHIE’S FABULAE FACILES TRANSLATION – THE ARGONAUTS 57

THE ARGONAUTS 57 - THE WICKED UNCLE

Today we begin a new story: Jason and the Argonauts.

THIS MAP OF THE REGIONS OF ANCIENT GREECE SHOWS WHERE TODAY'S STORY TAKES PLACE - THESSALY IS APPROXIMATELY IN THE MIDDLE OF THE MAP.

a)Erant ólim in Thessaliá duo frátrés, quórum alter Aesón, Peliás alter appellábátur. Aesón prímó régnum obtinuerat; at post paucós annós Peliás régní cupiditáte adductus nón modo frátrem suum expulit, sed etiam in animó habébat Iásonem, Aesonis fílium, interficere. Quídam tamen ex amícís Aesonis, ubi sententiam Peliae cógnóvérunt, puerum é tantó perículó éripere cónstituérunt. Noctú igitur Iásonem ex urbe abstulérunt, et cum posteró dié ad régem rediissent, eí renúntiávérunt puerum mortuum esse. Peliás cum hóc audívisset, etsí ré vérá mágnum gaudium percipiébat, speciem tamen dolóris praebuit et quae causa esset mortis quaesívit. Illí autem cum bene intellegerent dolórem éius falsum esse, nesció quam fábulam dé morte puerí finxérunt.

b)

Some words have been chosen for special consideration and are listed below. For the words not included in this list please refer to the WORDLIST in PAGES TOP RIGHT SIDE BAR. If you need help with points of grammar raised in today's excerpt, consult ESSENTIAL GRAMMAR NOTES also top right side bar.

erant – parts of sum are used to mean ‘there is, there are etc. as here erant means ‘there were.’

olim – adverb meaning ‘once upon a time’, or ‘once, formerly, of old etc.’

Thessalia – ablative of place where. ‘at Thessaly’.

alter ... alter – ‘the one ... the other’.

appellabatur – third person singular passive of appello, appellare, to call, meaning therefore ‘he was called’.

obtinuerat – third person singular pluperfect tense of obtineo, -ere, -ui, -tentus meaning ‘he had held’ or, as in this context, 'he had ruled'.

at – conjunction, ‘but’.

post – preposition governing the accusative, paucos annos, meaning ‘after a few years.’

regni cupiditate – genitive of the second declension noun regnum, meaning ‘of the realm, of the royal kingdom, royal power etc., followed with ablative of the third declension noun cupiditas, -atis meaning desire, longing, lust, greed, eagerness’ so together meaning something like ‘with a strong desire to have the kingdom’.

adductus – past participle of the verb adducere, literally ‘led to’, we have translated ‘motivated by’.

expulit – third person singular perfect tense of expello, -ere, -puli, pulsus drive out expel, meaning therefore ‘he drove out’.

non modo ... sed etiam – ‘not only but also.’

in animo habebat – in animo habere means literally ‘to have it in one’s mind’.

quidam – nominative plural indefinite pronoun, ‘certain (men)’

ubi – can mean ‘where’ or ‘when’, as it does here.

sententiam – accusative singular of the feminine first declension noun sententia, -ae which literally means ‘opinion; purpose’.

e tanto periculo – ablative after e, and ex, ‘out of’.

noctu – adverb, ‘at night, by night.’

ex urbe – e becomes ex before a vowel, as above followed by ablative .

renuntiaverunt puerem mortuum esse – after verbs or telling, reporting etc. we have what is called the accusative infinitive construction which literally translates ‘they announced the boy to be dead’ but we would probably say ‘they reported that the boy was dead’.

etsí – conjunction, ‘even if, although.’

nescio quam – literally ‘I do not know what (feminine as refers to fabulam) but used in the sense of ‘who knows what story?’

de morte pueri – de followed by ablative, ‘about/concerning the death’, pueri – genitive of puer, ‘of the boy.’

finxerunt – third person plural perfect tense of the verb fingo, fingere, finxi, fictus, invent, make up.

Note: This section is not translated into idiomatic English but is intended, together with the notes, to give you the gist of the meaning; you can then come up with your own improved translation.

Erant olim in Thessalia duo fratres,

Once upon a time in Thessaly there were two brothers,

quorum alter Aeson, Pelias alter appellabatur.

of whom one was called Aeson, the other Pelias.

Aeson primo regnum obtinuerat;

Aeson at first ruled the kingdom;

at post paucos annos Pelias

but after a few years Pelias

regni cupiditate adductus

motivated by a desire to rule

non modo fratrem suum expulit,

not only drove his brother away,

sed etiam in animo habebat

but also took it into his mind

Iasonem, Aesonis filium, interficere.

to kill Jason, Aeson’s son,

Quidam tamen ex amicis Aesonis,

However certain friends of Aeson,

ubi sententiam Peliae cognoverunt,

when they learned what Pellae was planning,

puerum e tanto periculo eripere constituerunt.

decided to take the boy out of such great danger.

Noctu igitur Iasonem ex urbe abstulerunt,

By night therefore they took Jason out of the city,

et cum postero die ad regem rediissent,

and when the following day they returned to the king,

ei renuntiaverunt puerum mortuum esse.

they reported to him that the boy was dead.

Pelias cum hoc audivisset,

Pelias when he heard this,

etsi re vera magnum gaudium percipiebat,

although really he felt great joy,

speciem tamen doloris praebuit

showed however a sorrowful face

et quae causa esset mortis quaesivit.

and asked what was the cause of his death.

Illi autem cum bene intellegerent

They however since they knew well

dolorem eius falsum esse,

his sorrow to be false,

nescio quam fabulam de morte pueri finxerunt.

made up who knows what story about the boy’s death.

d) The following section is for you to copy and translate.