THIS PAINTING BY GUIDO RENI (1620) DEPICTS THE ATTEMPTED ABDUCTION OF DEIANIRA BY NESSUS (PIC FROM WIKIMEDIA COMMONS)
a)Posteá Herculés multa alia praeclára perfécit, quae nunc perscríbere longum est. Tandem iam aetáte próvectus Déianíram, Oeneí fíliam, in mátrimónium dúxit; post tamen trís annós accidit ut puerum quendam, cui nómen erat Eunomus, cású occíderit. Cum autem mós esset ut sí quis hominem cású occídisset, in exsilium íret, Herculés cum uxóre suá é fínibus éius cívitátis exíre mátúrávit. Dum tamen iter faciunt, ad flúmen quoddam pervénérunt in quó núllus póns erat; et dum quaerunt quónam modó flúmen tránseant, accurrit centaurus Nessus, quí viátóribus auxilium obtulit. Herculés igitur uxórem suam in tergum Nessí imposuit; tum ipse flúmen tránávit. Nessus autem paulum in aquam prógressus ad rípam subitó revertébátur et Déianíram auferre cónábátur. Quod cum animadvertisset Herculés, írá graviter commótus arcum intendit et pectus Nessí sagittá tránsfíxit.
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.
postea – adverb, after this, afterwards.
quae... longum est – quae, ‘which’, is the object of perscríbere, ‘which to write out in full’, literally ‘is long’ (predicative adjective), meaning it would take a long time, implying it would take too long.
iam - adverb., now, already.
aetate provectus – tricky little phrase here: aetate is the ablative case of the third declension feminine noun aetas, aetatis, age, and is used here as the ablative of specification. The Ablative of Specification denotes that in respect of which something is. With this we have provectus, past participle of, proveho, provehere, provexi, provectus, carry forward. It is easier, I believe, to think of it in these terms, ‘in respect of what is he carried forward? In respect of age. It could be translated by something like, 'when he was now advanced in age'.
accidit ut – ‘it happened that’. This is one of several impersonal verbs which take for their subject result clause and as we know a result clause has its verb in the subjunctive, occiderit, which is the third person singular perfect subjunctive active of occidio, -cidere, -cidi, -císus, kill, ut occiderit ‘that he killed’.
quendam – accusative singular masculine of quidam ‘a certain’.
cum ... esset – cum meaning ‘since’ is followed by a verb in the subjunctive, here esset, third person singular imperfect subjunctive of esse, ‘since it was (the custom)’.
casu – adverb meaning ‘by chance’, accidentally.
si quis ... occidisset – indefinite pronoun quis after si meaning ‘if anyone’ takes the subjunctive, ‘here the pluperfect subjunctive of occidere, ‘if anyone had killed’.
ut ... iret - a result clause again requiring a verb in the subjunctive, here the imperfect singular imperfect subjunctive of eo, ire, ‘that he should go’.
cum uxore sua – cum meaning ‘with’ is followed by ablative.
dum ... iter faciunt - ‘ dum meaning ‘while’ is followed by the verb in the present tense, but translated by a past tense in English, ‘while he journeyed’.
quonam modo – nam as a suffix gives a sense of urgency and emphasis, so instead of , quo modo. ‘in what way’, we have ‘how on earth?...’
transeant – third person plural present subjunctive of transeo, -ire, ‘to cross’, following on from ‘how on earth’, meaning not 'they are crossing,' but '(how) are they to cross.' The direct form would be: “Quonam modo transeamus”, ‘'How on earth are we to get across?'. This is what we call a deliberative question, it expresses doubt or ignorance and therefore requires the subjunctive, which is called, as you have probably guessed, the deliberative subjunctive.
accurrit – third person singular perfect active of the third conjugation verb accurro, -currere, -curri, -cursus, run to, come up.
obtulit – third person singular perfect active of obferre, ‘he offered’, followed by dative viatoribus, litterally ‘to the travellers’, though we would say ‘he offered the travellers’.
tranavit – third person singular perfect active of the first conjugation verb trano, -nare, -navi, swim across or over, meaning therefore ‘he swam over’.
in – notice the different ways the preposition in may be translated in today’s excerpt and the different cases it governs: in quo non erat, ‘across which there was not’ (with ablative case); in tergum – ‘upon his back’ (accusative case); ‘in aquam’ – into the water (accusative case).
progressus – past participle of the verb deponent progredior, 'after advancing.'
revertebatur – the verb revertor, -verti, -versus, to turn back, return, is deponent in the present, imperfect and future and has active forms in the perfect system (revertor – I return, reverti – I returned), so revertebatur being passive in form but active in meaning, ‘he was returning’.
conabatur – third person singular present indicative active of the regular deponent verb conor, -ari, -atus, try, attempt, meaning therefore ‘he was attempting’.
quod cum animadvertisset – cum introducing a clause in the past tense takes the subjunctive, ‘when he had noticed this’.
ira graviter commotus – literally, ‘by anger seriously moved’, we might say ‘greatly enraged’.
c)
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.
Postea Hercules multa alia praeclara perfecit,
Afterwards Hercules accomplished many other outstanding things,
quae nunc perscribere longum est.
which to write about now would take a long time.
Tandem iam aetate provectus Deianiram,
At length when he was advanced in age, Deinira
Oenei filiam, in matrimonium duxit;
daughter of Oeneus, he married;
post tamen tris annos accidit
but after three years it happened
ut puerum quendam, cui nomen erat Eunomus,
a certain boy, whose name was Eunomus,
casu occiderit. Cum autem mos esset
he killed by accident. Since however it was the custom
ut si quis hominem casu occidisset,
that if anyone killed a man by accident,
in exsilium iret, Hercules cum uxore sua
he should go into exile, Hercules with his wife
e finibus eius civitatis exire maturavit.
made haste to go from the territories of this state.
Dum tamen iter faciunt,
However while they were on the journey,
ad flumen quoddam pervenerunt
they came to a certain river
in quo nullus pons erat;
on which there was no bridge;
et dum quaerunt quonam modo flumen transeant,
and while they wondered how on earth to cross the river
accurrit centaurus Nessus,
the centaur Nessus came up,
qui viatoribus auxilium obtulit.
who offered the travellers help.
Hercules igitur
Hercules therefore
uxorem suam in tergum Nessi imposuit;
put his wife on Nessus’s back
tum ipse flumen tranavit.
then he himself swam across the river.
Nessus autem paulum in aquam progressus
But Nessus, have gone a little way into the water
ad ripam subito revertebatur
suddenly turned back towards the shore
et Deianiram auferre conabatur.
and tried to carry off Deinira.
Quod cum animadvertisset Hercules,
When Hercules noticed this,
ira graviter commotus
he was very angry
arcum intendit et pectus Nessi sagitta transfixit.
bent his bow and pierced Nessus’s breast with an arrow.
d) The following section is for you to copy and translate.
Postea Hercules multa alia praeclara perfecit,
quae nunc perscribere longum est.
Tandem iam aetate provectus Deianiram,
Oenei filiam, in matrimonium duxit;
post tamen tris annos accidit ut puerum quendam,
cui nomen erat Eunomus, casu occiderit.
Cum autem mos esset
ut si quis hominem casu occidisset,
in exsilium iret,
Hercules cum uxore sua
e finibus eius civitatis exire maturavit.
Dum tamen iter faciunt,
ad flumen quoddam pervenerunt
in quo nullus pons erat;
et dum quaerunt quonam modo flumen transeant,
accurrit centaurus Nessus,
qui viatoribus auxilium obtulit.
Hercules igitur uxorem suam
in tergum Nessi imposuit;
tum ipse flumen tranavit.
Nessus autem paulum in aquam progressus
ad ripam subito revertebatur
et Deianiram auferre conabatur.
Quod cum animadvertisset Hercules,
ira graviter commotus
arcum intendit et pectus Nessi sagitta transfixit.
