This picture from Wikimedia commons, is of Ulysses on ship is from a mosaic at the Bardo museum.
a) Postquam tamen pauca mília passuum á lítore Tróiae progressí sunt, tanta tempestás subitó coorta est ut núlla návium cursum tenére posset, sed aliae aliás in partís disicerentur. Návis autem quá ipse Ulixés vehébátur ví tempestátis ad merídiem déláta decimó dié ad lítus Libyae appulsa est.
Ancorís iactís Ulixés cónstituit nónnúllós é sociís in terram expónere, quí aquam ad návem referrent et quális esset nátúra éius regiónis cógnóscerent. Hí igitur é náví égressí imperáta facere parábant. Dum tamen fontem quaerunt, quibusdam ex incolís obviam factí ab iís hospitió acceptí sunt. Accidit autem ut máior pars víctús eórum hominum in míró quódam frúctú quem lótum appellábant cónsisteret. Quam cum Graecí gustássent, patriae et sociórum statim oblítí cónfírmávérunt sé semper in eá terrá mánsúrós, ut dulcí illó cibó in perpetuum véscerentur.
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.
pauca milia passuum – a few miles, literally a few
of miles, passuum being partitive genitive after milia ‘thousand’, ‘ few thousand
of steps’.
a litore – litore is ablative after the preposition a
‘from’.
progressi sunt – third person plural perfect tense of the
deponent verb progredior, ‘set out’.
tanta tempestas – such a great storm; tanta as we know
often introduces a result clause introduced by ‘ut’ as here, meaning ‘such a
great storm that ...etc’.
coorta est – third person singular of the deponent verb co
agreeing with the feminine noun tempestas, ‘storm’.
nulla navium – ‘not one of the ships, none of the ships’;
navium is partitive genitive after nulla.
tenere posset – could keep, the subjunctive is used here
as this is a consecutive or result clause introduced as we have already seen, by
the signal word tanta ‘such a great storm .. that etc.’
aliae alias – some in one.. others in another
(direction, way).
disicerentur – ‘they were driven apart’, this is the
third person passive plural subjunctive of the third conjugation verb disicio,
disicere, disjeci disjectus , meaning break up, drive apart, scatter.
vehebatur – third person singular passive indicative of the
third conjugation verb, veho, vehere, vexi vectus, carry, bear, ride, sail,
transport, meaning therefore ‘he was carried’.
delata – past participle of defero, deferre, detuli,
delatus meaning ‘carried away’ or ‘carried off’. Delatus can have many meanings
depending on the context (see any good dictionary); it is feminine here because
it is agreeing with the third declension feminine noun navis.
appulsa est – third person singular perfect passive of
appello appellere appulli appulsus, ‘landed’; it is feminine in agreement with
the third declension feminine noun navis, ship, boat.
anchoris iactis – ablative absolute phrase meaning ‘when
the anchors had been dropped’.
qui aquam – the qui referred to are the allies; as is often
the case a relative pronoun is used to connect the purpose clause which follows
with the preceding clause; qui .. referrent, ‘who were to bring back’, subjunctive is used as this is a purpose
clause.
dum quaerunt – ‘while they are looking for’, dum is
followed by a present tense, sometimes called the ‘vivid present’ often used in
story-telling which can be translated by a past tense. ‘while they were looking
for’.
accidit .. ut – accidit is an impersonal verb meaning
‘it happened’ or ‘it came about’, introducing a result clause beginning with
ut; accidit ut ..
maior pars victus – partitive genitive after the
greater part (maior pars) victus ‘of the food’.
quibusdam ex incolis – literally ‘certain out of
the inhabitants’ (dative as obviam facere, to come across, or bump into, is
followed by the dative) , which could be translated simply as ‘some of the
inhabitants’.
gustassent – ‘they had tasted’, third person plural
pluperfect subjunctive of gustare, to taste; the subjunctive is used here in a
cum clause in the past tense.
confirmerunt ..se.. mansuros – accusative infinitive in
reported speech, or indirect discourse after confirmerunt. ‘they declared..
that they (se – accusative) ... mansuros (for the future infinitive mansuros
esse, as we have seen before esse is often left out of the future infinitive).
dulci illo cibo – ablative with vescor notice the word
order ‘sweet that food’ but we would probably say ‘that sweet food’.
vescerentur –
third person plural imperfect subjunctive of vescor; the subjunctive is used
here following ut, as this is a purpose clause ‘in order that ... etc.
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.
Postquam tamen pauca milia passuum
a litore Troiae progressi sunt,Now after they moved off a few miles from the shore of Troy,
tanta tempestas subito coorta est
such a great storm suddenly arose
ut nulla navium cursum tenere posset,
that none of the ships could keep its course,
sed aliae alias in partis disicerentur.
but were driven apart some one way, others another way
Navis autem qua ipse Ulixes vehebatur
The ship however in which Ulysses himself was being carried
vi tempestatis ad meridiem delata
decimo die ad litus Libyae appulsa est.
carried off by the force of the storm, towards midday of the tenth day landed on the shore of Libya.
Ancoris iactis Ulixes constituit
When the anchors had been dropped Ulysses decided
nonnullos e sociis in terram exponere,
to disembark several of his allies on land,
qui aquam ad navem referrent
to bring back water to the ship
et qualis esset natura eius regionis cognoscerent.
and to find out what was the nature of the region.
Hi igitur e navi egressi imperata facere parabant.
So these men having left the ship made ready to carry out their orders.
Dum tamen fontem quaerunt,
Now while they were looking for a spring,
quibusdam ex incolis obviam facti ab iis
hospitio accepti sunt.
having come across some of the inhabitants, welcomed by them with hospitality.
Accidit autem ut maior pars victus eorum hominum
Now it happened that the greater part of the food of these men
in miro quodam fructu quem lotum appellabant consisteret.
consisted in a certain wonderful fruit which was called lotus.
Quam cum Graeci gustassent,
When the Greeks tasted it (which when etc)
patriae et sociorum statim obliti
immediately their homeland and allies were forgotten
confirmaverunt se semper
and they declared that they always
in ea terra mansuros,
would remain in that land
ut dulci illo cibo in perpetuum vescerentur.
so that they might feed upon that sweet food forever.
d) The following section is for you to copy and translate.
Postquam tamen
pauca milia passuum
a litore
Troiae progressi sunt,
tanta tempestas
subito coorta est
ut nulla
navium cursum tenere posset,
sed aliae
alias in partis disicerentur.
Navis autem
qua ipse Ulixes vehebatur
vi tempestatis
ad meridiem delata
decimo die ad
litus Libyae appulsa est.
Ancoris iactis
Ulixes constituit
nonnullos e
sociis in terram exponere,
qui aquam ad
navem referrent
et qualis
esset natura eius regionis cognoscerent.
Hi igitur e
navi egressi imperata facere parabant.
Dum tamen
fontem quaerunt,
quibusdam ex
incolis obviam facti
ab iis
hospitio accepti sunt.
Accidit autem
ut maior pars victus eorum hominum
in miro quodam
fructu
quem lotum
appellabant consisteret.
Quam cum
Graeci gustassent,
patriae et
sociorum statim obliti
confirmaverunt
se semper in ea terra mansuros,
ut dulci illo
cibo in perpetuum vescerentur.
