This little dialogue gives an insight into an aspect of
Roman life. The wealthy and influential often had ‘clientēs’, people who
visited them, paid their respects and were generally looking for some sort of
favour or financial assistance.
The doorman is very cynical about the reasons why they want
to visit his master!
____________________
Salūtātor (Forēs pulsat) Num dormiunt omnēs? Aperī iānuam!
Iānitor Quis tam vehementer forēs pulsat? Num ārdēmus?
Salūtātor Salūtātor sum. Licetne mihi patrōnum salūtāre?
Iānitor Cūr ita māne ades? Prīma modo est hōra.
Audī! Gallus cantat.
Salūtātor Errās. Tardus est gallus, namque secunda iam est
hōra. Ecce, aliī adsunt clientēs.
Clientēs Adestne patrōnus? Licetne nōbīs
intrāre?
Iānitor Intrāte omnēs. Dominus adest, sed eum
vidēre nōn vultis. Salūtant clientēs patrōnum, sed rē vērā petunt sportulās.
Clientēs Sportulās nōbīs dā, pessimē. Necesse est sine
morā abīre.
(Iānitor clientēs per vestibulum in ātrium dūcit.)
Iānitor Ecce, in mēnsā sunt sportulae. Accipite atque abīte.
(Clientēs sportulās capiunt et abeunt.)
____________________
Vocabulary
foris, -s [3/f]: door
iānitor, iānitōris [3/n]: doorman
mora, -ae [1/f]: delay; sine morā: without delay
patrōnus, -ī [2/m]: the ‘patron’ i.e. the master of the
house; this is the man who can do the favour
rē vērā (or: rēvērā) in actual fact
salūtātor, salūtātōris [3/m]: literally, one who greets from
the verb salūtō, -āre [1]: greet, but here referring to somebody who has come
to visit
sportula, -ae [2/f]: small basket but can also refer to ‘a
gift’ i.e. a handout
vehementer: violently; loudly
Note:
Licet: an impersonal verb i.e. literally it means it is
allowed / permitted
Licetne mihi patrōnum salūtāre?
│ Is it permitted for me to greet the patron?
│ May I greet the patron?
Licetne nōbis intrāre? │Literally: Is it
permitted for usto come in? │ May we come in?
[A] These dialogues from Appleton’s Initium are carefully
written. There are all different verb types in the text which have already been
covered and reviewed.
[1] Imperative /command forms
[i] Talking to one person:
Give us (the baskets / gifts)
Listen
Open the door!
[ii] Talking to more than one person
Come in, everybody.
Take / receive / accept (them) ..
1st conjugation
You’re wrong
Who’s knocking the door?
The cock’s crowing
The clients greet the patron
2nd conjugation
We’re not on fire, are we?
3rd conjugation
The doorman leads (takes) the clients …
They’re looking for gifts
3rd-iō conjugation
They take the gifts
4th conjugation
Surely not everybody’s sleeping? [in Latin, this is plural
i.e. all people]
Irregular verb
You don’t want to see him.
[B] the verbs with prefixes
1. It’s necessary [(here) we need] to go away
2. They go away
3. Go away!
4. Why are you here in the morning?
5. Is the patron here?
6. The master is present.
7. Other clients are here.
____________________
(Beats at the door) Surely not everybody’s asleep? Open the
door.
Who’s banging at the door so loudly at the door? We’re not
on fire, are we?
I am a visitor. May I greet the patron?
Why are you here in the morning like this? It’s only the
first hour? Listen! The cock’s crowing.
You’re wrong. The cock’s late, for it’s already the second
hour. Look, other clients are here.
Is the patron here? May we come in?
Come in, everybody. The master is present, but you don’t
want to see him. The clients greet the patron but, in fact, they’re looking for
gifts.
Give us the gifts, you most evil man. We need to leave
without delay.
(The doorman leads the clients through the entrance into the
reception room.)
Look! The baskets are on the table. Take (them) and go away!
(The clients take the baskets and leave.)
No comments:
Post a Comment