42.1 Ὅταν τίς σε κακῶς ποιῇ ἢ κακῶς λέγῃ, μέμνησο ὅτι καθήκειν αὐτῷ οἰόμενος ποιεῖ ἢ λέγει. οὐχ οἷόν τε οὖν ἀκολουθεῖν αὐτὸν τῷ σοὶ φαινομένῳ, ἀλλὰ τῷ ἑαυτῷ· ὥστε εἰ κακῶς αὐτῷ φαίνεται, ἐκεῖνος βέβλαπται ὅσπερ καὶ ἐξηπάτηται. καὶ γὰρ τὸ ἀληθὲς συμπεπλεγμένον ἐάν τις ὑπολάβῃ ψεῦδος, οὐ τὸ συμπεπλεγμένον βέβλαπται, ἀλλ' ὁ ἐξαπατηθείς. ἀπὸ τούτων οὖν ὁρμώμενος πρᾴως ἕξεις πρὸς τὸν λοιδοροῦντα· ἐπιφθέγγου γὰρ ἐφ' ἑκάστου ὅτι «ἔδοξεν αὐτῷ.»
notes
What to Do if Someone Does Not Treat You Well
If someone speaks or treats you poorly, he is the one who is harmed. Cf. Diss. 1.18.1–10 (especially 10) and 4.5.1–12.
οἰόμενος: causal participle: “because he supposes” + infin.
τῷ σοὶ φαινομένῳ: “what appears (good) to you”
εἰ κακῶς αὐτῷ φαίνεται: “if what appears (good) to him is mistaken” (Smith 2014)
βέβλαπται: > βλάπτω, 3 sg. perf. pass. ind.
ὅσπερ καὶ ἐξηπάτηται: > ἐξαπατάω, perf ind. pass. 3 sg., “in as much as he has also been deceived”
τὸ ἀληθὲς συμπεπλεγμένον ἐάν τις ὑπολάβῃ ψεῦδος: “if someone assumes that a true proposition is false.” For the logic term συμπεπλεγμένον (ἀξίωμα) see ch. 36.
ὁ ἐξαπατηθείς: aor. pass. part. nom. masc. sg. used substantively: “the one who has been deceived.”
ὁρμώμενος: > ὁρμάω, conditional participle, “if you begin”
πρᾴως ἕξεις: ἔχω + the adverb indicates that one is in a certain state; “you will hοld gently” = “you will be gentle.” See note on κατὰ φύσιν ἔχουσαν in ch. 4.1.
ἐπιφθέγγου: 2 sg. pres. mid. imper.
vocabulary
καθήκω, -ήξω, to come down to, reach to; to be fit or proper; τὰ καθήκοντα, appropriate actions or duties
ἀκολουθέω, ἀκολουθήσω, ἠκολούθησα, to follow, accept + dat.
βλάπτω, βλάψω, ἔβλαψα, to harm, hinder, disable
ἐξαπατάω, ἐξαπατήσω, ἐξηπάτησα, to deceive
συμπλέκω,-πλέξω,-έπλεξα to join, combine; in the participle, it refers to the conjunctive proposition
ψεῦδος, -εος, τό, a falsehood
πρᾴως, (adv.) gently, meekly
λοιδορέω, λοιδορήσω, ἐλοιδόρησα, to insult, verbally abuse; reproach, rebuke
ἐπιφθέγγομαι, ἐπιφθέγξομαι, ἐπιφθεγξάμην, to utter, pronounce