87

Surely Aemilianus did not believe that boy's letter would harm my case (1). There is also another letter introduced as evidence by my accusers, one supposedly written by me to Pudentilla, propositioning her in vulgar terms. This is an obvious forgery (2-5). After receiving Pudentilla's summons in the genuine letter earlier quoted, Pudens and Pontianus did go live with her for some months, during which time they observed her behaving completely normally (6-8). Shortly thereafter, Pudentilla and I were married in her suburban villa, as we had planned, to avoid the throngs of clients and well-wishers in the city. 

(1)

Cēterum: (adv.) "Still," with mild adversative force (OLD ceterus 5.c).

in animum indūcere: "bring myself to believe," introducing an indirect statement.

puerī et eiusdem accūsātōris meī: "of a boy who is also my accuser." Puerī is emphatic.

mihi ... offutūrās: supply esse, "would be injurious to me (at trial)."

(2)

Fuit et: "There was also."

illa commentīcia epistula: a third letter, allegedly written by Apuleius and addressed to Pudentilla. 

vērisimiliter cōnficta: "convincingly forged."

vidērī volēbant: "they wanted it to seem (as though)," introducing indirect statement.

sollicitātam: supply esse, "had been enticed," LS sollicito II.B.1.

blandīrem: the verb is normally deponent, but is used here in the active mode.

(3)

ut in rē tālī accūrārī solet: "the usual precaution in such an affair" (Jones).

(4)

tam vitiōsīs verbīs: "such uneducated language" (Jones). given Apuleius's consistent choice of conspicuous and beautiful words, this argument must have appeared indisputable to the audience (Hunink).

tam barbarō sermōne: "such barbarous style," i.e., unpolished, uncouth (OLD barbarus 2).

quem īdem dīcunt: antecedent is ego: "the person whom these same people (the accusers) are calling."

nēquāquam ... imperītum: "not at all unskilled in" + gen., i.e., "very skilled in."

tabernāriīs: "bar-room caliber."

subigitārem: "rile (her) up," "attempt to arouse," "tease."

lascivīre: "to play with," + abl., i.e., write playful poetry.

Apuleius associates lascivia with several poets: Sappho (9.7), Solon (9.9), Voconius (11.3), and here with himself (87.4). He defends erotic poetry at 11.1-4 and inserts many quotations from it in chs. 9-11 (Hunink note on ch. 86.2).

(5)

Sīc est profectō: "this is certainly how it is," introducing the answer to this conundrum of the mis-match between Apuleius's skills in Greek and the poor Greek skills of whoever tried to forge the letter in his name.

hic, quī: Rufinus.

Graecātiōrem: "in quite idiomatic Greek."

hanc: supply epistulam, i.e., the forged one.

ut suam: "since it was his own."

aptius commendāvit: "made it attractive more appropriately" to his skill level (i.e., badly), "did it better justice," a back-handed compliment, noting how the bad Greek of the letter now matches the bad Greek of its reader.

(6)

satis dictum habēbō: supply esse, "I will consider that enough has been said."

Pudentillam: subject of ēvocā(vi)sse and conversātam (esse).

dissimulāmentī causā et dērīdiculī: "for the sake of irony and mockery."

ἐλθὲ τοίνυν, ἕως ἔτι σωφρονῶ: "Well then come (to me), while I am still in my right mind." See 83.1 for the full text. The words πρὸς ἐμέ are here omitted.

post hāsce litterās: i.e., after she wrote and sent the letter in question.

nurum: Pontianus's wife, Rufinus's daughter. See 76.3-6.

conversātam: "lived with." Supply esse.

(7)

Dicat: jussive subjunctive ("let him say ...") as with neget (87.7), neget (87.8) and neget (87.9).

hic pius fīlius: highly ironic.

quid: introducing the indirect question with the subjunctive vīderit, but strictly the direct object of the participles agentem vel loquentem: "what he saw his mother doing or saying."

sequius: "amiss," comparative > the adverb secus, "differently," "contrary to what is expected." See OLD secus 3.

ratiōnibus villicōnum et ūpiliōnum et equīsōnum sollertissimē subscrīpsisse: Pudentilla is managing the estate finances just fine. We saw her prowess at household management before when she built up her own fortune.

The three types of special servants (overseers, stablemen, and shepherds) indirectly characterize her as a very wealthy woman. Her huge capital (71.6) has already made this quite clear (Hunink).

(8)

ab eā: i.e., ā Pudentillā.

monitum: supply esse.

sibi ... cavēret: "should protect himself"  LS caveo II.D.1.

obiūrgātum: supply esse, subject is still Pontiānum.

vulgō circumtulisset: "he had shared widely."

bonā fidē: "in good faith." He took words out of context to distort their meaning.

(9)

iam prīdem condictō locō: "at the place long since agreed." 

A first excuse for marrying in the country rather than in town, even before the theme itself is brought up. Apuleius gives a rather weak reason: the agreement had been made long before (Hunink).

(10)

ita placuerat: "it seemed good (to us)," "(we) had decided," looking forward to the substantive clause ut coniungerēmur.  The impersonal use of the placeo is common (LS placeo II), and the construction with a noun clause is classical. Caesar, Gallic Wars 1.34.1 placuit ei (Caesari), ut ad Ariovistum legatos mitteret.

potius: "rather (than in the city)."

dēnuō: "a second time," the occasion of the first disbursement of sportulae will be described in the cum clause to follow.

sportulās: free distributions of food (lit. "baskets") or cash given by patrons to clients. This is mentioned as a regular institution in Rome by Juvenal, writing in the early second century AD (Satires 1.95, 1.118, 1.128).

haud prīdem: "not long ago."

dē suō: "from her own (resources)."

quīnquāginta mīlia nummum: 50,000 sesterces, a considerable sum. See 101.5, where 60,000 sesterces is the price for a small estate (Hunink).

nummum: genitive plural, as is usual for nummus rather than nummōrum. sesterces, probably.

in populum expūnxisset: "had recorded as paid out to the people."

expungo is evidently an accounting term. Literally = "to prick," hence "to mark off on a list," and thus in this context, "to record as paid out" (Hunink).

togā: i.e., the toga virilis.

(11)

convīviīs multīs ac molestiīs: "many banquets and nuisances" (Jones).

quae: antecedent is convīviīs.

fermē ex mōre: "usually, according to custom."

obeunda sunt: "must be attended;" with an undertone of a hassle, "must be endured."