Audet asellus aprum rīsū temptāre protervō
audet iners fortī dīcere: “frāter, avē!”
Vibrat aper prō vōce caput: nam verba superbit
reddere, sed dentem vix tenet īra trucem.
Sūs tamen ista movet: “vīlem dēns nōbilis ēscam 5
spernit; dēsidiā tūtus es ipse tuā.”
Nōn dēbet stolidō laedī prūdentia rīsū,
nec stolidus doctum dēbet adīre iocīs.
notes
The Donkey and the Wild Boar
A lazy, jocular donkey teases a pompous boar. The boar takes umbrage but declines to exact revenge.
Other versions: Perry 484
Phaedrus' version (1.29) makes the situation clearer.
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"When a foolish person just wants to get a laugh, he often teases someone in a way that is actually quite insulting, thus getting himself into serious trouble indeed.
A donkey happened to run into a wild boar and greeted him, 'Good day, brother.' The boar was indignant and, spurning the donkey's salutation, he demanded to know how the donkey could make such an outrageous claim. The donkey extended his prick and said, 'Even if you deny that you have anything in common with me, this certainly seems to have a great deal in common with your snout.' Although he wanted to launch an attack that would be worthy of his breeding, the boar checked his rage and said, 'I could easily avenge myself, but I don't want to sully myself with the blood of this worthless coward!'" (Phaedrus 1.29, trans. Laura Gibbs)
1 risū ... protervō: ablative of manner. The donkey has addressed the wild boar in a saucy and overly familiar way in order to get a laugh. See Phaedrus' version, quoted above.
2 audet ... 'frāter avē': the donkey dares to hail the wild boar as "bother," as though they were kin or had something in common, a bit of presumption that galls the proud and strong (fortī) boar. He feels he is far above the lazy (iners) donkey.
2 fortī: substantival adjective, in the dative after dīcere: “to the strong one.”
3 vibrat ... caput: “shakes his head.”
3 prō vōce: “instead of speaking.”
3 superbit: “he is too proud” + verba reddere. Verba is the direct object of reddere. And superbit governs reddere.
4 vix tenet īra: “(his) anger scarcely restrains,” or “(his) indignation barely holds back” + accusative.
5 Sūs: = aper.
5 ista: neut. acc. pl. direct object of movet, “moves those (words),” i.e., the boar finally decides to speak.
5 vīlem: "cheap," "low class," emphatic by position, expressing the boar's opinion of the donkey. Note the antithesis with nōbilis.
5 dēns nōbilis: singular for plural, subject of spernit.
6 dēsidiā ... tuā: ablative of cause with tūtus. The boar considers the donkey to be beneath him, unworthy of attacking. See above, iners.
7 stolidō rīsū: ablative of means with laedī. As Phaedrus's version makes clear, the donkey had been mocking the boar. See iōcīs in the next line.
7 laedī: pass. inf., complementing nōn dēbet, “should not be harmed.”
8 doctum: this imports an idea not in Phaedrus's version. The noble person being mocked is "learned," perhaps a student or scholar being teased by an unlettered fool.
8 iocīs: ablative of means with adīre, “assail with jokes,” LS adeo I.B.3.
vocabulary
asinus –ī m.: an ass, donkey
aper aprī m./f.: a boar, wild boar
asellus –ī m.: an ass, donkey
rīsus –ūs m.: laughter
protervus –a –um: shameless, insolent
iners –ertis (gen.): lazy, inactive
avē: hail! hello there!
vibrō –āre –āvī –ātus: to brandish, wave, shake
superbiō –īre – –: to be too proud to (+ inf.)
dēns dentis m.: a tooth, tusk
trux –ūcis (gen.): wild, savage, fierce
sus suis m.: a hog, boar
vīlis –e: cheap, common, insignificant, inferior
esca –ae f.: food, meat
spernō –ere sprēvī sprētus: to scorn, despise, spurn
dēsīdia –ae f.: idleness, slothfulness
stolidus –a –um: dull, stupid
prūdentia –ae f.: discretion, wisdom
doctus –a –um: learned, wise
iocus –ī m.: a joke, jest, mockery