Lucretius III 548-591 | Dickinson College Commentaries

Et quoniam mēns est hominis pars ūna locōque

fīxa manet certō, vel ut aurēs atque oculī sunt

atque aliī sēnsūs quī vītam cumque gubernant,550

et vel utī manus atque oculus nārēsve seorsum

sēcrēta ab nōbīs nequeunt sentīre neque esse,

sed tamen in parvō linquntur tempore tābe,

sīc animus per sē nōn quit sine corpore et ipsō

esse homine, illīus quasi quod vās esse vidētur,555

sīve aliud quid vīs potius coniūnctius ei

fingere, quandōquidem cōnexū corpus adhaeret.

Dēnique corporis atque animī vīvāta potestās

inter sē coniūncta valent vītāque fruuntur;

nec sine corpore enim vītālīs ēdere mōtus560

sōla potest animī per sē nātūra nec autem

cassum animā corpus dūrāre et sēnsibus ūtī.

scīlicet āvolsus rādīcibus ut nequit ūllam

dispicere ipse oculus rem seorsum corpore tōtō,

sīc anima atque animus per sē nīl posse vidētur.565

nī mīrum quia per vēnās et vīscera mixtim,

per nervōs atque ossa tenentur corpore ab omnī

nec magnīs intervāllīs prīmōrdia possunt

lībera dissultāre, ideō conclūsa moventur

sēnsiferōs mōtūs, quōs extrā corpus in aurās570

āëris haut possunt post mortem ēiecta movērī

proptereā quia nōn similī ratiōne tenentur;

corpus enim atque animāns erit āēr, sī cohibēre

sēsē anima atque in eōs poterit conclūdere mōtūs,

quōs ante in nervīs et in ipsō corpore agēbat.575

quārē etiam atque etiam resolūtō corporis omnī

tegmine et ēiectīs extrā vītālibus aurīs

dissoluī sēnsūs animī fateāre necessest

atque animam, quoniam coniūnctāst causa duōbus.

Dēnique cum corpus nequeat perferre animāī580

discidium, quīn in taetrō tābēscat odōre,

quid dubitās quīn ex īmō penitusque coorta

ēmānārit utī fūmus diffūsa animae vīs,

atque ideō tantā mūtātum putre ruīnā

conciderit corpus, penitus quia mōta locō sunt585

fundāmenta forās mānant animaeque per artūs

perque viārum omnis flexūs, in corpore quī sunt,

atque forāmina? multimodīs ut nōscere possīs

dispertītam animae nātūram exīsse per artūs

et prius esse sibī distractam corpore in ipsō,590

quam prōlāpsa forās ēnāret in āëris aurās.

notes

548-557: Like the eyes and ears etc., the anima is involved in sensing the external world. And, like the other sensory organs, it dies if separated from the rest of the body. The sentence is an anacoluthon, for quoniam in line 548 is never answered with a main clause. The first vel ut clause (lines 549-550) can be read as part of the quoniam clause, but the force of the velut in line 551 (if not already at line 549), becomes foremost in the thought, and this is the idea that is then answered by sic animus in line 554.

549: sunt sc., fixa loco certo.

550: alii sensus here not of perceptions, but rather of perceiving organs, as the examples make clear. Qui ... cumque tmesis "whichever ones."

551: nares is nominative singular, so the -e- should be pronounced short; the final syllable of nares, being closed, is here long in the line.

552: esse (as in line 555) is existential: "exist."

553: liquuntur ... tabe "they are dissolved by rotting."

555: quod referent is corpore.

556: sive aliud quid vis potius ... \ fingere "or rather whatever other thing ... you want to imagine;" the vis does double duty by both forming an indefinite with the preceding quid and by authorizing the complementary infinitive fingere (line 557). Coniunctius ei modifies aliud quid vis; ei is dative with the idea of nearness in coniunctius.

558-579: Sentience requires that the particles of anima and animus move together in subtle ways, and these motions in turn depend upon the protective enclosure of the body. Once released from the body into the air, the animus and anima are unable to bring about sensation, and the body itself dies.

559: coniuncta valent plural here in reference to the (a) potestas corporis, and (b) potestas animi. Lucretius has referred to the two abstract ideas with a neuter plural adjective. The feminine would also have been possible. Cf. line 601.

562: animā ablative of separation with cassum "empty."

563: ut is answered by sic in line 565: "just as ... so."

564: seorsum Lucretius usually treats this word as an adverb, but here it acts as a preposition with the ablative.

565: nil posse "to have no power."

569: moventur /sensiferos motus "they move themselves into the sense-bearing movements;" moventur is felt either as middle in force (roughly as translated above), or as a true passive with a retained accusative "they are moved in respect to sense-bearing motions," i.e., their movements are those that bring about sensation.

571: haut = haud. moveri as with moventur in line 569, construe either as middle in force or true passive with a retained accusative (quos in line 570).

573-575. A surprising and slightly humorous argument: If the anima could perform its functions in the air as it does in the body, then the air itself would be animate, as is the body when the anima is present and can perform its functions.

573: aër is subject, while corpus ("a living body") and animans ("alive") belong to the predicate; if the conditions of the protasis are met, the aër will be both corpus and animans.

574: sese object of both cohibere and concludere.

577: vitalibus auris refers to the motus sensiferi of line 569.

578: fateare necessest "it is necessary that you admit;" necessest is often used with the simple subjunctive (as well as accusative and infinitive; and ut and subjunctive), and Lucretius uses this phrase ten times in DRN, almost always at the end of the line. Cf. 470, 677, 766.

579: causa here in the sense of a "connection" between corpus and anima.

580-614: Life doesn't seem to vanish at one moment, as though it were departing whole. Instead, it grows weaker and weaker within the body as it fails, revealing that it is being destroyed, not exiting, in the process of death.

583: emanarit = emanaverit; the perfect subjunctive in the quin clause stresses the completeness of the action, and gives the vivid impression that the reader is standing over a recently deceased person. The effect continues at conciderit (585), exisse (589), and esse distractam (590)

585: locō ablative of separation "from their proper place."

590: sibi dative of disadvantage or reference.

vocabulary

ūnā: together, together with; at the same time, along with

locō locāre locāvī locātus: to place, put, station; arrange; contract (for); farm out (taxes) on contract

fīgō fīgere fīxī fīxus: to fix, fasten

550

cumque: however, whenever, howsoever, whensoever,

gubernō gubernāre –āvī –ātus: to steer

nāris –is f. a nostril; pl., nares, -ium: the nostrils; the nose

seorsum: separately, apart

sēcernō sēcernere sēcrēvī sēcrētum: to separate

nequeō nequīre nequiī/nequīvī nequitum: to be unable

linquō linquere līquī: to leave, relinquish; to dissolve

queō quīre quīvī/quiī quitus: to be able

555

quod: because, the fact that, which

vās –is or vāsum –ī n.: vase, container; vessel

videor vidērī vīsus sum: to seem; be seen

potius: rather, more

coniungō coniungere coniūnxī coniūnctus: to connect, join/yoke together; marry; connect/compound (words) (w/conjunctions); unite (sexually); place/bring side–by–side; juxtapose; share; add; associate

quandōquidem: since indeed; inasmuch as, because

cōnectō –ere –nexuī –nexus: to fasten together, connect; twist together

adhaereō adhaerēre adhaesī —: to adhere, stick to

vivatus -a –um: living, animated, alive and well

560

neque/nec…neque/nec: neither…nor

vītālis –e: pertaining to life; essential to life, vital (> vita)

mōtus mōtūs m.: motion, movement; disturbance

cassus –a –um: void; deprived of; fruitless, vain

dūrō dūrāre dūrāvī dūrātus: to harden; to endure

āvellō –ere –vellī or vulsī –vulsus: to pluck, or tear off, or away from, with acc. and abl., take away, steal; to force away; p., avulsus, a, um, torn from; torn, rent

rādīx rādīcis f.: root

dispiciō –ere –spexī –spectus: to see distinctly, descry, perceive, discern (> dis– and specio, look)

565

nī: if ... not; unless [quid ni? => why not?]

mīrus –a –um: wonderful, strange, remarkable, amazing, surprising, extraordinary

vēna vēnae f.: vein

vīscus vīsceris n.: innards, viscera, guts

nervus –ī m.: muscle, tendon; cord, string

intervāllum –ī n.: the space between two stakes; an interval, distance

primordium, primordii n.: an origin, a first beginning; atoms, or particles

dissultō dissultāre dissultāvī dissultātus: to leap asunder; spring back or apart; burst from (> dis– and salto)

conclūdō –ere –clūsī –clūsus: to shut completely; shut around, inclose, surround (> com– and claudo)

570

sensifēr, sensifēra, sēnsiferum: sense-bearing, that produces a sensation, sensual

extrā: outside / outside of, beyond, without, beside; except

ēiectō ēiectāre ēiectāvī ēiectātus: to cast forth; vomit (> ex and iacto)

proptereā: therefore, for this reason [propterea quod => because]

animō animāre: to enliven, quicken, animate; to endow with, to give

cohibeō –ēre –uī –itus: to hold together, restrain, confine; check, curb, repress (> com– and habeo)

575

resolvō –ere –solvī –solūtus: to untie

tegmen (tegumen) –inis n.: a means of covering; skin, hide; clothing; shield; tegmen crurum, close–fitting trousers worn by Phrygians (> tego)

ēiciō ēicere ēiēcī ēiectus: to throw out, expel

extrā: outside / outside of, beyond, without, beside; except

dissolvō dissolvere dissolvī dissolūtus: to loosen, dissolve, destroy

580

perferō perferre pertulī perlātus: to suffer, endure; report

discidium –iī n.: splitting; separation

taeter –tra –trum: disagreeable; foul, loathsome; unpleasant

tābescō –bescere –bui: to waste away

odor –ōris m.: scent, smell, odor, fragrance; disagreeable odor, stench; foul fumes

quid: what; why

īmum –ī n.: the deep

penitus or penitē: inwardly, internally, entirely

coorior –īrī coortus sum: to arise

ēmānō ēmānāre: to flow out

fūmus –ī m.: smoke

diffundō –ere –fūdī –fūsus: to pour round about, pour out; diffuse; spread, multiply; to put in disorder, dishevel; spread abroad

puter –pūtris –e: fetid, foul–smelling; putrid, crumbling, dusty (> puteo, to be foul–smelling)

ruīna ruīnae f.: fall; catastrophe; collapse, destruction

585

concidō concidere concidī: to fall down, fall faint, fall dead, fall victim, fall to earth, fall short, collapse; drop, subside; decline; perish, be slain/sacrificed; lose one's case, fail, give out, lose heart, decay

fundāmentum –ī n.: a foundation (> fundo)

mānō mānāre mānāvī mānātus: to drip, flow

flexus –ūs m.: curl, wave; the act of bending or curling

forāmen –inis n.: an opening, aperture, orifice, hole

multimodis: variously, in many ways variously, in many ways

dispertiō, dispertīre, dispertīvī, dispertītum: to divide up, to distribute, to assign to divide up, to distribute, to assign

artus artūs m.: limb, leg

590

distrahō –ere –trahere –traxī –tractum: to pull apart, tear to pieces

prōlābor –lāpsus sum: to slip forward, tumble down; prolapsus, -a, -um: fallen, in ruins

ēnō ēnāre ēnāvī ēnātus: to swim out or away; (fig.), to fly away