by Magistra » Sun Aug 10, 2003 4:40 am
To start with, my apologies - I can't seem to "do color" or _anything_ fancy. I'll indicate my comments with double asterisks (**).<br /><br />Magistra<br /><br />Quote from mariek:<br />I'm having major problems with translating this passage. I've highlighted the difficult parts in red, and also numbered each sentence to make it easier to refer to.<br /><br /><br />1. Apollo et Diana erant liberi Latonae.<br />Apollo and Diana were children of Latona.<br /><br />** Great. (or Latona's children)<br /><br /><br />2. Iis Thebani sacra crebra parabant.<br />These Thebans prepared frequent sacrifices.<br /> -- or? --<br />Thebans prepared frequent sacrifices to/for them.<br /><br />I wasn't sure whether "Iis" goes with the noun right after it, or whether it gets punted to the end of the sentence.<br /><br />** Iis/Eis = Dat/Abl pl. -- "Thebans prepared frequent sacrifices to/for them." Optime.<br /><br />** It "goes" wherever gramatically correct using a dat/abl representation.<br /><br />** What were prepared (acc) were sacrifices. Who/What they were prepared for = eis (them).<br /><br />3. Oppidani amabant Latonam et liberos eius.<br />The townspeople loved Latona and her children.<br /><br />** imperfect is often better rendered as <br /><br /> were loving<br /> used to love <br /> kept on loving<br /><br />** The idea is background information happening in the past which does not indicate an end to the action but rather its continuity or repetition in the past.<br /><br />4. Id superbae reginae erat molestum.<br />This was troublesome to the proud queen.<br /><br />I know that Id is neuter, and either NOM or ACC. I had a hard time trying to figure it out, whether it means: this/that, he/she/it, or him/her/it. I eventually decided that a generic "this" seemed to fit better.<br /><br />** You've got the right idea for its use as a PN, but it is also used as an adj. -- this, that, these, those. It's not really too demonstrative like hic (this one here) or ille (that one there). It usually just refers back to something previously mentioned or used to clarify gender or number.<br /><br />5. "Cur," inquit, "Latonae et liberis sacra paratis?<br />"Why?" said the queen, "(are) sacrifices prepared for Latona and the children?"<br /><br />I can't figure out this entire sentence. Is there a verb? Or is it implied? I added the "are" to plug the "hole". I figure that Latonae and liberis are DAT. Paratis is the DAT or ABL of paratus which means prepared.<br /><br />** paro, parare, paravi, paratum -- what person/tense ending is -tis? (You're thinking of the participle turned adjective.)<br /><br />** You've got the dat. OK.<br /><br />6. Duos liberos habet Latona; quattuordecim habeo ego.<br />Latona has two children; I have fourteen.<br /><br />** Optime.<br /><br /><br />7. Ubi sunt mea sacra?"<br />Where are my sacrifices?"<br /><br />Should sacra translate to "offerings" instead of "sacrifices"? When I use the word "sacrifices", I imagine someone being killed as a sacrifice.<br /><br />** "Sacra" in its most general terms means anything offered to a god/the gods which causes a "sacrifice" (loss) to the owner of what is given. If you give a goat, then it's killed; if you give grain, I guess it's killed too, but we don't often think about that.<br /><br /><br />8. Latona iis verbis irata liberos suos vocat.<br />Latona calls her children with angry words.<br /><br />Verbis is the ABL of verbum. Where does Iis fit in? It must either be DAT or ABL to mean: to/for them, with/from/etc them. I just can't figure out how it fits into the sentence.<br /><br />** Iis/Eis = dat/abl, pl -- here its an adj.: these those to agree with verbis.<br /><br />** irata -- check the ending -- can this agree with irata (N/S/F)?<br /><br /><br />9. Ad eam volant Apollo Dianaque et sagittis suis miseros liberos reginae superbae delent.<br />Apollo and Diana call to eam and destroy the wretched children of the proud queen with their arrows.<br /><br />I'm not sure what eam means. I don't think we've learned that word, and I can't find the word in my dictionary. I'm guessing that the preposition ad goes with it.<br /><br />** What a depressing sentence! Yuck!<br />** Anyway, let's start with "volant" -- volo doesn't mean call. Do you remember its basic meaning? I bet so. Now try again.<br />** eam is a form of is, ea, id -- regular ending! -am --> what's the case, no. & gender (& therefore use & trans.?)<br /><br /><br />10. Niobe, nuper laeta, nunc mesera, sedet apud liberos interfectos et cum perpetuis lacrimis eos desiderat.<br />Niobe, recently happy, now wretched, sits among the slain children and longs for them with perpetual tears.<br /><br />** Optime! (I'd say "her slain children" -- that would be obvious in Latin, but we're more wordy in English.)<br /><br />Did you get the idea that she is now a "weeping stone" (as the myth books put it)?<br /><br />Questions/comments?<br /><br />Magistra
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