by Interaxus » Thu Feb 25, 2010 1:16 am
Little Flower:
Hope you received chapters 1, 3, 4 and 10. Here’s the last one, Chapter 26:
Good luck with your project! Icarus says to his dad: “Tu id quod semel excogitavisti perficere soles”. Does that apply to you too?
If so, translating the whole of Familia Romana will well and truly ‘immerse’ you in lingua latina.
LF and Novi: A suggestion in case you decide to go ahead: If you post short translations (of about 20 lines each) regularly on Textkit (with chapter and line number references), it might spur Oerberg fans at Textkit to spot mistakes, suggest improvements, etc. Apart from aiding other Oerberg tyros, it might also bring others on board your project once word got out.
In the following chapter by anon I’ve highlighted the parts where Oerberg uses the Gerund in the original Latin (that’s the grammatical theme of the chapter) so folks can practise translating the phrases back to Latin gerunds for fun before checking against the original.
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Translation: Chapter 26, Daedalus et Icarus.
Quintus: "Didn't King Minos pursue Theseus (when he was) fleeing with Ariadne?"
Syra: "The king certainly began to follow them, but the ship of Theseus was too fast. Minos, although he sailed quickly, wasn't as fast as Theseus and wasn't able to catch up with him. The angry king then seized Daedalus, who had made the thread and given it to Ariadne, and ordered him to be shut up in the Labyrinth together with his son Icarus; but father and son in a miraculous manner escaped out of the Labyrinth. Tomorrow I will tell to you about their escape, but today i have NO MORE TIME FOR TELLING STORIES: I have already SPENT AN HOUR IN STORY-TELLING."
Quintus: "And you couldn’t spend your time better! It’s against the rules to break off STORY-TELLING in the middle of a story. Since you have already told the greater part of the story, you must tell the remaining part too. I'm READY TO LISTEN.
To this Syra says "Well then, because you are so KEEN TO LISTEN, I'll tell you the rest of the story:
"Daedalus, locked up in the labyrinth with his son, wandered around within the walls and and couldn’t find the exit, even though he had built the Labyrinth himself. Therefore, since other ways were closed, that daring man decided to escape through the air. Icarus however, who didn’t know of his father’s plan, sat on the ground and said, "I'm tired FROM WALKING around in this prison that you yourself have built for us, father! We cannot escape by ourselves, and no-one will be able TO HELP US IN ESCAPING, like Ariadna helped Theseus. We don't have much TIME LEFT TO LIVE, for our food has almost run out. I'm already almost dead. Unless the gods (will) help us, we will never leave here alive. O, good gods, bring us help!"
But Daedalus said, "What does it help calling the gods, while you sit idle here? Someone who doesn’t want to help himself, doesn’t deserve the aid of the gods. But don’t worry! I have already thought out a plan of escape. Even if the other routes are closed, one route lies open to us FOR ESCAPING. Observe that eagle that is flying in a large circle around our prison! Who is as free as a bird that can fly across mountains, valleys, rivers and oceans. Why don't we imitate the birds of heaven? Minos, who rules over the land and the sea, is not the master of the air: we will fly away from here through the air! This is my plan. Nobody will be able to follow us (when we are) flying." "I’m certainly KEEN ON FLYING" said Icarus, "but wings are NECESSARY FOR FLYING. Since the gods haven’t given us wings, we cannot fly. We're humans, not birds. No one except a god can change his nature. Birds fly by nature, humans cannot do likewise.” Then Daedalus said, "What am I not able to do? Actually, by my skill, nature itself can be changed. I've already made many amazing things, which demonstrate my skill to everyone, not only magnificent buildings like this labyrinth, but also statues that can move by themselves just like live humans. I can make wings too, though the work is not easy." "Your plan is certainly daring," said Icarus, "but I like EVERY PLAN OF ESCAPING, and you usually carry out what you have once thought up." "Of course I'll carry out my plan" he replies, "Look, I have everything necessary for this job: feathers, wax, fire. With the fire I’ll melt the wax, with the melted wax I’ll join the feathers and stick them on your (upper) arms."
"Daedalus therefore with his amazing skill made for himself and his son giant wings out of feathers, which he joined with wax and fixed on their arms. When he had finished the work he said, "The work is now complete, behold the latest example of my art. We are indeed not birds, but WE WILL IMITATE THE BIRDS IN FLYING. With the wind we will fly across the ocean fast, no bird will be able to follow us."
"Icarus, KEEN TO FLY, moved his wings this way and that, but he couldn't raise himself above the ground. "The wings can't support me" he said, "you teach me fly!" At once Daedalus raised himself with his wings and said, "Unless you move the wings correctly, you can't fly! Imitate me! THE ART OF FLYING isn't so difficult. Move your wings up and down like this!" Thus Daedalus taught his son THE ART OF FLYING just like a bird teaches its young ones. Then having given his son a kiss he says, "We're READY TO FLY, but first I warn you: fly behind me in the middle air between heaven and earth, for if you fly in the lowest air near the sea, the feathers will become moist, but if on the other hand you fly in the uppermost air near heaven, the fire of the sun will melt the wax and burn the feathers. Don't be TOO DARING IN FLYING! Be careful, my boy! Now follow me! We're escaping our prison - We are free!
Having spoken these words, Daedalus with his son up flew upwards from the labyrinth, and no one noticed their escape except a shepherd, who looking up by chance saw them flying like big birds and supposed they were gods. Soon Daedalus and his son left Crete, but they didn't fly the direct route to Athens in their homeland, but, delighted by their new freedom, began to fly in a big circle over the Aegean Sea. Looking down Icarus looked in wonder at the great number of islands: "Oh, how many small islands there are in the huge sea!" But Daedalus said, "Those islands are by no means small although they seem to be small. Certainly the island Melos, which is under us, isn't as small as it seems to you." Icarus: "But that island to our left looks a lot bigger to me. What island is that?" Daedalus: "It's Peloponnesus, a part of Greece, and is not really an island, but a peninsula, for Peloponnesus is connected by a narrow piece of land, which is called an isthmus. Near the isthmus Corinth is situated, a most beautiful city, and not far off is Athens, our homeland." "If we fly higher, we will see not only Greece, but almost the whole world", said Icarus recklessly and flew still higher. From there he not only looked down marvelling at large parts of Europe and Asia, but also spotted the coast of Africa in the distance, then looked up above him at the sun shining in the clear sky. At once the boy, EAGER TO OBSERVE the sun closer, even though his father had warned him, rose to the top of the sky…
Here Quintus, who eagerly awaited the end of the story, asked: "What happed next?"
Syra: "What happened next was what was bound to happen: the fire of the nearby sun melted the wax, by which the feathers were joined together and attached, and burned the feathers. The terrified boy, waving his bare arms, fell into the sea and drowned, nor could his father bring help to him. That part of the Aegean Sea in which Icarus drowned is called 'the Icarium Sea’ after his name.
Likewise, the nearby island, on whose shore the body of the boy was found, even now is called ‘Icaria’. There you have the complete story of the reckless boy who, seeking freedom, found death. Now it is TIME TO SLEEP. Aren't you tired FROM HEARING the long stories?
Quintus shook his head and said; "I'm not tired, and that story does not seem long to me. Out of all the stories, the one about the fall of Icarus pleases me most, even more than the one about the son of the Sun, who similarly, having tried to drive his father's chariot, fell from highest heaven because he foolishly strayed from the path of the sun. I am always very DELIGHTED TO HEAR such tales."
Syra: "No less do I enjoy telling these tales, not only because they seem to me beautiful in themselves, but also because the endings of the stories rightly warn reckless men. For such is the nature of men, and indeed especially of boys. The story of Daedalus and Icarus is told not only for the sake OF DELIGHTING but also OF WARNING, for what happened to that boy can happen to every boy, if he doesn’t obey his father. Don't be like Icarus, my Quintus! Always be careful! But it’s hardly necessary for you to be warned by me after what happened to you yesterday. I'm sure that fall of yours warned you better than any story!”
With the boy warned by these words, Syra finally PUTS AN END TO STORY-TELLING. And Quintus does not call her back (as she is) leaving, but lies on his bed and closes his eyes. Soon the boy seems to himself in his dreams to be flying over mountains and rivers, equipped with wings.
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Cheers,
Int