I’m trying to form English sentences and translate into Latin as a way of practicing the use of relative pronouns. I would be most grateful if someone could have a quick glance at these sentences to make sure I’m not way off.
Thanks
I seek those things which are good
quaero illa, quae bona sunt
Those are the men from whom I fled
illi sunt quibus fugi
the citizens of whom I spoke have been praised
civitates quorum dixi laudati sunt
The girls whose books I read are Roman
pullae quarum librōs legi, Romanae sunt
I see the same things which they see
video eadem quae vident
A few points - often the antecedent is merely understood, so illa would be left out. Also, unless you are pointing out THOSE things (yonder) which are good, or wish to place emphasis upon the multiplicity of the acquisition of these good things, or (great) distance from them, then typically, implied or not, is, ea, id would be employed, [Ea] Quae sunt bona quaero would be a possibility. Be careful though, as this (of many possible renderings) means that you are currently seeking are good and that you may have already seen those things. Indicative mood would indeed make sense with the demonstrative pronoun ille. However, this phrase seems more general, and the use of the less definite ea (these/those) as the antecedent is begging for the subjunctive mood. Quae sint bona quaero conveys the meaning of seeking something potentially good but as yet not found. Other examples of such usage would be Qui latine loquatur appeto, something I know all too well - “I strive for some one who speak latin”. Even the french on personal advertisements and such say “Je cherche quelqu’in qui puisse me donner plus de plaisir que mon chien”, where puisse is the 3rd p. sing. subjunctive. That is to say, some one who…[potentially but I have not found to exist yet], some one who could… that which could be good [but I haven’t found them yet, am still seeking]. You get the picture.
re: illi sunt quibus fugi. There are many ways to say “those are the men who”, using homines, viri, milites etc., so I won’t worry about that. You need to note that with the ablative of separation, when physical, requires a preposition, usually a/ab otherwise e, ex/de. Compare …a quibus fugi, “from whom I fled”, to amor quo fugi, “the love from which I fled” Since amor is abstract an ablative alone will suffice.
Cives de quibus sum locutus laudati sunt, because civitas is a state whilst civis is indeed “citizen”. Whenever you speak of/about/concerning something, the preposition de, in addition to meaning “down from”, is used.
The last sentence, try the more idiomatic idem atque/ac, meaning “in the same way as”. So Atque illi video idem, I see in the same manner as they, I see the same things.
