latin - pliny

ante lucem ibat ad Vespasianum imperatorem (nam ille quoque noctibus utebatur), deinde ad oficum sibi delegatum. reversus domum reliquum tempus studiis dabat saepe post cibum (qui veterum more interdiu levis et facilis erat) aestate,

Before dawn he used to go to the emperor Vespasian (for he also used the nights), then to the duty assigned to him. Having returned home he would allot the rest of his time to studies. Often after food (which by the customs of his forefathers was light and easy) in summertime

• ante - emphatic positioning - emphasises the pliny is an early riser

• noctibus, lucem - mention of night and day to show he works very often

• ibat - imperfect tense - rigidity of his routine

• levis et facilis - pliny is simple and respectable

• veterum - he respects tradition so he is admirable

si quid otii erat, iacebat in sole, liber legebatur adnotabat excerpebatque. nihil enim legit quod non excerperet; dicere etiam solebat nullum librum esse malum ut non aliqua parte prodesset. post solem plerumque aqua frigida lavabatur, deinde gustabat

if there was any free time, he would lie in the sun, a book would be read, he would make notes and take extracts from it; For he read nothing which he would not make extracts from. Indeed he uses to say that no book so bad that it was not useful in some part. After sunbathing he generally bathed in cold water, then had a snack,

• legebatur, adnotabat excerpebat - tricolon, juxtaposition - emphasises the number of tasks he does in order to study

• legebatur - passive - emphasises that pliny is studious and gives importance to books

• nullum, non - litotes - emphasises that every single book was useful and he could learn every thing from each of them.

dormiebatque minimum; mox quasi alio die studebat in cenae tempus. super cenam liber legebatur adnotabatur et quidam cursim. haec inter medios labore urbique fremitum. in secessu solum balinei tempus studiis eximebatur (cum dico, “balinei”, de interioribus loquor; nam dum destringitur tergiturque

and slept for a very short time; soon afterwards as if it were on another day, he would study til dinner time. Over dinner, a book would be read, notes taken, and hastily indeed. These things took place during the middle of the toils and the noise of the city. In his country retreat, only bath time was taken away from studies (when i say baths, i am talking about the inner rooms); for while he was being scraped and wiped down

• legebatur adnotabatur - passive verbs which bring attention to “liber” - shows the importance he places on books and studying

• destringitur tergiturque, audiebat, dictabat - actions happening in quick succession - pliny’s ability to multitask, always finds time to study

audiebat aliquid aut dictabat. in itinere quasi solutus ceteris curis, huic uni vacabat: ad latus notarius cum libro et pugillaribus, cuius manus hieme manicis muniebantur, ut ne caeli qudiem asperitas ullum studii tempus eriperet; qua ex causa Romae quoque sella vehebatur.

he would listen to something or dictate. on a journey, as if released from all other anxieties, he had time for this alone. at his side (there would be) a secretary with a book and a writing tablet whose hands were protected with mittens in winter, so that not even the harshness of the weather might take away any study time; for this reason, he rode in a sedan chair in Rome also.

• vacabat - verb used for leisure - pliny finds leisure and enjoyment from studying

• alliteration of m and n - manus, manicis, muniebantur - emphasises harshness of weather, and pliny’s devotion to continue studying despite the weather

repeto me correptum, ab eo, quod ambularem: “poteras",” inquit “has horas non perdere”; nam perire omne tempus arbitrabatur, quod studiis non impenderetur. vale.

i recall that i was rebuked by him because i walked: he said “you could have not wasted these hours”; for he thought that all time which was not spent on studies was wasted. Farewell.

• repeto - personal anecdote - story feels legitimate and engaging

• correptum - strong powerful verb - shows how seriously pliny rebules his nephew for wasting his time not studying

• perire - emphatic positioning at start to show how horrified pliny is that his nephew wasted his time