Latin Project Passage 1: Confessiones (Confessions)

Cur ergo Graecam etiam grammaticam oderam talia cantantem?

Why, therefore, had I also hated Greek grammar (poetry) singing such sweet things?

Nam et Homerus peritus texere tales fabellas et dulcissime vanus est,

For both Homer, skilled to weave such stories and with great sweetness is deceptive,

mihi tamen amarus erat puero.

To me however, as a boy, he was bitter.

Credo etiam Graecis pueris Vergilius ita sit, cum eum sic discere coguntur ut ego illum.

I believe also to Greek boys Vergil is thus, if they were compelled to learn him thus as i was that one (Homer).

Videlicet difficultas, difficultas omnino ediscendae linguae peregrinae,

Clearly, the difficulty, the difficulty of learning a foreign language at all,

quasi felle aspergebat omnes suavitates Graecas fabulosarum narrationum.

As if it was sprinkling all the Greek sweetness of the fabulous stories with bile.

Nulla enim verba illa noveram,

For I had known none of those words,

et saevis terroribus ac poenis ut nossem instabatur mihi vehementer.

And it was being demanded vehemently for me with savage terrors and punishments in order that I might learn. Nam et Latina aliquando infans utique nulla noveram,

et tamen advertendo didici sine ullo metu atque cruciatu,

And however, I learned by paying attention, without any fear or torment,

inter etiam blandimenta nutricum et ioca adridentium et laetitias adludentium.

Between even the flatteries of the nurses, and the jokes of the smiling ones.

Didici vero illa sine poenali onere urgentium.

I learned truly those ones without the burden of punishment of the forcing ones.

Hinc satis elucet maiorem habere vim ad discenda ista liberam curiositatem quam meticulosam necessitatem.

From here, it is clear enough that free curiosity has greater power than scared compulsion for learning these things.