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1. Iuli
Flore: the full name is a little formal and serious.
He appears also in II. 2.
2. Claudius:
Tiberius Claudius Nero. privignus:
this description is meant as a compliment, and the gentile name alone
is respectful in the case of a dignitary. laboro:
cf. Sat. II. 8. 19.
3. Thracane,
etc.: the route of an army would be through Thrace, across the Hellespont
over through Asia Minor into Armenia. The question is only a formal
way of asking how far along heis on his march.
vinctus: not
at the time, but proverbially so as being in a cold region.
4. turris:
Sestos and Abydos.
6. studiosa,
etc.: all the young nobles were litterateurs to some extent. In fact,
such had been often taken in the suite of a commander ever since Ennius
went into Ætolia with Fulvius.
8. diffundit:
i.e. preserves the memory of them in literature. Cf. II.
3. 346, and Od. IV. 14. 3.
9. Titius:
unknown, except from the allusion here. venturus:
i.e. about to become famous, a prophecy apparently not fulfilled.
10. Pindarici:
he seems to have attempted the Pindaric ode, for the difficulty of
which, cf. Od. IV. 2.
11. lacus
et rivos apertos: alluding to the quieter style of ordinary
poets, as opposed to the mountain torrent of Pindar. apertos:
in the open plain, not in woods or mountains.
12. fidibusne,
etc. (cf. Od. III. 30. 13): i.e. does he still attempt
the ode, and with success, or has he abandoned it for the turgid eloquence
of the drama?
13. auspice
Musa, with favoring Muse, i.e. does
he succeed in his venturesome attempt?
14. desaevit,
rave, referring to the intensity of passion.
ampullatur, bluster,
referring to the diction. Without supposing any direct ridicule on
Horace's part of his young friend's efforts, one can hardly help feeling
a tone of raillery in the whole allusion. For the word, cf. II. 3.
97, and lakúthous, Cic. ad Att. I. 14.
15. mihi,
my friend, tell me, or I should like to know, ethical
dative. Celsus:
perhaps the same to whom Ep. I. 8 is addressed.
16. privatas,
etc.: i.e. to write something of his own, and not borrow
from the ancients. Of course all Romans borrowed, but this man must
have copied without making the ideas his own.
17. Palatinus,
etc.: Augustus, in B.C. 28, established a library in connection with
the temple of Apollo on the Palatine.
20. audes,
venture on.
22. hirtum,
rough, like land foul with weeds and bushes.
23. linguam,
etc.: the three literary professions, so to speak, of orator, jurisconsult,
and poet.
24. amabile,
charming, lyric poetry, neither tragic nor epic.
25. hederae:
cf. Od.
I. 1. 29.
26. frigida,
chilli (clammy), comfortless, as not giving
the warmth and comfort they were intended to. curarum
(objective), anxious cares, the worries of worldly life.
fomenta,
solace, relief, i.e. the ambitious pursuits with
which (as in I. 2. 44 seq.) he seeks to satisfy the cravings
of his soul, and solace the anxieties of a worldly life.
relinquere: if
he could but abandon the pursuit of ambition and take up philosophy,
then his talent would carry him far on in the road to wisdom.
31. Munatius:
probably the son of Lucius Munatius Plancus, for whom see Od.
I. 7. With him Florus had, it seems, fallen out, and had been
reconciled (perhaps by Horace himself).
32. at
vos, etc.: in either case, whether you remain friends,
or otherwise, I shall be ready to greet you both on your return, for
which I have made a vow. The evidence of his friendship for both and
his words in reference to their quarrel indicate a strong desire to
reconcile them--a desire which may be the kernel of this letter.
33. calidus
sanguis, etc.: implying that there is no real cause for
persons of such a character (indigni, etc.) to quarrel,
but that their difference comes either from the fiery temper of youth
or from want of experience. |
