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58 LUCRETIUS. BOOK V.
194. qualibiis = qual(s sunt ii quibus.
'*' haec rerum s umm a, ' ' this sum o f matter ' , i.e. our world ; the
summa sumhtarum, ' sum of sums ' (1. 36i)7includes all worlds.
r\^ "'9 novando l^ bv constanl— Lcacadiig ' : the g erund is used actively to
s upply oblique cases of the infinitive : see n. to procudendo 1. 126^. The
number of atoms in any world is constant, but their combinations are
constantly changing.
195—134. In any case the world is so far from perfect that it is ,
impossible to attribute to it a divine origin. A great part of it is \
uninhabitable ; the inhabitable part is cultivated with great labour,
and often without result. Think too of the wild beasts, ihe diseases,
the early deaths, and of the helpless condition of the human infant
compared with the offspring of other animals.
This paragraph is in the poet's noblest style.
195. si iam . ' even if it were the case that ': si iam (and ut iam)
are used with the pres. subj. to state a hypothesis provisionally, for
the sake of argument. Here the iam suggests that Lucr. is not really
ignorant. el dpa is often used in this sense ; Thuc. iii 56 el dpa rnj.dpTtiTat.
quae sint : indirect question.
196. rationibu s,'' arran^ements '. ausim , archaic for audeam .
1taiii><iiM»w 197. reddere is short for rationem reddere; see 1. 66.
198. divinitus, dibdev, 'bxthe §ods'. '^1m>^ Y'*^.
199. stQt = constat=ejt. praedita is more commonly used of good
or neutral quahties. <r«^a, ' fai^liiness '. 4?f^£s^''
200. quantum...inde=a tanto quantum.
ii^^f^ . impetus, ' whirHng expanse ' ; it seems to denote both size and
motion ; for the revolution of the sky, see 1. 510.
201. silvae ferarum : so we speak of 'a den of lions '.
W.B. lo^. ^vastae,^vfaste\ ' barre n '. not 'huge'; comp. i 722 vasta
Charybdis. ""
lo^. it^ porro (Hti.ra>i, '' next '. answers to principio [irpCiTov
liiv), 1. 200 ; it is different ffom in5e in 1. 201.
^" duas partes, to. 8vo fidpT], tjjyp third s '.
205. casus,'{a.\Vmg'. , ^JLj-tA<U^
206. a>^2, ' consisting of land fit to cuhivate '. ^^*^ ^^MT^Cflw
209.-"^'Virg. Georg. ii 237 validis terram proscinde iuvencii. In this '"'Sj^
second Georgic Virgil imitates Lucr. far more than in his other poems.
See Introduct. p. xvi.
194. qualibiis = qual(s sunt ii quibus.
'*' haec rerum s umm a, ' ' this sum o f matter ' , i.e. our world ; the
summa sumhtarum, ' sum of sums ' (1. 36i)7includes all worlds.
r\^ "'9 novando l^ bv constanl— Lcacadiig ' : the g erund is used actively to
s upply oblique cases of the infinitive : see n. to procudendo 1. 126^. The
number of atoms in any world is constant, but their combinations are
constantly changing.
195—134. In any case the world is so far from perfect that it is ,
impossible to attribute to it a divine origin. A great part of it is \
uninhabitable ; the inhabitable part is cultivated with great labour,
and often without result. Think too of the wild beasts, ihe diseases,
the early deaths, and of the helpless condition of the human infant
compared with the offspring of other animals.
This paragraph is in the poet's noblest style.
195. si iam . ' even if it were the case that ': si iam (and ut iam)
are used with the pres. subj. to state a hypothesis provisionally, for
the sake of argument. Here the iam suggests that Lucr. is not really
ignorant. el dpa is often used in this sense ; Thuc. iii 56 el dpa rnj.dpTtiTat.
quae sint : indirect question.
196. rationibu s,'' arran^ements '. ausim , archaic for audeam .
1taiii><iiM»w 197. reddere is short for rationem reddere; see 1. 66.
198. divinitus, dibdev, 'bxthe §ods'. '^1m>^ Y'*^.
199. stQt = constat=ejt. praedita is more commonly used of good
or neutral quahties. <r«^a, ' fai^liiness '. 4?f^£s^''
200. quantum...inde=a tanto quantum.
ii^^f^ . impetus, ' whirHng expanse ' ; it seems to denote both size and
motion ; for the revolution of the sky, see 1. 510.
201. silvae ferarum : so we speak of 'a den of lions '.
W.B. lo^. ^vastae,^vfaste\ ' barre n '. not 'huge'; comp. i 722 vasta
Charybdis. ""
lo^. it^ porro (Hti.ra>i, '' next '. answers to principio [irpCiTov
liiv), 1. 200 ; it is different ffom in5e in 1. 201.
^" duas partes, to. 8vo fidpT], tjjyp third s '.
205. casus,'{a.\Vmg'. , ^JLj-tA<U^
206. a>^2, ' consisting of land fit to cuhivate '. ^^*^ ^^MT^Cflw
209.-"^'Virg. Georg. ii 237 validis terram proscinde iuvencii. In this '"'Sj^
second Georgic Virgil imitates Lucr. far more than in his other poems.
See Introduct. p. xvi.
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| Early Gaelic Book Collections > Matheson Collection > De rerum natura liber quintus > (94) |
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| Permanent URL | https://digital.nls.uk/76573411 |
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| Description | (On the nature of things, Book V.) Edited with introduction and notes by J.D. Duff. Copy belonging to Angus Matheson, with handwritten notes. |
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| Shelfmark | Mat.6 |
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| Attribution and copyright: |
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| Description | Items from a collection of 170 volumes relating to Gaelic matters. Mainly philological works in the Celtic and some non-Celtic languages. Some books extensively annotated by Angus Matheson, the first Professor of Celtic at Glasgow University. |
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| Description | Selected items from five 'Special and Named Printed Collections'. Includes books in Gaelic and other Celtic languages, works about the Gaels, their languages, literature, culture and history. |
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