Institutio Oratoria (Quintilian)

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	Institutio Oratoria Author: Quintilian	Translator: Harold Edgeworth Butler
77	At fere minores ex conscientia suae infirmitatis haerere singulis et officio fungi quodam modo paedagogorum non indignantur .	On the other hand in the case of inferior teachers a consciousness of their own defects not seldom reconciles them to being attached to a single pupil and playing the part—for it amounts to little more—of a mere paedagogus.
78	Sed praestat alicui vel gratia vel pecunia vel amicitia , ut doctissimum atque incomparabilem magistrum domi habeat : num tamen ille totum in uno diem consumpturus est ? aut potest esse ulla tam perpetua discentis intentio , quae non ut visus oculorum obtutu continuo fatigetur ? cum praesertim multo plus secreti temporis studia desiderent .	But let us assume that influence, money or friendship succeed in securing a paragon of learning to teach the boy at home. Will he be able to devote the whole day to one pupil? Or can we demand such continuous attention on the part of the learner? The mind is as easily tired as the eye, if given no relaxation. Moreover by far the larger proportion of the learner's time ought to be devoted to private study.
79	Neque enim scribenti , ediscenti , cogitanti praeceptor adsistit , quorum aliquid agentibus cuiuscunque interventus impedimento est . Lectio quoque non omnis nec semper praeeunte vel interpretante eget . Quando enim tot auctorum notitia contingeret ? Modicum ergo tempus est , quo in totum diem velut opus ordinetur ideoque per plures ire possunt etiam quae singuli tradenda sunt .	The teacher does not stand over him while he is writing or thinking or learning by heart. While he is so occupied the intervention of anyone, be he who he may, is a hindrance. Further, not all reading requires to be first read aloud or interpreted by a master. If it did, how would the boy ever become acquainted with all the authors required of him? A small time only is required to give purpose and direction to the day's work, and consequently individual instruction can be given to more than one pupil.
80	Pleraque vero hanc condicionem habent , ut eadem voce ad omnes simul perferantur Taceo de partitionibus et declamationibus rhetorum quibus certe quantuscunque numerus adhibeatur , tamen unusquisque totum feret .	There are moreover a large number of subjects in which it is desirable that instruction should be given to all the pupils simultaneously. I say nothing of the analyses and declamations of the professors of rhetoric: in such cases there is no limit to the number of the audience, as each individual pupil will in any case receive full value.
81	Non enim vox illa praeceptoris ut cena minus pluribus sufficit , sed ut sol universis idem lucis calorisque largitur . Grammaticus quoque si de loquendi ratione disserat , si quaestiones explicet , historias exponat , poemata enarret , tot illa discent quot audient .	The voice of a lecturer is not like a dinner which will only suffice for a limited number; it is like the sun which distributes the same quantity of light and heat to all of us. So too with the teacher of literature. Whether he speak of style or expound disputed passages, explain stories or paraphrase poems, everyone who hears him will profit by his teaching.
82	At enim emendationi praelectionique numerus obstat . Sit incommodum , ( nam quid fere undique placet ? ) mox illud comparabimus commodis . Nec ego tamen eo mitti puerum volo , ubi negligatur . Sed neque praeceptor bonus maiore se turba , quam ut sustinere eam possit , oneraverit ; et in primis ea habenda cura est , ut is omni modo fiat nobis familiariter amicus , nec officium in docendo spectet sed adfectum .	But, it will be urged, a large class is unsuitable for the correction of faults or for explanation. It may be inconvenient: one cannot hope for absolute perfection; but I shall shortly contrast the inconvenience with the obvious advantages. Still I do not wish a boy to be sent where he will be neglected. But a good teacher will not burden himself with a larger number of pupils than he can manage, and it is further of the very first importance that he should be on friendly and intimate terms with us and make his teaching not a duty but a labour of love. Then there will never be any question of being swamped by the number of our fellow-learners.
83	Ita nunquam erimus in turba . Nec sane quisquam litteris saltem leviter imbutus eum , in quo studium ingeniumque perspexerit , non in suam quoque gloriam peculiariter fovebit . Et ut fugiendae sint magnae scholae ( cui ne ipsi quidem rei adsentior , si ad aliquem merito concurritur ) , non tamen hoc eo valet , ut fugiendae sint omnino scholae . Aliud est enim vitare eas , aliud eligere .	Moreover any teacher who has the least tincture of literary culture will devote special attention to any boy who shows signs of industry and talent; for such a pupil will redound to his own credit. But even if large schools are to be avoided, a proposition from which I must dissent if the size be due to the excellence of the teacher, it does not follow that all schools are to be avoided. It is one thing to avoid them, another to select the best.
84	Et si refutavimus quae contra dicuntur , iam explicemus , quid ipsi sequamur .	Having refuted these objections, let me now explain my own views.
85	Ante omnia futurus orator , cui in maxima celebritate et in media rei publicae luce vivendum est , adsuescat iam a tenero non reformidare homines neque illa solitaria et velut umbratica vita pallescere . Excitanda mens et adtollenda semper est , quae in eiusmodi secretis aut languescit et quendam velut in opaco situm ducit , aut contra tumescit inani persuasione ; necesse est enim nimium tribuat sibi , qui se nemini comparat .	It is above all things necessary that our future orator, who will have to live in the utmost publicity and in the broad daylight of public life, should become accustomed from his childhood to move in society without fear and habituated to a life far removed from that of the pale student, the solitary and recluse. His mind requires constant stimulus and excitement, whereas retirement such as has just been mentioned induces languor and the mind becomes mildewed like things that are left in the dark, or else flies to the opposite extreme and becomes puffed up with empty conceit; for he who has no standard of comparison by which to judge his own powers will necessarily rate them too high.
86	Deinde cum proferenda sunt studia , caligat in sole et omnia nova offendit , ut qui solus didicerit quod inter multos faciendum est .	Again when the fruits of his study have to be displayed to the public gaze, our recluse is blinded by the sun's glare, and finds everything new and unfamiliar, for though he has learnt what is required to be done in public, his learning is but the theory of a hermit.
87	Mitto amicitias , quae ad senectutem usque firmissime durant religiosa quadam necessitudine imbutae . Neque enim est sanctius sacris iisdem quam studiis initiari . Sensum ipsum , qui communis dicitur , ubi discet , cum se a congressu , qui non hominibus solum sed mutis quoque animalibus naturalis est , segregarit ?	I say nothing of friendships which endure unbroken to old age having acquired the binding force of a sacred duty: for initiation in the same studies has all the sanctity of initiation in the same mysteries of religion. And where shall he acquire that instinct which we call common feeling, if he secludes himself from that intercourse which is natural not merely to mankind but even to dumb animals?
88	Adde quod domi ea sola discere potest , quae ipsi praecipientur , in schola etiam quae aliis . Audiet multa cotidie probari , multa corrigi ; proderit alicuius obiurgata desidia , proderit laudata industria , excitabitur laude aemulatio ,	Further, at home he can only learn what is taught to himself, while at school he will learn what is taught others as well. He will hear many merits praised and many faults corrected every day: he will derive equal profit from hearing the indolence of a comrade rebuked or his industry commended.
89	turpe ducet cedere pari , pulchrum superasse maiores . Accendunt omnia haec animos , et licet ipsa vitium sit ambitio , frequenter tamen causa virtutum est .	Such praise will incite him to emulation, he will think it a disgrace to be outdone by his contemporaries and a distinction to surpass his seniors. All such incentives provide a valuable stimulus, and though ambition may be a fault in itself, it is often the mother of virtues.
90	Non inutilem scio servatum esse a praeceptoribus meis morem , qui , cum pueros in classes distribuerant , ordinem dicendi secundum vires ingenii dabant ; et ita superiore loco quisque declamabat , ut praecedere profectu videbatur .	I remember that my own masters had a practice which was not without advantages. Having distributed the boys in classes, they made the order in which they were to speak depend on their ability, so that the boy who had made most progress in his studies had the privilege of declaiming first.
91	Huius rei iudicia praebebantur ; ea nobis ingens palma , ducere vero classem multo pulcherrimum . Nec de hoc semel decretum erat ; tricesimus dies reddebat victo certaminis potestatem . Ita nec superior successu curam remittebat et dolor victum ad depellendam ignominiam concitabat .	The performances on these occasions were criticised. To win commendation was a tremendous honour, but the prize most eagerly coveted was to be the leader of the class. Such a position was not permanent. Once a month the defeated competitors were given a fresh opportunity of competing for the prize. Consequently success did not lead the victor to relax his efforts, while the vexation caused by defeat served as an incentive to wipe out the disgrace.
92	Id nobis acriores ad studia dicendi faces subdidisse quam exhortationem docentium , paedagogorum custodiam , vota parentum , quantum animi mei coniectura colligere possum , contenderim .	I will venture to assert that to the best of my memory this practice did more to kindle our oratorical ambitions than all the exhortations of our instructors, the watchfulness of our paedagogi and the prayers of our parents.
93	Sed sicut firmiores in litteris profectus alit aemulatio , ita incipientibus atque adhuc teneris condiscipulorum quam praeceptoris iucundior hoc ipso quod facilior imitatio est . Vix enim se prima elementa ad spem tollere effingendae , quam summam putant , eloquentiae audebunt ; proxima amplectentur magis , ut vites arboribus applicitae inferiores prius apprehendendo ramos in cacumina evadunt .	Further while emulation promotes progress in the more advanced pupils, beginners who are still of tender years derive greater pleasure from imitating their comrades than their masters, just because it is easier. For children still in the elementary stages of education can scarce dare hope to reach that complete eloquence which they understand to be their goal: their ambition will not soar so high, but they will imitate the vine which has to grasp the lower branches of the tree on which it is trained before it can reach the topmost boughs.
94	Quod adeo verum est , ut ipsius etiam magistri , si tamen ambitiosis utilia praeferet , hoc opus sit , cum adhuc rudia tractabit ingenia , non statim onerare infirmitatem discentium , sed temperare vires suas et ad intellectum audientis descendere .	So true is this that it is the master's duty as well, if he is engaged on the task of training unformed minds and prefers practical utility to a more ambitious programme, not to burden his pupils at once with tasks to which their strength is unequal, but to curb his energies and refrain from talking over the heads of his audience.
95	Nam ut vascula oris angusti superfusam humoris copiam respuunt , sensim autem influentibus vel etiam instillatis complentur , sic animi puerorum quantum excipere possint videndum est . Nam maiora intellectu velut parum apertos ad percipiendum animos non subibunt .	Vessels with narrow mouths will not receive liquids if too much be poured into them at a time, but are easily filled if the liquid is admitted in a gentle stream or, it may be, drop by drop; similarly you must consider how much a child's mind is capable of receiving: the things which are beyond their grasp will not enter their minds, which have not opened out sufficiently to take them in.
96	Utile igitur habere , quos imitari primum , mox vincere velis . Ita paulatim et superiorum spes erit . His adiicio , praeceptores ipsos non idem mentis ac spiritus in dicendo posse concipere singulis tantum praesentibus quod illa celebritate audientium instinctos .	It is a good thing therefore that a boy should have companions whom he will desire first to imitate and then to surpass: thus he will be led to aspire to higher achievement. I would add that the instructors themselves cannot develop the same intelligence and energy before a single listener as they can when inspired by the presence of a numerous audience.
97	Maxima enim pars eloquentiae constat animo . Hunc adfici , hunc concipere imagines rerum et transformari quodammodo ad naturam eorum , de quibus loquimur , necesse est . Is porro , quo generosior celsiorque est , hoc maioribus velut organis commovetur ; ideoque et laude crescit et impetu augetur et aliquid magnum agere gaudet .	For eloquence depends in the main on the state of the mind, which must be moved, conceive images and adapt itself to suit the nature of the subject which is the theme of speech. Further the loftier and the more elevated the mind, the more powerful will be the forces which move it: consequently praise gives it growth and effort increase, and the thought that it is doing something great fills it with joy.
98	Est quaedam tacita dedignatio , vim dicendi tantis comparatam laboribus ad unum auditorem demittere : pudet supra modum sermonis attolli . Et sane concipiat quis mente vel declamantis habitum vel orantis vocem , incessum , pronuntiationem , illum denique animi et corporis motum , sudorem , ut alia praeteream , et fatigationem , audiente uno : nonne quiddam pati furori simile videatur ? Non esset in rebus humanis eloquentia , si tantum cum singulis loqueremur .	The duty of stooping to expend that power of speaking which has been acquired at the cost of such effort upon an audience of one gives rise to a silent feeling of disdain, and the teacher is ashamed to raise his voice above the ordinary conversational level. Imagine the air of a declaimer, or the voice of an orator, his gait, his delivery, the movements of his body, the emotions of his mind, and, to go no further, the fatigue of his exertions, all for the sake of one listener! Would he not seem little less than a lunatic? No, there would be no such thing as eloquence, if we spoke only with one person at a time.
99	Tradito sibi puero docendi peritus ingenium eius in primis naturamque perspiciet . Ingenii signum in parvis praecipuum memoria est . Eius duplex virtus , facile percipere et fideliter continere . Proximum imitatio ; nam id quoque est docilis naturae , sic tamen , ut ea quae discit effingat , non habitum forte et ingressum et si quid in peius notabile est .	The skilful teacher will make it his first care, as soon as a boy is entrusted to him, to ascertain his ability and character. The surest indication in a child is his power of memory. The characteristics of a good memory are twofold: it must be quick to take in and faithful to retain impressions of what it receives. The indication of next importance is the power of imitation: for this is a sign that the child is teachable: but he must imitate merely what he is taught, and must not, for example, mimic someone's gait or bearing or defects.
100	Non dabit mihi spem bonae indolis , qui hoc imitandi studio petet , ut rideatur . Nam probus quoque in primis erit ille vere ingeniosus ; alioqui non peius duxerim tardi esse ingenii quam mali . Probus autem ab illo segni et iacente plurimum aberit .	For I have no hope that a child will turn out well who loves imitation merely for the purpose of raising a laugh. He who is really gifted will also above all else be good. For the rest, I regard slowness of intellect as preferable to actual badness. But a good boy will be quite unlike the dullard and the sloth.
101	Hic meus quae tradentur non difficulter accipiet , quaedam etiam interrogabit , sequetur tamen magis quam praecurret . Illud ingeniorum velut praecox genus non temere unquam pervenit ad frugem .	My ideal pupil will absorb instruction with ease and will even ask some questions; but he will follow rather than anticipate his teacher. Precocious intellects rarely produce sound fruit.
102	Hi sunt , qui parva facile faciunt et audacia provecti , quidquid illud possunt , statim ostendunt . Possunt autem id demum , quod in proximo est ; verba continuant , haec vultu interrito , nulla tardati verecundia proferunt . Non multum praestant sed cito .	By the precocious I mean those who perform small tasks with ease and, thus emboldened, proceed to display all their little accomplishments without being asked: but their accomplishments are only of the most obvious kind: they string words together and trot them out boldly and undeterred by the slightest sense of modesty. Their actual achievement is small, but what they can do they perform with ease.
103	Non subest vera vis nec penitus immissis radicibus nititur ; ut , quae summo solo sparsa sunt semina , celerius se effundunt , et imitatae spicas herbulae inanibus aristis ante messem flavescunt . Placent haec annis comparata ; deinde stat profectus , admiratio decrescit .	They have no real power and what they have is but of shallow growth: it is as when we cast seed on the surface of the soil: it springs up too rapidly, the blade apes the loaded ear, and yellows ere harvest time, but bears no grain. Such tricks please us when we contrast them with the performer's age, but progress soon stops and our admiration withers away.
104	Haec cum animadverterit , perspiciat deinceps , quonam modo tractandus sit discentis animus . Sunt quidam , nisi institeris , remissi , quidam imperia indignantur . quosdam continet metus , quosdam debilitat , alios continuatio extundit , in aliis plus impetus facit .	Such indications once noted, the teacher must next consider what treatment is to be applied to the mind of his pupil. There are some boys who are slack, unless pressed on; others again are impatient of control: some are amenable to fear, while others are paralysed by it: in some cases the mind requires continued application to form it, in others this result is best obtained by rapid concentration. Give me the boy who is spurred on by praise, delighted by success and ready to weep over failure.
105	Mihi ille detur puer , quem laus excitet , quem gloria iuvet , qui victus fleat . Hic erit alendus ambitu , hunc mordebit obiurgatio , hunc honor excitabit , in hoc desidiam nunquam verebor .	Such an one must be encouraged by appeals to his ambition; rebuke will bite him to the quick; honour will be a spur, and there is no fear of his proving indolent.
106	Danda est tamen omnibus aliqua remissio ; non solum quia nulla res est , quae perferre possit continuum laborem , atque ea quoque , quae sensu et anima carent , ut servare vim suam possint , velut quiete alterna retenduntur ; sed quod studium discendi voluntate , quae cogi non potest , constat .	Still, all our pupils will require some relaxation, not merely because there is nothing in this world that can stand continued strain and even unthinking and inanimate objects are unable to maintain their strength, unless given intervals of rest, but because study depends on the good will of the student, a quality that cannot be secured by compulsion.
107	Itaque et virium plus adferunt ad discendum renovati ac recentes et acriorem animum , qui fere necessitatibus repugnat .	Consequently if restored and refreshed by a holiday they will bring greater energy to their learning and approach their work with greater spirit of a kind that will not submit to be driven.
108	Nec me offenderit lusus in pueris ; est et hoc signum alacritatis ; neque illum tristem semperque demissum sperare possim erectae circa studia mentis fore , cum in hoc quoque maxime naturali aetatibus illis impetu iaceat .	I approve of play in the young; it is a sign of a lively disposition; nor will you ever lead me to believe that a boy who is gloomy and in a continual state of depression is ever likely to show alertness of mind in his work, lacking as he does the impulse most natural to boys of his age.
109	Modus tamen sit remissionibus , ne aut odium studiorum faciant negatae aut otii consuetudinem nimiae . Sunt etiam nonnulli acuendis puerorum ingeniis non inutiles lusus , cum positis invicem cuiusque generis quaestiunculis aemulantur .	Such relaxation must not however be unlimited: otherwise the refusal to give a holiday will make boys hate their work, while excessive indulgence will accustom them to idleness. There are moreover certain games which have an educational value for boys, as for instance when they compete in posing each other with all kinds of questions which they ask turn and turn about.
110	Mores quoque se inter ludendum simplicius detegunt ; modo nulla videatur aetas tam infirma , quae non protinus quid rectum pravumque sit discat , tum vel maxime formanda , cum simulandi nescia est et praecipientibus facillime cedit . Frangas enim citius quam corrigas , quae in pravum induruerunt .	Games too reveal character in the most natural way, at least that is so if the teacher will bear in mind that there is no child so young as to be unable to learn to distinguish between right and wrong, and that the character is best moulded, when it is still guiltless of deceit and most susceptible to instruction: for once a bad habit has become engrained, it is easier to break than bend.
111	Protinus ergo , ne quid cupide , ne quid improbe , ne quid impotenter faciat , monendus est puer ; habendumque in animo semper illud Vergilianum : " Adeo in teneris consuescere multum est . " Caedi vero discentes , quamlibet et receptum sit et Chrysippus non improbet , minime velim . Primum , quia deforme atque servile est et certe ,	There must be no delay, then, in warning a boy that his actions must be unselfish, honest, self-controlled, and we must never forget the words of Virgil, "So strong is custom formed in early years." I disapprove of flogging, although it is the regular custom and meets with the acquiescence of Chrysippus, because in the first place it is a disgraceful form of punishment and fit only for slaves,
112	( quod convenit , si aetatem mutes ) , iniuria est ; deinde , quod , si cui tam est mens illiberalis , ut obiurgatione non corrigatur , is etiam ad plagas ut pessima quaeque mancipia durabitur : postremo , quod ne opus erit quidem hac castigatione , si assiduus studiorum exactor astiterit .	and is in any case an insult, as you will realise if you imagine its infliction at a later age. Secondly if a boy is so insensible to instruction that reproof is useless, he will, like the worst type of slave, merely become hardened to blows. Finally there will be absolutely no need of such punishment if the master is a thorough disciplinarian.
113	Nunc fere negligentia paedagogorum sic emendari videtur , ut pueri non facere , quae recta sunt , cogantur sed cur non fecerint puniantur . Denique cum parvulum verberibus coegeris , quid iuveni facias , cui nec adhiberi potest hic metus et maiora discenda sunt ?	As it is, we try to make amends for the negligence of the boy's paedagogus, not by forcing him to do what is right, but by punishing him for not doing what is right. And though you may compel a child with blows, what are you to do with him when he is a young man no longer amenable to such threats and confronted with tasks of far greater difficulty?
114	Adde , quod multa vapulantibus dictu deformia et mox verecundiae futura saepe dolore vel metu acciderunt , qui pudor frangit animum et abiicit atque ipsius lucis fugam et taedium dictat .	Moreover when children are beaten, pain or fear frequently have results of which it is not pleasant to speak and which are likely subsequently to be a source of shame, a shame which unnerves and depresses the mind and leads the child to shun and loathe the light.