Controversia 3.10

[10] Declamaverat apud illum hanc ipsam controversiam VARVS QVINTI[LI]VS, tunc Germanici gener, ut praetextatus; cum descripsisset circumstantium [indignationem], quod tam cito oculis poena subduceretur, dixit: exaudierunt dii immortales publici[um] voti preces: incestam, ne cito supplicium transcurreret, revocaverunt. CESTIVS multa contumeliose dixit in istam sententiam: sic, inquit, quomodo quadrigas, revocaverunt? nam et ante posuisti [istam] similitudinem, quia et haec de carcere exierat. cum multa dixisset, novissime adiecit rem, quam omnes improbavimus: ‘ista neglegentia pater tuus exercitum perdidit.’ filium obiurgabat, patri male dixit.

Vocabulary:

illum: Referring here to Cestius.

pratextatus: Wearing the toga praetexta, and therefore in this case below the age of majority. [OLD 1b]

supplicium: Either “an act performed to propitiate a deity” [OLD 2] or a punishment, specifically an execution [OLD 3]. In this case, it could very well be intended to invoke both of these meanings.

revocaverunt: Of course it can mean simply to summon someone back [OLD1], and as Cestius complains it is used in the context of the circus to mean a recall to the starting positions in a contested race [OLD 2]. Another interesting use is specifically to recall a defendant to court [OLD 1c]; the word is serving a number of purposes here.

carcere: Another versatile word, it can mean either prison [OLD 1], the starting gates of a chariot race [OLD 3] or, if we take exierat to indicate an escape, could be the Underworld [2b]. Whatever complaints Cestius has, it is clear that Quinctilius Varus at least offered a versatile phrasing that could be interpreted in a number of contextually appropriate ways.

novissime: The superlative of novus, “newest” and therefore “last.”

Grammar:

oculis: ablative of separation

quomodo: adverb meaning “like”

novisimme: last definition of novus and means “finally” or ” at last” contextually [L+S, II. Transf. B. 3. B]

Syntax: Cestius not only gets the last word here, but Seneca has a nice balanced sententia to sum up his criticism