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WJECLevel 2 Certificate in Latin LiteratureUnit 9542Latin Literature NarrativesSection ATacitus, Nero and AgrippinaStudent Study Book

Published By the Cambridge School Classics ProjectFaculty of Education, University of Cambridge11 West Road, Cambridge CB3 9DP, UKhttp://www.CambridgeSCP.com© University of Cambridge School Classics Project, 2010CopyrightIn the case of this publication, the CSCP is waiving normal copyright provisions in that copies of thismaterial may be made free of charge and without specific permission so long as they are for educationalor personal use within the school or institution which purchases the publication. All other forms of copying(for example, for inclusion in another publication) are subject to specific permission from the Project.First published 20102 WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina

IntroductionThese notes and questions are composed particularly for students who have a very limited amount of timewith a teacher. Follow your teacher's guidance over which notes to use and which questions to answer. Themore time you have with your teacher, the more questions can be ignored.The text has seven sections, corresponding to seven chapters of Tacitus’s text. Each section (e.g. Section I) isdivided into a number of sub-sections (Section I(a), Section I(b), etc.), each with its own heading and its own notesand questions.The notes on each sub-section nearly always begin by taking you through three steps:1.2.3.read the sub-section (aloud if possible) or listen to the recording;study the vocabulary for the section;read the sub-section (or listen to the recording) again.You do not have to stick rigidly to these steps. You may find you make better progress by repeating a particularstep, or missing one out; you may want to vary your approach from one sub-section to the next. Experiment withdifferent approaches to find the one that suits you; the aim is to prepare yourself as fully as you can for the detailedquestions that follow. You will usually find it best to finish work on each sub-section by checking that you cantranslate it, as recommended in the notes.Some questions ask you to analyse the grammar of a particular word or phrase. Your teacher will tell you whetheror not to use these questions. The exam will not contain grammar questions, but they are included here to help youtowards an accurate translation and a fuller understanding of the text. If you have access to the on-screen ‘explorer’version of the text, you can use it to check that your analysis is correct; but you should do the clicking after you’vedone your own analysis, not the other way round! It is important to develop your own ability to do the analysis bygetting into the habit of putting your own questions to yourself, e.g. "What case is this noun?" or "What tense is thisverb?", then clicking to check your answer.Some questions, such as "Why do you think character so-and-so did such-and-such an action?" or "What is themood of this section?”, have more than one possible answer. Some of them may be more suitable for discussionthan for individual study. In dealing with such questions, study the text carefully and come to your own conclusion.An examiner will always give credit for any sensible answer, particularly when you support your answer by quotingfrom the Latin text.Check boxesCheckFrom time to time you will find check boxes in the notes. These encurage you to check your answer to a question.Answers can be found at the end of the notes for the particular sub-section.WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina 3

Section I A murder plot is hatchedIntroductionAgrippina was the great-granddaughter of the emperor Augustus. Her father was Germanicus, a popular general,and she inherited some of his popularity. She married the emperor Claudius, who died five years later in AD 54; itwas generally believed that Agrippina had poisoned him. Nero, her sixteen-year-old son by a previous marriage,was then proclaimed emperor instead of Claudius’ son Britannicus. For a while, Agrippina was virtually jointemperor with her son, which is what she had hoped. But she was then edged aside by two men who had a strongerinfluence over Nero: Burrus (who commanded the emperor’s personal bodyguard, known as the praetorian guard)and Seneca (who had been Nero’s tutor and remained his personal adviser). Agrippina then tried to regain powerby threatening to have Nero overthrown in favour of Britannicus. Nero responded drastically: Britannicus waspoisoned while dining at the emperor’s palace.In spite of these violent events in the emperor’s family, Rome and the empire were generally governed well duringthe first five years of Nero’s reign. Burrus and Seneca controlled Nero with a mixture of flattery and good advice.But by AD 59, the year in which Section I begins, a dangerous three-way struggle for power had developed:1. Burrus and Seneca were anxious to keep Nero under control.2. Nero (now aged twenty) was increasingly keen to have his own way, in particular by marrying a beautiful butdisreputable aristocrat called Poppaea.3. Agrippina was determined to regain her previous influence.(For individual work and/or group discussion.) You may find it helpful to imagine yourself as one of the above people(or two people, in the case of Burrus and Seneca); consider your situation, as described below, and the variousoptions open to you, and decide what your best course of action might be.1 Burrus and Seneca: so far, you have handled Nero with skill and success, wielding power discreetly buteffectively. But Agrippina’s threat to replace Nero with Britannicus has made it clear that she is desperate torecover her original influence. And Nero himself is showing alarming signs of independence; the murder ofBritannicus (in which you may or may not have been involved) gives you clear warning of how far Nero isprepared to go. The strongest cards in your hands are Seneca’s political skill and Burrus’s powerful position ascommander of the praetorian guard.2 Nero: you are now aged twenty. Having been proclaimed emperor by the efforts of your mother (who wasprobably responsible for the murder of your stepfather, the emperor Claudius), you were at first very much underher control, but you increasingly preferred to be guided by Burrus and Seneca, who virtually ran the governmentfor you and allowed you plenty of freedom. At first you used this freedom to pursue your artistic interests, appearon the stage at dramatic festivals or roam the streets of Rome by night with a gang of disorderly friends. By now,however, you are increasingly keen to exercise real power and get your own way in everything; you have dealtdrastically but effectively with your mother’s threat to have you replaced as emperor by Britannicus. The latestcause of tension between you and your mother is your determination to marry Poppaea – you ignore the factthat you and Poppaea are already married to other people.3 Agrippina: You ensured that after Claudius’ murder your own son Nero became emperor instead of Claudius’son Britannicus. At first you were immensely powerful through your control of Nero; you got rid of possiblerivals skilfully and ruthlessly. But you have now been sidelined by Burrus and Seneca, and your attempt to buildup Britannicus as a rival to Nero has resulted in Britannicus’ murder. Nero is now passionately involved withPoppaea and is determined to marry her; you are equally determined that he remains married to Octavia, thebride you arranged for him when he was sixteen. Above all, you want to get Nero back under your control.When you read about Nero, Agrippina, Burrus and Seneca, there is a fifth person to bear in mind: the man tellingthe story. Tacitus was famous for his eloquence as an orator and a historian, and had a distinguished career as asenator. In AD 77 he married the daughter of Agricola, governor of Britain. He was consul during AD 97, a year ofpolitical crisis and unrest in the army, and in about AD 112/113 he was governor of Asia.It is natural to ask, especially when reading a dramatic episode in history like this one about Nero and Agrippina,“Is it true?” or “How can Tacitus have known this?” Tacitus was probably only about three years old at the time, buthe had the opportunity to talk to people who lived through these events, and he could read historical accounts (nowlost) written by people like the Elder Pliny and the historians Cluvius Rufus and Fabius Rusticus. There is still roomfor argument about the accuracy of his facts and about his comments on the events he describes. Tacitus claimedto write sine ira et studio (without anger and bias), but not everyone agrees with him. As you read the text, you willfind it a good idea to pause from time to time and ask yourself “Does this account sound convincing, or probable?”or “How fair is Tacitus’ comment?”4 WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina

The following is an adapted translation of the beginning of Book XIV of Tacitus’ Annales. One or two notes ofexplanation are added in square brackets.“In the consulship of Vipstanus and Fonteius [AD 59], Nero ceased to put off the crime he had long been planning.The longer he was emperor, the more confident he became. He was also becoming more passionate every dayin his love for Poppaea, who could have little hope that Nero would marry her so long as Agrippina was alive.Poppaea scolded him with frequent complaints, sometimes teasing him and calling him a little boy who did whatmummy told him. Outbursts like these, together with tears and caresses, all had an effect on Nero; nobody tried tohinder them. Everyone wanted Agrippina’s influence to be destroyed; no one, however, believed that Nero’s hatredof his mother would go as far as murder.“Cluvius [a historian] relates that on several occasions, when Nero was thoroughly warmed with wine from hismidday feast, Agrippina, in her desperate desire to retain her power, would present herself to her drunken son,seductively dressed and prepared for incestuous acts. Those who were near – says Cluvius – observed theexchange of passionate kisses and intimate fondling; and in response Seneca, seeking a woman’s help against awoman’s charms, sent Acte [Nero’s beautiful ex-slave and mistress] to the emperor. Acte was anxious for her ownsafety and worried by the damage to Nero’s reputation. Seneca told her to warn Nero that the incest was commonknowledge – Agrippina was boasting about it – and the army would never tolerate an emperor who defied the godsso monstrously [incest was regarded as an unthinkable horror]. According to Fabius [another historian], it was Nero,not Agrippina, who made the first sexual advances, but Fabius agrees with Cluvius that it was Acte’s skill that endedthe affair.”At this point, Section I of your text begins.WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina 5

Section I - A murder plot is hatchedSection IaLines 1-4Nero takes a decisionigitur Nero vitare secretos matris congressus; abscedentemeam in hortos aut in agrum laudare quod otium caperet.postremo praegravem eam esse ratus interficere constituit,hactenus consultans utrum veneno an ferro vel qua alia vi.1 igitur - therefore, and soNero, Neronis, m. - the Emperor Nerovito, vitare, vitavi, vitatus - avoidsecretus, secreta, secretum - secretmater, matris, f. - mothercongressus, congressus, m. - meetingabscedo, abscedere, abscessi - go away,depart2 is, ea, id - he, she, itin - to, intohortus, horti, m. - gardenaut - orin - to, intoager, agri, m. - country, countrysidelaudo, laudare, laudavi, laudatus - praisequod - becauseotium, otii, n. - peacecapio, capere, cepi, captus - seek; take,choose3 postremo - finally, at lastpraegravis, praegrave, f. - intolerable,wearisomeis, ea, id - he, she, itsum, esse, fui - bereor, reri, ratus sum - thinkinterficio, interficere, interfeci, interfectus - killconstituo, constituere, constitui, constitutus- decide4 hactenus - only, to the extent of, up to thepoint ofconsulto, consultare, consultavi, consultatus- deliberate, planutrum - whethervenenum, veneni, n. - poisonan - orferrum, ferri, n. - sword, weaponvel - orqui, quae, quod - some; who, whichalius, alia, aliud - othervis, f. - force, violence6 WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina

1. Read lines 1-4 (aloud if possible) or listen to the audio on the CSCP website.2. Study the vocabulary for these lines.3. Read this sub-section (or listen to the audio) again.4. Find the nominative noun in line 1 which tells you who the sentence is about, and find the verb which tells youwhat he did. The verb is in the infinitive form, but should be translated as an ordinary past tense, either theperfect (“he …ed”) or the imperfect (“he began to …”). This is known as the “historic infinitive”, described in theCambridge Latin Grammar page 64, paragraph 21.6.5. Find an accusative plural noun-and-adjective phrase which tells you what Nero avoided. (The noun may not looklike an accusative plural at first sight; this is because it is a fourth-declension noun like manus.)6. What case is matris? Which of these three translations is literally correct, and which one gives the most naturalEnglish?a) with his mother b) of his mother c) from his mother7. Translate line 1 as far as congressus.8. Why did Nero behave in this way? (Hint: the word igitur shows that it is because of something Tacitus has justmentioned; if it has slipped your mind, look back at the translated extract at the end of the introduction to SectionI, especially at the advice given to Nero by his mistress Acte.)9. Find and translate the verb in line 2 which tells you what else Nero did to Agrippina. Like vitare in line 1, it is ahistoric infinitive, to be translated as an ordinary past tense.10. Find and translate a present participle which describes what Agrippina was doing when Nero praised her.11. Nero praised his mother whenever she went away to either of two places; what were they? (Notice the specialmeaning of ager: in this sentence, it does not mean field!)12. horti, of the kind referred to here, were not ordinary gardens but large private parks within the city, completewith villa. (Can you translate the phrase rus in urbe, by which they were sometimes described?) Only thewealthiest Romans possessed them. The particular gardens mentioned here belonged either to Agrippinapersonally or more generally to the emperor’s family. So whether Agrippina departed in hortos or in agrum, shewould be staying in a luxury villa surrounded by open land. She would also be away from Nero.13. What reason did Nero give for praising his mother when she went away? Choose a suitable translation forotium: among the possibilities are leisure, a holiday, a rest, peace, free time and relaxation.14. (Optional note for experts. If you don’t feel you’re an expert, proceed to question 15.) What mood is caperet:indicative or subjunctive? (The verb is in this mood because Tacitus is quoting a reason given by Nero. If Tacitushimself had been stating the reason, and not reporting Nero’s words, the verb would have been indicative –capiebat. See the Cambridge Latin Grammar page 69, paragraph 23.4.)15. What was his real motive for praising her?16. Check that you can translate lines 1-2.17. Study the vocabulary for lines 3-4 again.18. ratus is the perfect active participle of the verb reri (to think), translated more naturally as thinking than ashaving thought. What did Nero think about his mother, and what did he decide to do (line 3)?19. Find and translate the word that tells you whether Nero took a long time to come to his decision.20. Give two reasons why Nero felt that Agrippina was praegravis (a great nuisance). Both reasons can be found inthe introduction to Section I.21. Find and translate a present participle in line 4 which tells you what Nero was doing.22. Find and translate two ablative nouns and a three-word ablative phrase, referring to three ways of carrying outhis intention. (qua here can be conveniently translated as some.)23. What is the point of hactenus? (Hint: did he ask his advisers whether he should kill his mother?)24. Notice that Nero first had to make a choice between venenum and vis, and if he chose vis he had a secondchoice between ferrum and qua alia vis.25. Tacitus does not say who Nero’s advisers were. We learn later that one of them was the ex-slave Anicetus.Whether Burrus and Seneca were involved at this point is unclear.26. Translate this sub-section. When you translate the last part of line 4, you may find it helpful to add a verb suchas “make use of …” or “do the deed with …”.WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina 7

Section IbLines 5-9 (... corpus)The problems of poisonplacuit primo venenum. sed inter epulas principis si daretur,referri ad casum non poterat tali iam Britannici exitio. etministros temptare arduum videbatur mulieris usu scelerumadversus insidias intentae; atque ipsa praesumendo remediamunierat corpus.55 placeo, placere, placui - seem good, please,be pleasingprimo - at firstvenenum, veneni, n. - poisonsed - butinter - duringepulae, epularum, f. - feast, dinnerprinceps, principis, m. - Emperorsi - ifdo, dare, dedi, datus - give, administer6 refero, referre, rettuli, relatus - attribute;bring backad - tocasus, casus, m. - accident, chancenon - notpossum, posse, potui - cantalis, tale - similar, of such a kindiam - recentlyBritannicus, Britannici, m. - Britannicus, sonof Claudius and Messalinaexitium, exitii, n. - death, killing, fateet - and, also7 minister, ministri, m. - servanttempto, temptare, temptavi, temptatus -corrupt; tryarduus, ardua, arduum - difficultvideor, videri, visus sum - seemmulier, mulieris, f. - womanusus, usus, m. - experience, practicescelus, sceleris, n. - crime, evil deed8 adversus - againstinsidiae, insidiarum, f. - plot, intrigueintentus, intenta, intentum - watchful, alertatque - andipse, ipsa, ipsum - himself, herself, itselfpraesumo, praesumere, praesumpsi,praesumptus, n. - take in advance,consume beforehandremedium, remedii, n. - antidote9 munio, munire, munivi, munitus - fortify,protect, immunisecorpus, corporis, n. - body8 WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina

1. Read lines 5-9 (... munierat corpus) (aloud if possible) or listen to the audio on the CSCP website.2. Study the vocabulary for these lines.3. Re-read lines 5-6 up to Britannici exitio.4. Which method did Nero prefer at first?5. What particular occasion did he have in mind for making the attempt (line 5)?6. Is daretur active or passive?7. daretur comes from the word do, usually translated as I give. But in this sentence, where the thing being givento somebody is poison, can you find a better translation than give?8. Translate from sed to daretur (line 5); you will find it helpful to translate si straight after sed, and refer to thepoison as it.9. If the attempt were made in the way described in line 5, it would cause Nero a problem, described in the wordsreferri ad casum non poterat (line 6); what was the problem? You may find it helpful to state the problem inyour own words, and then work out an exact translation. (Is referri an active or a passive infinitive?)10. If you have forgotten who Britannicus was, and what happened to him, look back at the places in the Section IIntroduction where he was mentioned. The phrase tali iam Britannici exitio explains why nobody would believeit was an accident if Agrippina died by poison. As in the previous question, you may find it helpful to state thereason in your own words, then choose a suitable translation. Notice that talis can mean similar and iam canmean already or recently. Which words in this phrase are in the ablative case? (The ablative might be translatedhere not as with …, but as what with … or because of ….)11. Check your translation of lines 5-6 up to Britannici exitio.12. Find two ways in which Nero’s intended murder of Agrippina (as described in line 5) would resemble the death ofBritannicus. Refer back if necessary to the Introduction to Section I.13. Re-read lines 6-9 up to munierat corpus.14. Find a phrase in line 7, consisting of an infinitive and an accusative plural, which tells you another part of Nero’splan.15. How easy or otherwise did this part of the plan seem to Nero?16. Find and translate a noun in the genitive singular case (line 7) telling you whose servants Nero thought it wouldbe difficult to corrupt, then find and translate a genitive adjective in line 8 describing her. (Although she is notnamed in the sentence, it is obvious who Tacitus is referring to.)17. What was she on her guard against (line 8)?18. Translate the ablative-and-genitive phrase in line 7 which explains why Agrippina was on her guard; doesTacitus mean that Agrippina had experienced crimes previously as the intended victim, or as the criminal? (Hint:if in difficulty, look again at the earlier part of the Section I introduction.)19. Check that you can translate lines 6-8 from et to intentae. If in difficulty notice again the order in which Tacitusgives the information.ministros temptare: Nero’s planarduum videbatur: what he thought about itmulieris … adversus insidias intentae: whose servants they were, and why it would be hard forthem to poison her.The phrase usu scelerum, explaining why Agrippina was on her guard, interrupts the phrase mulieris …adversus insidias intentae but is most easily left to the end when translating.20. Who is ipsa (line 8) and what had she done (line 9)?21. By what method had she achieved protection (line 8)? Is remedia singular or plural?22. What English medical term, derived from munire, refers to a method of preventive treatment used not againstpoisons as in Agrippina’s case but against common illnesses or diseases? (Think of flu jabs.)23. Summarise this sub-section by stating in your own words Nero’s three reasons for rejecting his first choice.24. Translate this sub-section.WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina 9

Section IcLines 9-11 (quonam ... sperneret)The difficulties of one violent methodquonam modo ferrum et caedes occultareturnemo reperiebat; et metuebat Nero ne quis tanto facinoridelectus iussa sperneret.109 quinam, quaenam, quodnam - what, whichmodus, modi, m. - way, mannerferrum, ferri, n. - sword, weaponet - andcaedes, caedis, f. - slaughter, murder, killingocculto, occultare, occultavi, occultatus -conceal, keep hidden10 nemo, neminis, m. - no one, nobodyreperio, reperire, repperi, repertus - work out;findet - and, alsometuo, metuere, metui - be afraid, fearNero, Neronis, m. - the Emperor Nerone - in case, lestquis, quid, m. - anyone, anythingtantus, tanta, tantum - such a great, so greatfacinus, facinoris, n. - crime11 deligo, deligere, delegi, delectus - choose,selectiussum, iussi, n. - order, instructionsperno, spernere, sprevi, spretus - reject,disregard, disobey10 WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina

1. Read lines 9-11 (quonam ... sperneret) (aloud if possible) or listen to the audio on the CSCP website.2. Study the vocabulary for these lines.3. Read this sub-section (or listen to the audio) again.4. Find the two nominative nouns in line 9 which tell you the next murder-method that Nero considered. Which ofthe following do you think is the clearer translation?(a) The sword and slaughter(b) Slaughter by the swordCheckIf you feel that it is cheating to ignore et, look at another common Latin phrase: vi et armis. It translates morenaturally as by force of arms than by force and by arms.ferrum et caedes and vi et armis are examples of a way in which Latin can use two words linked with et or-que to convey a single idea. Similarly, in English, "pass me the bread and butter" isn't usually a request for twoseparate things, but it's what we say rather than "buttered bread".5. (Optional question, for experts only.) If you look at the verb that follows ferrum et caedes in line 9, the form ofthe verb proves that Tacitus regarded ferrum et caedes as a single idea, not as two separate items. Why?6. The words quonam modo … occultaretur (line 9) state a problem that faced Nero and his advisers. State theproblem in your own words. Treat quonam modo as if it were quo modo or quomodo, which both mean how(literally in what way), and notice the ending of occultaretur. Is it active or passive?7. Study the rest of the sentence (nemo reperiebat) to find out how many people could work out the answer toNero’s problem.8. quonam modo … occultaretur (line 9) can mean either how … was being concealed or how … was to beconcealed. Which translation makes better sense? (Optional note for experts: the first translation treats thesentence as an indirect question, the second treats it as an indirect deliberative question; both sorts of questionput the verb (occultaretur) into the subjunctive, so the only way to decide between the two translations is tosee which makes better sense. For more about indirect questions and indirect deliberative questions, see theCambridge Latin Grammar page 77, second footnote.)9. Translate the whole sentence quonam modo ferrum … reperiebat (lines 9-10). You have a choice about wordorder. You can translate nemo reperiebat first, which would be like saying “Nobody knew how the thief got outof the room”, or you can leave it to the end, as Tacitus does, which would be like saying “How the thief got out ofthe room, nobody knew”. Either word-order is acceptable.10. The difference between quonam modo and quomodo is very slight. A common effect of adding nam at the endof the various cases of qui is to make the question sound a bit more urgent, so it could be translated here asjust how or precisely how. But the difference is so slight that how on its own is a perfectly satisfactory translation.11. (This question may be more suitable for discussion than for individual study.) Were Nero and his advisers rightto think the problem described in line 9 was impossible to solve, or did they give up too easily? Would it havebeen utterly impossible for them to dispose of the body, or deal with any eye-witness to the murder, or accountfor any suspicious noises that were overheard? How easy or difficult would it have been for them to explain whyAgrippina had vanished? (There is no definite "right answer" to this.)12. Read the sentence et metuebat … iussa sperneret (lines 10-11) again. It states a second difficulty aboutstabbing Agrippina to death.13. Use your knowledge of cases to decide whether metuebat Nero (line 10) means that somebody was afraid ofNero or that Nero was afraid of anyone (quis) doing something. A more usual word-order would have been Nerometuebat.14. What Nero feared was the possible behaviour of anyone (quis, line 10) who had to do the killing. Find andtranslate the perfect participle in the phrase tanto facinori delectus (lines 10-11) which describes quis. (Likequis, it is in the nominative case.) Is it active or passive? (If you are unsure how to find out, see the next note.)15. It is often important to be able to decide whether a perfect participle is passive (“having been …-ed”) or active(“having …-ed”). If unsure, look at the endings of the verb listed in the vocabulary.The following verbs are ordinary verbs, and they have a passive perfect participle:laudo, laudare, laudavi, laudatus – praise: perfect participle having been praisedmitto, mittere, misi, missus – send: perfect participle having been sentThe following verbs are deponent verbs, and they have an active perfect participle:conor, conari, conatus sum – try: perfect participle having triedsequor, sequi, secutus sum – follow: perfect participle having followedWJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina 11

Use the vocabulary list to decide whether the following perfect participles are active or passive.• gratatus: having congratulated or having been congratulated?• prolocutus: having declared or having been declared?• temptatus: having corrupted or having been corrupted?And from line 11 of Section I:delectus: having chosen or having been chosen?16. What is the case of tanto facinori? (Hint: tantus is a 1st & 2nd declension adjective, facinus is a 3rddeclension noun.) Think of the most common ways of translating this case; how does it fit into the phrase tantofacinori delectus?17. What planned event does the phrase tanto facinori refer to (line 10)?18. What did Nero fear that the chosen person might do (line 11)?19. Translate the sentence et metuebat Nero ... iussa sperneret (lines 10-11).20. (This question may be more suitable for discussion than for individual study.) Why should Nero be afraid at thethought of his order being disobeyed? Could he not have just ordered somebody else?21. (This question may be more suitable for discussion than for individual study.) If you were ordered by Nero to dothe killing, what would you think was the more dangerous thing to do, obey or disobey? Why?22. Translate this sub-section.Answers4. b12 WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina

NotesWJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina 13

Section IdLines 12-16 (... ignaram)The perfect crimeobtulit ingenium Anicetus libertus, classi apud Misenumpraefectus et pueritiae Neronis educator ac mutuis odiisAgrippinae invisus. ergo navem posse componi docet, cuiuspars ipso in mari per artem soluta Agrippinam effunderetignaram;1512 offero, offerre, obtuli, oblatus - offeringenium, ingenii, n. - clever plan, ingenioussuggestion, clever ideaAnicetus, Aniceti, m. - Anicetus, a freedmanof Nerolibertus, liberti, m. - freedmanclassis, classis, f. - fleetapud - atMisenum, Miseni, n. - Misenum, town at thenorthern end of the Bay of Naples13 praefectus, praefecti, m. - prefect, commanderet - andpueritia, pueritiae, f. - boyhoodNero, Neronis, m. - the Emperor Neroeducator, educatoris, m. - tutorac - andmutuus, mutua, mutuum, n. - mutualodium, odii, n. - hatred14 Agrippina, Agrippinae, f. - Agrippina, motherof Neroinvisus, invisa, invisum - hatefulergo - so, thereforenavis, navis, f. - shippossum, posse, potui - cancompono, componere, composui,compositus - build, constructdoceo, docere, docui, doctus - explainqui, quae, quod - who, which15 pars, partis, f. - partipse, ipsa, ipsum - himself, herself, itselfin - inmare, maris, n. - seaper - by, throughars, artis, f. - designsolvo, solvere, solvi, solutus - loosenAgrippina, Agrippinae, f. - Agrippina, motherof Neroeffundo, effundere, effudi, effusus - throw out16 ignarus, ignara, ignarum - unsuspecting14 WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina

1. Read lines 12-16 (... ignaram) (aloud if possible) or listen to the audio on the CSCP website.2. Study the vocabulary for these lines.3. Read this sub-section (or listen to the audio) again.4. Having first limited his options to poison and violence, Nero ruled out poison. Stabbing to death seemed to havetoo many snags; he therefore needed a murder-method which used violence but didn’t involve a sword or similarweapon. A suggestion was near at hand …5. Read the sentence obtulit … invisus (lines 12-14) again.6. Find two words in line 12 which introduce a new character. What did this person do? (For help with obtulit, lookunder offero in the general vocabulary.)7. The rest of the sentence 12-14 gives three pieces of information about Anicetus.(i) What was his official position, and where?(ii) What had his responsibility been when Nero was a boy?(iii) What were Agrippina’s feelings towards him, and his feelings towards her?8. The importance of the Roman fleet at Misenum is shown by the fact that in AD 79, twenty years after theseevents, it was commanded by a distinguished former lawyer, soldier and provincial governor, who perished inthe Vesuvius eruption. You may have come across him in your earlier reading. But now, in AD 59, we find theMisenum fleet under the command of someone with a very different background, in fact a former slave. Deepresentment was caused among the Roman upper classes because Nero, and some other emperors, gavepositions of this sort to freedmen. These freedmen acted as personal assistants to the emperor, and some ofthem had enormous power and influence. They were normally totally loyal to the emperor, since they owed theirpower entirely to him.9. Translate lines 12-14 up to invisus. You may find it convenient to put a full stop after translating from obtulit tolibertus, and begin a fresh sentence He was … Notice that Tacitus puts the verb first; he tells us that a solutionwas offered, before giving us two lines of background about the person who offered it. (Putting the verb first isnot the only way to emphasise it; Roman authors, including Tacitus, often put the verb at the end, leading up toit as a climax. But beginning with the verb often attracts the reader’s (or listener’s) attention, because it is lessusual.)10. Check the meanings of solutus (from solvo) and effundo in the vocabulary, then carefully read the sentenceergo … ignaram (lines 14-16), preferably aloud, noticing the key words navem, pars, soluta and effunderet.Does this give you some idea of the murder-method which is being described? If not, try reading the sentence asecond time or proceed to question 11.11. Although Tacitus is speaking of previous events, he uses a present tense (docet) in line 14. This use of thepresent tense to relate previous events is called the "historic present" and is commoner in Latin than in English.English occasionally uses it, for example in excited speech ("I was standing outside when this man comes roundthe corner, and as soon as he sees the policeman he starts running ..." etc.). A Latin historic present tense canbe translated in English by either a present or a past tense. In this sentence, where docere means explainrather than teach, the historic present docet can be translated either as he explains (present) or he explained(past).12. Who is the he who explains the murder-method in line 14?13. ergo at the start of the sentence tells you that some fact mentioned in the previous sentence provides a reasonwhy this particular person was keen to suggest how Agrippina could be killed. What was this reason?14. What could be done as a first step (line 14), according to Anicetus’ explanation?15. Would the important part of the murder-method involve the whole of the ship or part of it (lines 14-15)? Quotethe two Latin words (a noun and a relative pronoun) which tell you this.16. You have met many phrases consisting of a preposition followed by an adjective and noun. But Latin often usesa different order, sandwiching the preposition between the adjective and the noun. (In the same way, Englishcan say either “through all the night” or “all through the night”.) The meaning is unchanged. For example.hac in urbe = in hac urbe = in this cityipsum ad regem = ad regem ipsum = to the king himselfTranslate these examples:multis cum amicis = cum multis amicisingentes per undas =per ingentes undas17. What three-word phrase in line 15, similar to those in question 16, tells you that the murder attempt was to bemade when the ship was no longer close to land? Translate the phrase literally, and also (if you can) find anatural English phrase which gives the same meaning.WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina 15

18. Translate the phrase per artem soluta, which tells you what would happen to part of the ship. Is soluta aperfect active or perfect passive participle? (If unsure, look back at Section Ic question 15, then at solvo in thevocabulary.) If you are puzzled by per artem, bear in mind that this event is not going to happen accidentally.19. What would the loosened part of the ship do to Agrippina (line 15) and what obvious but all-important detail doesTacitus add to describe her in line 16?20. Translate from ergo navem (line 14) to ignaram (line 16). You can translate soluta (line 15) either literally as aparticiple (having been loosened, …) or more naturally as a verb (could be loosened and …)21. (This question may be more suitable for discussion than for individual study.) Explain in your own words the plansuggested by Anicetus. Tacitus gives Anicetus’ basic idea, rather than full details, but you may find it helpful tohave at least a rough mental picture of the plan, which you can modify if necessary as the story proceeds.22. Translate this sub-section.16 WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina

NotesWJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina 17

Section IeLines 16-20 (nihil ... pietati)The cover upnihil tam capax fortuitorum quam mare; et sinaufragio Agrippina intercepta sit quem adeo iniquum esse utscelus credat quod venti et fluctus deliquerint? additurumprincipem matri defunctae templum et aras et ceteraostentandae pietati. 2016 nihil, n. - nothingtam - socapax, capacis - fullfortuitum, fortuiti, n. - accidentquam - asmare, maris, n. - seaet - andsi - if17 naufragium, naufragii, n. - shipwreckAgrippina, Agrippinae, f. - Agrippina, motherof Nerointercipio, intercipere, intercepi, interceptus- killqui, quae, quod - anyone; who, whichadeo - soiniquus, iniqua, iniquum - unfairsum, esse, fui - beut - that18 scelus, sceleris, n. - crimecredo, credere, credidi - believequi, quae, quod - who, whichventus, venti, m. - windet - andfluctus, fluctus, m. - wavedelinquo, delinquere, deliqui, delictus -commitaddo, addere, addidi, additus - give (supply‘esse’)19 princeps, principis, m. - Emperormater, matris, f. - motherdefunctus, defuncta, defunctum - dead,deceasedtemplum, templi, n. - templeet - andara, arae, f. - altaret - andceteri, ceterae, cetera - other20 ostento, ostentare, ostentavi, ostentatus -demonstratepietas, pietatis, f. - piety, family feeling18 WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina

1. Read lines 16-20 (nihil ... pietati) (aloud if possible) or listen to the audio on the CSCP website.2. Study the vocabulary for these lines.3. Read this sub-section (or listen to the audio) again.4. Compare these examples of direct and indirect speech:direct speechindirect speech“Agrippina in mari peribit.”“Agrippina will perish in the sea.”Anicetus dixit Agrippinam in mari perituram esse.Anicetus said that Agrippina would perish in the sea.The whole of sub-section Ie consists of indirect speech, because Tacitus is reporting what Anicetus said. Youmay find it helpful to put Anicetus said at the start of your translation of some of these sentences, but this is notessential.5. What is the case and number of fortuitorum (line 16)? Translate the two-word phrase (fortuitorum is one of thewords) which Anicetus uses to describe the sea.6. Translate Anicetus’ comment nihil tam … mare (line 16). As was mentioned above in 4, you can begin bysaying Anicetus said that … but this is optional. You may like to use a different translation for capax fortuitorumfrom the one you used in 5. For example capax could be translated as liable to … or fortuitorum as possibleaccidents, but you may prefer something different altogether.7. Notice that Tacitus does not include a word for “was” in this sentence. English, too, sometimes omits words like“is” or “was”, in such sentences as the following (the omitted words are added in square brackets): “Supper [is]in [the] oven”; “[There has been] a recent improvement”; “Two climbers [are] missing” and “[It was] no problem”.But Latin omits such words more often than English, and Tacitus does so especially frequently.8. What was the great advantage of Anicetus’ proposed plan? (Hint: look again at his remark in line 16, and if youare still stuck, look back to line 6, which explained the problem of using poison.)9. What case is naufragio (line 17)? Is the perfect participle intercepta active or passive? (If unsure, look back atSection Ic question 15, then at intercipio in the vocabulary.) Translate Anicetus’ words et si … intercepta sit,where he imagines something happening, or possibly happening, to Agrippina in the future. sit is a subjunctiveform of est and can be translated here as were to be ….10. Anicetus continues with a question. His original words might have begun quis adeo iniquus erit (future of est)ut …? Translate them. The meaning of adeo in front of iniquus should help you to decide between “that” and“in order that” when translating ut.11. (Optional note for experts only.) Tacitus reports Anicetus’ words by writing quem adeo iniquum (short forquem adeo iniqum fore – future infinitive of esse), treating them not as an indirect question but as an indirectstatement, with accusatives quem and iniquum and an infinitive (if included) fore. The reason is that Anicetus’question is not really a question at all but a statement. When he says Who will be so unfair …? he is stronglyhinting that the answer is “Nobody”. The “question” is a way of saying “Nobody will be so unfair …”. It is what iscalled a rhetorical question.12. Anicetus is asking Who will be so unfair as to …? The words scelus credat indicate what an unfair (iniquus)person might think if Agrippina perished in a shipwreck. How might such a person regard (credat) what hadhappened?13. What are the two things which Anicetus says (line 18) would be “really” to blame for Agrippina’s death?14. Which of the following is the literal translation of quod venti et fluctus deliquerint? Of the more naturaltranslations, which do you prefer? (There is no definite "right answer" to the second part of this question.)(a) What the winds and waves had done wrong(b) What had been the fault of the winds and waves(c) Something which had been caused by the winds and waves(d) Something for which the winds and waves were responsibleDo you prefer an alternative translation of your own?15. Translate the sentence et si naufragio … deliquerint? (lines 16-18).16. Is Anicetus being sincere in lines 16-18 (et si naufragio … deliquerint)? Would it really be iniquus to regardAgrippina’s death as a scelus? Would it really have been the fault of the venti et fluctus, as Anicetus seems tosuggest?17. The technical term for the way Anicetus speaks in lines 16-18 is irony. Anicetus is speaking ironically, puttingforward something that the innocent Roman public might be led to believe, whereas he and Nero know that hiswords are a complete sham. You will meet another example of irony in the final sentence (lines 18-20).WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina 19

18. Although there is no Anicetus dixit at the start of the sentence additurum … pietati (lines 18-20), it is clearthat Tacitus is continuing to report Anicetus’ speech, not making a comment of his own. How can you tell this?(Hint: what case is principem and what part of the verb is additurum (short for additurum esse)?)19. What honours does Anicetus say Nero (principem) will give to Agrippina after the murder (lines 18-19)? Whatwould be the propaganda value to Nero of doing this? What public reaction would Anicetus hope for?20. After the templum and aras, Anicetus uses the vague phrase et cetera (translated by one translator as and soon) to describe the other honours to be paid to Agrippina. Why is this?(a) He does not want to waste Nero’s time going through all the possibilities.(b) He has no interest in religious ceremonies, except as propaganda.(c) He has forgotten the details of the relevant religious rituals.21. The last two words of the sentence (ostentandae pietati) state Nero’s purpose (or what he pretended to behis purpose) in carrying out these religious activities. They are most conveniently translated as if they were utpietatem ostentaret, which is a commoner way of expressing a purpose clause in Latin. (Optional note forexperts only: ostentandae is a gerundive, agreeing with the dative pietati, and meaning literally for piety beingdisplayed.)22. Translate lines 18-20 (additurum … pietati).23. pietas was the Roman word for doing one’s duty to the gods, one’s country and (especially relevant in line 20)one’s parents. Do you find anything particularly striking in Tacitus’ use of pietati here? (If stuck, look back toquestion 17.)24. (This question may be more suitable for discussion than for individual study.) In what tone do you imagineAnicetus spoke the words reported in lines 16-20, especially the last sentence? Solemn? Deadpan? Sneering?Innocently? With shocked outrage at the thought that any nasty-minded person (iniquus) might suspectfoul play (scelus)? If you enjoy acting, try reading the lines aloud, accompanying them with suitable facialexpressions where appropriate. When Anicetus spoke the word pietati, might he have winked at Nero? (Thereis no definite "right answer" to this!)25. (This question may be more suitable for discussion than for individual study.) The meeting between Nero and hisadvisers must surely have been extremely private. How can we know whether Tacitus’ account is truthful? Howcould Tacitus have known what Nero and Anicetus said? Could he have talked to knowledgeable people afterNero’s death, by which time the truth might have got out? Since he knew what actually happened to Agrippina,might he have used his imagination to reconstruct the discussion that must have taken place beforehand?(There is no definite "right answer" to this.)26. Translate this sub-section.27. (This question may be more suitable for discussion than for individual study.) On the evidence of the Introductionand Section I, which of the following would you say had most power, and which had least? What made each ofthem, in their different ways, powerful?(i) Nero(ii) Agrippina(iii) Burrus(iv) Seneca(v) Anicetus.(There is no definite "right answer" to this.)28. (This question may be more suitable for discussion than for individual study.) What picture of Nero’s court doyou have in your mind after reading Section I? Possible points for consideration: struggles for personal power;hypocrisy; ruthlessness; the ever-present possibility of danger for one or more of the people in this Section; theease or difficulty of finding someone to trust; the use made of religion; Nero’s need to retain the favour of thegeneral public (see lines 5-6 and line 9). Support your answer wherever possible by referring to the Latin text.20 WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina

NotesWJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina 21

Section II - The victim is lured into the trapSection IIaLines 1-5 (... gaudia)The trap is baitedplacuit sollertia, tempore ipso iuvante quando festos diesapud Baias frequentabat. illuc matrem elicit, ferendas esseparentium iracundias et placandum animum dictitans, utrumorem reconciliationis efficeret et Agrippina acciperet facilifeminarum credulitate ad gaudia. 51 placeo, placere, placui + dat. - seem good,please, be pleasingsollertia, sollertiae, f. - scheme; cleverness,resourcefulnesstempus, temporis, n. - timeipse, ipsa, ipsum, n. - himself, herself, itselfiuvo, iuvare, iuvi, iutus - help out, assistquando - sincefestus, festa, festum - festivedies, diei, m. - period, day2 apud - atBaiae, Baiarum, f. - Baiae, seaside resortnear Naplesfrequento, frequentare, frequentavi -celebrate, attendilluc - there, to that placemater, matris, f. - motherelicio, elicere, elicui, elicitus - lure, enticefero, ferre, tuli, latus - endure, bearsum, esse, fui - be3 parens, parentis, c. - parentiracundia, iracundiae, f. - ill temper, angeret - andplaco, placare, placavi, placatus - calm, sootheanimus, animi, m. - spirit, temperdictito, dictitare, dictitavi - repeatedly say, sayover and over againut - in order that4 rumor, rumoris, m. - rumourreconciliatio, reconciliationis, f. - reconciliationefficio, efficere, effeci, effectus - spread;achieve, accomplishet - andAgrippina, Agrippinae, f. - Agrippina, motherof Neroaccipio, accipere, accepi, acceptus - acceptfacilis, facile, f. - easy5 femina, feminae, f. - womancredulitas, credulitatis, f. - trustfulness,credulityad - atgaudium, gaudii, n. - happy thing; joy, delight22 WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina

1. Read lines 1-5 (... gaudia) (aloud if possible) or listen to the audio on the CSCP website.2. Study the vocabulary for these lines.3. Read this sub-section (or listen to the audio) again.4. In line 1, find and translate the word that refers to Anicetus’ suggestion.5. How well did his suggestion go down with Nero? Which word tells you this? How does Tacitus emphasise it?(Hint: see Section Id question 9.)6. What is the case of tempore ipso iuvante? Does Tacitus say that the time (i.e. the time of year, March 19-23,the festival of Minerva) was an advantage or a disadvantage to the plotters? Translate the phrase literally, theninto more natural English, starting a fresh sentence if you find this helps. Possible translations of iuvare includebe in their favour, be suitable, be a bonus – you may be able to think of others.7. Lines 1-2 explain why the time of year was favourable or not. What was Nero doing at this time of year, andwhere?8. Why did his presence at the festival in Baiae make it easier to carry out the plan, provided that Agrippina joinedhim there?(a) She would be off her guard during the festival(b) Baiae was on the coast9. While he was at Baiae, what was Nero’s first step towards carrying out his plan (line 2)?10. Find and translate a present participle describing Nero in line 3.11. If you are comfortable with gerundives (e.g. laudandus, needing to be praised, proceed to queston 12. If youneed some quick revision, study these sentences.(i) regina est laudanda.(ii) dolor est ferendus. (ferre in this sentence means endure.)(iii) medicus dixit dolorem esse ferendum.Check12. What did Nero say about parents (ferendas esse parentium iracundias, lines 2-3)? As iracundias is plural,angry outbursts would be a possible translation – you may be able to improve on it.13. What else did he say was necessary when dealing with parents (line 3)?14. Do you think Nero made these comments directly to Agrippina in his invitation? (Would it have been tactful to tellhis mother directly that her animus needed to be calmed?) Or did he make them to the members of his court,knowing that they would get passed on to Agrippina? How does the word dictitans (line 3) make clear Nero’seagerness that Agrippina should get to hear of his remarks? (Hint: Tacitus doesn’t say dicens.)15. What did Nero want to create by these remarks (lines 3-4)?16. By whom did he hope that the rumour would be believed (line 4)?17. Did he expect her to be quick to believe the rumour, or expect that she would find it difficult?18. Did he expect her to be readier to believe good news or bad news? (If stuck, look at the end of the sentence.)19. One word in line 5 implies that being quick to believe good news is typical not just of Agrippina but also ofa wider group. (It is not clear whether Tacitus is expressing Nero’s opinion or his own.) Which word in line 5expresses this view? Whether it is Tacitus’ or Nero’s view, do you agree with him on the question “Which sex isreadier to be optimistic than the other?”? (The last part of this question is more suitable for discussion than forindividual study.)20. Translate this sub-section. One way to handle the difficult last five words is to translate the two-word ablativephrase as with the eagerness to believe … and to translate the genitive plural as typical of ….Answers11. (i) The queen must be praised (literally The queen is needing to be praised).(ii) Pain (or sorrow) must be endured.(iii) The doctor said that pain must be endured.WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina 23

Section IIbLines 5-8 (quam ... adluitur)The victim arrivesquam in litus venientem(nam Antio adventabat) excepit manu et complexu duxitqueBaulos. id villae nomen est quae inter promunturium Misenumet Baianum lacum mari adluitur.55 qui, quae, quod - who, whichin - ontolitus, litoris, n. - shorevenio, venire, veni - come6 nam - forAntium, Antii, n. - Antium, port and resort onthe west coast of Italyadvento, adventare, adventavi - comeexcipio, excipere, excepi, exceptus -welcome, receivemanus, manus, f. - handet - andcomplexus, complexus, m. - embraceduco, ducere, duxi, ductus - lead-que - and7 Bauli, Baulorum, m. - Bauli, district of Baiaewhere Agrippina had a villais, ea, id - that; he, she, itvilla, villae, f. - villa, housenomen, nominis, n. - namesum, esse, fui - bequi, quae, quod - who, whichinter - betweenpromunturium, promunturii, n. - promontory,headlandMisenum, Miseni, n. - Misenum, town at thenorthern end of the Bay of Naples8 et - andBaianus, Baiana, Baianum - of Baiaelacus, lacus, m. - lakemare, maris, n. - seaadluo, adluere, adlui - lap24 WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina

1. Read lines 5-8 from quam to adluitur (aloud if possible) or listen to the audio on the CSCP website.2. Study the vocabulary for these lines.3. Read this sub-section (or listen to the audio) again.4. Translate the following sentences, which become more complicated until they end with the version in line 5.(i) Agrippina in litus veniebat. Agrippinam Nero salutavit.(ii) Agrippinam in litus venientem Nero salutavit. (Various translations are possible, but your versionmust make it clear who was coming ashore.)(iii) eam in litus venientem Nero manu excepit. (Various translations are possible. To decide betweentook by the hand and took the hand for manu excepit, look carefully at the case of manu – see theCambridge Latin Grammar page 11 paragraph 4 if stuck.)(iv) (The version in line 5) quam in litus venientem manu excepit. (Translate quam in the same way asyou translated eam in (iii), and replace Nero’s name with the appropriate pronoun.)Check5. (Optional note for those puzzled by quam in line 5.) One way in which Latin likes to link a sentence to the onebefore is to use parts of the relative pronoun qui, quam, quos, etc. (who, whom etc.) instead of the usualpronouns eum, eam, eos, etc. (him, her, them etc.), as follows.(i) fur in silva latebat. quem milites statim ceperunt.The thief was hiding in the wood. The soldiers caught him at once. (Literally, The thief was hiding in thewood. Whom the soldiers caught at once.)(ii) Now translate this sentence.regina in medio templo sedebat. quam omnes cives spectabant.CheckFor further examples of this use of the relative pronoun, known as the “connecting use”, see the CambridgeLatin Grammar pages 21-22, paragraph 7.6. Tacitus does not give the full details of Agrippina’s journey. But it is clear from line 5 that she travelled by sea.How can you tell? A possible landing-place would be Misenum, but this is only a guess.7. Where was she coming from (line 6)?8. What did Nero do after taking Agrippina by the hand when she came ashore (line 6)? (complexu is literally anoun in the ablative case like manu, but to achieve natural English you may find it convenient to translate it as ifit were a verb.)9. Why did Nero behave like this? What effect does he want his behaviour to have on Agrippina? Why might hehave been keen for many spectators to witness this scene and remember it after the murder had taken place?10. Where did he then take his mother?11. (i) Notice the way in which Latin indicates movement to a place.To a named town (or small island)(accusative used without preposition)To anywhere else(accusative used with ad or in)Romam to Rome ad forum to the forumPompeios to Pompeii ad Italiam to Italy, as far as ItalyLondinium to London in Italiam to Italy, into ItalyCapreas to Capri in Aegyptum to Egypt, into EgyptAs Bauli is not a town or small island, it is unclear why Tacitus says Baulos and not ad Baulos. He may befollowing the practice of poets, who often omit prepositions in front of place-names.(ii) Similarly, notice the way in which Latin indicates movement from a place:From a named town (or small island)(ablative used without preposition)From anywhere else(ablative used with a, ab, e or ex)Roma from Rome ab oppido from the townPompeiis from Pompeii ex Graecia from GreeceAntio from Antium e silva from the woodSalamine from Salamis ab Illyrico from IllyricumFor further examples of Latin expressions involving place, see the Cambridge Latin Grammar pages 55-56,paragraph 2.WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina 25

12. What place or building is named Bauli (line 7)? Where is it located (lines 7-8)? Check your answer by referring tothe maps on page 27. Translate the phrase in line 8 which tells you how close to the shore Bauli is. (What caseis mari? Is adluitur active or passive?)13. Translate this sub-section.Answers4. (i) Agrippina was coming ashore (or onto the shore). Nero greeted Agrippina.(ii) As Agrippina came ashore Nero greeted her.(iii) As she came ashore, Nero took her by the hand.(iv) As she came ashore, he took her by the hand.5. (ii) The queen was sitting in the middle of the temple. All the citizens were watching her. (Literally, The queenwas sitting in the middle of the temple. Whom all the citizens were watching.)26 WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina

A map showing Rome, Antium and BaiaeA map showing Baiae, Bauli andMisenumWJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina 27

Section IIcLines 8-10 (stabat ... adhiberetur)The “murder weapon” is in placestabat inter alias navisornatior, tamquam id quoque honori matris daretur. ac tuminvitata ad epulas erat ut occultando facinori nox adhiberetur. 108 sto, stare, steti - standinter - among, betweenalius, alia, aliud - othernavis, navis, f. - ship9 ornatus, ornata, ornatum - decoratedtamquam - as if, likeis, ea, id - he, she, itquoque - too, alsohonor, honoris, m. - honourmater, matris, f. - motherdo, dare, dedi, datus - provide, giveac - andtum - then10 invito, invitare, invitavi, invitatus - invitead - toepulae, epularum, f. - feast, dinnerinvito, invitare, invitavi, invitatus - inviteut - so thatocculto, occultare, occultavi, occultatus -concealfacinus, facinoris, n. - crimenox, noctis, f. - night, darknessadhibeo, adhibere, adhibui, adhibitus - use28 WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina

1. Read lines 8-10 (stabat ... adhiberetur) (aloud if possible) or listen to the audio on the CSCP website.2. Study the vocabulary for these lines.3. Read this sub-section (or listen to the audio) again.4. Find and translate a noun in the nominative case (line 8) and a verb which tells you where it was standing (ormoored). How was its appearance different from that of the others (line 9)? Visualise it. (The word used byTacitus could include any or all of the following: flags; luxury accommodation; extreme smartness and tidiness;extra paint and polish where needed.)5. You have a choice between two different word-orders when translating the sentence stabat … ornatior in lines8-9. You could follow normal English order:A particularly … was standing among …Or you could follow the order of the Latin:Standing among … was a ….Which do you prefer?6. By the time we have reached the word ornatior, it is not hard to guess that this is the “murder ship”, eventhough Tacitus has not said so. How can we tell? Your answers to both questions 4 and 5 might be relevanthere.7. id (line 9) refers to the navis ornatior. Find and translate the two Latin words in line 9 which give the supposedreason why it was being provided (daretur).8. Which word in line 9 (together with the subjunctive daretur) indicates that the ship was not really being providedas a compliment, or that the compliment was insincere?9. quoque (line 9) suggests that this was not the first time that Nero had seemed to be paying Agrippina a specialcompliment. What was the first occasion? If it has slipped your memory, look back at Section IIb.10. Check your translation of lines 8-9 (stabat … daretur).11. What apparent favour was then shown to Agrippina (lines 9-10)? Who presumably would be her host? Wherewould he be entertaining her (refer to line 2 if necessary)? What “special” travel arrangement would she beexpected to use from Bauli to Baiae?12. Which noun in line 10 makes it clear that the epulae were to take place in the evening? How (line 10) did Neroand his helpers intend to take advantage of this fact?13. Translate this sub-section.WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina 29

Section IIdLines 11-15 (... consociaret)A difficulty is solvedsatis constitit exstitisse proditorem, et Agrippinam, auditisinsidiis, ambiguam an crederet sella Baias pervectam esse. ibiblandimentum sublevavit metum: comiter excepta estsuperque ipsum collocata. Nero modo familiaritate iuvenili segerebat, modo adductus erat, quasi seria consociaret. 1511 satis - generally; enoughconstat, constare, constitit - it is agreedexsto, exstare, exstiti - emerge, existproditor, proditoris, m. - traitor, betrayeret - andAgrippina, Agrippinae, f. - Agrippina, motherof Neroaudio, audire, audivi, auditus - hear12 insidiae, insidiarum, f. - plot, intrigueambiguus, ambigua, ambiguum - uncertain,undecidedan - whethercredo, credere, credidi - believe, trustsella, sellae, f. - chair, litterBaiae, Baiarum, f. - Baiae, seaside resortnear Naplesperveho, pervehere, pervexi, pervectus -carry, conveyibi - there13 blandimentum, blandimenti, n. - compliment,flatterysublevo, sublevare, sublevavi, sublevatus -relieve, lightenmetus, metus, m. - fearcomiter - politelyexcipio, excipere, excepi, exceptus -welcome, receive14 super - above-que - andipse, ipsa, ipsum - himself, herself, itselfcolloco, collocare, collocavi, collocatus -place at tableNero, Neronis, m. - the Emperor Neromodo ... modo - sometimes ... sometimes, atone time ... at another time, now ... nowfamiliaritas, familiaritatis, f. - familiarityiuvenilis, iuvenile - youthfulse - himself, herself, itself15 gero, gerere, gessi, gestus - behavemodo ... modo - sometimes ... sometimes, atone time ... at another time, now ... nowadductus, adducta, adductum - withdrawn, gravesum, esse, fui - bequasi - as ifserius, seria, serium - serious, weighty, importantconsocio, consociare, consociavi - beinvolved, join in30 WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina

1. Read lines 11-15 (... consociaret) (aloud if possible) or listen to the audio on the CSCP website.2. Study the vocabulary for these lines.3. Read this sub-section (or listen to the audio) again.4. By the time Tacitus wrote this account, there had clearly been a lot of discussion by historians and others aboutwhat happened next on that March evening. satis constat means it is generally agreed and the perfect tensesatis constitit could be translated as it has been generally agreed. (By contrast, Tacitus has referred earlier toan event over which historians had partly disagreed. Look back to the end of the Introduction to Section I if it hasslipped your mind.)5. satis constitit introduces two indirect statements. The first is exstitisse proditorem (line 11), in which aperfect active infinitive exstitisse is followed by the accusative proditorem. The second indirect statementputs the accusative and infinitive the other way round; the accusative Agrippinam (line 11) is followed, afterseveral other words, by a perfect passive infinitive pervectam esse (line 12). If you are comfortable with indirectstatements, proceed to question 6; if you feel you need some practice, translate the following examples:(i) omnes cives credunt regem ad urbem iam venisse. (perfect active infinitive)(ii) omnes cives credunt fugisse servos. (perfect active infinitive, with accusative and infinitive inreverse order)(iii) omnes cives credunt Agrippinam vulneratam esse. (perfect passive infinitive)Check6. Translate the first indirect statement (satis constitit exstitisse proditorem). Judging by the next words(Agrippinam, auditis insidiis), what did the proditor do? Translate the ablative absolute phrase auditisinsidiis, at first literally (with the … having been …), then into natural English (when she … about the …). Formore examples of ablative absolute phrases, see the Cambridge Latin Grammar, pages 62-3, paragraph 7.7. It may seem strange that someone involved in the murder conspiracy should change sides and become aproditor. But Nero had been afraid of a refusal to carry out such a horrific order (look at Section Ic if you need toremind yourself of this) and a conspirator could well have gone one step further, from disobedience to betrayal.At all events, the plan to sink the ship was “leaked”.8. When she heard the information brought by the proditor, what was Agrippina’s reaction (ambiguam ancrederet, line 12)?9. (This question is more suitable for discussion than for individual study.) What reason(s) might Agrippina have forbelieving or disbelieving the information about the insidiae? (There is no definite “right answer” to this question.)10. What has Tacitus said earlier about the kind of thing Agrippina tended to believe? (Look back to lines 4-5 of thissection if necessary.)11. The rest of the second indirect statement (sella Baias pervectam esse, line 12) tells you whether Agrippinadecided to take a chance or play safe. How did she travel to Baiae?12. Whether the “accident” was intended to happen on the journey from Bauli to Baiae or on the return trip, Nero’sfeelings when Agrippina arrived in a sedan-chair (unless his spies had already told him of the change in hertravel plans) can easily be imagined. For obvious reasons, these feelings had to be completely concealed; thefollowing sentences show to what extent he succeeded.13. What happened next at Baiae (ibi … metum, lines 12-13)?14. Who had been suffering from metus? Whose blandimentum relieved the metus?WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina 31

15. How was Agrippina received (line 13)? Where was she placed at dinner (line 14)? Who is ipsum? Study thediagram. Guests recline on their left elbow; Agrippina (A on diagram) occupies the place of honour, at the endof the middle couch; Nero (N on diagram) occupies the host’s place where he can easily talk to the guest ofhonour. The middle couch is said to be above (super) the other two.AN16. How did Nero treat his mother during the meal (lines 14-15)?(a) As a friend more or less the same age as himself(b) As a wise adviser on confidential state business(c) Sometimes (a), sometimes (b)Quote from the Latin to support your answer. (The verb consociare, used in line 15, often means to sharesomething with someone, to communicate something, and serius can be translated as important.)17. Compare the way Nero treats Agrippina during the meal with his behaviour to her in lines 1-2 of Section Ia.18. (This question is more suitable for discussion than for individual study.) Do you feel that in general parentsenjoy being treated by their children in the way Nero behaves in lines 14-15? Or is the behaviour referred to ineither (a) or (b) in question 16 more likely to irritate than to please? (There is definitely no “right answer” to thisquestion.)19. Translate this sub-section.Answers5. (i) All the citizens believe that the king came (or has come) to the city.(ii) All the citizens believe that the slaves fled (or have fled).(iii) All the citizens believe that Agrippina has been (or was) wounded.32 WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina

NotesWJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina 33

Section IIeLines 15-19 (iam ... retinebat)Nero says goodbye to his motheriampluribus sermonibus tracto in longum convictu prosequiturAgrippinam abeuntem, artius oculis et pectori haerens, vel utsimulationem expleret vel quod periturae matris supremusaspectus ferum animum retinebat.1515 iam - presently, now16 plus, gen. pluris - further, moresermo, sermonis, m. - conversationtraho, trahere, traxi, tractus - drag outin - forlongus, longa, longum - long (of time)convictus, convictus, m. - entertainmentprosequor, prosequi, prosecutus sum -escort, accompany17 Agrippina, Agrippinae, f. - Agrippina, motherof Neroabeo, abire, abii - leaveartius - rather tightly, too closelyoculus, oculi, m. - eye, gazeet - andpectus, pectoris, n. - breasthaereo, haerere, haesi - hang, clingvel ... vel - either ... orut - to, so that18 simulatio, simulationis, f. - deception,pretenceexpleo, explere, explevi, expletus - complete,put the final touch tovel ... vel - either ... orquod - becausepereo, perire, perii, peritus - die, perishmater, matris, f. - mothersupremus, suprema, supremum - last, final19 aspectus, aspectus, m. - sight, appearanceferus, fera, ferum - wild, cruelanimus, animi, m. - spiritretineo, retinere, retinui, retentus - hold back,restrain34 WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina

1. Read lines 15-19 (iam to the end) (aloud if possible) or listen to the audio on the CSCP website.2. Study the vocabulary for these lines.3. Read this sub-section (or listen to the audio) again.4. For how much time did the banquet (convictu, line 16) continue? Translate the ablative absolute phrase in line16 (tracto … convictu) literally at first, then into more natural English. If you translate it using When … you willfind that the translation of iam fits naturally between your translation of convictu and your translation of tracto:When the meal had now been … etc.5. Find a noun and adjective in the ablative plural in line 16 which tell you what the banquet was prolonged by.6. In prosequitur Agrippinam abeuntem (lines 16-17), what is Agrippina doing and what does Nero do?7. Notice that it is clear from the following sentences that the booby-trapped ship has been brought round fromBauli to Baiae.8. Who does haerens (line 17) describe? Who is the owner of the oculi and the pectus? Translate the phraseoculis et pectori haerens; visualising Nero’s actions may help. You may need to translate haerens twice over,using a phrase like fixing his gaze on … or gazing intently into … when haerens leads on to oculis, and a morenormal translation when it leads on to pectori.9. Notice the way comparative adverbs can be translated:latiusmore widely ormore widely than normal i.e. especially widely ormore widely than is right i.e. too widelycelerius more quickly ormore quickly than normal i.e. especially quickly ormore quickly than is right i.e. too quicklyThis gives you two possible translations for artius in line 17, in addition to more closely. Which do you prefer?10. Tacitus, like journalists, detectives, psychologists and many others, has a keen interest in people’s motives.Sometimes, as here, he presents his readers (or listeners) with two alternative explanations for an individual’sbehaviour and leaves them to choose (though sometimes his words may seem to be pushing one explanationrather than another). Read carefully from vel ut in line 17 to retinebat in line 19: the repeated vel introduces twoalternative explanations for the striking way that Nero behaved in line 17 (artius … haerens).11. The first explanation (lines 16-17) is in the form of a purpose clause: Nero clung to his mother ut simulationemexpleret. What, according to this explanation, was his purpose? There are various possibilities for translatingexplere: to crown, to put the finishing touches to and to round off are three of them; you may prefer somethingelse, conveying if possible the idea of the climax of a performance.12. The second explanation (lines 18-19) is in the form of a causal clause: Nero behaved like this because (quod)something affected him. Find and translate a noun and adjective in the nominative singular which indicate whatit was that affected Nero.13. Find and translate a noun and adjective in the genitive which indicate the person whose last sight or lastappearance affected Nero.14. Consider the various ways of translating the future participle (periturae, literally about to die, which describesmatris. Doomed? Going to her death?15. (This question might be studied individually at first, then the various answers can be compared in discussion.)animum retinebat (line 19) tells you what the sight of Agrippina at this moment did to Nero. Translate the Latinliterally, then put in your own words the explanation Tacitus is giving, in animum retinebat, for Nero’s behaviourin line 17 (artius … haerens). Then translate animum retinebat into natural English in a way that makesTacitus’ meaning clear. (Hints: retinere means to hold back: is Tacitus saying that the sight of Agrippina madeNero waver in his intention to kill her? Or did something compel him to keep gazing into her eyes and holdingher tightly in his arms? If so, what was it that compelled him? Tacitus refers to Nero’s ferum animum; doesretinebat suggest that for a moment it was less ferum than usual? There are no definite “right answers” to thesequestions.)16. Which explanation is more favourable to Nero? Why?17. Does even the more favourable explanation still include one word in line 19 that condemns Nero?18. Which of the two explanations for the passionate embrace do you think is more probable? (There can hardly bea definite “right answer” to this; it is not easy to think oneself into the mind of someone who can happily entertaina mother who has done so much for him, before sending her off to be murdered.)19. Do you have the feeling that Tacitus’ words are encouraging you to choose one explanation rather than another?WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina 35

If so, which explanation do you feel Tacitus is pushing you towards?20. Translate this sub-section.21. (This question is more suitable for discussion than for individual study.) Look back at the first two lines ofSection I and the whole of Section II. Find and translate as many words and phrases as you can which indicateoccasions when Nero is “acting a part” – behaving deceitfully or speaking insincerely. At which point doesTacitus make it clear that the performance had the desired effect? It may be significant that Nero was very fondof acting on the stage; his behaviour in these Sections suggests that he could carry his acting technique overfrom the theatre to real life.36 WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina

NotesWJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina 37

Section III - The trap is sprungSection IIIaLines 1-2 (... praebuere)The trap is sprungnoctem sideribus inlustrem et placido mari quietam quasiad convincendum scelus dii praebuere.1 nox, noctis, f. - nightsidus, sideris, n. - starinlustris, inlustre - brightet - andplacidus, placida, placidum - calmmare, maris, n. - seaquietus, quieta, quietum - stillquasi - as if2 ad - toconvinco, convincere, convici, convictus -exposescelus, sceleris, n. - crimedeus, dei, m. - godpraebeo, praebere, praebui, praebitus -provide38 WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina

1. Read lines 1-2 (... praebuere) (aloud if possible) or listen to the audio on the CSCP website.2. Study the vocabulary for these lines. Notice the unusual spelling of dii (meaning the same as dei).3. Read this sub-section (or listen to the audio) again.4. praebuere (line 2) is an alternative form for the 3rd person plural perfect praebuerunt. This form is quitecommon, especially in verse. If you are already familiar with it, proceed to question 5. If you are unsure about it,study these examples. Compare the infinitive form (meaning “to …”) with the two forms for the 3rd person pluralof the perfect (meaning “they -ed”), finally translating the two alternative forms praebuere and praebuerunt.laudareto praisedicereto saytenereto holdlaudavere = laudaveruntthey praiseddixere = dixeruntthey saidtenuere = tenueruntthey heldpraebere praebuere = praebueruntto provide ???5. Find and translate the nominative plural noun in line 2 which tells you who provided or were responsible forsomething.6. Find and translate the accusative singular noun in line 1 which tells you what the dei provided.7. Study the cases of noctem sideribus inlustrem (line 1). What kind of night does Tacitus say the godsprovided?(a) A night bright with stars(b) A night with bright stars8. In line 1, find and translate a second accusative adjective (in addition to inlustrem) describing the night, and anoun-and-adjective phrase in the ablative case, which adds to the description.9. Would the kind of night described by Tacitus be a good or bad night for making the murder attempt look like anaccident? (Hint: was it a likely night for shipwrecks?)10. What reason does Tacitus suggest in lines 1-2 (quasi … scelus) for the gods providing these weatherconditions?11. Does Tacitus say that the gods wanted to expose the crime, or that they seemed to want to do so? Which Latinword tells you this?12. Translate this sub-section.WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina 39

Section IIIbLines 2-7 (nec ... grave)The trap is sprungnec multum eratprogressa navis, duobus familiaribus Agrippinamcomitantibus ex quibus Crepereius Gallus haud proculgubernaculis adstabat, Acerronia super pedes cubitantisdominae reclinis paenitentiam filii per gaudium memorabat,cum dato signo ruere tectum multo plumbo grave.52 nec - and not, normultum - far3 progredior, progredi, progressus sum -advancenavis, navis, f. - shipduo, duae, duo - twofamiliaris, familiaris, m. - member of thehousehold, attendant, friendAgrippina, Agrippinae, f. - Agrippina, motherof Nero4 comitor, comitari, comitatus sum -accompanyex - of; from, out ofqui, quae, quod - who, whichCrepereius, Crepereii, m. - CrepereiusGallus, a companion of AgrippinaGallus, Galli, m. - Crepereius Gallus, acompanion of Agrippinahaud - notprocul - far5 gubernaculum, gubernaculi, n. - helm,rudder, tilleradsto, adstare, adstiti - standAcerronia, Acerroniae, f. - Acerronia, servantof Agrippinasuper - at; abovepes, pedis, m. - footcubito, cubitare, cubitavi - rest6 domina, dominae, f. - mistressreclinis, reclinis, recline - recliningpaenitentia, paenitentiae, f. - repentance;change of heartfilius, filii, m. - sonper - with; through, on account ofgaudium, gaudii, n. - joymemoro, memorare, memoravi, memoratus- recall7 cum - whendo, dare, dedi, datus - givesignum, signi, n. - signal, signruo, ruere, rui - collapse, fall intectum, tecti, n. - roof, ceilingmultus, multa, multum - much, a lotplumbum, plumbi, n. - leadgravis, grave - weighted, heavy40 WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina

1. Read lines 2-7 (nec ... grave) (aloud if possible) or listen to the audio on the CSCP website.2. Study the vocabulary for these lines.3. Read this sub-section (or listen to the audio) again.4. Whereabouts was the ship at the start of the sentence (lines 2-3)?(a) It had not begun to move(b) It had not gone a long way(c) It had gone a long way5. How many friends were accompanying Agrippina (lines 3-4)?6. Translate the ablative absolute phrase duobus familiaribus Agrippinam comitantibus. You may find that aliteral translation (with two … -ing …) leads naturally into the next part of this long sentence.7. Tacitus now deals in turn with each of the two people he has just mentioned. The most convenient way totranslate ex quibus is of whom (literally from whom, or out of whom, as if Tacitus is picking each individual outof the pair).8. Where was Crepereius Gallus (Crepereius … adstabat, lines 4-5)?9. Study the following illustration, taken from an African mosaic. It shows a lectus (couch) similar to that on whichAgrippina was resting. Notice the high parietes (walls or sides) of the lectus.10. The second friend was Acerronia (line 5). Find and translate the adjective in line 6 which tells you what she wasdoing.11. Acerronia is described as being super pedes cubitantis dominae (lines 5-6).(i) Who is her domina?(ii) Find and translate the participle which tells you what the domina was doing.(iii) What is the case of cubitantis dominae?(iv) Who do the pedes belong to? If puzzled, refer back to your answer to (c).12. In order to translate the phrase Acerronia super pedes cubitantis dominae reclinis, you need to imaginethe scene as clearly as you can. Tacitus doesn’t give a complete picture, so some details are left to yourimagination. Agrippina is resting, evidently on a couch, but where exactly is Acerronia? You might, for example,picture her on a lower level than Agrippina, seated or kneeling on a stool at the foot of the couch, with her headresting at or on Agrippina’s feet. (Whether at or on depends on the translation you choose for super.) You maylike to vary the translations suggested in the vocabulary, e.g. by treating reclinis as leaning and using recliningfor cubitantis. (A further possibility: reclinis is literally leaning back; perhaps Acerronia is sitting on the deck ora footstool with her back to the couch and her head resting on Agrippina’s feet. She gazes out at the peacefulnight scene, and in line 6 she leans back to address her mistress, like the front seat passenger in a car talkingover her shoulder to someone in the rear.) It may be useful to discuss different possibilities with other peoplebefore making up your own mind.WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina 41

13. What was Acerronia reminding Agrippina about, and what was her tone of voice (line 6)?14. Who is the filius referred to by Acerronia in line 6?15. What behaviour on the part of the filius, described in Section II, could Acerronia be referring to as evidenceof paenitentia? How many details of this paenitentia can you remember before looking back at Section II tocheck?16. Look at two sentences which both end with a group of words introduced by when:(a) I was on my way to the theatre tonight when a funny thing happened.(b) He had not gone more than three yards when the lion sprang out at him.In each sentence the underlined words are not telling you the time of something, but rather telling you the chiefevent of the sentence.In the same way, a shortened version of the translation of lines 2-6 might read:The ship had not gone far, with two friends accompanying Agrippina, one of whom was talking happily …The sentence has now reached its chief event, which is introduced, like the chief events of (a) and (b) above, bya word in line 7 meaning when. Find it.17. The event in line 7 is described as happening dato signo (an ablative absolute phrase). Translate dato signoliterally (with a … having been …), then into more natural English, e.g. after a ... had been … or at a given ….18. What was the tectum (line 7)? What happened to it? (The verb is in the infinitive form, sometimes used byRoman authors for vivid and fast-moving narrative; translate it as an ordinary past tense. For more information,see Section Ia question 4.)19. Find and translate:(a) A neuter adjective in the nominative case, describing the roof.(b) A noun and adjective in the ablative case, telling you how the roof was made heavy or weighted.20. Translate this sub-section. The following summary may help you to steer your way through it. The sentence tellsyou:••••••how far the ship gotwho were with Agrippinawhere Crepereius waswhere Acerronia waswhat Acerronia was doingwhat suddenly happened.21. Tacitus is less concerned with the exact details of the tectum than about two essential points: it was overAgrippina’s head, and it collapsed. Agrippina’s couch was either in a cabin, in which case tectum means roof,or in a more simple shelter rigged up on deck, in which case tectum means canopy. Choose whichever versionyou prefer; there is no definite “right answer”, but if possible you should be able to give a reason for your choice.22. Why does Tacitus mention what Acerronia was saying at the moment when the tectum collapsed? (Hint: SectionIe contained two examples of irony, in which the speaker said one thing, but he and his listener knew that thetruth was totally different. Is anything similar happening here, with a speaker innocently making a remark whichat that very moment was wildly inappropriate – a situation sometimes described as “dramatic” irony?)23. (This question and the next may be more suitable for discussion than for individual study.) Roughly how manylines does Tacitus spend describing the calm scene, and how many describing the interruption? Does this makethe narrative more effective, or less? Why?24. If you were reciting this passage aloud to an audience (as Tacitus did), which parts would you read quietly andwhich parts loudly? At what points would you vary the pace?42 WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina

Notesgubernaculum tiller/rudder Agrippina’s shelter/cabin remi oarsHow Agrippina’s ship may have lookedWJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina 43

Section IIIcLines 7-12 (pressus ... impediebat)The plot misfirespressusCrepereius et statim exanimatus est. Agrippina et Acerroniaeminentibus lecti parietibus ac forte validioribus quam ut onericederent protectae sunt. nec dissolutio navis sequebatur,turbatis omnibus et quod plerique ignari etiam consciosimpediebant.107 premo, premere, pressi, pressus - crush(supply ‘est’)8 Crepereius, Crepereii, m. - CrepereiusGallus, a companion of Agrippinaet - andstatim - instantlyexanimo, exanimare, exanimavi, exanimatus- killAgrippina, Agrippinae, f. - Agrippina, motherof Neroet - andAcerronia, Acerroniae, f. - Acerronia, servantof Agrippina9 eminens, eminentis - projecting; loftylectus, lecti, m. - couch, bedparies, parietis, m. - side; wallac - andforte - by chancevalidus, valida, validum - strongquam - thanut - toonus, oneris, n. - weight10 cedo, cedere, cessi - give wayprotego, protegere, protexi, protectus - cover,protectnec - nor, and notdissolutio, dissolutionis, f. - destruction,breaking upnavis, navis, f. - shipsequor, sequi, secutus sum - follow11 turbo, turbare, turbavi, turbatus - confuse,disturb, alarmomnis, omne - every, allet - andquod - becauseplerique, pleraeque, pleraque - the majority,most, very manyignarus, ignara, ignarum - ignorant, unaware,unsuspectingetiam - also, evenconscius, conscii, m. - accomplice12 impedio, impedire, impedivi, impeditus - getin the way, hinder44 WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina

1. Read lines 7-12 from (pressus ... impediebant) (aloud if possible) or listen to the audio on the CSCP website.2. Study the vocabulary for these lines.3. Read this sub-section (or listen to the audio) again.4. What happened to Crepereius (line 8)?5. Where had Crepereius been standing? (See lines 4-5 in sub-section IIIb if this has slipped your memory.) Doeshis fate suggest that tectum may mean canopy rather than cabin roof?6. What happened to Agrippina and Acerronia? (The answer comes late in the long sentence Agrippina … sunt,lines 8-10). Find and translate a noun in the ablative plural, linked to a genitive, which tells you by what meansthis happened to them.7. Find a present participle in line 9. Which noun does it describe, and how does it explain what happened to thetwo ladies? Study the picture on page 41, noticing in particular the height of the sides of the couch, compared tothe top of the head of the lady, who is reclining on the couch like Agrippina.8. Not only did the sides of the couch project as high as the couch in the picture but they also had anotherimportant quality. Find and translate an adjective in line 9 which describes them.9. (a) Translate these examples, which lead up to lines 8-10 of the text:(i)filius meus est ignavior quam tuus. (ignavus = lazy)(ii) filius meus est tam ignavus ut numquam laboret.(iii) A comparative adjective can be combined with a result clause:filius meus ignavior est quam ut laboret.Check(b) Now translate these examples:(i) nox erat tam obscura ut villam non videremus. (result clause)(ii) nox erat obscurior quam ut villam videremus. (comparative adjective + result clause)Check(c) Finally translate these examples, based on lines 9-10 in sub-section IIIc:(i)parietes lecti tam validae forte erant ut oneri non cederent.(forte = by chance; cedere = to give way; onus = weight)(ii) parietes lecti validiores forte erant quam ut oneri cederent.(iii) Agrippina et Acerronia protectae sunt parietibus lecti forte validioribus quam ut oneri cederent.(You may find it helpful to add “which were” before your translation of validioribus.)Check10. Tacitus began Section III by referring to the apparent role played by the gods in these events. Which single wordin lines 7-10 states a very different cause for the way things turned out?11. Test your understanding of the situation at the end of the sentence Agrippina … sunt (lines 8-10) by sayingwhich of these statements are true:(a) Agrippina’s head was now above the level of the roof(b) The sides of the couch had deliberately been made strong enough to withstand a heavy weight(c) The lead weight had killed Crepereius instantly12. What event followed, or failed to follow, the collapse of the tectum (line 10)?13. Notice again the literal and natural translations of two ablative absolute phrases (underlined here) which youhave met in Sections II and III:(a) Agrippina, auditis insidiis …Agrippina, with the plot having been heard about …one of many natural versions: Agrippina, on hearing about the plot …another natural version: When Agrippina heard about the plot …WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina 45

(b) dato signo ruere tectum …literal version: with the signal having been given, the roof collapsed …one of many natural versions: when a signal was given, the roof collapsed …another natural version: at a given signal, the roof collapsed …Using these examples as a guide, find an ablative absolute phrase in line 11 and translate it first literally thennaturally. (Hint: you may find “as” or “since” are useful words in producing your natural translation.)14. How many people were getting in the way (line 11)? Whom were they obstructing? Were they obstructing themdeliberately or were they getting in the way even though they did not know what was going on? Which Latinword tells you this?15. What were the conscii trying to achieve after the collapse of the tectum? (Hint: look at the last four words inline 10.)16. Evidently a lot of people were in the plot (conscii). Does this help to explain something that happened inSection IId?17. Translate this sub-section.18. (This question and the next are more suitable for discussion than for individual study.) Which details of themurder plan are clear in Tacitus’ account, and which are unclear?You could consider some of the following points:•Was there a change to Anicetus’ original plan?• What was the purpose of the heavily weighted roof? To crush Agrippina to death, as happenedto Crepereius? To smash a hole in the hull of the boat, throwing Agrippina into the sea, as Anicetushad suggested? Was the heavy weight intended to give the plotters a double strike at their target – ifshe is not crushed by the tectum, she may fall through the damaged hull and drown?• Do Tacitus’ references to dissolutio navis in line 10 and conscii in line 11 show that the plottershad told some of the sailors in advance to increase the damage to the ship if the weighted roof didn’tsmash a big enough hole it?19. “A clumsy scheme, with a poor chance of success.” Is this a fair description of the murder plot? Give reasons foryour view.Answers9. (a) (i) My son is more lazy than yours. (ignavior is a comparative adjective)(ii)(b) (i)My son is so lazy that he never works. (ut numquam laboret is a result clause).(iii) My son is more lazy than that he works. Or, in natural English: My son is too lazy to work.(ii)(c) (i)(ii)The night was so dark that we did not see the villa.The night was darker than that we saw the villa. Or, in natural English:The night was too dark for us tosee the villa.The sides of the couch were by chance so strong that they did not give way to the weight.The sides of the couch were by chance stronger than that they gave way to the weight. Or, in naturalEnglish: The sides of the couch were by chance too strong to give way beneath the weight.(iii) Agrippina and Acerronia were protected by the sides of the couch, which were by chance too strongto give way beneath the weight.46 WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina

NotesWJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina 47

Section IIIdLines 12-15 (deinde ... iactus)Chaos and confusiondeinde visum remigibus, qui conscii erant, unumin latus inclinare atque ita navem submergere; sed neque ipsiserat promptus in rem subitam consensus, et alii contra nitentesdedere facultatem lenioris in mare iactus. 1512 deinde - thenvideor, videri, visus sum - seem (good)(supply ‘est’)remex, remigis, m. - oarsman, rowerqui, quae, quod - who, whichconscius, conscii, m. - accomplicesum, esse, fui - beunus, una, unum - one13 in - ontolatus, lateris, n. - sideinclino, inclinare, inclinavi, inclinatus - leanatque - andita - so, in this waynavis, navis, f. - shipsubmergo, submergere, submersi,submersus - sink, cause to sinksed - butneque - not; and not, noripse, ipsa, ipsum - himself, herself, itself14 sum, esse, fui - bepromptus, prompta, promptum - quickin - concerning; intores subita, rei subitae, f. - emergency, crisisconsensus, consensus, m. - agreementet - andalius, alia, aliud - some; othercontra - the opposite waynitor, niti, nixus sum - lean15 do, dare, dedi, datus - givefacultas, facultatis, f. - opportunity, chancelenis, lene - gentlein - intomare, maris, n. - seaiactus, iactus, m. - drop48 WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina

1. Read lines 12-15 from (deinde ... iactus) (aloud if possible) or listen to the audio on the CSCP website.2. Study the vocabulary for these lines.3. Read this sub-section (or listen to the audio) again.4. Translate this sentence:Nero constituit matrem interficere.The following sentence can be translated in exactly the same way:visum est Neroni matrem interficere.Nero decided to kill his mother.(literally: It seemed good (i.e. a good idea) to Nero to kill his mother.)visum est is part of the perfect tense of the verb videri, which means it seems or it seems good. (Optional notefor experts: it is also the passive of videre, and therefore can mean to be seen.)Translate this example, first literally, then into natural English:visum est captivis e carcere effugere.CheckNow translate a shortened version of lines 12-13, first literally then naturally, treating visum as if it were visumest. (For other examples of omission of words like est in Latin and English, see Section Ie question 7.) You willneed to find a noun in the dative plural to find out who took a decision (literally to whom it seemed good) and aninfinitive which tells you what they decided. If you have a problem with the word-order of unum in latus, refer toSection Id question 16.deinde visum remigibus unum in latus inclinare.Check5. Look at the complete sentence deinde … submergere (lines 12-13). Who were the oarsmen that took thisdecision?6. What other decision was taken by these oarsmen (line 13)? Strictly speaking, it was not a separate decision butwas the intended result of the first decision.7. What case is consensus (line 14)? Find an adjective describing it and translate both words.8. Study the following sentence:est mihi magna villa.(literal translation) There is to me a large house.(natural translation) I have a large house.What are the literal and natural translations of the following sentence?non erat mercatori multa pecunia.What are the literal and natural translations of this simplified version of lines 13-14? Translate neque as if itwere non. See if you can find more than one way of translating the sentence naturally.neque erat eis promptus … consensus …Check9. Why did these people need to agree quickly and all work together? (Hint: what had they just decided to do?)10. Tacitus says in line 14 that quick agreement was needed in rem subitam. res is an all-purpose word. It takesits meaning from the sentence in which it appears. Here, it could refer either to the plotters’ problem (theweight’s failure to sink Agrippina into the sea) or to their response (the attempt to capsize the ship). So youcould translate the phrase either as in the face of the problem or as in carrying out their plan, adding a suitabletranslation of subitam. But these are not the only possible translations. (One translator prefers emergencyto problem; another translates subitam as improvised). Your aim should be a translation that makes Tacitus’meaning clear. A literal translation (into the sudden thing!) would make no sense.11. Translate lines 13-14 (from sed to consensus). Include a translation of ipsis (line 13), which emphasises they.(Tacitus is using ipsis to emphasise the people trying to capsize the ship, as he is about to contrast them withanother group.)12. Put yourself in the place of one of the oarsmen ignari of the plot. In the general chaos (turbatis omnibus)you have very little idea of what is going on, except that the ship is keeling over to one side and in danger ofcapsizing. What obvious counter-measure should you and the nearest oarsmen try to carry out?WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina 49

13. alii contra nitentes (line 14) tells you whether you got the previous question right. Translate it literally, using anEnglish participle to translate the Latin participle. It is better not to translate alii as the others, which would beceteri in Latin and would imply that everyone (except the guilty conscii) joined in the attempt to stabilise theship. Some may just have panicked or dithered.14. Translate the words dedere facultatem (line 15), which tells what alii contra nitentes achieved. (Do not worrythat the sense of the sentence is incomplete.) dedere is an alternative form for dederunt; see Section IIIaquestion 4 if you are unsure about this.15. Study the phrase lenioris in mare iactus, and say in your own words what someone had an opportunity ofdoing when the ship became more stable.16. Tacitus doesn’t say who had an opportunity of lenioris in mare iactus, but it is obvious who was in need ofescape. Who?17. Her departure from the ship (iactus) is described as lenior (more gentle).More gentle than what? (Hint: whatkind of departure overboard were the conscii trying to arrange for her?)18. iactus is quite a violent word; it can be used to refer to throwing a ship’s cargo overboard to lighten the load.But lenioris suggests that Agrippina left the ship in a reasonably controlled way. Consider how she might havemanaged to slip unobtrusively overboard to escape her killers. Would you expect her to rule out diving? Orjumping? How do people lowering themselves from a height (e.g. out of a first-floor window) minimise the drop?19. Translate this sub-section.Answers4. Nero constituit matrem interficere. Nero decided to kill his mother.visum est captivis e carcere effugere. (literally) It seemed good to the prisoners to escape from prison.(natural English) The prisoners decided to escape from prison.deinde visum remigibus unum inlatus inclinare.(literally) It then seemed good to the oarsmen to lean toone side.(natural English) The oarsmen then decided to lean to one side.8. non erat mercatori multa pecunia. (literal) There was not to the merchant much money.(natural) The merchant did not have much money.neque erat eis promptus …consensus …(literal) There was not to them a quick agreement.(natural) They did not have a quick agreement.(or) They did not achieve a quick agreement.(or) They lacked a quick agreement.50 WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina

NotesWJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina 51

Section IIIeLines 15-18 (verum ... conficitur)The wrong victim is killedverum Acerronia,dum se Agrippinam esse imprudenter clamitat utquesubveniretur matri principis, contis et remis et, quae forsobtulerat, navalibus telis conficitur.1515 verum - butAcerronia, Acerroniae, f. - Acerronia, servantof Agrippina16 dum - whilese - himself, herself, itselfAgrippina, Agrippinae, f. - Agrippina, motherof Nerosum, esse, fui - beimprudenter - foolishlyclamito, clamitare, clamitavi - keep shoutingut - that-que - and17 subvenio, subvenire, subveni - helpmater, matris, f. - motherprinceps, principis, m. - Emperorcontus, conti, m. - poleet - andremus, remi, m. - oaret - andqui, quae, quod - who, whichfors, fortis, f. - chance, luck18 offero, offerre, obtuli, oblatus - put at hand,offernavalis, navale - navaltelum, teli, n. - weapon, spearconficio, conficere, confeci, confectus -murder52 WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina

1. Read lines 15-18 (verum ... conficitur) (aloud if possible) or listen to the audio on the CSCP website.2. Study the vocabulary for these lines.3. Read this sub-section (or listen to the audio) again.4. What does Acerronia keep doing (line 16)?5. What does she say (or shout) about her identity?6. What does she say should be done (line 17)? For whom? The answer to the second question is found in twoLatin words.7. What case is matri? Why? (Hint: subveniretur is an example of an “impersonal passive”, in which the passiveis used to indicate that something is or should be done, but does not indicate who does it. It could be translatedas help should be brought. For further examples of impersonal passives, see the Cambridge Latin Grammarpage 61, paragraph 19.2.)8. What opinion does Tacitus express about Acerronia’s behaviour (line 16)?9. (This question is more suitable for discussion than for individual study.) Why does Acerronia behave in thisway? Are there in fact two possible reasons, one selfish and one heroic? Does Tacitus’ comment (see previousquestion) rule out one of these possibilities, or could his comment apply equally well to both?10. Find and translate the verb (line 18) which tells you what happens to Acerronia.11. What three groups of objects are used (lines 17-18)?12. Find the relative clause in lines 17-18 which describes the navalia tela. Does it suggest that Acerronia’sattackers make a systematic search for weapons or that they use whatever they can lay their hands on? What isthe literal translation of quae fors obtulerat?13. Of the five verbs in this section, two are in the present tense although they refer to the past. Find them. Theyare examples of the “historic present”, described more fully in Section Id question 11, and can be translated byeither a present or a past tense. The pluperfect tense obtulerat (line 18) is something altogether different. Itturns the relative clause into what is called an “indefinite clause”, best dealt with by translating obtulerat as anordinary past tense and translating quae as whatever. This means translating the words in the order quae thennavalibus telis then fors obtulerat.14. Does Tacitus’ account suggest that the killers could see where Acerronia was, but not who she was? Or couldthey hear her but not see her (amid the debris caused by the collapsed tectum?), so that they used the contiand remi to stab blindly into the darkness at an unseen target? There are no certain answers to these questions,but thinking about the different possibilities may help you to picture the scene. When you visualise these events,remember that they happened in the middle of the night. What did Tacitus say about the night at the start ofSection III? (Clear or misty? Starlit or moonlit?)15. Look back over lines 10-18. Why, according to Tacitus, was there so much chaos, confusion and hastyimprovisation? Pick out some of the key words and phrases which contribute to the general impression ofmuddle and disorder.16. Translate this sub-section.WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina 53

Section IIIfLines 18-21 (Agrippina ... ducitur)The “right” victim escapes, for the momentAgrippina silens eoqueminus agnita (unum tamen vulnus umero excepit) nando,deinde occursu lenunculorum in Lucrinum lacum vecta, advillam suam ducitur.2018 Agrippina, Agrippinae, f. - Agrippina, motherof Nerosileo, silere, silui - be silenteo - therefore-que - and19 minus - lessagnosco, agnoscere, agnovi, agnitus -recognise, identifyunus, una, unum - one, a singletamen - although, howevervulnus, vulneris, n. - woundumerus, umeri, m. - shoulderexcipio, excipere, excepi, exceptus - receiveno, nare, navi - swim20 deinde - thenoccursus, occursus, m. - meetinglenunculus, lenunculi, m. - little boatin - intoLucrinus, Lucrina, Lucrinum, m. - Lucrine, ofthe lagoon near Baiaelacus, lacus, m. - lakevehor, vehi, vectus sum - be carriedad - to21 villa, villae, f. - villa, housesuus, sua, suum - his, her, its ownduco, ducere, duxi, ductus - lead, take54 WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina

1. Read lines 18-21 (Agrippina to the end) (aloud if possible) or listen to the audio on the CSCP website.2. Study the vocabulary for these lines.3. Read this sub-section (or listen to the audio) again.4. How much noise does Agrippina make (line 18)? What is the result of this (lines 18-19)?5. Does Tacitus say that she was totally unrecognised? What was the extent of her injuries (line 19)? Might thissuggest that any people who recognised her were too few, or too far away, to make a successful attack on her?6. How does her behaviour show that she strongly suspected (or indeed was quite certain) that the “accident” wasnot an accident?7. If you feel confident about handling gerunds, proceed to question 8. Otherwise, study the following examples:• ars scribendi the art of writingscribendi is the genitive of the gerund of scribere.• occasio effugiendi an opportunity of escapingeffugiendi is the genitive of the gerund of effugere.• celeriter currendo, mox domum revenit. By running fast, he soon returned home.currendo is the ablative of the gerund of currere.A gerund is a part of the verb which has cases, as a noun does. It has no nominative and no plural, but itsaccusative ends in -um (e.g. portandum), its genitive ends in -i (e.g. portandi) and its dative and ablative in-o (e.g. portando), like 2nd declension neuter nouns such as templum. It is often translated by a word endingin -ing, which makes it sound as if it were a present participle, but unlike a present participle it is not used todescribe a noun. The forms of the gerunds of all four conjugations are set out in full in the Cambridge LatinGrammar page 35, paragraph 12.Translate these phrases and sentences, which contain gerunds:(i) ars recitandi(ii) diligenter laborando, multam pecuniam adeptus est. (adeptus est = he obtained)(iii) suaviter cantando, actor spectatores delectavit.CheckFurther examples of sentences with gerunds can be found in the Cambridge Latin Grammar page 82, paragraph 1.Line 19 contains the gerund of one of the shortest verbs in Latin.8. How does Agrippina get away from the ship (line 19)?9. What does she meet (line 20)?10. Where is she carried in the lenunculi?11. Where is she finally taken (lines 19-20)?12. It is uncertain which of Agrippina’s villas Tacitus is referring to. She may have owned a villa in the neighbourhoodof the Lucrine lake, but no writer mentions it. It is perhaps more likely that she was taken back by road to thevilla at Bauli. This may seem a very roundabout route (see the map in Section IIb), but she may have had nochoice but to go where the men in the lenunculi were sailing. (The Lucrine lake was famous for its oysters, andthe sailors may have been going there to fish.) She would also be anxious to avoid the waters near Baiae whereher enemies had just tried to kill her and might still be lurking.13. Find a word describing Agrippina in lines 18-19, which is in sharp contrast to a word in lines 15-18 narrating thebehaviour of Acerronia. Does this suggest anything about the different personalities of the two women, when facedwith a crisis? (Your answer will partly depend on what you think Acerronia’s reasons were for behaving as she did.)What other impressions of Agrippina’s intelligence or strength of character have you gained from Section III?14. Translate this sub-section. It is easier to understand the second part of the sentence than to organise the translation.One way is to translate the gerund in line 19 literally (by -ing), followed by the perfect participle (then being -ed to the…), and translating the ablative occursu as through meeting with … or as a result of meeting with ….15. (This question is more suitable for discussion than for individual study.) Section III is sometimes described as adrama. But what sort of drama is it? Slapstick farce? Tragedy? Black comedy?Answers7. (i) The art of reciting.(ii) By working hard, he obtained much money.(iii) By singing sweetly, the actor pleased the spectators.WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina 55

Section IV - Agrippina’s responseSection IVaLines 1-4 (... concidisse)Agrippina’s responseillic reputabat ideo se fallacibus litteris invitatam et honorepraecipuo habitam; navem prope litus non ventis actam, nonsaxis impulsam, summa sui parte velut terrestremachinamentum concidisse.1 illic - therereputo, reputare, reputavi - reflect, considerideo - for that reasonse - himself, herself, itselffallax, gen. fallacis - treacherouslitterae, litterarum, f. - letterinvito, invitare, invitavi, invitatus - invite(supply ‘esse’)et - andhonor, honoris, m. - honour2 praecipuus, praecipua, praecipuum - special,outstanding, unusualhabeo, habere, habui, habitus - treat (supply‘esse’)navis, navis, f. - shipprope - nearlitus, litoris, n. - shorenon ... non - neither ... norventus, venti, m. - windago, agere, egi, actus - drivenon ... non - neither ... nor3 saxum, saxi, n. - rockimpello, impellere, impuli, impulsus - thrustagainst, carry, forcesummus, summa, summum - highestse - himself, herself, itselfpars, partis, f. - partvelut - just liketerrestris, terrestre - on land4 machinamentum, machinamenti, n. -machine, contraption, siege-engineconcido, concidere, concidi - collapse56 WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina

1. Read lines 1-4 (... concidisse) (aloud if possible) or listen to the audio on the CSCP website.2. Study the vocabulary for these lines.3. Read this sub-section (or listen to the audio) again.4. What place is referred to by illic (line 1)? If you have forgotten where Agrippina was, refresh your memory bylooking back at the end of Section III.5. If you feel you need some practice in indirect statements involving perfect infinitives, study the followingexamples. Otherwise, proceed to question 6.(i)puer sciebat fenestram a servo fractam (esse optional).The boy knew that the window had been broken by a slave. (perfect passive infinitive)(ii) puer sciebat servum fenestram fregisse.The boy knew that a slave had broken the window. (perfect active infinitive)(iii) Agrippina sciebat se deceptam (esse optional).(iv) Agrippina sciebat nautas Acerroniam necavisse.Check6. Agrippina reflected on two things that had happened to her (se fallacibus … habitam, lines 1-2). What werethey? (Hint: What is the case of fallacibus litteris and praecipuo honore? Note also that habeo has a specialmeaning here: treat.)7. Who had sent her the fallaces litterae? Give two examples of the praecipuus honor with which she had beentreated in Section II. (Notice that littera in the singular means letter of the alphabet; litterae in the plural istherefore more than one letter of the alphabet and so can mean letter in the sense of “message”.)8. Agrippina reflected that she had been treated in this pleasant way ideo, for that reason. What was the reason?Tacitus does not state it, but if you imagine Agrippina saying to herself: “So that’s the reason I was treated …”etc., what would she mean by “that”?9. In lines 2-4 Agrippina continues to think things over. Tacitus does not need to repeat Agrippina reputabatbecause the accusative and infinitives (navem … actam [esse] … impulsam [esse] … concidisse) make itclear that this is an indirect statement; Tacitus is continuing to report Agrippina’s words and thoughts.10. Agrippina reflected on the location of the “accident”. Where was it (line 2)?11. What two things, often the cause of shipwrecks, had not happened to this particular ship (lines 2-3)?12. Where did the collapse of the ship’s structure start, in Agrippina’s view? Which Latin words tell you this? If youthink back or look back to exactly what happened at the moment when the murder attempt started, you will seewhy Agrippina thought this.13. Where would a ship more usually suffer damage from the sea? Top or bottom?14. What did the ship resemble, in the way it collapsed (lines 3-4)?15. It is not clear what Tacitus means by a terrestre machinamentum. It could be any construction on land in whichsomething giving way near the top could trigger the collapse of the whole structure. (Think how completely theTwin Towers of the World Trade Center were affected on 9/11 by the catastrophic damage to their upper floors.)On the other hand, Tacitus could have in mind deliberate contraptions, such as could be found in theatres whereitems of scenery might be lowered or dropped from or through a ceiling onto the stage for dramatic effect; orhe could be thinking of grandiose dining-rooms where an artificial ceiling might open up and shower the dinnerguestswith gifts. What all these terrestria machinamenta have in common is the idea that something at thetop gives way, and whether you translate summa sui parte as from its top downwards or at its highest point,the phrase describes exactly what happened when the tectum on the boat gave way, in a manner which (asAgrippina realised) was not typical of an accident at sea.16. Translate this sub-section.Answers5. (iii) Agrippina knew that she (i.e. Agrippina) had been deceived.(iv)Agrippina knew that the sailors had killed Acerronia.WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina 57

Section IVbLines 4-6 (observans ... videretur)Agrippina’s responseobservans etiam Acerroniaenecem, simul suum vulnus adspiciens, solum insidiarumremedium esse putavit, si non intellegere videretur.54 observo, observare, observavi, observatus -consider, noticeetiam - alsoAcerronia, Acerroniae, f. - Acerronia, servantof Agrippina5 nex, necis, f. - murder, deathsimul - at the same timesuus, sua, suum - his, her, its ownvulnus, vulneris, n. - woundadspicio, adspicere, adspexi, adspectus -look atsolus, sola, solum - onlyinsidiae, insidiarum, f. - plot, intrigue6 remedium, remedii, n. - safeguard, remedysum, esse, fui - beputo, putare, putavi - think, suppose,considersi - ifnon - notintellego, intellegere, intellexi, intellectus - beaware, recognise, understandvideor, videri, visus sum - seem58 WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina

1. Read lines 4-6 (observans ... videretur) (aloud if possible) or listen to the audio on the CSCP website.2. Study the vocabulary for these lines.3. Read this sub-section (or listen to the audio) again.4. What did Agrippina also bear in mind (lines 4-5), that gave further evidence of foul play?5. What did she consider at the same time (line 5)?6. Agrippina was very suspicious about the “accident” from the moment it occurred, as is shown by her decision toget away from the ship as speedily and silently as possible (Section III, lines 18-19). Now that she was safe atBauli, at any rate for the moment, Tacitus has pictured her (in lines 2-5) reviewing five reasons for suspecting aplot; can you pick out all five?7. Perhaps surprisingly, Agrippina says nothing about a further reason for suspicion, which was mentioned at thevery start of Section III. What was it?8. What conclusion did Agrippina come to? Tacitus does not state it, but what was it? Her thoughts passimmediately to a search for an insidiarum remedium (lines 5-6). Translate the phrase.9. How many remedia against the plot did she think there were (lines 5-6)?10. Not only did Agrippina realise there was a plot against her life; it is clear from her references in lines 1-2 toNero’s behaviour that she immediately knew her own son was responsible. One might expect a mother to bereluctant to reach such a shocking conclusion; why did Agrippina have no difficulty in believing Nero’s guilt? Youmay find it helpful to refer back to the Introduction to Section I, and there is a further clue in Section II.11. (This question is more suitable for discussion than for individual study.) Agrippina was now faced with a choicebetween two courses of action, both of them risky:(a) Make it clear to Nero that she knows what he’s up to(b) Pretend not to understand what’s going onWhich of these two courses seems to you the more dangerous? You may find it helpful to consider how Nerowould be likely to react to each of (i) and (ii).12. What did she decide was her one hope of safety (line 6)? (Hint: her means of protection is introduced by si:Tacitus is saying Agrippina thought she would only be safe if ….)13. Translate this sub-section.14. (Optional activity for those who are good at reading aloud.) Lines 2-6 contain two pairs of phrases with similargrammar, positioned in such a way that they seem to balance each other:(i) (a) non ventis actam (line 2)(b) non saxis impulsam (lines 2-3)negative noun passive participlenon ventis actamnon saxis impulsam(ii) (In this pair there is a slight variation)(a) observans Acerroniae necem (lines 4-5)(b) suum vulnus adspiciens (line 5)present participle genitive (“of”) accusativeobservans Acerroniae necempossessive adjective (“of”) accusative present participlesuum vulnus adspiciensLines 2-6 are a good test of a reader’s ability to group words together. The aim is to read the passage in away that makes sense, and to pause in the right places, in particular bringing out the way non ventis actambalances non saxis impulsam, and observans etiam Acerroniae necem balances simul suum vulnusadspiciens. If you try this for yourself, you may prefer to try it in private.Tacitus tends to vary his phrases rather than balancing them in this way. Perhaps the examples in these linesare phrased to suggest they are items in a list, as if Agrippina is mentally ticking off each cause of suspicion.WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina 59

Section IVcLines 6-10 (igitur ... opus esse)Agrippina’s responseigiturmisit libertum Agerinum qui nuntiaret filio se benignitatedeum et fortuna eius evasisse gravem casum; orare utquamvis periculo matris exterritus visendi curam differret; sibiad praesens quiete opus esse. 106 igitur - therefore, and so7 mitto, mittere, misi, missus - sendlibertus, liberti, m. - freedmanAgerinus, Agerini, m. - Agerinus, a freedmanof Agrippinaqui, quae, quod - to; who, whichnuntio, nuntiare, nuntiavi, nuntiatus -announcefilius, filii, m. - sonse - himself, herself, itselfbenignitas, benignitatis, f. - kindness, goodheartedness8 deus, dei, m. - godet - andfortuna, fortunae, f. - good fortune, good luckis, ea, id - he, she, itevado, evadere, evasi - avoid, escape fromgravis, grave - serious, severecasus, casus, m. - accident, misfortune,chanceoro, orare, oravi - ask, begut - that, to9 quamvis - althoughpericulum, periculi, n. - dangermater, matris, f. - motherexterritus, exterrita, exterritum - terrifiedviso, visere, visi, visus - visit, call oncura, curae, f. - troublediffero, differre, distuli, dilatus - delay,postponese - himself, herself, itself10 ad - atpraesens, gen. praesentis - presentquies, quietis, f. - restopus, operis, n. - needsum, esse, fui - be60 WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina

1. Read lines 6-10 (igitur ... esse) (aloud if possible) or listen to the audio on the CSCP website.2. Study the vocabulary for these lines.3. Read this sub-section (or listen to the audio) again.4. Whom did Agrippina send (line 7)?5. What is the correct translation of qui nuntiaret?(a) who reported(b) who was to report(Hint: the verb is nuntiaret (subjunctive), not nuntiavit. If you are puzzled, see the Cambridge Latin Grammarpage 68, paragraph 2.)6. Who was Agrippina’s message to?7. Who is Agrippina referring to by se (line 7)?8. What did she say she had done (line 8)?9. What does she mention first as a cause of her escape (lines 7-8)? (deum is an alternative form of deorum.)10. Whose good fortune (again according to Agrippina) was the second cause of her escape (line 8)? (Hint: if it hadbeen her own good fortune, Tacitus would have written fortuna sua; instead he wrote fortuna eius.)11. Would Nero really regard his mother’s escape as an example of his own good luck? How would he be morelikely to regard it? Was Agrippina aware of this? She is pretending to Nero that she doesn’t know the truth, andso she pretends to take it for granted that he’ll be glad she escaped, but in reality she is speaking ironically,knowing that her words do not fit the facts at all.12. Indirect statement, shown by infinitives such as orare instead of indicative verbs such as orat, continues fromlines 8 to 10, because Tacitus is reporting the message which Agerinus is to take to Nero. orare, according tothe message carried by Agerinus, is what Agrippina is doing to Nero. What is she doing?13. orare leads on to ut and a subjunctive verb, telling you what Agrippina is begging Nero to do. Study visendicuram differret; work out whether she is begging him to visit her, or not to visit her, then say more preciselywhat it is that she begs him to do. visendi is a gerund; for more examples of gerunds, which will show you whatcase visendi is, see Section IIIf question 7.14. According to the message carried by Agerinus, Nero is to behave in this way about visiting Agrippina, quamvispericulo matris exterritus (line 9). What does she expect him to be feeling, according to the message, and forwhat reason? Is it likely that he will be in this state, or are her words ironical, like fortuna eius in line 8? (Mightshe in fact expect him to be exterritus, but not for the reason given in the message?)15. The last words of the message contain a special use of the word opus:(i)mihi equo opus est.I need a horse.Literally, there is work for me (needing to be done) with a horse.(ii) nobis nave celeri opus erat.We needed a fast ship.Literally, there was work for us needing to be done with a fast ship.(iii) miles dixit sibi ad praesens gladio opus esse.The soldier said that at present he needed a sword.Try these examples:(iv) servus “mihi pecuniā opus est” inquit.(v) servus dixit sibi pecuniā opus esse.Finally, an expanded version of lines 9-10 of Section IV:(vi) Agrippina dixit sibi ad praesens quiete opus esse.Check16. What was (or were) Agrippina’s motive(s) in sending this letter?(a) To tell Nero she was still alive(b) To convince him that she didn’t suspect him(c) To discourage him from coming to see her(d) To make him squirm at some of her ironical remarksChoose as many of the alternatives as you think are true.WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina 61

17. (This question is more suitable for discussion than for individual study.) “The mother is as good at shammingas the son.” On the evidence of Sections II and IV, do you agree with this statement? (There is no official “rightanswer” to this.)18. Translate this sub-section.Answers15. (iv) The slave said “I need money”.(v) The slave said that he needed money.62 WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina

NotesWJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina 63

Section IVdLines 10-13 (atque ... simulationem)Practical mattersatque interim securitate simulatamedicamina vulneri et fomenta corpori adhibet; iubettestamentum Acerroniae requiri bonaque obsignari – idtantum non per simulationem.1010 atque - andinterim - meanwhilesecuritas, securitatis, f. - carefree attitude,safetysimulo, simulare, simulavi, simulatus -simulate, pretend11 medicamen, medicaminis, n. - medication,remedyvulnus, vulneris, n. - woundet - andfomentum, fomenti, n. - dressingcorpus, corporis, n. - bodyadhibeo, adhibere, adhibui, adhibitus - apply,useiubeo, iubere, iussi, iussus - order12 testamentum, testamenti, n. - willAcerronia, Acerroniae, f. - Acerronia, servantof Agrippinarequiro, requirere, requisivi, requisitus -search for, look forbona, bonorum, n. - goods, possessions,property-que - andobsigno, obsignare, obsignavi, obsignatus -seal upis, ea, id - that; he, she, it13 tantum - alone, only, so muchnon - notper - in; throughsimulatio, simulationis, f. - pretence,simulation64 WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina

1. Read lines 10-13 (atque to the end) (aloud if possible) or listen to the audio on the CSCP website.2. Study the vocabulary for these lines.3. Does Agrippina continue to pretend to be calm and laid-back, even among her own household back at Bauli?Which words tell you this?4. A little revision of basic grammar:What case are medicamina and fomenta (line 11)? (medicamen and fomentum are both neuter words likenomen and templum; therefore medicamina and fomenta on their own could be either nominative plural oraccusative plural. But in line 11, there is only one case they can be, because the verb at the end is adhibet, notadhibent.) What case are vulneri and corpori?5. What medical treatment does Agrippina give herself - presumably with someone’s assistance? (Where was thewound?)6. Notice again the different endings of present active and present passive infinitives:present active infinitivepresent passive infinitiveportare to carry portari to be carrieddocere to teach doceri to be taughtaudire to hear audiri to be heardand a pair with a slightly different way of forming the passive:trahere to drag trahi to be draggedAre requiri and obsignari (line 12) present active or present passive infinitives?7. What is the first order Agrippina gives in lines 11-12?8. Why do you think she was eager to see it? (Hint: in other parts of his history, Tacitus refers to Agrippina’simmensa cupido (love) auri.)9. What was her second order (line 12)? What was the purpose of this? (Hint: what was this order designed toprevent?)10. In what way, according to Tacitus (lines 12-13), did Agrippina’s instructions about Acerronia differ from all herother words and actions?11. What is the literal translation of id tantum non per simulationem? Treat the sentence as if it contained erat.12. Like other writers of his time, Tacitus had a fondness for sharp pointed epigrams like id tantum non persimulationem, often dry and cynical like this one and often used as here to finish off a chapter. The Romanscalled them sententiae; modern politicians call them sound-bites. See if you can translate id tantum non persimulationem in a non-literal version that reproduces the shortness and sharpness of Tacitus’ sentence.13. Is Tacitus right to say that all Agrippina’s other words and actions mentioned in this chapter (medical treatmentexcepted) were a sham?14. (This question and the next are more suitable for discussion than for individual study.) At this point, Agrippinahas just avoided death by a hair’s breath; she has been wounded; she has had to swim for her life; she knowsthat her own son has tried to kill her and suspects that he may well try again; but she now takes steps to find outwhether her murdered friend has left her a legacy (her one sincere action). Do you feel admiration or disgust atthis behaviour?15. Has Agrippina shown any signs of grief over the deaths of Crepereius and Acerronia (assuming that Tacitus hasnot left some signs of grief unmentioned)? How (in)excusable do you find this in the circumstances?16. Translate this sub-section.17. Read this sub-section aloud (or listen to the audio) again.WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina 65

Section V - Nero in crisisSection VaLines 1-6 (... obiciens)Nero panics at the newsat Neroni nuntios patrati facinoris opperienti adferturAgrippinam evasisse ictu levi sauciam. tum ille pavoreexanimis et adfirmans iam iamque adfore matrem ultionisproperam, sive servos armaret vel militem accenderet, sive adsenatum et populum pervaderet, naufragium et vulnus etinterfectos amicos obiciens.51 at - but, yetNero, Neronis, m. - the Emperor Neronuntius, nuntii, m. - messengerpatro, patrare, patravi, patratus - accomplish,perpetrate, commitfacinus, facinoris, n. - crimeopperior, opperiri, oppertus sum - wait foradfero, adferre, attuli, adlatus - bring news,report2 Agrippina, Agrippinae, f. - Agrippina, motherof Neroevado, evadere, evasi - escape, surviveictus, ictus, m. - blow, woundlevis, leve - light, slight, trivialsaucius, saucia, saucium, f. - injured,woundedtum - thenille, illa, illud - he, she, itpavor, pavoris, m. - fear, panic3 exanimis, exanime - out of one’s mind, paralysedet - andadfirmo, adfirmare, adfirmavi - assert, declareiam iamque - at any momentadsum, adesse, adfui - arrivemater, matris, f. - motherultio, ultionis, f. - revenge4 properus, propera, properum - eager for,ready, quicksive ... sive - whether ... orservus, servi, m. - slavearmo, armare, armavi, armatus - armvel - ormiles, militis, m. - soldieryaccendo, accendere, accendi, accensus -summon, stir upsive ... sive - whether ... orad - to5 senatus, senatus, m. - senateet - andpopulus, populi, m. - peoplepervado, pervadere, pervasi, pervasus - go;spread among, penetratenaufragium, naufragii, n. - shipwrecket - andvulnus, vulneris, n. - woundet - and6 interficio, interficere, interfeci, interfectus -murderamicus, amici, m. - friendobicio, obicere, obieci, obiectus - accuse66 WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina

1. Read lines 1-6 (... obiciens) (aloud if possible) or listen to the audio on the CSCP website.2. Study the vocabulary for these lines.3. Read this sub-section (or listen to the recording) again.4. Find a verb with a passive ending in line 1. It is an example of an “impersonal passive”, indicating that somethingis (or should be) done, but not indicating who does or should do it. Another example is subveniretur (helpshould be brought) which you met in Section III. Use the translation of subveniretur as a guide, and translatethe impersonal passive in line 1. It is in the “historic present” tense (described in Id.11), and so can be translatedby either a present or a past tense.5. Find a noun in the dative case in line 1 indicating the person to whom news is brought. Find a present participle,also in the dative case in line 1, which tells you what that person is doing.6. Find an accusative noun in line 1 which tells you what Nero is waiting for.7. Find the genitive noun and perfect participle in line 1 which tell you what he is expecting news of. Usingexamples (i) and (ii) as a guide, translate (iii) literally, then into more natural English:(i) Latin nuntios deletae urbisliteral translationnatural translationor(ii) Latinliteral translationnatural translationor(iii) the phrase in line 1literal translation ?natural translation ?? or ??news of the city having been destroyednews that the city has been destroyednews of the destruction of the citynuntios inventae pecuniaenews of money having been discoverednews that money has been discoverednews of the discovery of moneynuntios patrati facinoris(nuntius can mean both messenger and news; you could use both words here by translating nuntios asmessengers with news.)8. Study this example, which contains a noun and present participle in the dative case like line 1 of Section V:amico ex Italia discedenti pecuniam dedi.To my friend departing from Italy I gave money.Or, more naturally:When my friend was departing from Italy I gave him money.Using the example above as a guide, translate the following sentence literally and then naturally:domino de vino roganti nemo respondit.Check9. Translate line 1 (Neroni … adfertur) into natural English. You may find it helpful to make a literal translation first,as in the examples above. If you need another word for “news”, you could use “report” or “message”.10. What news is brought to Nero (Agrippinam evasisse, line 2) and what further detail does the report add?(Whom does sauciam describe, and what case is ictu levi?)11. Does the news come as a shock to Nero? (Hint: the first half of the sentence tells you what news he isexpecting; the second half tells you what he gets.)12. The message to Nero continues with a very complicated sentence, omitted from your text, saying that when theaccident happened, everybody guessed that Nero was responsible. The following lines describe how he reactedto this.13. Who is ille (line 2)?14. Find and translate the phrase used by Tacitus (lines 2-3) to describe Nero’s state on learning that (a) Agrippinais alive, and (b) everyone, including Agrippina, knows who the guilty person is.15. What is Nero declaring in line 3? (adfore is future infinitive of adsum)16. What state does he say Agrippina will be in (lines 3-4)?17. In line 4, Nero imagines two ways in which Agrippina might gather a fighting force around her, introduced bysive (whether …) and vel (or …). What are the two ways, and which one strikes you as the more realistic?WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina 67

18. In lines 4-6, he thinks of a further way, introduced by sive (or …), in which she might defend herself and attackhim: to whom might she appeal, and what three accusations does he picture her making against him? Who arethe amicos referred to in line 6?19. interfectos amicos can be translated literally, as a noun described by a passive participle. Or you could handlethe phrase in the same way as patrati facinoris in line 1 (the … of …).20. Of the four ways in which Nero imagines Agrippina might defend herself against him, which one seems to youthe most fantastic?21. Is it clear whether Nero sees Agrippina as a threat to his emperorship or to his life? Does Nero himself seem tohave a clear idea?22. In what ways, if any, do Nero’s words in line 3-6, as reported by Tacitus, agree with Tacitus’ description ofNero (lines 2-3) as pavore exanimis? Possible points include the range and nature of Nero’s fears, his use ofrepeated words, and his use of metaphor (what are the different meanings of accenderet, line 4?).23. If Nero’s fears (fantasies?) became reality, which of the four groups indicated by accusatives in lines 4-5would in fact offer Agrippina her best chance of support? (There is a clue in the opening two sentence of theIntroduction to Section I.)24. Compare the ways in which Agrippina (in Section IV) and Nero (in Section Va) respond to a crisis.25. Translate this sub-section.Answers8. To the master asking about wine, nobody replied.More naturally: When (or while) the master was asking about wine, nobody replied.68 WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina

NotesWJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina 69

Section VbLines 6-10 (quod ... esset)An appeal to Burrus and Senecaquod contra subsidium sibi, nisiquid Burrus et Seneca expromerent? quos statim accivit.longum utriusque silentium; timebant ne inriti dissuaderent,an eo descensum esse credebant ut nisi praevenireturAgrippina pereundum Neroni esset. 106 qui, quae, quod - what; who, whichcontra - on the other handsubsidium, subsidii, n. - helpse - himself, herself, itselfnisi - except, unless7 quis, quid - anyone, anythingBurrus, Burri, m. - Sextus Afranius Burrus, prefectof the praetorian guard and advisor to Neroet - andSeneca, Senecae, m. - Lucius Annaeus Seneca,dramatist, philosopher and advisor to Neroexpromo, expromere, exprompsi,expromptus - suggest, devisequi, quae, quod - who, whichstatim - at onceaccio, accire, accivi, accitus - summon, send for8 longus, longa, longum, n. - longuterque, utraque, utrumque - both (of two),each (of two)silentium, silentii, n. - silencetimeo, timere, timui - be afraid, fearne - in case, lestinritus, inrita, inritum - unsuccessful, in vain,uselessdissuadeo, dissuadere, dissuasi - remonstrate9 an - oreo - so far, to such an extentdescendo, descendere, descendi, descensus- deteriorate, fallcredo, credere, credidi - believeut - thatnisi - unlesspraevenio, praevenire, praeveni - anticipate,forestall10 Agrippina, Agrippinae, f. - Agrippina, motherof Neropereo, perire, perii, peritum - die, perishNero, Neronis, m. - the Emperor Nerosum, esse, fui - be70 WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina

1. Read lines 6-10 (quod ... esset) (aloud if possible) or listen to the audio on the CSCP website.2. Study the vocabulary for these lines.3. Read this sub-section (or listen to the recording) again.4. The forms qui, quae and quod (which you have usually met as relative pronouns, who, which, etc.) can also beused as question-words, acting as adjectives and describing a noun. For example:(i) quod templum est illud? What temple is that?(ii) quae puella denarium invenit? Which girl found the coin?Try these further examples:(iii)(iv)(v)Checkqui servus effugit?quae spes est tibi? (more than one possible translation)In line 6, Tacitus is reporting a question asked (possibly in his own mind) by Nero. Nero’s originalthoughts were quod subsidium est mihi? Can you suggest more than one translation?(Optional note for experts: In Nero’s present state of mind, his question isn’t a real question, but is just anotherway of saying nullum subsidium est mihi (There is no help for me or I’ve got no help). This is known as a rhetoricalquestion: for an example you have met previously, see Section I, lines 17-18, and Section Ie question 11.)(vi)When Tacitus reports Nero’s question, he is no longer quoting Nero’s actual words (mihi, me),so he writes sibi (him). He also does not include a word corresponding to est. (For examplesin English, see Section Ie question 7.) Can you suggest more than one translation for quodsubsidium sibi?Check(As Tacitus has been using the “historic present” tense [described in Section Id question 11], the sentence couldalso be translated as What help is there for him?, What help does he have? or What help has he got?)5. Nero uses the word contra (on the other hand, line 6) because he is comparing his situation unfavourably withAgrippina’s. He feels that, unlike him, she has lots of subsidium. If you are not sure why he thought this, lookback at lines 4-5.6. In lines 6-7, however, Nero clutches at a straw. Who does he think might be able to help? Refer back to theIntroduction to Section I if you need to remind yourself who these people were and why they could be useful toNero.7. Nero felt he was helpless unless they could do something. What does he hope they can do? Translate quid as ifit were aliquid (something, anything).8. What did Nero do (line 7)? It is not clear from the manuscript of Tacitus’ history whether or not Tacitus added thatBurrus and Seneca had to be woken up. Do you agree with one scholar, who says that if they did have to bewoken up, this suggests very strongly that they knew nothing about the plot, because “no responsible ministerscould have rested, had they known that Nero was perpetrating such a monkeyish crime”?9. In lines 2-7, how does Tacitus use language to contrast Nero’s lengthy and indecisive fantasies and fears withhis swift decisive action when he sees an escape route? You may find it helpful to look for a keyword in line 7,also to examine the length of Tacitus’ sentences in these lines.10. If you are puzzled by Tacitus’ use of quos instead of eos in line 7, see Section IIb question 5.11. Did either Burrus or Seneca immediately produce a solution? What tells you this (line 8)?12. Tacitus offers two explanations for their silence. The first explanation is given in line 8. First translate the verb inline 8 which tells you what emotion they were feeling.13. dissuadere (remonstrate) is the opposite of persuadere; it is to try to persuade somebody not to do something.What did Burrus and Seneca fear their chances were of persuading Nero not to act? Translate the word in line 8that tells you this.14. What action by Nero did they want to prevent? Tacitus does not state it, but leaves it to the reader or listener todeduce it from Nero’s wild words in lines 2-6, and from the fact that Nero knows that Agrippina is (i) alive and(ii) aware who was behind the murder attempt.15. Suggest a reason why Burrus and Seneca were anxious to prevent Nero from carrying out this action. (Hint:think of some of the possible consequences.)16. There is another possible reason for Burrus and Seneca’s fear. Any attempt to talk Nero out of his intendedaction might not only be futile but have unfavourable consequences for themselves. If Nero were to bear aWJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina 71

grudge against them (“When I saved my life by killing my mother, you tried to stop me”), they could be faced withloss of influence over Nero (and therefore loss of power) and the hostility of an unstable emperor.17. In lines 9-10 Tacitus puts forward another possible reason for the silence of Burrus and Seneca. (If you feelTacitus should be criticised for giving two explanations rather than the explanation, ask yourself how often youcan be sure of the reason why someone you know – even a close friend – has done or not done something.)18. According to Tacitus’ second explanation for their silence, did Burrus and Seneca believe that the situation hadimproved, or got worse (line 9)? In the words of the metaphor used by Tacitus, had things gone “up” or “down”?19. Find and translate the word in line 9 which prepares the way for ut and a result clause.20. What fate did Burrus and Seneca think Nero would be unable to avoid (line 10), unless drastic action weretaken?21. In Tacitus’ words, what would need to be done about Agrippina (lines 9-10)?22. What action on her part had to be prevented? (Your answer to Section Va question 18 should provide a clue.)What was the only certain method of forestalling her?23. Before translating this sub-section, read carefully through the Latin, checking that you have grasped the mainpoints:••••Nero’s state of mindHis appeal for helpThe initial reaction of Burrus and Seneca to Nero’s appealFirst explanation of their silence: what were they afraid of?• Second explanation of their silence: what choice between two evils did they think they were facedwith, as a result of the deteriorating situation? (Hint: did they think it was possible for both Nero andAgrippina to stay alive?)24. Translate this sub-section.Answers4. (iii) Which slave escaped?(iv) What hope is there for you?Or, What hope do you have?Or, What hope have you got?(v) What help is there for me?Or, What help do I have?Or, What help have I got?(vi) What help was there for him?Or, What help did he have?Or, What help had he got?72 WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina

NotesWJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina 73

Section VcLines 10-14 (post ... promissa)Burrus and Seneca have other ideaspost Seneca respexitBurrum ac sciscitatus est num militi caedes imperanda esset.ille respondit praetorianos toti Caesarum domui obstrictosmemoresque Germanici nihil atrox adversus progeniem eiusausuros. perpetraret Anicetus promissa.1010 post - then, afterwardsSeneca, Senecae, m. - Lucius Annaeus Seneca,dramatist, philosopher and advisor to Nerorespicio, respicere, respexi - look round at,look back at11 Burrus, Burri, m. - Sextus Afranius Burrus, prefectof the praetorian guard and advisor to Neroac - andsciscitor, sciscitari, sciscitatus sum - inquire, asknum - whethermiles, militis, m. - soldiercaedes, caedis, f. - murder, killing, executionimpero, imperare, imperavi - order, commandsum, esse, fui - be12 ille, illa, illud - he, she, itrespondeo, respondere, respondi, responsus- respondpraetorianus, praetoriani, m. - praetorian guardtotus, tota, totum - wholeCaesares, Caesarum, m. - the Caesars,family of the first Roman Emperorsdomus, domus, f. - family, household, houseobstringo, obstringere, obstrinxi, obstrictus -bind by oath13 memor, gen. memoris + gen. - mindful,remembering-que - andGermanicus, Germanici, m. - Germanicusnihil, n. - nothingatrox, gen. atrocis - violentadversus - againstprogenies, progeniei, f. - daughter, childis, ea, id - he, she, it14 audeo, audere, ausus sum - dare (supply ‘esse’)perpetro, perpetrare, perpetravi, perpetratus- carry out, fulfilAnicetus, Aniceti, m. - Anicetus, a freedmanof Neropromissum, promissi, n. - promise74 WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina

1. Read lines 10-14 (post ... promissa) (aloud if possible) or listen to the audio on the CSCP website.2. Study the vocabulary for these lines.3. Read this sub-section (or listen to the recording) again.4. What is the first thing Seneca did, after the long silence (lines 10-11)?5. Study the endings of sciscitor shown in the glossary. Is it an ordinary verb, or a deponent verb? Doessciscitatus est (line 11) therefore mean he asked or he was asked? (If you are fazed over deponent verbs, seeSection Ic question 15.)6. Study the following sentences, which lead up to the sentence in line 11:(i) imperatur. An order is given.(ii) imperandum est. An order should be given. (If puzzled by the ending, see Section IIa question 11,and/or the Cambridge Latin Grammar pages 82-3, paragraph 2.)CheckTranslate this simplified version of the question Seneca put to Burrus:militibusne imperandum est?(iii) Translate this version of Seneca’s question, as reported by Tacitus. Translate the singular militi inthe same way that you translated the plural militibus; it is not unusual for Latin writers to use thesingular miles to refer to several milites. (English sometimes does something similar: In “the generalordered his horse to advance”, “horse” can refer to a whole cavalry brigade, not just one animal.)CheckSeneca Burrum sciscitatus est num militi imperandum esset …(iv) By saying caedes imperanda esset instead of imperandum esset, Seneca is asking Burrus whethera particular order should be given to the soldiers. What order? (Seneca does not say whose caedeswould be involved, but it is clear enough to whom he is referring.)(v) Finally translate the whole sentence from post Seneca respexit to imperanda esset (lines 10-11).There are a number of ways of translating the second half (num … esset) into natural English – youmay like to try more than one. It is not possible to translate the sentence literally without producingweird English. If you are stuck, try including the words carry out in your translation.7. What was Burrus’ official position? (See introduction to Section I if necessary.) He was obviously in a goodposition to answer Seneca’s question. And if the previous lines have given you the impression that Seneca didn’twant to get involved, you may feel Seneca was glad to have someone standing next to him to whom he couldpass the buck.)8. Who is ille (line 12)?9. Burrus’ reply, reported by Tacitus, is an indirect statement, in which the people referred to by the accusativenoun praetorianos are described as obstrictos (short for the perfect infinitive obstrictos esse), memores(adjective) and ausuros (short for the future infinitive ausuros esse. In diagram form, the structure of thesentence is:(i) … obstrictos (esse)Burrus respondit praetorianos(ii) … memoresque(iii) … ausuros (esse)10. Which particular soldiers did Burrus refer to in his reply (line 12)? What did he say about them (obstrictos, line12)?11. To whom were they bound by their oath of loyalty? (The answer is a three-word phrase, consisting of anadjective and noun in the dative case, with a genitive plural in the middle.)12. The word toti (line 12) is important; these soldiers swore to be loyal not just to the emperor (of whom theywere the personal bodyguard) but to the whole domus Caesarum to which both Agrippina and Nero belonged,Agrippina by birth and Nero by adoption.13. Whom did Burrus say the praetorian guard remembered, or were mindful of (line 13)?WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina 75

14. At the time of these events, Germanicus, Agrippina’s father, had been dead for nearly forty years, but was stillremembered with great affection, especially among the army. He had campaigned successfully in Germany, waspopular among the troops for his friendly out-going personality, and his death (in suspicious circumstances) ledto widespread and emotional demonstrations of grief (which might perhaps be compared to the public responseto the death of Diana, Princess of Wales). His wife (“Agrippina the Elder”, to distinguish her from “Agrippina theYounger”, Nero’s mother) shared in his popularity. She accompanied him on his campaigns, together with someof their nine children; Agrippina the Younger was born while Germanicus was campaigning in Germany, at aplace later known in her honour as Agrippina Colonia (modern Cologne). For an example of the way in whichGermanicus’ young children were part of the background to the soldiers’ daily life, you could look up “Caligula”on the internet and find out how Agrippina the Younger’s brother Gaius got his nickname. So although thepraetorian guard were unhappy at the rumours of Agrippina’s incest (see Introduction to Section I), they stillloyally thought of her as “Germanicus’ daughter”.15. Study this adapted version of lines 13-14. What did Burrus say the praetorian guards would dare (or not dare) to do?Burrus dixit praetorianos nihil atrox facere ausuros esse.16. Now look at the full version of lines 13-14. Against whom (according to Burrus) would the troops not dare to takeany violent action? Burrus did not include facere in his sentence; the sentence would be clear to his listenerswithout it.17. Who is referred to by eius (line 13)?18. Who did Burrus think should do the killing (line 14)? What precisely did he say this person should do? What washe referring to by mentioning this person’s promissa?19. Burrus’ curt words (perpetraret Anicetus promissa) may indicate an irritated feeling that it was up to Anicetusto sort out the mess. Why should he pick on Anicetus in particular? (If puzzled, see the second half of Section I.)20. (Optional note for experts) If Tacitus is reporting Burrus accurately, Burrus’ original words, with possiblevariations of order, could have been:Anicete! perpetra promissa! (inverted commas, vocative noun, imperative verb)This form of words only makes sense if Anicetus is in the room with Burrus.But Burrus could have said:perpetret Anicetus promissa (inverted commas, nominative noun, subjunctive verb)This form of words could be used whether Anicetus is present or not. It is a way of saying what somebody,referred to in the 3rd person of the verb, has got to do. Other examples:gaudeat populus!huc fur ducatur!Let the people rejoice! or The people are to rejoice!And so, in Burrus’ order, Let Anicetus … or Anicetus is to …Let the thief be brought here! or The thief is to be brought here!or a third possibility which suits this particular example: Anicetus should …This is known as the “jussive” use of the subjunctive (see Cambridge Latin Grammar page 48, paragraph 3).If a jussive subjunctive in the 3rd person is used in a passage of reported speech introduced by a verb in thepresent tense such as dicit (he says) or respondet (he replies), the form of the subjunctive remains unchanged(perpetret, gaudeat, ducatur, etc.) and so does the English translation (Anicetus should …, Let the people …,The thief is to be …, etc.)But if, as in line 14, a jussive subjunctive is used in a passage of reported speech introduced by a verb in a pasttense such as dixit (he said) or respondit (he replied), the tense of the subjunctive changes to an imperfect (sothe sentence above becomes perpetraret Anicetus promissa). A translation using Let … or … should remainsunchanged, but translations using is to ... and are to … (e.g. The people are to rejoice or The thief is to be broughthere) are changed to was to and were to (The people were to rejoice or The thief was to be brought here).21. One scholar has commented: “Burrus does not come out of this well. He lacked the courage to object to themurder but also lacked the courage to follow the emperor’s orders to carry it out.” Is this comment fair or unfair?(You may be able to think of arguments for both points of view.)22. Translate this sub-section.Answers6. (ii) Should an order be given to the soldiers?Or, Should the soldiers be ordered?(iii) Seneca asked Burrus whether the (or an) order should be given to the soldiers …Or, Seneca asked Burrus whether the soldiers should be ordered …76 WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina

NotesWJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina 77

Section VdLines 14-17 (qui ... iussa)Anicetus reappearsqui nihil cunctatusposcit summam sceleris. ad eam vocem Nero profitetur illo diesibi dari imperium auctoremque tanti muneris esse libertum;iret propere duceretque homines promptissimos ad iussa.1514 qui, quae, quod - who, whichnihil - not at allcunctor, cunctari, cunctatus sum - delay, hesitate15 posco, poscere, poposci - demand, ask forsumma, summae, f. - control, wholeexercise, full responsibilityscelus, sceleris, n. - crimead - atis, ea, id - that; he, she, itvox, vocis, f. - word, voiceNero, Neronis, m. - the Emperor Neroprofiteor, profiteri, professus sum - declareille, illa, illud - thatdies, diei, m. - day16 se - himself, herself, itselfdo, dare, dedi, datus - giveimperium, imperii, n. - supreme control,Empire, powerauctor, auctoris, m. - person responsible-que - andtantus, tanta, tantum - so great, such a greatmunus, muneris, n. - giftsum, esse, fui - belibertus, liberti, m. - freedman17 eo, ire, ii - gopropere - quicklyduco, ducere, duxi, ductus - take, lead-que - andhomo, hominis, m. - manpromptus, prompta, promptum - ready, keenad - for; to, atiussum, iussi, n. - order78 WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina

1. Read lines 14-17 (qui ... iussa) (aloud if possible) or listen to the audio on the CSCP website.2. Study the vocabulary for these lines.3. Read this sub-section (or listen to the recording) again.4. Who does qui (line 14) refer to? (For an explanation of the way qui is being used here, see Section IIbquestion 5.5. How long does he hesitate?6. What does he demand (line 15)?7. Do you think that scelus is the word used by Anicetus to describe his proposed action, or does it reflect theopinion of Tacitus?8. How does Anicetus’ attitude (poscit) to taking charge of a murder differ from the behaviour of Burrus andSeneca?9. What has Tacitus said previously that could explain Anicetus’ eagerness to make another attempt to killAgrippina? (If stuck, see Section I, lines 13-14.)10. In line 15, Tacitus uses vox with an unusual meaning. What is the obvious connection with its usual meaning?11. Find and translate the deponent verb which tells you what Nero does in response to Anicetus’ words.12. Nero’s actual words were “hodie mihi imperium datur”. What does he say is being given, and to whom? Inlines 15-16, Tacitus reports these words in an indirect statement. Study the way the words change.(i)What two words replace hodie?(ii) What word replaces mihi?(iii) What passive infinitive replaces datur?Now translate the indirect statement Nero profitetur illo die sibi dari imperium. You may find it helpful to addthe word that immediately after translating profitetur.13. Nero had been emperor for four-and-a-half years. What does he mean by saying that he is becoming emperornow (i.e. on hearing Anicetus’ words)?14. Translate the following sentences, which lead up to the rest of Nero’s sentence in line 16:(i)“auctor est libertus.”(ii) “auctor tanti muneris est libertus.”(iii) Nero profitetur auctorem tanti muneris esse libertum.15. What does Nero’s phrase tantum munus refer to?16. (This question is more suitable for discussion than for individual study.) What seems to you to be the tone ofNero’s comment in line 16, which might be summarised as “It’s thanks to a freedman”? How might he havespoken the words? Bitterly, gratefully, dramatically, with a sense of disgust or wonder or in some other way? Ifyou are feeling adventurous, you could try for yourselves the various ways of speaking Nero’s original words:“hodie mihi imperium datur, auctorque tanti muneris est libertus!”(There is no official “right answer” to this question.)17. What two things does Nero say Anicetus is to do (line 17)? What sort of men is he to take with him? (Translateduceret homines promptissimos ad iussa literally, then into natural English.) Experts who read the optionalnote in Section Vc question 20 might note that iret and duceret are two more examples of reported commands.Strictly speaking, perpetraret was reporting a jussive subjunctive whereas iret and duceret are reportingimperatives (Nero said “i propere! duc…”), but the result is the same: the imperfect subjunctive is used, and aconvenient translation is he should go quickly and take.18. Why was it important to have totally reliable and obedient men (promptissimos ad iussa) to carry out thisparticular mission?19. (This question is suitable for discussion.) Compare Nero’s mood in lines 2-4 with his mood in lines 15-17. Aim tobe as precise and detailed as possible.20. What has triggered Nero’s change of mood?21. In Section I, Nero had considered the idea of killing Agrippina by ferrum et caedes. Why did he reject it at thetime? Why has he apparently changed his mind?22. Translate this sub-section.WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina 79

Section VeLines 17-22 (ipse ... sumpsisse)The framing of an “assassin”ipse,ubi audivit nuntium Agerinum venisse, scaenam criminis ultroparat. gladium, dum Agerinus mandata perfert, abicit interpedes eius; tum quasi deprehensum in vincla inici iubet, utconfingeret matrem exitium principis molitam et pudoredeprehensi sceleris sua sponte mortem sumpsisse.2017 ipse, ipsa, ipsum - himself, herself, itself18 ubi - whenaudio, audire, audivi, auditus - hearnuntius, nuntii, m. - messengerAgerinus, Agerini, m. - Agerinus, a freedmanof Agrippinavenio, venire, veni - comescaena, scaenae, f. - stage, scenecrimen, criminis, n. - accusationultro - unprompted, of one’s own accord19 paro, parare, paravi, paratus - preparegladius, gladii, m. - sworddum - whileAgerinus, Agerini, m. - Agerinus, a freedmanof Agrippinamandatum, mandati, n. - order, instructionperfero, perferre, pertuli, perlatus - carry outabicio, abicere, abieci, abiectus - throwinter - between20 pes, pedis, m. - footis, ea, id - he, she, ittum - thenquasi - as ifdeprehendo, deprehendere, deprehendi,deprehensus - catch in the act, detect, discoverin - intovinclum, vincli, n. - chaininicio, inicere, inieci, iniectus - throwiubeo, iubere, iussi, iussus - orderut - so that21 confingo, confingere, confinxi, confictus -pretend, feignmater, matris, f. - motherexitium, exitii, n. - deathprinceps, principis, m. - Emperormolior, moliri, molitus sum - plot, worktowards (supply ‘esse’)et - andpudor, pudoris, m. - shame22 deprehendo, deprehendere, deprehendi,deprehensus - discoverscelus, sceleris, n. - crimesuus, sua, suum - his, her, its ownsponte, f. - of one’s own accordmors, mortis, f. - deathsumo, sumere, sumpsi, sumptus - choose,resort to, take80 WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina

1. Read lines 17-22 (ipse ... sumpsisse) (aloud if possible) or listen to the audio on the CSCP website.2. Study the vocabulary for these lines.3. Read this sub-section (or listen to the recording) again.4. Who is ipse (line 17)?5. Who did he hear about (indirect statement, therefore accusative) (line 18) and what did he hear that this personhad done (indirect statement, therefore perfect infinitive)?6. Can you recall, without looking back at Section IV, who had sent the freedman Agerinus, what message he wasto give to Nero, and what the message was intended to make Nero think? Why was it now impossible for themessage to have its intended result? (If puzzled by the last question, look back to Section Va question 12.)7. The adverb ultro always carries the idea of “going beyond” what might be expected or usual. Taking theinitiative is a possible translation, as well as those given in the vocabulary. Nero probably expects to be accusedof the attempted murder of Agrippina, and decides to get in first with an accusation against her. The visit ofAgerinus provides him with convenient “evidence” to support such an accusation.8. (This question is suitable for discussion.) Study the following translations of scaenam criminis parat (lines18-19). Which translation is literally correct, and which of the other translations explain Tacitus’ statement mostclearly? (There is more than one possible answer to the second question.)(a) he prepares the scene of the accusation(b) he prepares the scene of the crime(c) he sets the stage for an accusation(d) he sets the scene for a crime(e) he sets the stage for a frame-up9. Find and translate the accusative noun in line 19 which identifies the item that plays the most important part inNero’s staged accusation.10. What is Agerinus doing (line 19) when Nero takes action? What are the mandata that Agrippina has told him tocarry out?11. What does Nero do to the gladius (lines 19-20) while Agerinus is making his report?12. Tacitus does not say whether there were any other people present besides Nero and Agerinus. If there were,they would naturally be under orders to confirm everything Nero said. But it is equally possible that only Neroand Agerinus were present.13. It is clear that as soon as Nero had thrown down the “incriminating” sword, he called for help and “witnesses”,because by the end of line 20 there are people present to whom Nero gives an order. What order does he giveabout Agerinus? (Hint: is inici a present active infinitive (“to …”), or a present passive (“to be -ed”)? If you areunsure, refer back to Section IVd question 6.)14. Nero orders this action to be taken against Agerinus as if (quasi) he had been deprehensus. What doesdeprehensus mean? For what purpose, according to Nero’s frame-up, has Agrippina sent Agerinus to him?15. Which detail do you find most vivid in the long section from gladium to iubet (lines 19-20?16. Visualise the scene. Tacitus has left his readers or listeners free to imagine whether Nero pretended that his“assassin” had arrived with the sword concealed and dropped it accidentally, or that Agerinus had launched hisattack and Nero had disarmed him. In the latter case, are there any ways in which Nero might have made hisstory more convincing (struggling with Agerinus at the moment when witnesses arrived, giving himself a [slight!]cut with the sword, etc.)?17. Translate the two words in lines 20 and 21 which introduce Nero’s purpose in staging the scene with Agerinus.18. Nero’s pretence is put in the form of two indirect statements. (He is going to pretend that two things havehappened.) Find an accusative noun which tells you who his statement is about, then translate molitam (shortfor the infinitive molitam esse) which tells you what Nero will pretend she has done; then translate exitiumprincipis.19. The second thing that Nero will say that Agrippina has done is contained in the words mortem sumpsisse (line22). What action will he say she has taken?20. In line 21, find the noun in the ablative which (according to Nero) will have caused Agrippina to take this action.21. The noun-and-participle phrase deprehensi sceleris (line 22) claims to give the reason why Agrippina feltpudor (shame over … or shame because of). Translate the whole phrase pudor deprehensi sceleris literally,then into more natural English.Look back if necessary to Section Va question 7, which gave examples of similar phrases and a suggestion forWJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina 81

translating nuntios patrati facinoris in line 1.22. What is the scelus whose detection and prevention (according to Nero) caused Agrippina to take the drasticaction referred to in line 22? (Hint: look back at exitium principis in line 21 – and think back to the reason fordropping a sword at Agerinus’ feet.)23. Nero’s behaviour has been so devious and cunning that you may feel the need to check your grasp of the twofalse announcements Nero intends to make:(i) What will he say Agerinus has tried to do, on whose instructions?(ii) What will he say Agrippina has done on hearing of Agerinus’ failure, and what emotion (according toNero) has led her to take this step?Announcement (i) could be made immediately – perhaps first silencing Agerinus permanently, to make himunavailable for questioning.Could announcement (ii) also be made immediately, or do you think Nero would wait until he had received a“mission accomplished” message from Anicetus?24. (This question is suitable for discussion.) One of the most striking words in this sub-section is pudore (line 21).A Roman would normally be expected to feel pudor over a failure to behave acceptably, e.g. through cowardiceor disloyalty. In extreme cases, pudor could indeed, as Nero pretends in the case of Agrippina, drive a manto suicide. (For instance, the officer in charge of a legion at Gloucester killed himself through pudor afterdisobeying orders to come to the help of the Roman governor against Boudica.) But does Nero say Agrippinais ashamed of planning her son’s murder, or ashamed of being caught? Of course this is only what Nero saysabout her, but he would be unlikely to convince people unless they already thought of Agrippina as exactly thesort of person who would feel less pudor over committing a crime than over being found out. (She is, of course,not the only person of this sort to be involved in these events …)25. Translate this sub-section.82 WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina

NotesWJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina 83

Section VI - The second attemptSection VIaLines 1-5A crowded beach sceneinterim vulgato Agrippinae periculo, omnes, ut quisqueacceperat, decurrere ad litus. hi moles, hi proximas scaphasscandere; alii quantum corpus sinebat vadere in mare; aliimanus protendere; questibus, votis, clamore hominum diversarogitantium aut incerta respondentium omnis ora compleri; 51 interim - meanwhilevulgo, vulgare, vulgavi, vulgatus - makeknown, make publicAgrippina, Agrippinae, f. - Agrippina, motherof Neropericulum, periculi, n. - dangeromnis, omne - every, allut - as soon as, whenquisque, quaeque, quodque - each one,every one2 accipio, accipere, accepi, acceptus - hear;receivedecurro, decurrere, decurri - run down, makestraight forad - tolitus, litoris, n. - shorehi ... hi - some ... othersmoles, molis, f. - embankment, sea-wallhi ... hi - some ... othersproximus, proxima, proximum - nearestscapha, scaphae, f. - boat3 scando, scandere, scandi - climb ontoalii ... alii - some ... othersquantum - as far as, as much ascorpus, corporis, n. - height; bodysino, sinere, sivi, situs - allowvado, vadere - go, advance, proceedin - intomare, maris, n. - seaalii ... alii - some ... others4 manus, manus, f. - handprotendo, protendere, protendi, protentus -stretch outquestus, questus, m. - lament, complaintvotum, voti, n. - prayerclamor, clamoris, m. - noise, shout, uproarhomo, hominis, m. - person, mandiversus, diversa, diversum - different5 rogito, rogitare, rogitavi, rogitatus -continually askaut - orincertus, incerta, incertum - uncertainrespondeo, respondere, respondi, responsus- give response, replyomnis, omne - the whole; every, allora, orae, f. - shore, coastcompleo, complere, complevi, completus - fill84 WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina

1. Read lines 1-5 (aloud if possible) or listen to the audio on the CSCP website.2. Study the vocabulary for these lines.3. From the end of Section II onwards, Nero and Agrippina are in different places, and Tacitus’ narrative regularlyswitches from one to the other. Who was Section IV mainly about, Nero or Agrippina? Who was Section Vmainly about?4. In sub-section VIa, Tacitus switches from Nero and Agrippina to the ordinary people living on the coast. Beforereading his description, you may find it helpful to recall occasions in your own experience or related to youby others, when a group of people (anything from a large crowd to half a dozen) were confronted with somedramatic or puzzling event or crisis (anything from the aftermath of an accident to losing touch with one of theparty on a mountain climb). You might consider some or all of the following questions: “Was it clear what hadhappened?” “Did people talk much more, or much less, than normal?” “What were the feelings of the peopleinvolved? Did their feelings change?” (It may be helpful to compare your experience with those of others.)5. Pick out the five infinitives in this sub-section; four are present active, the last is present passive. (If you arenot confident about present passive infinitives, see Section IVd question 6.) These are “historic” infinitives, andshould be translated as if they were ordinary past tenses of the verb, usually the imperfect tense; you met twoexamples in the first two lines of Section Ia. Roman writers, especially historians, liked to use the infinitive in thisway to indicate a series of actions in the past, usually in vivid or quickly-moving narrative; for examples, see theCambridge Latin Grammar page 64, paragraph 6, and page 65, final example in paragraph 8.6. Study the vocabulary for these lines again, and read this sub-section (or listen to the audio) again.7. Which word in line 1 makes clear that this scene on the beach took place while some of the events in SectionIV (at Agrippina’s villa at Bauli) and Section V (at Nero’s villa at Baiae) were happening? What had becomecommon knowledge during this time? Translate the ablative absolute phrase in line l, at first literally, then intonatural English. (For examples of how to do this, see Section IIIc question 13.)8. What did everyone do (lines 1-2)? (ut and accipio have unusual meanings in this sentence)? In what two waysdoes Tacitus indicate that they felt an urgent interest in the news?9. Why might it seem surprising that omnes heard the news so quickly? (Hint: at what time did these events takeplace? If you are unsure, look ahead to the phrase cum luminibus in line 6.)10. What is the case of moles and proximas scaphas (line 2)? What did each of the two groups (hi … hi ...)mentioned in lines 2-3 do? (The verb scandere refers to the actions of each of the two groups in turn, and youmay find it convenient to translate it twice; if you find this puzzling, see the Cambridge Latin Grammar page 90,first example in 3b and sentences 3 and 4 of the “Further examples”.)11. Suggest a reason why these two groups acted in this way.12. In lines 3-4, Tacitus continues by describing the behaviour of two further groups, referred to as alii … alii ….What did the first group do (line 3), and how far did they get?13. A literal translation of quantum corpus sinebat can sound rather odd, and many translators have simply putwhat Tacitus meant into their own words. One translator translates quantum corpus sinebat as as far asthey could; another goes further from the literal version and says till only their heads were above water; yourvocabulary gives an alternative translation of corpus which could fit naturally into a literal version. One verycommon way of expressing Tacitus’ meaning would begin as far as they could without getting out of … - can youcomplete the sentence? Which of these versions makes Tacitus’ meaning clearest? Do you prefer a version ofyour own?14. What did the second group do (line 4)?15. Suggest reasons why the two groups referred to as alii … alii behaved in these ways. (There is more than onepossibility, and no definite “right answer” to this question.)16. Read through the sentence questibus, votis … ora compleri (lines 4-5) and pick out an adjective-and-nounphrase in the nominative singular (line 5) which tells you what area is being referred to.17. Find and translate the verb (a “historic” present passive infinitive) which tells you what happened to the wholeshore.18. In line 4, find three nouns in the ablative case, which tell you what sounds the shore was filled with.19. Suggest a reason for the questus and vota in line 4, i.e. what event were the people lamenting and whatoutcome were they praying for?20. What case is hominum (line 4)? Find two present participles in the same case in line 5 which tell you why themen were shouting.WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina 85

21. Which Latin word in line 4 tells you what the men were asking? What is the best way of translating it?(a) different people(b) different things(c) different questions22. How can you tell that the people were asking over and over again?23. Although Tacitus says they were asking different questions, who are they likely to have been asking about, andwhat did they probably want to know?24. Suggest a translation for incerta respondentium, based on your translation of diversa rogitantium. You mayfind it helpful to include the word “giving” in your translation.25. Do any of the crowd’s actions seem to you irrational or pointless? If so, which? What, if anything, does thissuggest about the emotional state of the crowd?26. (This question is more suitable for discussion than for individual study.) Does Tacitus’ description, in spite ofits detail, miss out a lot of information? He says plenty about the behaviour of the crowd, but does not saywhereabouts on the coast this happened, or what time of night it was, or who the people were, or what theyexpected to see when they climbed onto the embankments and boats. Are the things he misses out moreimportant than the things he includes?27. (This question is more suitable for discussion than for individual study.) Look back over this sub-section andanswer each of the following questions; in each case, pick out the Latin words that support your answer.(a) Do the people seem extremely concerned, mildly concerned, or merely curious?(b) Do they seem hostile or sympathetic to Agrippina?(c) Do many, or any, of them seem to know that Agrippina is no longer in danger?28. Translate this sub-section.29. How easy or difficult do you find it to visualise this scene and imagine the noise? (Some people are better at thisthan others. Some find they can visualise or imagine more easily with their eyes shut; it may be better to try thison your own than in company.)86 WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina

NotesWJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina 87

Section VIbLines 6-9 (... disiecti sunt)Crowd behaviour and military responseadfluere ingens multitudo cum luminibus, atque ubiincolumem esse Agrippinam pervulgatum est, ad gratandumsese expedire, donec aspectu armati et minitantis agminisdisiecti sunt.6 adfluo, adfluere, adfluxi, adfluxus - flocktogetheringens, gen. ingentis - hugemultitudo, multitudinis, f. - crowdcum - withlumen, luminis, n. - torch, lampatque - andubi - when7 incolumis, incolume - safesum, esse, fui - beAgrippina, Agrippinae, f. - Agrippina, motherof Neropervulgo, pervulgare, pervulgavi, pervulgatus- make known, make publicad - to, forgrator, gratari, gratatus sum - congratulate,offer one’s congratulations8 se - himself, herself, itselfexpedio, expedire, expedivi, expeditus -ready, preparedonec - untilaspectus, aspectus, m. - sight, appearancearmatus, armata, armatum - armedet - andminitor, minitari, minitatus sum - threatenagmen, agminis, n. - column of troops9 disicio, disicere, disieci, disiectus - scatter88 WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina

1. Read lines 6-9 (... disiecti sunt) (aloud if possible) or listen to the audio on the CSCP website.2. Study the vocabulary for these lines.3. Read this sub-section (or listen to the recording) again.4. Pick out the two historic infinitives in this sub-section. (esse is not a historic infinitive, but is part of an indirectstatement.)5. The verb adfluere is linked with fluere (to flow) and flumen (river); when it is used to refer to people, thedictionary explains it as to come streaming along; to come flocking, especially to join others. In line 6, who camestreaming along to join those already on the beach, and what were they carrying?6. Can omnes in line 1 of Section VIa and adfluere ingens multitudo both be true, or is Tacitus exaggerating?Might omnes mean “all those in the immediate neighbourhood” and ingens multitudo refer to those who hadcome from further away? (There is no definite “right answer” to this.)7. Study the verb pervulgatum est (line 7): is it active or passive? Is pervulgatum masculine or neuter? Which ofthe following translations is correct?(a) He made it known(b) He was made known(c) It was made known8. What news was made known, or became known, in line 7?9. (This question may be more suitable for discussion than for individual study.) The word order in the indirectstatement incolumem esse Agrippinam could be reproducing the word order of an original statement:incolumis est Agrippina! Does incolumis est Agrippina! seem (or sound) to you more dramatic, or lessdramatic, than the more usual Agrippina est incolumis!, or do you find no difference between the two? Look at(or listen to) a similar pair of examples and compare the effect of the less usual word order with that of the usualone:Usual word order: Caesar est mortuus!Less usual word order: mortuus est Caesar!(There can be no definite “right answer” to this question; different readers or listeners can respond to the samesentence in different ways.)10. When the news became known, what did the people in the crowd do (line 8)? (The verb that tells you what theydid is the last of the string of historic infinitives that began in line 2.)11. What were they getting themselves ready to do (line 7)?12. Who did they presumably wish to congratulate, and on what event would they be congratulating this person?What would be the most likely place for them to head for, in order to deliver their congratulations?13. Find and translate the verb in line 9 which tells you how they were prevented from carrying out their intentions.14. Find and translate a 4th declension noun in the ablative case in line 8, and another noun in the genitive caselater in line 8, to find out why the crowd scattered.15. According to Tacitus, did the soldiers actually do anything violent to cause the crowd to scatter? How do youknow? (Hint: your answer to the previous question may help.)16. Find and translate a perfect participle and a present participle in line 8, describing the column of troops; bothparticiples explain why the mere sight of the column had such an effect on the crowd.17. How does the mood change during lines 6-9, and whereabouts does the most important change come?18. (This question may be suitable for group discussion, perhaps after individual study.) How does Tacitus conveythe change of mood? Possible points to consider: two contrasted words (in lines 6 and 8) for groups of people;two verbs, at opposite ends of the sentence, describing different ways in which the crowd moved; otherkeywords; the length of the description of the original scene compared with the length of the description of thescene’s break-up (this may remind you of a similar moment in Section III). How might the change of mood beconveyed in reading the sentence aloud?19. Why did the person in charge of the troops prevent the procession of Agrippina’s well-wishers on the beach fromvisiting her at her villa? (Hint: what job have the troops been brought to do, or to assist with?)20. Translate this sub-section.WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina 89

Section VIcLines 9-11 (Anicetus ... exterritis)The killers enterAnicetus villam statione circumdat, refractaqueianua obvios servorum abripit, donec ad fores cubiculi veniret;ibi pauci adstabant, ceteris terrore inrumpentium exterritis.109 Anicetus, Aniceti, m. - Anicetus, a freedmanof Nerovilla, villae, f. - villa, housestatio, stationis, f. - guardcircumdo, circumdare, circumdedi,circumdatus - surroundrefringo, refringere, refregi, refractus - breakin, break down-que - and10 ianua, ianuae, f. - doorobvius, obvia, obvium - in the wayservus, servi, m. - slaveabripio, abripere, abripui, abreptus - dragaway, remove by forcedonec - untilad - tofores, forium, f. - entrance, doorcubiculum, cubiculi, n. - bedroomvenio, venire, veni - come11 ibi - therepauci, paucae, pauca - fewadsto, adstare, adstiti - standceteri, ceterae, cetera - the rest, the othersterror, terroris, m. - fear, terrorinrumpo, inrumpere, inrupi, inruptus - burst inexterreo, exterrere, exterrui, exterritus -frighten off90 WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina

1. Test your memory on Anicetus:(i) What part did he play in Nero’s discussion of methods of murdering Agrippina?(ii) Why was he enthusiastic about murdering her?(iii) After the “shipwreck” plot went wrong, who said that it was Anicetus’ job to clear up the mess?(iv) What “privilege” did Anicetus ask, or claim, from Nero?(v) What great gift did Nero say he had received from Anicetus?(vi) What two orders did Nero give him?(vii – for experts) What was Anicetus’ official position?(If your memory lets you down, see Sections I and V.)2. Read lines 9-11 (Anicetus ... exterritis) (aloud if possible) or listen to the audio on the CSCP website.3. Study the vocabulary for these lines.4. Read this sub-section (or listen to the audio) again.5. Where do the events in this sub-section take place?6. circumdat and abripit are in the “historic present” tense, described in Section Id question 11.7. What are the cases of villam and statione (line 9)? What is Anicetus’ first action? Why has the behaviour of thecrowd in Section VIb made it particularly important that Anicetus should do this?8. What happens to the front door (lines 9-10)? Translate the ablative absolute describing the fate of the front door,first literally then into natural English, referring back to Section IIIc question 13 if necessary.9. Which of the slaves does Anicetus deal with (a suitable translation would be those of the … who were …), andwhat does he (or his men) do to them (line 10)?10. Does Anicetus bother to hunt for other slaves who are not directly in his path? Is he more concerned aboutrounding up all the slaves or about getting to his destination as quickly as possible?11. Which verb and accusative singular noun in line 9 indicate that Agrippina has little or no chance of rescue orescape from the villa?12. Which words in lines 9-10 emphasise Anicetus’ violence?13. How far does he get before stopping (line 10)?14. Tacitus does not say whose cubiculum is referred to in line 10; why does he not need to?15. How many people did he find standing outside (line 11)?16. Find two words in line 11 which make up an ablative absolute phrase, telling you why there were only a fewslaves or other people outside the door. Translate the phrase literally, then into natural English.17. What case is terrore? Which of the following translations of terrore exterritis seems the most natural to you?(a) Scared away by their fear of …(b) Terrified by terror of …(c) Frightened away through their fear of …(d) Having been scared off by their terror of ...Or do you prefer a different version of your own? (There is more than one possible answer to this question.)18. Which particular group of men had they been frightened of? (The answer is given in a present participle, whichcould be translated as the men ...ing.)19. Why was the action referred to by inrumpentium particularly noisy? (Refer back if necessary to a detailmentioned earlier in this sub-section.)20. Translate this sub-section.WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina 91

Section VIdLines 12-16Arrivalcubiculo modicum lumen inerat et ancillarum una, magisac magis anxia Agrippina quod nemo a filio venisset ac neAgerinus quidem. abeunte dehinc ancilla Agrippina ‘tu quoqueme deseris’ prolocuta est. tum respicit Anicetum trierarchoHerculeio et Obarito centurione classiario comitatum.1512 cubiculum, cubiculi, n. - bedroommodicus, modica, modicum - dim, small, littlelumen, luminis, n. - light, lampinsum, inesse, infui - be in, be insideet - andancilla, ancillae, f. - slave-girl, maidunus, una, unum - one, a singlemagis - more13 ac - andmagis - moreanxius, anxia, anxium - worried, anxiousAgrippina, Agrippinae, f. - Agrippina, motherof Neroquod - becausenemo, neminis, m. - no one, nobodya - fromfilius, filii, m. - sonvenio, venire, veni - comeac - andne ... quidem - not ... even14 Agerinus, Agerini, m. - Agerinus, a freedmanof Agrippinane ... quidem - not ... evenabeo, abire, abii - leave, go awaydehinc - thenancilla, ancillae, f. - slave-girl, maidAgrippina, Agrippinae, f. - Agrippina, motherof Nerotu, tui - you (singular)quoque - too, also15 ego, mei - I, medesero, deserere, deserui, desertus - desertproloquor, proloqui, prolocutus sum - declaretum - thenrespicio, respicere, respexi - notice, look atAnicetus, Aniceti, m. - Anicetus, a freedmanof Nerotrierarchus, trierarchi, m. - naval captain16 Herculeius, Herculeii, m. - Herculeius, navalcaptainet - andObaritus, Obariti, m. - Obaritus, a navalcenturioncenturio, centurionis, m. - centurionclassiarius, classiaria, classiarium - naval, ofthe fleetcomito, comitare, comitavi, comitatus -accompany, follow92 WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina

1. Read lines 12-16 (aloud if possible) or listen to the audio on the CSCP website.2. Study the vocabulary for these lines.3. Read this sub-section (or listen to the audio) again.4. How does the scene change again at this point? Does the fact that we know who is on the other side of the dooraffect the tension in any way?5. What does Tacitus say in line 12 about Agrippina’s bedroom and the number of slave-girls with her? In what way,if any, does this affect the mood of the scene?6. What was Agrippina’s emotional state, and in what way was it changing? Compare it with the state she was inthroughout Section IV.7. What two reasons does Tacitus give for Agrippina’s feelings (lines 13-14)? Which reason in particular caused herto feel this way, and which two-word phrase (interrupted by another word) tells you this?8. Where had she sent Agerinus, and why? (Refer back to Section IV if necessary.) What is the reason (known tous but not to Agrippina) for his failure to return?9. An ablative absolute phrase in line 14 tells you what the last slave-girl was doing. Translate it literally, then intonatural English.10. What impression of Agrippina’s changing situation is created by the series of words and phrases pauci (line 11in Section VIc), ancillarum una (line 12) and abeunte … ancilla (line 14)?11. What did Agrippina say to the last slave-girl (lines 14-15)?12. What does Agrippina mean by quoque?(a) “You’re doing what everyone else has done.”(b) “This is one more thing you’re doing to me.”13. (This question is more suitable for discussion than for individual study.) In what tone of voice do you thinkAgrippina said “tu quoque me deseris” to the departing slave-girl? Panic? Bitterness? Misery? Resignation?(There is no definite “right answer” to this question.) If you are feeling adventurous, experiment with differentways of speaking the words.14. What happens when Agrippina looks round, or looks back, perhaps to watch the slave-girl go (line 15)?15. Find and translate a perfect passive participle in line 16. Whom does it describe?16. What are the names of the two men by whom Anicetus is accompanied?17. What rank does each man hold?18. Why has Anicetus selected naval officers to carry out the murder? The answer to Section VIc question 1 (vii)may be relevant here, also the location of the fleet and its distance from Bauli. A trierarchus was a captain of awarship, and a centurio classiarius was in charge of all the fighting men on board; whatever their number was,his rank was equal to that of a centurio in the legions. This may give you some idea of how well Anicetus wouldbe likely to know Herculeius and Obaritus.Although the men came from a classis praetoria (praetorian fleet), meaning that technically they answered tothe Emperor, they may not have had the same strong personal bond with his family that the Praetorian Guardpossessed, or felt the same attitude to the children of Germanicus that Burrus referred to in Section V.19. Translate this sub-section.WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina 93

Section VIeLines 17-20Murdercircumsistunt lectum percussores et prior trierarchus fusticaput eius adflixit. iam Agrippina centurioni ferrumdestringenti protendens uterum, ‘ventrem feri’ exclamavitmultisque vulneribus confecta est. 2017 circumsisto, circumsistere, circumsteti -stand aroundlectus, lecti, m. - bedpercussor, percussoris, m. - assassin, executioneret - andprior, prius - firsttrierarchus, trierarchi, m. - naval captainfustis, fustis, m. - club, stick18 caput, capitis, n. - headis, ea, id - he, she, itadfligo, adfligere, adflixi, adflictus - strikeiam - nowAgrippina, Agrippinae, f. - Agrippina, motherof Nerocenturio, centurionis, m. - centurionferrum, ferri, n. - sword19 destringo, destringere, destrinxi, destrictus -draw, unsheatheprotendo, protendere, protendi, protentus -offeruterus, uteri, m. - wombventer, ventris, m. - bellyferio, ferire - strikeexclamo, exclamare, exclamavi - shout,exclaim20 multi, multae, multa - many-que - andvulnus, vulneris, n. - woundconficio, conficere, confeci, confectus - kill,despatch94 WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina

1. At this point of Tacitus’ narrative, a complex and difficult piece of Latin has been omitted from your text, inwhich Agrippina tells her visitors that if they have come to see how she is, they are to report back that she isrecovering; if they have come to commit a crime, she cannot believe that they were sent by her son: “He wouldnot have commanded the murder of a parent”. On the evidence of these words, does the arrival of the murderersseem to have increased her fear, or made her calmer?2. Is it possible that Agrippina, in spite of everything and with the killers actually in her bedroom, means what shesays about Nero and cannot bring herself to believe he has ordered her murder? (There is no definite “rightanswer” to this question.)3. Read lines 17-20 (aloud if possible) or listen to the audio on the CSCP website.4. Study the vocabulary for these lines.5. Read this sub-section (or listen to the audio) again.6. What noun does Tacitus use in line 17 to refer to Anicetus, Herculeius and Obaritus, before the first blow isstruck? What do they do? Do they speak? Where in the sentence does Tacitus place the verb? What sort ofatmosphere does Tacitus create in these opening three words? Menacing? Impetuous? Casual? None of these?7. Who struck the first blow? What weapon did he use? Where did he strike Agrippina?8. Find two present participles in line 19, one in the nominative case and the other in the dative case. Who isdescribed by each participle? What was the centurion doing? What was Agrippina doing? What did she say?9. Opinions differ over whether the drawing of the centurion’s sword and the utterance of Agrippina’s last wordshappened before or after the trierarch delivered his blow to her head. Which do you think is the more likelysequence of events? (Writers are sometimes faced with a difficulty when they have to relate, one after the other,two events – or series of events – that overlapped in time or happened simultaneously.)10. Translate the four words with which Tacitus relates the final killing. Decide whether confecta est is from adeponent verb or the passive of an ordinary verb; and identify the case of multis vulneribus. You may find itbest to begin with a literal translation, then one in natural English.11. The verb conficere is often used in quite a dry unemotional way (rem confecit, He finished the business,mandata confeci, I carried out my instructions, etc.). Do you feel Tacitus should have used a more obviouslydramatic verb, (like trucidata est, she was butchered), or is conficere effective as a deliberate understatementfor such a horrifying deed, as if someone were to say “The job was done”? It is not easy to convey this intranslation; to finish somebody off is probably too slangy. She was despatched might be suitable – you may beable to improve on it.(There is no definite “right answer” to questions 12, 13 and 14. They are suitable for individual study, followed bygroup discussion in which answers can be compared.)12. Agrippina’s last words became famous. Why did she order Obaritus to murder her in this way? There is a puzzleabout Tacitus’ placing of the two accusative singular nouns. Would it have been more obvious to say ventremprotendens “uterum feri” inquit? Do you think Tacitus placed the words as he did simply in order to avoidthe obvious? (He is certainly a writer who likes to do the unexpected.) Is it relevant that many of his readersor listeners would already know of her famous last words? What do you think of the suggestion made by onescholar that the remark has nothing to do with Agrippina’s motherhood, but expresses the wish of a beautifulwoman not to be disfigured in death?13. How might Agrippina’s order to the centurion have been spoken? Angrily, with dignity, sarcastically, timidly, or insome other way? Experiment (in private if shy, in public if bold) with the different ways of uttering the words.14. Compare Agrippina’s behaviour in Section VIe with her behaviour in Section VId. You might take into accountyour answers to questions 1 and 13. How, if at all, has she changed between Sections VId and VIe, and whathas caused this change? What do you think makes people behave in this way when faced with imminent death?15. Translate this sub-section.16. In what way(s), if any, does Tacitus’ narrative in Section VI resemble that of a film? Some possible pointsto consider: the different “scenes” into which the Section could be divided; the presentation of the two maincharacters, separately and then together; the opportunity for long-range and close-up shots; sights and soundsreferred to or suggested by Tacitus’ text. Do the different scenes stick to the order in which the various eventsoccurred, or does Tacitus’ narrative at any point shift backwards in time?17. Section VI is particularly suitable for reading aloud, for example as a group activity in which a portion of textis allotted to each member of the group, and the whole Section is then practised, read aloud and perhapsrecorded. While accurate pronunciation is desirable, it is equally important to read in a way that fits the sense ofthe sentence. Tacitus meant his work to be read aloud (and from a more mundane point of view, this activity canbe a very effective way of strengthening your understanding of the text when preparing for the exam).WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina 95

Section VII - Epilogue to a murderSection VIIaLines 1-4The aftermathcremata est eadem nocte convivali lecto et exequiis vilibus;neque dum Nero rerum potiebatur congesta aut clausa esthumus. accenso rogo libertus eius cognomento Mnester seferro transegit, incertum caritate in patronam an metu exitii.1 cremo, cremare, cremavi, crematus -cremateidem, eadem, idem - the samenox, noctis, f. - nightconvivalis, convivale - dininglectus, lecti, m. - couchet - andexequiae, exequiarum, f. - funeral ritesvilis, vile - scant2 neque - and not, nordum - whileNero, Neronis, m. - the Emperor Nerores, rei, f. - thing, affair; government, empirepotior, potiri, potitus sum - be in chargecongero, congerere, congessi, congestus -pile up, heap (supply ‘est’)aut - orclaudo, claudere, clausi, clausus - close over3 humus, humi, f. - earth, groundaccendo, accendere, accendi, accensus -light, set on firerogus, rogi, m. - pyrelibertus, liberti, m. - freedmanis, ea, id - he, she, itcognomentum, cognomenti, n. - name,surname, cognomenMnester, Mnesteris, m. - Mnester, afreedman of Agrippinase - himself, herself, itself4 ferrum, ferri, n. - swordtransigo, transigere, transegi, transactus -stabincertus, incerta, incertum - not clear,uncertaincaritas, caritatis, f. - love, affection, esteemin - for, towards; intopatrona, patronae, f. - patronessan - ormetus, metus, m. - fearexitium, exitii, n. - ruin, destruction96 WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina

1. Read lines 1-4 (aloud if possible) or listen to the audio on the CSCP website.2. Study the vocabulary for these lines.3. Read this sub-section (or listen to the audio) again.4. How soon after her death was Agrippina cremated?5. What was used as a bier for the cremation? Do you think this was intended as an insult, or was it the nearestthing handy and convenient for people in a hurry?6. Agrippina was the sister of one emperor, the wife of another and the mother of a third. She could reasonablyhave expected that her final resting-place, with other members of the imperial family, would be the mausoleum(“burial chamber”) of Augustus. Translate the phrase in line 1 (an ablative phrase best translated as with …) inwhich Tacitus describes the manner in which her body was in fact disposed of.7. (This question is more suitable for discussion than for individual study.) Suggest reasons why Nero wanted thefuneral to be held as quickly as possible, and to be private rather than public.(It may be helpful to refer back to the behaviour of the crowd in Section VI. You could also compare line 1 withTacitus’ description of the funeral forty years earlier of Agrippina’s father Germanicus, whose death in suspiciouscircumstances was thought by some to have been ordered by his uncle, the emperor Tiberius: “The day of hisinterment in the mausoleum of Augustus was sometimes plunged in a deep silence, sometimes disturbed byoutbursts of lamentation. The roads through the city were densely packed; the Field of Mars was lit by a brilliantshow of torches. Armed soldiers and magistrates joined the ordinary people in crying repeatedly that Rome wasdoomed.” Tiberius was criticised for not doing enough. “People missed the splendour of a full public funeral.Where were the traditional rituals, the image of the dead man lying on his bier, the speeches of praise and thepoems in the dead man’s honour?”)Why might Nero have thought that (a) a full state funeral and (b) a ceremony with much of the splendour missedout were more dangerous to him (for different reasons) than a funeral held in almost total secrecy?8. In lines 2-3 (neque … humus), find and translate a noun in the nominative singular (other than Nero).9. Find and translate the two passive verbs which tell you what was done (or rather not done) to the earth.10. Which one of the following explanations of Tacitus’ comment about the earth is wrong?(a) The grave was not covered (shut in) by any gravestone or monument.(b) The grave was not filled in.(c) There was no mound of earth heaped up over the grave.11. (This question is more suitable for discussion than for individual study.) Why was the grave left inconspicuousand unadorned? (There is no single “right answer” to this question.)12. According to line 2, for how long did the grave remain in this state? You may find it helpful to begin by translatingdum Nero rerum potiebatur literally, and then put Tacitus’ meaning into your own words. res is a word withsuch a wide range of meanings that any translation which suits the sense of the sentence is allowable.13. What case is accenso rogo (line 3)? Translate it literally, then into natural English.14. What did Mnester do at this point of the proceedings (lines 3-4)?15. What was Mnester’s status and who was his patrona?16. Find and translate the two nouns in the ablative singular which tell you the two alternative emotions put forward byTacitus as reasons for Mnester’s suicide. (The most convenient translation may be because of ….) Who had Mnesterbeen very fond of (according to one explanation)? What had he been afraid of (according to the other explanation)?17. Suggest a reason why Mnester might fear exitium for himself, now that Agrippina was dead. (There is nodefinite “right answer” to this question.)18. Tacitus has a habit of giving alternative explanations for someone’s behaviour. (Can you recall a previousexample of double explanation from Section II?) Sometimes the second explanation is the more unfavourableone, and is longer or more memorably phrased; sometimes a sentimental explanation is paired with a cynicalone. Do either of these descriptions apply to the double explanation in line 4?19. Does Tacitus suggest that either of the explanations is more likely than the other? Which word tells you this?20. Translate incertum caritate in patronam an metu exitii (line 4). You will probably need to add “is” to yourtranslation. For example, the outline of your translation could be whether because of … or because of … is ….21. Why do you think Tacitus included the detail of Mnester’s suicide? For example, is his behaviour beingcontrasted with that of somebody else? (There is no definite “right answer” to this question. Answers will partlydepend on which of Tacitus’ two explanations of Mnester’s behaviour you accept.)22. Translate this sub-section.WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina 97

Section VIIbLines 5-8What the astrologers had saidhunc fore sui finem multos ante annos crediderat Agrippinacontempseratque. nam ei consulenti super Neroneresponderunt Chaldaei illum imperaturum matremqueoccisurum; atque illa ‘occidat’ inquit, ‘dum imperet’.55 hic, haec, hoc - thissum, esse, fui - bese - himself, herself, itselffinis, finis, m. - death, endmulti, multae, multa - manyante - before, earlierannus, anni, m. - yearcredo, credere, credidi - believeAgrippina, Agrippinae, f. - Agrippina, motherof Nero6 contemno, contemnere, contempsi,contemptus - make light of; reject, despise-que - andnam - foris, ea, id - he, she, itconsulo, consulere, consului, consultus -consultsuper - about, concerningNero, Neronis, m. - the Emperor Nero7 respondeo, respondere, respondi, responsus- respondChaldaei, Chaldaeorum, m. - theChaldaeans, famous as astrologersille, illa, illud - he, she, itimpero, imperare, imperavi - be emperor,rule (supply ‘esse’)mater, matris, f. - mother-que - and8 occido, occidere, occidi, occisus - kill (supply‘esse’)atque - andille, illa, illud - he, she, itoccido, occidere, occidi, occisus - killinquit - says, saiddum - as long as, provided thatimpero, imperare, imperavi - be emperor,rule98 WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina

1. Read lines 5-8 (aloud if possible) or listen to the audio on the CSCP website.2. Study the vocabulary for these lines.3. Read this sub-section (or listen to the audio) again.4. In Section Ic you met the following indirect question:quonam modo ferrum et caedes occultaretur nemo reperiebat.The question comes first in the sentence, and is followed by Tacitus’ comment that no-one could find the answerto it.A translation that followed the usual English word order might be as follows:No one could work out how a slaughter by the sword was to be concealed.Alternatively, one could keep closer to the Latin word order by translating:How a slaughter by the sword was to be concealed, no one could work out.In lines 5-6, you have an indirect statement with a somewhat similar word order:hunc fore sui finem Agrippina crediderat contempseratque.The statement is put first, then we are told someone’s reaction to the statement.5. (i) In line 5, find the nominative singular noun which tells you who reacted to the statement.(ii) In lines 5 and 6, find and translate the two verbs which tell you how she had reacted to the statement.(iii) If the indirect statement hunc fore sui finem were turned into a direct statement spoken by Agrippina, itwould be:“hic erit meus finis.” (erit = future tense of est.) What would be the translation?(Agrippina would have used a more descriptive word than hic, but it is convenient to use hic here in orderto compare the direct statement with the indirect one.)(iv) Compare the direct statement in (iii) with a version of the indirect statement in line 5:Agrippina crediderat hunc fore sui finem.Because it is an indirect statement, hic and finis have become accusatives (hunc and finem) and erit hasbecome fore (a short form of the future infinitive of esse). And since Agrippina is no longer being quoteddirectly (note the absence of quotation marks) but is being reported at second-hand by Tacitus, meus (my)is replaced by sui (her, literally of herself).Look again at the version of line 5:Translate it.Agrippina crediderat hunc fore sui finem.6. When had Agrippina first believed the statement reported in line 5?7. Translate the complete sentence from hunc fore as far as crediderat, following the natural English word orderby beginning with Agrippina crediderat:Agrippina crediderat hunc fore sui finem.8. What does Tacitus mean by using hunc to describe the death Agrippina expected?(a) A violent death(b) A death ordered by her son(c) A death supervised by her enemy Anicetus(He can also be using hunc to mean this death that I have just described.)9. Which is the most surprising word in the whole sentence? (Hint: had Agrippina reacted like a normal mother,when she was told (by people whom she believed) that her son would kill her?) Where in the sentence doesTacitus place the surprise word? Does its position in the sentence make it less effective, or more? Could it beput in the same place in the English translation? Should the translation of crediderat also be held back, so thatthe sentence would begin That this would be her death ...? (There is no definite “right answer” to this.)10. Section V began with a noun in the dative case indicating the person to whom news is brought, and a presentparticiple, also in the dative case, telling you what that person is doing:Neroni nuntios … opperienti adfertur …To Nero, waiting for news …, word is brought …Or, in more natural English:As Nero waits for news …, word is brought to him …WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina 99

Two similar examples of a noun and present participle in the dative case at the start of a sentence were given inSection Va question 8:amico ex Italia discedenti pecuniam dedi.To my friend departing from Italy I gave money.Or, more naturally, When my friend was departing from Italy I gave him money.domino de vino roganti nemo respondit.To the master asking about wine, nobody replied.More naturally: When the master was asking about wine, nobody replied to him.The sentence in lines 5-7 begins in exactly the same way. Find and translate(i) a noun in the nominative plural which tells you who gave a reply(ii) a pronoun in the dative singular near the start of the sentence, which indicates the person to whomthey gave a reply [then name the person referred to](iii) a present participle in the dative singular which tells you what the person to whom the astrologersreplied was doing.Translate ei consulenti responderunt Chaldaei literally, then into natural English, using the above examplesas a guide.11. About whom were the astrologers being consulted? Which pronoun in line 7 refers to him?12. From lines 7-8 find the two predictions which the astrologers made about him.13. Who is illa (line 8)?14. An optional note for experts in Section Vc question 20 gave examples of what is called the “jussive” use of thesubjunctive. You may find it helpful to look at them now, even if you are too modest to consider yourself anexpert:gaudeat populus!huc fur ducatur!perpetret Anicetus promissa.Let the people rejoice! or The people are to rejoice!Let the thief be brought here! or The thief is to be brought here!Let Anicetus fulfil his promises!One use of the jussive subjunctive is to give an instruction or permission for one or more people to dosomething. The person or persons concerned, who may or may not be present, are referred to by the 3rd personform of the verb:festinentcaveatexeatLet them get a move on! or They’re to get a move on!Let him beware! or He is to beware!He is to go out! or Let him go out!Further examples are given in the Cambridge Latin Grammar, page 48, paragraph 3.occidat in line 8 is a famous example of the jussive subjunctive; what was Agrippina’s comment about Nero,when the astrologers predicted what he would do to her?15. On what “condition” was Agrippina willing for this to happen?16. Belief in astrology was widespread among the Romans (see Stage 20 in Cambridge Latin Course Book IIand Stage 32 in Book IV). Tacitus usually seems to despise astrologers, calling them “a class of men who aretreacherous towards the powerful and dishonest towards the ambitious, forever forbidden in Rome and foreverpersisting”. (Nevertheless, there are occasional moments when Tacitus himself seems tempted to believe thatthe future can be predicted.) Several emperors kept private astrologers of their own, but astrology was, asTacitus says, officially disapproved of, and political inquiries such as “How long will the emperor live?” could getthe inquirer into very serious trouble.(This question is suitable for group discussion.) Do you find it surprising that a shrewd hard-headed womanlike Agrippina should inquire into her son’s horoscope? Or does it simply show the lengths to which such anambitious mother could go in the hope of learning something about her son’s future?17. (This group of questions is suitable for group discussion after individual study.) Do you believe that Agrippinaactually made the remark quoted in line 8, and if so, do you think she meant it? Does it fit the impression youhave formed of Agrippina’s personality while reading this text? Do you think that even when faced with deathin the bedroom at Bauli, she might still have felt it was a price worth paying, to achieve what she wanted?(Impossible to answer, of course – but sometimes people do sacrifice themselves for others.)18. Translate this sub-section.100 WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina

General questionsThe following questions refer to the whole text (i.e. Sections I-VII). Follow your teacher’s guidance over whichquestions to tackle. You may in each case find it helpful to study the question on your own at first, then discuss itwith others.1. Without referring back to previous notes and questions, find three places in the text where Tacitus uses a wordor phrase (particularly at the end of a sentence or Section) which takes the reader or listener by surprise or is insome other way striking or memorable. In each case, explain if possible why the word or phrase has this quality(e.g. “The phrase is unexpected because you would have expected so-and-so to …” or “Both the speaker andthe listener know that the word used by the speaker is a lie”).2. “Agrippina got what she was asking for – in more ways than one.” Do you agree?3. What examples can you find in the text of Nero’s love of role-playing, shown either by deceitful behaviour, or bymelodramatic speeches as if he were acting a tragedy, or by literally setting the stage for a performance?4. What are the qualities of the chief characters in this narrative (Agrippina, Nero, Anicetus, Burrus and Seneca)?Support your answer by quoting from the Latin text. Which actors and actresses would you cast to play them ina film or TV dramatisation, and why? Who would you cast as an invisible Tacitus, doing a “voice-over” while theactors act? (Think of a suitable tone of voice for reading the narrative aloud – passionate and emotional, or coldand dry? Then pick your actor.)5. “He can tell an exciting story and he knows a thing or two about what makes people tick, but he’s often vague onfactual detail, and bits of his narrative are too incredible by half.” Discuss one or more parts of this assessmentof Tacitus as a historian, backing up your opinions from the Latin text.6. Compare your first impression of Agrippina in the Introduction with your final impression of her at the end ofSection VII. Did you find yourself becoming more sympathetic? If so, what caused your shift in sympathy?7. (Strictly for those who enjoy “time-table” puzzles or detective stories:) Is it possible to work out the orderand approximate time at which the events of Sections II-VII occurred at Baiae, Bauli and their immediateneighbourhood? Could they all have happened in a single night (from a dinner that went on till late (in longum,Section II, line 16) to an eventual cremation the same night (eadem nocte, Section VII, line l))? If not, whichevents occurred on the first night, which occurred on the intervening day, and which on the second night? IsTacitus’ narrative (written half a century after the events it describes) chronologically impossible?8. Does Agrippina, as presented by Tacitus, behave inconsistently? Are there some points in the text where shebehaves shrewdly, and other points where she is remarkably naïve? If her behaviour is inconsistent, could therebe a reason for it?9. One scholar has suggested that in his portrayal of Agrippina Tacitus seems to have been torn between outrighthostility and reluctant admiration. Does this agree with the impression you have had in reading Sections I-VII?10. (For those with strong feminist or anti-feminist views.) “Tacitus is unconsciously prejudiced against Agrippinabecause she is a woman; notice his use of mulieris (Section I, line 7) and feminarum (Section II, line 5). Likeother Roman writers, he doesn’t realise the tragedy of being, like Agrippina, a potentially outstanding contributorto the government of Rome and the empire, but born into a political system that offered no opportunity whateverto women except by underhand and sinister means.” Does your reading of the Introduction and Sections I-VIIincline you towards agreeing with this view?WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina 101

Postscript(Not part of the exam text, but included for those who wonder what happened next and whether any further dramaticevents occurred in Nero’s reign.)According to Tacitus, at first Nero was filled with dread at what he had done and frightened about the possiblereaction of the Praetorian Guard. He was gradually reassured when Burrus arranged for officers and centurions ofthe Guard to call on him with congratulations on his “escape from his mother’s plottings”. There were widespreadcelebrations, and sacrifices of thanksgiving were offered to the gods.Nero sent the Senate a letter, composed by Seneca, in which he accused his mother of repeatedly interfering withgovernment (there was some truth in this) and finally sending Agerinus to kill him. Many people disbelieved theAgerinus story, but thought it safer to keep their doubts to themselves. When Nero eventually returned from Baiae toRome, he was welcomed like a conquering hero.From now on, his behaviour became increasingly unrestrained. He divorced his wife and married Poppaea, andthrew himself enthusiastically into athletics, charioteering, acting and music. His love of the arts was genuine andhe seems to have had some talent. But although his performances as singer or actor were tolerated as long as theyremained private, he caused great offence by performing on the public stage. “Emperors” (it was felt) “shouldn’tbehave like this.”In AD 62, Burrus died and Seneca retired from public life. Nero became more and more extravagant, sexuallyvicious and cruel, using a law against treason to get rid of people he regarded as a threat or whose property hewanted. In AD 64, his unpopularity increased when a disastrous fire damaged a great part of Rome; it was rumoured(probably wrongly) that Nero himself had started the fire and, as he watched the city burn, had put on his actor’scostume and sung his own composition, The capture of Troy.For starting the fire, he blamed the Christians; he had them torn to pieces by wild animals or turned into humantorches. The Christians were unpopular in Rome, but the savagery of their deaths aroused the pity of the spectators,who felt (says Tacitus) that they were being killed not for the public good but to satisfy one man’s cruelty.By AD 65, a conspiracy to kill Nero had been formed. It was discovered, and the discovery was followed bynumerous executions. Seneca, who was accused of being involved, was ordered to commit suicide. As a result ofthe plot, Nero became still readier to suspect threats to his power and more ruthless in punishing real or imaginaryconspiracies. During a lengthy tour of Greece, competing in numerous festivals in which he was unsurprisinglyawarded the first prize, he sent for his most outstanding general and two provincial governors and ordered them tokill themselves, suspecting them of disloyalty.Eventually the generals and armies in the empire’s provinces broke out in revolt, first in Gaul, then in Spain andAfrica. Nero panicked, went into hiding, was declared a public enemy and killed himself. He had some achievementsto his credit, such as the splendid rebuilding of Rome after the fire, and the settlement of trouble with Armenia, butthese were totally overshadowed by his crimes, vices and stupidities.His death was followed by civil war. In AD 69, one army commander after another attempted to make himselfemperor. Eventually the fighting ended in victory for the forces of Vespasian (Titus Flavius Vespasianus). The Julio-Claudian dynasty of emperors had ended with Nero; the Flavian dynasty had begun.102 WJEC Level 2 Latin Literature Unit 9542 Nero and Agrippina