Amic. 5.1LAELIUS.LAELIUS. Amic. 5.1Ego vērō nōn gravārer, sī mihi ipse cōnfīderem, nam et praeclāra rēs est et sumus, ut dīxit Fannius, ōtiōsī.I for my part would not be reluctant, if I had confidence in myself, for it is a noble subject and we are, as Fannius said, at leisure. Amic. 5.1Sed quis ego sum aut quae est in mē facultās?But who am I, or what ability is there in me? Amic. 5.1Doctōrum est ista cōnsuētūdō eaque Graecōrum, ut eīs pōnātur dē quō disputent quamvīs subitō.That is the practice of learned men, and Greeks at that, to have a subject set before them to discuss, however suddenly. Amic. 5.1Magnum opus est egetque exercitātiōne nōn parvā.It is a great task and needs no small practice. Amic. 5.1Quam ob rem quae disputārī dē amīcitiā possunt, ab eīs cēnseō petātis, quī ista profitentur;Therefore what can be said in discussion about friendship I advise you to seek from those who profess such things; Amic. 5.1ego vōs hortārī tantum possum, ut amīcitiam omnibus rēbus hūmānīs antepōnātis;I can only urge you to put friendship before all human things; Amic. 5.1nihil est enim tam nātūrae aptum, tam conveniēns ad rēs vel secundās vel adversās.for nothing is so suited to our nature, so fitting in prosperity or adversity.
Amic. 5.18Sed hoc prīmum sentiō, nisi in bonīs amīcitiam esse nōn posse;But this I feel first of all, that friendship cannot exist except among good men; Amic. 5.18neque id ad vīvum resecō, ut illī, quī haec subtīlius disserunt, fortasse vērē, sed ad commūnem ūtilitātem parum;nor do I pare this down to the quick, as those do who discuss these matters more subtly, truly perhaps, but to little common profit; Amic. 5.18negant enim quemquam esse virum bonum nisi sapientem.for they say that no one is a good man unless he is wise. Amic. 5.18Sit ita sānē: sed eam sapientiam interpretantur, quam adhūc mortālis nēmō est cōnsecūtus.Let it be so, by all means: but they define that wisdom as one which no mortal has yet attained. Amic. 5.18Nōs autem ea quae sunt in ūsū vītāque commūnī, nōn ea quae finguntur aut optantur, spectāre dēbēmus.We, however, ought to look at the things that exist in practice and in everyday life, not those that are imagined or wished for. Amic. 5.18Numquam ego dīcam C. Fabricium, M'. Curium, Ti. Coruncānium, quōs sapientīs nostrī maiōrēs iūdicābant, ad istōrum normam fuisse sapientīs.I shall never say that Gaius Fabricius, Manius Curius and Tiberius Coruncanius, whom our ancestors judged wise, were wise by the standard of these men.
Amic. 5.18Quā rē sibi habeant sapientiae nōmen et invidiōsum et obscūrum, concēdant ut virī bonī fuerint.So let them keep to themselves the name of wisdom, both invidious and obscure, and grant that these were good men. Amic. 5.18Nē id quidem facient;They will not do even that; Amic. 5.18negābunt id nisi sapientī posse concēdī.they will say that this cannot be granted except to the wise man. Amic. 5.19Agāmus igitur pinguī, ut aiunt, Minervā.Let us proceed, then, with a 'plain wit', as the saying goes. Amic. 5.19Quī ita sē gerunt, ita vīvunt, ut eōrum probētur fidēs integritās aequitās līberālitās, nec sit in eīs ūlla cupiditās libīdō audācia, sintque magnā cōnstantiā, ut eī fuērunt, modo quōs nōmināvī, hōs virōs bonōs, ut habitī sunt, sīc etiam appellandōs putēmus, quia sequantur, quantum hominēs possunt, nātūram optimam bene vīvendī ducem.Those who so conduct themselves, so live, that their good faith, integrity, fairness and generosity are approved, and that there is in them no greed, lust or recklessness, and that they are of great steadfastness, as were the men I have just named, these let us consider worthy to be called good men, as they were held to be, because they follow, as far as men can, nature, the best guide to living well.
Amic. 5.19Sīc enim mihi perspicere videor, ita nātōs esse nōs, ut inter omnīs esset societās quaedam, maior autem, ut quisque proximē accēderet.For I seem to see clearly that we were born so that there should be a certain fellowship among all, but a greater one as each comes nearer to us. Amic. 5.19Itaque cīvēs potiōrēs quam peregrīnī, propinquī quam aliēnī;And so fellow citizens are preferred to foreigners, kinsmen to strangers; Amic. 5.19cum hīs enim amīcitiam nātūra ipsa peperit, sed ea nōn satis habet firmitātis.for with these nature herself has created friendship, but it does not have enough firmness. Amic. 5.19Namque hoc praestat amīcitia propinquitātī, quod ex propinquitāte benevolentia tollī potest, ex amīcitiā nōn potest;For friendship surpasses kinship in this, that goodwill can be taken away from kinship but not from friendship; Amic. 5.19sublātā enim benevolentiā amīcitiae nōmen tollitur, propinquitātis manet.for when goodwill is taken away the name of friendship is removed, while that of kinship remains. Amic. 5.20Quanta autem vīs amīcitiae sit ex hōc intellegī maximē potest, quod ex īnfīnītā societāte generis hūmānī, quam conciliāvit ipsa nātūra, ita contrācta rēs est et adducta in angustum, ut omnis cāritās aut inter duōs aut inter paucōs iungerētur.How great the power of friendship is can best be understood from this, that out of the boundless fellowship of the human race, which nature herself has brought together, the matter is so contracted and drawn into narrow bounds that all affection is joined either between two or among a few.