Off. 1.28.1Haec ita intellegī possumus exīstimāre ex eō decōrō, quod poētae sequuntur;That this is how these things are understood we can judge from that decorum which the poets pursue; Off. 1.28.1dē quō aliō locō plūra dīcī solent.about which more is usually said elsewhere. Off. 1.28.1Sed tum servāre illud poëtās, quod deceat, dīcimus, cum id, quod quāque persōnā dignum est, et fit et dīcitur;But we say that the poets observe what is fitting when what is worthy of each character is both done and said; Off. 1.28.1ut, sī Aeacus aut Mīnōs dīceret: " ōderint, dum metuant, " aut: " nātīs sepulchrō ipse est parēns, " indecōrum vidērētur, quod eōs fuisse iūstōs accēpimus;as, if Aeacus or Minos were to say 'Let them hate, so long as they fear' or 'The father is himself the tomb of his children', it would seem unfitting, because we have heard that they were just; Off. 1.28.1at Atreō dīcente plausūs excitantur;but when Atreus says it, applause breaks out; Off. 1.28.1est enim digna persōnā ōrātiō.for the speech is worthy of the character. Off. 1.28.1Sed poëtae, quid quemque deceat, ex persōnā iūdicābunt;But the poets will judge from the character what befits each person; Off. 1.28.1nōbīs autem persōnam imposuit ipsa nātūra magnā cum excellentiā praestantiāque animantium reliquārum.on us, however, nature herself has imposed a character, one of great excellence and superiority over the other living creatures.
Off. 1.28.98Quōcircā poëtae in magnā varietāte persōnārum, etiam vitiōsīs quid conveniat et quid deceat, vidēbunt, nōbīs autem cum ā nātūrā cōnstantiae, moderātiōnis, temperantiae, verēcundiae partēs datae sint, cumque eadem nātūra doceat nōn neglegere, quem ad modum nōs adversus hominēs gerāmus, efficitur, ut et illud, quod ad omnem honestātem pertinet, decōrum quam lātē fūsum sit, appāreat et hoc, quod spectātur in ūnō quōque genere virtūtis.Therefore the poets, amid a great variety of characters, will see what suits and what befits even the vicious; but since nature has assigned to us the roles of constancy, moderation, self-control and modesty, and since the same nature teaches us not to neglect how we conduct ourselves towards other men, it comes about that it is clear both how widely that decorum which belongs to all moral goodness is spread, and also this one which is seen in each single kind of virtue. Off. 1.28.98Ut enim pulchritūdō corporis aptā compositiōne membrōrum movet oculōs et dēlectat hōc ipsō, quod inter sē omnēs partēs cum quōdam lepōre cōnsentiunt, sīc hoc decōrum, quod ēlūcet in vītā, movet approbātiōnem eōrum, quibuscum vīvitur, ōrdine et cōnstantiā et moderātiōne dictōrum omnium atque factōrum.For as beauty of body, by the fitting arrangement of its limbs, catches the eye and delights it by the very fact that all its parts harmonise with one another with a certain charm, so this decorum, which shines out in life, wins the approval of those with whom one lives by the order, consistency and restraint of all one's words and deeds.
Off. 1.28.99Adhibenda est igitur quaedam reverentia adversus hominēs et optimī cuiusque et reliquōrum.We must therefore show a certain respect towards men, both towards the best of them and towards the rest. Off. 1.28.99Nam neglegere, quid dē sē quisque sentiat, nōn sōlum arrogantis est, sed etiam omnīnō dissolūtī.For not to care what each person thinks of oneself is the mark not only of an arrogant man but of one utterly dissolute. Off. 1.28.99Est autem, quod differat in hominum ratiōne habendā inter iūstitiam et verēcundiam.There is, however, a difference, in having regard for men, between justice and modesty. Off. 1.28.99Iūstitiae partēs sunt nōn violāre hominēs, verēcundiae nōn offendere;The part of justice is not to wrong men, that of modesty not to offend them; Off. 1.28.99in quō maximē vīs perspicitur decōrī.and in this the force of decorum is most clearly seen. Off. 1.28.99Hīs igitur expositīs, quāle sit id, quod decēre dīcimus, intellēctum putō.With this explained, then, I think it is understood what kind of thing it is that we call fitting. Off. 1.28.100Officium autem, quod ab eō dūcitur, hanc prīmum habet viam, quae dēdūcit ad convenientiam cōnservātiōnemque nātūrae;The duty, however, which is derived from it has as its first path that which leads to harmony with nature and its preservation; Off. 1.28.100quam sī sequēmur ducem, numquam aberrābimus sequēmurque et id, quod acūtum et perspicāx nātūrā est, et id, quod ad hominum cōnsociātiōnem accommodātum, et id, quod vehemēns atque forte.if we follow nature as our guide, we shall never go astray, and we shall pursue both what is by nature keen and clear-sighted, and what is suited to the fellowship of men, and what is vigorous and strong.
Off. 1.28.100Sed maxima vīs decōrī in hāc īnest parte, dē quā disputāmus;But the greatest force of decorum lies in this part which we are discussing; Off. 1.28.100neque enim sōlum corporis, quī ad nātūram aptī sunt, sed multō etiam magis animī mōtūs probandī, quī item ad nātūram accommodātī sunt.for not only the movements of the body which are suited to nature are to be approved, but much more those of the mind, which are likewise adapted to nature. Off. 1.28.101Duplex est enim vīs animōrum atque nātūra;For the force and nature of minds is twofold; Off. 1.28.101ūna pars in appetītū posita est, quae est Graecē quae, hominem hūc et illūc rapit altera, in ratiōne quae, docet et explānat quid, faciendum fugiendum que sit.one part is located in appetite, which is hormē in Greek, and which sweeps a man this way and that; the other in reason, which teaches and makes clear what is to be done and what avoided. Off. 1.28.101Ita fit, ut ratiō praesit, appetītus obtemperet.So it comes about that reason commands and appetite obeys.