Off. 1.29.1Omnis autem āctiō vacāre dēbet temeritāte et neglegentiā nec vērō agere quicquam, cuius nōn possit causam probābilem reddere;Every action, moreover, ought to be free of rashness and carelessness, nor should one do anything for which one cannot give a plausible reason; Off. 1.29.1haec est enim ferē discrīptiō officiī.for this is more or less the definition of duty. Off. 1.29.102Efficiendum autem est, ut appetītūs ratiōnī oboediant eamque neque praecurrant nec propter pigritiam aut ignāviam dēserant sintque tranquillī atque omnī animī perturbātiōne careant;We must bring it about that the appetites obey reason and neither run ahead of it nor desert it through sloth or cowardice, and that they are calm and free of every disturbance of mind; Off. 1.29.102ex quō ēlūcēbit omnis cōnstantia omnisque moderātiō.from this all constancy and all moderation will shine forth. Off. 1.29.102Nam quī appetītūs longius ēvagantur et tamquam exsultantēs sīve cupiendō sīve fugiendō nōn satis ā ratiōne retinentur, iī sine dubiō fīnem et modum trānseunt;For appetites that range too far and, as if bolting, whether in desire or in aversion, are not held back enough by reason, without doubt overstep limit and measure; Off. 1.29.102relinquunt enim et abiciunt oboedientiam nec ratiōnī pārent, cui sunt subiectī lēge nātūrae;for they abandon and cast off obedience and do not obey reason, to which they are subject by the law of nature; Off. 1.29.102ā quibus nōn modo animī perturbantur, sed etiam corpora.and by them not only minds are thrown into disorder but bodies too.
Off. 1.29.102Licet ōra ipsa cernere īrātōrum aut eōrum, quī aut libīdine aliquā aut metū commōtī sunt aut voluptāte nimiā gestiunt;One can see the very faces of those who are angry, or of those who are stirred by some lust or fear, or who exult in excessive pleasure; Off. 1.29.102quōrum omnium voltus, vōcēs, mōtūs statūsque mūtantur.the expressions, voices, movements and postures of all of these are changed. Off. 1.29.103Ex quibus illud intellegitur, ut ad officiī fōrmam revertāmur, appetītūs omnēs contrahendōs sēdandōsque esse excitandamque animadversiōnem et dīligentiam, ut nē quid temerē ac fortuītō, incōnsīderātē neglegenterque agāmus.From this it is understood, to return to the outline of duty, that all the appetites must be restrained and calmed, and that attentiveness and diligence must be roused, so that we do nothing rashly and at random, nothing thoughtlessly and carelessly. Off. 1.29.103Neque enim ita generātī ā nātūrā sumus, ut ad lūdum et iocum factī esse videāmur, ad sevēritātem potius et ad quaedam studia graviōra atque maiōra.For we have not been so made by nature that we seem created for play and jest, but rather for seriousness and for certain weightier and greater pursuits.
Off. 1.29.103Lūdō autem et iocō ūtī illō quidem licet, sed sīcut somnō et quiētibus cēterīs tum, cum gravibus sēriīsque rēbus satis fēcerimus.Play and jest one may indeed use, but as we use sleep and other kinds of rest, only when we have done enough for serious and weighty matters. Off. 1.29.103Ipsumque genus iocandī nōn profūsum nec immodestum, sed ingenuum et facētum esse dēbet.And the very manner of joking should not be extravagant or immodest, but gentlemanly and witty. Off. 1.29.103Ut enim puerīs nōn omnem lūdendī licentiam damus, sed eam, quae ab honestātis āctiōnibus nōn sit aliēna, sīc in ipsō iocō aliquod probī ingeniī lūmen ēlūceat.For as we do not give boys every licence to play, but only that which is not out of keeping with honourable activities, so in joking itself let some light of an upright character shine out. Off. 1.29.104Duplex omnīnō est iocandī genus, ūnum illīberāle, petulāns, flāgitiōsum, obscēnum, alterum ēlegāns, urbānum, ingeniōsum, facētum.There are, in general, two kinds of joking: one ungentlemanly, insolent, shameful, obscene; the other elegant, urbane, clever, witty. Off. 1.29.104Quō genere nōn modo Plautus noster et Atticōrum antīqua cōmoedia, sed etiam philosophōrum Sōcraticōrum librī refertī sunt, multaque multōrum facētē dicta, ut ea, quae ā sene Catōne collēcta sunt, quae vocant ἀποφθέγματα.With this second kind not only our own Plautus and the Old Comedy of the Athenians are filled, but also the books of the Socratic philosophers, as are many witty sayings of many men, like those collected by old Cato, which they call apophthegms.
Off. 1.29.104Facilis igitur est distīnctiō ingenuī et illīberālis iocī.The distinction, then, between gentlemanly and ungentlemanly joking is easy. Off. 1.29.104Alter est, sī tempore fit, ut sī remissō animō, gravissimō homine dignus, alter nē līberō quidem, sī rērum turpitūdinī adhibētur verbōrum obscēnitās.The one, if it is made at the right time, for instance when the mind is relaxed, is worthy of the most serious man; the other is not worthy even of a free man, if obscenity of words is applied to shameful matters. Off. 1.29.104Lūdendī etiam est quīdam modus retinendus, ut nē nimis omnia profundāmus ēlātīque voluptāte in aliquam turpitūdinem dēlābāmur.In play too a certain limit must be kept, so that we do not pour everything out too freely and, carried away by pleasure, slip into some disgrace. Off. 1.29.104Suppeditant autem et campus noster et studia vēnandī honesta exempla lūdendī.Our Campus, moreover, and the pursuit of hunting supply honourable examples of recreation.