Off. 1.4.1Prīncipiō generī animantium omnī est ā nātūrā tribūtum, ut sē, vītam corpusque tueātur, dēclīnet ea, quae nocitūra videantur, omniaque, quae sint ad vīvendum necessāria, anquīrat et paret, ut pāstum, ut latibula, ut alia generis eiusdem.In the first place, every kind of living creature has been endowed by nature with the instinct to protect itself, its life and its body, to avoid what seems likely to harm it, and to seek out and procure everything needed for living, such as food, shelter and other things of the same kind. Off. 1.4.1Commūne item animantium omnium est coniūnctiōnis adpetītus prōcreandī causā et cūra quaedam eōrum, quae prōcreāta sint;Common likewise to all living creatures is the desire for union for the sake of procreation, and a certain care for what has been procreated; Off. 1.4.1sed inter hominem et bēluam hoc maximē interest, quod haec tantum, quantum sēnsū movētur, ad id sōlum, quod adest quodque praesēns est, sē accommodat paulum admodum sentiēns praeteritum aut futūrum;but between man and beast the chief difference is this, that the beast, only so far as it is moved by the senses, adapts itself solely to what is at hand and present, with very little sense of the past or the future; Off. 1.4.1homō autem, quod ratiōnis est particeps, per quam cōnsequentia cernit, causās rērum videt eārumque praegressus et quasi antecessiōnēs nōn ignōrat, similitūdinēs comparat rēbusque praesentibus adiungit atque annectit futūrās, facile tōtīus vītae cursum videt ad eamque dēgendam praeparat rēs necessāriās.man, however, because he shares in reason, through which he discerns consequences, sees the causes of things, is not ignorant of their antecedents and, as it were, their forerunners, compares similarities, and links and connects future things with present ones, easily sees the course of his whole life and prepares what is necessary for living it.
Off. 1.4.12Eademque nātūra vī ratiōnis hominem conciliat hominī et ad ōrātiōnis et ad vītae societātem ingeneratque in prīmīs praecipuum quendam amōrem in eōs, quī prōcreātī sunt, impellitque, ut hominum coetūs et celebrātiōnēs et esse et ā sē obīrī velit ob eāsque causās studeat parāre ea, quae suppeditent ad cultum et ad vīctum, nec sibi sōlī, sed coniugī, līberīs cēterīsque, quōs cārōs habeat tuērīque dēbeat;And the same nature, by the power of reason, unites man to man in a fellowship of both speech and life, implants above all a certain special love for his offspring, and drives him to wish that gatherings and assemblies of men should exist and that he should take part in them, and for these reasons to be eager to provide what may supply comfort and sustenance, not for himself alone, but for his wife, his children and the others whom he holds dear and ought to protect; Off. 1.4.12quae cūra exsuscitat etiam animōs et maiōrēs ad rem gerendam facit.and this concern also rouses men's spirits and makes them greater for action. Off. 1.4.13In prīmīsque hominis est propria vērī inquīsītiō atque investīgātiō.And above all, the search for and investigation of truth is peculiar to man.
Off. 1.4.13Itaque cum sumus necessāriīs negōtiīs cūrīsque vacuī, tum avēmus aliquid vidēre, audīre, addiscere cognitiōnemque rērum aut occultārum aut admīrābilium ad beātē vīvendum necessāriam dūcimus.So when we are free from necessary business and cares, then we long to see, to hear, to learn something new, and we consider knowledge of things either hidden or wonderful necessary for a happy life. Off. 1.4.13Ex quō intellegitur, quod vērum, simplex sincērumque sit, id esse nātūrae hominis aptissimum.From this it is understood that what is true, simple and pure is most suited to the nature of man. Off. 1.4.13Huic vērī videndī cupiditātī adiūncta est appetītiō quaedam prīncipātūs, ut nēminī pārēre animus bene īnfōrmātus ā nātūrā velit nisi praecipientī aut docentī aut ūtilitātis causā iūstē et lēgitimē imperantī;Joined to this desire to see the truth is a certain longing for pre-eminence, so that a mind well formed by nature is willing to obey no one except one who instructs or teaches it, or who commands justly and lawfully for the sake of its advantage; Off. 1.4.13ex quō magnitūdō animī exsistit hūmānārumque rērum contemptiō.from this arise greatness of spirit and contempt for human affairs.
Off. 1.4.14Nec vērō illa parva vīs nātūrae est ratiōnisque.Nor indeed is this a small power of nature and reason, Off. 1.4.14quod ūnum hoc animal sentit, quid sit ōrdō, quid sit, quod deceat, in factīs dictīsque quī modus.that this one creature perceives what order is, what is fitting, and what measure there should be in deeds and words. Off. 1.4.14Itaque eōrum ipsōrum, quae aspectū sentiuntur, nūllum aliud animal pulchritūdinem, venustātem, convenientiam partium sentit;Accordingly, of the very things perceived by sight, no other creature perceives beauty, grace and harmony of parts; Off. 1.4.14quam similitūdinem nātūra ratiōque ab oculīs ad animum trānsferēns multō etiam magis pulchritūdinem, cōnstantiam, ōrdinem in cōnsiliīs factīsque cōnservandam putat cavetque, nē quid indecōrē effēminātēvē faciat, tum in omnibus et opīniōnibus et factīs nē quid libīdinōsē aut faciat aut cōgitet.and nature and reason, transferring this analogy from the eyes to the mind, think that beauty, consistency and order are to be preserved much more still in plans and deeds, and take care that nothing be done in an unseemly or unmanly way, and then that in all opinions and deeds nothing be either done or thought wantonly. Off. 1.4.14Quibus ex rēbus cōnflātur et efficitur id, quod quaerimus, honestum, quod etiamsī nōbilitātum nōn sit, tamen honestum sit, quodque vērē dīcimus, etiamsī ā nūllō laudētur, nātūrā esse laudābile.From these things is forged and produced that which we are seeking, the honourable, which, even if it is not celebrated, is still honourable, and which, as we truly say, even if it is praised by no one, is by nature praiseworthy.