Obeuntem senectam, tot aetatis uices induit, tam uarias habitudines corporis participat, tot uultus eiusdem laetantis uel dolentis So greatly does that smart, smooth mirror, that marvelous artisan, outstrip the crafts inĮadem semper contemplantibus aequaeua est ab ineunte pueritia ad In wax, or daubed with pigment, or made similar by any other human craft, will again quickly become dissimilar, and like aĬadaver will have but one immobile face. Truly something that has been shaped from clay, cast in bronze, carved in stone, imprinted Old age, so many times of life it takes on, such various conditions of the body it shares, so many expressions of the same man itĬopies, whether he's happy or sad. Ita mobilis et ad omnem nutum hominis sui morigera Īnd furthermore, the image is always of equal age to the one contemplating it, from the time of early childhood to that of final Picturae rigor et motus omnibus, qui praecipua fide similitudinem repraesentat, cum in eo uisitur imago mire relata, ut similis, Imaginibus opera diutina sumitur, neque tamen similitudo aeque ut in speculis comparet deest enim et luto uigor et saxo color et Vigor is lacking in those representations made from potter's clay,Īnd motion is what represents an image most faithfully when an image is seen, reflected marvelously in the mirror, with likenessĪnd motion responding to each nod of the man it portrays. Of course, the work of creating images by hand takes time, and even so, there's no resemblance to match the mirror's. Oblatum culpabile iudicandum est, cum sit in ea uel magis miranda et facilitas et similitudo. Or why else would men want statues and images of themselves formed by artists? Unless it's thought that the results of craftsĪre praiseworthy, while what nature produces must be judged faulty, since the mimicry and artistry of the former is marvellousĪut quid sibi statuae et imagines uariis artibus effigiatae uolunt? nisi forte quod artificio elaboratum laudabile habetur, hoc natura Scio et filiorum cariores esse qui similes uidentur et publicitus simulacrum suum cuique, quod uideat, pro meritis praemio tribui. Quoquo uelis paruo speculo promptam gestare? an tu ignoras nihil esse aspectabilius homini nato quam formam suam? equidem Someone at public expense as a favor for his services, and so that he can see himself.Ĭedo nunc, si et inspexisse me fateor, quod tandem crimen est imaginem suam nosse eamque non uno loco conditam, sed His own image? I know that children who resemble their parents are more beloved, and that a likeness might be set up for One place but toted about handily in a small mirror? Or are you unaware that there's nothing nicer for a man to look upon than So I yield, and if I confess that I've looked into a mirror, what crime is it to know your own image, when it's not fixed in Speculum inspexerim, quoniam, ut res est, magis piaculum decernis speculum philosopho quam Cereris mundum profano uidere. Habere et speculi non tam possessio culpatur quam inspectio, illud etiam doceas necesse est, quando et quibus praesentibus in quod si neque habere utendi argumentum est neque non utendi non Nam et contra plurimis rebus possessu careo, usu fruor. More sinful for a philosopher to stare at a mirror than for someone ignorant to look upon the sacred emblems of Ceres. This is what should be asked: when and in whose presence I might have peered into the mirror. Now, IF owning something isn't proof of using it,Īnd not owning something isn't proof of never using it, and IF it's not so much owning the mirror as looking into it that's faulted, On the contrary, there are many things which I don't own but enjoy using. quid enim? si choragium thymelicum possiderem, num ex eo argumentarere etiam uti me consuesse tragoedi syrmate, histrionis crocota, %orgia, mimi centunculo? Non tamen ex eo accipi me necesse est exornari quoque ad speculum solere. Wardrobe, then from this you would deduce that I'm also accustomed to wearing a tragic robe, the saffron garb of a pantomime, the multicolored robe of a mime? Ut igitur habere concedam - ne aliquid obiecisse te credas, si negaro -,īut you can't conclude, even from this, that I'm in the habit of primping myself in front of it. (If I were to deny it, you might think you'd scored a point against me.) 'habet speculum philosophus, possidet speculum philosophus'. "The philosopher has a mirror! The philosopher has a mirror!" Sequitur enim de speculo longa illa et censoria oratio, de quo pro rei atrocitate paene Take, for instance, that long and accusing oration concerning The Mirror that followed. APOLOGIA APVLEII : PART TWO APOLOGIA APVLEII
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