The phrases of Terencio come from Roman antiquity and always keep alive its content and scope. Publio Ter’ncio Afro was primarily a comedy writer. Little is known about his life, but the six works he has written are preserved entirely.
It is precisely from these six works that the interesting phrases of Terencio were extracted, which are quoted to this day. It is a kind of miracle that his writings have survived the erosion of time. Most of the works of his contemporaries did not have the same destiny.
- It should also be noted that Terencio was merely a slave.
- In fact.
- His name is the same as that of the master he served in slavery.
- The same as seeing his incredible qualities granted him freedom.
This allowed him to devote himself to writing and for more than 21 centuries later continue to talk about him. These are some of ter’ncio’s most quoted phrases.
“He who is not endowed with reason, there is no reason that can govern him. “Terencio?
It is one of the most beautiful and profound phrases of Terncio, presents several Latin translations, but in each of them the essential meaning is preserved, it speaks precisely of the essence that all human beings share.
By saying that nothing human is alien to us, he declares that every human being is capable of anything. In the positive and negative sense, we all have the same potential.
? I am a man; Nothing alien to me?
“Servileness produces friends; Does the truth produce hatred?
It is an affirmation that has a hint of bitterness, but also of overwhelming realism, more so when you consider that Terencio lived in Roman imperial times, an environment in which convenience and betrayal were the norm.
Being attentive and pleasing others generates “friends”, in quotes. In this way, we gain the goodwill of others, even superficially. On the other hand, many people do not tolerate the truth. This often results in animosity and rejection.
“Holding a wolf by the ears is a bad thing, because you don’t know how to let go or how to keep holding it. “
It is one of these phrases of Terncio that reveals his facet as the author of comedy, as well as sarcastic and applicable to many phenomena that occur within the power structure, is a metaphor for the problems that certain relationships can pose to us if we do not know how to deal with them.
The wolf captured by the ears is a representation of the partial control of an attacker or attack, in this case the person who is caught is the one who holds the wolf by the ears, because he cannot release it, but also does not want to have him close.
“Excess of nothing, do I consider this standard to be the most useful in life?.
It is a phrase taken from stoicism and an affirmation of moderation as the ultimate virtue of life. All excess becomes harmful. No matter if it’s positive or negative, excess is always bad.
The stoics rejected nothing, especially no pleasure. However, they emphasized that excess always causes pain and harm, as in Terencio’s sentence, they simply advocated moderation and balance.
“Good luck is always good for the strong. “
It is also a sentence that has many variations and from which we find different versions. Speaking of what we commonly call, luck, and it always seems to go with those who have the greatest strength.
In fact, it has nothing to do with luck. Spiritual strength generates logical chains in which circumstances end up being favorable, even if they initially seem unfavorable.
“Without risk, nothing good and memorable is done
It is a call not to stop being afraid, but to face different situations even if you are afraid, staying in a safe and protected place will only lead you to mediocrity.
For this reason, Terncio stresses that if we are looking for something memorable and great, we must expose ourselves to risks, it also means being willing to lose or not to succeed, at least at first.
“It is profoundly wrong to believe that the most lasting authority is established better by force than by a covenant of friendship. “
In this phrase of Terncio, we see a clear pacifist statement: authority is not imposed by force. And if it is imposed in this way, it will surely be an abhorrent and transient authority.
The pact, on the other hand, has greater power. It is the union of wills, so its effects will be more lasting. In addition, the friendship pact reflects the interests and needs of all involved, and this is what gives it strength.
Terancio was a devoted intellectual and a brilliant writer. Its popularity was immense, both in antiquity and in the Middle Ages. Hundreds of generations have drunk from his texts and he continues to teach us today.