Plautus
Plautus
Titus Maccius Plautus, commonly known as Plautus, was a Roman playwright of the Old Latin period. His comedies are the earliest Latin literary works to have survived in their entirety. He wrote Palliata comoedia, the genre devised by the innovator of Latin literature, Livius Andronicus. The word Plautine /ˈplɔːtaɪn/ refers to both Plautus's own works and works similar to or influenced by his...
NationalityRoman
ProfessionPlaywright
spring men oats
Besides that, when elsewhere the harvest of wheat is most abundant, there it comes up less by one-fourth than what you have sowed. There, methinks, it were a proper place for men to sow their wild oats, where they would not spring up. [Lat., Post id, frumenti quum alibi messis maxima'st Tribus tantis illi minus reddit, quam obseveris. Heu! istic oportet obseri mores malos, Si in obserendo possint interfieri.]
ignorance knows
Know not what you know, and see not what you see. [Lat., Etiam illud quod scies nesciveris; Ne videris quod videris.]
blow ego easy
To blow and to swallow at the same time is not easy; I cannot at the same time be here and also there. [Lat., Simul flare sorbereque haud facile Est: ego hic esse et illic simul, haud potui.]
luck desire happens
Things unhoped for happen oftener than things we desire.
trying favors succeed
We should try to succeed by merit, not by favor. He who does well will always have patrons enough. [Lat., Virtute ambire oportet, non favitoribus. Sat habet favitorum semper, qui recte facit.]
men modesty young
Modesty becomes a young man. [Lat., Adolescentem verecundum esse decet.]
shells cracks kernel
He who would eat the kernel, must crack the shell. [Lat., Qui e nuce nucleum esse vult, frangat nucem.]
males possession
Badly gotten, badly spent. [Lat., Male partum, male disperit.]
possession can-not ifs
If you spend a thing you can not have it. [Lat., Non tibi illud apparere si sumas potest.]
art poverty thorough
Poverty is a thorough instructress in all the arts. [Lat., Paupertas . . . omnes artes perdocet.]
men fortune perpetual
No man has perpetual good fortune. [Lat., Nulli est homini perpetuum bonum.]
men life-is fortune
Man's fortune is usually changed at once; life is changeable. [Lat., Actutum fortunae solent mutarier; varia vita est.]
looks should wells
He who accuses another of wrong should look well into his own conduct.
ego gold goodness
A good disposition I far prefer to gold; for gold is the gift of fortune; goodness of disposition is the gift of nature. I prefer much rather to be called good than fortunate. [Lat., Bono ingenio me esse ornatam, quam auto multo mavolo. Aurum fortuna invenitur, natura ingenium donum. Bonam ego, quam beatam me esse nimio dici mavolo.