On the God of Socrates (1878) - Page 10

Edition: Oudendorp 103

You who wished for me to speak extemporaneously, accept this trial effort following my previous experience.
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Indeed, as I believe, I shall take a favorable risk by making this trial; now that my rehearsed works have been wonderfully approved, I am about to speak things unthought. For I do not fear that I might displease in trifles, I who have pleased in more serious matters. But so that you might know me in every way, try me also in this, as Lucilius Gaius Lucilius was a famous Roman satirist known for his "schedia" or impromptu-style poems. says, in this impromptu

and unpolished piece, to see whether I am the same when sudden as when prepared; if any of you have not yet known these sudden works of ours. These you will certainly hear with the same labor with which we write
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but with a more favorable indulgence than that with which we read. For it is usually the custom among wise men that in elaborate works, judgment is stricter, but in sudden matters, indulgence is more generous. For written things
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you weigh and examine, but sudden things you understand and forgive at the same time; and not unfairly. For those

things which we read as written will be, even if you remain silent, exactly as they were brought forth; but these things, which at the present moment and as if together with you must be given birth, will be such as you make them by your favor. For how much will I then be adjusted in my speech, ||? while ||? I notice that you listen willingly! Therefore, it is placed in your hand to fill our sails and now release them, lest they be hanging and limp, or tight and wrinkled. Apuleius uses a sailing metaphor here: the audience's reaction is the "wind" that moves his speech.
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Augustine, The City of God, Book VIII, 14: Apuleius the Platonist of Madaura Madaura was a Roman colony in North Africa, modern-day Algeria. wrote one book on this subject alone, the title of which he wished to be On the God of Socrates and shortly after concerning which even Apuleius himself was so ashamed that he labeled the book On the God of Socrates, which according to his own argument . . . . . he ought not to have called On the God but On the Spirit daemon of Socrates. Augustine is critiquing Apuleius here; in the ancient world, a "daemon" was a protective spirit or lesser divinity, but in Augustine's Christian context, the word was beginning to take on the modern negative meaning of "demon." Priscian, Institutes of Grammar X, 3, 17 (p. 509, 9 Hertz edition): Apuleius in the dialogue which is On the God of Socrates. — 4 Festus p. 334 Müller edition and Petronius chapter 4 — 7 "usually the custom among wise" — "generous" Vincent of Beauvais, Mirror of Doctrine V, 94 and Mirror of History IV, 7.

HERE BEGINS HAPPILY THE WORK OF APULEIUS THE PLATONIST OF MADAURA ON THE GOD OF SOCRATIS. MANUSCRIPT $M$

No inscription/title in manuscript $F$ 1 "trial" original: "rudimentu*" (erased, as it seems, the letter r in the second hand of $M$) manuscript $M$ 2 "risk where" (omits "I shall make" after) manuscript $M$ wonderfully suggested by Goldbacher; manuscripts $O$ read "by the matter" original: "re" 3 "are" suggested by Lipsius; manuscripts $O$ read "I am" original: "sum" 5 "and" original: "et" omitted by Wowerius sudden prepared (omits "who") manuscript $M$ 6 "you know" manuscript $M$ with which we write and than we read I have set these apart in brackets 7 "among" manuscript $FM^2$; "at" manuscript $M$ be precedes "in" in manuscript $M$ works manuscript $F^2$; "wealth" original: "opibus" manuscripts $O$ 10 "written" original: "scriptu" manuscript $M$ of what sort original: "quali" manuscript $F$ brought forth manuscript $M$ 11 "and" original: "et" omitted by Wowerius's edition given birth suggested by Rohde; manuscript $M$ reads "spared"; manuscript $F$ reads "divided" 12 "by favoring" edition of Rome; manuscripts $O$ read "by doing" . "to the speech" (the letter t corrected from c in the second hand of $M$) manuscript $M$ while added by Wilamowitz in a gap indicated by Goldbacher 13 "hand your" in inverse order in manuscript $F$ to be manuscript $M$ and now release followed by Oudendorp and Hildebrand; manuscript $F$ reads "even release"; manuscript $M$ reads "even send" 14 "limp" original: "flacida" manuscript $M$ wrinkled original: "caperata" manuscript $F$