In Running with the Buffaloes, Mark Wetmore discusses the Latin phrase "res severa verum gaudia," which he says means "to be serious is the greatest joy." However, a friend who is familiar with Latin recently told me that the quote is actually "res severa verum gaudium," which translates more closely to "True joy is a serious matter."
Are they basically the same phrase? Is one grammatically incorrect? Any Latin scholars care to chime in?
It should be:
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I don't think this thread got the respect it deserved, so I'm commenting even if madarin will never see this. I came upon this quote while reading Running with the Buffaloes and decided to do some research which led me here.
From my understanding of the Latin language, word order is optional, which can often lead to confusion in translation. The context of the quote is usually the what determines the English translation. As is, either translation, "Only a serious thing is real joy" or "True joy is a serious thing" is appropriate. In its context, a letter by Seneca, the latter translation is more appropriate. Seneca is addressing Lucilius about joy and wants to emphasize that "True joy is a serious thing."
https://huehueteotl.wordpress.com/2007/03/23/res-severa-verum-gaudium/
By researching this, the quote for me began to carry much more meaning than just what Mark Wetmore gave it in "Running with the Buffaloes". In my opinion, the two translations play off each other: "True joy is a serious thing, but to find true joy, we must be serious."
I'm no Latin scholar and I am pushing my biased philosophy upon the translation, but hopefully my analysis will resonate with some running nerd out there.
Thanks ludwig, it has!
res severa verum gaudium “True joy is a serious thing. ” This famous sentence is often misinterpreted. Seneca is instructing the younger Lucilius about real joy and how to find it;
Believe me: True joy is a serious thing! Or do you believe a man could with compose – or, as our men of the world prefer saying: serene – countenance despise death, open his house to poverty, rein in his desires and think of enduring pain? He who is able to accomplish all these, is living in deep joy – although it might not seem alluring. In possession of such a joy I want to see you: and it shall never leave you, once you did discover the well, where it does come from.” [L. Annaei Senecae ad Lucilium Epistulae XXIII]
the grammatical subject occupies the secondary position.
It's about the Stoic ideal of happiness, which could only be attained through exercising yourself in Stoic philosophy. On top of that, they believed true happiness was a byproduct of living virtuously. So to be happy, one had to live virtuously, and this required living consciously and in accordance with Stoic doctrine, not living frivolously, as most would try to attain happiness.